Slaven Bilic responds when asked if he dislikes senior West Brom player
West Brom boss Slaven Bilic has delivered a warning to his side over keeping their spots in the starting XI this season.
The Croatian proved he wasn’t afraid to make drastic changes against Burnley, bringing in six fresh faces including three debuts.
Bilic dropped a number of players who have impressed this season, including Callum Robinson and Semi Ajayi.
One face who continues to be missing though is Kieran Gibbs.
That raised the question this week whether or not Bilic disliked the senior defender, something he immediately shut down.
“Conor got a chance and he is doing well,” he told the Express and Star.
“Do I like Gibbo? Of course, I like him. But he has to show me that on the pitch, every day.”
It was a rash decision that saw Gibbs sent off at Everton, and he paid the price for that by losing his spot during and after his suspension.
Conor Townsend replaced him and hasn’t put a foot wrong yet, so that would be the best explanation behind his absence, although he did miss the squad completely against Burnley.
Sky Sports did report that Gibbs is back in contention to feature against Brighton on Monday, although that would be harsh on Townsend.
Bilic proved that he isn’t afraid to make changes though, and if Gibbs has had a better week in training, it would be no surprise to see him feature.
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