West Brom manager Steve Bruce laments ‘mistakes’ on a night Sam Johnstone didn’t have ‘a shot to save’

West Brom manager Steve Bruce says his side were left to rue ‘a couple of mistakes’ on a night goalkeeper Sam Johnstone wasn’t even made to work.

Jayson Molumby put the Baggies 1-0 in front before Paddy McNair and Marcus Tavernier completed a second-half turnaround for the hosts.

It was a much improved performance on the whole from Albion but it ultimately ended in an all too familiar fashion.

Speaking to WBA TV following the game, Bruce claims that there were plenty of promising signs to take from the defeat.

“The disappointing thing is that we made a couple of mistakes, it’s the only couple we’ve made all evening to be honest,” he said.

“We didn’t look after the ball as well in the second half as we did in the first half.

“Where we were tonight compared to where we were on Saturday, it was a million miles away.

“Their attitude to put that right was pleasing for me to see, especially in the first half.

“I think it’s a trait of ours to not be able to put a complete 90 minute performance together.

“For all the good stuff in the first half, there’s clearly something to work on. We’re asking the players to be completely different to where they were before I came in, but I do see signs of change.

“I was pleased with lots of it tonight, but unfortunately we made two poor mistakes to let them in behind us which led to the goals.

“Apart from that, we’ve come to Middlesbrough and my goalkeeper hasn’t had a shot to save, but we’ve lost the game.

“I thought we were more like it in terms of the way that I want us to try and play.

“It was nice to see Dara O’Shea back for the first time in months and I also saw flashes from Grady Diangana. That was encouraging.

“We’ve got to get up and running and keep trying. We need to get a little bit of confidence from somewhere.

“There’s still a lot to play for but we need to get a win on the board as quickly as possible that’s for sure.

“We’re obviously struggling at the moment with results, but I was pleased with some aspects I saw tonight and that’s something we can build on.”

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