Celtic nightmare offers clear warning to West Brom after bold Bilkul decision | OneFootball

West Brom are set to appoint Minnesota United boss Eric Ramsay as their new manager, but Wilfried Nancy's time at Celtic is a warning to the Baggies.

West Bromwich Albion are closing in on the appointment of Minnesota United boss Eric Ramsay as their new manager.

West Brom have been without a manager since parting company with Ryan Mason on Tuesday after just over seven months in charge following the 2-1 defeat at Leicester City the previous evening.

The loss against the Foxes was the Baggies' 10th consecutive away defeat, and Mason departs with the club sitting 18th in the Championship table, 10 points from the play-off places and just seven points clear of the relegation zone.

While Mason was only dismissed a few days ago, Albion have wasted no time in identifying his replacement, and Ramsay is currently in talks to take over at The Hawthorns.

Former Manchester United coach Ramsay has been in charge of Minnesota since February 2024, and he has led his side to the MLS play-off semi-final in each of his two seasons at the helm following sixth and fourth-placed finishes respectively in the Western Conference.

Ramsay has done an excellent job with Minnesota in his first senior managerial role, but his expected appointment is a big gamble for West Brom, with Wilfried Nancy's recent spell at Celtic offering a clear warning about the dangers of recruiting from the MLS.

Wilfried Nancy, Celtic disaster should be a red flag to West Brom over Eric Ramsay

British clubs have typically been reluctant to recruit from the MLS over the years, but that all changed in November when Celtic appointed Columbus Crew head coach Wilfried Nancy as their new manager.

Nancy was certainly a surprise choice by the Scottish giants, but he had a strong record in the United States with Montreal and Columbus Crew, leading the latter to the MLS Cup in 2023 before lifting the Leagues Cup and finishing as runners-up in the CONCACAF Champions Cup the following year.

Those notable achievements earned Nancy the 2024 MLS Coach of the Year award, so while he may not have been the number one pick of most Celtic supporters, he arrived in Glasgow with a positive reputation.

However, Nancy's reign got off to a nightmare start as he lost his first four games in charge, including a damaging defeat to title rivals Hearts and a humiliating Scottish League Cup final loss to St Mirren, marking the Hoops' worst run of form since 1978.

Nancy then guided his side to back-to-back victories over Aberdeen and Livingston in the Scottish Premiership, but the respite was short-lived for the Frenchman, with defeats to Motherwell and Rangers over the festive period piling the pressure back on.

The second half collapse in the 3-1 defeat to Old Firm rivals Rangers proved to be the final straw for the Celtic hierarchy, who parted company with Nancy after just 33 days in charge on Monday, and in a sign of just how quickly things unravelled for the 48-year-old in Glasgow, his tenure was four days shorter than Martin O'Neill's interim spell.

West Brom are taking a huge risk with Eric Ramsay appointment after failed Ryan Mason gamble

Unlike Mason, Ramsay does have some senior managerial experience under his belt, but there is no doubt that the West Brom board are taking another significant gamble in hiring someone who is unproven at Championship level.

Ramsay has won 38, drawn 16 and lost 27 of his 81 games in charge of Minnesota, giving him a win percentage of 46.9%, and while silverware has been elusive for the 33-year-old in the United States, it is still an impressive achievement for his side to reach the semi-finals of the MLS play-offs in two consecutive seasons.

However, Nancy's disastrous spell at Celtic shows that success in the MLS does not necessarily translate elsewhere, and as the Scottish Premiership is undoubtedly a weaker league than the Championship, there may be alarm bells ringing among Baggies supporters.

It could be argued that Celtic is a higher-pressure job than West Brom, and it is fair to say that Nancy faced an uphill battle from the start to win over a fanbase who were not particularly enamoured with his appointment, so it was not too much of a surprise to see his reign go in the direction it did, even if his sacking came sooner than anyone had expected.

Albion may not have the same level of scrutiny on them as Celtic, but they are a team who have become used to losing football matches over the past year, and as Ramsay prepares to become their third manager since Carlos Corberan's move to Valencia last December, it will not be an easy task for him to turn around their fortunes.

Ramsay may not have managed in English football before, but he did work under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Ralf Rangnick and Erik ten Hag at Manchester United, while he also had a brief spell as an assistant coach with the Welsh national team, so he does at least have plenty of top level coaching experience behind him.

Having built up a reputation as a talented young coach, Ramsay certainly deserves an opportunity to manage in the Championship, and he has reportedly attracted interest from across Europe in recent times, including from French top flight side Strasbourg before the appointment of Gary O'Neil.

With that in mind, Ramsay could be an exciting appointment for West Brom, but with Nancy's horror stint at Celtic still fresh in the mind, many Baggies supporters will be understandably anxious about the club poaching a manager from the MLS.