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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
It was only a couple of months ago when West Brom were experiencing the heartache of being knocked out of the playoffs on penalties by Aston Villa.
Then over the summer loan star Dwight Gayle returned to his parent club, Jay Rodriguez was sold to Burnley, and the Baggies’ squad was looking somewhat decimated – without a manager either, only adding to their woes.
Albion’s hierarchy had to make a crucial decision going into their second season in the Championship, and the move they made was to bring in Slaven Bilic on a two-year deal.
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That could have been considered quite the coup as the 51-year-old has managed both the Croatian national team and Premier League outfit West Ham United within the last decade.
He was then tasked with building a squad capable of challenging for the title, one that could fill the 46-goal void left behind by the departing strike duo.
Bilic made Kenneth Zohore and Charlie Austin permanent signings along with a selection of wingers on loan to try and fill that gap, but the most important decision he’s made has actually been making Matty Phillips the key figure amongst their attack.
The winger has already signed a three-year extension to his contract, citing the Croatian as a key reason to why – which is clear to see when looking at just how well the 28-year-old has been performing this season.
He made his 100th appearance in a Baggies shirt earlier in the campaign too in what could quite easily be a career-best year for Phillips.
The Scotland international has already scored four goals this season, meaning he needs just one more to match his best in the blue and white stripes – which happened in his debut season when Albion were still plying their trade in the top-flight.
Even though he’s only provided just the one assist this term, there’s plenty of football left to make ground on his best of eight at the Hawthorns.
And he has every chance to considering that he has started all eight matches for them in the league so far, recording the second-highest rating of anyone else in the squad at 7.18 per WhoScored.
If the winger continues to perform the way he is at the moment, the trend indeed suggests that he will be able to record his finest season in the west Midlands.
The only difference to other seasons is the fact Bilic is at the helm.
Last term, both former manager Darren Moore and then caretaker boss Jimmy Shan played Phillips in attacking midfield where he failed to score a single goal.
Therefore, Bilic’s impact can’t be underestimated – his influence has already been publically lauded by the 6 foot 1 wide man, so expect the Baggies’ star man to continue rising up.