The Baggies return to the top flight saw boss Tony Mowbray determined to make their stay last more than one term. However, it was always going to be a tough ask as the Hawthorns club were never going to be able to match their peers in spending power.

Two opening league defeats were followed by a Carling Cup exit to lowly Hartlepool United. However, a spell of 13 points out of 18 seemed to spell an upturn in West Brom’s fortunes. It wasn’t to be an a heavy defeat at the hands of Manchester United heralded the start of a period which saw Mowbray’s men claim a brace of wins and draws to the end of the year.

January saw them complete the double over Middlesbrough but an FA Cup exit at Burnley followed and the 3-0 home win over Sunderland was the next time Baggies fans could celebrate. Unfortunately, that was in late April when they were firmly in the bottom three and the penultimate match of the season, the last at home, saw Liverpool take all three points and seal West Brom’s fate.

With rumours of Mowbray’s former club Celtic looking at him as Gordon Strachan’s replacement, life in the Championship could be somewhat different at the Hawthorns next time out.