Krov was on Bilic’s radar before Albion
FILIP Krovinovic has revealed that Slaven Bilic wanted to bring him to Al-Ittihad before the pair were finally united at West Brom this season.
The midfielder, who will return to parent club Benfica, at least initially, ahead of next season, scored three goals during an impressive loan spell at The Hawthorns this term.
Albion and Portuguese giants Benfica are expected to, in the coming weeks, conduct negotiations over a potential permanent deal for Krovinovic; the Baggies are interested, providing it’s financially viable, and Krovinovic wants the move himself.
Part of the reason he has settled into English football so quickly is because of compatriot Bilic, who made him his first addition as Albion boss last summer.
“I was in contact with Slaven in the winter when he wanted to bring me to Saudi Arabia, but Benfica did not want to let me go,” Krovinovic told Vecernji. “We stayed in touch until the summer when I was available again, we agreed on everything without any problems.
“Slaven is a great man. You can easily become a good friend with him because he is approachable, he is always there to talk, and there are also good jokes.
“This is something that players really need.
“When the results go well, this positive atmosphere intensifies, and when worse periods follow, he managed to lift us up and motivate us in conversations.”
After taking a knock early into the campaign, where he initially feared a recurrence of his cruciate ligament injury, Krovinovic got up to speed with English football and, by the end, looked at home.
It did, at the beginning at least, take him by surprise. “I had an awkward period with my knee, but when I got into the rhythm, I gathered a lot of minutes, scored and assisted, helped back and forth,” he said.
“All in all, it was a very successful season for me. I was fascinated by how many quality players there are. True, English football is played harder and harder, but I was surprised to see how many real technicians there are.”