Shilen Patel may live to regret Heitinga snub at West Brom after what Liverpool have done
West Brom are still yet to hire a new manager, with plenty of twists and turns already.
Tony Mowbray departed the Baggies over a month ago, but there has yet to be an announcement regarding his successor.
West Brom crashed out of the play-off places in the final months of the season as Mowbray struggled to replace Carlos Corberan, who departed for Valencia midway through the campaign.
After Corberan’s departure, West Brom were linked with John Heitinga as his replacement, and they may now regret not moving for him.
Heitinga could join Ajax following West Brom links
When Corberan departed in December, West Brom eyed up Heitinga as a bold appointment to replace the Spaniard.
It was reported that the Albion hierarchy saw the potential for Heitinga to become a top coach, but Shilen Patel elected not to go with him and instead brought Mowbray back.
Mowbray’s return was initially greeted with excitement, but his spell ultimately ended in disappointment.
Now, Heitinga, who has been an assistant to Arne Slot at Premier League champions Liverpool, has been permitted to speak with Ajax over their vacant head coach position, according to Fabrizio Romano.
| Tony Mowbray’s West Brom record |
| 17 matches |
| 5 wins |
| 4 draws |
| 8 losses |
Heitinga has previously held an interim role at Ajax, before working at West Ham and Liverpool, but he could be set to return to begin his management career, and West Brom may live to regret it if he turns out to be a success.
West Brom interested in Ryan Mason
Patel snubbing Heitinga five months ago now means that West Brom are again looking for a new manager, and Ryan Mason is a frontrunner for the role.
Mason has a lot of similarities to Heitinga, having also only managed Tottenham in interim roles while being a member of the coaching staff.
However, Heitinga is rated highly enough within the game to take a job as big as the one at Ajax, and as a player, held much more experience at club and international level.
Had West Brom hired Heitinga, he could have kept them in the promotion race and been ready to build a long-term project at The Hawthorns.
Now, Patel seems to have learned his lesson about taking a gamble on a more risky appointment, and is willing to appoint Mason despite his lack of experience, but he may watch Ajax with envy if Heitinga proves to be a hit there.