West Brom boss Slaven Bilic settling into life in the Midlands
Albion head coach Slaven Bilic says he and his family are settled and enjoying life in the West Midlands.
Born and raised in Croatia, the 50-year-old has been all over the world in his playing and managerial career.
As a commanding centre-back, Bilic turned out for Hajduk Split in his homeland before a spell in Germany with Karlsruhe SC.
He then moved to England where he played for West Ham and Everton.
Then since becoming a manager, he has lived in Russia, Turkey and Saudi Arabia.
A father of four girls and a boy, Bilic says his family now feel settled in the West Midlands, particularly after two of his daughters started school.
“I have four girls and a boy – a couple of them started school, for the first time in their life the other day,” Bilic said.
“They were very excited and they liked it.
“But maybe they liked it because they thought it was a one off! It was like, ‘yay we’ve done it!’
“I have got a big family so we are very busy.
“But they like it here.
“It’s a good area, the people are very friendly.
“So far we have lived in big cities like Moscow or London, where they are massive.
“Here you are in the car and everything is 15 minutes away which is an unbelievable feeling.”
Bilic says spending time with his family helps him relax from football.
But he says he is just like everyone else when it comes to his other interests.
“I sound boring but family and friends and football on the television,” Bilic said when asked what he gets up to in his spare time.
“Dinner with my family, time with the dog, maybe a bit of guitar.
“You have to have a nice routine because the job is very much about the routine. You need that to be sound.”
