Exclusive: Sky pundit reacts to Ryan Mason sack talk at West Brom | OneFootball

The former Spurs midfielder is coming under increased scrutiny amid a string of poor results

EFL expert and Sky pundit Lee Hendrie claims that West Brom head coach Ryan Mason is coming under increased scrutiny over his role at the Baggies, but has urged the club not to press the 'panic button' just yet.

Having begun the 2025/26 season brightly with three wins and one draw in their opening four league matches, West Brom's form has been on the decline ever since.

With just two wins in their last ten league matches, which included a 1-0 away win against crisis-ridden Norwich City, Mason's tactical ability is coming under question for the first time in his career.

Having acted as an interim boss for Spurs on two separate occasions between 2021 and 2023, whilst remaining a part of the Lilywhites backroom staff throughout, the former England and Hull City midfielder took on his first full-time job in senior management with West Brom this summer.

Mason was backed in the transfer market this summer, with attacking reinforcements such as Aune Heggebo and Samuel Iling-Junior joining the club, whilst the midfield and defence were strengthened with the arrivals of Toby Collyer, Krystian Bielik, George Campbell and Chris Mepham.

However, despite this, the Baggies have begun to struggle, particularly in front of goal, having scored more than one goal in a match just once in their last 12 league outings, with their top scorer being Isaac Price on five, with the next top scorer being Mikey Johnston on two, with nobody else having netted more than one.

This has culminated in one of the worst attacks in the league, with only four teams, all 20th or beneath, having a worse goalscoring record than the Baggies' 12, mounting pressure on Mason, who must find a quick fix to save his job.

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Sky pundit Lee Hendrie has shared his views on whether Ryan Mason could be facing the axe at West Brom soon, following another defeat.

Hendrie said, "Obviously, he's on a dip in form at the moment, and that's where obviously you come under a mass of watchful eyes, don't you?

"Four games without a win, [they] drew with Sheffield Wednesday as well, which you felt was probably one for three points the way that Sheffield Wednesday's season has started and continued to be.

"But yeah, I say this a lot, the problem with West Brom is that they have struggled for goals, that's one area which has been a real grey point for them.

"They've got Oxford next up, which you would expect them to win at home, and then they have got two huge games against Coventry and Birmingham, which I can understand frustration because West Brom would be expecting to be doing better this season than what they are under Ryan. You just feel like a change might take them forward.

"But, that hasn't been the case so far, and I'm not a big fan of pushing the panic button just yet, because as I said, you know there's a winnable game coming up against Oxford, and then you go and get something out of the next two, which are derby games, and all of a sudden, you're flavour of the month.

"This is the Championship, it's a difficult league, you can get two or three wins under your belt, and suddenly you're in the play-offs, so I don't think it's that time yet, but as I said, the two derby games coming on the horizon, you do feel that that's where he has to certainly go and get some wins to turn his favours around."

Ryan Mason must fix West Brom's attacking woes to turn results around and alleviate pressure

The clear area which West Brom must focus on fixing is their attack.

According to FotMob, the Baggies have the 20th-worst expected goals record in the Championship as of matchday 14, with the club being expected to have scored 15.4 goals compared to their 12.

Possessing the likes of Samuel Iling-Junior, Mikey Johnston, Aune Heggebo, Isaac Price, Josh Maja, Daryl Dike, Jed Wallace and Karlan Grant, Mason has an abundance of attacking talent at his disposal, which, at the moment, he is simply not getting the best out of.

Mason must find a way to get the best out of his attack if they are to win games on a more consistent basis, and with Oxford United at home up next, who have conceded five in their last two games, it presents a perfect opportunity to strike while the iron is hot.

Failing to get a result and the best out of his attack, with an international break following the climax of the game, Mason may be walking on thin ice.