Alan Pardew is all set to be appointed as the new West Brom manager. Various sources are claiming that he will be named as the new boss of the West Midlands club on Wednesday. The Baggies sacked their former manager Tony Pulis on 20 November following a winless run of ten Premier League games which saw them sit a point above the relegation zone. Since then, Gary Megson has taken charge of the Baggies’ first team and the club officials have now identified Alan Pardew to be the ideal candidate to lead the club going into the future.
Following the 2-2 draw against Newcastle United, Gary Megson said: “I will meet the chairman at 10:00 tomorrow, what about? I don’t know,”
“Something has to be done at some point. I was just told in the interim period to take the team. What I’ve done the last eight or nine days is what I’ve done for the last 20 years, so I have enjoyed all that. I haven’t applied for manager jobs in the last three years but whatever happens now, if ones do come up I will apply.”
It is evident from Gary Megson’s comments that West Brom are not thinking about offering him the full-time role. Alan Pardew has emerged as their main man to take charge of the West Midlands club.
The French manager has been out of football since being sacked by Crystal Palace in December 2016 and is expected to sign a three-year deal which will keep him at the Hawthorns until 2020. The 56-year-old is set to become the Baggies’ sixth permanent manager since 2011. The Baggies let a two-goal lead slip in their last competitive fixture against Newcastle United as the match ended with both teams sharing the spoils in a highly entertaining 2-2 draw.
The ex Newcastle manager, who’s also a former team-mate of the current West Brom technical director Nick Hammond, will take charge of his first West Brom game when the Baggies host his former club, Crystal Palace on Saturday, 2 December (15:00 GMT).
He will then have a tougher task as the Baggies will travel to Anfield and the Liberty Stadium before a home fixture against Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United.
Alan Pardew guided Newcastle United to a strong fifth-place finish in the Premier League which earned him the honour of being named as the LMA Manager of the Year in 2012. The French manager is highly experienced and has an 18-year managerial portfolio which includes stints at Reading, West Ham, Charlton and Southampton. The Baggies will do well to secure a manager of his stature to hopefully lead them out of relegation trouble in this campaign.
