Soccer

Championship-bound West Brom have ‘no more money for wages’

Chief executive Mark Jenkins ‘shocked’ at the state of Baggies’ since returning to the club

Alan Pardew has won one game in 17 since taking over from Tony Pulis last November. Photograph: Mark Kerton/PA

Mon Mar 26 2018 - 13:33

West Brom chief executive Mark Jenkins admits the club have "no more money for wages" and is shocked at the state of the Baggies.

Albion are 10 points adrift of the Premier League safety line with seven games left and are expected to be relegated.

Accounts filed up to June 2017 show pre-tax profits leap to £39.7million (€45.5m)from £1m (€1.1m), only for Jenkins to warn about the future.

Jenkins, who was CEO under former owner Jeremy Peace, returned to the club to replace the sacked Martin Goodman when he was fired along with chairman John Williams in February.

READ MORE

He has painted a bleak picture at The Hawthorns and appeared to criticise the decisions of Goodman and Williams and ex-mananger Tony Pulis.

He told the club’s official site: “When I was on the outside looking in, for example, I read the reports about the club operating at the limit of its short term cost control (STCC).

“Knowing the business as I did, I thought that was a negotiating position but I’ve come back and can assure you that we are right at our limit on STCC. There is no more money for wages.

“We have wages, transfer fees and loan fees running at record levels and yet we find ourselves in this position.

“I’ll be honest I’ve come back and I’m shocked at what I have found in some of the decisions that have been made.”

It was widely reported in January Albion had little cash to spend to aid their relegation fight and would have needed to sell Jonny Evans to bring in serious reinforcements.

They are now set to lose Evans for £3m (€3.4m) in the summer thanks to a relegation clause in his contract.

Gareth Barry's contract expires at the end of the season along with James Morrison, who is earning around £80,000-a-week (€90,000).

Grzegorz Krychowiak will return to Paris St Germain in the summer after his loan ends with Albion having paid his $110,000-a-week (€126,000) wages in full for the season.

Claudio Yacob, Boaz Myhill and Gareth McAuley are also out of contract but Chris Brunt is expected to trigger a one-year extension in his next game.

Boss Alan Pardew is also clinging on to his job having replaced Pulis in November. Pardew has won just once in 17 Premier League games.

Jenkins, who confirmed owner Guochuan Lai remains committed, added: “It’s been painful looking in and seeing the club I and many, many other people had built up to be an established Premier League club....it has all unravelled in the 12 months or more since I’ve been away.”

LATEST STORIES