Mowbray sings Gianni's praises

Baggies boss pleased with new boy's attitude

Last updated: 2nd October 2008

Mowbray sings Gianni's praises

Zuiverloon: Has impressed

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West Brom boss Tony Mowbray has praised new boy Gianni Zuiverloon, with the Dutch defender having impressed everyone at the club both on and off the field.

After just four Premier League starts, Baggies boss Mowbray has concluded Zuiverloon has all the attributes to make it to the very top of his profession.

The Holland U21 international has caught the eye with a series of mature displays at The Hawthorns, and if reports are to be believed, has even been the subject of Manchester United scouting reports.

For the moment though the player is more than content to ply his trade in the Midlands and it is a desire to learn and improve that has so impressed Mowbray.

"You try to identify talent and bring it in but what you don't really know about is his personality," Mowbray told the Birmingham Mail.

"You see his personality on the field but I didn't really know his personality around the building.

"We can see now he has a great desire to learn and he wants to please and do what you ask him to do.

"He is an asset-rich footballer with mobility, quick feet, great spring and good passing ability.

"He has the assets and if he can put them together he is a good player."

Filipe fillip

In other West Brom news, Mowbray is confident midfielder Filipe Teixeira will be pushing for a first team spot before too long, after he came through a reserve team game unscathed in midweek.

The Portuguese schemer played an hour of the club's second string clash against West Ham and suffered no ill-effects from his first action since a cruciate ligament injury suffered in early March.

"Filipe is raring to go. He has trained for a few weeks now and has trained with full contact for the last 10-11 days. He just needs to get some fitness which generally you get through playing matches," Mowbray added.

"If he continues to work hard at his fitness levels, and gets another game or two under his belt, he should be back in the frame very quickly.

"Coming through the first game unscathed is a big step in his progress back to the first team."