Valérien Ismaël has challenged his players to “get the job done” when Nottingham Forest visit The Hawthorns on Friday night (ko 8pm).
The Baggies have taken one point from their two away matches this week at Huddersfield Town and Blackpool, with Ismaël’s men unable to find the net in either despite registering more than 40 shots over the course of the 180 minutes.
Albion, who have the opportunity to close the gap to the automatic promotion spots to five points on Friday, are unbeaten in nine home Sky Bet Championship matches this term, winning six and drawing three.
And the boss insists his side are determined to find a “breakthrough” in B71, as they target a first victory in four.
Val said: “We need to maintain our unbeaten home record.
“Forest is the next step at home and it’s important for us to start winning games again.
“We need to find a solution. The last game against Blackpool we managed to create a lot of chances, but we didn’t take any of them. We need to finish the job.
“My message to the guys before Nottingham Forest will be to get the job done.
“The desire is there. The mentality is there.
“We need to turn that frustration of not scoring or winning into a performance where we give everything on the pitch.
“It’s all about us. We have to give a performance which helps our fans support us inside the stadium. That feeling comes from us.
“We are focused on our performance and what we can do to win the games and score goals.
“It doesn’t matter if we play at home or away, it doesn’t change the way we play.
“We have to get a breakthrough. We have to get our reward for the chances we are creating.
“Our fans created an amazing atmosphere at Blackpool.
“They felt the energy levels the players were producing on the pitch.
“We want that same atmosphere at The Hawthorns, but we know that we have to get off to a good start and play with the same energy against Nottingham Forest.
“We can have an impact on the atmosphere by the way we play. Playing with energy and creating chances will help.”
Nottingham Forest head to The Hawthorns having risen from rock bottom to 13th since the appointment of Steve Cooper as the club’s new manager in September.
Friday’s visitors are unbeaten in seven away from the City Ground and Ismaël knows how much of a test the encounter will be.
“It will be a very difficult game.
“I know Steve Cooper well from last season because when I was at Barnsley, we played Swansea City in the play-offs.
“We know each other well and we know exactly what kind of style they will have.
“They are very stable at the moment, but we are prepared.
“We have a massive desire to get the job done and move forward. The biggest reward would be three big points.”
