The Croatian brought the striker to West Ham United in the summer.
Former West Ham manager Slaven Bilic was a guest on Sky Sports’ Super Sunday programme yesterday, and offered high words of praise for Javier Hernandez, after the Mexican earned his side a point away at Chelsea.
Bilic brought the 29-year-old to the London Stadium from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2017, for a fee believed to be worth in the region of £16 million, but he has made only 25 Premier League appearances thus far.
Yesterday’s strike at Stamford Bridge was his eighth of the campaign thus far, and it was arguably his most important goal of the season.
The Hammers now sit in 14th spot in the Premier League table, just four points adrift of the top 10, and there is a genuine feeling emanating from the club that a top half finish is a very real possibility.
Bilic, who lost his job at West Ham in November last year, spoke highly of Hernandez’s quality, during a guest appearance on Sky Sports’ Super Sunday programme:
“He’s a natural goalscorer and he’s there where he has to be. He’s not dangerous outside the box or around the box, but in the box, he’s the best finisher. He had some difficult times in the beginning. I don’t think he did all of pre-season because of the Confederations Cup but he is a brilliant goalscorer. He’s a brilliant guy, a good person to have in the dressing room. He doesn’t cause problems, he can be angry but for five or ten minutes, no more than that. He is a good guy.”
Next up for West Ham is a vital home game against Stoke City next Monday, and a win there could be enough to secure their Premier League status for another season.
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