On a knife-edge – David Ornstein shares update on Bilic future at West Brom
Slaven Bilic’s future at West Brom remains “on a constant knife-edge”, according to The Athletic journalist David Ornstein.
Last month, The Telegraph reported that Bilic faced a crucial game against Tottenham where a poor performance or a heavy defeat could have cost him his job.
Although Albion lost 1-0 to Spurs and Manchester United either side of the international break, the Black Country club impressed in their performances and were unlucky to walk away empty-handed from both games.
On Saturday, West Brom won their first Premier League game of the season by beating Sheffield United 1-0 at The Hawthorns.
However, when asked to predict who might be the first top-flight manager to get sacked this term, Ornstein named Chris Wilder and Sean Dyche before sharing his concerns about Bilic’s future at the Baggies.
“Then comes West Brom – that one feels on a constant knife-edge with Slaven Bilic,” said Ornstein in a video on The Athletic’s YouTube account [4m 23s].
“There was some tension coming into the season, mainly around recruitment, so it feels like it could go either way at any moment.”
In the last three games, West Brom have played well but have also won just three points.
Those three points came against the team who sit in 20th place with four goals and one point all season so Bilic isn’t out of the woods just yet in terms of avoiding the sack.
Albion welcome Crystal Palace to The Hawthorns on Sunday before visiting Newcastle on December 12.
If we win four or six points in those games then discussions about Bilic’s future will surely die down as long as it sees West Brom move away from the relegation zone.
However, if he loses both of those games and matches against Manchester City, Aston Villa and Liverpool to follow, we’d be shocked if there’s not a change in the dug-out.
In other West Brom news, Kevin Phillips is surprised by this journalist’s update on a potential takeover at The Hawthorns.
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