http://www.evertonfc.com/news/archive/2011/01/20/slaven-bilic-exclusive
SLAVEN BILIC EXCLUSIVE
Thursday 20 January 2011, 19:03
by Andy Lewis @efc_andylewis
For
a man renowned for speaking his mind, it is rare you’ll find Slaven
Bilic with anything even remotely resembling divided loyalties.
Yet
when Everton host West Ham on Saturday, the outspoken 42-year-old –
remembered as a quality defender and now the respected coach of the
Croatian national team – may just feel a rare pang of confliction.
If
pushed he will tell you he is a West Ham supporter. Bilic enjoyed
arguably the best years of his career with the Hammers before Joe Royle
paid L4.5m to lure him to Goodison Park in 1997.
Subsequently he
was unable to transfer the form that made him one of the most coveted
centre-halves in the Premier League, but a lingering affection for the
Blues has stayed with him and he is glad to see the Club enjoying better
times under David Moyes.
In stark contrast, his spell at
Goodison saw the Blues embroiled in the type of relegation battle the
Hammers currently find themselves in.
And with the beleaguered
Londoners hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons and poor
displays on the pitch compounded by damaging and sustained speculation
regarding the future of manager Avram Grant, Bilic believes the ailing
Hammers have it all to do when they visit the North West.
“West
Ham are having a bad season,” he told evertonfc.com. “And now they have a
really difficult game because Everton is one of the toughest away trips
for anyone in English football. I was speaking to Luka Modric and he
said Everton had been Spurs’ toughest away game of the season.
“Everton
has a great ground, amazing supporters who get behind the team and make
it very difficult for the away team. So it is not a good game for West
Ham given their situation.”
At the time of Bilic’s move to
Everton, he was one of the finest central defenders in the league, but
injury meant Blues fans never saw the best of him.
And Bilic, an
unapologetic aficionado of English football, says Everton’s performances
in that era were not befitting of a club of its stature.
As far
as the current Blues side is concerned, he feels they are in safe hands
with Moyes and are probably only a regular goalscorer away from
challenging for top honours.
“Everton have had a strange season,”
he said. “In the summer I was at the World Cup and I had dinner with
David Moyes, who I rate as one of the best managers in England – he has
done unbelievably with Everton. He told me at that dinner that this
season Everton can do it big time and get right up the league.
“But
they have had a strange season, dropping points when you think they
should be winning. They have a great squad, a great manager and great
fans but the one reason for me is that they don’t have an out and out
goalscorer. If you do not have a guy who can score 20 goals then you
don’t have the chance to be really consistent.
“Even without
Pienaar, who is a great player, they have still got a great midfield –
very aggressive but also very sharp, clever and creative. At the back
they are solid and they are solid as a team which is a big credit to the
manager.
He added: “Everton are a great club and it was only
when I went there and after my career I realised how huge the club is.
It is a massive club with an amazing history. I want to see them do
well.
“They should probably be right at the top given their
history and the size of the club, but they are doing as well as they can
and they have a great manager in David Moyes.
"The one regret I
have about the whole thing is that because of injury I couldn’t give
Everton my very best. I am sad about that – I wanted to give them more
but the injury stopped me."
As far as the Hammers are concerned,
Bilic says the fuss off the pitch needs to be quelled if they are to
have any chance of surviving this season. He also backed Avram Grant as
the best man to try and salvage their top flight status.
“They
are having a bad season and I am upset about it,” he added. “The
situation with the manager definitely does not help. It is not good for
the manager, it is not good during the games, for the players and for
the club.
“He (Avram Grant) is a good manager, I know him well.
He was successful in Israel and he has done good work in England, first
with Chelsea and then with Portsmouth – particularly in the FA Cup. He
is the best choice and should stay at least until the end of the season –
he deserves the chance.”