Next West Brom manager: Former Tottenham star 'top' of shortlist at Millwall's rivals

Millwall’s Championship rivals West Brom are reportedly looking towards Tottenham Hotspur as they eye a replacement for Tony Mowbray after the ex-Middlesbrough and Celtic man was dismissed by the club on Monday.

With two games remaining of the regular season, Millwall are still in with a chance of securing a top-six finish - something that felt unlikely earlier this campaign with the Lions 10 points adrift of the top six in January. The club that occupied the sixth spot at the time was West Brom, but the Baggies have struggled since Carlos Corberan left for La Liga side Valencia in late December.

West Brom sacked Mowbray after a 3-1 home loss against Derby County. It was a result that left them three points behind Millwall and six adrift of sixth-placed Coventry City. The Lions have won four of their last five games and face Swansea City this weekend before concluding their campaign away at Burnley - who have already secured promotion.

West Brom eye Tottenham’s Ryan Mason

According to Alan Nixon on his Patreon page, the Baggies have made Tottenham assistant Ryan Mason their top target to replace Mowbray. With Millwall and other clubs still looking at finishing in the play-offs, West Brom’s focus is on next season as they look to mount a promotion challenge.

Mason is a former Tottenham player and joined the club’s academy at the age of 8. He made his professional debut in the then UEFA Cup - now Europa League - in November 2008. He spent a number of years out on loan at the likes of Yeovil Town, Doncaster Rovers and Millwall. In 2016 he left Spurs for Hull City but was forced to retire from professional football in 2018 after suffering a serious head injury in a game against Chelsea the previous year.

He joined the coaching staff at Spurs in April 2018 and has twice been interim coach at Tottenham, once when Jose Mourinho was sacked and another when Antonio Conte was dismissed. He has been part of the first-team coach staff at the club since the arrival of Ange Postecoglou in 2023.

Now could be the time for Ryan Mason to leave Tottenham

Mason has been in some form of coaching role with Spurs for seven years. However, he already has the experience of what it takes to be a head coach with his interim spells in charge of Spurs and the Championship could provide him with the perfect opportunity to test himself.

The current managerial situation at Tottenham with Postecoglou carries a certain degree of uncertainty. The former Celtic manager has guided Spurs to the Europa League semi-final but their league position and form leaves serious questions over the Australian’s long-term future in North London. Spurs have been linked with Bournemouth coach Andoni Iraola with sveral reports indicating that Spurs may already be on the hunt for a replacement.

With that in mind, Mason may feel the time is right to go and test himself in the hot-seat elsewhere. West Brom did make the play-offs last season and have spent a number of seasons as a Premier League club. However, they have not been in the top flight since their relegation in 2021.