Numbers that show West Brom progress - but big work still to do
Albion owners Bilkul have quite the to-do list on their hands this summer.
A high priority on the owners' agenda, aside from their key head coach appointment, is to continue to bring down the lofty average age in the squad.
When the Shilen Patel-led group completed their £60million takeover from Guochaun Lai's Yunyi Guokai in February 2024, Albion had the highest average age in the Championship.
Albion averaged 27.6 years from a squad of 28 players used in the Championship in 2023/24. That was six months older, on average, than the next eldest squad.
The ownership began work on addressing the alarming statistic with the release of several experienced campaigners last summer including the long-serving Matty Phillips, as well as Erik Pieters, Yann M'Vila, Nathaniel Chalobah, Adam Reach and Martin Kelly.
James Morrison, the legendary former midfielder turned coach who finished the season as interim boss, said he hopes to see a younger Albion squad compete in the Championship next term.
Much of Albion's recruitment since the takeover has been focused on a younger age category with permanent signings above 25 limited to just second-choice goalkeeper Joe Wildsmith and back-up striker Devante Cole. Loan players Paddy McNair, Uros Racic, Mason Holgate and Adam Armstrong bumped up the average somewhat.
