West Brom boss Mowbray's balanced view of Valero

Apr 2 2009 by Robert Tanner, Birmingham Post

“I stand by the fact that I think Borja is one of the most talented individuals at the club, undoubtedly. What is required is a certain type of player to play alongside him and give a balance to the midfield which would have helped the team. I think he feels the burden of people and his team-mates looking to him for his talent.

“The results haven’t been great and I think confidence can be knocked a bit. That is why we played Graham Dorrans, because he was doing exceptionally well in the reserves and he was enjoying his football. He had a spring in his step and it seemed a very obvious decision for me to pick a player with confidence and enthusiasm for the game.

“To be fair, Graham did very well at Upton Park and Borja understood the reasoning and he is a very good pro. He took it on the chin and accepted it. He also understands that his talent is going to be required as we move on.

“His ability and decision-making with the ball is unquestionable. What Borja has found is that the incredible tempo and physicality in this league is something he needs to adapt to but, from my perspective, trying to find that balance of players in and around him is probably what I didn’t quite manage to acquire for him. Yet, I think he’s done fine. He just has to keep himself going and make sure he is ready for his next opportunity.”

Valero came on as a late substitute in Albion’s last game against Bolton Wanderers and may have a similar role to play when Stoke City visit The Hawthorns on Saturday in a must-win encounter for the Baggies.

Mowbray is expecting a similar challenge from Tony Pulis’ side to the one they faced against the directness of the Trotters two weeks ago. He said: “We have to understand what a difficult tough game it is going to be against Stoke, who bring their own types of problems to the game for us. The demands they are going to ask from our players are ones we are going to have to be at our best to deal with, but we are capable of winning the game.”