September's challenges continue to heighten for Albion Under-21s as they prepare for another trip to the capital this week - this time, facing Tottenham Hotspur on Friday night (ko 7pm).
The young Baggies play the third of four games this month against Spurs and a mixture of discipline, attacking intent and game management is being demanded from forward, Donte-German Ranger, who has been speaking ahead of their next Premier League 2 test.
Last time out
A 10-man Albion side lost 2-0 at Fulham's Motspur Park training facility last time around.
Defender Jamal Mohammed was dismissed in the second half of a match which saw the academy hopefuls from the Black Country have limited opportunities in the final third against an effective opponent in the Cottagers.
Venue
Leigh Downing's young charges will compete at a Sky Bet League One team's venue on Friday night.
Stevenage's Lamex Stadium will host the Baggies' 21s, providing them with a great opportunity to perform in an EFL arena.
Pre-match thoughts
Young attacker Ranger is determined to take his chance when Albion take on Tottenham's starlets in Hertfordshire.
Ranger, who signed a two-year professional contract as a second-year scholar in the early stages of the 2024/25 campaign, has been finding his feet in the club's PL2 team at the beginning of the current season, starting just twice against Brighton and Crystal Palace in August.
But the recently-turned 19-year-old hopes it's a case of opportunity knocks for him in Friday's match against Spurs' star-studded academy side, as he urges the Baggies' youngsters to "keep their heads up", respond effectively and learn from this tough spell by bouncing back in their next league game.
"We have to keep going and keep our heads up," said Ranger.
"The game at Fulham last time was quite difficult, especially after going down to 10 men. "Tactically, we stayed in the match but things didn't quite hold for us and we couldn't recover after the second goal.
"So, this week has all been about staying focused at the training ground, analysing where went wrong, and seeing how we can put things right on Friday against Tottenham.
"The fluidity to our play will come with more work on the training pitch as that will, hopefully, allow us to create better scenarios to take advantage of when it comes to matches.
"I want to start as many games as I can this season and get those goals and assists to my name to help my career going forwards. The only way to do that and to get those numbers is by playing well consistently whenever I get the opportunity.
"Every game is a chance to make amends, think positively, and create more moments in front of goal against Spurs in the next match could really help our momentum going forwards.
"Keeping a clean sheet would give us a good platform to build from, but I want to contribute too and that is just as important so hopefully it all comes together on Friday."
How to follow
There will be live updates across our social media channels for Friday evening's PL2 match against Tottenham.
The full report, reaction and highlights from the match will be available on the website over the weekend.
