Mahmoud Dahmoud was starting to find his feet in the Albion midfield – until he put a foot wrong.

The former Borussia Dortmund midfielder has lost ground since his red card against Sheffield United almost seven weeks ago.

But one suspects he could be among the men given chance to shine in the Potteries.

Roberto De Zerbi’s side enter their final competition of the season as they go to a somewhat revitalised Stoke City in the FA Cup.

Team selection will be interesting and, as often happens in domestic cup competitions, there will predictions for a radically changed XI which makes Albion even younger than usual.

That is not generally the way with De Zerbi, who has named strong teams for knockout games.

Last season he saw hopes in both cups ended by penalty shoot-outs.

Earlier this term, a single goal knocked them out of the Carabao Cup.

In this unprecedented campaign with European demands, one waits to see what he does in the FA Cup.

His hands are still tied by injuries and workloads but this is the final game for 16 days.

Maybe a look at the subs on the team sheet at West Ham offers some indication of who might play.

There are names there one can imagine being in the XI for Saturday.

Bart Verbruggen, Jakub Moder, Carlos Baleba and Evan Ferguson, the matchwinner at the Bet365 last season. And then there is Dahoud.

Although he was signed as an experienced campaigner from Dortmund, De Zerbi made it clear early in the season that Dahoud still needed time to settle into the system.

He quickly brought an eye for a clever pass, the best of which had Amex faithful muttering their appreciation.

But he could also be loose in his use of the ball and one wondered about the intensity of the Premier League.

It probably did not help that, at that time, we were all busy looking for the new Alexis Mac Allister or the next Moises Caicedo.

But Dahoud and Baleba were both praised by De Zerbi for their first half performance together at home to Fulham.

Then came the fateful visit from the Blades.

Again it felt like Dahoud was doing well in the first half – or hour.

Not long before his dismissal for putting a foot in on Ben Osborn, he had tested the keeper with a well-struck 25-yarder and then seen a cross blocked by what many felt was a handball.

And then? Putting aside any debate as to whether a three-game suspension is too much punishment for a mis-timed tackle, that red card has set Dahoud back.

It felt almost certain he would start at AEK, a game which fell during his league suspension.

But he only went on later to help protect a 1-0 lead and he gave a mixed performance.

He failed to help impose the rhythm Albion needed when he got a start at home to Burnley and was taken off at half-time.

All of which leaves him as talent so far unfulfilled at his present club.

Until recently, it has felt like Albion could get more from James Milner and that has happened to impressive effect in the last two matches.

Dahoud comes with a less cast-iron guarantee than Millner given he is new to the league and to the country.

But for how long can that be used as a reason for his limited impact?

It still feels like there is more to tap into.

Speaking two days before the Sheffield United game, De Zerbi told a press conference: “Mo Dahoud didn’t play in the last two years in a lot of games.

“He changed country, language, and style of play.

“He is a shy guy and he needed a lot of time to come into the team.

“I hope it is the right time for him to show his quality, as he is the right player for us.”

When Albion went to Middlesbrough a year ago, De Zerbi only made four changes to the XI which had won 4-1 at Everton in midweek.

Two of those who came in, Jason Steele and Jan Paul van Hecke, were back-up players at the time.

Adam Lallana and Tariq Lamptey also started on Teesside although Lallana was sharing the 90 minutes with Mac Allister, who replaced him at half-time.

Lewis Dunk was rested and Leandro Trossard left out ahead of his move to Arsenal.

Does De Zerbi give Dunk a run this time after he missed the West Ham trip through suspension?

Dunk has had one or two niggles and, by resting him from one cup tie, Albion would give him a break of three-and-a-half weeks between games.

That might be a great investment for the week and months ahead.

But Albion might not have the resources to do that AND name a strong side.

De Zerbi will want to go through this cup tie – and give himself the same decisions on fourth-round weekend.