Andrew Nestor: West Brom chief says new boss Ryan Mason was ‘first choice’

Albion’s poor form at the back end of last season, combined with a style of play which many fans had become disillusioned with, was a key reason behind Mason’s appointment and a seeming change in strategy.

“First and foremost, there’s a very clear alignment in our playing model and the kind of squad we want to keep evolving and building,” Nestor added.

“Otherwise he [Mason] wouldn’t have been a top choice – there has to be that alignment. We have a very structured process around player recruitment and scouting. Ryan’s input is very important to that.

“For every position, we have a shadow squad – a list of players we like and if there is an outgoing, those are players that we would approach and that continues to change on a daily basis.

“Myself, [director of football operations] Ian Pearce, [head of technical scouting] Dan Sale and Ryan were all aligned on what the squad needs going into next season. Last season, there was a lot of turnover and frankly we needed that to address the PSR (profit and sustainability rules) deficit.

“But we also wanted to address the playing style, to get the team younger, start to invest into assets that will have future value but will really impact the first-team straight away and create a better squad balance.”

BBC Radio WM’s Steve Hermon will be joining the Baggies on their pre-season trip to Austria next week and compiling a ‘Daily Diary’ which you will be able to read here.