Analysis: Indecision at the top and pressure on the pitch could cost West Brom
If a football club operates on a game-by-game basis, what happens when a game as bad as this takes place?
Under normal circumstances, this could be put down to a bad day at the office, a freak afternoon when everything that could go wrong, did, and in spectacular fashion.
A goalkeeping error, a missed penalty, an own goal and a red card – that’s the devil’s quadruple right there.
This defeat also came after three wins in a row had steadied the ship following Darren Moore’s sacking.
But does this strange game-by-game basis caretaker James Shan is operating under force the board to now act?
The message from the club’s hierarchy was ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’. Well, something looked broken on Saturday.
It might have been different had Jay Rodriguez kept up his 100 per cent record from the penalty spot – an equaliser may have swayed momentum in Albion’s favour.
But the toothless Baggies only mustered up one shot on target all game, a long-range effort Stefan Johansen fizzed goalwards that David Martin tipped over with minimum fuss.
Millwall’s gnarled backline gobbled up their long balls with ease, but when they tried to play through their hosts they lacked both the ability and the confidence.
On the rare occasions they reached the final third, they looked devoid of ideas and movement.
This is not a criticism of Shan, who has exceeded expectations as a caretaker, taking nine points from a possible 12 so far.
But once again a squad deemed to be one of the strongest in the division proved mentally fragile when a real chance to close the gap on the top two emerged.
Once again they failed to win more than three games in a row.
With Leeds losing, Albion passed up the opportunity to move within four points of the automatic promotion spots.
Every time they’ve come within touching distance this season, they’ve faltered.
Ahmed Hegazi’s red card and disgraceful decision to boot the ball into the home fans echoed Jake Livermore’s red at Blackburn in January.
Albion seem unable to keep their emotions in check and lack the clinical precision and clarity of those sides above them.
That trait doesn’t bode well for the now inevitable foray into the play-offs.
The root of this though comes from the indecision at the top.
Hoping Shan would deliver win after win after win to put the Baggies into the automatic promotion race was always fanciful.
With just six games of the regular season remaining, both he and the fans desperately need some clarity now.
Being left in limbo isn’t helping anyone and doesn’t instil confidence in the club’s decision-makers.
If the board cannot, or do not want to appoint a permanent head coach so near to the end of the season, and want Shan to continue until summer, that should be made clear.
If it had been, his first defeat in four would not raise this many questions. If there was a visible plan in place, fans would be able to get behind it for the run-in.
Shan needs help though. Regardless of whether he wants it or not, bringing in an experienced coach or two will at least give the club a fighting chance in the play-offs.
Those games are often labelled a ‘lottery’, but they’re not really. Teams capable of dealing with the pressure usually prevail.
If it kicked off right now, Albion would be third favourites behind Leeds United and Aston Villa in that mini-tournament for £150million.
With no recognised manager in the dugout, they may even be fourth favourites to emerge as winners at Wembley.
Sacking Moore has been justified subsequently by three wins that has stabilised Albion’s position in the top six when that looked under threat.
But firing a manager is the easy part, hiring the next one is the difficult bit.
So far, the board are yet to publicly deliver a convincing plan for either the short-term or long-term needs of the club.
This is Albion’s best chance of winning promotion back to the Premier League, because their financial superiority dwindles the longer they spend outside of the top tier.
And yet, from the outside, it looks like the board are dithering on the decision.
Perhaps this is an over-reaction to one game, one bad defeat.
But when you run a football club on a game-by-game basis, what other reaction can there be?
