West Brom new manager: John Eustace now favourite after major developments.

After Luke Williams pulled out of the race to replace Carlos Corberan at West Brom, John Eustace has emerged as the new favourite. Swansea City manager Williams ruled out a return to The Hawthorns anytime soon, both before and after his side’s 1-1 draw with the Baggies in South Wales on Saturday. As a result, Eustace has supplanted Williams as the front-runner to become Albion’s new manager, with Sky Bet placing the current Blackburn Rovers boss at 11/8, while Williams has dropped to third at 2/1. Out-of-work Steven Schumacher, who was first associated at a similar period with Williams, is second in the running at 7/4, with a considerable gap from the top three to John Heitinga and Steve Cooper at 20/1.

West Brom manager race hots up with top three candidates clear

There has been no indication from inside The Hawthorns as to whether Eustace, Schumacher, or Williams is their favoured candidate to replace Corberan in the dugout, but an agreement is undoubtedly close. That is undoubtedly the indication made by Albion chairman Shilen Patel’s social media statements, and with two weeks until their next league game, now is the time to make a choice. Between now and their next Championship match against Stoke City, who fired Schumacher in December 2023, the Baggies have an FA Cup third round meeting with Bournemouth.

This could be the ideal starting point for any new Albion manager, with a match against current Premier League leaders providing something of a free hit. The Hawthorns’ sole goal this season is to remain competitive in the promotion race, and it remains to be seen whether Eustance or any other candidate can take that next step.

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