Comment: Sam Allardyce making a compelling case to remain at West Brom

But Sam Allardyce is making a compelling case to be Albion’s boss next season – whatever division they are in.

The 66-year-old will definitely remain in charge if the Baggies hold on to their Premier League status.

But ever since he took charge at The Hawthorns, fans have wondered whether Allardyce would fancy a season in the Championship.

Earlier this month, the Express & Star asked the former England boss just that.

And his answer was pretty emphatic.

“If I’m to stay at West Brom, I’d want to be getting them back in the Premier League at the first time of asking – like I did when I joined West Ham,” he said.

“I wouldn’t want to mess about. I’d want to get straight back.

“That’s a long discussion with Luke (technical director Luke Dowling) and Ken (chief executive Xu Ke) on what changes do they think they have to make financially.

“How much money do they think they need to save? How many key players do they think they would have to let go? What budget would be available from then on?”

Even with owner Guochuan Lai absent and eager to sell, the Express & Star understands Albion will have a very competitive budget if they are to be a Championship side next season.

It should be enough – if Albion want to keep him – for Allardyce to stay.

The big problem he has had to overcome since taking charge is winning over a sceptical fan base.

Over the last eight games though – and particularly the last two – there now seems to be a lot more supporters who are Allardyce ‘in’ rather than Allardyce ‘out.’

And that’s because he has transformed this side.

Albion now look like a team who belong in the Premier League.

They are a side who have shown they are a match for anyone.

And they are a side who you would now expect to secure survival if the season had started on the day Allardyce took charge.

There are three key reasons why the Baggies have improved so significantly over the last few months.

Covid regulations together with the hectic festive schedule meant Allardyce didn’t get the time he needed to work with the players during the early part of his tenure. Now he has had that time.

The club’s January recruitment was also excellent with Okay Yokuslu, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Mbaye Diagne having all made a big impact.

While Allardyce has got the player’s fitter – with the boss revealing the data shows their levels have risen by 20/25 per cent.

But the biggest thing in Allardyce’s favour is that Albion have played some breathtaking football in their last two outings.

The 66-year-old knows full well there is a perception in the game that his brand of football isn’t pleasing on the eye.

But he has always said the perception doesn’t match the reality.

And anyone who has watched Albion in their last two games will know the boss is more than capable of building an attacking side that creates chances and plays with flair.

The other big thing going for Allardyce is that he is an experienced, safe, pair of hands.

There are never any guarantees in football – you certainly couldn’t say for certain that the Dudley-born chief would win promotion with the Baggies at the first time of asking.

After all, he didn’t take West Ham up automatically, they had to rely on the play-offs.

But with a decent budget and Allardyce at the helm, it’s hard to imagine the Baggies not being competitive in the Championship next season.

You feel, at the very worst, he would keep them in the top six.

And that security makes Allardyce very tempting for Lai and the board.

Back in 2018, numerous senior figures at the club recommended to Lai that Dean Smith should become the club’s next head coach.

It came very close to happening.

But it was Lai who had the final say and he opted to stick with Darren Moore after his impressive stint as interim boss.

It’s quite possible that Lai will have to stick around and try and get Albion back in the Premier League before he can sell the club.

And while Chris Wilder is another excellent candidate, you can make a case even he doesn’t come with the same assurances Allardyce does.

Of course, there is still a lot of football to be played.

And if the club that produced the Great Escape goes on to produce the Greatest Escape, it won’t matter.

As it stands, though, the case to keep Allardyce is getting stronger with every passing week.