Tony Pulis would rather reach FA Cup final than finish in the top half each year

With just one game left, the Baggies boss is heading for his first ever top 10 finish in the Premier League in this, his ninth season in the division.

Unless there is an 11-goal swing with West Ham or Leicester beat Bournemouth by one goal and Albion lose by six, he will deliver the top half spot owner Guochuan Lai demanded last year.

But the Premier League has split into two divisions this season, with the top seven racing away from the rest of the pack.

Fifteen points separate seventh-placed Everton and eighth-placed Southampton, but then just six points cover nine teams from eighth to 16th.

Pulis has often been labelled a ‘survival specialist’ and his 40-point mantra at the start of the season is designed to keep teams up.

His record in cup competitions over the past two seasons has infuriated Albion fans, who have watched their team bow out to lower league opposition in three out of four competitions.

But Albion’s head coach insists the cups are important to him, because it gives mid-table clubs purpose.

“If you said to me we’d finish 14th and get to an FA Cup final then I would take that and I think the supporters would take it,” he said.

“If you said to me we’d finish 14th and get into Europe by hook or by crook or some other way I think I’d take that as well and I think the supporters would as well.

“At Stoke we had two great seasons with those competitions and the supporters enjoyed it so much that I think they would have forsaken a top-10 spot to experience that.

“If you can do both, brilliant, but if you can’t I would love the club to have a great cup run or have the chance of going abroad and playing in Europe. It’s about experiences.”

Before this season, Pulis had never finished higher than 11th or lower than 14th with Stoke, Crystal Palace or Albion. The league’s Mr Consistent has also never won fewer than 42 points or more than 47.

The Baggies are currently on 45 points, meaning victory at the Liberty Stadium would take Pulis past his previous best tally.