West Brom vs West Ham
Venue: The Hawthorns
Kick off: 12:45pm
Nigerian striker, Brown Ideye, is expected to lead West Bromwich Albion attack on Saturday (today) as FA Cup fifth round gets underway with one of only three all-Premier League ties against West Ham United.
The club-record signing, nearly sold in January, may be starting to find his feet having scored two goals in as many games and will continue to spearhead a West Brom attack also featuring Saido Berahino.
The two clubs have lifted the trophy eight times between them and perhaps should fancy themselves as an outside bet to taste Wembley glory again this season.
With Chelsea and Manchester City having been the victims of fourth-round giant-killings, the competition is wide open and both may be in a position to take advantage.
Things are looking up for the Baggies, who have lost only once since the appointment of Tony Pulis and moved further away from trouble with a 2-0 win over Swansea City on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Sam Allardyce might start making this competition a priority after seeing his side fall off the pace in the race for the European places, following a run of four draws in six top-flight matches.
Injury-hit striker, Andy Carroll, faces another spell on the sidelines and so Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho, whose involvement in the fourth-round win over Bristol City was the subject of much controversy, will continue up front.
The pair of summer signings were joined by Carlton Cole in attack against the Saints, but the rarely-used forward is likely to be back on the bench at The Hawthorns as either Mark Noble or Kevin Nolan return in midfield.
Albion lost this fixture 2-1 in the Premier League in December, but drew 1-1 at Upton Park a month later following Pulis’s intervention from the stands.
West Brom Possible starting lineup: Foster; Dawson, McAuley, Lescott, Brunt; Yacob, Gardner; McManaman, Berahino, Morrison; Ideye
West Ham Possible starting lineup: Jaaskelainen; Jenkinson, Tomkins, Kouyate, Cresswell; Song, Noble, Amalfitano, Downing; Sakho, Valencia.
