Premier League Preview: West Bromwich Albion

Last Season: 17th

Pre-Season Prediction: 20th - On a downward spiral since failing to re-obtain Lukaku. Alan Irvine is hardly convincing and neither is their summer transfers. Afraid it'll be au revoir to Albion this year.

West Bromwich Albion survived the drop last year by the absolute skin of their teeth. With just seven wins in the League they had the joint lowest alongside bottom club Cardiff and only survived through the 15 draws they obtained, 4 more than any other club. Aside from that they were extremely disappointing, be it was Steve Clarke or Pepe Mel at the helm - neither of whome are there now - and more or less none of the transfers into the club were a success. They had managed to shake off their 'yo-yo' club image in recent years but came dangerously close to summoning it back after last seasons shocker.

Clearly activity was required in the transfer window and the Baggies have certainly been busy. It was a rocky start though with a number of first team regulars, including Reid, Jones, Ridgewell and Gera all departing to pastures new. The loss has seen new manager Alan Irvine invest heavily, bringing eight players to the club including six defenders. The signings have been a mish-mash of recognisable names with some new kids thrown in. Lescott has signed from City whilst Chris Baird has also arrived from Burnley. Other defenders include Sebastien Pocognoli, Andre Wisdom, Jason Davidson and Christian Bamboa from a variety of leagues and clubs. In midfield, Craig Gardner has joined whilst the bulk of the cash was spent on relatively unknown Nigerian striker Brown Ideye.

The reality is that West Brom's squad needs a total overhall. There is an incredible reliance on Brown Ideye after their top scorer last year had just five league goals. He may also have Berahino up front who is likely to improve but the big questions are based in the midfield. The midfield has little creativity and, perhaps more worryingly, few players who can play a killer pass and supply the strikers with ammunition. With Yacob potentially on his way out, a real stabilising midfielder is needed to provide some balance and WBA may be disappointed to have missed out on Jack Rodwell whilst he was available.

West Brom's season started in almost perfect symmetry to last year - with a draw. A 2-2 draw against Sunderland was fairly impressive and fans will have been boosted to see a return to form for Saido Berahino, who got a brace. Fans will have been particularly pleased to have seen their side not lose after Irvine had seen his side lose their final three friendlies before the season. Perhaps the main problem from the weekends match was the disappointing way in which they were torn apart so easily by Sunderland for the second goal and are likely to struggle badly against the top sides.

The honest truth is that West Brom are in for a hard slog to stay up this season. Alan Irvine is not a convincing appointment at the helm considering his lack of any managerial experience in the past whilst their transfer history over the last couple of seasons does not bode well for this year either. Far too much pressure is being put on the 10 million pound man, Brown Ideye and if he does not live up to his biling then the deal will effectively be sealed as West Brom are nailed on to go down. They have no star player and little to suggest anyone will be arriving before the end of the window. A long, hard season ahead for Albion fans.

Key Man: Brown Ideye - Since the departure of Romelu Lukaku two seasons ago, WBA have been undoubtedly short at the front. Now they have thrown all their eggs into one basket with Brown as he has never before played in the League and will need the frontman to be better than clinical if they are to survive. The Nigerian does boast impressive stats, with a goal every other game over his entire career. A powerful striker, he has plenty of variety to his game and can score with either foot.

One to Watch: Saido Berahino - Berahino gained himself a lot of plaudits last season after bursting from more or less nowhere to bag a few goals in the league. However, his reputation was tarnished after a dressing room bust-up with teammate James Morrison as well as photos emerging of him inhaling laughing gas on a night out. After grabbing a brace on the opening day it would appear that those off the field issues are long gone, and hopefully now the young striker can up his goal tally of five last year.

Best Summer Signing: Craig Gardner - He may be a walking booking in footballing terms but Craig Gardner certainly provides an injection of physicality into an otherwise uninspiring midfield. Gardner himself is particularly pleased to be returning to the area he grew up in and will be looking to win over the fans sooner rather than later. Gardner will come with a direct style of play and Baggies fans will be pleased to see he is not afraid to put his foot through the ball either.