D-Day for West Brom as they choose new boss
Albion were hoping to decide on their new head coach today after interviews ran late into last night – but further talks were being held this morning.
moreGerman Thomas Schaaf, who is believed to be a leading contender, was today reinstalled as the bookmakers' favourite while Spaniard Quique Flores is also being considered, although compensation is a possible stumbling block.
Former West Ham and Watford chief Gianfranco Zola has also emerged as a potential late contender although his camp were today playing down links with the Baggies.
Vote for your choice of new Albion boss here
The final throes of the hunt for Steve Clarke's successor came as the Baggies kept tabs on Sunderland midfielder Craig Gardner and continued to mull over the future of striker Shane Long.
Transfer issues will be an immediate priority for the new boss, who the Baggies still plan to name ahead of Saturday's Premier League trip to Southampton.
The five-man selection committee held final talks last night at the club's London offices in a bid to settle on their preferred candidate, with Flores and Schaaf thought to have figured prominently in discussions.
Flores, who managed Valencia, Benfica and Atletico Madrid with success, boasts the most impressive CV of the known candidates but is currently employed by Al Ain in Abu Dhabi, meaning compensation would be required.
Schaaf spent a generally successful 14 years in charge of Werder Bremen and has impressive coaching credentials but lacks Flores' breadth of experience, having spent his whole playing and coaching career with the same club before leaving in May.
Zola, meanwhile, was considered earlier in the recruitment process with those close to the Italian adamant they have held no further talks with the Baggies, while other sources insisted he was sounded out again in the last 48 hours. Ex-England boss Sven Goran Eriksson's odds also dropped with bookies yesterday but that move looks unlikely.
Meanwhile, long-standing Baggies target Gardner could return to the transfer agenda this month.
The former Villa and Birmingham midfielder's contract expires in the summer and sources in the North East believe Sunderland could look to sell now for a reduced fee rather than lose him for free.
