West Brom are in an ideal position to return to the Premier League thanks to Slaven Bilic and former professional Lee Hendrie has lauded the manager.
What did he say?
The Baggies came close to promotion last term by finishing in the play-offs but losing 45 league goals through the departures of Jay Rodriguez and Dwight Gayle could have severely hindered them.
Instead, Bilic has recruited well and given his players trust, leading to an attacking and expansive style of play that has allowed West Brom to score 64 goals in 37 league games, the joint-highest of any team in the division.
He has got several players playing well who came to the club as relative unknowns, such as fan favourite Filip Krovinovic as well as Matheus Pereria, who has scored six goals and made 12 assists.
Speaking about Bilic, Hendrie told Football League World:
“Bilic has been brilliant, he really has.
“I’m good pals with Gareth Barry and we have this conversation quite a bit about what he [Bilic] is all about and he says he’s old school and he’s great around the lads.
“He’s been absolutely immense. He’s brought certain players who fit the bill for him and the style of play that he uses.
“To step-back into a Championship club and take on a West Brom side whose expectations to go up this season were high, Bilic has done an absolutely magnificent job.”
Attributes for long-term success
Bilic has arrived in the Midlands and looks set to meet the number one target of the club at the first time of asking – promotion.
He has built a squad that is capable of winning the Championship and given the success of clubs like Sheffield United and Wolves after winning promotion in recent years, there is every chance the Baggies will be competitive in the top-flight.
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The Croatian has Premier League experience himself as well as in the squad, with Matt Phillips, Jake Livermore and Hal Robson-Kanu all part of the team that was relegated in 2017/18, while Charlie Austin has also joined since.
Given what Bilic has shown so far and the characteristics of his squad, he seems like the manager to oversee a long-term project to turn the Baggies into a stable Premier League outfit.
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West Brom have also conceded the third-lowest amount of goals in the league, which demonstrates the balance in the team, and according to Gareth Barry’s comments above it seems like the boss connects with each of his players to build a strong team spirit capable of achieving success.
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