Albion Under-21s have their sights set on beginning 2026 with a win when they take on Leicester City on Monday (ko 1pm).
The Baggies rounded off the previous calendar year with plenty of impressive performances in the Premier League Cup, where they managed top spot in Group E, and in turn, secure their place in the knockout stages.
Having seen their initial 2026 curtain raiser against Arsenal called off due to the adverse weather conditions across the country, Leigh Downing’s young charges will play in PL2 for the first time in over two months, due to their involvements in their various cup competitions.
Last time out
Albion’s academy stars were beaten 3-0 by Everton at Damson Park in their most recent PL2 game, which came back in November.
Downing’s side were undone by a trio of strikes by the Toffees, as they fell to their first defeat in four league matches in Solihull.
Venue
Albion are in action at The Fitlife Foods Performance Centre for just the second time this season. They last faced Leeds United there back in October.
Pre-match thoughts
Creative attacker Rio Parmar is keen to get back to form with the Under-21s after an injury-hampered start to the season.
The 18-year-old suffered with an ankle issue at the beginning of the campaign, but put in the most astounding performance when he returned – scoring four goals in 45 minutes against Birmingham City for the U18s.
Parmar has enjoyed plenty of minutes with Downing’s group of late, and has experienced the rigours of each competition they’ve entered, including the Premier League International Cup, where he put the finishing touch on a fine 4-2 win over Juventus earlier in the season.
And with new Albion Head Coach Eric Ramsay in the building, someone with a youth-focused eye, having held academy roles at both Shrewsbury Town and Chelsea – there’s more incentive than ever for Parmar to impress.
He said: “It was tough at the start of the season with injuries. Watching everyone else play and do well as a team, it motivated me to get back.
“When I was back, that motivation just pushed me on really and I’ve been in some of the best form I’ve had since I came in as a scholar.
“Last season, scoring goals was one of the things I could’ve done more of, so to come back from that and get four goals in the first half against Birmingham City – that’s something I really wanted to add to my game this season. I’ve done that, I’ve scored a couple more since then, and I’m pleased with that.
“Injuries are bound to happen as a scholar, because of the number of games that you play. Coming off the back of U16 programmes, it’s good to get them out of the way as early as possible, I feel I’ve had my setbacks now.
“I feel I should be able to kick on now without any injuries, and I can now start to get the best out of myself.
“I can affect play when in dangerous positions, I’ve got an eye for goal or to pick out my team-mates, that’s the aim of a number 10 – that’s what I can do. Playing for the 21s is a great progression to make as a second-year scholar, I feel like getting regular football and performing with the 18s and 21s would be a good thing for me and my future.
“As a 21s group, towards the back end of last season, it got more competitive and we went unbeaten. Monday is another important game, we just want to keep this run going and get three points.
“We want to keep the season going as best as we can. Some of the Premier League International Cup matches have made us make our PL2 games way more competitive.
“The games against Juventus and Valencia aren’t games that we’ll play very often, but they’ve given us motivation for our PL2 term to try and qualify again. We’ll try our best in the league games, and all of the games in our remaining cups.
“We know that the first-team sometimes need somebody to train with them, and if that’s me, I know I can go and express myself and show what I can do. I can try to build my confidence to try and see what I can do towards the back end of the season.
“It’s a fresh start for all of the lads to impress. We’re all happy about a young manager coming in because it feels like they’ll get to know more about us."
How to follow
Tickets will be unavailable for Monday's match against Leicester City at The Fitlife Foods Performance Centre.
A live stream will not be provided for the match. Fans can follow updates on the game across the club's social media channels.
