Slaven Bilic is under tremendous pressure following West Ham United’s repetitive poor performances and might not be able to keep his position in the London club for long if it continues. He is in desperate need of a proven striker and the rumour mill has accordingly thrown up numerous strikers, linking them with the club.
According to reports, Slaven Bilic wants to sign Mandžukić in January to ensure they beat the drop, which is perhaps their biggest concern as of now and if results don’t improve. Bilic has earlier managed the player when he was the manager of Croatia and is understood to share a good rapport with the striker.
West Ham’s current situation owes much to Bilic’s failure to bring big names despite the club being linked with many. One big target was AC Milan forward Carlos Bacca, but they could not convince the Colombia international to leave the San Siro. Lacazette was another.
Mandžukić is apparently top of their New Year spending spree. The 30-year-old is currently in his second season at Juventus after signing from Atletico Madrid in 2015. He is currently being valued at £18 million by the Serie A champions, with his contract expiring in 2018. The summer arrival of Gonzalo Higuaín and form of Pablo Dybala means he is not guaranteed regular football in the Italian.
The Hammers have endured a difficult season so far, winning just three of their first 12 Premier League games. However, getting ousted from the Europa League right at the beginning of the season, Bilic has lesser things to worry about now. They are still in the English League Cup and FA Cup, though.
At 190cm, he could easily be a target man up front heading in from long balls from the back and from set pieces. The Croatian striker has an excellent aerial ability and is the perfect option for a manager wanting someone to hold the ball up top and bring others into the game.
Over the years, Mario Mandžukić has been prolific in front of the goal, scoring goals for clubs like Wolfsburg, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, and Juventus. His consistent performances make him a player a team can rely upon. He has scored 4 goals in 15 games for Juventus, which isn’t the nest of returns but he picked up his form of late as three of those strikes have come in the last four league games.
It is also claimed that Bilic will try to cut short Simone Zaza’s time in the capital. Zaza was signed from Juventus on loan in the summer and the striker has failed to settle and is yet to score so far this season. Besides, to keep world-class players like Dimitri Payet in the squad, Bilic will have to bring more quality up front and Mandžukić could be a good start.
