Tony Pulis believes West Brom's failure to find a second-half winner against Liverpool typified their season and the fine margins in the Premier League.
West Brom brought the curtain down on the league campaign with a 1-1 draw at The Hawthorns, Salomon Rondon's opening goal cancelled out by Jordon Ibe's individual brilliance for the Europa League finalists.
A draw means West Brom end the season on a nine-match winless streak, but the hosts certainly had chances to end that run after the break with Rondon seeing a header rebound off the post.
"It's been the story for the last eight or nine games. Apart from the Arsenal game where we didn't play well, I think we've played quite well and not taken chances," head coach Pulis told Sky Sports.
"We've had opportunities again and it's such thin lines between winning and losing in this league. If Salomon's header goes in then I think we go on and win the gameM but it just hasn't broken for us. That's the way it's been.
"We're absolutely delighted to still be in the Premiership, just maybe disappointed not to pick up as many points as we could have.
"We could have been further up the league but it's ifs, buts and maybes. Like I said it's thin lines, you need the breaks at times. You can't fault the players in the second half. I thought Liverpool dominated for a long time in the finishing period of the first half, but in the second half we created lots of opportunities."
With Premier League clubs set to land a significant windfall from a bumper television rights deal next season, Pulis is expecting changes at The Hawthorns.
But the Welshman says chairman Jeremy Peace will not risk the financial future of the club.
"There's a lot of work to be done, we know that," he added. "The are players out of contract now and that will give us a little bit of room to manoeuvre. The club is run fantastically well by Jeremy, the financial situation will never change here.
"The club has to be run in the right way there's not a penny debt and it's kept the club in the Premiership. It will always be done with one eye on finances and making sure the club is solvent and progressive."
‘He instantly popped into our ratings as one of the best U21 midfielders in Europe. The impressive thing is Slot has made him into more of a no.6' Inside Ryan Gravenberch's transformation at Liverpool
‘I don’t think Liverpool would look at Ollie Watkins, a striker isn’t a pressing issue for them – it’s Arsenal who need one’ Former Reds star explains why his old club don’t need an out-and-out forward this summer
