Luke Dowling believed West Brom recruit was "determined" to reach the PL - he was right from the off | OneFootball

Slaven Bilic had an immediate impact at The Hawthorns

After losing out to local rivals Aston Villa in the 2018/19 play-off semi-finals, it was integral for West Bromwich Albion to get their next permanent appointment spot on.

Despite being in the top-six for the vast majority of the season, Darren Moore was dismissed at The Hawthorns in March 2019, with interim boss, Jimmy Shan, unable to guide the club to a first-time promotion as Dean Smith's eventual play-off winners returned to B6 from B71 having won on penalties in a compelling two-legged affair.

Since the turn of the millennium in particular, Albion have gained a reputation for being one of the second-tier's expected front-runners whenever they find themselves in the division. And, in this particular off-season, former technical director, Luke Dowling's claim following the appointment of former West Ham United boss, Slaven Bilic, would be proven right.

Luke Dowling's bold claim as West Brom moved to appoint Slaven Bilic

The Croatian had a strong pedigree by Championship standards, having guided the Hammers to a seventh-placed finish back in 2015/16, before overseeing the club's move to the London Stadium with a squad filled with talent such as French playmaker, Dimitri Payet.

However, Bilic was dismissed in November 2017 after a poor start to the season, before eventually returning to English football in the West Midlands in June 2019 with an underwhelming stint with Al-Ittihad sandwiched in between.

He was handed a two-year contract with the Baggies and set the clear remit of returning to the Premier League, which he was clearly on board with, as Dowling stated during the club's official press conference.

"From the moment we spoke to Slaven, we were struck by his enthusiasm and excitement about this challenge," he said.

"He is determined to get back to the Premier League and believes passionately that he can do that with Albion.

"We believe he is a great 'fit' for us - his presence, experience and management qualities are just what we need."

Slaven Bilic delivered promotion in his first season at The Hawthorns

Supporters would be left mesmerised by some of the side's early-season performances and attacking flair orchestrated by the aforementioned Brazilian, as they lost just one of their first 25 games, away to eventual champions, Leeds United, netting three or more goals in four of those games.

A run of seven winless games at the turn of the year saw the likes of Nottingham Forest, Fulham and Brentford gain ground in the table, although a respectable gap between Albion and the chasing pack would be reinstated when the COVID-19 pandemic ground the season to a three-month halt.

Unlike Leeds, Bilic's side resumed the season in June 2020 in strong fashion with one defeat in six, seeing them climb above Marcelo Bielsa's side on goal difference with five games remaining.

However, the side who were notorious for sharing the goals around, would stumble over the finish line whilst being grateful for the Bees' own mishaps against relegation-threatened Stoke City and Barnsley, as a 2-2 draw against QPR at The Hawthorns on the final day was enough for the Baggies to return to the top-flight after two years, finishing two points ahead of Thomas Frank's men, who would lose the play-off final against Fulham.

After a gruelling and unprecedented campaign, the Croat was left with plenty of emotion afterwards, stating: "(Promotion) is at the top (of his achievements). You don't know how exhausting it was this season. You can't imagine how proud and happy I am.

"I managed my country for six years and I said no matter which club I manage nothing will compare when you are manager of your national team. I can't say it's the same but I feel as proud as I felt then.

"We've got work to do but I haven't thought about it because of this crazy situation. We did a bit of work during the lockdown. Now, not today, not tomorrow or the day after and we'll see next week."

Unfortunately for Bilic, he and his players were unable to build on promotion despite the permanent acquisitions of Pereira and Diangana, the latter of which left West Ham captain Mark Noble in disbelief, as well as the acquisition of Karlan Grant on a six-year deal for £15m.

The former Besiktas boss was dismissed in December 2020 after taking seven points from a possible 39, with the last of those a credible draw against eventual champions Manchester City, before Sam Allardyce oversaw the remainder of a dismal season, with the club failing to return to the Premier League since.