West Ham pull the plug on contract talks with Slaven Bilic as fears mount he could be AXED after poor first half of season
The Hammers are slowly creeping their way away from the relegation spots, but seemingly Bilic still has work to do
WEST Ham have shelved talks over a new deal for boss Slaven Bilic until the end of the season.
Hammers chiefs had planned to begin discussing fresh terms with their Croatian manager over the Christmas period.
But after a rocky start to the campaign, there is still fears Bilic will face the axe despite picking up seven points from their past three games.
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West Ham's owners have not been convinced with the team's performances throughout the entire season, and plan to see if it can be turned around.
Bilic is happy at the London Stadium, but wanted to have a new contract agreed by the New Year, which will not be the case.
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A Hammers insider said: “Talks over any new deal have been put off until the end of the season at the earliest, to see what happens.
“Slaven has regularly made it clear he is happy to hold on before negotiating, but he wanted something in place by the turn of the year.
“Despite picking up seven points from the last three games, such has been the level of performance, that nobody is ready to sit down and talk turkey.
"The display against Hull had important people shaking their heads in despair. They looked like a pub team at times.”
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West Ham co-owner David Sullivan had revealed at the start of the campaign that talks were likely to be held with Bilic around January.
He said: “I will give Slaven a new deal in January. I just want to see that he is not a one-season wonder. I am sure he is not but we’ll talk next January.”
The hope at West Ham is that the 48-year-old former Croatia and Besiktas boss can still turn things around, as he is well thought of by the club.
Tensions remain high inside West Ham, as the level of performance currently is far below what was achieved last season and expected.
The Hammers are 13th in the Premier League, just five points off the relegation places, with a tricky run of fixtures coming over the New Year period.