Jamie Rednapp believes West Ham United need to back manager Slaven Bilic.
West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic
Pundit Jamie Redknapp has told the Daily Mail that he thins West Ham United should support manager Slaven Bilic rather than sack him.
The Hammers lost for a fourth game in a row on Saturday afternoon, as they were beaten 2-1 away at Hull City having initially been 1-0 up at the KCOM Stadium, thanks to Andy Carroll’s opening goal.
The defeat followed losses to the likes of Chelsea, Bournemouth and Leicester City, and it means that West Ham aren’t quite safe from relegation just yet.
With just two points picked up in the last four games, West Ham now lie just six points clear of the relegation zone, with manager Slaven Bilic under increasing pressure.
Speculation was rife last week that the Hammers could look to replace the Croatian this summer, with managers such as David Wagner, Jaap Stam, Roberto Mancini and Rafael Benitez all mentioned as possible targets.
Bilic is entering the final year of his contract with West Ham, meaning that he is heading into the summer with confusion surrounding his future – but many would suggest that he’s endured difficult circumstances this season.
Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp
After taking West Ham to a seventh-placed finish last season, Bilic has had to deal with poor signings, a number of injuries, struggles in the new London Stadium home, a lack of a consistent, reliable goalscorer and the departure of star playmaker Dimitri Payet.
Now, pundit Jamie Redknapp has told the Daily Mail that he thinks West Ham cannot afford to panic at this crucial stage of the season, and must make a decision on Bilic’s future at the end of the campaign.
“West Ham may have lost their last four games but I would not dream of getting rid of Slaven Bilic at the moment. Now is not the time to panic,” said Redknapp. “Who are they going to get at this stage of the season? Bilic has had to contend with the loss of his best player in Dimitri Payet and get used to the new stadium.”
“Bilic is going into the final year of his contract and that can leave the manager in an uncertain position with the players. West Ham need to address Bilic’s contract in the summer,” he added.
Would you hand Bilic a new contract this summer?
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
