West Brom fans to be furious with what James Morrison has done ahead of FA Cup clash vs Swansea
Caretaker manager James Morrison has wrongfully named Isaac Price in his starting lineup for West Brom’s FA Cup third-round match away to Swansea City.
Ryan Mason was sacked by Albion this week following West Brom’s 2-1 defeat to Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Monday.
Eric Ramsay is expected to become the new West Brom manager, but former Baggies defender Morrison is leading the team in the dugout for the FA Cup third-round tie.
West Brom have lost 10 consecutive away matches in the Championship, and they can’t afford to be knocked out of the cup by a side that beat them 1-0 on 1 January.
Krystian Bielik joins Chris Mepham in the heart of defence, while Price starts in attacking midfield as Morrison makes six changes.
Isaac Price starts as James Morrison makes six changes
Despite the impressive start to his Baggies career, Price has been criticised numerous times for his poor performances this season.
In the 2-1 loss to Bristol City at The Hawthorns on Boxing Day, the 22-year-old was completely ineffective, and he has failed to register a goal contribution in his last eleven games.
In Monday’s loss to Leicester, he failed to create a single chance and registered a pass accuracy of 59 per cent before being substituted in the 79th minute.
| Stat | Isaac Price |
| Appearances | 1726 |
| Goals | 5 |
| Assists | 2 |
| Chances created | 36 |
| Pass accuracy | 78.2% |
Despite being a great signing from Standard Liege in January, Price is starting to fade away for the Baggies, and Morrison naming him in the team for the Swansea match will definitely infuriate the supporters.
As for the changes, Ousmane Diakite, Alfie Gilchrist, Charlie Taylor, Daryl Dike, Nat Phillips and Josh Maja come in for Alex Mowatt, Jayson Molumby, George Campbell, Aune Heggebo, Karlan Grant and Mepham.
Morrison looks to have set the team up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Callum Styles playing in midfield, and Maja starting on the left-wing.
West Brom’s 3-2 win over Swansea on 29 November showed the desire among the players to continue fighting for under-fire manager Mason at the time.
West Brom’s players must prove themselves ahead of Eric Ramsay’s appointment
With the Baggies going into the match in a period of limbo, they have to display that same level of fight at the Swansea.com Stadium.
Although Ramsay hasn’t been officially announced as the new head coach, the final stages of negotiations are being discussed, and it looks likely that he’ll be in charge for the home game against Middlesbrough on 16 January.
The likes of Mepham and Bielik have struggled in defence, and they will need to use all of their experience in the second tier to prove their worth against Swansea.
Gilchrist has been given a rare opportunity in the team, while Dike will be eager to make a spectacular return to the starting lineup.
As for Price, he’ll need to have a strong impact from the off, otherwise the Northern Ireland international could fall further down the pecking order.