West Bromwich Albion

Chris Hall
Fan writer

On Friday, West Bromwich Albion revealed their released and retained list, and the announcement caused a few eyebrows to be raised in the Baggies fanbase.

Of course, not every name on the list was a shock. Jed Wallace's release was sad but not surprising.

The club captain may be a stalwart of 140 league games for the Throstles, but it's the right call.

Wallace missed half the season through injury and, at 32, it would be fair to assume those issues are only likely to get worse, not better.

While Daryl Dike is six and a half years Wallace's junior, he too carried too much risk to be renewed.

Many, myself included, made a case for the big American striker to stay. His committed demeanour on the pitch and his downright lovable personality off it had every Baggie desperate for him to succeed.

But, after four and a half years and only 22 league starts, it was a clear matter of heart ruling head to campaign for him to be given a new contract.

One player who has made a compelling case to stay is goalkeeper Max O'Leary.

In a season where Joe Wildsmith and Josh Griffiths racked up some horrendous shot-stopping statistics that went a long way to plunging Albion into relegation trouble, O'Leary offered the antidote to those ills.

He finished the season in credit in terms of goals prevented, a stat where his predecessors had been heavily in debt, and racked up an incredible eight clean sheets in 16 games.

Albion had only managed seven in 28 games before he arrived.

Little surprise then that the 29-year-old goalkeeper has been offered a new deal.

But there was more of a mixed reception to the fact that deals have been put in front of Josh Maja and Karlan Grant.

Image source, Shutterstock

From a fitness perspective, I get some of the concerns.

Grant started just 17 games last season - fewer than the released Wallace (although he is also four years younger than the skipper).

The 14 games for which Grant was unavailable due to injury this season is more than he's missed through injury in the previous five years of his Albion career.

At just 28, it's easy to believe this level of absence won't be repeated.

Maja, too, lacked starts (just 15 to be precise), but this wasn't due to injury.

Instead, it was down to the then manager Ryan Mason who seemed to believe the forward didn't warrant a place in his starting XI.

That decision was exposed somewhat when James Morrison gave Maja six starts at the back end of the season and was duly rewarded with three goals.

It's hardly surprising when you look at the stats.

In the past two seasons, Maja has not scored once in the league when coming off the bench.

Yet in 41 league starts, in the same period, he has returned an impressive 16 goals.

That record probably goes some way to explain James Morrison's desire to keep the Nigerian striker.

For the reasons behind the efforts to retain Grant, you must dig a little deeper. However, a dip into the data justifies that call too.

Grant is one of the best forwards in the league for ball recoveries in the final third, successful dribbles per 90 and touches in the opposition box. He is also very rarely dribbled past.

In short, Grant is a wide man who works very hard, advances his team up the pitch, presses opposition defenders and looks after his full-back.

While these are not the things that will always catch the eye of spectators, trust me when I tell you that coaches and managers notice and value them.

Add to that the fact that Albion are already light in attacking areas, and retaining players is almost always cheaper than recruiting them, suddenly our retained list starts to make a lot of sense.

However, at the time of writing, none of Grant, O'Leary, nor Maja has signed on the dotted line.

Wanting to keep them is one thing - doing so is something else entirely.

Steve Hermon
BBC Radio WM's West Bromwich Albion commentator

Image source, Getty Images

Albion have "acknowledged" rather than accepted the publication of the independent Club Football Reporting Panel's (CFRP) written reasons for the points deduction.

There is clear frustration from the club over the timeline of events. That is understandable, as is their decision not to appeal and their desire to move on after they, in their own words "settled it on the pitch".

The club submitted its annual accounts on 3 December yet it took 112 days for a compliance report to be issued. That meant the punishment came in the final days of the season after a swift video conference hearing.

That timing was far from ideal for all parties involved — including Albion's relegation rivals at the time.

The written reasons reveal Albion argued that, if a sporting sanction was to be handed down, it should be suspended until the start of the 2026-27 season because of the delay.

The club also highlighted the "tireless" efforts of owner Shilen Patel in reducing losses. When he arrived, they were projected to exceed the three-year P&S limit of £39m by around £30m. In the end, the breach stood at just under £1.97m — the smallest ever recorded across the Premier League or second tier.

It is notable that Albion's engagement with the governing body was judged only as "reasonable" and therefore not worthy of a point being given back for co-operation. That's despite Patel's Bilkul group working to a business plan in conjunction with the EFL ever since completing their takeover in February 2024.

The written reasons do, however, acknowledge the club did not act in bad faith.

Rather than holding on to prized assets to push higher up the Championship, which would have risked a more serious breach, Albion sold the likes of Torbjorn Heggem and Tom Fellows in an attempt to comply.

Those decisions had a detrimental on-field impact, contributing to their slide into a relegation battle only avoided by a remarkable run of form under James Morrison.

Outside of their legal representatives, no EFL official attended the remote hearing.

The independent CFRP did hear evidence from Patel though, as well as executive director Mark Miles, Rob Lake of the Albion Foundation and former Stoke City and Bristol City executive John Pelling. He was brought in by the Baggies for his football finance expertise.

The panel sided with the EFL on most decisions.

One of the key arguments centred on recharging £5.2m in interest on a loan to parent company Bilkul rather than the football club. The CFRP rejected Albion's case, viewing responsibility for the loan as a "direct and natural consequence" of the takeover — a decision that effectively added £5.2m to the club's losses.

Patel has invested tens of millions to clean up the mess he inherited, including the MSD loan, so in one sense he can feel hard done by. It was taken out before his arrival to keep the club afloat.

But the American businessman did tell me in an interview in March 2024 that he came into the situation with "eyes wide open". The lesson is a harsh one, reflected in the EFL's claim the recharge was "an illegitimate attempt to rewrite history".

The club's major point of contention was what it viewed as a retrospective change in the interpretation of community development expenditure. Albion's in-kind contributions to the Albion Foundation were accepted as genuine but — apart from £86,061 — just over £2m claimed as a "community add-back" was disallowed.

The CFRU admits it made a "new and different decision" when it looked again at previously submitted accounts for 2023-24.

According to the written reasons, the unit says it was "obliged" to look again but the Baggies argue in-kind benefits had previously been accepted as being exempt from P&S calculations.

The written reasons also claim the unit didn't know until February 2026 that the club's accounts for 2024-25 didn't include in-kind benefits as part of their losses and that this was new information.

In a season that also saw sanctions for Leicester City and Sheffield Wednesday, alongside Southampton's ongoing 'spygate' controversy, the EFL clearly has its hands full. However, differing interpretations of complex rules and the contrasting time taken for decisions to be reached do not appear helpful to anyone.

Clubs are due to vote on a new squad cost ratio model, which will better align the EFL with the Premier League, League One and League Two. Hopefully it proves to be less complicated but for Albion their priority now is looking forward.

As their statement put it, they have "closed the chapter" on one of the most stressful periods of the club's history — and are confident the future will not bring a repeat.

Chris Hall
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

It has been a crazy season for Albion.

Three managers, a points deduction, a boardroom departure, a record-breaking defeat and two 6-hour plus runs without scoring a goal.

To be honest, the fact that Albion have come out of all of that relatively unscathed is a minor miracle.

You could argue we've come out of it better for the experience.

We started the 2025-26 season with an entirely untested rookie manager, but we ended it with one who has been tested in the most trying of circumstances.

While James Morrison has (by his own admission) much to learn, he has very little to prove.

The same was not true of Ryan Mason or Eric Ramsay, who arrived with much bigger reputations but proved very little.

Under Morrison's leadership, Albion now feel both galvanised and unified.

The atmosphere in the decisive game of the season against Ipswich was unparalleled in terms of a regular-season game in recent memory.

A far cry then from the boos that had rung around The Hawthorns after so many Ryan Mason performances and the chants of "you're not fit to wear the shirt" which met the conclusion of most of Eric Ramsay's eight league games.

Many of the players, too, have been on a journey of redemption since the start of March.

James Morrison called out a number of his senior players after the defeat by Oxford at the end of February, while fans seemed to have also washed their hands of many of their first-team squad.

Most supporters felt a season-ending injury to creator-in-chief, Mikey Johnston, in that game at the Kassam would spell doom for Albion's season; quite the opposite.

It allowed Morrison to go with a more robust and, at times, narrower midfield in which Isaac Price enjoyed his own redemption arc playing in his (in my opinion) best position off the left, and it allowed Albion to go two up top, with more defence-minded midfielders behind them.

A front two simply isn't that fashionable anymore, and it was something Mason had avoided as he didn't seem to fancy any of his strikers bar one.

Aune Heggebo had started Ryan Mason's last 11 league games in charge and only failed to start twice under Eric Ramsay.

Morrison, however, decided to share the load much more up front, rotating three different strikers in Heggebo, Maja and Dike.

Maja had been anonymous under the previous two bosses, scoring just one league goal all season, but he also had been shown very little faith, making just six league starts before Morrison was put in charge.

Suddenly trusted under the interim boss, he was a player transformed, starting seven matches and scoring three goals in Albion's last nine games.

Similar was true of Daryl Dike.

Ryan Mason had granted him just 31 minutes of league football in five months.

Morrison started him in three of Albion's last five games...he duly scored twice.

In all honesty, the list could go on.

Ousmane Diakite didn't miss a minute of Albion's last eight league games, racking up man-of-the-match awards on a near-weekly basis. He'd been derided by much of the fanbase for much of the season prior to that.

Nat Phillips and George Campbell formed a rock-solid partnership, with the former having been culpable for many defensive errors earlier in the campaign and the latter having been misguidedly used at right back for much of the season.

He was replaced at right back by Danny Imray, whose loan looked like it was over before it started when he was substituted after 45 minutes on debut at Portsmouth. He went on to be one of Albion's most important players in the closing weeks of the season.

In the end, it was a season where many redeemed themselves both on the pitch and off it.

Our ownership recovered from some incredibly bad football decisions to (finally) appoint the right man and expertly guide us through an incredibly challenging final few weeks.

However, after the redemption arc needs to come the next chapter, and we must hope that our excellent finish to the season (final day aside) gives us a platform to build upon.

James Morrison said after the final day defeat to Sheffield Wednesday, "In defeat you learn a lot, and I've learned a lot today."

That's a humble and reflective approach which the club should take to the 2025-26 season.

Many mistakes were made, and that presents an opportunity to learn from them and come back stronger.

Because nobody connected to West Bromwich Albion wants history to repeat itself.

Listen to more from Chris Hall at the Albion Analysis, external

"I think it will be interesting to see what he [Morrison] brings in and how we are going to play next year."

BBC Radio WM's West Bromwich Albion commentator Steve Hermon is joined by former Baggies midfielder Richard Sneekes and fans to look back on a difficult season for the club and assess the turnaround under new boss James Morrison.

Listen to the full season review on BBC Sounds

Listen to more West Bromwich Albion content on BBC Sounds

Steve Hermon
BBC Radio WM

Image source, BBC/Getty Images

The debate over West Bromwich Albion's out‑of‑contract players depends on whether you're thinking with your heart or your head.

The heart will tell you Jed Wallace should be offered a new deal because of how important the captain is in the dressing room and on the training ground.

When lesser characters have hidden, Wallace has stepped up in public, speaking to me on multiple occasions during one of the toughest 12 months in the club's history.

He has also been a model professional in the community, supporting several Albion Foundation initiatives, which are part of his responsibilities as skipper.

However, the head suggests it may be time to move on.

Wallace is now 32 and on a very good wage after arriving on a free from Millwall in 2022. While he played a key role in Albion's upturn when James Morrison switched to a 4‑4‑2 availability has been an issue.

The winger has started just 17 games over the past two seasons. His latest calf problem ruled him out of the final seven matches, aside from a two‑minute cameo on the last day at Sheffield Wednesday, which marked his 150th appearance for the club.

Injuries are also the reason why the head argues it could be time to cut ties with Daryl Dike.

The striker was incredibly unfortunate to suffer Achilles ruptures in separate incidents, but his fitness has restricted him to just 68 appearances and 11 goals in four and a half years. He is also on good money, and if he were to break down again a new deal would be a huge regret.

But the heart wonders whether those worries are behind him. Dike significantly increased his game time under Morrison and played his part in the team's 10‑game unbeaten run to secure safety.

There is also the infectious personality behind the scenes, and the moment of pure emotion when he scored at Preston - one of the few genuine highlights of a difficult season.

If a deal can be agreed on reduced terms, the 25‑year‑old may yet stay, although he might favour a fresh start elsewhere.

Wages are also central to decisions on Karlan Grant and Josh Maja. The latter has coasted through too many games this campaign and, despite flashes of the talent that saw him bag 12 goals in the first six months of the 2024-25 season before injury ended it early, he has not shown enough effort to justify a new contract.

Grant's status is trickier. He is more respected internally for his attitude than by supporters, and his quality was missed during his most recent injury absence.

However, having joined the club when they were in the Premier League, the 28‑year‑old is on a salary the Baggies can no longer justify.

Then there are the goalkeepers. Joe Wildsmith is the easiest call. Signed on a free in the summer of 2024 as back‑up to Alex Palmer, he was handed an opportunity after the academy graduate's January move to Ipswich last year.

He failed to grasp it, making a string of costly errors and ended the season on loan at Middlesbrough.

After Josh Griffiths' confidence suffered following multiple mistakes this season, Max O'Leary arrived on a short‑term deal from Bristol City vin January.

Despite an error on debut at Derby, the Republic of Ireland international went on to keep eight clean sheets, including five in a row.

Some have concerns over his height, but he has good Championship experience, his shot‑stopping is excellent and Albion would be wise to keep him.

Image source, Getty Images

West Bromwich Albion head coach James Morrison said his players cannot afford to come off the gas after losing at bottom side Sheffield Wednesday on the final day of the Championship season.

The Baggies clinched safety with two games to spare after a run of one defeat in 11 games after Morrison was placed in interim charge after Eric Ramsay's departure in February.

But having been given the job on a permanent basis this week, Morrison suffered a second loss to hand the Owls just a second league win of the season.

"I don't want to get away from what we've achieved, but obviously we've set standards now and we didn't meet them today from the first 10 minutes," Morrison told BBC Radio WM.

"I think it's the first time I've had to get angry again at half-time. We huffed and puffed second half, but still again we didn't value the ball how I would like.

"The stuff that's brought us success wasn't there today, so I'm a bit disappointed with that. But the bigger picture is where we were at Oxford to where we are now - that's the positive.

"We felt their (Sheffield Wednesday's) occasion today and we didn't rise to it and that's the thing I've learnt today - we've got to be on the players every day and we can't come off the gas."

Image source, Getty Images

We asked you what you thought of James Morrison's permanent appointment at West Bromwich Albion and most of you seem pleased as punch.

Here is a selection of what you had to say:

Southern Baggie: Even if it doesn't work out, he has earned the right to fail. He is ultimately the reason we are not in League One. Thank you, Mozza.

As the core of the team that he has built around won't change, this gives us a bit of hope that we can create a real togetherness around the squad. Every successful team in the league has that core identity, and Morrison can take us on.

Work to do, but settling the head coach early was a good move, giving us more time in a shorter window (World Cup).

Nathan: I think it was only right that James got given the managerial position on a permanent basis. Although I have some reservations as he is another rookie and it's one thing to galvanise a team in a relegation battle to then lead the team for the full season. I hope it works out for him but we will have to recruit well in the summer.

Drew: Mozza was the only logical choice - if the last 10 games were any sort of 'working interview' he passed with flying colours!

He really 'gets' the club and the way he galvanised the players, other staff and fans in that short time has been unbelievable.

My only worry is him failing and being pushed out but:

a) I can't see him failing in the short term.

b) His old coaching job would hopefully be made available if a change were needed.

Steve: Well deserved, he's displayed good man management skills alongside tactical nous and a pragmatic approach.

He'll know next season will be as challenging as the this season has.

Paul: Great player for Albion but had hoped for a more experienced appointment such as Slaven Bilic.

Andy: Excellent appointment, the man knows the club and players through and through. I've heard references to calls to Pulis, Hodgson and Clarke as past managers who have helped him. Don't know how much of that is true, but it would be a strong indicator of what they think of him if true. Season ticket renewed and looking forward to better times post PSR nonsense.

Andy: Undoubtedly deserves it, and he fits the Albion recruitment model (below 40) but has the added benefit of knowing the club, players and is tactically astute. An obvious leader who got the players onside and firing on all cylinders. All with a very thin squad.

Rob: No disrespect to Morrison but Gill was the catalyst to Albion's improvement, keeping him is equally important.

Graham: Absolutely delighted to see Mozza appointed as permanent manager. He was brave to call out players after Oxford loss but that showed he has a good relationship with them. Calm when the heat was on. Dealt superbly with points loss and being in relegation zone. Top half next season.

Image source, Getty Images

James Morrison has been appointed as West Bromwich Albion's permanent head coach after twice taking on the role on an interim basis this season.

The 39-year-old former Baggies midfielder was also in caretaker charge after Tony Mowbray was sacked last season but this will be his first full-time managerial role.

Morrison is unbeaten in his past 10 games as West Brom boss since losing against Oxford after replacing Eric Ramsay in late February.

• Albion fans, are you happy with Morrison's appointment?

• Does he deserve it?

• What are your expectations for the 2026-27 campaign?

Let us know your thoughts here and we will publish some of your responses later on.

Both of these sides will be pleased to see the end of this season.

Sheffield Wednesday's off-field and ownership issues have led to a wretched campaign on the pitch and a failure to beat West Brom on Saturday (12:30 BST) will make them the first team in the top four tiers of English football to go a whole season without winning a home game.

West Brom secured their Championship status for a second time with a draw against Ipswich last weekend, having been deducted two points.

• Sheffield Wednesday have won both of their past two Championship home games against West Brom, winning 3-0 in 2023-24 and 3-2 last season.

• West Brom have only lost two of their past 13 league games against Sheffield Wednesday (W7 D4), with this season's reverse clash ending goalless in November.

• Sheffield Wednesday have not lost their final league game in any of the past five seasons (W3 D2), last enjoying a longer run from 1947-48 to 1957-58 (11 in a row).

• West Brom have won their final league game in both of the past two seasons, last doing so three times in a row from 1991-92 to 1993-94.

• Should Sheffield Wednesday fail to win this game, they would be the first side in England's top four tiers to end the season with one league win since Derby County in 2007-08 in the Premier League. In a 46-game season, the fewest wins is two by Rochdale in 1973-74 in the third tier.

Chris Hall
Fan writer

Image source, Shutterstock

To paraphrase Harold Wilson, a week is a long time in football.

It certainly proved that way for West Bromwich Albion last week.

Off the back of a huge away win at Preston North End, Albion went into the week knowing that a win at home to a beleaguered Watford, coupled with anything less than that for Oxford against Wrexham, would make them mathematically safe.

Both of those things came to pass as the Baggies ran out emphatic winners against the Hornets, while the U's fell to defeat.

We were allowed just 72 hours to bask in the glow of Championship survival before it was ripped away from us.

At 5pm on Friday, the EFL announced that they would be deducting Albion two points because of alleged financial breaches - which the club continue to claim they are innocent of.

Gallingly, no clarification was offered as to why Albion were found guilty or even how much the club were supposed to be in breach by, as the EFL neglected to provide the written reasons for the sanction.

A strong club statement highlighted the ridiculous nature of the decision, pointing out that the reason they were perceived to be over the limit was that the EFL were counting charitable donations as losses because of a rule change which had occurred after Albion had made the donations. The losses had then been applied to Albion's profit and sustainability calculation retrospectively.

The absurdity of the situation was not lost on respected figures around the football world, such as Kieran Maguire, Henry Winter and others, who were quick to point out how ridiculous the sanction, process, timing and lack of transparency appeared.

But, while social media feeds were awash with strong opinions on the potentially season-defining deduction, everyone inside the club focused on the final, powerful line of the club's statement.

"For now, we will settle this on the pitch."

It was a stance very much in line with the way James Morrison had approached the initial rumours of the charge a week earlier.

The interim boss knew he would face questions on the subject ahead of Albion's clash at Deepdale, but he very politely informed journalists that he had little to say on the matter, that he was only focusing on things within his control.

He also informed the media that his players would not be discussing the matter either, as he had taken the step of banning all talk of the story in the dressing room.

I doubt James Morrison sees himself as a master psychologist, but what is clear is that he understands players and fans, and he knows how to unify a club.

Most of this season, we have been a club divided.

Boardroom wrangles, two managers sacked, and fans and players about as disconnected at times as I can remember.

Yet, in a few short weeks, Morrison has changed all of that, and we have a club where it feels like everyone is pulling in the same direction again.

Albion have exhibited incredible mental strength and resilience to outwork and outfight teams week in, week out, resulting in an incredible 10-game unbeaten run.

And, following an unprecedentedly tumultuous week, Morrison kept minds focused on the task at hand as Albion confirmed safety for a second time on Saturday afternoon with a draw at home to Ipswich.

A truly testing week had been navigated flawlessly and, despite the best efforts of the EFL, our season was settled in the only place it should be – on the pitch!

West Bromwich Albion defender Callum Styles says they do not want the season to end after securing Championship safety.

The Baggies had clinched survival with a 3-0 win over Watford last Tuesday but were hit with a two-point deduction for breaching financial rules two days later.

It meant Albion still needed one more point to stay up heading into Saturday's home game against Ipswich Town and a goalless draw ensured safety for a second time.

That result also stretched West Brom's unbeaten league run to 10 games (W4 D6), during which they have kept seven clean sheets - and only three teams have taken more points in that time.

"We kind of don't want summer to come," Styles told BBC Radio WM.

"We're in good form, we could do another 40 games right now and then see where we're at then. Our form in the last 10 games would be top half, easy.

"We were quietly confident we could go toe-to-toe with Ipswich and get the point.

"You go into every game going for the win, but we come out of it with a draw and that means we're safe, so everyone's happy."

It was a good weekend for Styles, who was named as Albion's player of the season and players' player of the season, as well as walking onto the pitch with his new-born baby before the game on Saturday.

"I feel proud of what I've achieved this season personally and hopefully we can just kick on next season because this club shouldn't be down there, it should be up there fighting for promotion," the 26-year-old added.

"He [the baby] has been a massive blessing to our lives and it's just a bit surreal walking out with him. It's just amazing."

West Bromwich Albion interim boss James Morrison spoke to BBC WM after Saturday's goalless draw with Ipswich Town that confirmed their Championship safety again.

"We have done our talking on the pitch the past few weeks and it probably worked in our favour going into the game knowing what we had to do [after the points deduction]," he said.

"The lads have been in a good place, and I had no hesitations going into this game because we were in a good place with the fight and determination. It was there and they gave me the same performance again.

"We knew the fans would be right behind us, so we had to use that energy on the pitch, and I thought for 70 minutes we were there going toe-to-toe with a good side.

"For 70 minutes we were good but then there was a bit of fatigue, and we went a little bit into survival mode, but they brought on some good players so that might have helped them.

"The lads gave everything again - they kept going to the end and that's all we want really want and ask for."