West Bromwich Albion ended their 2016 on a high with a 2-1 away victory at Southampton which saw them round out the year in 8th place in the Premier League. The first game of 2017 sees Albion host struggling Hull who start the year in the relegation zone three points off safety. Albion have won three of their last four home games while Hull have won just once on the road in nine attempts this season. That came all the way back in August after a 2-0 win against current bottom club Swansea City.
A win could see Albion rise up to 7th in the table and will see this as a must-win game. So how should West Bromwich Albion line up for their first game of 2017? Take a look through our predicted starting XI as Albion look to give the Hawthorns faithful a happy start to 2017. Let us know who you’d pick by tweeting us your squads.
Formation 4-4-2
GK - Ben Foster
He’s been in great form recently and he’ll more than likely earn a well deserved rest next weekend against Derby in the cup.
RB - Craig Dawson
Dawson has been in solid form recently and as it stands has no threat to his position.
CB - Jonny Evans
Evans is the glue that holds everything together in the Albion defence when he plays well the whole team does.
CB - Gareth McAuley
A few mistakes in recent weeks have seen him come under pressure from some fans but at the moment there’s no way you can drop him.
LB - Chris Brunt
Allan Nyom can expect to be dropped for this game. He had an awful 45 minutes against Southampton and without many natural full back options, expect Chris Brunt to drop back into the left back position.
RM - Matt Phillips
Phillips is in the form of his life and is one of the first names on the team sheet.
CM - Claudio Yacob
He’s magic and loves to break up opposition attacks he’s also the perfect player to play alongside our other centre midfielder…
CM - James Morrison
Expect Darren Fletcher to be one of the players given a much needed rest. Morrison has been brilliant since coming back into the team and is always a threat going forward.
LM - Nacer Chadli
He’s been struggling for form since his injury but you would fancy him to cause a leaky Hull defence trouble.
ST - Hal Robson-Kanu
It’s impossible to drop him after his performance against Southampton. A goal and an assist on his first start for the club proves how valuable he could be to Albion maintaining their top half their top half position.
ST - Salomon Rondon
Now this is a crazy suggestion, but could Tony Pulis start TWO strikers in the same game? It is becoming a big possibility especially with both being in form. Rondon should be raring to go after being rested during the Southampton game.