Bilic shares how West Ham will land big-name targets, report claim it's key to £95,000-a-week deal
By Joe Nelson
Slaven Bilic has revealed that West Ham’s opening game at the Olympic Stadium could be the key to landing Carlos Bacca.
The Mirror claim that a £26m move is in place for the 29-year-old striker, who turns 30 next month, but he is waiting to see if European football is on offer before committing to a move to the London club.
The Hammers start life in their new home needing to overturn a 2-1 first leg upset at the hands of Slovanian minnows Domzale in their Europa League qualifier.
Bacca would offer a wealth of experience for Bilic’s men, having excelled in both La Liga for Sevilla and in Serie A for AC Milan, while also being capped 33 times for his home nation of Columbia.
The East London side have reportedly offered the Columbian £95,000-a-week to join, but Bilic knows that it will take more than money to lure some of Europe’s best players to the Olympic Stadium:
“[It’ll be crucial for] one or two players, yes,” Bilic said when questioned about Thursday’s result affecting transfer plans, as quoted by the Mirror.
“We are in a good position, we are 2-1- down from the first leg, that is not good but we have to beat them tomorrow and with 54,000 fans we have to do it if we want to progress.
“If we put in a very good performance then we are going to have a big chance, if we don’t we need to be lucky.”
In other West Ham transfer news, Bilic is after another star who plays in Serie A