West Bromwich Albion boss Roy Hodgson admits he thought club chiefs had gaffed signing former Ipswich Town defender Gareth McAuley in the summer.

But six months after McAuley's arrival from Ipswich, Baggies boss Hodgson is hailing the 32-year-old Premier League rookie.

Hodgson said: "He's done very well and I'm so pleased to see it because when he suffered from that virus we had grave fears.

"I thought to myself, 'Surely he was a better player than he is now - this isn't the player that I thought I was signing'.

"Luckily, now I have the player I always thought I was signing."