da betway： There can be no doubt that West Ham had their best season in decades last year.
da casino： The plaudits will go to the man that put the team together, guided them on how he wanted them to play and then delivered, but it should be remembered that the board backed the new man all the way.
Slaven Bilic was not the first choice at West Ham, but the vast majority of Hammers fans will be pleased that he came to the Boleyn Ground rather than anyone else. For a club that enjoys the “one of their own” mentality, Bilic came home and immediately set about changing the Hammers from also-ran’s to contenders.
The style of football was more in keeping with the West Ham Way and the players that Bilic recruited had supporters excited and on the edge of their seats. They worked hard, played attacking football on the floor and used the wings, which culminated in a seventh place finish and qualifying for Europe.
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Had things gone their way more often, then it is easy to suggest that West Ham could have snatched a top four Champions League place at the expense of Manchester City.
Dealing with the realities, though, Bilic has built himself a squad that over performed last year and will need to equal this season.
For the money the Hammers board have stumped up and continue to put into the club, they will want a reward and progression. Nothing flashy and overnight particularly, but gradual improvements culminating in West Ham being a top four side within the next two years.
Bilic has his work cut out. With the amount of money in the war chest this year, courtesy mainly of the TV deal each club will receive, he will need to buy wisely. West Ham still look for value for money and like to find hidden gems, such as Diafra Sakho, Dimiri Payet, Manuel Lanzini and Michail Antonio.
With everyone else spending big and with high profile managers at the top clubs all spending even more, the task isn’t made any easier and Bilic in his second year as manager may find it just that bit more difficult.
Not only are the expectations of the board weighing on the manager’s shoulders, there are his own and, more importantly, the fans’.
It will be expected that over the summer further quality signings will arrive to boost the squad as they push on in the Premier League and in Europe. At the moment, the Hammers appear to be struggling to entice the players they want to the Olympic Stadium and the frustration for the club and fans is palpable.
Teams next season will be looking to stop the East London, as their not so secret weapon, Dimitri Payet, has opened his box of tricks for all the world to see. Stop Payet and you stop West Ham, or so they might think.
But West Ham are not a one man team; true, they perform differently without him, but with the likes of Lanzini and Michail Antonio providing goals, power and pace, their rivals would be wrong to judge them in that rather one dimensional way.
In order to mount a serious challenge for the top four next season, it is imperative that West Ham hold onto key players, not only because of their abilities, but also the existing chemistry between them.
To enable them to do that, four things will need to happen.
Bilic must learn from the mistakes of last term, the club must keep its best players, Bilic must instil a winning mindset into his players and West Ham will need the kind of players to take them to the next level, especially at the back and forward areas.
As the other teams look to build on last season so West Ham must keep a wary eye open for teams like Southampton that finished above them, Stoke City who were not too far behind, Liverpool, re-structuring under Klopp, Everton similarly under Koeman and the perennial top clubs – all vying for four positions next year.
Bilic will have his work cut out, but if anyone can take West Ham to the land where dreams are made of, it’s the charismatic, amiable, rock music loving Croat.
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