The Baggies saw themselves unfortunate to see themselves relegated again from the Premier League despite finishing bottom of the league. They played decent attractive football throughout the 2008/09 season but sadly failed to return the results which they deserved and subsequently followed in the suit of its predecessors; Derby County, Sunderland and Watford who have all seen a familiar fate.
By: Iain Bate
www.baggies-mad.co.uk
I'm not really sure what to expect from Albion this season. Of course they'll be hoping to bounce straight back up with promotion automatically but with the reshuffle behind the scenes its not quite clear how successful the Baggies are going to be.
It's hoped that Roberto Di Matteo can continue the attacking football we were famous for under Mowbray yet shore us up at the other end.
If they can keep the squad together then undoubtedly it the Midlands club will be within a great chance. While their defence may have been exposed regularly last season I believe they'll be fine in the Championship with the quality of teams that are in opposition this season.
Di Matteo has already signed Simon Cox so they'll be hoping he can hit the ground running and carry on where he left off at Swindon Town by scoring freely. However if they do sell a few of their 'gems' i.e. Jonathan Greening, James Morrison, Chris Brunt and Robert Koren then the new players will again need time to gel together.
Blades-Mad Predicted Finish: 1st (champions)
| Betting Odds: | |
| Promotion: | Relegation: |
| 9/4 | 40/1 |
2008-09 Players Statistics
| Player Name | Position | DoB | # | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Worrall, David | Midfield | 12 Jun 1990 | tbc | 0 | 0 |
Kiely, Dean | Goal | 10 Oct 1970 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
Robinson, Paul | Defence | 14 Dec 1978 | 3 | 37 | 1 |
Cech, Marek | Defence | 18 Jan 1983 | 4 | 6 (+5) | 0 |
Barnett, Leon | Defence | 30 Nov 1985 | 5 | 13 (+1) | 0 |
Clement, Neil | Defence | 03 Oct 1978 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
Koren, Robert | Midfield | 20 Sep 1980 | 7 | 38 (+1) | 3 |
Greening, Jonathan | Midfield | 02 Jan 1979 | 8 | 37 (+1) | 2 |
Bednar, Roman | Forward | 26 Mar 1983 | 9 | 17 (+14) | 6 |
Miller, Ishmael | Forward | 05 Mar 1987 | 10 | 11 (+4) | 3 |
Brunt, Chris | Midfield | 14 Dec 1984 | 11 | 30 (+8) | 7 |
Daniels, Luke | Goal | 05 Jan 1988 | 13 | 0 | 0 |
Do-Heon, Kim | Midfield | 14 Jul 1982 | 14 | 12 (+7) | 1 |
Moore, Luke | Forward | 13 Feb 1986 | 16 | 7 (+16) | 1 |
Dorrans, Graham | Midfield | 05 May 1987 | 17 | 6 (+5) | 1 |
Carson, Scott | Goal | 03 Sep 1985 | 19 | 39 | 0 |
Teixeira, Filipe | Midfield | 02 Oct 1980 | 20 | 4 (+9) | 0 |
Menseguez, Juan Carlos | Forward | 18 Feb 1984 | 21 | 3 (+4) | 1 |
Zuiverloon, Gianni | Defence | 30 Dec 1986 | 22 | 34 (+1) | 1 |
Meite, Abdoulaye | Defence | 06 Oct 1980 | 23 | 19 | 0 |
Martis, Shelton | Defence | 29 Nov 1982 | 24 | 6 (+1) | 0 |
Olsson, Jonas | Defence | 10 Mar 1983 | 26 | 29 | 3 |
Morrison, James | Midfield | 25 May 1986 | 27 | 29 (+1) | 3 |
Valero, Borja | Midfield | 12 Jan 1985 | 28 | 29 (+5) | 0 |
Mulumbu, Youssouf | Midfield | 25 Jan 1987 | 31 | 2 (+4) | 0 |
Fortune, Marc-Antoine | Forward | 02 Jul 1981 | 32 | 18 | 5 |
Downing, Paul | Midfield | 26 Oct 1991 | 34 | 0 | 0 |
Sawyers, Romaine | Forward | 02 Nov 1991 | 38 | 0 | 0 |
Wood, Chris | Forward | 07 Dec 1991 | 39 | 0 (+2) | 0 |
Allsopp, Ryan | Goal | 17 Jun 1992 | 41 | 0 | 0 |
* Statistics up to and including 26 May 2009