Steve Clarke wary of Crystal Palace

West Bromwich Albion manager Steve Clarke has said that he is not taking Crystal Palace lightly ahead of this afternoon's meeting at The Hawthorns.

The Scot watched the Eagles' 1-0 defeat to Arsenal last week and feels that they could easily have come away with a point.

"There are no easy games," the 50-year-old told reporters. "It is right to say 'no disrespect to Palace' because I watched them last week against Arsenal, and for 87 minutes they were right in the game.

"They certainly could have got a point. Arsenal's goalkeeper made a great save, and they hit the crossbar. It is not a game we take lightly - we respect Crystal Palace a lot.

"They are a team hungry for points and a group of players hungry to show they deserve to be in the Premier League. It is a game we are taking very seriously."

The Baggies are 12th in the Premier League, while Palace are bottom.