West Brom's 5 worst managers ever (Ranked) | OneFootball

West Brom's 5 worst managers ever (Ranked) | OneFootball

In partnership with

Yahoo sports
Icon: Football League World

Football League World

·6 October 2024

West Brom's 5 worst managers ever (Ranked)

Article image:West Brom's 5 worst managers ever (Ranked)

These are the worst managers in Baggies history, based on their points per game record.

Thanks to West Bromwich Albion's current manager, Carlos Corberan, the club's future prospects look much brighter.


OneFootball Videos


The Spaniard came in at a time when the Hawthorns was looking potentially likely to be a League One ground in the near future, in large part because of Steve Bruce's period in charge of the club.

Now, with Corberan at the helm, and new American money being invested into the club, their chances of a Premier League return are much more likely than when the boss was first given the job.

But, as is the case in football, not everyone can be as successful as Corberan. To feel the relief and joy that comes with a manager like him, there has to be the ones that precede them who weren't able to perform, like these five.

Based on their points per game record while in charge of the Albion, as per Transfermarkt and, where full data cannot be provided by the former, Wikipedia, these are the five worst managers in West Brom's history.

Article image:West Brom's 5 worst managers ever (Ranked)

At the number five spot, the worst manager in West Brom's history, based on their points per game record, according to Wikipedia, is Ron Saunders.

The Baggies suffered relegation from the first division and then finished 15th with Saunders at the helm.

He was actually in charge of the club for longer than anybody else on this list, at 565 days, which is pretty significant given his poor record, and after departing Albion in 1987, he wouldn't hold a managerial job ever again.

Article image:West Brom's 5 worst managers ever (Ranked)

West Brom have only had two Spanish bosses since they were founded in 1878. One of them is the aforementioned Corberan, the other is Pepe Mel.

Mel has spent most of his coaching career in his home country, and is currently the boss of CD Tenerife. His only stint outside of Spain in his whole footballing career was when he led West Brom from January 2014 to May of that same year.

He was appointed following the end of Keith Downing's short-lived tenure in the home dugout of the Hawthorns. The team were 14th in the league when Mel arrived, but he wasn't able to improve them.

Albion finished just three points above the drop zone by the end of the season in 18th place, and Mel was quickly removed from his position in charge of the first-team following the conclusion of the campaign.

His points per game during that time: 0.88.

Article image:West Brom's 5 worst managers ever (Ranked)

Nobby Stiles was part of England's World Cup winning team in 1966, and won the First Division crown twice in his career with Manchester United and the European Cup too.

As a player, he is one of the greats that this country has produced. As a manager, at least for West Brom, he wasn't able to live up to the high bar set by his career on the pitch.

Stiles was only with Albion for just over four months before he was sacked after achieving just three wins in that time, taking his record to 81 points per game. He never managed again after this failed attempt with the Midlands outfit.

Sam Allardyce - 0.73 ppg

A bit like Mel, Sam Allardyce's mission statement, when he was appointed in the January of the 2020/21 campaign, was to save a spiralling West Brom side when he was brought in.Part of his notoriety is his ability to come into clubs late in the season and miraculously turn them around in quick fashion - that didn't happen with the Baggies.Allardyce's 0.73 points per game from all competitions were not enough to keep the club up, and they were relegated to the Championship - and then came the end of his tenure as manager.

Alan Pardew - 0.67 ppg

The man who maybe most remembered by the majority of football fans for his eccentric dancing on the Wembley touchline, or his time with Newcastle United, will be remembered by Albion supporters for his woeful tenure with the club.Racking up 0.67 points per game, West Brom went from being just outside the relegation zone when Alan Pardew came in to being plumb-dead last when he left, with six games to go in the season. Even though they picked up 11 points in those remaining half-a-dozen games, they weren't able to overcome what he did in his tenure.

View publisher imprint