With the second half of the season almost at the halfway point, it is fair to say that the Premier League has so far lived up to its billing has the best in the world, with plenty of excitement on and off the pitch.

Much of the attention has been drawn to the affairs at the top as well as the bottom of the table, as is to be expected, but some of the so-called average sides in the division have quietly gone about their business effectively, with the surprise team of the season, arguably, being Tony Pulis' West Bromwich Albion.

The Baggies currently find themselves in a surprising eighth place on 37 points, far away from the usual worries of relegation.

Pulis' men have been fantastic so far, but with the quality of some sides in the league, few would have predicted their current achievement. So why are they flying? Let's take a look...

Stable and consistent XI

Pulis teams are usually very hard to beat, as evidenced by the Baggies winning 40% of their games so far this term, which has been mostly down to the consistency he shows in squad selections.

The 59-year-old seems to have found his most trusted starters in the team, with the ex-Stoke boss fielding the same XI in nine of West Brom's 25 league games - only Leaders Chelsea have more with 14. The likes of Jonny Evans, Matt Philips, Salomon Rondon and Claudio Yacob have all benefited greatly from this.

The Baggies have lost only eight this season, and seven came against sides currently in the top seven positions, with Bournemouth the only team outside that to have triumphed. It is almost as if West Brom are the Chelsea of the average sides, which says a lot about their achievement this term.

The addition of Matt Phillips

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The 25-year-old has been one of the signings of the season after producing a host of impressive performances for Pulis' side. Signed from Championship outfit QPR, the Englishman, alongside former Tottenham forward Nacer Chadli, he was brought in to add much-needed swagger to the timid Albion attack.

The result has been sensational thus far as the Baggies are playing better, creating chances and scoring more often in games. The Scotland international has so far registered four goals and eight assists, with only Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne providing more set-ups (nine).

Solid defence

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General view of a West Brom flag before the match 
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The first thing associated with a Pulis team is a strong back line. The Welsh tactician generally sets up his sides not to lose before eventually pushing on to try to win games, so it no surprise to see West Brom at the start of almost every game with four physical defenders - Craig Dawson and Allan Nyom operates as full-backs, while Gareth McAuley and Jonny Evans occupy the central positions.

This has turned out to be a masterstroke as the Baggies are rarely found wanting at the back, and with the trusted hands of Ben Foster in goal and veteran Darren Fletcher and Claudio Yacob providing more defensive support from the middle, it is not surprising to see them in the top ten.