Report: West Brom eyeing 'reboot' in Championship with innovative manager
West Bromwich Albion's board doesn't envision a future with Alan Pardew at the helm.
The Baggies' hierarchy is almost resigned to relegation from the Premier League this season, and is prepared to respond by staging a "reboot" in the Championship with a new, innovative head coach, according to The Telegraph's John Percy.
Potential replacements for Pardew are Leicester City assistant manager Michael Appleton, Brentford's Dean Smith, and Derek McInnes, who turned down the Sunderland job last summer.
Pardew is expected to meet with West Brom chief executive Mark Jenkins on Monday to discuss his plans for the rest of the season. The club is eight points adrift of safety with eight matches remaining, and still has Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, and a string of relegation rivals left to play.
"I will still talk to them and get a feel for what they think because they might think a change is a better thing for the club," Pardew said after Saturday's 4-1 home loss to Leicester City.
"I'm going to have to sleep on this result and come up with how we're going to go forward. I want the best for West Brom."
If the West Brom board receives no assurances that Pardew can improve performances over the rest of this term, he could be given the boot within the next few days, Percy reports.
In addition to the on-the-pitch issues, the former Newcastle United and Crystal Palace overseer has had to contend with disciplinary problems at the Hawthorns. Gareth Barry, Jonny Evans, Jake Livermore, and Boaz Myhill broke a curfew during a recent team trip to Barcelona, reportedly stealing a taxi in the early hours. The long-serving Chris Brunt was also at the centre of a dressing-room row following last month's 2-1 home defeat to Huddersfield Town, and on-loan midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak refused to shake hands with Pardew when he was substituted against Leicester after 59 minutes.
Since Pardew succeeded Tony Pulis at West Brom, he has steered his team to just one win in 15 top-flight matches.