‘Meeting lasted roughly 10 mins’: Julian Dicks takes aim at West Brom board over his sacking
Julian Dicks has spoken out about his time at West Brom, voicing his view on his dismissal while reflecting on last season’s achievements.
The former West Ham defender was a member of Slaven Bilic’s coaching staff up until the pair were sacked last month following a run of one win in 13 league games.
After winning promotion Dicks feels slightly aggrieved by the manner of his sacking, and has now described how the events unfolded.
Speaking to The Athletic, Dicks said, “It was a bit harsh (being sacked), but nothing surprises me in football anymore.
“After the Manchester City game, someone said, ‘Have you seen on Twitter that you and the gaffer and going to get sacked?’.
“The next day (after the Manchester City match), we got pulled into the office at the training ground and were told we were going to be relieved of our duties.
“The meeting lasted roughly 10 minutes. It wasn’t nice and it wasn’t easy.
“We got West Brom promoted, which is a fantastic achievement. It was always going to be tough in the Premier League and we were aware of that but I thought the players and the gaffer had done well.”
Harsh but fair
The decision to depart with Bilic and Dicks has split the Albion fanbase, though if Sam Allardyce does keep us up it will prove to be a popular decision.
However, the manner in which they were dismissed is unlikely to sit well with any supporter.
Nobody deserves to find out that their job is on the line via Twitter, especially so close to Christmas and after an impressive result at Man City.
That is not to say the decision to get rid of the duo was unwarranted, as results ultimately define a manager – as Dicks recognises.
In fact, if Dicks thinks that a return of seven points from 13 games is doing well then it is little surprise he is no longer at the club.
Big Sam’s arrival shows how serious we are about staying in the Premier League and Dicks’ mindset didn’t really match that ambition.
We still may get relegated, of course, but that doesn’t mean the club made the wrong move in deciding to sack Bilic and Dicks.
In other West Brom news, a reliable journalist claims a £1m summer signing will leave this month if Big Sam finds a replacement.