Isaac Price Embraces Challenge Against Newcastle United
Isaac Price is not hiding from it. West Bromwich Albion’s young midfielder wants the test, wants the noise, wants St James’ Park under the lights.
On Wednesday, he gets all of it.
Albion, flying high in second place in the Championship after two wins from two, head to Premier League Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup second round. It is the kind of tie that can expose you or announce you. Price sounds determined it will be the latter.
“All the lads are buzzing,” he told BBC WM Sport. “They are the games you want to be drawn in, in the cup – to go and play away at a Premier League team and at a place where we can go and show our quality. I can't wait.”
From Burnley brace to Newcastle stage
Price walks into this cup tie in form and full of confidence. On Sunday, he scored twice in a 3-1 win over Burnley, a result that underlined Albion’s sharp start under head coach James Morrison.
That victory followed two league wins and a professional first-round EFL Cup success against League Two Rotherham United, which set up this trip to Tyneside. Newcastle, for their part, have already shown their attacking edge with a 2-2 draw against Liverpool at St James’ Park in their opening league game.
The step up in level does not intimidate Price. It excites him.
Lessons from a season that almost unravelled
The mood around The Hawthorns is buoyant again, but Price knows how quickly that can evaporate. Albion also started brightly 12 months ago, only for their form to collapse under Ryan Mason. Performances dipped, results followed, and by the end of the campaign they were scrambling just to stay in the Championship.
That brush with relegation has left its mark.
“Every game in the Championship is tough and it doesn't matter who you play,” Price said. “We had this last year – we started really well and it went downhill pretty fast, so it is about keeping our feet on the ground, keeping a level of consistency in performances to make sure that doesn't happen again.”
He talks like someone who has replayed last season’s failings in his head more than once.
“You are always learning as a player, even the lads who have played 2, 3, 400 games. It's about managing games and moments – we conceded a lot of goals that we shouldn't have last season and we didn't score enough at the other end.
This year I want to be a key player where I show that that can't happen and I want to be a leader in this team to make sure it doesn't happen.”
The words are clear: no repeat, no excuses.
Morrison’s impact and a club reconnecting
If Albion did avoid the drop, James Morrison’s intervention sits right at the heart of it. Installed as interim boss after Eric Ramsay’s sacking in February, the former Scotland international – who played 341 times for the club – stitched together a ten-match unbeaten run that dragged the team away from danger and ultimately earned him the job permanently.
His presence, and his history, carry weight in the dressing room.
“It's helpful for all the lads,” Price said. “He knows the club inside out. He's really humble – you wouldn't know day to day how many games he played and how many goals he scored for West Brom because he doesn't talk about it, but he is a legend and the lads love him.
He's good around the changing room and he understands what we need. We look really good on the pitch at the moment, so it is about building the consistency which is what he wants.”
That word again: consistency. It hangs over everything Albion are doing.
They have momentum, a manager the players clearly buy into, and a midfielder in Price who has started the season like he intends to own it. Now comes Newcastle, a Premier League yardstick and a stage that can sharpen belief or expose flaws.
Price has already made his choice. He wants the test. Now he has to live it.
