Despite producing a resilient display last weekend – particularly in the first-half – West Brom opened up their return to the Premier League with a 3-0 defeat at home to Leicester.
The Baggies held firm for 56 minutes before Timothy Castagne fired Brendan Rodgers’ side in front, and a couple of penalties from Jamie Vardy late on sealed the deal.
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A mid-week Carabao Cup win over Harrogate Town would surely have boosted the confidence inside the camp, and Slaven Bilic may already be contemplating making some important changes from the line-up that started against Leicester.
Below is a look how West Brom could play against Everton on early Saturday afternoon.
Sam Johnstone is sure to resume his duties as first-choice goalkeeper at Goodison Park, with David Button dropping to the bench following his involvement in the Carabao Cup in mid-week.
Tactically, Bilic may look to ditch the five-man defence that he employed against Leicester, and instead go with a regular back-four – a switch that saw them clinch a 3-0 win over Harrogate.
If that’s the case, Semi Ajayi could be the man to make way and lose his starting spot from last weekend, with the Baggies boss favouring Darnell Furlong, Kyle Bartley, Dara O’Shea and Kieran Gibbs.
In midfield, Romaine Sawyers was arguably the worst of the bunch in the defeat to Leicester, with West Brom fans making their frustrations clear on Twitter after the game.
Bilic could make a real statement by dropping him to the bench, replacing him in the starting line-up with starlet Rekeem Harper, who scored on Wednesday.
And whilst Callum Robinson may have not netted on the opening day, Bilic is likely to retain his confidence in the former Sheffield United man, and could help him out immeasurably by choosing to play Hal Robson-Kanu alongside him – another who scored in that victory over Harrogate.
Momentum will undoubtedly be key, and choosing to go more attacking and adventurous in his team selection could see West Brom pick up their first league points of the season on Saturday.
Predicted XI: Johnstone; Furlong, Bartley, O’Shea, Gibbs; Pereira, Livermore, Harper, Diangana; Robinson, Robson-Kanu.