Manager Profile of English Premier League

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Roy Hodgson ( Fulham )

Roy Hodgson achieved arguably the greatest feat of his career to date at the end of the 2007/08 season, masterminding Fulham's escape from Barclays Premier League relegation.

The Croydon-born coach took his first steps in management in 1976, joining Sweden's Halmstads BK. Successful in his first season, Hodgson led the club to their first Allsvenskan league title. Two years later, in 1979, his team repeated that achievement before he returned to England.

His first managerial move was to be one of many in a career spanning 30 years, as the journeyman took charge at Bristol City in 1982. Hodgson struggled to find success with a Robins side in Division Four and facing financial oblivion. After a short spell he left the club, and by 1983 Hodgson was back in Sweden, holding the fort at Malmo FF via a brief term with Orebro SK.

With Malmo, he enjoyed more Allsvenskan success, winning five consecutive titles between 1985/90 and two Swedish Cups. In 1990, having helped to revolutionise the Swedish game, the former Crystal Palace player was on the move again, this time to Swiss side Neuchatel Xamax, where he enjoyed two seasons in charge.

Having amassed nine trophies in his first sixteen years in management, Hodgson had built a solid reputation, and in 1992 was appointed Switzerland's national team manager. The brand of attacking football he employed earned the team a place in the World Cup finals for the first time in 28 years. In the 1994 World Cup the Swiss side qualified from the group stage only to lose 3-0 to Spain in the first knockout phase. Hodgson then instigated qualification to Euro 96, but left his post in November 1995, becoming Inter Milan manager soon after.

With Hodgson at the helm, the Serie A giants reached the 1997 UEFA Cup final, where they were unlucky to lose a penalty shoot-out to Schalke. Following the defeat Hodgson left the club to accept his first Premier League post, with Blackburn Rovers.

Prior to his arrival in June '97, Rovers narrowly avoided relegation from the FA Carling Premiership by a single point. In his first season, Hodgson led the side to a sixth place finish and a UEFA Cup spot, a remarkable turnaround considering he had not made any changes to the squad. The next season, with a string of players injured and a run of poor form, Hodgson was sacked by Blackburn.

Multi-lingual

The multi-lingual manager returned to Inter Milan for a brief spell in 1999, before moving back to Switzerland to join Grasshopper-club Zurich, with whom he stayed for one season. Next up, he was appointed manager at Denmark's F.C Copenhagen, winning the Superliga in 2000/01, before spending six months in charge of Udinese, prior to having a short break from management.

In April 2002, Hodgson re-emerged, taking up the manager's role with United Arab Emirates. After leading the team to fifth place in the Gulf Cup, Hodgson left his post in January 2004. By May he was in Norway managing Viking F.K, where he stayed until August 2005. He then accepted his third national manager's role, this time with Finland, with whom he helped mount their most successful qualifying campaign ever, acquiring 24 points in their Euro 2008 qualifying group. Despite missing out on qualification, Hodgson was lauded for his ability to adapt his tactics in a side frequently short of attacking options. He chose not to extend his contract in November 2007, instead returning to Inter Milan for a third time, taking up an ambassadorial role.

He was back at the San Siro for just a few weeks before being appointed Fulham manager, returning to the Premier League after a nine-year absence. With the club languishing in 19th, the 60-year-old instilled a new work ethic and encouraged the side to play a more attacking style of football better suited to the top-flight. Within a few months, performances and results improved. Fulham picked up 12 points from their last five matches, stringing together three successive away wins for the first time in their Premier League history. A 1-0 win at Portsmouth on the final day of the 2007/08 season saw Hodgson's Cottagers stay up on goal difference.

Premier League record

1998: Manages 50th Premier League match (Newcastle 1-1 Blackburn, 11th November)

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Gary Megson ( Bolton )

Gary Megson embarked on a career in management in 1995, when, while still registered as a player at the club, he became assistant to Norwich City manager John Deehan. Following Deehan's departure towards the end of the 1994/95 season, Megson was placed in temporary charge of the struggling FA Carling Premiership club. In five matches as caretaker, he could not save a depleted Canaries side from relegation, losing four and drawing one.

With relegation confirmed, Megson left Norwich, retired from playing and was appointed Chris Kamara's assistant at Bradford City. He soon returned to Carrow Road however, taking the managerial reins from Martin O'Neill, after the Northern Irishman's spell in charge came to an abrupt end in December 1995. Megson left the club in the summer, taking up the vacant Blackpool post soon after.

He spent a year at Bloomfield Road, achieving a seventh place finish for the old Division Two side, before moving on to Stockport County. In his first season with the Hatters, Megson led the club to an eighth place finish in the old Division One. The 1998/99 season, his second at the club, the Edgeley Park outfit finished 16th and Megson subsequently departed.

The former Sheffield Wednesday star was appointed Stoke City manager shortly after leaving Stockport, and got off to a flying start. The team suffered only one defeat in the first 13 matches of the 1999/2000 season, and looked likely promotion contenders. However, following a takeover, Megson was sacked so new chairman Gunnar Thor Gislason could bring in a manager of his own.

Promotion campaign

Megson found a new club at the tail end of the season, helping West Bromwich Albion sidestep relegation from Division One, thanks to a crucial final day win. The 2000/01 season saw the Baggies make the play-offs, only to be beaten by Megson's future club Bolton Wanderers over the two-legged semi-final. The Hawthorns outfit were more successful during the following campaign, winning promotion to the Barclaycard Premiership having finished the season in second place. Following that achievement, Megson won the Division One Manager of the Year award.

The club found their first Premiership spell tough, and the 2002/03 season saw the side relegated back to the Championship. They bounced back and mounted a successful promotion campaign the following season, and renewed their top-flight status for the 2004/05 season. The new season got off to a bad start, and after announcing he had no plans to renew his contract, Megson left the club in October 2004.

In early 2005, he returned to Nottingham Forest, the club where he had spent time as a player over 20 years before. Prior to his arrival, Forest were struggling in the Championship and he was unable to turn the club's fortunes around. Forest were relegated to the third tier of English football for the first time and Megson resigned in February 2006.

After an 18 month spell out of the game, he joined Leicester City in September 2007. He spent six weeks at the Walkers Stadium before moving to Bolton to replace Sammy Lee.

He guided the Trotters to a 16th place finish in the 2007/08 season, a good result as they had looked likely relegation contenders. He also helped the side get to the last 16 stage of the UEFA Cup, for the first time in their history.

Premier League record

2007: Takes charge of 50th Premier League match as manager (Liverpool 4-0 Bolton, 2nd December)

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Tony Pulis ( Stoke City )

Tony Pulis' record of never being relegated will be severely put to the test as he takes Stoke City into the Barclays Premier League for the first time.

Pulis guided the Potters back to England's elite league after an absence of 23 years when they finished as Championship runners-up last season.

He had ambitions of becoming a manager from a young age, when at 19, Pulis got his FA coaching badge, then two years later obtained his UEFA A Licence.

He was one of the youngest players to obtain his coaching badges during his playing days with Bristol Rovers, AFC Bournemouth and Gillingham.

Like many players keen to get into management, Pulis became a player-coach during his second spell at Bournemouth.

Harry Redknapp appointed him as his assistant and Pulis replaced went on to replace him as manager when Redknapp departed for West Ham United in 1992.

After two seasons with the Cherries, Pulis went back to another of his old clubs, this time Gillingham.

Automatic promotion

In his first season at Preistfield, Pulis steered the Gills to runners-up in the old Third Division and automatic promotion. Not bad considering the previous season, Gillingham were five points off dropping out of the Football League.

He established Gillingham in the old Second Division with midtable finishes over the following two campaigns.

In his fourth and final season at the club, Pulis took the Gills to the play-off final where they faced Manchester City. Two goals up with just two minutes left, they were on course to seal a place in the old First Division. But two last-gasp City goals levelled the scores to bring extra-time and they lost the penalty shoot-out.

Pulis was dismissed from his post at Gillingham and took up the reins at Bristol City ahead of the 1999/00 campaign. He did not stay long at Ashton Gate and was on his way to become manager of Portsmouth six months later.

He did not have the best of times during his stint with Pompey and was replaced by Steve Claridge 10 months later.

A period of two years out of work came to end when Pulis took charge of Stoke City after Steve Cotterill was sacked in November 2002. Stoke were at the foot of the table for much of the campaign but Pulis ensured they avoided relegation on the final day of the season.

Things improved in 2003/04 as the Potters ended up in 11th and then 12th the year after before he was sacked in June 2005.

A few months later, Pulis was in the hotseat at Plymouth Argyle and spent a season there, leading them to 14th position in the Championship.

He returned to Stoke in June 2006 and a number of inspired signings led to an excellent campaign. Danny Higginbotham, Ricardo Fuller and Vincent Pericard came in, along with loan signings Lee Hendrie, Andy Griffin and Rory Delap.

The Manager of the Month award for April was won by Pulis and Stoke had a late surge for the play-offs but just missed out, finishing in eighth.

However, 2007/08 was to be Pulis' season. Although Higginbotham left for Sunderland, Pulis brought in fine additions to freshen up his side and they had one of their best-ever seasons, finishing as Championship runners-up on the last day of the season to secure promotion to the top flight.

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Mark Hughes ( Man City )

Mark Hughes is embarking on an exciting new period of his career having left Blackburn Rovers for Eastlands in the summer.

The Welshman was a fearsome competitor as a player, performing with distinction for Manchester United and Chelsea in particular. He also played for Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Southampton, Everton and Blackburn. 'Sparky' was a battering ram of a centre-forward, but one who possessed skill, good touch and a keen eye for the spectacular goal, particularly the overhead kick.

In 1999 Hughes moved into management for the first time as he took charge of Wales alongside Neville Southall. The positive impression he made saw Hughes offered a four-and-a-half year contract, with the first 18 months being served on a part-time basis. He was still playing for Blackburn, and helped Rovers into the FA Carling Premiership in the 2000/01 season. He failed to guide Wales to the 2002 World Cup, and then retired as a player, having helped Rovers win the 2002 League Cup.

Hughes was winning plaudits for the job he was doing as Wales manager, and he impressively guided them through the whole of 2002 unbeaten. April 2003 saw Wales break into the top 50 of FIFA's rankings after an eight-year absence, and in June 2004 he was rewarded for his services to football with an OBE.

Canny ability

After a slow start to the 2006 World Cup qualifiers, Hughes took the Blackburn job. He ensured the club steered clear of relegation, while also leading them to an FA Cup semi-final for the first time in 40 years. The second season was his best in charge. Blackburn, who had earned themselves a reputation as a tough and uncompromising outfit under the Welshman, finished sixth and qualified for the UEFA Cup.

Hughes guided Rovers to a 10th place finish in the 2006/07 season, and was attracting plaudits for his canny ability in the transfer market, signing the likes of Benni McCarthy, David Bentley and Ryan Nelsen for bargain prices. Rovers again qualified for the semi-finals of the FA Cup, before losing to Chelsea.

'Sparky's' final season in charge at Ewood Park was lit up by the fine form of another shrewd signing Roque Santa Cruz. The Paraguayan's goals were a major factor in an impressive 7th place finish.

Manchester City announced Hughes as the successor to Sven-Goran Eriksson at the beginning of June and will hope that the manager retains his keen eye for spotting genuine talent and getting the most out of his players.

Hughes smashed the British transfer record on deadline day August 2008 when he signed Brazilian striker Robinho from Real Madrid for £32.5m following a take-over by the Abu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment.

Premier League record

2007: Manages 100th Premier League match - (Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Aston Villa, 7th April)
2007: Celebrates 50th Premier League win - (Blackburn Rovers 3-1 Newcastle United, 1st December)

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Gianfranco Zola ( West Ham Utd )

If Gianfranco Zola is half as good a manager as he was a player, then West Ham United fans should expect some exciting times.

Zola is regarded as one of the finest players to grace the Premier League and was voted by Chelsea fans as their greatest player during his successful time at Stamford Bridge between 1996 and 2003.

The diminutive striker started his career in Italy and brought flair, a repertoire of tricks and remarkable goals to England's top flight, helping Chelsea become one of the major forces in the country.

His audacious back-heeled volley goal for the Blues against Norwich City was one of his many memorable strikes.

It wasn't just the silky skills that made Zola universally loved by football fans - people admired his enthusiasm, professionalism and humility.

During his glorious time with the London outfit, Zola won the FA Cup, League Cup, Community Shield, Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Super Cup.

Zola was awarded with an OBE - Order of the British Empire - for his services to British football and charity work in a special ceremony in Rome. He also claimed the annual Senatore Salvatore Mannironi prize for his work in raising the profile of his birthplace Sardinia.

He was unveiled as the new West Ham chief in September 2008 to replace Alan Curbishley and becomes the Hammers' fifth manager in seven years.

Good shape

Zola began his coaching career with the Italian Under-21 side as head coach Pierluigi Casiraghi's assistant two years ago after hanging up his boots with Cagliari.

The former Chelsea team-mates guided the youngsters to this summer's Olympic Games in Beijing, where they reached the quarter-finals.

And Zola left the Azzurri in good shape. At the point of his departure, they just needed to beat Israel over two legs to qualify for next June's European Under-21 Championships in Sweden after winning their qualifying group in style.

West Ham enticed Zola back to the Premier League hoping he can make the kind of impact he made at Chelsea - this time from the dug-out.

The 42-year-old Italian's first move was to appoint former club-mate Steve Clarke from Chelsea as his new number two.

Clarke is regarded as one of Europe's top coaches and Chelsea were reluctant to lose his services.

Zola may not have much managerial experience but his superstar status and firm belief that football should be played in an attacking, exciting manner is set to make him a hit on the Upton Park terraces.

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Paul Ince ( Blackburn )

Having represented Manchester United, Liverpool and Inter Milan, Paul Ince was a big name player. His inherent confidence influenced the performances of those around him, and he was known for his head-strong, feet first approach to the game. Going by the nickname of 'The Guv'nor' he had a reputation for being the man in charge - on the pitch at least.

When he got the chance to take charge of a team of his own, he adopted a more softly spoken approach, far removed from his vocal on-pitch routine, and so far, it has proved a very sensible tactic.

Learning his trade somewhat under the radar with Swindon Town, Macclesfield Town and Milton Keynes Dons, Ince has performed near miracles, and his heroics in the lower leagues have not gone unnoticed. Just two years after signing for Swindon as a player/coach, he has been snapped up by Blackburn Rovers, replacing former United team-mate Mark Hughes as manager.

His appointment at Ewood Park made history, as he became the first black British manager in the Premier League and Ince will be keen to prove he has the capabilities to make it as a top-flight manager. Having signed a three year deal with Blackburn, the former England captain will combine managing a team that narrowly missed out on European qualification in the 2007/08 season with obtaining his UEFA Pro licence.

Uphill struggle

In August 2006, at the age of 38, Ince signed as player/coach at Swindon. He only made two appearances before announcing he felt he could no longer play at The County Ground with his family still based in the North West, bringing about the termination of his contract. He did however continue to study for his coaching badges at the club, before accepting the post of player/manager at Macclesfield in October, a mere five months after joining Swindon.

Arriving midway through the season, Ince immediately faced an uphill struggle in his debut managerial role, with the club seven points adrift at the bottom of League Two. As Swindon were still in possession of his transfer documents, he was unable to play for the Silkmen until the transfer window opened in January, and so had to rely on his emergent coaching skills to help the club escape relegation. To make matters worse, just weeks after Ince's arrival three first-team players each broke a leg. However, despite the injuries and the dire league position, Ince revived the team's fortunes and in January, they moved out of the relegation zone for the first time. The Silkmen avoided relegation on the final day of the season, with the Guv'nor receiving the plaudits for his confidence-inspiring methodology that helped the Moss Rose club achieve the almost unthinkable.

With his success at Macclesfield, Ince had started to attract what would soon become a long list of admirers, and in the close season, he moved to MK Dons. The 2007/08 season got off to a great start for the League Two club and by September the Dons were occupying top-spot. By January, they increased their lead to 11 points, and were named League Two champions in late April after a 2-1 victory over Bradford City. To top off an impressive season, Ince guided the stadium:MK side to their first major piece of silverware since their reformation, winning the Football League Trophy final 2-0, beating Grimsby Town.

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Steve Bruce ( Wigan Athletic )

Steve Bruce has become a Wigan Athletic hero after leading them to Barclays Premier League safety in 2008.

Bruce took over the managerial reigns from Chris Hutchings at the end of November 2007 with the Latics deep in the relegation zone.

And the former Manchester United star performed heroics to ensure another top flight campaign which was achieved in the penultimate match of the season with a 2-0 win over Aston Villa.

It was Bruce's second spell at the JJB Stadium after a brief eight-match stint at the end of the 2000/01 season.

Bruce started out in management as a player-manager with Sheffield United in the summer of 1998 and made 11 appearances for the Blades before hanging up his boots in November.

In his first season in the Bramall Lane hotseat, Bruce led United to eighth in Division One - just missing out on the play-off places.

He left for Division One rivals Huddersfield Town shortly after the campaign ended and took them to an eighth-place finish, this time two points off the play-offs.

But a disappointing start to 2000/01 led to his dismissal in October and Bruce was out of work until April 2001 when Division Two club Wigan hired him for the first time.

Bruce proved his midas touch by getting them into the play-offs, however luck deserted him as the Latics crashed out at the semi-final stage.

Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan lured the out-of-contract manager to Selhurst Park with Bruce having taken charge of eight Wigan matches.

Palace had an excellent start to the season but Bruce was on the move again in November - six months into his tenure - with Palace top of the Division One table.

Birmingham City, the club where he spent two seasons as a player between 1996 and 1998, was his next stop after a compensation package was agreed between the two clubs.

Instant success

Bruce enjoyed instant success at his former club by leading Blues from midtable in the Championship to a 2002 play-off final victory over Norwich City and promotion to the Barclaycard Premier League.

With Blues back in the big time after a 16-year absence, Bruce's men comfortably survived with a 13th-place finish.

In 2003/04, he improved on that by steering the club to 10th position and 12th the following season.

The 2005/06 campaign proved more difficult for the Northumberland-born manager and Birmingham were relegated after four seasons in the top flight.

But he and Blues bounced back in style by winning promotion at the first attempt with a second-place finish, falling short of winning the Championship title on the last day.

Fifteen matches into the 2007/08 season, Bruce ended his spell with Birmingham after lowly Wigan enquired about bringing him back to the club.

Bruce proved his managerial credentials once more by keeping his new club in the Barclays Premier League and will be looking to consolidate the Latics' place next season.

Premier League Record

100th Premier League match - Birmingham City 1-2 Fulham on 22/1/05
50th Premier League win - Derby County 0-1 Wigan Athletic on 12/01/08

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Joe Kinnear ( Newcastle )

As a player, Kinnear was a full back for Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton and Hove Albion. He spent 10 years with Spurs, picking up an FA Cup winners medal in 1967 from a 2-1 Wembley victory against Chelsea. He also won the UEFA Cup in 1972 and the Football League Cup in 1971 and 1973.

Kinnear was capped 26 times by the Republic of Ireland. After a brief stint with Brighton, he hung up his boots at the relatively young age of 30 and spent five years in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates managing Sharjah and Al-Shabab (alongside Dave Mackay) and then coaching in Malaysia.

He spent three months coaching India and one year coaching Nepal before returning to England to assist Mackay at Doncaster Rovers.

Kinnear briefly took charge of Doncaster after Mackay's departure in 1989 but was replaced by Billy Bremner following a take-over.

Kinnear took charge of Wimbledon's Reserves later that year before being appointed manager following the sacking of Peter Withe in January 1992.

Under his charge, the Dons finished sixth in the FA Carling Premiership in the 1993-94 season and then ninth a year later - despite a tight budget and the lack of a permanent home ground.

Heart attack

Kinnear guided Wimbledon to the semi-finals of both major domestic cup competitions in 1997 as well as finishing eighth in the FA Carling Premiership.

Kinnear stepped down in June 1999 following a heart attack before a league match against Sheffield Wednesday in March of the same year.

He returned to management with Luton Town in February 2001 but could not save them from relegation from what was then Division 2. However the following season he led them to their first promotion in 20 years.

He led them to ninth place but lost his job following a takeover in May 2003 and was out of work until Nottingham Forest offered him the manager's job in February 2004, resigning 10 months later with Forest in 22nd place.

Out of the blue in September 2008, he was asked to take temporary charge of Newcastle following the departure of Kevin Keegan. Initially he was given until the end of October but is now on a month-to-month contract while the club's future is resolved.

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Roy Keane ( Sunderland )

Roy Keane has only been in management for two seasons but already he has shown what a bright future he has in the game.

Sunderland were struggling at the foot of the Championship table when he arrived at the club in August 2006.

His former Republic of Ireland team-mate Niall Quinn had just stepped down as manager after a poor start to the season to return as full-time chairman and saw Keane as the ideal man to take the Black Cats up.

With the club sitting second from bottom, Keane had to make major changes. He decided to keep assistant manager Bobby Saxton on board and brought in Tony Loughlan as head coach.

On the pitch, he strengthened with the acquisition of former Celtic team-mates Stanislav Varga and Ross Wallace, ex-Manchester United players Dwight Yorke and Liam Miller, plus Wigan Athletic's Graham Kavanah and David Connolly.

Results improved as Keane saw his side slowly move out of relegation trouble and up to midtable position by the turn of the year.

Anthony Stokes, Carlos Edwards and Stern John bolstered the squad during the January transfer window, while Jonny Evans and Danny Simpson came in on loan from United.

Automatic promotion

Keane went on to win February and March's Manager of the Month awards and the fresh recruits helped Sunderland challenge for automatic promotion. They went on to win the Championship title and promotion to the Barclays Premier League with Keane being named Manager of the Year.

Ahead of the 2007/08 Barclays Premier League campaign, Keane spent around £30m beefing up his squad for the immense task of staying in the top flight.

Keane smashed Sunderland's transfer record by bringing in goalkeeper Craig Gordon for £9m from Heart of Midlothian, also a British record for a keeper.

Kenwyne Jones arrived for £6m from Southampton; Kieran Richardson for £5m from Manchester United; Michael Chopra from Cardiff City for £5m; Paul McShane from West Bromwich Albion for £2.5m; Danny Higginbotham from Stoke City for £2.5m; Dickson Etuhu for £1.5m from Norwich City plus veterans Andy Cole and Lee Harte on free transfers.

Keane's men started the season well with a 1-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur on the first day but the Black Casts found life tough in England's elite league finding themselves at the bottom of the table for most of the season.

It was always going to be a tough season for the Black Cats and at the halfway point of the season, they were one place and one point above the relegation zone.

Keane went back into the transfer market, swooping for Andy Reid from Charlton for £4m; Phil Bardsley from Manchester United for £2m and Rade Prica from Aalborg for £2m, got Evans back on loan from United plus Jean-Yves Mvoto Mvoto from Paris Saint-Germain for £300,000.

Sunderland managed to stay up with two matches left and finish in 15th position - three points above the relegation zone. It was mission accomplished for Keane and now he will be aiming to establish the North East club as a Premier League force for years to come.

Premier League record

2008: Manages 100th Premier League match - (Sunderland 1-2 Portsmouth, 8th November)

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Tony Mowbray ( WBA )

Tony Mowbray has already been a success with Hibernian in the Scottish Premier League and now he'll be aiming for a similar impact in England's top flight.

Mowbray got into coaching after finishing his playing days at Ipswich Town and took the role as first team coach in 2000.

He was put in caretaker charge when George Burley was sacked in October 2002 but the job was given to Joe Royle.

But in May 2004, Mowbray was appointed manager of Hibs and surprised many observers by leading them to third, behind giants Glasgow Celtic and Rangers.

The former Celtic defender was recognised for his efforts by winning the Scottish Football Writers Manager of the Year award.

A credible fourth place followed in 2005/06 as the sale of star player Garry O'Connor plus a number of injuries hampered their chances of breaking into the top two.

Mowbray's efforts north of the border did not go un-noticed as West Bromwich Albion came calling in October 2006.

The object was to get West Brom back to the Barclays Premier League after relegation the previous campaign under then manager Bryan Robson.

Wembley final

An indifferent run of results towards the end of the season meant the Baggies missed out on a chance of automatic promotion, but they managed to reach the play-offs.

Despite beating arch-rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers in the play-offs, Mowbray's side were defeated by Derby County in the Wembley final.

Over the summer, Mowbray had a mass clear-out by selling a number of players including Curtis Davies, Jason Koumas, Diomansy Kamara, Steve Watson, Paul McShane, Nathan Ellington and Darren Carter.

In came 14 new signings, notably Chris Brunt from Sheffield Wednesday for £3million, Luton Town's Leon Barnett for £2.5m and Middlesbrough's James Morrison for £1.5m.

The new boys gelled perfectly and Mowbray scooped the Manager of the Month award for September 2007 and again in April as his side made major push for promotion.

He led the Baggies to the FA Cup semi-final against eventual winners Portsmouth who won by a solitary Kanu goal at Wembley.

The cup exit failed to de-rail West Brom's hunt for promotion and they wrapped up the Championship league title by playing the attractive, free-flowing football Mowbray insists upon.

He was named League Manager's Association Manager of the Year for his remarkable efforts.

In his debut Barclays Premier League season, the former Celtic, Middlesbrough and Ipswich, star will get the chance to pit his wits against the best managers in football.