West Brom host Premier League champions Leicester at the Hawthorns on Saturday afternoon.
Who would have thought West Brom would be seven points clear of the reigning league champions with five games left to go in the season, a stat which sounds less impressive when you consider it is Leicester, with all due respect!
The Baggies are 8th in the league, whilst Leicester reside in 15th place, but West Brom’s hopes of finishing any higher are almost non-existent.
West Brom are 14 points below Everton, who are one place above them in seventh.
Regardless, an eighth-placed finish would be a fantastic season for the club. It would also be the first time Tony Pulis has managed to finish in the top half of the Premier League in his career as a manager – a personal high for him.
Another three points against Leicester would help to further consolidate their position, and they will need to win the key battles in order to do so.
Here are the key battles that West Brom need to win:
Jamie Vardy v Jonny Evans
Vardy has 14 goals this season and is certainly the most likely Leicester player to score.
His running in behind defenders is key to his game, and Evans will need to nullify that to keep him at bay.
Salomon Rondon v Kasper Schmeichel
Rondon has yet to score in 2017 and needs to fire some goals in before the end of the season.
To do that he will need to get past Leicester goalkeeper Schmeichel.
Riyad Mahrez v Allan Nyom
Mahrez has not quite hit the heights that he did last season, but is still a player of immense quality.
Nyom will have to be at his best to keep him quiet.
Jake Livermore v Danny Drinkwater
The game could be won and lost in the midfield tomorrow and the Livermore/Drinkwater battle will be very interesting.
Whoever has the better game out of the duo will be on the winning side, I have no doubt.
Nacer Chadli v Christian Fuchs
Chadli has five goals and five assists for West Brom this season, and will be a dangerman tomorrow.
Although he is likely to pop up all over the pitch, he could be coming up against Fuchs the most.
He will need to get the better of the Austrian to have an impact on the game.