Callum Styles Steps into Leadership Role at West Brom

Callum Styles is still only 26, but at West Bromwich Albion this season, he suddenly finds himself on the older side of the dressing room.

A summer of change at The Hawthorns has stripped away a chunk of experience and flooded the squad with youth. Seven of the club’s new signings are 23 or under. In contrast, three players over 30 have departed, along with Karlan Grant and Kristian Bielik, both 28, and 27-year-old Josh Maja.

The result? Styles, the left-back who has already logged plenty of Championship miles, is now one of the figures others look towards.

“I think that's natural [to step into leadership] when you've played a lot of games in the Championship and you're getting older season by season,” he told BBC Radio WM.

The shift hasn’t just been about age on a teamsheet. It’s changed the daily dynamic. The players who were once the younger voices in the room are now the ones setting standards.

“Quite a few of us that were here last year feel like it's our role to then get the new lads adjusted to the league, to the team and to the physicality as quickly as possible,” Styles said.

That means more than a few words in the tunnel before kick-off. It’s the grind in training, the example in matches, the support away from the pitch.

“We've got to show that through us working hard ourselves and then obviously helping them off the pitch,” he added.

For West Brom’s new-look squad, the message is clear: the future might be younger, but it will be led by players like Styles who already know exactly how unforgiving the Championship can be.