Published: 12:00, 14 January 2026 | Updated: 12:00, 14 January 2026

Many West Bromwich Albion fans had never previously heard of their new head coach yet Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford are among those who know all about Eric Ramsay.

These days, learning your trade at Manchester United does not carry quite the cachet it once did. Watching one of the world’s greatest clubs fret and fuss before appointing Michael Carrick as interim manager proves how far they have fallen.

The allure remains the same, though, and those in high places at United have their eye on Ramsay. First of all, he must prove he can set one of the Football League's founder members back on the right track.

Albion have not been the same since Carlos Corberan left them for Valencia midway through last season. The appointments of Tony Mowbray and Ryan Mason did not work and indicated a club hierarchy unsure where it was going.

For the first time since the current owners Bilkul Football rescued Albion from an existential crisis under Guochuan Lai in February 2024, significant numbers of...