Newcastle United can send West Brom to the Championship by avoiding defeat this weekend, but the game would have had so much more meaning if Alan Pardew was still in charge of the Baggies.
West Brom have been dismal throughout the Premier League campaign, and replacing Tony Pulis with Pardew did nothing to help matters, with the silver fox winning just one of his 19 games in charge.
It looked for all the world that the Baggies were going to resist sacking Pardew and wait until the end of the season, until he was sent packing the day after April Fools’ Day. This was no joke; Pardew had failed once again and his stock was at an all time low.
During his time at the Hawthorns, he had drafted John Carver back into the mix, another man who has a less than savoury relationship with the Magpies following his deplorable stint as manager. No one can doubt Carver’s passion for the club, but that did not excuse his horrific management style. Alan down the boozer is passionate about the club, but that doesn’t mean he should replace Rafa Benitez and manage the Toon.
Carver departed West Brom on the same day as Pardew, with the club still not officially confirmed as relegated.
Darren Moore has taken over the reins, and done a decent job in fairness, giving West Brom some hope, but they could finally be relegated this weekend when they head to the North East to take on a resurgent Newcastle side.
If only the motley crew of Pardew and Carver were still in the Baggies dugout. How great it would have been for the pair to see firsthand how much the club is flourishing now, while they have once again flopped majorly despite their excessively large egos.
Sadly, Pardiola will be nowhere to be seen on Saturday afternoon, but he will be watching somewhere, seeing his former club potentially go down at the hands of the team who he robbed a living off and somehow got an eight year contract off.