Why West Brom will keep an eye on Burnley manager situation | OneFootball

Burnley have reportedly set their sights on former Monaco boss Sebastien Pocognoli in a move West Brom will be keeping an eye on

West Bromwich Albion managed to just about secure their status as a Championship club last season by the skin of their teeth, and having made their own permanent managerial appointment since, will be keeping an eye on the potential new arrival at Burnley for one key reason.

Indeed, it wasn't a vintage season last time around for West Brom, who finished just one place above the relegation zone at the expense of Sheffield Wednesday, Leicester City, and Oxford United.

The Baggies couldn't get going under either Ryan Mason or Eric Ramsay, and called upon former Scottish midfielder James Morrison to save the day, initially on an interim basis.

Morrison did a superb job in what was his first senior head coaching role, and was duly rewarded with the top job at the Hawthorns on a permanent basis.

Under his watch, both Jimmy-Jay Morgan and Carter Pinnington have joined the Baggies from Chelsea and Liverpool, respectively, to begin summer business, as West Brom may be keeping one eye on the goings-on at Burnley at the moment, with a potential familiar face heading to Turf Moor.

Action images

With Morrison set to take centre stage at the Hawthorns next season, in what will be his first permanent role as a head coach in his career to date, the former midfielder has a huge job in front of him.

Whilst the Baggies managed to stay up in the end, the warning signs were very much there, and with each of Daryl Dike, Jed Wallace, Josh Maja and Karlan Grant having left the club, with the latter two yet to sign fresh terms with the club, it would be hard to argue that they have gotten any stronger despite the additions of Morgan and Pinnington.

West Brom will be up against it once again next season unless a strong summer window is had, and they may be looking at the situation unfolding at Burnley with one eye, with former Baggies left-back Sebastien Pocognoli becoming odds-on favourite at the end of last week to take the top job in Lancashire.

Pocognoli, 38, enjoyed a solid playing career with the likes of Genk, AZ Alkmaar, Standard Liege, Hannover 96, West Brom, Brighton and Hove Albion, and Union Saint-Gilloise, the latter of whom he would move into coaching with following the end of his playing career in 2021.

The Belgian joined West Brom in the summer of 2014 for around £1.5 million from Hannover, but would make just 21 appearances in all competitions for the Baggies during his three years contracted to the club, spending the final year of his deal on loan with Brighton.

His time at the Hawthorns didn't exactly go as planned, but now, he could be on his way back to the United Kingdom via Burnley.

Since delving into coaching, Pocognoli spent around 15 months in charge of Union Saint-Gilloise's first team between July 2024 and October 2025, ending their long-term wait for another league title and guiding them into the UEFA Champions League for the first time.

He left to join Monaco in October 2025, with whom he could only guide them to a seventh-placed finish, and would be dismissed at the end of the season, where he has since been a free agent.

Now, it looks as though the former Baggies defender could well be on his way to the Hawthorns next season as head coach of Burnley, in a move West Brom fans ought to keep an eye on.

Burnley travel to the Black Country in just the second game of the season on August 23rd, where Pocognoli and West Brom could be renewed acquaintances once again.

Action images

Morrison and Pocognoli will be well aware of each other from their time playing together at the Hawthorns, even if the time they shared on the pitch was only brief.

The pair shared a dressing room for the best part of two years, and should they indeed meet each other on August 23rd when Burnley travel to the Hawthorns, both will want to get one over on their former teammate, no doubt.

It's shaping to be an interesting affair in the second game of the season should Pocognoli indeed assume control at Turf Moor, as West Brom fans may well recognise a familiar face in the opposition dugout sooner rather than later.