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Ryan Mason’s first words after leaving Tottenham to become new West Brom head coach

We take a look at Ryan Mason’s first words after leaving his role of assistant coach at Tottenham to become new West Brom head coach.

The 33 year old expressed excitement about joining the club, signing a three year contract, and spoke of its infrastructure and fan base, while Chairman Shilen Patel and Sporting Director Andrew Nestor praised Mason’s experience, tactical approach, and alignment with the club’s vision for sustainable competitiveness.

Tottenham’s statement confirmed Mason’s departure, with Chairman Daniel Levy acknowledging his long tenure as a player and coach, including his role in their recent Europa League triumph, and wishing him success at West Brom, who finished 9th in the. Championship last season, with 64 points, and 4 points from the playoff places.

Joining Mason are Nigel Gibbs as Assistant Head Coach, previously with Reading and Spurs, and Sam Pooley as First Team Coach/Head of Performance, formerly with Rangers. They will work alongside existing staff James Morrison, Damià Abella, and Boaz Myhill.

WEST BROM STATEMENT:

West Bromwich Albion are delighted to confirm the appointment of Ryan Mason as men’s first team Head Coach.

The 33-year-old has signed a three-year contract at The Hawthorns and arrives from Tottenham Hotspur, where he was Ange Postecoglou’s assistant and helped lead the team to success in the 2024/25 UEFA Europa League.

Mason is highly respected as a coach, having held various positions with Spurs’ first team and academy, including twice taking interim charge.

The new boss played under Harry Redknapp and Mauricio Pochettino, and the Argentine is a major influence on Ryan to this day. A serious head injury forced an early retirement, but he quickly rose through the coaching ranks of Tottenham’s academy.

Following the departure of Jose Mourinho in April 2021, he became the youngest manager to oversee a Premier League game, aged 29, going on to win four of the final six league games of the season, alongside taking charge of the League Cup Final against Manchester City.

Later that year, Antonio Conte promoted Mason to First Team Coach, and the team went on to achieve Champions League qualification. Mason had a second spell as Interim Head Coach at the end of the 2022/23 campaign, and has since been a key member of Postecoglou’s group over the last two seasons as Assistant Coach – ending their time together successfully by lifting a European trophy.

Nigel Gibbs has been named men’s first team Assistant Head Coach, joining from Reading.

Gibbs worked closely with Albion’s new boss at Spurs as Assistant when Mason was Head of Player Development, and supported as First Team Coach during Ryan’s interim managerial duties. He has extensive senior coaching experience at clubs including Watford, Millwall, Leeds United, Swansea City and Asteras Tripolis.

Albion have also appointed Sam Pooley as Men’s First Team Coach / Head of Performance. He arrives from Rangers, where he was Head of Performance – following several years as Head of Sports Science and First Team Sports Scientist at Spurs.

Gibbs and Pooley link up with James Morrison, Damià Abella and Boaz Myhill in forming the Baggies’ backroom staff.

Ryan Mason said in his first words: “I’m absolutely thrilled to have been appointed Head Coach of West Bromwich Albion.

“This is a huge club with a fantastic infrastructure and an incredible fan base and I am excited about what we can achieve together.

“Having spoken at length to the board and those at the club I am convinced that Albion is the perfect place for me to be and I can’t wait to get started.

“I will bring with me a huge amount of enthusiasm, dedication and ambition and look forward to a positive future together at such a fantastic club.”

Chairman Shilen Patel said: “We are delighted to welcome Ryan to The Hawthorns as our new Head Coach, along with Nigel and Sam.

“We have undertaken a thoughtful and expansive search and Ryan always stood out to us among an incredibly strong group of candidates.

“We are excited to have someone whose skillset means he has the aptitude to help us further establish elite standards in both preparation and player development for the first team and across all our team programmes.

“His experiences as both a first team player and coach under some of the game’s most respected minds, along with his time leading academy sides, will be instrumental as we shape a clear philosophy and unified identity at all levels at the Albion.”

Sporting Director Andrew Nestor added: “Ryan has had a unique and impressive football journey having played up to the highest level in the game, and developed his current game model under leading figures such as Mauricio Pochettino and FA Technical Director John McDermott.

“Following his retirement, he has honed his coaching abilities and his game tactics, working in recent years as part of Spurs’ academy with young and emerging talent, as well as with some of the best managers and players in world football at first team level.

“Ryan brings a style that will compliment and continue to evolve our club’s game model. His approach to match tactics, individual player and overall squad development informed by data and analytics makes him an ideal fit, and he joins us at an exciting time as we establish a new foundation for the future success of the Albion.

“The appointments of Ryan, Nigel, and Sam further strengthen the work that has been undertaken in advancing our sporting structures. This began last summer with the reinforcement of our scouting and operations set-ups, and has since continued through to performance, sports science and analytics, with the principle aim of creating a cohesive unit to deliver sustainable competitiveness for the club.”

TOTTENHAM STATEMENT:

We can announce that Ryan Mason, our Assistant Coach, has left the Club to take up the role of Head Coach at West Bromwich Albion.

Ryan has a long history at the Club, having joined the full-time Academy set-up in 2007 before going on to make 70 appearances for the first team.

Following the end of his playing career, Ryan returned to the Club in 2018 in a coaching capacity. He went on to become Interim Head Coach on two occasions, firstly in 2021, and later in 2023.

When Ange Postecoglou took over as Head Coach in July, 2023, Ryan was appointed as one of his assistants. He was part of the coaching team that helped steer the Club to the UEFA Europa League trophy last month.

Daniel Levy said: “Ryan has been an integral part of Tottenham Hotspur for a number of years, both as a player and a coach.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Ryan for all his dedication and hard work over the years, and we wish him every success for the future.”

Twitter users reacted to Ryan Mason’s first words after leaving Tottenham to become the new West Brom head coach…

@Lilywhite_Rose: Best of luck @RyanMason 🤍🤍🤍🤍

@SebOnFootball: You’ve got a good one lads

@muzzy_TT: Great manager and person, good hands on coach will develop your youth well and plays possession based footy though can dig in when needed top appointment

@Richieoliver04: Excited about this one I have to say, something different and something so unlike Albion, seen it work at many other clubs so all being well it’s a right master stroke, welcome to B71 Gaffer #wba

@thfckostka: Every baggie should be over the moon with this

@cds_wba: Not my first choice but will get my 100% backing. Not sure how I feel about Abella, Myhill and Mozza staying, feel like the club really needs a clean slate but hopefully they can be a positive influence instead of a negative one 🤞 Let’s start the player clear out now please!

@hotspurconor: Best of luck Ryan! WBA fans, expect attacking football and a few Tottenham academy boys on loan

@ashtonwba: seen enough, efl championship champions 25/26

@MikeGNolan: Brilliant move for him. I hope he smashes it

@tomspayes_23: Feel free to have Donley, Moore, Keeley and Dorrington on loan too. What a gem he is.🤍

@Adam_Splinter_: The more I’ve thought about it, the more exciting it could be. It’s a HUGE risk, which I hope pays off. Big summer ahead

@dharvey4: Good to see a young English manager getting a chance

@TalkingTopspurs: Go and smash it Mase, couldn’t think of a more deserving bloke

@AverageGuy43984: Good luck Ryan Mason and good luck West Brom . Hope to see you in the Prem the season after next 👍👍

@lukestokes84: Welcome to the club – work hard do your best give us an identity and we will back you and love ya. Achieve success and you will be in our folk law. Big job big opportunity – good luck!

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