This Week's Opposition: West Bromwich Albion

Pompey Live summariser Kirsty Roxanne takes a deep dive into the Blues' next Championship opponent.

The points were shared in the South Coast Derby last weekend with a goal from both sides at Fratton Park.

Remaining at PO4 for this next fixture, the Blues welcome a struggling West Bromwich Albion side down South.

MANAGER

At the helm for The Baggies is Eric Ramsay.

Ramsay had a short period playing in the Cymru Premier before starting his coaching career in the youth sides at Swansea City and Shrewsbury Town.

After working in Chelsea’s academy for 2 years, he became the assistant first team coach at Manchester United in 2021 at the age of 29. Ramsey also had a brief coaching spell with the Wales national football team in 2023.

In February 2024 he became the head coach of MLS outfit Minnesota United, where he went on to oversee 81 games and accrue a win percentage of 41.98%.

Ramsay was announced as West Brom’s head coach on the 11th of this month following the dismissal of Ryan Mason after just 27 games in charge.

ONE TO WATCH

One to watch out for is Mikey Johnston. 

Coming through the ranks at Celtic, starting at the age of 9, Johnston made a total of 93 appearances, scoring 13 goals and supplying 12 assists.

He was also part of the side which won 6 Scottish Premiership titles, 4 Scottish Cups and 3 Scottish League Cups.

The Republic of Ireland International had a successful loan spell at The Hawthorns, recording 7 goals and 2 assists in 20 games, which led to his return on a permanent basis in August 2024, signing a 4-year deal.

This season, the number 11 has provided 2 goals and 9 assists.

TOP SCORER

With 8 goals to his name, Aune Selland Heggebø is the leading scorer for The Baggies at this stage.

He started out playing youth football before signing a professional contract with Brann. In 2019, he had a short loan spell at Nest-Sotra in the Norwegian First Division and another loan spell with Øygardern.

In total he struck 51 goals, claiming 14 assists from 146 senior showings before swapping the Norwegian fjords for The Hawthorns in July 2025.

Heggebø earned his first call up to the Norway national team in September, making his debut in an 11-1 win over Moldova in a 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifier.

Heggebø has also got 3 assists this season and dons the number 19 shirt.

CURRENT FORM

West Brom currently occupy 20th in the table with 32 points, 1 place and 2 points ahead of the Blues in 21st, however having played 2 games fewer.

So far in the league this calendar year, they have suffered 4 defeats and picked up 1 draw, yet to secure a win.

Last weekend, a 1-1 draw was claimed away at Derby County, marking their first point on the road since the 1st of October, when they defeated Norwich City 1-0 at Carrow Road. They had managed 9 straight away league defeats between that win and the point at Pride Park.

The Baggies do however still remain in The FA Cup after knocking out fellow Championship side Swansea on penalties in Round Three.

The Blues can leapfrog their opponents with a win this weekend but the question is, will they do it?

Tune in to Express FM this Saturday (January 31st) afternoon from 2pm to find out when Jake Smith, Kirsty Roxanne and James Wilson begin to provide full coverage of Portsmouth vs West Bromwich Albion LIVE from Fratton Park on the latest instalment of Pompey Live, sponsored by Veezu.

Kick-off: 3pm!