The West Ham United keeper is seemingly unhappy with his bit-part role, but what did he expect?
West Ham United goalkeeper Adrian told Radio Marca, via Sky Sports, recently that he was frustrated in East London because Slaven Bilic was not giving him “much ball”.
The 30-year-old is firmly behind Joe Hart in the pecking order at West Ham and it seems unlikely that he will be there beyond January unless he displaces him.
Hart – also 30 – was arguably the Irons’ most high-profile signing of the summer transfer window as he joined on loan from Manchester City.
He was always going to start as Bilic’s number one and it seems odd that the Spanish keeper is unhappy this early in the season. What did he expect?
The England stopper is earning £175,000 and the Hammers, according to The Sun, are paying £120k of that.
Hart is a big investment and one who was never going to be on the bench under Bilic this season, but instead of complaining you wonder why Adrian did not consider this fact and try harder to leave the club during the summer.
Adrian, valued at £7.2 million according to Transfermarkt, told West Ham’s website in August: “Joe is a great ‘keeper and is an international for England he brings great competition. He is a great worker and, like everyone, we are both training very well.
“We have a lot of competition in goal this season, so I will try to give my best and we will see the manager’s decision.”
Those comments suggest he was up for the fight at the time of saying it. Bilic and Hart aren’t to blame for his lack of game time this season. It’s Adrian’s fault for taking on a challenge which he could never win this early.
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