West Ham United have been dragging their heels over awarding Slaven Bilic a new contract.
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic celebrates winning the last ever game at the Boleyn Ground
Bilic led West Ham to their best ever Premier League points total and first positive goal difference since 1986 in his debut season last term.
The Hammers took a number of notable scalps along the way and bid a memorable farewell to the Boleyn Ground with a thrilling 3-2 comeback win over Manchester United.
This season has been a different story entirely, though, with West Ham bowing out of the Europa League in qualifying and the FA Cup and EFL Cup with heavy defeats.
Bilic was at one stage the favourite for the sack but the East Londoners turned what was threatening to be a disastrous season around after Christmas to push themselves into the relative comfort of midtable.
It was during the turnaround in results and performances that stories emerged indicating the former Croatia boss was to be rewarded with a new contract, as reported by the likes of the Daily Mail.
Could West Ham risk losing Bilic
But results have dipped again of late leading to unrest among supporters and talk of a new deal for Bilic has died down.
The majority of fans are behind Bilic and believe he has not been backed enough in the transfer market by co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold who promised big, marquee signings last summer and failed to deliver.
So could Sullivan and Gold risk losing their manager to a more ambitious project if they continue to drag their heels over a new contract.
West Ham United co-owners David Gold and David Sullivan
There will be some big clubs looking for new managers in the summer and Bilic could well be on their wish lists given the job he has done at West Ham.
It was not that long ago he was being linked with replacing Roy Hodgson as England manager.
Sullivan and Gold must accept they have not done nearly enough to properly support Bilic with the kind of money needed to achieve their stated aims of challenging the top six.
Hesitate much longer and it could well be a case of not knowing what you have got until it’s gone.
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