Under-fire Pulis comes out fighting
No wins in nine games and a latest defeat which leaves your side hovering above the relegation zone is enough to strike fear into most Premier League managers.
But then, most managers are not Tony Pulis. The Baggies boss, barracked by his own fans throughout, came out fighting — insisting he has no fear of the axe.
‘I’m not worried about the chairman,’ Pulis declared. ‘I’m not worried about the situation behind the scenes — my concern is always the players.’
It took until injury time for West Brom, trailing to Rajiv van la Parra’s stunning first-half strike, to seriously threaten the home side’s goal after their hosts had been reduced to 10 men when Christopher Schindler picked up a second yellow.
But Pulis hailed his players. ‘I don’t think anybody can say that people were hanging around or standing about, they’ve had a right go,’ he said.
Pulis has a point. Had it not been for two wondersaves in injury time from Terriers stopper Jonas Lossl, this would have been a different story. But until Schindler’s 57th- minute departure it was dire stuff from Albion, with many of those in the away section making their feelings towards the manager clear. Again, Pulis was not fazed.
‘There’s never a thought of what happened before, it’s all about today,’ he said. ‘I understand that.’
He also launched a strong defence of his work at the Hawthorns. ‘You have a look at the players we’ve brought in, have a look at the quality, have a look at the fact we’ve made money every year I’ve been here,’ he said.
For delighted Huddersfield boss David Wagner, this was a better victory than the stunning upset of Manchester United a fortnight ago.
‘United maybe was bigger because it was shown all over the world,’ he said. ‘Today, to defend set-pieces against a club like West Brom, to get in their face, then to switch and play deeper, focus, concentrate, this is something very special.’
Today Wagner will take his 10th-placed squad to Marbella and will be pinching himself when he reclines in his seat on the plane. ‘This is more than a fairytale,’ he said.