Carlos Corberán offers verdict on frustrating Oxford draw.
Carlos Corberán says his side should’ve found a way to control the final few minutes in a more commanding way after Oxford United scored a late equaliser.
The Baggies were heading for a 1-0 victory at the Kassam Stadium on Sunday lunchtime, however, in second-half stoppage time, U’s substitute Dane Scarlett nodded in a leveller.
Albion stopper Alex Palmer had a quiet afternoon and the hosts were unable to trouble the backline until the closing stages.
The boss says the players are frustrated with letting two points slip and believes keeping the ball in the attacking half of the pitch could’ve prevented the agonising setback.
Carlos said: “When you don’t win a game, it means you haven’t done enough things well. That’s the message we have today.
“The way we have lost our lead shows that we should have managed the last few minutes of the game better.
“In the last moments it’s not the moment to take more risks and break the press. It’s the moment to put the ball in the attacking half and find the way to defend yourself by using the ball. You have to keep the ball and not give the opponent the possibility to attack you.
“If you don’t do that, you are giving them the possibility to attack you, put balls in the box and create something.
“That’s the point we’ll regret. We weren’t able to put the ball in the attacking half and without creating chances, they’ve won a throw which has given them the possibility to score the goal.
“If we analyse the game now, we were growing from the first minutes to the end. Unfortunately, we had a lack of impact when we could have created a bigger chance to score a goal.
Carlos Corberán giving instructions to his team against Oxford
“I didn’t like how we performed in the first 10 or 15 minutes of the second half, but then, with the passing of the minutes, we started playing the game how we should’ve done. We were dominating, playing in the attacking half and putting the ball in the final third of the pitch.
“Unfortunately, this hasn’t been enough to win so there are things we need to improve on in terms of the game management in the final moments, as well as attacking better when possibilities open up.
“I don’t think we were as dominant as we were in previous games. We had difficulties building the attacks. We found we had more spaces to drive forward and make the last passes, rather than coming up against a team who played with a low block.
“We had possibilities to increase our lead and we’ll now have to watch the last minutes back to see what we should have done better.
“The players in the dressing room are upset and frustrated. I don’t need to motivate anyone to do better. We know how difficult the Championship is and how every game is a different challenge.
“To win games, we need to find ways to control more of the details.”
