Bragging rights are at stake for both West Brom and Wolves, but for the Baggies, their Premier League status also hangs in the balance

Derby day. Hate it or love it. Fear it or embrace it. It’s a date that’s always marked in the calendar. The first game scouted for on fixture release day. Local bragging rights are always at stake but, for West Bromwich Albion ahead of Monday’s 162nd Black Country Derby with Wolves, their Premier League credentials are on the line. 

Sam Allardyce’s men are 11 points off of safety at the time of writing, before Fulham and Newcastle play Chelsea and Arsenal respectively. Simply put, the Baggies must beat their fierce rivals if they are to cling on to the thread that is their Premier League status for another week.

A Black Country Derby has been a rarity over the last decade, with this season being the first in which both West Brom and Wolves have competed in the same league since 2011/12, when the Golden Boys were relegated from the top-flight.

Fast forward six years and the Molineux club took the Baggies’ place in the Premier League as they went up and their rivals dropped into the Championship.

Now, nine years on from Wolves’ relegation to the second-tier, their status as a Premier League outfit is secured for another year. However, the situation for their West Midlands foes is a lot more dire.

The old cliché that form goes out of the window for derby games will always be relevant, but arguably not as much when a game that means so much to each fanbase can’t be watched in person by them.

With fans playing such a pinacle role for any rivalry, the idea of a behind closed doors derby still just doesn’t sit right. However, West Brom will be keen to have form and history on their side on Monday night, as recent results suggest that they could be in line for a crucial victory.

Where head-to-head form is concerned, the hosts edge the visitors, having beaten Wolves 65 times out of 161 meetings, with the first contest being played on 2 January 1886 in the FA Cup. The Albion were 3-1 victors that day. Wolves have 53 wins to their name, with their last taste of derby delight coming a decade ago this week when they ran out 3-1 victors at Molineux.

Ten years without a derby victory would hurt any fan, but the fact that in that decade there have been just three meetings between these two sides (all West Brom wins), emphasises how rare this contest has been over recent years.

The season that Wolves went down, the Baggies enjoyed a famous double over their arch-rivals, which included a 5-1 away win at Molineux. Now, they must secure a second double in as many seasons.

A 3-2 win at Wolves in January was as impressive for West Brom as it was embarrassing for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team.

Two penalties from Matheus Pereira and a Semi Ajayi goal earned Sam Allardyce’s men the bragging rights, but the Albion have to look at the bigger picture on Monday.

Look, a derby win might prove the final opportunity for West Brom to enjoy any sort of joy before relegation back to the Championship (which looks to be inevitable). However, the experienced head that is Sam Allardyce, who has never been relegated from the top-flight, will deny any claims that his team are down until mathematics confirm their fate. They absolutely have to win on Monday, derby or not.

41 points with five games to go. Wolves are safe, but their situation for the remainder of the season is about as uninspiring as the whole campaign has been. Back-to-back seventh place finishes will overshadow what looks to be a season ended in the bottom-half for Nuno’s men, although a serious injury to star striker Raul Jimenez has certainly held the West Midlands side back.

Like with West Brom, this game may prove to be the final opportunity for the Golden Boys to enjoy themselves before the campaign’s conclusion. On paper, they’re the much better side and have enough quality to put an end to a ten-year drought of derby wins, but a shadow of inconsistency has haunted them all season long.

Back-to-back 1-0 wins against Fulham and Sheffield United were followed up with a shock 4-0 home defeat to Burnley last time out, something that Nuno Espirito Santo and co. will have immediately looked to put right this week.

A huge game awaits at the Hawthorns. For both sides, local bragging rights are on the line. But for West Brom, their future as a Premier League club also hangs in the balance.

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