West Brom new manager to be in Hawthorns dug-out v Stoke as timeline emerges
West Brom expect to hire a new manager before they play Stoke at The Hawthorns on Saturday, 18 January, according to Steve Hermon.
Writing via his personal X account on Tuesday (7 January), the BBC Radio WM commentator reported that the Baggies have finalised their shortlist and interviews are now underway.
It is understood that Chris Brunt, Damia Abella and Boaz Myhill will likely be in charge of the FA Cup clash with Bournemouth this weekend (11 January).
However, Hermon claims the Black Country club is set to have Carlos Corberan’s permanent successor in place for the all-Midlands Championship clash against Stoke on 18 January.
Who will be the new West Brom manager?
Swiss boss Raphael Wicky is the current favourite for the job.
According to SkyBet, he’s the 6/5 favourite after he emerged in the running on Sunday, initially as the odds-on favourite.
His odds have now drifted from 5/6 but John Eustace (5/2) and Steven Schumacher (4/1) are also in the running.
This appointment will be the first big move by owner Shilen Patel, who bought the Baggies from the Chinese in February.
Bilkul’s CEO Andrew Nestor, who is now sporting director at the Albion, is the man tasked with finding Corberan’s replacement after he left The Hawthorns for Valencia on Christmas Eve but there’s no doubt Patel will also have a major say in who comes through the door.
Wicky is a bit of an unknown in English football but he’s previously managed Basel and BSC Young Boys in Switzerland and Chicago Fire in the USA.
He’s masterminded a win over Manchester United in the Champions League with Basel and led Young Boys to a domestic double, so there’s clearly some talent there.
However, it remains to be seen how a fanbase accustomed to more traditional hires will react to seeing someone in the dugout they’d never heard of before Sunday.
In other West Brom news, Albion have made a move to sign the son of one of their former players.
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