Alex Palmer believes the Baggies have enjoyed an important period of rest and recovery over the international break, but stressed the squad are now eager to get their teeth into a physically-demanding part of the campaign.
Carlos Corberán gifted his first-team players some time away from the club following their 2-1 win at Hull City on Sunday, November 10 in an attempt to keep the group as fresh as possible heading into the winter months.
The next break in the domestic calendar arrives at the back end of March 2025, with Albion participating in 11 Sky Bet Championship games between now and the first week of January.
Alex, who has kept eight clean sheets in 15 fixtures so far in 2024/25, says the group are focused and prepared for the upcoming mental and physical challenges.
The No.1 said: “International breaks are always a good opportunity to have a bit of a reset.
“Winning heading into an international break always helps because it makes you feel like you’ve earned that rest almost, as well as injecting a bit of confidence boost.
“It’s a nice chance for everyone to be with their family and friends and get the important rest in that you need as a player in this division.
“We’re coming into a four-month spell now where it’s game after game and it’s physically demanding. The winter months in the Championship demand so much of you and if you’re not up to it, then you’ll find yourself slipping down the division.
“If we work hard and apply ourselves in the correct manner, both mentally and physically, then we’ll give ourselves the best opportunity to get as many points as possible and come out the other side of winter in a really strong position.
“If you look at the Championship, it’s crazy. We had six draws in-a-row before we went to Hull and won, yet we’re still in and around the play-off spots.
“If you look at how the league is this year, it’s really tight and it would appear teams are all taking points off each other. I think that’s why we’re a bit frustrated because if we had managed to turn a few of those draws into victories, then we would have been right up there.
“Games come thick and fast now. You have a good week in this league at this time of year and you can claw back so much ground. You have a bad week, and teams can get away from you.
“We’ve got a chance on Saturday at home to Norwich to set the tone for the next few months. We’d love to pick up three points at The Hawthorns and set the standard for the winter.”
Supporters can catch the full interview with our goalkeeper in Saturday's official matchday programme, Albion News.
