Carlos Corberán says he still expects Saturday’s showdown with Sunderland at the Stadium of Light to be just as difficult despite Tony Mowbray’s departure.
Former Baggies boss Mowbray was relieved of his duties on Monday evening having spent close to a year-and-a-half in charge of the Black Cats.
Corberán was quick to praise the work the 60-year-old carried out in the North East and labelled Mowbray as a coach who he has a tremendous amount of respect for.
But the Spaniard insists this weekend’s test is still a “massive” one for his side and believes Sunderland have an abundance of quality within their ranks.
Carlos said: “I was very surprised to hear the news about Tony Mowbray leaving Sunderland earlier this week.
“For me, he did an incredible job there. He started at Sunderland when they were in the middle of the table in their first year back in the Championship. He put them in the play-offs.
“They are one team who play really, really good football so for me he is one coach who I have followed. I respect him a lot, not just because of his past with West Bromwich Albion, but because of the football his teams play.
“They have changed Tony Mowbray, but I don’t think that changes the Sunderland team we will come up against.
“He has created a very attacking culture at Sunderland and he did the same at Blackburn before that too.
“They still have the likes of Jack Clarke, Patrick Roberts, Luke O’Nien, Dan Neill, Jobe Bellingham and Trai Hume, just to name a few. So we’re still facing the same Sunderland. A lot of their players played in the play-offs last season.
“You cannot break the good habits that they created in one week after Tony’s departure. They have a lot of quality and they love to have the ball.
“Their players are part of a culture at Sunderland where they have young players who are taught to keep the ball.
“The players are key in football and the way teams play depends on the type of players they have. They have a clear way of playing so we know what type of challenge to expect.
“It’s going to be another massive test for us.”
