PARDEW IS CLOSE TO THE ENDGAME
Players look lost, fans are fuming...
EVERYONE connected with West Bromwich Albion could be forgiven for peering enviously at the victors on Saturday for a picture of all that their club once was, and should be.
Huddersfield are a club of modest scale in the scheme of things but guided by a dynamic manager and backed by an attentive owner they absolutely know their principles and how progress can be obtained.
For West Brom right now, none of that applies. The players look lost, there is deep discord in the stands and, though Alan Pardew remains in charge, defeat to Watford on Saturday would in all likelihood bring his tenure to an end.
This 2-1 loss to David Wagner’s side felt like a watershed moment for Pardew personally but also the club as a whole.
It is implausible to see a way for West Brom to avoid relegation and dropping into the Championship for the first time since 2010 would mean searching questions about the club’s structure and squad.
Owner Guochuan Lai has already dismissed chairman John Williams and chief executive Martin Goodman and now the Chinese businessman is pondering his next move.
Intense scrutiny is on Pardew for winning just one of 14 Premier League games since replacing Tony Pulis but focus will also fall on Nick Hammond, the technical director who has overseen this season’s unsuccessful recruitment.
Lai and new chief executive Mark Jenkins yesterday reviewed Pardew’s position but decided to stick with him for now and will support the manager in the hope no further upheaval is required.
Marco Silva has been mentioned but it is understood the Portuguese coach views his horizons significantly higher.
West Brom are also aware Graham Potter, the Ostersunds manager who oversaw the 2-1 Europa League win at Arsenal last week, is interested in a return to England.
Pardew has been dealt a difficult hand with a squad shaped in Pulis’s image and little room for manoeuvre in the January window. Daniel Sturridge looked a bold piece of business but he has managed 78 minutes and is out of the game at Watford with a hamstring problem. Injuries to Nacer Chadli and James Morrison have also hindered Pardew.
But there can be no hiding from a points-per-game ratio of 0.57. Pulis was on 0.83 points-per-game when he was sacked in November.
West Brom were dreadful on Saturday, lacking any pattern to their play and conceding possession too easily.
Poor defending aided both Huddersfield’s goals from Rajiv Van La Parra and Steve Mounie and, though Craig Dawson pulled one back, cries of ‘sacked in the morning’ came from the Smethwick End.
‘Ten points between West Brom and us with 10 games to go is a big gap,’ said Wagner. ‘But I think more about us and we know we have a good momentum. It’s important to perform in big-pressure games.’