Albion go through - but Huerzeler reveals 'lazy' moment which turned the cup tie

Albion progressed in the cup, but Huerzeler confessed Albion’s lackadaisical second forty-five minutes after the break was “lazy”.

Walsall’s Nicky Devlin volleyed home in the eightieth minute to blow the Baggies’ lead with Albion playing “slow” and in “slow motion”.

Albion had taken a first-half lead through Karlan Grant just before half time, his first goal for the club since August, but Walsall came out fighting with more fire in their bellies in the second.

Devlin’s goal meant a replay was on the cards before Callum Robinson sealed the win in the ninetieth minute.

Reflecting on the match, Gaetan Bong believes that Albion “lost a bit of focus” at the start of the second half and stopped playing.

He said: “It was a very stressful game and a difficult one and we’re happy to go through. We know we need to improve but we’re going to keep working hard on the training ground and try to win the next game.”

Boss Slaven Bilic echoed Bong’s comments and said they were “not at their best” on Tuesday night, especially in the second half.

He said: “We’re expecting a reaction on Saturday and it was great to see Callum Robinson step up and make a difference when we needed him.”

Huerzeler said: “We stopped playing after half-time. We did everything a little bit slower, a little bit lazy. If you play a team from League Two and they can run more than you it is a problem.

“We need to play the same way for 90 minutes. We need to start the second half like we start the first half and like we finish the game.”