Albion defender Chris Mepham is excited by the prospect of showing the Baggies faithful what he is capable of during the 2026/27 season.
The 28-year-old made the move to the Black Country last summer on a permanent deal from Premier League club Sunderland.
Fresh off the back of helping the Black Cats get promoted to England’s top tier, Mepham was hoping to repeat the feat for a third time in his career when he joined the club.
However, a tough season ensued, and he missed the last five months of the campaign with injury. The Wales international says he's determined to deliver improved performances in the upcoming campaign.
“The fans definitely haven’t seen the best of me,” Chris admitted. “When you step away and reflect, there’s been no hiding that I had a frustrating season.
“I know what I need to improve on, and I’m only 28, so there will always be stuff to improve on, so I’m really keen to show Albion fans the best version of me.
“I came here having been promoted with Sunderland and I really wanted to emulate that and do it for a third time in my career. There will always be seasons that don’t work out, and individually I didn’t give the best account of myself last year.
“I know what levels I can hit, and of course the timing of my injury last year was tough because I think my experience could’ve helped in those final few games, but it was amazing to see the togetherness the group showed.
“Going into this season, I feel good, I feel mentally refreshed and ready to go. I’m looking forward to showing people the best version of me and I’m very confident I can do that.”
James Morrison is leading his first pre-season as head coach, and Mepham says the boss is making it very clear what he wants from his players.
Chris explained: “I think common themes from the gaffer have been him wanting us to be aggressive on the ball, not being passive and having energy, knowing what we want to do to teams, being on the front foot, winning the ball high up and creating chances that way.
“He wants us to have confidence in our build-up and dominate the ball, to take pride in the moments we win the ball back and have clear patterns in what we do with it. I think that’s really important and we need to become a team who is really damaging when we have the ball.
“He wants us to push ourselves in pre-season and test ourselves mentally, to leave everything out there. If we all have that mindset, we’re already building on a really good platform, and if anyone drops off, the staff will pick them back up."
“This week has been really good,” Mepham added. “It’s been really difficult, as you’d expect of pre-season, but I think the lads have put in a really good shift and we’re feeling the effects of it now.
“It’s really nice out here because you get that balance of working hard and having time to relax with your team-mates as well.
“The lads are leaving it all out on the pitch every single day and we’ll definitely be better off for that.
“There’s a real confidence and belief in the group that was instilled by the gaffer. Hopefully we can carry that momentum into this year and have a really positive season.”
