Curtis Davies reveals failed West Brom transfer that got Bryan Robson sacked
Curtis Davies has lifted the lid on a failed exit from West Brom which culminated in Bryan Robson losing his job at The Hawthorns.
Davies played under Robson and Tony Mowbray during his time with the Baggies, arriving from Luton Town in 2005 while in the Premier League and leaving for Aston Villa soon into Mowbray’s stint.
The centre-half revealed on Undr The Cosh podcast [via Patreon, 10 October] that with his stock high, Portsmouth – then in the Premier League and flying under Harry Redknapp – wanted to pay £10million for his services, and Robson’s push to the Albion board to make the sale happen appeared to cost him his job.
Davies said: “I missed a meeting because I was stuck in traffic, and the gaffer [Robson] spoke to me after and said ‘I’ve been sacked, the board have let me go and I just want to thank you for everything you’ve done for me’.
“He said ‘I just wanted to let you know that I got sacked because I was pushing on selling you to Portsmouth for £10million. I could have sold you and got you your move back to the Premier League, and bought four or five quality players to get us up.’
“That showed me that he was thinking of me and trying to do the best for me.”
West Brom taking pride in great defenders
Davies signed for West Brom for £3m in 2005, which for a young player in that era was a sizeable fee, and at the time the joint-record sum paid by the club for a player alongside Rob Earnshaw.
He would go on to spend a fair chunk of an established and long career in the Premier League, and plenty of Albion defenders since have followed in his footsteps.
In the current chapter of the Baggies’ history, the club have taken pride in their defensive record, impressing with such a feat under Carlos Corberan last season.
A blow to lose Cedric Kipre and Conor Townsend it may have been, but Semi Ajayi has filled in seamlessly and Torbjorn Heggem was – for a long time in the summer window – the only player bought for a fee while the club operated under spending restrictions before a late surge.
So far this season, only Sheffield United and Burnley have conceded fewer goals than Corberan’s Albion, with Swansea equal on six shipped in nine games.
In other West Brom news, Corberan makes his latest comments on Shilen Patel.
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