Preview Panel - West Brom

Welcome back to the Preview Panel as we look ahead to our Premier League clash at West Brom on Sunday with our legendary former defender and skipper Michael Dawson and Steve Madeley of The Athletic.

Introducing the panel...

Michael Dawson - 'Daws' spent nine years at Spurs, racking up 324 appearances in all competitions, helping the team win the League Cup in 2008 and reach the Champions League in 2010/11, when he proudly captained the team to victory against AC Milan in the San Siro. Michael spent four years at Hull before returning to first club Forest, and is still going strong at 36.

Steve Madeley - Steve has been a journalist for more than 20 years, including 16 years covering sport, mainly football, and eight years exclusively following West Bromwich Albion. The majority of his career was spent with the Express & Star in the West Midlands. He has also worked for most UK national newspapers and websites including The Times, The Mirror and BBC Sport Online. He's now West Brom reporter for The Athletic.

View from Spurs - Michael Dawson

What have you made of our start to the season?
Michael: "I've been really impressed, apart from the first game against Everton. Okay, there was a blip against West Ham, but Lanzini's goal is a bit of a freak, but that can happen. The important thing was the reaction at Burnley. Harry Kane up to 200 goals, what a player. Everyone loves watching Spurs, simple as that."

You know Jake Livermore as well as anyone - you both left Spurs in 2014 and then spent three years together at Hull - he's West Brom captain, facing us for the first time in a while - how do you think he will go into Sunday's match?
Michael: "He's the same as he's always been. He'll be aggressive, get around the pitch and want to get on the ball. Forest actually played West Brom in pre-season and it's always great to see Jake, a bubbly character, a great lad and now captain of West Brom. He'll relish this game. His family are all Spurs fans, they will all be watching, and he knows all about the club (Spurs) having started his career there. But, as I've always said, once you cross that white line, you give everything to win. At the same time, you know this game means that little bit more to him."

You also know this well as you did it with Hull - how difficult is it for newly-promoted teams in the Premier League?
Michael: "Last season, nine times out of 10, teams playing West Brom would have feared them. Now it's the other side of the coin. Spurs are coming to town, and you are now the team fearing your opponents, and you are so determined to get points on the board, things aren't going your way and the pressure is mounting. You are now underdogs in just about every game, because of the quality of the teams you are up against. You are used to winning games, now it's tough. West Brom will be feeling that dip in confidence, but from their point of view it will be about starting the game right, stay tight for 20 minutes, try to nick a goal. They will know Spurs have been in Bulgaria, this is an early kick-off, so they will try to get out of the blocks. But they will also know the threat Spurs carry going forward, up there with the best around. They will have to defend well and stay switched on for 90 minutes. Spurs have so many players who can hurt you - Harry, Sonny, and I've not even mentioned Gareth Bale! West Brom will have belief, hope, and one thing they will know is their fortunes have to change at some point."

Finally - Spurs fans would love to know how you're getting on!
Michael: "I'm great! I'm 37 this month, I've not played for a while but I still love going into training every day and being involved. We now have Chrissie Hughton here at Forest, Spurs legend, and we'll see what happens. He was fantastic for me when I signed for Spurs back in 2005 at the age of 21, he really looked after me. I'm always following Spurs, watching the games, cheering them on and I'm not complaining in these tough times of COVID. So, I'm all good, thanks!"

View from The Hawthorns...

What have you made of West Brom’s return to the PL so far?
Steve: "It has been difficult. They had a short time and a small budget to add to the team that won promotion last season and, while they did some good business over the close season, the squad they have still looks light on quality. They have looked good at times this season. They played very well in the first half against Chelsea, in spells in the opening game of the season against Leicester, in the final half-hour at Brighton and in large parts of the home game against Burnley. But for much of the season they have looked short, both in terms of creating chances and especially in terms of competing when they are out of possession."

How do you think Slaven Bilic will approach this one, how’s he likely to set up?
Steve: "Given how well Tottenham have been doing this season, it would be a surprise to see West Brom start the game overly adventurously. In recent games they have set up with a 4-3-3 system with Jake Livermore as a holding midfielder in an effort to be solid and harder to break down. It hasn’t always worked but I would imagine they will approach this game with a similar idea, trying to make themselves hard to play against and hoping to catch Tottenham on the break which, with the pace they have up front, is one of their strengths."

We all know Jake Livermore here at Spurs, but who should we look out for on Sunday? Any player who maybe goes under the radar?
Steve: "Matheus Pereira is the obvious player to watch. He was the attacking star last season and has shown glimpses this season of his talent and ability to change a game. Given that West Brom will be looking to hit Tottenham on the break, Karlan Grant could also be key to their chances. He plays up front and has real pace and is a good finisher."