West Bromwich Albion are in big trouble this season. The Baggies are in the fight of their lives to avoid a shock relegation from the Championship, after recently parting company with Eric Ramsay following a stint of just nine games in charge.
They are not currently in the bottom three but are just one point clear of 22nd-place Leicester City, with a worse goal difference of -18 compared to the Foxes’ -9.
Things are certainly looking precarious for the Midlands side, who need to get their next appointment right.
But what does their run-in look like with some crucial games left to go?
A look at West Brom’s survival run in
It feels like there is so much resting on March for West Brom. They must pick up points to pull away from Leicester, but it will not be an easy task. The final three games see them host Southampton and Hull City, before a trip to Bristol City to end the month.
The Tigers currently hold a playoff spot, and the other two sides are within four points of the playoffs themselves, so they have a big incentive. They will certainly be tough games for the Baggies.
April doesn’t get much easier. There are more games against promotion candidates, including Wrexham, Millwall and Ipswich Town.
Those three games are at the Hawthorns, though, where they are much better, with six wins and six draws in 17 home games this season.
The most significant game before the season’s end is surely the Easter Monday trip to Ewood Park to face Blackburn Rovers. The Lancastrian side are also in the relegation scrap, so that could be a key game in the fight for survival.
The final match of the season sees West Brom play the already-relegated Sheffield Wednesday away, an ideal fixture if they need to avoid defeat. The Owls have only won once all season.
Rumours are swirling about who will be in charge for this crucial end to the 2025/26 campaign.
West Brom could hire Will Still alternative
As you might expect, several names are getting thrown about when it comes to landing on the perfect Ramsay replacement.
One which may have caught the eye of the Baggies faithful is former manager Slaven Bilic, a man whom the Express and Star say there ‘has been talk’ about bringing back to the club.
His first stint at the club saw him achieve promotion from the Championship in 2019/20, guiding West Brom to second in the table. Bilic did get sacked after a poor start to the Premier League season, winning just once in 13 top-flight games before his dismissal.
Yet, let’s look at that successful second-tier campaign. He won 22 out of 46 matches, drawing 17 and tasting defeat just seven times.
Ex-Premier League midfielder Lee Hendrie said he was “immense” during his time managing the club in the Championship.
|
Bilic – 2019/20 Championship |
|
|---|---|
|
Stat |
Number |
|
Matches |
46 |
|
Wins |
22 |
|
Draws |
17 |
|
Losses |
7 |
|
Goals for |
77 |
|
Goals against |
43 |
|
Average points per game |
1.8 |
One of the standout things from that season was how clinical in front of goal Bilic’s side were. The Baggies’ 77 goals were the joint-second most in the competition, only bettered by playoff runners-up Brentford.
If the Croatian is given the full-time job, he might well make a better appointment than another candidate, Will Still. The 33-year-old is out of work after being sacked by Southampton earlier this season.
Despite impressing in Ligue 1, he struggled to adapt to English football, which might be a red flag for the Baggies’ board when making their next appointment. Still won just four times in 16 games at St Mary’s, perhaps highlighting a lack of experience.
On top of that, the ex-West Brom manager favours a 4-2-3-1 formation, compared to Still’s preferred choice, a back three.
The Baggies have tended to set up in Bilic’s ideal formation this term, and whilst Ramsay did experiment with a back three, too much tinkering might be a hindrance, and it is arguably ideal to keep a back four.
It is a risk West Brom can’t afford to take. Relegation is looming, so they might lean towards the experienced figure of Bilic, who knows the club and has had success in the league, rather than the youthful Still, to steer them to safety.
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