Did Sam Allardyce make a mistake taking West Brom job?

If the Premier League season had started on 14 February, manager Sam Allardyce would be feeling quite pleased with himself.

Sadly for West Brom, their first game was five months earlier. It was the middle of December when Allardyce answered the 'Save Our Season' SOS call.

A friend of the former England boss rang and compared it to a Fireman Sam mission.

Despite the recent upturn in performances and results, as West Brom have 10 matches to close an eight-point gap to Brighton, who have a far superior goal difference and a game in hand, Red Adair might be a more appropriate rescue comparison.

No immediate impact

Prior to the home encounter with Manchester United last month, there were plenty of West Brom fans wondering what the point of Allardyce being at their club actually was.

The famed trouble-shooter, who boasts the proud record of never having been relegated from the top flight as a manager, had done little to improve their fortunes. If anything, the situation was even worse.

When Slaven Bilic was sacked, the day after West Brom had drawn 1-1 at Manchester City, they were, as now, second bottom. But they were only two points from safety - having played two extra games - and crucially their goal difference was not much worse than the sides immediately above them.

Not only did West Brom pick up just five points from Allardyce's first 10 league games in charge, they conceded a catastrophic 28 times.

Apart from Sheffield United, no top-flight side has a goal difference even half as bad as Albion's minus 36. Fifty-six goals conceded is by far the worst in the Premier League.

Allardyce can argue there are mitigating factors.

His arrival at West Brom coincided with the rise of positive cases within the Premier League and reinforced protocols to keep the game moving. Coaching routines had to be altered, meetings are different, even travelling to matches involves two or three buses rather than one. For a manager who uses personal interaction as a significant tool to create squad unity, Allardyce is compromised.

Recent results have improved the outlook slightly but Allardyce accepts it is now "a big task" for him to keep his proud record and for West Brom to avoid a fifth Premier League relegation.

What went wrong?

If Allardyce's recent team selections are any guide, West Brom's summer recruitment was not good enough.

Of the seven permanent signings, only Matheus Pereira started against Newcastle on 7 March. Karlan Grant, a £15m arrival from Huddersfield, was introduced for the final seven minutes.

Grant has scored one goal this season and the structure of the deal means West Brom are committed to paying £2.5m for each of the six years of his contract.

Former Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic joined West Brom on a one-year deal believed to be worth £2m in September. But the 37-year-old Serb has featured just once as a substitute in the league since the 4-0 home defeat by Arsenal on 2 January.

Most supporters believe recent arrivals Mbaye Diagne, Okay Yokuslu and Ainsley Maitland-Niles are a major reason for the recent improvement.

However, financial constraints meant those deals could not be done until the last days of the transfer window so only Diagne was involved in the vital matches against Fulham and Sheffield United on 30 January and 2 February, as West Brom collected a single point.

After Saturday's trip to Crystal Palace - who Allardyce guided to safety from a similarly desperate situation in 2017 - West Brom will have nine games left, six of them against teams in the top half of the table.

What is the owner's view?

Chinese businessman Lai Guochuan bought West Brom in 2016 and although he was initially seen at The Hawthorns for some of the bigger games, in more recent times he has been a distant presence.

He does allow chief executive Xu Ke to run the club with the UK-based board, which includes technical director Luke Dowling, but there has never been a suggestion he is willing to supplement income from his own funds. To the outside, he appears disinterested.

Lai has been unsuccessfully searching for a buyer.

Evidently, relegation back to the Championship would reduce West Brom's value and no-one can be entirely certain what reaction that will bring.

Lai could attempt to get back to the Premier League in the hopes of being able to sell. However, he could also feel the parachute payments that would be triggered in the event of relegation were a way of recouping some of his money.

And what about Allardyce?

Allardyce signed an 18-month contract when he replaced Bilic, which includes substantial bonuses if West Brom survive.

It is thought a break clause also exists in the event of relegation.

There are two significant questions. Firstly, is Allardyce, now 66, up for the challenge of managing in the Championship? There must be a reasonable chance he may not get another job after this one, so the thought of ending his career with a failure may not appeal.

Secondly, what do the fans think? Some quite knowledgeable ones say privately that keeping the former England boss would be the best decision and give West Brom the best chance of promotion.

However, there are unknown factors that won't become apparent until May, when supporters are due to be allowed back into stadiums.

For a start, there is no way of knowing how Allardyce's status as a boyhood Wolves fan is viewed by those who pay to watch their Black Country rivals play.

In addition, the stigma around Allardyce's tactics remains, even if it is somewhat unfair and at odds with the ability of players like Pereira in his current squad.

While West Brom still have a chance to save themselves, the focus will remain on the pitch.

But without an upturn beyond even the recent form reversal, it is a situation that will eventually have to be addressed.

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