Under-pressure West Ham United boss Slaven Bilic was given a vote of confidence by West Ham United’s owners following the humiliating 5-1 league defeat to Arsenal at the weekend.
The Croatian boss has come under threat from the club’s supporters following a disappointing campaign in which they have been knocked out of the Europa League at the qualifying stage for the second successive season and eliminated from the EFL Cup by Manchester United last month.
However, their most disappointing form has come in the Premier League where the Hammers sit just one point above the relegation zone while showing no signs of turning their poor results around.
In addition, the team has struggled with their move from the Boleyn Gorund to the London Stadium, winning just two league games at their new home this term.
Here are FOUR reasons why West Ham should have binned Bilic following the heavy defeat to the Gunners…
No signs of improvement
While their start to the season was disappointing – especially at their new stadium – there was a hope that things would turn around for the better for the Irons as the campaign went on.
However, as we head towards the busy Christmas period things don’t really seem to have improved at all, and the performances in the defeats in their last two matches against Man United and Arsenal will have caused serious alarm – conceding nine goals in two games with such ease for the opposition is worrying.
Nightmare defending
The Irons have let in 29 goals in 14 Premier League matches this season – only bottom of the table Swansea City have conceded more – and if that record continues then they will be in real danger of suffering relegation to the Championship at the end of the season.
While a change of system to a formation that uses wing-backs appeared to be working in recent weeks, the 5-1 capitulation against Arsenal on Saturday was a disaster, and the defending was just as poor in the 4-1 EFL Cup defeat to Manchester United last week.
No attacking threat
While they have been poor at the back, they haven’t been much better going forward either this term and often look short of ideas in the final third.
The Hammers have scored 15 goals in 14 Premier League games and Dimitri Payet hasn’t been as influential as he was last season – although he hasn’t had the firepower up top to convert his chances – while summer signings like Simone Zaza and Andre Ayew have really struggled to make the desired impact.
Body language
The Croatian boss looked like a broken man after the defeat to Arsenal, and despite the fact that he was always going to be down after such a heavy loss, his post-match comments will have been slightly worrying for Irons supporters.
Bilic admitted that his side don’t have the same intensity and quality that they did last season – including in training – and with no signs of improvement in recent weeks, there will be doubts as to whether he has the mentality to turn things around.