West Bromwich Albion

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West Brom managing director Mark Miles is to step down from the role next week.

Miles has been with the club since 2003 and also held the position of trustee of The Albion Foundation as well as a director.

He will leave on Monday, 15 September.

"After 22 years at Albion, I believe now is the right time for me to step down from my role as managing director," Miles said.

"When I took on this role it was with the intention of stabilising the club, ensuring its survival, and then securing the right custodian for Albion, all of which has been achieved.

"It has been a privilege to work at Albion, while also serving as a Trustee of The Albion Foundation. I have worked alongside some superb colleagues, and it is these people, along with the supporters, who make West Bromwich Albion a special club that will always hold a place in my heart.

"I would like to wish Shilen Patel and everyone associated with the club all the best for the future."

Chairman Patel added: "I have Mark to thank for introducing me to the passion, togetherness, and history of The Albion. His leadership, along with the tireless efforts of so many, enabled the club to persist through a very dark period and find its current footing and path towards higher goals.

"I am additionally grateful to Mark and his wife Anne - from the lowest points of COVID and financial crisis up to our exciting future - for traversing the United Kingdom and the relentless schedule to represent the club with love and pride."

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West Bromwich Albion midfielder Isaac Price became the youngest player to score 10 goals for Northern Ireland as he was on target in their 3-1 World Cup qualifying defeat by Germany on Sunday.

The 21-year-old equalised for the Irish with a volley from a corner 11 minutes before half-time only for the home side to score twice in the second half in Cologne.

Price's goal is his 10th in only 24 senior international appearances and moves him up to 10th on the list of all-time top scorers for Northern Ireland.

The loss in Germany leaves Michael O'Neill's side second in their qualifying group after a 3-1 victory in Luxembourg in their opening game last week.

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West Bromwich Albion new boy Charlie Taylor says his loan move to the Midlands was an opportunity he could not miss.

The 31-year-old rounded-off Albion's summer transfer business on deadline day with his season-long loan switch from fellow Championship side Southampton.

"This is a massive opportunity for me and one I couldn't turn down," left-back Taylor told the club website., external

"Once I heard about the interest, and once the move got the go-ahead, I was really keen to get things moving. I'm looking forward to joining up with the lads, helping out whatever way I can, and start playing regular football again.

"As a Championship team, Albion have always been up there at the top end. When interest comes up, it's a hugely appealing club."

Taylor has an abundance of Championship experience with Leeds United and Burnley - and also played in the Premier League with the Clarets for several seasons.

"I've got a lot of experience," he added. "I've played a lot of games at the top level, and I've played under a lot of managers in a lot of different systems, so I feel like I can bring a lot in terms of all that. I'm here to help in any way that I can."

For Taylor, part of the Baggies' lure was their strong start to the season - Albion have won three from four and sit second in the Championship on 10 points.

"The team has started so well, going unbeaten," he said. "That was another positive when thinking about making the move and something else that attracted me.

"Hopefully we can carry that on. I feel like this team will be competitive at the top end of the league."

The Hawthorns opened its doors for the first time 125 years ago to host a 1-1 draw between West Bromwich Albion and Derby County.

Tonight (Thursday), join the team at BBC Radio WM for an Albion special that will mark that milestone occasion.

They will also look ahead to a 'Clash of the Legends' charity match taking place on Saturday, 6 September (13:00 BST) at The Hawthorns to raise money for the Albion Foundation.

Special guests include former Albion striker Roman Bednar, club historian Dave Bowler and Baggies all-time record goalscorer Tony 'Bomber' Brown.

Tune in to BBC Radio WM from 6pm.

West Bromwich Albion are celebrating 125 years of The Hawthorns, external by opening its doors and hosting an open day for fans.

The stadium became the first Football League ground to be built in the 20th Century, named because it was based on the old Hawthorns estate where hawthorn bushes had grown.

The inaugural fixture, on 3 September 1900, was a 1-1 draw against Derby County.

Chippy Simmons was the first Albion player to score at the ground as he equalised England international Steve Bloomer's opener for the Rams.

The Hawthorns will next welcome 26,850 fans back when Albion host Derby County in the Championship in a repeat of the first game played at the ground in 1900.

Before that, a 'Clash of the Legends' match will take place to commemorate the 125th anniversary.

Club greats will form a home nations side and a rest of the world side when they take to the field on Saturday, 6 September.

"We've got a great line-up of former players, people like Claudio Yakob, Jonas Olsson, Shane Long, those sorts of players that come from an era where the fans really took to them," Albion Foundation Director Rob Lake told BBC Radio WM.

"The players have got a love for this club and they've got an affinity and they want to come back and they want to support the foundation.

"They were involved in [the foundation] back then, they know what it does in the community so they're happy to fly over from all over the place and up and down the [UK]."

You can read more about the history of The Hawthorns on West Brom's club website., external

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New West Bromwich Albion winger Samuel Iling-Junior says that while the announcement of his arrival was made on transfer deadline day, the interest from The Hawthorns had lasted throughout the summer.

The 21-year-old, who helped England win the European Under-21 Championship this summer, has joined on a season-long loan deal from Aston Villa.

He told the club's website:, external "The interest has been there since the start of the window.

"That's something that you think about as a player, the fact that teams want you and they're really keen on you.

"It's a really good opportunity for me and I'm determined to give it my all."

Iling-Junior made 16 Championship appearances on loan with Middlesbrough last season so he already has a taste of the second tier.

"The Championship is a difficult league and there are plenty of players in this league with quality," he added. "I want to be one of the players in this league who shows their quality.

"I think this is an important move. I've spoken to the manager and we're aligned on where we want to be and that's really helpful.

"I want to get playing and I'm really excited to be here. When speaking with Ryan Mason, we spoke a lot about my best attributes which are dribbling, utilising my pace and creating opportunities for the team and adding a few goals myself.

"We also spoke about me enjoying myself, so we've had positive conversations."

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West Bromwich Albion striker Aune Heggebo is in line to make his senior international debut after being called into the Norway squad for the first time.

The 24-year-old, who cost the Baggies £4.75m when joining from SK Brann in July, has received a late call-up to replace injured Wolves forward Jorgen Strand Larsen.

Heggebo has started all five of West Brom's games this season, scoring one goal in the Carabao Cup defeat by Derby last month.

Norway face Finland in a friendly in Oslo on Thursday, 4 September before hosting Moldova in a World Cup qualifier next Tuesday.

West Bromwich Albion defender Nat Phillips has taken to life well in the West Midlands after his £3m move from Liverpool this summer.

The 28-year-old scored the only goal in the 1-0 win at fast-starters Stoke City at the weekend, putting in a player of the match performance.

Phillips, however, believes that a collective team effort helped push Albion over the line.

"We managed to get the goal to go ahead early doors and then it was a real fight from there on out and I thought as a team we were outstanding," he told BBC Radio WM.

Phillips is keen to showcase the range of his ability and is looking to become a more consistent threat.

"I want to try and add goals to my game. I feel like I can carry a threat in both boxes so I want to try and bring as many goals as possible," he said.

Having been loaned out from Liverpool six times across Europe to the likes of Stuttgart, Celtic, and Bournemouth, the permanence of his move to West Brom gives Phillips a foundation for him to have the confidence to bring stability to the backline.

"It's something that I pride myself on, my ability in the air and in aerial duels, so the more I can contribute that to the team the better."

Alongside him was a familiar presence in the form of Chris Mepham, having played together at Bournemouth in the Championship during the 2021-22 season.

The duo helped the Cherries secure automatic promotion that season, with 21 clean sheets in the league.

West Brom have made an impressive start gaining 10 points from four games and are second in the Championship table.

"It's important not to get complacent," says Phillips.

"We all know that we have to keep pushing forward. Keep moving in the direction that we want to. We just want to carry on as we've started the season with positive performances and positive results."

A sentiment sure to be welcomed by many Baggies fans.

Listen to the full interview and more West Bromwich Albion on Sounds.

How much more will Birmingham City improve their squad? Will West Bromwich Albion get any more deals done before the window slams shut?

Find out in our visualised two-hour special show as we follow all of your club's deadline day business. Watch here at 18:00 BST.

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Ryan Mason hailed match-winning goalscorer Nat Phillips for his defensive performance alongside debutant Chris Mepham in the victory at Stoke City.

The West Bromwich Albion manager told BBC Radio WM: "Obviously he scored the winner but probably more importantly, (he did well) in our defensive box as well.

"He was outstanding, the sort of performance you get when you bring in a man ready to compete.

"He was mature and led by example but Chris alongside him was outstanding as well. He's had one training session and a performance like that makes me very happy."

Mason said away victory was a big moment, adding: "With the momentum Stoke were in coming into the game, the positivity to come away from home, win and keep a clean sheet, and the manner in which it was done, is so pleasing.

"We showed so much personality and quality at times, and suffered when we had to, but overall it was a thoroughly deserved three points."

Steve Hermon
BBC Radio WM journalist

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It's always sad for fans when 'one of their own' leaves but in the age of profit and sustainability rules (PSR), Albion have waved goodbye to two young men who've been part of the club since the under-10s team.

Now both 22, Caleb Taylor and Tom Fellows are departing because money made from sales of Academy products is pure profit and goes on the books now, whereas purchases can be spread across the length of contracts.

That massively helps the club's ongoing PSR challenge, which chairman Shilen Patel reminded supporters about in an open letter earlier this summer, but it also allows the club to reinvest in multiple areas of the squad.

Taylor never started a Championship game, making just four substitute appearances, but he did prove his EFL potential on loan with Cheltenham and Wycombe.

The Baggies have pocketed £2.5m for the giant defender and, with lots of competition in front of him in his position, that looks to be solid business.

His exit has been very quickly followed by the £1.2m arrival of Alfie Gilchrist, who does have second tier experience on loan at Sheffield United and was also a captain at youth level with Chelsea. They've also signed Wales international Chris Mepham for a similar fee.

There's been a lot more debate regarding the fee for Fellows. The Longbridge lad's deal could rise to £10m and I must admit I was surprised when I first saw that figure, but there are factors to take into consideration.

First, I understand this is the highest bid Albion have received for the England Under-21 winger.

Bids rejected last summer were lower and didn't include a sell-on clause. Rumours of a £15m bid from Everton in January were just not true.

Secondly, Southampton have been the only club to submit a bid. There was no bidding war.

A lot of comparisons have been made with deals for other attacking Championship players, who've left their clubs this summer but Tyler Dibling and Omari Hutchinson, to name just two, were wanted by current Premier League teams and already have experience in the top flight - only for one season, but their talents still stood out in struggling sides.

Albion's two-time Young Player of the Year Fellows dazzled with his dribbling skills and racked up a joint-high 14 assists in the Championship in 2024-25 but only four came after top-scorer Josh Maja suffered a season-ending injury in January.

If the club left it another six months, he would only have a year-and-a-half left on his current contract and only a sharp increase in form would've increased demand for Fellows by the winter window.

However, if he does go on to achieve much greater things, the club has had a 20% sell-on clause inserted into the deal. A similar clause is part of Taylor's transfer to Millwall.

Taking the money now means it can be reinvested immediately, and the Baggies already have plans for it. They're targeting a new winger before Monday's transfer deadline and will have cash to play with as soon as the window re-opens in January.

Gone are the days of Albion legend Tony Brown, my co-commentator on BBC Radio WM, spending their whole career with one club. Unlike 'Bomber', there won't be a statue built of Tom Fellows outside The Hawthorns. But he and Caleb Taylor leave with the well wishes of everyone.

Both are genuinely nice and down-to-earth lads and neither kicked up a fuss about moving, but their departures will leave their boyhood clubs in a much better position to prosper in the future.

West Bromwich Albion manager Ryan Mason says the likely sale of winger Tom Fellows to Southampton and departure of full-back Darnell Furlong to Ipswich were no surprise and the club is still well placed to compete in this year's Championship.

The Baggies signed Wales centre-back Chris Mepham from Bournemouth on Thursday and Mason says there are still a "lot of possibilities" of other players arriving before Monday's transfer deadline.

"We're very optimistic that this club is going to be in a good place and that we are going to be able to compete and get positive results," Mason told BBC Radio WM.

"We're super happy he (Mepham) has come through the door, we know what he's going to bring with his experience.

"I think we've got strength in areas, there's three or four days (until the deadline) and maybe things will happen."

West Brom, unbeaten in their first three league games, travel to table-toppers Stoke City, who have won all three of their fixtures so far, on Saturday (12:30 BST).

Listen to the full interview and more on BBC Sounds.

Early table-toppers Stoke will seek to keep their perfect start to the Championship season going as they host West Bromwich Albion on Saturday lunchtime (12:30 BST).

Mark Robins' men have scored eight goals across their opening three wins and host the unbeaten Baggies who saw their own perfect start ended by a home draw against Portsmouth last Saturday, a game in which head coach Ryan Mason was shown a red card which will keep him in the stands for the trip to the Potteries.

• Stoke City have failed to win any of their past six league games against West Brom (D3 L3), losing this exact fixture 2-1 last season.

• West Brom have won four of their past six away league games against Stoke City (D1 L1), three of which have come via a one-goal margin.

• Stoke have won each of their opening three league games this season and will be looking to win their opening four for the first time since 1998-99 in the third tier.

• After remaining unbeaten in the Championship so far this season (W2 D1), West Brom will be looking to win three of their opening four league games of a campaign for the second consecutive season.

• Stoke will be looking to win successive home league games for just the second time since the start of last season after beating Derby 3-1 in their last outing at the bet365 Stadium.

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

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West Brom are set to sign Chelsea defender Alfie Gilchrist for an initial £1.2m rising to potentially £2m with add-ons.

The 21-year-old is currently undergoing a medical in the Midlands and is expected to sign a four year contract.

Gilchrist had been training in Chelsea's so-called 'bomb squad' and was deemed surplus to requirements but proved his ability to play at Championship level at Sheffield United last season, featuring 32 times for the Blades.

The Chelsea academy graduate also played 17 times for his boyhood club under Mauricio Pochettino in a breakthrough season and scored once.

Chelsea now hold the Premier League record after selling £264.4m worth of players - not including potential add-ons.