Sam Allardyce to make decision over his West Brom future after clash with West Ham as veteran boss admits ‘there is a lot to discuss’ following club’s relegation to the Championship
- West Brom were relegated from the Premier League after loss against Arsenal
- Sam Allardyce’s future at the club is uncertain with crunch talks set to be held
- Both club and manager remain undecided over whether to continue together
- Allardyce will hold definitive discussions before the fixture against West Ham
Sam Allardyce will finalise his West Brom future after next week’s game with West Ham with both club and manager undecided on whether to continue together in the Championship next season.
Albion’s relegation from the Premier League – which was confirmed when they lost 3-1 at Arsenal last weekend – leaves Allardyce and his employers with a decision to make.
Though Allardyce has held initial discussions with sporting director Luke Dowling and chief executive Xu Ke, the 66-year-old revealed on Friday that the definitive discussions would take place next week, before the club’s final game of the season at Leeds.
Sam Allardyce is set to finalise his West Brom future after next week’s game with West Ham
He said: ‘It’s more than likely have a decision before the Leeds game. Myself and the club will put everything to bed before the end of the season and see where we go from there.
‘There has been no decision yet. There is a lot to discuss, go through, a lot to divulge. The shock for me is that I can’t get my head around [relegation] because I never expected it.’
Though performances eventually improved after Allardyce replaced Slaven Bilic last December, Albion could not find the wins they needed to escape the bottom three.
Performances at West Brom improved after Allardyce’s hiring but the club have been relegated
Allardyce has now challenged his players to try to finish above 18th-placed Fulham, as they prepare to face in-form Liverpool at The Hawthorns on Sunday.
He added: ‘We’re out of the race with three games to go. We had the opportunity but we failed to take it. I’ve not felt anything like this for a long time.
‘It’s not good, but we need to get over it because we’ve got three very important games from a professional point of view.’
