Middlesbrough come to The Hawthorns in our first home game of 2026 as welcome new head coach Eric Ramsey in what would be his first game in charge since being appointed on Sunday evening.
Here we start again with a third manager in 12 months as Eric Ramsey makes his first appearance at the Hawthorns dugout on Friday night after agreeing terms with Minnesota United to become our new head coach on a 2 and a half year deal.
Last time out, the Baggies travelled to Swansea for the second time in 10 days for a FA Cup third round tie that went all the way to penalties as Ollie Bostock got the winning goal to secure a 6-5 shootout win to put us into Round 4 to be drawn to Norwich at Carrow Road.
Middlesbrough are 2nd in the league and are out of the FA Cup after losing 3-1 to Fulham, their attention now turns onto gaining automatic promotion from the Championship this season, they have only won once in the last 6 games but their last league win was 4-0 over Southampton can a new manager bounce put Middlesbrough into a poor run of form that could prevent them from gaining automatic promotion.
Player To Watch – Middlesbrough
From a West Brom fan’s point of view, Morgan Whittaker is the obvious player to watch when Middlesbrough come to The Hawthorns on Friday night. Under the lights and in front of a home crowd, these are the games where you want your attacking players to stand up and be counted, and Whittaker has all the tools to do exactly that. With the Baggies looking to make home advantage count, he could be the spark that lifts the performance and sets the tone early on.
Whittaker’s biggest strength is his directness and confidence in possession. He’s always looking to get on the ball, drive at defenders and make things happen in the final third. At The Hawthorns, where Albion will want to be on the front foot, his willingness to take risks and back himself could cause Middlesbrough real problems, especially if he can isolate defenders one-on-one and force them into mistakes.
There’s also a sense that Whittaker thrives when he feels the energy of the crowd behind him. The Hawthorns can be a difficult place for visiting sides when Albion start quickly, and Whittaker’s movement, pressing and eye for goal can help build that momentum. Even when space is limited, he has the quality to produce a moment out of nothing, whether it’s a sharp turn, a shot from distance or a clever pass to unlock a packed defence.
If West Brom are to make a statement on Friday night, Morgan Whittaker could be central to it. From a Baggies perspective, he’s the kind of player who gets fans off their seats and gives the team belief. A strong performance from him at home could be the difference between a routine evening and a memorable one at The Hawthorns.
Player To Watch – West Brom
Aune Heggebo is absolutely a player to watch when Middlesbrough visit The Hawthorns on Friday night. He’s been one of Albion’s most exciting talents this season, and in a tight Championship battle against a well-organised Boro side, his quality could be the difference between three points and a scrappy draw.
What makes Heggebo so interesting is the way he drives the team forward. Whether he’s carrying the ball out of defence or linking play through midfield, he can break lines with his passing and bring others into the game. Middlesbrough like to press in certain areas and dominate possession, so having someone like Heggebo — who is calm under pressure and sharp in transition — gives West Brom an outlet to bypass that press and create attacking moments.
He’s also shown a real knack for reading the game and timing his movements well. That means he’s capable of both breaking up opposition play and joining attacks at just the right moment. At The Hawthorns, where Albion fans love a bit of intensity and energy, Heggebo’s work rate and intelligence can set the tone in midfield and help Albion dictate the tempo, especially in the early stages of the match.
If West Brom are going to control the midfield and create chances against a disciplined Middlesbrough outfit, Heggebo will need to be right in the thick of it, pulling the strings and making the plays that get fans talking after the final whistle.
Line up V Middlesbrough
Line up over Middlesbrough, I expect Eric Ramsay would start his usual 5-4-1 formation what he used at Minnesota United, and use this against Boro.
A back three of George Campbell, Nat Phillips and Chris Mepham, with Alfie Gilchrist and Charlie Taylor play in wing backs, in midfield Jayson Molumby would start with Callum Styles playing in that role due to injuries to Alex Mowatt and Ousmane Diakité on compassionate leave.
In attack Karlan Grant and Mikey Johnston would play in the wing with Aune Heggebo who would start as a lone striker.
Prediction V Middlesbrough
Prediction against Middlesbrough as I predicted a West Brom win in the FA Cup last time out it wasn’t by penalties I said a 2-1 win in normal time. For this one I expect this to be difficult not a walkover as our opponents are in the automatic promotion places and we have lost our past 4 meetings against them with one of them being Tony Mowbray’s first game in his second term last season.
For this one, I think Middlesbrough would be all over of us in the first 15 minutes but eventually would find the breakthrough in the 21nd minute with Aidan Morris scoring from long range to give Boro a lead and misery for Eric Ramsay and his side in the first half.
The Baggies would try and get into the game and settle but enough chances wouldn’t be enough as the scoreline would stay at 1-0 to Middlesbrough at half-time.
In the second half, Middlesbrough would try their hardest to double their advantage with Josh Griffiths making a number of saves, and around the 78th minute there be a free-kick awarded to us, with Mikey Johnston’s free kick landing to substitute Daryl Dike to give us the equaliser and joy for the Baggies fans after a frustrating game that puts us back into the game and something to fight for.
It would look nervy near the end as Middlesbrough would try and attack late on but it wouldn’t be enough for both sides as the game would finish all level and a point in Eric Ramsay’s first game as West Brom’s head coach.
Prediction: West Brom 1-1 Middlesbrough
A 1-1 draw I’m going for here, the Baggies have a new head coach and are against one of the best sides in the Championship and I think they be at their best despite winning one in their last six games as for us confidence would be normal after our penalty shootout win over Swansea and a goal for Daryl Dike in this one would give him confidence and the side to takeaway here if it finishes this scoreline at The Hawthorns.