Alex Mowatt reveals what has "shocked" him about Ryan Mason at West Brom | OneFootball

West Brom midfielder Alex Mowatt has been surprised by how well new head coach Ryan Mason has adapted to life at The Hawthorns.

West Bromwich Albion midfielder Alex Mowatt admits he has been surprised by how quickly new head coach Ryan Mason has made an impact on the squad.

It was a year of managerial instability at The Hawthorns last season, with Carlos Corberan departing for Valencia in December before Tony Mowbray returned for a second spell in charge the following month, but the 61-year-old won just five of his 17 games at the helm and was sacked in April after his side's play-off hopes were ended.

Despite initial links with ex-QPR head coach Marti Cifuentes, it seems that Mason was always West Brom's top target to replace Mowbray, and the 34-year-old left his role as assistant coach at Tottenham Hotspur to sign a three-year contract with the Midlands outfit last month.

While Mason has taken up his first senior managerial position with the Baggies, he does have plenty of coaching experience under his belt, and he previously had two stints as caretaker manager of Spurs following the departures of José Mourinho and Antonio Conte respectively.

Mason may only have been in post at Albion for just over a month, but he has already been given strong backing in the transfer market by owner Shilen Patel, with defender Nat Phillips making a £3 million move from Liverpool and striker Aune Heggebo joining from Brann for a fee of £4.75 million.

Alex Mowatt makes Ryan Mason, West Brom admission

Speaking at the club's pre-season training camp in Austria, Mowatt issued a glowing verdict on Mason's time as West Brom head coach so far, and the 30-year-old admitted he has been surprised by how well the ex-Spurs coach has managed to implement his ideas.

"It's shocked me how good he's been at getting his message across," Mowatt told the BBC.

"It helps massively. The training's been good and he's high on standards. It's been a good intensity and the gaffer drives that - which was what was needed."

Mowatt hinted that he and his team-mates found the transition from Corberan to Mowbray difficult last season, but he believes there will be no such problems with Mason, and he praised the new Albion chief for the open communication he has established with the players.

"You just roll with it - sometimes you go from one extreme to the other, which maybe happened last season," Mowatt said.

"Sometimes it's difficult to adapt to it but it's about finding the right balance.

"With Carlos you didn't speak to him much but with Ryan you can have a conversation with him and he'll speak to you after training and get feedback from the lads which all helps."

Mason is the third-youngest manager in the top four divisions of English football behind Brighton & Hove Albion's Fabian Hürzeler and Southampton's Will Still, but Mowatt does not believe his age will be a problem at The Hawthorns.

"He's been at Spurs but he's just starting out [in management] and he's hungry to go far in the game and he has fresh ideas which helps," Mowatt explained.

"I don't think the age thing really matters, when he's driving training like he does it doesn't make a difference. He's easy to talk to as well which helps me out."

Having played under five different permanent managers since joining the club from Barnsley in 2021, Mowatt has seen his fair share of changes in the West Brom dugout, so it is a big positive that Mason has already gained the approval of the experienced midfielder.

While many Baggies supporters are excited about Mason's arrival, the club have taken a big gamble by appointing someone with no previous managerial experience, particularly with expectations at The Hawthorns likely to be high next season after missing out on the play-offs last term.

Of course, Mason is yet to experience any real tests as Albion head coach, but winning over the squad is the first hurdle for any new manager to overcome, and on the basis of Mowatt's comments, it appears he has already passed that test.