James Morrison has been able to continue the form from his caretaker manager spell and has West Brom sitting pretty as the Championship’s surprise early leaders – Matt Graham (@SAHistoryMatt) tells us how he’s done it.
How’s the season started?
It feels surreal to be writing that West Brom are currently two points clear at the top of the Championship after six games. When the fixture list was released it looked like a really tough opening set of games, but we’ve started off strongly against teams who will be in the upper reaches of the division, and notched up four wins in the process.
What is most encouraging is not only picking up positive results, but the different ways in which they’ve been achieved. The tactical adaptability is evident with a battling (and controversial) defensive away win at Norwich City, the backs-to-the-wall effort playing with 10 men for more than an hour against Derby County, and in contrast the incisive attacking display at home to Burnley. From these opening games it is clear how Morrison has totally changed the West Brom set-up and style of play, as we look to dominate the ball and tempo, particularly at home.
However, we are still a work in progress. There hasn’t yet been a ‘complete’ performance, and we have ridden our luck at times. The manner of the away defeat against a very strong Newcastle United team in the cup was an indication the levels we can achieve. But against Charlton Athletic who’d set up with a low block we really struggled to break them down, and got sucker punched with their only shot on target, while in the Middlesborough game, after conceding to the most blatant offside goal you’ll see, the team slightly lost its composure. However, it has been an enormously encouraging start, which has set the standards for the campaign.
West Brom in the league so far…
Norwich 1-2 West Brom Kvistgaarden 90 – Heggebo 75, Morgan 87
West Brom 3-1 Burnley Whitwell 18, Price 46, pen 65 – Styles og 8
Boro 3-1 West Brom Lankshear 48, 73, Jones 87 – Morgan 65
West Brom 1-1 Charlton Styles 59 – Campbell 69
West Brom 1-0 Watford Morgan 36
Derby 0-1 West Brom Heggebo 16
Never a big fan of caretaker managers getting the gig permanently, but James Morrison really seems to have picked up where he left off…
Absolutely. There is always that lingering fear about appointing interim head coaches on a fulltime basis, but Morrison is showing just how good a coach he is. Morrison took over the team when the club was in free fall, a squad bereft of confidence, and in all honest after the defeat to Oxford I thought we were guaranteed for relegation. Since he took over, The Albion have only lost 3 of 18 league games, and The Hawthorns is fast becoming a fortress with the side on a ten-game unbeaten run, which is a remarkable turnaround in our fortunes.
A refresh of the coaching staff and the introduction of new voices in the summer has helped establish a necessary reset, and the squad has quickly bought into the ideas and ethos. What is apparent is that Morrison expects very high standards from his players, and even after wins, he has been keen to point out areas for improvement. As we transition into a more attacking and possession-based team, the defensive solidity which was such a notable feature of our survival last season has diminished slightly with only two clean sheets so far (including the cup games). There will be obviously dips in form over the season, one which most thought would be challenging, but the impact he’s had so far means that Morrison has a lot of credit in the bank.
Overall assessment of the transfer window?
The objective of the transfer window was to reduce the average age of the squad and importantly the wage bill, both of which were achieved. A set of expensive, injury-prone, or ageing players have been replaced by younger dynamic additions with significant sell-on potential; seven of the ten incomings are 23 and under. It shows the direction and trading model our ownership wishes to take the club in.
The midfielders Rabby Nzingoula and Thomas Horn Myhre have shown their quality, although you can tell they’re still adapting to the frenetic pace of the Championship, and Jimmy-Jay Morgan has begun the season very well with plenty of goals and assists. Morgan’s contributions have caught the eye. What the club did well not to do was panic and buy or loan players that wouldn’t improve the overall squad; our deadline day loan record over the last few seasons is abysmal. However, we probably did need a few more additions. It is a long season, and the window has left Morrison slightly short, especially in terms of rotation because many of our new signings are not used to two game match weeks. We really could have benefited from experienced central defensive cover, at least one winger now that Mikey Johnston is out injured, and another striker because Barney Stewart is still very inexperienced.
Overall, it was a strong window, albeit one that could have been improved slightly by bringing in more depth.
Ins >>> Toby Collyer, 22, DM, Man Utd, £3m >>> Felix Horn Mhyre, 27, CM, Brann, £2.5m >>> Kareem Tunde, 21, RW, Levante, £2.5m >>> Rabby Nzingoula, 20, DM, Strasbourg, £2m >>> Brayann Pereira, 23, RB, Nijmegen, £1m >>> Barney Stewart, 22, CF, Falkirk, £1m >>> Jimmy-Jay Morgan, 20, CF, Chelsea Puppy Farm, £1m >>> Nolan Galves, 23, RB, Rodez, £1m >>> Matt Ingram, 32, GK, Oxford, £200k >>> Conor Townsend, 33, LB, Ipswich, Free
Outs >>> Krystian Bielik, 28, CB, Cardiff, £2.5m >>> Josh Griffiths, 24, GK, Stoke, £500k >>> Alex Mowatt, 31, CM, Derby, £500k >>> Karlan Grant, 28, CF, Charlton, Free >>> Jed Wallace, 32, RW, Bristol City, Free >>> Daryl Dike, 26, CF, Orlando Magic, Free >>> Josh Griffiths, 24, GK, Stoke, £500k >>> Josh Maja, 27, CF, Le Havre, Free >>> Joe Wildsmith, 30, GK, Released >>> Alfie Gilchrist, 22, RB, Orient, Loan >>> Alex Williams, 21, RB, Hibs, Loan >>>
Where is the team strong and weak?
Our right back Nolan Galves has experienced a baptism of fire to life in the Championship. Far more comfortable going forward, he has struggled with the defensive aspect of the game. Galves is slowly improving into the role, but he is shaky positionally and gets caught ball watching. Unfortunately, Galves was injured in the Derby County game after the debutant Brayann Pereira was sent off, which now means we’ll have to adapt a RB with both players missing. The squad doesn’t really have out and out wingers, which means some of the play around the box lacks a cutting edge against teams set-up to frustrate.
The forward four of Issac Price, Harry Whitwell, Jimmy-Jay Morgan, and Anue Heggebø have been excellent so far. They’ve all chipped in with goals and assists, and you can see the understanding and patterns of play developing nicely. When they click it is a joy to watch. Heggebø might not score many, but his hold up / link up play is excellent that allows the others to flourish. Price when he is on form, is a sublime midfielder at this level, and academy graduate Whitwell has been brilliant. An honourable mention goes to Ousmane Diakité at the base of the midfield, who is solid at breaking up play and relieving pressure, although sometimes loses his focus.
Revised expectations?
We had a strong start to last season, and the wheels fell off spectacularly, so I’m not going to judge this one off 6 games. I do think if we can maintain the standards and the quality we will win more than we lose. I’m worried about the squad depth, especially if injuries and suspensions start to pile up. Although this is clearly a transitional season for the club, given the manner in which we are currently playing, I’d hope we can finish in the expanded play-off places.
Links >>> Official Website >>> Independent West Brom forum — Message Board >>> Boing — Blog >>> Express and Star — Local Paper >>> Birmingham Mail — Local Paper
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