West Ham loanee and Croatia star Nikola Vlasic has been vocally critical of Hammers fans when he spoke to reporters after a World Cup match with Japan.
The Croat left the London club to join Italian club Torino on a season-long loan in the summer transfer window and has been impressive so far during his time in Turin.
Vlasic has notched four goals and three assists in 16 games for Torino this season, but there is likely to be no going back for the 25-year-old at London Stadium, something the player knows when he speaks during one of his last interviews on the World Cup.
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La Gazzetta dello Sport spoke to Vlasic after Croatia’s game against Japan (as quoted via Sport Witness) and dedicated his team’s penalty shootout victory to the Torino fans, while having a clear criticism of the West Ham supporters.
Vlasic said: “I feel like sharing this joy [making it to World Cup quarter-final] with Turin fans. They are fantastic.
“From the first day I arrived in the city they took me by the hand. When I meet them on the street, they always repeat ‘Big Bull’, ‘Big Bull’. Everyone asks me to stay for a long time.
“I’m very happy at Torino, let’s see what happens in the summer, but right now I just want to enjoy the joy and fun of wearing that shirt and think about winning games to make them happy.”
Vlasic was never given a real chance at West Ham and that’s something Hammers fans recognised, so it’s a bit strange that the Croatia international has criticized them.
