Steve Bruce: Vital to strengthen West Brom coaching team

The 61-year-old arrived at The Hawthorns last week following the departure of Valerien Ismael.

Alongside the French boss, assistant manager Adam Murray also left the club last week.

Bruce, though, has opted to add three coaches to Albion’s backroom team – with Steve Agnew, Stephen Clemence and Alex Bruce all arriving to work alongside Baggies legend James Morrison.

Agnew and Clemence are both long-standing members of Bruce’s staff.

Meanwhile Alex Bruce – Bruce’s son – is now taking his first steps into coaching having completed all his badges.

“Steve Agnew is known throughout football to be a very, very, good right-hand man and a very good coach,” Bruce said.

“My son is young, hungry. He has taken all his badges and is desperate to do well.

“It’s a bit like when I took Stephen Clemence when he finished playing at 32.

“I always think if you’ve got a grey top you need a bit of youth around you.

“There is a little bit of difference in all of them.

“I’ve been with them all a long, long, time and they are all going to be vitally important.”

As well as bringing in Agnew, Clemence and his son, Bruce Snr also wanted to retain the services of Morrison.

The Baggies hero rejoined the club as an academy coach in May 2020. But he was promoted to work with the first team following the arrival of Sam Allardyce six months later.

“I’m always under the belief when you go into a football club, you don’t have to make huge changes straight away,” Bruce continued.

“James Morrison has been a great player here, he is a young coach and I wanted to keep him on – he knows the club, wants the club to succeed, wants to do well, wants to be a coach.

“And I’m delighted for him to be a part of the team.

“These days you need more coaches. Gone are the days when you have just one. Steve Agnew will be my assistant manager as such, alongside Steven Clemence.

“And I brought in Alex who is full of life to do his coaching stuff too.

“He has done all his badges.

“It’s vitally important when you get a bit old that you have that bit of youth around you.”

Bruce has inherited a squad full of players he already knows with the boss having previously managed Sam Johnstone, Conor Townsend, Jake Livermore, Adam Reach and Andy Carroll.

But he is also familiar with a host of the staff behind the scenes at The Hawthorns having previously worked with goalkeeper coach Gary Walsh and under-23s manager Richard Beale.

“Walshy has worked with me for years and I’m delighted to have him,” Bruce added.

“Richard I know as well from my days at Birmingham.

“What can I say I’m a bit familiar with the Midlands!

“I lived here for the best part of 20 years. I didn’t move.

“It was only a few years ago I decided to go back up into Cheshire because my son had two children.

“I’m familiar with people around the club, it’s been good to see them.”