When you talk about managers who make an early impression in the early stages of the Premier League season, the likes of Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger and Carlo Ancelotti are likely to be mentioned.

But it’s the newly promoted trio of Ian Holloway, Chris Hughton and Roberto Di Matteo who are deservedly grabbing the spotlight.

Managers in their position are normally fighting to pick players up after another thrashing as they fall further and further adrift at the wrong end of the table.

 

From West Brom’s point of view, Di Matteo is surpassing expections by a long way.

Their fans would be forgiven for thinking their recent visit to Old Trafford was a damage limitations exercise, especially after the opening 25 minutes.

But by the end of the game, they were strolling through what was supposed to be a daunting trip after fighting back from two goals down to claim a point.

West Bromwich Albion refused to panic and played their way back into the match with a calm assurance that would usually be expected from their opponents if they had fallen behind.

And even when they got it back to 2-2, there was still plenty of time for United to address their mistakes, but the expected bombardment didn’t materialise.

The Baggies can claim huge amount of credit for that. They didn’t just sit back and tried to cling on to what they had.

Their adventurous style has sent them take four points from a possible six from their visits to Arsenal and United – unthinkable for a newly promoted team, and even more so for a club that has endured too many yo-yo woes in the past.

There is still a long way to go for Di Matteo’s side to reach their survival target, but the next time they claim a notable scalp, it will hardly be a surprise.