Owner taking another look at Lai of the land
GUOCHUAN Lai will return to England to watch another Albion match before the end of the season.
It will be the owner’s second game in the space of a few months after previously being absent for more than three years.
Lai has been offering his input to the board in recent weeks from his base in China, having spent Christmas in England when he oversaw the £7 million deal to bring Daryl Dike to the club.
The controlling shareholder was hoping to see a couple of games over the festive period, but the visit of Preston was postponed because of Covid, though he did attend the 1-1 draw with Cardiff.
There has been frustration and anger towards Lai from sections of the Albion fanbase in recent years for what has been perceived as a lack of interest in the club.
He made himself Baggies’ chairman last month as part of a radical board shake-up, which involved appointing Ron Gourlay as the club’s new chief executive “He is involved. We’ve had two board meetings (in recent weeks), which he’s chaired,” Gourlay revealed. “The other board members were there and he was in China. “He is coming over at the end of the month again because one of the things I did explain to him is that he needs to be visible.
“He did come over under Covid restrictions and it took him nearly three weeks to get home. He was in isolation for 18 days, but it is important he’s coming back over because you need a visible owner and chairman. “Is he leaving it all to me? No, and I don’t think that’s right either and it’s not what the club needs, but I am the chief executive and I have responsibility, just like the other directors do as the custodians of the club.
“So we have the main board, which he is the chairman of, and then the football board and the non-football management board, which I’m the head of.”
Gourlay is overseeing operations at ground level on a daily basis at the club’s training ground and is in regular contact with Lai.
While he reiterated the owner’s move to take up the chairman’s role is significant and a step in the right direction, there is still work on Lai’s part to build bridges and mend his relationship with the fanbase.
“Well, (becoming chairman) is quite significant, if I’m honest with you, because one of the things I picked up was that the club doesn’t communicate,” said Gourlay. “There are different cultures and things, but the club weren’t good at communicating in and outside of the club.
“I’m not used to that. I’ve come through at clubs where communication is absolutely key. Consultation is key. You learn more if you speak to people, and that can be the staff and it can be the fans.
“I said to Mr Lai, ‘you’re a custodian of the club. They’ll all be here once you and I are gone. We’ve got to work on that. You can’t do anything at all without the fans’.”