Slaven Bilic refuses to blame London Stadium for West Ham’s early season woe
West Ham boss Slaven Bilic has refused to lay the blame for his side’s turbulent start to the season at the door of their new home, the London Stadium.
The Hammers are currently marooned in the relegation zone having accrued just four points from their opening seven fixtures, while crowd trouble has marred some of their home matches. One win from four Premier League games there has hardly helped.
But Bilic has dismissed any long-term worries over form, and despite their struggles on the home front the Croatian insists he wishes Saturday's clash with Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park was at the former Olympic Stadium.
“Make no mistake, we would rather play at home because there we feel the 60,000 people,” said Bilic. “Of course it is not a relief, we would like to play Palace at home.
“The stadium is not the reason, the stadium is great. Many clubs changed stadiums and needed time to settle in, to get used to the stadium.”
Full-back Aaron Cresswell is set to feature in West Ham’s matchday squad for the first time this season after recovering from a knee injury picked up during pre-season.