Abdoulaye Meite is determined to earn himself a future with West Bromwich Albion after finally picking himself up off ‘the floor’.

The Baggies defender has flourished under Roy Hodgson, having been an outcast under previous boss Roberto Di Matteo.

The Ivory Coast man was on the verge of leaving Albion in January but opted to stay.

His contract is up at the end of this season, but Albion have a 12-month option to extend that.

He hopes his impressive form will be enough to keep him in Hodgson’s longer-term plans, after revealing how difficult the previous months had been.

“My priority is football, to get the two or three points more that we need,” he told the Birmingham Post.

“I am happy here and yes, of course, I would like to stay.

“In football, you can be the hero one day and on the floor the next day. I was on the floor.

“Now I’m playing, I am okay. I want to stay because we have a new manager and he can do a good job here.

“I had a chance to leave in January,” he said.

“There were a few options, I prefered to stay here and would then see in the summer.

“My reputation might not be what it should be. I have something to prove to the fans, to the club and to myself.

“I came here but had injuries. This is now my time to try to do it and prove to people what I can do.”