It's been awhile since I've felt as broken by a football match as I did at the final whistle yesterday. We battered Bolton for 90 minutes. Does that make us the better team? Or does the fact they got pummelled yet still (Bolton) Wandered off with a point make them the more impressive side? Either way, this division is not that high in quality. And the most quality I've seen this season, has pretty much been from Albion.
Now if the Albion were clinical - and by clinical I mean, scoring when dominant, scoring silly things like PENALTIES, and putting inferior sides to the sword - we'd win the league. In terms of skill, the quality of our players and the way we pass and move means we must be one of the best sides in the division. But until we turn that into points, and especially home wins, we'll not finish in the top six. The players - as they failed to do in the last 16 minutes yesterday - must show faith in themselves to keep hold of the ball without fear of conceding. Albion kept the ball and the impotus of the game for 80 minutes. There was no need to waste time from the 80 minute mark.
The crowd needs to have that faith too. The calls from the Amex crowd for the final whistle during injury time suddenly gave Bolton the hope they needed (correct timekeepers we may be - the Bolton goal came six minutes into the five added on). Bolton's players felt we were desperate for that whistle. And that mindset gave them one last chance. Which they took. In a match that we dominated from start to finish. It's like we all need to have a session with this sports pshycologist they'll be employing for Ashley Barnes and any other Albion penalty taker. To believe. Clinical? No. But, if we were...
If you need cheering up, check out Wilfred Zaha's unsuccessful dive for a penalty at Leeds - comedy gold. And remember, we may have not won yesterday but we outplayed a side we haven't met for almost 20 years because Bolton've been in a higher division. Plus, if it hadn't been for Adam Bogdan, who knows how many we would have scored?
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