As reported by Matt Wilson, of the Express and Star, Slaven Bilic spent some time on the pitch with young midfielder Kyle Edwards following the club’s 1-1 draw with Rotherham United. This sort of thing is only covered when Pep Guardiola does it, to the point where he is now a meme.
The 21-year-old made 11 appearances for The Baggies last season, scoring two goals. The youngster has previously spent time out on loan at Exeter City in an attempt to gain some experience.
Former Croatia manger Bilic joined Albion earlier this summer, having previously managed Ittihad in Saudi Arabia. The Croatian has previous experience in England, having both played and managed West Ham United.
A lot of West Brom fans are buzzing with their manager’s man management, and willingness to include young talent. Some Baggies fans are expecting Edwards to play a big part this season, calling him “Bilic’s golden boy”.
Here is the best of the reaction.
Bilic has just had a long, slightly animated, chat with Kyle Edwards on the pitch. Looked encouraging and positive. Edwards was lively when he came on. pic.twitter.com/ZkKFZb07EF
— Matt Wilson (@mattianwilson) July 23, 2019
Can I love this man anymore???
— John (@Johntur01) July 23, 2019
— Joebell???????? (@joebell45) July 23, 2019
Love this! Man management at its finest
— Rich (@Rjunez7) July 23, 2019
See this is what young lads need, encouragement, positivity and telling. Bilic obviously see’s he has ability and its trying to channel him. Good on slaven
— AdKido44 (@AdKido44) July 23, 2019
Guardiola has pictures of bilic on his bedroom wall
— Theo (@theopoly40) July 23, 2019
He’s gunna be bilic’s golden boy this season
— Liam (@Liamdunn_95) July 23, 2019
It’s great to see someone in a dugout so passionate
— Daniel Hill (@Wbadanny123) July 23, 2019
Really good prospect. Excited about this lad.
— The Stupendous Fabuloso Charisma Channel (@sfcc1969) July 23, 2019