West Ham manager Slaven Bilic admits his side’s “naive” 4-1 thrashing by Liverpool could be fatal to his hopes of avoiding the sack.
Bilic’s side are just one point above the Premier League relegation zone after slumping to a dismal defeat at the London Stadium on Saturday.
With West Ham winless in their last four league games, Bilic heads into the international break fearing he might be on the way out.
Hammers owners David Gold and David Sullivan were reportedly ready to axe Bilic before their side’s surprise League Cup win over Tottenham last month bought the Croatian some breathing space.
Now Bilic is back on the brink and, while he insists he remains the right man to turn results around, he concedes Gold and Sullivan could be ready to wield the axe.
Asked if he thinks he will be given more time, Bilic said: “I don’t know. It’s hard for me to talk about that now
“Of course I believe in myself. I definitely don’t feel a broken man. I’m very strong.
“I believe in my dedication and my previous work. I know my value.
“On the other hand the situation for West Ham is not good. The club is above every individual and that includes me.
“Are we playing well? No, we are not. It’s me that has to take responsibility.”
Bilic was undermined by a sloppy West Ham display that saw the hosts fall behind after being caught out from their own corner.
Mohamed Salah finished off Sadio Mane’s counter-attack and Joel Matip doubled Liverpool’s lead.
Even when Manuel Lanzini gave West Ham a second half lifeline, Liverpool added their third within a minute before Salah completed the demolition job.
The meltdown triggered a barrage of abuse for Bilic and his players from West Ham’s furious fans.
Bemoaning his players’ failure to follow his instructions, Bilic said: “We conceded a couple of goals that had nothing to do with our game-plan.
“The first from our corner and the second from theirs. It’s not the first time.
“We came back to 2-1 but that third goal was very naive. We are conceding too many goals in that manner.
“I’m the one taking the bullets all the time, when I have to and when I don’t have to.
“I’m always facing the situation and the consequences. I will speak to the owners when they call.”
