Albion boss Chris Hughton has played down the chances of a switch to twin strikers to ease the goal shortage.

Hughton operated with two forwards in the Championship last season, occasionally using Glen Murray and Tomer Hemed together.

He has tinkered with the tactics in the Premier League, deploying German summer signing Pascal Gross behind Murray or Hemed.

Hughton said of restoring a front partnership: “It’s not something I wouldn’t do in a game but Hemed and Murray are similar type players.

“I never say no but the facts are at this stage of the season so far it’s not something that I’ve done.”

Sam Baldock, plagued by a calf problem, made his first appearance of the season in the matchday squad as an unused substitute at Huddersfield recently.

But het was not involved in subsequent games against Spurs or Burnley.

The blank sheet against Burnley at the Amex on Saturday stretched Albion’s run without a goal in open play to nine-and-a-half hours.

Hughton said: “We are playing against better teams, that’s it.

“Our team is not dramatically different from last season, apart from Pascal (Gross) and Davy (Propper) and the goalkeeper (Mathew Ryan).

“Week in week out we are up against better teams. That’s the challenge. There are definitely areas we can improve on.

“If I’m looking at our levels, it was the type of game (against Burnley) we needed to score. That’s an area we can improve on but it’s all about playing against better teams and having to make sure we up our game.”

Murray is scheduled to make his 200th appearance for Albion, spread over almost a decade, against Watford at the Amex on Saturday.