Harry Whitwell among big winners of West Brom's 2026-27 pre-season

West Bromwich Albion's 2026-27 pre-season campaign is in the books.

Saturday's 2-0 win over Peterborough United brought the curtain down on what has been a superb summer of preparation for James Morrison's side.

Albion have won all four of their public-facing friendlies, beating Sheffield Wednesday 3-0, Bromley and Shrewsbury 4-1 each and ending with that victory over Posh.

Indeed, the Baggies have won those games by a combined score of 13-2, which despite being against lower-league opposition, is still a very impressive achievement.

Morrison continues to get more out of his players, whilst new arrivals have largely bedded in and hit the ground running straight away.

But who have been the three Albion players who've really stood out amongst the rest and been the biggest winners of the pre-season campaign? West Brom News debates...

Why Harry Whitwell has set himself up for West Brom role this season

West Brom News tipped Whitwell to be Albion's big pre-season star this summer, and he's certainly been one of the standout players.

The 20-year-old attacking midfielder enjoyed a fruitful loan spell with Forest Green Rovers during the first half of last season, before returning to The Hawthorns in January before making four appearances.

He's started in all four of Albion's friendlies this summer, and even found the net during the 4-1 win over Shrewsbury.

Whitwell has also shown some versatility too, playing in the middle of a bank of three as well as operating on both the left and right of a central midfield two.

Morrison must've loved what he's seen from the youngster, who has surely done enough to warrant a place in his first-team squad this season rather than being loaned out.

With Rotherham United in the League Cup next on the agenda, that looks like another prime opportunity for Whitwell to make sure of his place in Morrison's thinking ahead of the Championship season getting started.

Now to another young player, but this one isn't an Albion academy graduate, rather, he's a forward who's come in and shown exactly why so many around The Hawthorns are extremely happy to acquire his signature.

Jimmy-Jay Morgan has 'signing of the summer' feel about him

Sometimes, players at top academies who boast an abundance of quality young talent slip through the net and land in the laps of clubs further down the pyramid.

That's precisely what has happened with Jimmy-Jay Morgan, Chelsea and West Brom this summer.

The 20-year-old forward was acquired for a fee in the region of £4million in mid-June, having scored 14 goals in 39 games for Peterborough whilst on loan there last term.

His potential has long been touted, and Albion fans have been seeing why this summer, as he's scored four goals across those four aforementioned friendlies.

Capable of playing as an attacking midfielder as well as a striker, it wasn't clear where Morrison was bringing him in to play for the Baggies, but he's mostly been deployed as the latter during pre-season.

With some fine finishes and an excellent attitude and application on show, he's quickly becoming a fan favourite, as well as a can't-drop player from Morrison's starting XI.

As a result, he's most surely cemented himself a starting role heading into his debut campaign, which was not a guarantee by any means upon his arrival.

And for the final big winner of West Brom's pre-season, we don't need to stray too far from Morgan's area of the pitch to find him.

Morrison may have unlocked Heggebo's goalscoring potential

Aune Heggebo's debut 2025-26 season at The Hawthorns was a modest one, scoring 10 goals and providing four assists in 48 total appearances.

The £4.75m signing from last summer, he's always looked and felt like the type of striker who is built to score goals in the Championship, but a combination of poor service and inconsistent finishing limited his return last year.

However, with Morrison having installed Morgan to now play alongside him, that looks to have been a wonderful piece of visionary recruitment from Albion, as they've been complementing each other brilliantly.

Heggebo's target man profile combined with Morgan using his pace and industry to buzz around between defenders has been causing nightmares in opposition backlines.

The Norwegian ends his pre-season campaign with three goals under his belt, and enters the competitive action looking like a centre-forward with a new lease of confidence.

If this summer has been anything to go by, then Baggies fans could be looking forward to a big goalscoring season ahead from Heggebo.