MX23RW : Thursday, December 19 17:41:45| >> :120:23316:23316:

Slaven Bilic: 'I wanted Stewart Downing to stay at West Ham United'

By , Rugby Editor
West Ham United boss Slaven Bilic reveals that he tried to persuade Stewart Downing to stay at the club rather than return to Middlesbrough.

West Ham United boss Slaven Bilic has revealed that he did not want Stewart Downing to leave the club.

The 30-year-old winger returned to former side Middlesbrough on Thursday in a deal that could rise to £7m.

However, Bilic has admitted that he tried to talk the former England international into staying at Upton Park.

"I didn't want him to go," the Croatian is quoted as saying by BBC Sport. "He's a quality English player and I know how hard it is to get the quality ones. Of course I rate him, I tried to persuade him to stay with us."

Downing scored seven goals in 74 appearances for West Ham after arriving at the club from Liverpool in 2013.

ID:233888: cacheID:233888:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:1250:
Written by
Jack Prescott 
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Stewart Downing in action for West Ham on December 7, 2014
Read Next:
Stewart Downing completes Boro return
>
Read more about Slaven Bilic Stewart Downing Football
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
> View full version> Yesterday's results
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool15113131131836
2Chelsea16104237191834
3Arsenal1686229151430
4Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest168442119228
5Manchester CityMan City168352823527
6Bournemouth167452421325
7Aston Villa167452425-125
8Fulham166642422224
9Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton166642625124
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1672736191723
11Brentford167273230223
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle166552321223
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd166462119222
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham165472129-819
15Crystal Palace163761721-416
16Everton153661421-715
17Leicester CityLeicester163582134-1314
18Ipswich TownIpswich162681628-1212
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1623112440-169
20Southampton1612131136-255
> Premier League Full Table


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!