Club News

Mulumbu: Yacob's helped me grow

And DR Congo ace insists he still has more to offer Premier League

YOUSSOUF Mulumbu has thanked Claudio Yacob for giving him the platform to continue improving season after season in the Barclays Premier League.

The duo have re-established a formidable partnership in front of the Baggies defence this term.

And Mulumbu believes their understanding in the Albion engine room is reaching new levels.

“It helps that I speak a little bit of Spanish and that’s how we communicate,” said the DR Congo captain.

“But Yacob is one player you do not need to speak to.

“He knows the role he can fill.

“He protects our defence really well and that gives me a little more freedom to play and go forward.

“In training we work really hard together.

“Every time I play I know where he’s going to be.

“I know his position.

“It is easy for us to communicate because we feel the same way.

“The best thing with Yacob is that he never stops running.

“He offers me protection.

“For me it is unbelievable and how many balls he manages to win.

“When teams win quite often it is the striker who receives the praise.

“But when you see how far he runs, you’d be surprised – it’s unbelievable.”

Mulumbu now has three full top-flight campaigns in England behind him and reckons there is still more to come from him.

“I have improved a lot over my time in the Premier League,” he added.

“When you play with good players you are going to improve.

“You need to step up.

“And the fact is I have managed to escape injury so I’ve played a lot of games in the Premier League.

“That means I’ve played in the best league in the world against the best players.

“You need to step your game up every weekend.

“Every game in the Premier League has a big intensity and that has helped me improve my game – that’s the Premier League.

“I can improve again.

“I just need to keep training hard.”