Suggestions that Slaven Bilic could make an emotional return to West Ham United and replace the floundering Graham Potter have, in truth, received two kinds of very predictable, but very understandable, response.
On one side, there some West Ham fans calling this an embarrassing step backwards. Quite literally, a step backwards in time.
Slaven Bilic was sacked by David Sullivan in November 2017 after a run of two wins in eleven games brought about his demise. As former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan points out, Bilic has hardly set the world alight since leaving the London Stadium either.
His average win rate in charge of Al-Ittihad, West Brom, Beijing Guoan, Watford and most recently Al-Fateh is just 35 per cent, despite managing to guide the Baggies to promotion out of England’s second tier.
In the other faction, though, belongs a throng of supporters who – while maybe blinded by nostalgia and a sheer desperation for something else, anything else – would welcome a genuine club hero back with open arms.
Darren Bent, the former England striker speaking to talkSPORT, can certainly see the appeal.
Darren Bent reacts as West Ham United consider Slaven Bilic return
Hammers News were informed on Thursday, by chief football correspondent Graeme Bailey, that Slaven Bilic is seen as an ‘interesting option’ by a David Sullivan-led hierarchy. The owner retains a strong relationship with the 57-year-old Croatian, despite their parting of the ways nearly a decade ago.
And while it’s true that Bilic’s tenure went sour fast once dangerman-turned-deserter Dimitri Payet forced through a move to Marseille in January 2017, Bent recalls the happier times, when records fell like Jenga blocks in a hurricane.
“[Bilic can succeed at West Ham again] if the football he played when he was there [is repeated],” says Bent, the one-time Tottenham, Sunderland and Aston Villa poacher.
“He was there with Payet and the boys,” he adds with an appreciative whoosh of breath. “It was an exciting brand of football.”
The points tally accumulated by Bilic and co en route to that seventh place finish in 2015/16 – 65 – remains West Ham’s highest in the Premier League era. The Hammers beat Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City all away from home, while also securing famous Upton Park victories over Chelsea and Man United.
Oh what most fans would give for a trip in the Tardis and a return to those heady days in claret and blue.
A lot has changed in the ten years since, however. While West Ham have reached European finals and challenged the elite occasionally post-Bilic, his own career has never really come close to those same heights.
Nuno and Gary O’Neil in contention as Edin Terzic plans managerial comeback
West Ham appeared to back Graham Potter in a long-winded club statement earlier in the week, though so-called ‘votes of confidence’ often precede in a swift handshake and a freshly-printed P45.
Hammers News can confirm that Coventry City boss Frank Lampard would consider returning to East London. Another ex-Hammers midfielder Gary O’Neil has also been mentioned in the media. Nuno Espirito Santo is likely to be the first-choice among many supporters, however, after he guided Nottingham Forest from 17th to the Europa League in a year-and-a-half.
Nuno’s tactics appear very well-suited to West Ham’s squad, as well.
Bilic’s old Hammers assistant Edin Terzic wants a new challenge, meanwhile, having been without a job since guiding Borussia Dortmund to the Champions League final.
“If it’s a good fit, we can start right away,” Terzic told the Sueddeutsche Zeitung this week. “I also feel better prepared than I did a year ago. I want to apply the knowledge and ideas I’ve gained over the past year.
“The Premier League is certainly the league with the most attention in the world. And that’s certainly due to the depth of play and the quality, which is simply stronger even at the bottom of the table than elsewhere.
“In the Premier League, there’s a game every weekend that would also be a perfectly worthy Champions League semi-final. Teams in the relegation battle have players who could help almost any team in Europe.”
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