West Brom: Shilen Patel cannot afford Raphael Wicky 2.0 situation after Ryan Mason exit | OneFootball

The Baggies are on the lookout for a third permanent boss in 12 months

It has been a dire first five months of the Championship campaign in so many ways for West Bromwich Albion, meaning it came as very little surprise when Ryan Mason paid the ultimate price on January 6th.

Only a matter of days into what initially looked like the 34-year-old's second transfer window in charge of the Baggies after penning a three-year deal last June, it was confirmed that he and owner, Shilen Patel, had parted company following a dramatic 2-1 defeat to Leicester City at the King Power Stadium.

The former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder and assistant admitted post-match, "If you've not watched West Bromwich Albion this season, that 95 minutes pretty much sums up our season."

As truthful as those words, which had been repeated in several previous outings, were, it wasn't what disillusioned supporters and the hierarchy wanted to hear, meaning the process of sourcing a third manager/head coach in 12 months is back underway at The Hawthorns.

It remains to be seen which route Bilkul take with their latest managerial appointment, having misfired on two occasions in the previous calendar year with the arrivals of Mason and his predecessor, Tony Mowbray, who lasted just three months in charge in his second B71 stint.

Regardless of who is to be given the reins in this part of the West Midlands, it is abundantly clear that Patel cannot afford a repeat of the club's unsuccessful pursuit of Raphael Wicky, who, ironically, has just landed his latest managerial role.

The aforementioned chain of events which has led to a 13-month regression in the Black Country can be traced back to Carlos Corberan's exit to Valencia on Christmas Eve in 2024, with Albion, again, in and amongst the play-off picture at the time after previously reaching the semi-finals seven months beforehand.

It then became apparent that Wicky was the number-one target earmarked by Patel as the Baggies looked to continue a largely positive on-pitch trend, despite the fact the Florida-based businessman has had to work overtime in order to repair the club's previous financial damage.

In his prior job with BSC Young Boys of the Swiss Super League, the 48-year-old was able to land the Bern outfit a league and cup double in 2022/23, before being relieved of his duties in March 2024.

It is fair to say that a win percentage of 58 percent was a strong attraction for the Albion owner, with talks between the two parties even reaching an advanced stage.

However, just three days later, it was reported that those talks had reached an unwanted conclusion from both parties' perspective, with it being revealed that Wicky would not take charge of the Championship side after being unable to assemble his desired backroom team.

Despite the fact Patel was able to initially get fans onside with an emotional reunion with Mowbray just days later, it is a decision which clearly backfired, as the Baggies slipped to a ninth-place finish, before finding themselves in 18th at the time of Mason's dismissal earlier this week, just seven points ahead of Norwich City, who occupy the final relegation place.

Unsurprisingly, several names with varying levels of experience have been named as potential candidates for the Albion vacancy. However, Wicky is not one of those.

Indeed, the Swiss native was linked with both the Celtic and Middlesbrough posts in the Autumn, before returning to the dugout earlier this week for a second stint in the MLS, penning a two-and-a-half year deal with Sporting Kansas City.

It has been well-documented that the main reason behind the Midlands outfit's current underperformance is a run of 10 straight away defeats - the club's worst run in 99 years - which made Mason's position untenable.

As previously mentioned, sections of the fanbase are now starting to look over their shoulders as far as the table is concerned, despite the fact there is plenty of quality and experience throughout the Albion ranks.

Patel, of course, could opt to source yet another manager who is big on tactics first and foremost, although, in Albion's current position, a boss with strong man-management and motivational skills would not go amiss, with talks reportedly commencing with Minnesota United boss, Eric Ramsay on Thursday morning.

Regardless of who the next man in the hotseat is and the length of contract they are given by the owner, it has to be the right fit, and cannot be viewed as a stop-gap like previous instances, or the Baggies' campaign could be further derailed.