Jimmy Shan tasked with returning the club to the Premier League - despite their previous failed novice experiment
01:57, 17 Apr 2019Updated 01:58, 17 Apr 2019
West Brom are back in the promotion picture(Image: Ryan Browne/BPI/REX)
Rookie boss Jimmy Shan has been handed the job of trying to get managerless West Brom back into the big time.
The 40-year-old former academy head coach has been given the job until the end of the season.
The Baggies are currently fourth in the table and look to be in a strong enough position to get over the line for the play-offs.
Shan has been in charge of first team affairs for six matches following the shock sacking of Darren Moore just over a month ago.
In that time the team has managed a 12-point haul to keep themselves well in contention for a crack at the play-offs.
Jimmy Shan has done well on a caretaker basis(Image: Dennis Goodwin/ProSports/REX)
When Shan took over, the Baggies had not won a single game at home in 2019, but Saturday’s 4-1 win over Preston was his third home win in a row.
Shan has been working on a game-by-game basis but confirmation he will stay in charge for now seems to have been accelerated by Alex Neil’s decision to commit himself to Preston after looking set to take over at The Hawthorns.
West Brom are now ready to bring in an experienced coach to help Shan out before re-assessing their options in the summer with former Leicester boss Craig Shakespeare a strong contender.
First choice Slavisa Jokanovic, the ex-Fulham boss, was their No1 pick and they may well revisit the chances of landing him in the summer once they know what division they will be playing in.
Preston boss Alex Neil decided to stay at Deepdale(Image: Nigel Keene/ProSports/REX)
Albion are desperate to return to the top flight(Image: Ryan Browne/BPI/REX)
Ex-Huddersfield boss David Wagner could also be a top contender after taking the break until the summer he insisted on when he made his shock departure from The Terriers.
Shan said: “I’m happy that we can now move forward with clear planning and direction for the remainder of the season.
“It won’t change the work ethic and application of the players and the staff but it enables us to crack on with a clear target in our sights.
“From a personal point of view there is huge, huge pride to be given the responsibility. For me it is a chance to see the journey through that began at the end of last season.”