Albion Under-21s are in search of Premier League 2 victory when they welcome Manchester United on Monday evening (ko 7pm).
The young Baggies have lost their first two games of 2026, and will surely look for a positive reaction with the visit of their Mancunian opponents.
Albion currently sit 28th in PL2 and know a competitive end to the campaign could be in sight should they pick up a run of results over the next couple of weeks.
Last time out
Leigh Downing’s young charges were beaten 2-0 by Southampton at the Silverlake Stadium last week.
The Baggies had opportunities to score themselves, but were undone by strikes either side of half-time from Cameron Bragg and Nick Oyekunle.
Venue
Albion play their fourth match of the season at Damson Park, home of Enterprise National League side Solihull Moors, on Monday evening.
Last time Downing’s youngsters played there, they were defeated late on by Valencia in their final Premier League International Cup group match.
Pre-match thoughts
Senior Professional Development Phase Coach Downing admits his side’s start to 2026 hasn’t been as he’d hoped.
The Baggies' hopefuls have been beaten in both of the year’s curtain-raisers, despite the quantity of scoring opportunities created.
Still, with plenty more of the club’s first and second-year scholars excelling at U18 level, therefore earning their involvement with Downing’s 21s – there’s plenty to be positive about as they reach the second half of the season.
The boss has challenged his players to “fight for their shirt” as they reach the first of two fixtures this week (Manchester United and Nottingham Forest), with their Premier League Cup last-16 encounter with QPR the next stop.
Downing said: “In the first half against Southampton, we came out and we were very passive. We didn’t get up to the ball and didn’t compete well enough.
“We allowed Southampton to control large parts of the game. When we did get the ball into the front players, we had one or two moments where we managed to work shots at goal.
“The first half wasn’t good enough. Second half, we came out and had more of a go, were a bit braver with the ball, more competitive, and created one or two good moments at good points in the game.
“If we score our chances, we could get the game to 1-1 and then you go into the last 10 minutes thinking you might get something. The most pleasing thing of the night was some of the first-year scholars who were on the bench. They came on and made a good impression, so credit to those lads.
“We hope there’ll be more opportunities for those boys in the future, too. We’re currently in the January transfer window, where some of the older lads in the group could get senior experiences on loan elsewhere.
“We’re looking to push the young players on. Some of them are doing enough in the U18s and are ready for that challenge now. We still have nine games to go and we want to put in good performances and improve our points tally – the lads know that.
“We can’t rest on our laurels and we need to keep looking to improve. The good thing is that we have the week ahead of us now where we can get good work into the players.
“We’ve got two games coming around fairly quickly now, as well as the round-of-16 Premier League Cup game, where the lads are going to have to fight for their shirts. That’s the message going into those two games.
“The opportunities that the players get will see who’s going to be ready for that starting place in the knockout game.”
How to follow
Tickets will be available for Albion’s PL2 clash with the young Red Devils on Monday evening.
For those wishing to secure their ticket for the game click here. Supporters can also buy tickets on the gate at Damson Park.
They are priced at £4 adults and £2 for Under-17s and 65+, while Albion season ticket holders are able to watch the game for free.
To gain their free access, season ticket holders will need to show an upcoming first-team match ticket on the gate at Damson Park.
Unfortunately, there will not be a live stream of Monday's match owing to Premier League broadcasting regulations.
Supporters can keep up-to-date with Monday’s PL2 match across the club’s social media channels, with half-time, full-time, and goal updates as they go in – with reaction available on the website afterwards.
