West Ham United legend Tony Cottee is thrilled to see his former team-mate Slaven Bilic back at the Boleyn Ground and hopes he will be a major success for the east London Club.
Bilic was unveiled as West Ham's new manager on Tuesday and will succeed Sam Allardyce who left the Club at the end of last season.
The Croatian coach became a fans favourite during his playing days at Upton Park and has shown his quality as a manager on both the domestic and international stage.
Cottee, who played alongside Bilic for a season back in 1996 has no doubts that Bilic is the right man for the job and sees no reason why he cannot follow in the footsteps of Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger.
Cottee said: “I'm delighted he is at West Ham. As an ex team-mate of mine I am absolutely thrilled and I think he will take the Club forward.
“He did a good a good job for Croatia. He doesn't have any Premier League experience but neither did Mourinho or Wenger – you need to be given a chance.
“The most important thing is that he played for the club and he knows what it means to be a West Ham player. He knows what the fans want and had a great rapport during his short time at the Club.
“He knows what style they are wanting to see when they spend their hard earned money to come and watch the team.
“He will want them to play entertaining football but at the same time get results. You have got to get the balance right and it is a big task for Slaven.
“It is a massive season for the club with the move to the Olympic Stadium next year.
“The squad did well last season and other players need to fit into the system. The squad is capable of finishing in the top ten.”
Bilic was unveiled as West Ham's new manager on Tuesday and will succeed Sam Allardyce who left the Club at the end of last season.
The Croatian coach became a fans favourite during his playing days at Upton Park and has shown his quality as a manager on both the domestic and international stage.
Cottee, who played alongside Bilic for a season back in 1996 has no doubts that Bilic is the right man for the job and sees no reason why he cannot follow in the footsteps of Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger.
Cottee said: “I'm delighted he is at West Ham. As an ex team-mate of mine I am absolutely thrilled and I think he will take the Club forward.
“He did a good a good job for Croatia. He doesn't have any Premier League experience but neither did Mourinho or Wenger – you need to be given a chance.
“The most important thing is that he played for the club and he knows what it means to be a West Ham player. He knows what the fans want and had a great rapport during his short time at the Club.
“He knows what style they are wanting to see when they spend their hard earned money to come and watch the team.
“He will want them to play entertaining football but at the same time get results. You have got to get the balance right and it is a big task for Slaven.
“It is a massive season for the club with the move to the Olympic Stadium next year.
“The squad did well last season and other players need to fit into the system. The squad is capable of finishing in the top ten.”