The Smooth Operator'- JJ Morgan.

‘No need to ask.’   Sade 1984.

 As self confident and intelligent off the pitch, mirroring his playing persona, JJ Morgan has an aura beyond his twenty years and eight months.

That aura would look foolish on some players, but my determinant of high quality of performance at any sport, is the ability to see things early and execute, seemingly immune to the constraints of pressure that often result in rushed, inaccurate techniques.

The art of slow, when all around you are in a maelstrom..

Take the goal that opened JJ’s account at The Albion and opened so many Baggies eyes to the fact that, AT LAST we have a natural finisher..

The best players back their skills and their judgement.

They see things very early and trust their skill level to execute..

Collecting an absolute peach of a 50 yard, raking pass from Baggies keeper, Max O’Leary, Morgan collected possession in perfect stride and perfect mind set..

Norwich’s back four were simply invitations to be beaten, as Morgan stealthily glided towards, then across their back four, a reverse type of a finish, passed, not hit, exuded class we’ve not seen at The Albion for years…

But then again, a summation of JJ’s own strengths,

“ ruthless in and around the box with high level finishing’, 

Words of a confident individual…

But that Morgan quote was from February 2023, when JJ had just joined Chelsea from Southampton for 6 Million.

Jimmy-Jae was aged 17 Years and 1 Month old.

Backing up confident quotes with the real estate of performance is part of JJ Morgan’s DNA.

Ordinarily, 21st January 2006 is not a day Baggies fans look back with much fondness…

A freezing day at The Hawthorns in a nadir of a season, the prior delirium of The Great Escape seemingly a long time in the proverbial rear view window.

The Albion locked horns with Sunderland in a microcosm of a season in a truly terrible game, a shot deflected off Steve Watson was the only goal of the game, despite to one and all looking like Darren Carter was fouled in the build up.

But on the very same day, Jimmy-Jae Morgan was born in Poole, Dorset…

You’d never guess from Jimmy-Jae’s eloquent tones, but his family are all Scousers.

Oddly enough, at the very same time, another future Baggie, Isaac Price was a ballboy at Goodison Park, JJ and his family were cheering on their mutual beloved Blues from the south of England..

It was obvious at a very early age how prodigious JJ’s talents were, and at just 8 years old, his family agreed to sign for another team in blue.

Chelsea.

JJ spent three seasons at Chelsea’s Academy, and by his own account reflected,

“ I never wanted to leave, I felt comfortable at Cobham.”

But no doubt, commuting on such a regular basis from rural Dorset to West London was taking it’s toll on the Morgan family, and it was decided JJ’s future should be closer to home.

Much closer to home.

Southampton.

The Saints Academy set up is similar to West Brom, a proven developmental centre for budding talent over decades, and no doubt from that rich source of potential, Morgan was someone very special..

For someone so young, it’s quite the moniker to be described as the club’s ‘young crown jewel’, but that was Morgan, who scored prolifically in age group football, even at the age of 16, it was commonly accepted he was, ‘one of the best finishers at the club’.

The age of the opponent held little sway with this evidently self confident teen, scoring twice v a very strong and experienced Portsmouth side, in as ever, a very heated derby.

The aforementioned game was in the Hampshire Senior Cup, but no game between those two hated rivals is one for the faint hearted..

Morgan would soon be free scoring at U21 level, two clinical finishes in a Man of the Match performance against of all teams, Everton, further opened the eyes of scouts, particularly as he was marked by an overage player who’d just signed for The Blues for 20 Million.

Ben Godfrey.

Morgan has always been ambitious and part of that is a desire to utilize every resource on offer, not only taking advice from coaches, but actively using private, independent data over his game by game performance, again another notch in his pursuit of personal excellence.

This form of excellence gave Morgan a sniff of first team football at the tender age of 16, when he was called up by The Saints first team for their Premier League fixture against Brighton on Boxing Day 2022, in a 3-1 home defeat.

Morgan made the bench, but didn’t make his debut, truth was, he was about to leave the club.

Saints manager at the time, Nathan Jones, sensed the writing was on the wall.

“ JJ is 16. He’s a fantastic player, but he has to make the right choices.”

Natural finishers are at a premium, and although Morgan still had 18 months to complete on his Saints scholarship contract, who wanted to extend JJ’s commitment to a professional contract, his mind was made up.

He wanted to leave.

Leeds and also Spurs made strong overtures to sign JJ, but it was decided he wanted to go back to where he was initially most comfortable.

Chelsea.

To sign a player three weeks into his 17th  year of life, who had never played a single minute for the first team is for most clubs a huge gamble, but it has to be said, Chelsea can afford a 6 Million gamble more than most.

With Chelsea’s depth chart of talent and seemingly obsession with stock piling young players with a high risk of not making the first team, was the challenge set to Morgan, and initially he excelled, clearly displaying.

“ Intelligent forward play with good movement in and around the box,”

traits JJ further described of himself when he signed for Chelsea.

JJ’s potential was quickly noted by the Blues coaching staff, and he was fast tracked to training with the first team squad, where JJ reflected, 

 “ It was tough, a huge difference in intensity”.

Indeed, one defender JJ found particularly difficult was ex Baggie loanee, Tosin Adarabioyo, whose 6’6’ frame, 

“Kind of wrapped himself around me.”

At age group football yet again, Morgan was proving to be a clinical finisher, the only drawback seemingly was a visit to a clinic in Santa Monica, California for an operation on his injured knee, putting JJ out of the game for a few months.

Throughout his first season at Chelsea, JJ was still thriving internationally for the England U17’s after getting his debut in his last months at The Saints.

Six goals in seven international games says it all.

The pathway for so many Chelsea teenage prodigies is an overseas stint, but for JJ after just under two years at Chelsea, the decision was made to send him to a less salubrious jaunt.

He was off to Gillingham.

Lower league experiences can make or break a player, the change in the physical demands of NOW competing against players of different ages is a whole new ball game, and Morgan clearly saw the need to compete more physically a prerequisite to career development in a much more physical league.

The Albion clearly saw this bridge to first team football a perfect springboard for Tom Fellows and maybe the pathway for Ollie Bostock this season?

The Gills were under the tutelage of the flamboyant Gareth Ainsworth, but despite 16 appearances with ten starts and just two goals, progress was limited..

On reflection this underwhelming loan may well have come down partly to Morgan’s summation, 

“ I simply didn’t express myself enough..”

Three months later, it was to be a second loan spell, this time an altogether more positive experience, with Peterborough Utd.

JJ wanted to be more selective in terms of the club he was to join on loan, stating it best to match his playing style,

“ At this stage of my career, it is important to find the right club that suits the way I play”

Learning from the errors of his time at The Gills, Morgan surmised a much more positive mindset,

“ This time the shackles are off…”

The impact was sustained and marked.

Morgan played a range of roles at Posh, some of the time playing in a deeper role, as JJ described at the time,

“My role has been like a ‘right sided No.8’.

It’s a new position for me, linking the midfield with the attack”.

You can clearly see Posh’s boss, Luke Williams role in improving Morgan, as his movement across the box is performed with such ease and grace, the trademark self confidence of Morgan justifiably stating at the time he had,

“The capability to play that role.”

But it was in front of goal where JJ really impressed, scoring all manner of technically good finishes in his fourteen goal haul, but not one from outside the box.

Albion were correctly destined only to keep one striker from last season’s oft injured crew, and with the hard working but less than prolific Aune Heggebo being now the main goal source, action had to be taken.

Quickly.

As JJ reflected, Albion’s interest was SO early post season, he initially, almost dismissed it,

“To be honest, I didn’t think too much of it, because of how early it was in the summer’

But Albion were not to be denied, they’d found their target early and it was such a prudent approach compared to the stalled approach of previous regimes.

Or was it also a case of, lets get this business done early, under the radar, as diamonds like this don’t come around too often?

Huge credit has to go to James Morrison over this signing, JJ reflected,

“We had a really good chat, I’m convinced the style of football and coaching here will bring out the best of my attributes.”

The ‘Albion Project’ was further sold, after Morgan wisely seeking the counsel of both Danny Imray, 

“It’s a great club” and JJ’s close friend from their days back at Chelsea, Alfie Gilchrist, who also raved about life at ‘The Albion’.

Those interests and viable selling points cannot be underestimated..

Mozza’s respect for Morgan’s finishing was obvious, 

“He’s an exciting player who knows the back of the net”, 

But Mozza warns as well, development can only be sown through hard work,

“Must keep on top of JJ and remind him of his role without the ball”.

We of course are only one game in, but the debut of JJ was a revelation, a smart assist, [Heggebo handball or not, the positioning to make the cross was superb, the invite to score, delicious], and the goal, a rare piece of striking art for us Baggies fans compared to the fallow fare of recent seasons.

Recent goal scoring has been miserable for West Brom.

In the last four seasons in The Championship, only two players have broken double figures, in 23/24 Thomas-Asante with eleven and the sadly, multiple injured Josh Maja with twelve.

Early days I know, but if he stays fit, I’ve zero doubt, Jimmy-Jae Morgan will easily beat those uninspiring totals, and in time form a potent forward partnership with the similarly mobile and exciting potential to be reached, in fellow new signing, Barney Stewart..

As the lyrics to Smooth Operator suggest, you ‘don’t need to ask .’.

One look in The Championship at Morgan’s ability is enough.

And in that look, we have finally have a finisher worthy of that role.