Credit: Imago

Richie Mills

Sat 2 May 2026 19:30, UK

James Morrison made it clear that mediocrity is unacceptable at West Bromwich Albion despite their 2-1 loss to Sheffield Wednesday.

West Brom’s 10-game unbeaten run came to an end on Saturday as the Championship’s basement side outthought and outfought Morrison’s men.

While the Baggies seemed like they were on a training run, Wednesday were galvanised by having new owners at a packed-out Hillsborough.

Although the statistics will show that West Brom had more possession, shots on goal, and a higher expected goals tally – this was by far the worst game of Morrison’s 12-game tenure.

And after West Brom’s loss at Hillsborough, Morrison made it clear a lot of hard work will take place over the summer ahead of next season.

West Brom ring the changes at Sheffield Wednesday

Against Wednesday, Morrison gave rare starts to Ollie Bostock and Alfie Gilchrist – but neither did a great deal.

Whatever West Brom were doing clearly wasn’t working in the first half as they took a two-goal deficit into half time. Karlan Grant’s late goal threatened a comeback but in the end, the Baggies deservedly lost.

Days after West Brom appointed Morrison as head coach on a two-year deal after an impressive interim spell where he guided them to Championship safety, the 39-year-old was brought back down to earth.

Josh Maja was among three West Brom players taken off at half-time, while Daryl Dike was part of the contingent that replaced them.

Unfortunately for the Baggies, little improved until the last 10 minutes. Morrison made five changes in total but it was all in vain, as their defensive solidity abandoned them after going five matches without conceding.

However, what he said after the game and his proactiveness at half-time shows why he could be a good fit at West Brom. The former midfielder wants to set a high bar and if you don’t meet those standards, you’re out.

He said after the game: “I’ll try and keep the performances and results we’ve had in my mind so that I don’t feel as angry and I am now.

“The summer is really important. A lot of hard work has had to go into it, a lot of organisation, so I’ll be crunching on that and continuing to work.”

Morrison added that he “hated” the first-half display and said it was unacceptable. Under his stewardship, it seems that won’t happen too often again.

West Brom face big summer

West Brom took a gamble on Ryan Mason and Eric Ramsay, both 34, over the course of the 2024-25 season but both gambles backfired.

Morrison, on the other hand, has been a breath of fresh air, despite West Brom’s poor defeat to Wednesday.

Incidentally, a whole host of players are out of contract, including Maja, Grant, Dike, captain Jed Wallace, and more.

Some are likely to be on big wages and could be moved on. Some big decisions need to be made on who is retained, who is brought in, and more.

West Brom cannot be a team hovering around the relegation zone. To get them competitive again, a lot of work needs to be done but Morrison could be that man to take them forward.