Two Albion youngsters have signed their first professional contracts with the club.
Striker Dan Chimeziri and goalkeeper Louis Brady have penned one-year deals until the summer of 2026, with both having the option of a further year in the club’s favour.
For powerful target man Chimeziri, last term provided its motivations and challenges - spending much of 2025 out injured having enjoyed lots of opportunities in the Under-21s leading the line.
Dan first joined Albion as a scholar in 2023 and effectively showed some of his key attributes - utilising his physicality and presence up top to claim seven goals and eight assists during his first term in B71.
Born in Hackney, the former QPR youth striker equalled those goalscoring figures the following campaign during games for both the U18 and U21 age groups prior to an injury which ruled him out until April.
And his performances in those matches exhibited his capability at a higher level, scoring in the Premier League 2 and National League Cup competitions - with the latter proving Chimeziri could compete against men and warranted him earning a year to repay the trust placed in him.
Closer to the Baggies' centre of operations, shot-stopper Brady has been with the club since U14s - joining from Rushall Olympic having played for local side Sutton United during his early years in the game.
Although the 18-year-old has resided closer to The Hawthorns than his fellow new pros, Louis was born in Marbella prior to growing up in Sutton Coldfield from the age of six.
He represented the Republic of Ireland U19s at international level in 2024, has been a regular between the sticks throughout the age groups, and made some big saves in the Youth Cup last season to ensure the 18s made the last eight for the first time in four years.
With both having plenty to prove, Academy Manager Richard Stevens is looking forward to seeing how the two players adapt in the next stage of the PDP programme.
He said: “We’ve mentioned about the routes into an academy before, and that not everybody is immersed in a club setting for nine years.
“Dan has come here and shown he can compete at the level we expect at Albion. There’s a lot of development to come, but he is humble and he embraces that in his work.
“We’ll continue to build his skillset around unlocking defences and he performed well in the National League Cup. That competition was good for us as it put our youngest players against seasoned pros and really allowed us to see what Dan could do.
“Physically, he’s really strong and Dan’s proven he can lead the line, score goals, and is another who will have next season in the PL2 team to improve, develop and turn himself into something.
“Louis came into programme late at U14s from local football and goalkeeping is such a bespoke position that the benefit of full-time training, constant physical activity and day-to-day improvement on the programme means he’s ready to go again.
“He showed last season he could command the goal, is imposing in the penalty area, and I think there’s lots more development to come - which is good because goalkeepers very often mature later on in their careers.
“There’s a really good temperament to Louis and he works really hard to better himself and gets the opportunity to do that again in the upcoming season, which is the right thing for him and for the football club.”
