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Slaven Bilic given Newcastle United match to turn it around or else could be sacked – Report

3 years ago
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On 13 June 2019 Slaven Bilic was appointed as manager of West Brom.

Taking the Baggies to automatic promotion in his first season was outstanding, especially on a tight budget which saw West Brom make a £5m profit in 2019/20 on transfers in and out, as well as going up.

This summer saw a decent but not massive net spend allowed of around £30m, with £15m of that going on the need for a main striker, however Karlan Grant has only scored once in the Premier League since signing from Huddersfield in the summer.

Sunday saw West Brom hoping to get a second consecutive win but at 1-1 they had Brazilian attacking midfielder Pereira sent off, leading to a second-half collapse as they lost 5-1 at home to Palace.

However, despite that, Slaven Bilic and his team are only one point off safety, currently 19th with six points from 11 games, with currently it looking very possible to be a four way fight for the three relegation spots between Fulham, Burnley and Sheffield United, alongside West Brom.

You would still think Slaven Bilic has a lot of goodwill built up and in a relatively strong position due to last season’s promotion. However, with reports of friction between manager and club owners, there are claims that Bilic may only have one more match before potentially getting his marching orders.

Writing for The Athletic journalist Steve Madeley reporting that Slaven Bilic may need to pull out a performance and result at Newcastle United on Saturday, or else he could be walking before Christmas:

‘The head coach is still in post and looks set to get at least one more game, at Newcastle United on Saturday, to turn around a season that is threatening to unravel spectacularly after yesterday’s 5-1 capitulation at home to Crystal Palace.

But there is little doubt that Bilic’s position at The Hawthorns is under greater scrutiny than at any stage in his 18-month reign, with relations with his employers fragile.

Bilic is doing an unenviable job this season with a sub-standard squad, having done an unbelievable one last season to achieve promotion without a seasoned goalscorer.

But he has made mistakes, too, and if he loses his job in the weeks ahead, they are what Albion’s decision-makers will point to in justifying their call.’

No Premier League managers sacked so far during this 2020/21 season and from an outside perspective, it would be difficult to imagine West Brom attracting a better manager than Slaven Bilic. He did a decent job at West Ham and surely couldn’t have been expected to do any more than what he has achieved so far in the job at the Hawthorns.

On Saturday, West Brom go into the game with an away record of one point from five games on the road, scoring three goals and conceding eleven. However, at St James Park, Newcastle have won two and lost three, with only six goals scored in five home matches and eleven conceded.

A massive game for Slaven Bilic but a big one for Steve Bruce, as Newcastle face all three promoted clubs in the space of eight days.

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