West Brom favourite confident in repeat with Carlos Corberan amid Leicester link

Championship title-winning midfielder Koren, 43, is confident Albion can repeat the trick of the Slovenian’s first full season in the Black Country, where they responded from play-off heartache to go one better. Koren, who made 149 appearances in three-and-a-half years at The Hawthorns, says Albion must do “everything they can” to ensure Corberan remains as head coach next term – after Leicester, who are admirers, confirmed Enzo Maresca’s departure to Chelsea.

“West Brom can definitely get promoted next season,” Koren said in an interview with OLBG, available here https://www.olbg.com/blogs/robert-koren

“I think with the coach and the team that they have, they built a really good team spirit and they have a lot of quality in the team.”

He added: “West Brom is a big club in the Championship and I think they can bounce back and they can go to the Premier League next season.

“They definitely need to do everything they can to keep hold of the manager, give him some budget to spend to bring in new players and build the atmosphere, they have to do everything they can to keep him if they are to bounce back next season.”

Koren played in the Albion side beaten by Derby at Wembley in 2007, months after his arrival, and was a regular under Tony Mowbray in the successful campaign afterwards.

The 61-cap Slovenia international added: “I remember my time in England was similar to their situation, so my first six months we got in the play-offs and lost in the final.

“But we bounced back and the year after we got promoted to the Premier League, I think they have to strengthen the team in certain positions and definitely in this transfer window, there will be some departures and some new players coming in.”

Koren went on to represent Hull City and played another 143 league games in English football before spells in Melbourne, Australia and his hometown club Dravograd, where he was a youth player, in the Slovenian lower leagues.