While most West Ham United fans are fully behind Slaven Bilic a section remain sceptical over his credentials.
West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic
When Bilic left Turkish club Besiktas in 2015 he was held aloft and carried through the airport on the shoulders of a legion of grateful Black Eagle fans.
For anyone who doesn’t follow Turkish football you could be forgiven for thinking Bilic had led the club to numerous trophies during his two-year tenure.
On closer inspection, though, the sceptics pointed out that his biggest achievement was finishing third in a three-team league.
Those same cynics could also point to the fact that since Bilic has left Turkey to return to East London, Besiktas have lifted back-to-back league titles for the first time in a quarter of a century.
Besiktas fans celebrate
A poor second season at the Hammers helm hasn’t helped his reputation among the doubters.
But many pundits and fans have acknowledged the Croatian has actually done a fine job steering the club to an 11th place finish in the Premier League given the problems he has faced with injuries, poor recruitment, the Dimitri Payet saga and the move to the Olympic Stadium.
Bilic has had a tough second season at West Ham
So given Besiktas’ success since his departure, is Bilic an underachiever or does it prove he builds solid foundations for future success?
The adoration of fans tells you everything about his time in Turkey. Besiktas were struggling financially and were initially unable to sign players while the club also negotiated a stadium move much more unsettling than West Ham’s.
Croatia’s Dario Srna celebrates finishing third in World Cup with Bilic
Bilic, like he had done so expertly in charge of Croatia, brought through a new generation of young homegrown players who formed the bedrock of a team which – had they beaten their bitter rivals Gala and Fenerbache during the season – would have won the league.
The team he put together grew in his second season and on his leaving, the hard and in many respects unselfish work he had put in came to fruition.
The majority of West Ham’s fans see Bilic as the man to lead them for years to come and you only need to look at Croatia and Besiktas to see why.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
