OPINION
West Brom have surely been handed a major boost in their reported pursuit of West Ham defender Reece Oxford after the Black Country club confirmed the appointment of Slaven Bilic as their new manager.
The Baggies announced the 50-year-old’s arrival on Thursday, bringing to an end over three months without a permanent manager at The Hawthorns
Before Bilic was hired, the Telegraph reported that West Brom were interested in signing up West Ham centre-back Oxford, 20, this summer amid doubts surrounding his proposed permanent move to join Augsburg.
It was reported that Oxford, who spent the second half of last season on loan at the Bundesliga club, is struggling to agree personal terms with the Germans and that had triggered interest from the Baggies and Championship rivals Middlesbrough.
West Brom should have a major upper-hand when it comes to signing Oxford though, now that they have hired Bilic.
The former Croatia manager handed Oxford his senior debut in a 3-0 Europa League win against Andorran club Lusitanos when he was just 16-years-old, becoming West Ham’s youngster played in the process.
The Sun has reported that Bilic is a “massive fan” of the £20,000-a-week [Spotrac] defender, and that will surely help the Baggies to get their man as they aim to strengthen their backline this summer.
According to the Express & Star, West Brom could lose both Craig Dawson and Ahmed Hegazi before the start of next season and after Tosin Adarabioyo’s loan deal expired, that would leave Kyle Bartley as the club’s only senior centre-back.
Oxford is not someone with heaps of experience but if Bilic knows him well, and more importantly knows how to get the best out of him, then the England Under-20 international is surely going to be playing in blue and white stripes next term.