West Bromwich Albion head coach James Morrison refused to be drawn on the club's chances of being in the mix for the newly-expanded play-offs, instead insisting this season was all about doing better than last. Given the club's close shave with relegation last term, and the current limits of their spending power, Morrison does not want to start adding to the levels of expectation on his players before a ball is kicked in the Championship. "I don't want to get too carried away, I don't want to put any more pressure on us but I think as a group we know where we want to get to," he told BBC Radio WM. "We know what we have to do to get there and we have to remain good on the training pitch, competitive in the games, understanding what we've got to do. "It's just hard work. You can have all the best tactics in the world but if the hard work's not there, we may as well stay at home." From this season, two more play-off spots are available allowing teams finishing seventh and eighth to now have a shot a reaching the Premier League. Albion, who last reached the play-offs in 2024, ended last term four points above the relegation zone in 21st after a tough campaign on and off the field. With that in mind, Morrison, who said he feels "ready" for the new season said his main priority is to see an uptick on 2025-26 even though he thought more play-off contenders was a good idea. "I'll welcome it. It means you have to give it an opportunity to keep going to the end of the season," he said. "It gives more teams opportunities. It doesn't create that divide of same teams always being in around it. It gives the lesser teams a chance and I think a little change in football is always exciting and not be predictable. "I'm not going to get into that [whether Albion's chances are improved] but I think for me at the start it's just about improving." Albion start their Championship campaign at Norwich City on Saturday (15:00 BST).
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