Loan star explains the benefit of James Morrison's 'straight-talking' at West Brom

The 22-year-old, initially signed to play as a wing-back under Eric Ramsay, has conceded he initially found it tough going in a Baggies team struggling at the wrong end of the Championship.

But a switch to right-back in Morrison’s new-look system has brought an improvement and Imray is now eager to kick on.

He said: “Me and Moz (Morrison) had a conversation and he just told me about my strengths and how he sees me in the team. 

“I think he has been very beneficial for me. He says it how it is and that is what you want as a player, the manager to tell you what you can improve on. 

“If you don’t have that, you don’t know how to get better. 

“He (Morrison) has been very good to me, very good to the team and is doing a great job. He is a straight talker and that is how we like it.”

Imray backed up a strong showing against the Blades on Saturday with another solid performance in Wednesday’s 1-1 draw with Southampton.

But the former non-league star, who made his debut in senior football playing for Chelmsford City, has promised not to rest on his laurels.

He continued: “Two performances are nothing in this league. You need to keep working, keep striving and hopefully I can help the team get wins.

“You are always looking for games to kick on. It hasn’t been easy for me but there are always going to be ups and downs and it is about how you deal with it. 

“It has definitely given me confidence going forward but it is something I need to build on.”

Imray will get his next chance in Saturday’s home match against Hull, as Albion look to finally claim their first league win of 2026 and boost their survival hopes.

Morrison’s men were on course to do so on against Southampton, before being denied at the death by Cyle Larin’s stoppage time equaliser.

That left them in the relegation zone heading into the weekend but Imray, who promised players will keep “fighting for the badge”, reckons it will only need one victory to transform their fortunes.

“We know if we play like we did on Wednesday, the luck is going to turn for us,” he said. 

“As a team, I feel like one win will really spark something. Then we will get more wins and really get out of this position. 

“I don’t think the luck went for us against Southampton but that is football. There are games when you get lucky, others when you get unlucky. 

“Watching the first half of the season, as an outsider, I felt there were games when the team were unlucky. 

“We just need that luck to turn for us now and I am sure it will come because we are giving it everything.

“That is the bare minimum in this situation. We just have to keep fighting.”