Carlos Corberan: West Brom success 'impossible' without key ingredient
Albion boss Carlos Corberan believes success is impossible without the right backroom team support.
Corberan's immediate backroom staff largely consists of support he brought with him to The Hawthorns at varying points since his October 2022 appointment.
Spaniard Jorge Alarcon, assistant coach, checked in with Corberan. He worked with Albion's head coach at Huddersfield and Olympiacos previously. Statistical analyst Damia Abella arrived last December. The former Barcelona defender had previously worked under Roy Hodgson at Watford.
Ex-Huddersfield defender Michael Hefele also arrived in December, to replace an original Corberan appointment Jaime Monroy. Goalkeeper coach Marcos Abad, previously of Leeds, replaced Gary Walsh during the summer.
"I never talk (publicly) only by myself," Corberan said of the relationship with his staff. "I talk always with the people I represent as a head coach.
"I have one group of assistants and if you don't have the right people with you then it's impossible to achieve anything. These type of people support my work, I have people who came with me and I have people who were already at the club.
"I'm pleased of course with the people who I've brought with me, and these people you usually have an experience of before. Then there are the people of the club who you don't have a previous experience with, but here I've found very good people. When I tell you I'm pleased to be here and proud to be at the club, it's not only for myself – I speak for everyone I represent."
Corberan this year appointed a former professor of his, Rafa Aranda, in a consultancy role focusing on injury prevention.
"One of the roles he has is to help the physical department, specifically in the prevention of the injuries," Corberan explained of Aranda's role.
"To manage and co-ordinate and support the other physical coaches, who we have here and who are extraordinary people, to know how much strength they can and cannot do and to work in some small actions that can help us avoid injuries.
"He works with the physical department especially to help avoid injuries to the players."
Albion's director of medical Tony Strudwick, formerly head of performance at Manchester United, had been at the club just a few months prior to Corberan's appointment.
Strudwick oversees the entire medical, physio and sports science teams. One of which, head of sports science and conditioning Matt Bickley, this week left the club to join Stoke after eight-and-a-half years at The Hawthorns.
Among several other members of the team are legendary Baggies duo James Morrison and Chris Brunt.
Morrison was promoted to first-team coach by Sam Allardyce in 2020 and held the role under Corberan until the summer, and is now involved at academy level.
Brunt, meanwhile, last season officially took on the role of the club's loans manager, where he keeps tabs and contact with players spending time away from The Hawthorns.
