Preview: West Bromwich Albion vs Stoke City - prediction, team news, lineups

Still searching for their first win since a mid-season managerial twist, West Bromwich Albion host Stoke City at The Hawthorns in the Championship on Saturday afternoon.

The Baggies' relegation fears intensified following a heavy defeat at Portsmouth last time out, whilst the Potters' hopes of reaching the playoffs were dented by Southampton.

Match preview

With relegation to the third tier of English football for the first time this century a distinct possibility, the younger generation of West Bromwich Albion supporters have never seen their side in such struggle, with a recent managerial change only worsening matters.

Eric Ramsay's winless run at the beginning of his reign in the Black Country extended to a worrying four matches last Saturday afternoon, when his troops were blitzed 3-0 at Fratton Park by fellow strugglers Portsmouth.

Collecting just a single point across four matches since the arrival of the Welshman to replace Ryan Mason, West Brom have dropped into the bottom three for the first time this season, level on points with Blackburn Rovers in the relative safety of 21st.

Last tasting victory on the road in early October, the Baggies are set to be reliant on their decent home form if they wish to avoid an unthinkable relegation, although Albion have lost both Black Country battles under the stewardship of Ramsay so far.

The most recent of those defeats was a new low point for West Brom in the modern era as they suffered their heaviest Championship defeat on January 20, when Norwich City netted five goals without reply at The Hawthorns.

Hit by a mid-campaign injury crisis, Stoke City have unsurprisingly seen their form dip in recent weeks, with the Staffordshire outfit now four games without victory after a 2-0 loss versus Southampton last weekend.

For the second time in their last three home contests, the Potters failed to find the net last time out allowing the visiting Saints to snatch maximum points, with Finn Azaz and Flynn Downes scoring for Tonda Eckert's men.

Last winning a second-tier fixture over a month ago at the base of Norwich, Mark Robins's men have dropped down to 12th place in the Championship rankings ahead of this weekend's trip to West Brom, five points behind the top six.

Despite their recent struggles, Stoke should be relatively confident of picking up a result versus a crisis-hit Albion side this Saturday, with the Potters conceding the fewest goals on the road in the division so far (14 in15 matches)

With the goalscoring forms of Divin Mubama and Million Manhoef falling off a cliff since the start of 2026, Stoke brought in the attacking talents of Milan Smit, Ato Ampah and Jesurun Rak-Sakyi during the winter transfer window.

West Bromwich Albion Championship form: L L L L D L

West Bromwich Albion form (all competitions): L W L L D L

Stoke City Championship form: W W D L D L

Stoke City form (all competitions): W W D L D L

Team News

West Brom are battling on without the services of Karlan Grant, who could be sidelined for the remainder of the campaign with a hamstring injury.

The Baggies responded to the fitness woes of the attacker with a pair of signings late in the winter window, with Jamaldeen Jimoh and Hindolo Mustapha arriving from Aston Villa and Crystal Palace respectively.

Adding to the long-term injury list, defenders Krystian Bielik (shoulder) and George Campbell (hamstring) are also unavailable.

In the midst of a goalkeeping crisis, both Gavin Bazunu (hip) and first-choice Viktor Johansson (shoulder) are sidelined for Stoke.

A key starter at right-back during the opening half of the season, Junior Tchamadeu (knee) has not featured in the Championship since December 13.

West Bromwich Albion possible starting lineup:

O'Leary; Mepham, Phillips, Taylor; Imray, Mowatt, Molumby, Styles; Johnston, Price; Heggebo

Stoke City possible starting lineup:

Simkin; Wilmot, Phillips, Lawal, Bocat; Pearson, Seko, Cisse, Bae, Thomas; Smit