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West Brom's priority survival, not finishing in top six - Tony Pulis

West Brom manager Tony Pulis admits Albion must still prioritise survival ahead of cracking the Premier League top six.

The Baggies lost 1-0 to Liverpool on Sunday and have failed to score in their last four games.

They are yet to break the 50-point barrier in the Premier League and have won just one of their last seven games since making it to 40 points in February.

Albion remain eighth in the table, with 44 points, but Pulis insisted he has to manage expectations at The Hawthorns after Roberto Firmino's winner on Sunday.

He said: "The important thing is not Liverpool and that top six, the important thing is being in front of the game, always, with the teams below.

"It's that group of 12 or 13 teams. You play every season to finish outside the bottom three of the 13. As soon as you start taking your eye off the ball and start thinking something else is going to happen then it can turn around and hurt you.

"Bigger clubs than West Brom have been relegated. We need to [keep] getting better every year and improving the squad.

"We might not finish in a position where you want but we want to get to cup finals and maybe, one day, finish in that position so we can play in Europe. Doing that takes time.''

Pulis took Stoke to the FA Cup final, losing 1-0 to Manchester City in 2011, and into the Europa League but has never finished in the top half of the Premier League.

He added: "At Stoke it was different, we went to Europe and got to a cup final.

"Can you do any more?

"You can finish in the top half and class that as success. I'll always say that every time this club stays a year in the Premier League, [that] gives it an opportunity to put more solid foundations down.''

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