Gareth Barry Exclusive: Mason Can Succeed At West Brom - If The Club Backs Him

Gareth Barry expects his former club West Brom to do well this season if new manager Ryan Mason is given time and support. 

The Baggies are about to embark on their fifth successive season in the Championship, with the hope of returning to the top flight.

Albion are priced around 25/1 with football betting sites to finish top of the Championship, and 8/1 to win promotion to the Premier League.

While this is Mason's first proper managerial role, he has a couple of caretaker spells in charge of Tottenham following the departure of Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte.

Barry is delighted to see a young manager given an opportunity like this, and hopes he gets the full support of the board before the transfer window closes.

"It's always a bold move when a club appoints a manager," Barry said.

"Ryan [Mason] is relatively inexperienced. 

"It's good to see young managers coming in and given an opportunity.

"As long as he gets the backing, I'm sure he can do a great job. 

"I'm still friends with a couple of the lads that are still involved on the coaching scenes and they are very impressed with what he's done so far.

"Pre-season has been good for them, so let's hope that they can start the season well too."

Transfers Will Be Crucial For Baggies To Succeed

The Championship remains one of the toughest and most competitive leagues in Europe. 

Last season, the Baggies finished ninth and paid the price for drawing too many games under Chris Brunt and Tony Mowbray. 

The Hawthorns side drew 10 of 11 league games from October 5 to December 8. If Mason can find a way of turning some of those stalemates into wins, then the Baggies might be challenging for promotion.

Barry, who will be lining up for Manchester City in the Manchester Masters at the AO Arena on September 5, believes another tough campaign awaits his former club.  

"The Championship is such a tough league," he said.

"For me, it's all about the transfers, can the players come in and compete with the clubs coming down? 

"There seems to be a yo-yo effect. You need to compete with them straight away, can you get above them, can you reach those Premier League clubs that come down and put in a good season?

"It's not going to be easy for West Brom. 

"They seem to be there or thereabouts every year and I'm sure that the fans will be starting to get frustrated because they'll start to miss the Premier League football. 

"They need some magic for some players coming in."