David Sullivan backed Slaven Bilic to see out West Ham contract before heavy loss to Brighton

Public backing: Sullivan backed Bilic to see out contract
Arfa Griffiths/West Ham United via Getty Images
James Benge21 October 2017

West Ham co-chairman David Sullivan reassured Slaven Bilic that his job is safe ahead of West Ham's damaging home defeat to Brighton.

The Hammers dropped to 17th in the Premier League table after a convincing 3-0 loss the Chris Hughton's newly-promoted side on Friday evening.

It was their fifth defeat in their opening nine Premier League matches and heaped more pressure on beleaguered boss Bilic as the London Stadium crowd turned on him.

Bilic’s future was the subject of speculation for much of last season as the Hammers struggled to settle in their new home, though they rallied in the final months of the campaign to secure an 11th-placed finish.

The Croatian manager retained the public backing of Sullivan and fellow owner David Gold, although the former publically demanded improvement from West Ham after a loss to Bournemouth in March.

And speaking ahead of Friday's defeat Sullivan assured the manager he would keep his job for the remainder of this term, though it remains to be seen whether the heavy loss to Brighton has prompted a rethink.

“If you change a manager it can give you two or three more points over a season statistically,” Sullivan told Sky Sports ahead of Friday night's clash with Brighton. “I believe in morality and what's right. If you sign a contract you desperately want to honour that contract unless things are desperate.

“I think the manager has a three-year contract and is entitled to these three years. After the season we will sit down and see if he wants to stay on and if we want him to stay on. That's a long way off.

“He is entitled to three years. He didn't sign a two-year contract or a one-year contract.”

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Sullivan’s comments may not have put Bilic entirely at ease considering the fate of his predecessor. The West Ham board opted to retain the services of Sam Allardyce for the final season of his contract despite protests from supporters over the team’s style.

However West Ham allowed Allardyce’s contract to run down without offering him new terms and opted not to extend their manager’s deal at the end of the 2014-15 season.

The 68-year-old Sullivan has not shied away from questioning Bilic in the media and noted that the manager was still struggling to put together the right West Ham team eight games into a season where the Hammers have won only twice.

“At this moment in time I don't think Slaven knows what his best XI is but when he does we will have a team that's very hard to beat,” Sullivan said.

“We are disappointed with where we are at the moment but I still think we can have a good year.”