Roberto De Zerbi believes a top ten finish for Albion can be considered a ‘good result’.
Albion also reached the last 16 of the Europa League and Emirates FA Cup this season, while contending with a number of injuries to key players.
Whether we finish in the top half will now be decided on the final day of the campaign at home to Manchester United, following our 2-1 home defeat to Chelsea on Wednesday when Danny Welbeck scored his seventh goal of the season.
“We want to finish the season in the top ten it won’t be a great result if we compare to last season, but if we consider the many problems we have had it can be considered a good result," De Zerbi said. "We are happy for this season, but maybe not enough.”
Cole Palmer and Christopher Nkunku put the Blues two goals in front on Wednesday, before Welbeck scored his seventh goal of the season.
“We didn’t play well in the first 20 minutes, but after that we played a good game. It’s a clear penalty [for the foul on Simon Adingra].
“Against [Cole] Palmer, [Nicolas] Jackson and [Christopher] Nkunku it’s possible to concede on the counter-attack. In that moment [for the second goal] we were playing well and we could have scored a goal. Maybe we could pay more attention to the counter-attack, but I think we played a very good second half.
“But we can’t say anything in this moment, in this season, because we suffered too many injuries. We know the level of the players of Chelsea, we know what they spent in the last two, three transfer markets. But I want to give my congratulations to Mauricio Pochettino, because he is doing a very good job.”
MA+ members & STH only - Log-in required
Log-in required
Valentin Barco replaced Lewis Dunk, who went off with a knee injury, at the start of the second half and put in an impressive display.
“He has a big potential,” De Zerbi added. “I don’t know if he can play in that position [left-back] because in the Premier League there are a lot of wingers who are very powerful and quick like motor cycles! But he’s a good player that can be important for us in the future.”
Match reaction in association with SnickersUK.com