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West Ham boss Slaven Bilic chooses between the FA Cup and the Champions League
SLAVEN BILIC is such a big advocate of the FA Cup he would happily swap a lucrative Champions League spot for success at Wembley in the football's oldest knockout competition.
Slaven Bilic prefers the FA Cup to the Champions League
In a refreshing move, the West Ham manager has revealed that, unlike some of his counterparts, he takes the FA Cup incredibly seriously. West Ham have won the competition on three occasions (1964, 1975 and 1980) and it means a lot to the hardcore support base.
In the build-up to Saturday's third-round tie at home to Championship side Wolves, the Croatian spoke of his love for a much-maligned competition, saying he would much rather lift the trophy than take a fourth-place finish in the Premier League.
"It should be penalties [after the first game]," he said. "A replay is another game nobody really wants. Maybe it's good for home side but it's a little bit too much.
"If we are talking last year's third-round replay, then yes West Ham had a great game against Everton, because it went on penalties and they were not 4-3, they were like 9-8. It was a saga like Lord Of The Rings.
"I have learned that in the FA Cup you have to be honest with every opponent in this competition."