Signing a new contract last month was arguably the icing on the cake for what has been a remarkably quick rise for Dara O'Shea.

The 20-year-old was still playing at Premier League 2 level as late as mid-December when he took to the field against Fulham's U23s. But in a matter of weeks, he has established himself as a key part of West Brom's defence, starting and completing the full 90 minutes in his side's last five matches in the Championship.

And on Saturday afternoon, he was once again handed the starting role at right-back, but this time, he failed to deliver.

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In the Baggies' 2-2 draw at home against Nottingham Forest, O'Shea struggled big time, with his Sofascore match rating of 6.3, the worst of any outfield player for Slaven Bilic's side. And when you look at the numbers behind his performance, it's easy to see why.

He won just eight of his total 18 duels, was dribbled past twice, completed only 70% of his passes, and lost possession a staggering 20 times - the latter stat being the second-worst of any West Brom player. O'Shea was also slightly at fault for Forest's equaliser, failing to stop a cross from coming in, eventually resulting in Kyle Bartley turning the ball into his own net.

It spoke to the obvious lack of experience at this cut-throat level that the 20-year-old has, and Bilic's comments immediately after it was reported that the club had offered him a new deal emphasises how the Croatian is seriously putting West Brom's hopes in jeopardy.

"I have said from the start, from July, that he is the present and the future of the club. With the injury to Nathan that position has become a bit more fragile – or not as secure. I had no doubts but you still have to see him there. It was only theory, it was only I think you can do it but he proved us right."

Whilst the Baggies boss' glowing words are admirable, and O'Shea could certainly establish himself as a cornerstone of the side for years to come, it places an awful amount of pressure on his shoulders to perform. The fact he is also playing at right-back (out of position considering he's played mostly in central defence at youth level), further underlines how Bilic is playing with fire at the moment.

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Promotion to the Premier League is on the line, and so perhaps now is not the time to be experimenting with youngsters and simply brushing off the inevitable bad mistakes and poor performances. Every point, and every win counts, and O'Shea's dismal display against Forest played a major part in the side not clinching a vital victory.

Meanwhile, West Brom may need to rethink their contract offer for this player.