Steve Clarke's subtle brand of passing football has West Brom purring

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<div class="track"><img alt="" src="http://hits.guardian.co.uk/b/ss/guardiangu-feeds/1/H.24.1.1/69701?ns=guardian&pageName=Steve+Clarke%27s+subtle+brand+of+passing+football+has+West+Brom+purring%3AArticle%3A1795646&ch=Football&c3=Guardian&c4=Premier+League+%28Football%29%2CWest+Bromwich+Albion+%28Football%29%2CEverton+%28Football%29%2CFootball%2CSport&c5=Europa+League%2CPremier+League&c6=Stuart+James&c7=12-Sep-02&c8=1795646&c9=Article&c10=Match+report&c11=Football&c13=&c25=&c30=content&c42=Sport&h2=GU%2FSport%2FFootball%2FPremier+League" width="1" height="1" /></div><p class="standfirst">• Shane Long's goal against Everton involved eight players<br />• 'We are more interesting on the ball,' says Peter Odemwingie</p><p></p><p>It can be dangerous to read too much into results when we are at a stage in the season when supporters are still turning up in shorts. As Shane Long pointed out, Wolves also had seven points from their first three games last year and everyone knows what happened to them. It is difficult, though, to believe that an impressive West Bromwich Albion side, who have spent little time grieving over the departure of Roy Hodgson, will go the same way as their Black Country rivals.</p><p>Steve Clarke has stepped into Hodgson's shoes with the minimum of fuss, picking up two victories and a draw from three games – Liverpool and Everton at home and Tottenham Hotspur away – that all ended in defeat last season. It is true to say that Albion's head coach inherited a decent squad but he has also made some subtle changes to the way the team play, the most significant being a greater emphasis on passing, which has been welcomed within the dressing room and delivered tangible reward against Everton when Long finished off a move that involved all but two outfield players.</p><p>While Hodgson's work at The Hawthorns should not be underestimated, the vibe from the Albion players is that life under Clarke is particularly enjoyable. "He has started smoothly and he looks like someone who had a plan," said Peter Odemwingie, who came off the bench to set up Long's opener.</p><p>"He has said that he wants to build and instead of just trying to stay in the league, he wants to win one of the cups. He will play strong teams in the cups and he will be aggressive in football, not passive and just defending and trying to stay up. We are going to try to grow and when I heard his ambitions for the season it was pleasing. He worked under big-name coaches; we knew he couldn't not be affected by those big-name coaches who want to win things.</p><p>"The boys are really enjoying his training and you can see our passing game has really improved. He said the goal was to build on our organisation and to almost double the number of passes that we make in every game. That was one of the targets. It helps you recover faster and create more chances.</p><p>"On Saturday we played against a difficult team but our game on the ball is more interesting."</p><p>It was a disappointing afternoon for David Moyes, whose Everton side lacked penetration. Marouane Fellaini had a day to forget and Moyes was also critical of himself after he became frustrated with the prospect of a stalemate and opted to replace Steven Naismith with Kevin Mirallas to give Everton a greater attacking threat.</p><p>It nearly worked but Fellaini failed to convert Mirallas's centre and Albion went straight down the other end and scored through Long before Gareth McAuley headed a second. Moyes, however, refused to be downbeat. "We've had two of our games away from home, so six points [out of a possible nine] isn't a bad return," the Everton manager said.</p><p>Albion's start has been even better and Clarke could be forgiven for thinking he has silenced those who doubted whether he was up to the job. "There's still a long way to go. We are not getting carried away," he said.</p><p>"People are entitled to their opinion. The one thing I'd say is it's a bit unfair to say this group of players would struggle in the Premier League. The last two seasons they have had 47 points and finished 11th and 10th."</p><p><strong>Man of the match</strong> Jonas Olsson (WBA)</p><div class="related" style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><ul><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/premierleague">Premier League</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/westbrom">West Bromwich Albion</a></li><li><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/everton">Everton</a></li></ul></div><div class="author"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/stuartjames">Stuart James</a></div><br/><div class="terms"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk">guardian.co.uk</a> &copy; 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. 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