West Brom boss Tony Mowbray has defended his lone striker system.

He said: "I am not huge on statistics - but the statistics of playing one up front suggest, over the course of 15 games, we have more shots on goal than when we play 4-4-2.

"The stats also show we concede less shots on our own goal with a one striker policy and that we have more possession of the ball with the one striker.

"Yet I balance that up against playing at home with the mentality of the supporters and the perceived negativity of playing one player up front.

"You are sometimes said to be negative if you play one up front, and too positive if you play two or three up front. Read into it what you want.

"We played Chelsea at home and played two up front because, if you play one up front against Chelsea, they just pass it around at the back and you can't get a kick.

"You have got to look at the opposition you are playing. Some teams are more direct than others so you can play one up front and they don't pass it around, kick it up front and give it back to you basically."