[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Astle shoots past Brian Labone to give Albion the lead against eventual league champions Everton, the Hawthorns, 8th November 1969

A disappointing (but thoroughly typical) League Cup surrender in midweek leaves us once again able to spend the autumn concentrating on our Premier League campaign, and you'd hope that with over a week's rest since the Villa game, our first team are just about ready to run through a brick wall for another three points.  This will be the first in a run of five consecutive fixtures against sides who, like us, are aiming for mid-table finishes, so it's vital for us to get a good head of steam going between now and October's end.  If we can build on our excellent performance at Villa Park and keep the points coming, there's no reason why we shouldn't put some comfortable difference between us and the bottom three and be able, for once, to celebrate Christmas in B71 without flaming torches and predictions of a mid-May apocalypse.

Easier said than done, maybe.  Our clashes with Everton are usually unpredictable affairs where the form book largely goes out of the window for both teams.  They seem to be in the process of putting last season's struggles behind them and restoring themselves as an upper mid-table club, and yet an Albion win on Monday night would lift us nicely above the Toffees and their Merseyside neighbours into the heady heights of 7th.  If Lukaku fancies a lazy night, maybe we can make it happen.

In his sole appearance for the club, Jack Russell is Albion's man of the match against Everton with one assist; 27th November 1976

[WBA-Josh]

Myhill

Dawson-McAuley-Evans-Brunt

Yacob

McLean-Morrison-Fletcher-Berahino

Rondon

Subs

Lindegaard

Olsson

Chester

Gardner

McManaman

Gnabry

Lambert

[Stairs]

The League Cup has been a joke for along time. But that did not mean I wanted us to crash out as we did. Hopefully we will take the FA Cup more seriously?

However, the Premier League is the bread and butter. Performance here is what counts and Everton will be a real indication of how we are developing. I am not concerned about defence being a priority. Lots of successful clubs build from the back and I would be (and am) proud of clean sheets and a reputation for being hard to beat.

Goals up front will come. We only need one per game if we don't let any in. But I suspect that we will start scoring more. My fiver this week goes on Rondon being the first to score and when he gets it, I suspect more will follow.

Mid table this season is realistic and as a long time suffering of relegation battles I will wallow in the pleasure of mid table for a few years at least.

[4evaabaggie]

The League Cup has been a joke for along time. But that did not mean I wanted us to crash out as we did. Hopefully we will take the FA Cup more seriously?

However, the Premier League is the bread and butter. Performance here is what counts and Everton will be a real indication of how we are developing. I am not concerned about defence being a priority. Lots of successful clubs build from the back and I would be (and am) proud of clean sheets and a reputation for being hard to beat.

Goals up front will come. We only need one per game if we don't let any in. But I suspect that we will start scoring more. My fiver this week goes on Rondon being the first to score and when he gets it, I suspect more will follow.

Mid table this season is realistic and as a long time suffering of relegation battles I will wallow in the pleasure of mid table for a few years at least.

Good post stairs, I disagree slightly with your " I will wallow in the pleasure of mid table for a few years", I will never be happy to be an also ran, I would rather have the anguish and pleasure of fighting and beating a relegation dogfight or the pleasure of winning a promotion race than making up the numbers. That's why I hate the premier league and the champions (plus others) league, designed so a few always get the glory and the money. My good old British sense of fair play can not stand the biased tilt of the FA, Uefa and Fifa, a level playing field please ..... a game for all the people.

                  Come on you Baggies .....

[betterthanbaird]

I fancy a 0-0 here, I really can't see a good game, just a hunch.

Hopefully McManaman starts, Everton have/have had injuries at full back so they may be weak there, they also tend to lack width so I'm quite positive going into this game. Fingers crossed for our first home win of the season.

[4evaabaggie]

We have not beaten Everton for three years, head to head we have a record of w3d3L5 in the last five seasons (one league cup tie), this to me has nil nil or one nil Everton written all over it. A Baggies win then

[Dingle-Dingle]

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---

West Brom winger Callum McManaman, 24, remains a die-hard Everton fan despite being released as a youngster, and hopes to watch next weekend's derby from the Gwladys Street stand. (Independent)

Better make sure what shirt he`s wearing Monday....... DD

[Stairs]

The League Cup has been a joke for along time. But that did not mean I wanted us to crash out as we did. Hopefully we will take the FA Cup more seriously?

However, the Premier League is the bread and butter. Performance here is what counts and Everton will be a real indication of how we are developing. I am not concerned about defence being a priority. Lots of successful clubs build from the back and I would be (and am) proud of clean sheets and a reputation for being hard to beat.

Goals up front will come. We only need one per game if we don't let any in. But I suspect that we will start scoring more. My fiver this week goes on Rondon being the first to score and when he gets it, I suspect more will follow.

Mid table this season is realistic and as a long time suffering of relegation battles I will wallow in the pleasure of mid table for a few years at least.

Good post stairs, I disagree slightly with your " I will wallow in the pleasure of mid table for a few years", I will never be happy to be an also ran, I would rather have the anguish and pleasure of fighting and beating a relegation dogfight or the pleasure of winning a promotion race than making up the numbers. That's why I hate the premier league and the champions (plus others) league, designed so a few always get the glory and the money. My good old British sense of fair play can not stand the biased tilt of the FA, Uefa and Fifa, a level playing field please ..... a game for all the people.

                  Come on you Baggies .....

OK 'wallow' was a poor choice of word. But I disagree that mid table is something to be ashamed of. Our fight is with ourselves, we just need to improve. 

Instead of fighting relegation we are fighting to achieve 10th place or better. Improving our performance year on year has to be our target. If we focus on overall performance then, although it would mean mid-table, going from 14 to 12 to 10 over successive years is a great set of results. 

Keep doing that and, before I go senile, there is a chance of Europe and even Champions League!

[Tibby Baggie]

Despite our limping out of the Capitol One Cup in pretty poor fashion, I'm actually feeling positive for the game tonight.

Rondon has improved in every game he's played so far and I fancy him to get at least one goal tonight. Would take a point but genuinely think we can match Everton tonight and get all 3.

COYB!

[Baggievicar]

Some question about Stones' fitness for tonight. Think they should give him the evening off.