PAYET
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic is confident that Dimitri Payet
will remain with the club and he has challenged the Frenchman to produce his
best form ahead of a daunting set of fixtures.
Payet sparked fears among West Ham
supporters when he refused to rule out a move away from East London during the
international break but Bilic is relaxed about the playmaker's situation at the
club and does not feel the need to talk to the player about his comments.
'I read it but he said nothing
major,' Bilic said. 'He said he didn't want to close the door to something, he
didn't say 'I want to leave' in January or June or whatever so let's not make a
big issue.
DIMITRI PAYET THIS
SEASON
Appearances:
9
Goals:
1
Assists:
4
Chances
created: 40
Pass
accuracy: 79 per cent
*Premier League statistics only
'I'm quite relaxed. We are not going to talk about it
particularly but with every big player there are a lot of rumours and interest.
So I don't have to talk to him about it.'
West Ham visit Tottenham on Saturday
as the club embark on a five-game run that will also encompass visits to
Manchester United and Liverpool as well as a home match against Arsenal.
Bilic's side will head to Old
Trafford a second time during that period for an EFL quarter-final clash.
Payet has shown fleeting moments of
his class this season but against the cream of English football, Bilic wants
his main man to come to the fore and replicate the wonderful performances that
saw him score 12 goals last season.
'In every game in the Premier
League, you need your characters to show their qualities, no matter if it is to
defend, to fight, to tackle and win second balls or create something special
and win games for you.
'We need him a lot in every game,
especially when you are playing against a defence that has conceded so far the
fewest goals in the Premier League like Tottenham. Of course you need something
special to score against them and you are expecting your best players to do
it.'
Despite a poor start to the campaign
that leaves West Ham hovering above the relegation zone in 17th place, Bilic
has warned that he does not intend to spend his way out of trouble and is
challenging his returning forwards Diafra Sakho and Andy Carroll to be the 'new
signings' to kickstart the season.
Sakho has been missing since the
start of pre-season but will be in the squad to face Spurs, while Andy Carroll
will begin training with the first-team squad next week. Bilic is also boosted
by the return to fitness of centre-backs Winston Reid and James Collins.
'I definitely think and I know we
have solutions in the squad,' Bilic said. 'We have some players who were absent
for a long time. Now they are coming back and they are gonna be our new
signings.
'So we are not thinking about the
transfer window solving all our problems. Of course every club will look at one
or two players but not on that scale. But I am completely concentrated on the
players we have, and the players who will come back.'
Bilic does, however, concede that
West Ham have found themselves in a situation where they might be embroiled in
a scrap for Premier League survival.
'We are 17th, and if you are 17th
you are very close to relegation and we have to improve even more.
'On the one hand the worst thing to
do is lose confidence and doubt yourselves individually and as a group. On
other hand you can't keep talking and saying the table doesn't matter, we are a
good team and we will click. We need to win games because the other teams are
also getting unexpected results which are getting them points.'
Bilic also reiterated his concerns
that 'ordinary working people' are in danger of being priced out of watching
football.
Bilic was speaking after the BBC
Price of Football study once again demonstrated the cost being imposed upon
football supporters to follow their team. West Ham were shown to have the
second cheapest season tickets in the Premier League, with their £289 offering.
Bilic, however, suggests that
football followers are still being milked by those involved in the game.
'It is expensive,' Bilic said. 'I said last year that
football is not polo or golf. Football is a sport for average working people.
We can go far and deep and talk about the salaries of players, the cost of
tickets and all that.
'Everyone is making money from
football — apart from fans of course. The stadiums are packed, I don't know how
long season ticket waiting lists are.
'That encourages those people to put
higher prices and all that. Football is all about fans and it shouldn't be a
luxury to go and see a football game or take your kinds and bring your family
to a match. It should be like going to the movies.'
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