Bilic and squad Payet fury puts pressure on board

Slaven Bilic and the West Ham squad have become Dimitri Payet’s best hope of an early escape route out of the club.

The manager’s anger with the player is such that he is insisting behind the scenes that the sooner the 29 year old is sold the better.

And the squad too are furiously angry that after being treated like football royalty he has kicked everybody in the teeth.

All of that is understandable but it is not making getting the right money for the player any easier – with Marseilles also aware of the growing fury at Payet and the enthusiasm to get rid of him.

The attitude of the squad and boss is putting pressure on the board who, after insisting the player isn’t for sale, know that they must get rid as soon as possible to reduce the ill will and tension among some of the other players.

They continue to hope another club will come in for him thus putting Marseilles under real pressure to hike up their offers.

We were told: “There is real unhappiness with the player and everybody wants him gone but we know his worth and that makes it a difficult balancing act.”