Slaven Bilic has confirmed he was on West Ham’s radar to replace Graham Potter – eight years on from his sacking.The 57-year-old, who played at Upton Park between 1996-1997, spent two years in charge of the Hammers. But he was given the boot in November 2017 following a 4-1 defeat to Liverpool – his 39th defeat in 111 matches in the dugout.Still, Bilic remains a popular figure amongst West Ham fans, who guided the club to seventh spot in 2016 – which at the time was their best Premier League finish in 14 years.And he is still in the good books of club owner David Sullivan, who considered bringing the Croatian back as a possible replacement for Potter.Didn’t fit the BiltalkSPORT reported in September how Bilic was a contender to succeed Potter.But in the end, the job went to Nuno Espirito Santo less than three weeks after he was dismissed at Nottingham Forest.Bilic has since told talkSPORT how close he came to landing the role.When commenting on if there was any truth in him going back to his former stomping ground, he said: “There was a bit, yeah, there was a bit.“I was close or whatever, but I didn’t get the job. They got Nuno, who was a top manager and who’d done a great job at Wolves, not to mention Forest.“And to be fair, after first couple of games that they were struggling also with the system and there were some players who were out of position.“[In the] last couple of games, he put out a strong team and it clicked and six points in two games [wins against Newcastle and Burnley].Potter was sacked after just nine months in charge of the HammersAFPWest Ham ultimately turned to Nuno, who has won two out of his six matches in chargeGetty“He is top manager and I think they’re gonna be okay this season.”Despite the disappointment in missing out on a return to West Ham, Bilic has declared he is longing for a job in either the Premier League or Championship.Bilic has been out of a job since August 2024 following his exit at Saudi Arabian club Al Fateh, which followed his five-month spell in charge of Watford.Pressed on whether his aim is to land a job in England, he remarked: “I mean, who doesn’t, you know?“Of course, I am very excited about the possibility of returning to management, [at a] Premier League or Championship [level] with a good club that has ambitions to go up.“I showed myself and I think I proved myself in [the] Premier League, I also proved myself at West Brom.Bilic remains a fan favourite at West Ham despite being sacked in 2017“And of course, with my knowledge, with my experience, with my pedigree, I think that I would be able to steer the right club back into the Premier League.”For West Ham, they remain in 18th spot in the Premier League despite back-to-back wins.And they face a tough test after the international break as they travel to Bournemouth, before hosting Liverpool and then facing both Manchester United and Brighton away.