(Credit: Imago)

Pete O'Rourke, Transfer Correspondent

Mon 20 April 2026 13:15, UK

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West Bromwich Albion are prepared to offer the manager’s job to James Morrison if he keeps them in the Championship at the end of the season, sources have told Football Insider.

The former Baggies midfielder is understood to have enhanced his reputation as a coach during his interim tenure, and the club hierarchy now feel “inclined” to offer him the job permanently if he keeps the team up.

Sources say that the Scotsman has given himself a “real opportunity” to secure the role for next season, having lost just one of his nine games in charge of the team.

That run of form has lifted the Black Country outfit five points clear of the relegation zone, which has breathed new life into their fight for survival.

The threat of a possible points deduction is still looming at The Hawthorns, but if they finish on the right side of the bottom line then Morrison is set to be rewarded.

West Brom to benefit from continuity of James Morrison

Former Baggies assistant manager Mick Brown recently told Football Insider that West Brom may benefit from the continuity of keeping Morrison in place for next season, especially after such a tumultuous campaign this term.

Optimism was high at The Hawthorns after a promising start under Ryan Mason, but that quickly disappeared as a terrible run of form saw the team slide down the table.

Morrison has worked hard to address that slide in recent weeks, and with the team currently on an eight-game unbeaten run, things have been looking up on the pitch.

His team have also kept five clean sheets in their last six games, and that newfound nature of being difficult to beat has given their survival chances a huge boost heading into the final three games.

Brown suggested that Morrison has already developed a “good rapport” with the squad, and feels that there is little reason for the club to break that next term, regardless of which division they end up in.

West Brom will undoubtedly hope that they are in the Championship, and with Morrison’s remit successfully completed with that outcome, it could result in him taking the job permanently.

Ex-Championship CEO backs Baggies to escape points deduction

The threat of a points deduction could potentially de-rail Morrison’s recent good work, but former Aston Villa chief executive Keith Wyness told Football Insider on Monday that he would be “surprised” if West Brom are hit with such a punishment.

The Scottish businessman suggested that the fact that the Baggies didn’t delay the release of their accounts until the end of the campaign shows they feel they are compliant with the PSR rules, despite their alleged breach.

Wyness pointed towards the involvement of John Pelling to explore the club’s finances as a reason to be confident that West Brom will be in the clear, since Pelling “knows PSR inside out.”

Wyness clearly feels that the financial expert has such a strong grasp of the regulations that the club are extremely unlikely to have overstepped the mark, which they will certainly be hoping proves to be true.

A points deduction is now the biggest threat to West Brom’s safety in the coming weeks, as it threatens to overwrite all of the promising work that Morrison has done.