Winston Reid hails impact of Slaven Bilic and Dimitri Payet at West Ham

West Ham defender Winston Reid has praised the impact Slaven Bilic has had at the club since becoming manager this summer.

The Croat, a firm favourite with the fans following an 18-month spell as a player between 1996-1997, took over from the departing Sam Allardyce in June on a three-year contract.

Despite an early exit from the Europa League, alongside disappointing home defeats to Leicester and Bournemouth, Bilic has earned fan respect with successive away wins at Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City.

West Ham now sit third in the Premier League after recording their first home league victory of the campaign against a struggling Newcastle side, followed by the hard-fought 2-1 success at the Etihad.

As Bilic looks to maintain the positive momentum of recent weeks, Reid says he has been impressed by the change in the club following the former Besiktas manager's arrival.

"A huge amount of credit, deservedly, has gone to the manager. He has been first-class ever since he started," he said.

"Slaven is a very relaxed guy and he's good to the players. He clearly hasn't forgotten what it's like to be a footballer himself, which is a crucial characteristic.

"We had a slightly unusual pre-season where we were getting used to his new ideas but also trying to qualify for the Europa League. Unfortunately we didn't quite manage that, but afterwards we had a team meeting and we said we need to focus on the Premier League.

"Most importantly, the new manager came in with new ideas that are easily understood. He's a great communicator. He likes to get hands-on in training which is good. He's very engaging and the players like working for him."

The new manager is a great communicator and he has come in with new ideas that are easily understood.

Bilic's signing of Dimitri Payet has also been the subject of widespread praise, with the Frenchman shaping up to be one of the Premier League's most impressive summer signings.

Reid has been impressed with the France international's start and is also delighted to see club-record signing Andy Carroll back following another lengthy injury setback.

"Another hot topic at the moment is Dimitri Payet," he said. "I don't need to say much as he lets his football do the talking. He's obviously a special player and he's a joy to play alongside. He's also very personable and easy to get along with.

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"On Tuesday, it was great to have Andy back, it's always hard when you're injured but he's done well to keep coming back from injury.

"He's a great player and we all know what he can bring to the team when he's on form. We've also got Enner Valencia and Alex Song to come back too, so there's plenty of positivity around the training ground."