West Bromwich Albion v Bolton Wanderers: Preview

01 October 2010 18:30
West Brom assistant boss Eddie Newton has hailed the "different dimension" Peter Odemwingie has brought to the side.

The Nigeria forward has been an instant hit following his move to the Hawthorns from Lokomotiv Moscow this summer and was instrumental in the shock 3-2 win at Arsenal last weekend, scoring Albion's first goal having earlier won his team a penalty as his pace caught out the Gunners defence.

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Odemwingie has scored three goals in five games but his all-round play has also caught the eye and Newton said: "Peter brings a positivity to the changing room, he is very positive as a man, very positive.

"He mixes with everybody really well and as a player he has got loads of pace which threatens the defence and he is very positive, he will shoot on sight, he is very clever in his movements, so he does give us a different dimension when he plays."

Newton revealed the emphasis this week in training had been on making everything as normal as possible following last week's heroics, with Bolton the visitors to the Hawthorns.

"We will continue to do the same as we have been doing from the beginning of the season and what we were doing last season, working really hard on the training field," the former Chelsea midfielder added.

"The management team are working very hard analysing the opposition, doing all the stuff that we have to do and we will continue to do the same thing.

"It's been a great week, you're not going to go to the Emirates on a regular basis and get a victory so we told the boys to enjoy it and rightly so, but it's back to the job as usual when you come back in and we've been training well this week."

Czech striker Roman Bednar is available after he missed out on the trip to face Arsenal last weekend because of a thigh injury, while Romanian defender Gabriel Tamas has fully recovered from a calf injury and is also back in contention.

Meanwhile, Bolton boss Owen Coyle believes there is more to West Brom's impressive start to the season than just the sheer enthusiasm of being Barclays Premier League new boys.

The Baggies, who gained automatic promotion after finishing second in the Championship last term, have made a storming return to the top flight so far and currently lie sixth in the table.

Di Matteo's men have accrued 10 points from their opening six league games, with last week's 3-2 victory at Arsenal causing arguably the biggest shock of the campaign to date.

That result left Albion fans pinching themselves, although they will be wary of false dawns having seen their side drop back into the second tier on three separate occasions over the last decade.

Coyle also knows the initial boost provided by promotion can soon fade away, having got Burnley up and off to an encouraging start in 2009-10 only for the Clarets to be relegated after he left for Wanderers in January.

With West Brom though, the Scot feels it is simply a case of a club reaping success due to the quality of its players.

"I think when you are newly-promoted there is a freshness and an energy," said Coyle.

"There is a real vibrancy about the football club - but all those things pale into insignificance if you don't have the quality to back that up in terms of the players.

"West Bromwich Albion have shown this season that they do. They have been up and down for the last few years, but they have bona fide Premier League players.

"Roberto has signed well and brought in a couple of very good players. They have a very good team and they have tremendous backing at the Hawthorns where the fans are passionate in getting behind their team."

With regard to his own players, Coyle could face a selection dilemma ahead of tomorrow's away game against the Baggies.

Gary Cahill returns to the squad after suspension but his defensive colleagues have performed admirably in his absence, leaving the manager with a tough decision.

"Sam Ricketts has come in after Andy O'Brien got injured at Aston Villa and he has been outstanding," Coyle said.

"Sam is an international player who can play anywhere, so his level of performance hasn't surprised me.

"Those lads have done ever so well, but that is why as a manager you have to make these decisions when they come about.

"We had a tough decision last week with Jussi Jaaskelainen being back available after suspension because young Adam Bogdan had been terrific in goal.

"Ultimately we will pick the best team that we think can go to West Brom and get a positive result."

Source: DSG