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Slaven Bilic’s counterparts in the Premier League paid tribute to the coach after he and West Brom parted ways on Wednesday afternoon.
The Croat and his backroom staff were relieved of duty after a streak of just one win in 17 league games, although the most recent result in that streak of form was the impressive draw at Manchester City on Tuesday.
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Still, the club hierarchy had made a decision ahead of the trip to Etihad Stadium and are now looking for a quick replacement ahead of the Aston Villa encounter on Sunday. Sam Allardyce is expected to be on the bench in time for the game.
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As for Bilic, a couple of managers he faced this season have already spoken out about the Baggies’ decision to fire him and have wished him the best to move forward.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer watched his Manchester United side win 1-0 at Albion and spoke of his own experiences at the bottom of the Premier League table.
“I’m very sad to hear that Slaven lost his job,” Solskjaer said. “I think he did very well to get a promotion. I have known him for years. I’m sure he’ll get a job again, whenever he wants.
“Hopefully more clubs think long term. Of course it is a short term business and we need short term results, but everyone knows that continuity is the key to success.
“However, sometimes they don’t have the patience for it. I was there with Cardiff, it was a new and valuable experience. I didn’t enjoy it in terms of relegation, but as a coach you are one of the few if you’ve never felt that pressure. “
Meanwhile, Chris Wilder is in a similar boat to Bilic, who enjoyed his only top flight win by Albion at Wilder’s expense.
Club ownership has offered support to the Sheffield United manager, despite his difficult situation at the foot of the table. Regarding Bilic, he admits that such decisions made by the hierarchy of clubs must be respected.
“Being a coach and knowing how difficult it is, is part of the game, some surprise you, others don’t. Obviously I’m disappointed in Slav, who is a good guy, a good footballer, but this is the nature of the game and the game goes on, ”Wilder reasoned.
“Every situation is different. It’s pretty easy to say to change when a team is not doing well. It’s the same with players – we sign them on two and three year contracts because we think they are good enough for the next two or three years.
“We don’t sign them on nine and 10 game contracts. The situation with managers is that there will always be speculation. We have to respect that the owners have the right to make that decision and that must be respected. It’s difficult for a coach and we know how difficult it is at all levels ”.
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