West Ham manager Slaven Bilic ‘threw in the towel’ with post-match speech following Newcastle rout, says ex-Hammer Danny Gabbidon
WEST HAM boss Slaven Bilic sounded like he had thrown in the towel after their 3-0 thumping against Newcastle, according to ex-Hammers star Danny Gabbidon.
The well-placed Welshman, writing for thewesthamway, revealed Bilic addressed his flops like a man on borrowed that after the rout left them rooted to the foot of the table.
Gabbidon has heard nothing but good things from current Hammers stars about the under-fire manager - who has denied the quit claims - but Gabbidon says there is a sense he has lost his authority after becoming too close to the players at the start of his third season.
The former Wales international said:“I’ve never heard a player say a bad word about Slaven it’s always glowing tributes but the conclusion
“I always get from the praise is that the players almost think of him as being one of the boys and herein might lie part of the problem.
“Players need structure and discipline. They need to know that if they over step the line there will be consequences.
“They need to know that if you don’t perform for the badge on a Saturday afternoon someone else will be given the opportunity to do so.
“You have to lay down the ground rules and be constant with them always. If players sense any sign of weakness in you or change they we will see how far we can push the boundaries. We really are buggers trust me!
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“We all like a laugh and a joke but when it’s time to get down to business there has to be that ruthless authority from the manager so the players know exactly what’s expected from them. There has to be a bit of fear factor there.
“Slaven looks to me like he’s lost his way and forgotten some of the things that made him such a good manager in that first season in charge.
“In fairness he’s had a lot to deal with in his short time at the club and it would be understandable if some of the recent off field issues had contributed to him losing a bit of focus and almost taken his mind away from what he’s really there to do… manage the team and get results.
“From what I hear Slaven had pretty much thrown the towel in with the words he spoke in the dressing room to the players after the Newcastle defeat and this might possibly be just a stay of execution but if I was in his shoes right now I would be thinking, I need to get back to basics meaning laying down the law in the dressing room and getting things right tactically on the pitch.”
Gabbidon – who earned 49 Wales caps and spent six seasons as Upton Park – was initially impressed with the transfer business West Ham did in the summer.
Experienced Premier League players like Joe Hart, Pablo Zabaleta, Marco Arnautovic and Javier Hernandez looked fool proof.
But the Hammers have conceded ten league goals and scored just two and Gabbidon believes there are clear signs the manager and his owners are clashing over who should be bought and sold.
He said: “What you can’t have is owners who are signings players and then the manager who also wants his own players or is refusing players that are offered to him.
“It’s just a recipe for disaster which has been clear for all to see.
“This behaviour was seen in last season’s transfer window and has been evident again in this recent one.
“As a manager, support from up above is vital, even more so when things are not going well.
Whether it be bringing in the right players to help the current situation or saying the right things to the fans or the manager to emphasise that he’s the right man for the job. Up until now I can’t say at any point that this support has been forthcoming which has led to Bilic’s confidence being knocked as a result.”
Bilic used his column in the Evening Standard to address Gabbidon’s claims that the Toon loss left him sounding like a dead man walking.
The former Everton defender said: “I want to reply to that. I told the players afterwards that, yes, this is West Ham and, yes, we will lose games. Not like that, though, this was unacceptable.
I am not throwing in the towel and neither are the players. We will work hard to put this right.
“I admit I was down after Newcastle. It was a huge disappointment and a surprise in a nasty way.”
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