No-one argues with ‘very demanding’ Carlos Corberan at West Brom ‘constantly’ on training ground – Conor Townsend
Carlos Corberan is “very demanding” but nobody at West Brom argues when the results speak for themselves since the Spaniard’s arrival admits Conor Townsend.
The Baggies defender told BBC Radio WM on 30 November that the team is reaping the rewards of long meetings and hours spent on the training ground, with the players “confident” in what they are doing to implement the manager’s plan.
He praised “how much better it has been” since Corberan replaced Steve Bruce last season and said the West Brom operation can all see the benefits of all the hard work they are put through.
Townsend said: “We’re confident with what we’ve been doing. We feel like we’re a solid team and we’re trying to implement what the gaffer wants us to do.
“He’s demanding but I feel like the players have really bought in ever since he’s been at the club and you can see that in the results over the course of the past year, how much better it’s been with him in charge…
“There’s a lot of hard work that goes into that. We have a lot of meetings, we’re constantly on the training ground. The gaffer is very demanding in the training ground [and] hopefully on the weekend you can see we’re putting that into practice…
“The gaffer’s results at the club speak for themself. We do have long meetings but when we’re getting the results that we have in the past year no-one argues with it, no-one complains, no-one grumbles because we can see the benefit and long may that continue.”
Buy-in
If Corberan’s brand of management wasn’t working so well it isn’t a huge stretch to imagine it wearing on the squad but there is simply no way to argue that his methods haven’t been effective.
West Brom looked more likely to be in League One right now than in with an excellent chance to get promoted back to the Premier League amid the malaise which had set in under Bruce.
That Corberan has achieved as much as he has despite a backdrop of takeover uncertainty and a miserable financial situation necessitating high-profile departures from his squad is all the more impressive.
The downside to the situation is clearly that if the Albion fall short of a return to the top flight this season there are bound to be clubs ready to offer him a route to manage in the division elsewhere.
Concerted links to Leeds United over the past year didn’t see him go and his commitment to the job he is doing at The Hawthorns is arguably as impressive as the results on the pitch.
That only lasts until it doesn’t though and he has already proven he is ready for the next level so if he can’t get there with West Brom he surely would be ready to consider another option eventually, especially with the task of clearing that hurdle set to get even harder.
But with a takeover on the horizon he might finally be able to manage the Baggies on something of a level playing field and that opportunity is likely as exciting for him as it is for the fans who want to see this continue just as Townsend does.
In other West Brom news, the Baggies are after a “prolific” goalscorer who has clubs on red alert for the January window.