West Brom job title no concern for Pulis

Tony Pulis dismissed any confusion over the hierarchy at West Brom and insists his job is clear.

The former Stoke and Crystal Palace boss has been appointed new Baggies head coach on a two-and-a-half year deal to replace Alan Irvine.

The structure at The Hawthorns has come under fire with Terry Burton technical director and Pulis is the fourth head coach in just over a year. But Pulis, who has predominantly been a manager, said titles do not matter as he bids to keep the Baggies in the Premier League.

Pulis said: “Someone said to me, ‘do you mind being called head coach?’ You can call me ‘head bottle washer’ if you want, it doesn’t make a difference as long as I know what I’m in charge of.

“Everyone understands what we have to do. There’s been a lot said about how the club has been run in the past and now with me coming in. The most important thing is everyone works together.

“Just because I’ve walked in the door doesn’t mean we’ll stay up. There’s lots of work to do and for me it’s the right club at the right time. I’ve got a decent record of helping places turn around, but there were only four home wins at The Hawthorns in 2014.”

Pulis will watch his first game in charge from the stands when the Baggies host Gateshead in the FA Cup third round today.

And he wants to make moves in the transfer window this month with the Baggies 17th in the table, a point above the drop zone.

Pulis said: “We hope to get the breaks so we can use the transfer window to our advantage. In every football club if there’s players coming in, you might have to lose a few along the way.

“You have to find a way of winning and irrespective of the players and systems and what you believe in there’s only one way — you have to find a way to win games with what you’ve got.”