Tony Mowbray makes 'very difficult' admission on West Brom job

The Baggies were seen off at a canter by the hosts who strengthened their own play-off position while Albion's is all-but up in smoke.

Early goals in either half put paid to Albion's hopes at a sold-out CBS Arena, where a red card to Callum Styles shortly after the hosts' second goal, shortly after half-time, did the damage.

Mowbray suggested that frustration around the club was a feeling that has existed throughout the season and potentially before his return to the club in mid-January.

Albion were seventh in the Championship, one place and point outside of the play-offs, when Mowbray was appointed on a two-and-a-half year deal. He has overseen five wins, seven defeats and four draws since and a return of 19 points.

The Coventry clash was a chance to jump above the Sky Blues into sixth on goal difference and put the play-off tilt back in their own hands with fixtures against lowly rivals ahead - but the Baggies failed to show up and delivered one of their poorest displays of the season on the big stage to slump to eighth.

Mowbray's appointment was based around increasing chances at goal and wins to turn regular draws under predecessor Carlos Corberan into victories. The 61-year-old pledged to 'release the handbrake' and 'tickle the tummies' of the misfiring players to deliver more wins.

"I’m trying to turn a team around that’s been pretty passive and sat in its two banks of four and waited, letting the opposition have the ball," Mowbray said.

"When they’d get it, they’d try and break fast. And that’s fine, that’s ok. Still, did they accrue enough points to have scored a number of goals we should’ve done?"

The Baggies had managed 32 goals in 26 league games prior to Mowbray's arrival. That tally is now 51 goals from 43 games with a return of 19 from Mowbray's 16 games. It is well short of around 70 the head coach feels required to be in the play-off mix.

"I don’t know if maybe this frustration that I feel today has been here a lot this season," added the head coach. "It becomes a lot more heightened because the games are running out, but is it the same as after 10 games, after 12 games, after 20 games?

"I’m not sure because I wasn’t here, but sometimes it’s very difficult to turn a team that looks like this into a team you want to make it look like."

Mowbray launched a defence of the squad as he added: "And yet, as I’ve just said to them, I like the group. They look like they care about this team, they care about the club. But again, I go back to it, you have to score goals to win football matches and it becomes irrelevant me talking about control when you don’t put the ball in the net. 

"There are examples of Leicester winning a Premier League with 35 per cent possession, so possession is nobody’s king. Forest are doing it that way this year.

"I just don’t want to play letting the other team having all the ball and then you score from a quick breakaway. I’d rather dominate the game, try to break them down, score some goals and win football matches, (where) everybody knows we’re the best team and deserve to win.

"And this team have shown me they’re more than capable of doing that, other than the last little bit of putting the ball in the net."