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Slaven Bilic didn’t hold back after a 2-0 defeat at Fulham that sent their West Brom back into the relegation zone of the Premier League.
The Baggies were beaten by two goals in the first half at Craven Cottage, and remain winless after seven league games. That there was no indication of a comeback in a game that Bilic said beforehand was “very important” to the club’s hopes of survival was alarming.
And his manager, who was blunt, didn’t try to sugarcoat the loss.
“They were louder, sharper and faster,” he said. “His passing was better. They were better in the areas of the field where he makes a difference. It hurts. We didn’t deserve anything from this game.
“They were better than us in everything, in quality, commitment, everything really. We can’t play like that. We have to be in the red zone, we have to be crazy, we have to be what we were in the last few days.”
Bilic singled out 20-year-old loaned midfielder Conor Gallagher in praise.
However, he does not think it is enough for West Brom to get out of the situation they are in.
“That’s not good when you see young players doing more than everyone else,” he said. “We have to work hard like we have in previous games. If we can’t do that, we have no chance.”
Bilic also said he would speak to midfielder Matheus Pereira, who headed straight for the tunnel after being substituted 11 minutes into the second half.
“I didn’t see him because he was focused on the game, but he’s not nice and I’ll talk to him about that,” Bilic said.
“But we had more problems in the game than to worry about that. That’s not why we lost.”
Dark times for Bilic
Bilic and his counterpart Scott Parker entered Monday’s game at the forefront of betting to become the next Premier League coach to leave his job.
Nothing in this game would offer any certainty about the Croatian’s long-term tenure.
After limping into the promotion last season with three points in his last four games, Bilic has faced the usual financial constraints that apply to West Brom coaches.
The current owner, Guochuan Lai, does not invest any of his own capital in Albion, which was run on a tight budget by former CEO Mark Jenkins, aside from a brief stint between 2016 and 2018 in which the club created great pain. financial head for them.
Jenkins left The Hawthorns for the second time this summer, leaving Xu Ke in charge. But Bilic has still been forced to operate with limited financial resources.
The key target Karlan Grant did not arrive from Huddersfield until the last day of the transfer window. Bilic then lost the experienced defender Ahmed Hegazi, Loaned to Al-Ittihad of Saudi Arabia before a permanent transfer at the end of the season.
Bilic expressed his displeasure at that decision in public and in private, although it is understood that the problem has been resolved and the fear that he may resign has been alleviated.
However, the pressure on Bilic will increase unless the results improve.
The immediate future does not point to an improvement. Tottenham visit on Sunday knowing that a victory, for at least a couple of hours, will take them to the top of the Premier League. Immediately after that game there is a trip to Manchester United.
Bilic faces a great job if he wants to change this situation.
