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Payet wants out and West Ham fans just don’t understand
Midfielder has refused to play for the club, says manager Bilic

West Ham’s talisman Dimitri Payet turned his back on the club yesterday by demanding a move away from the London Stadium.

Manager Slaven Bilic told the media that the France international is refusing to play in tomorrow’s home game against Crystal Palace in a bid to move to a bigger club.

Payet arrived for £10 million from French club Marseille in 2015 and made an instant impact, guiding the Hammers to a seventh-place finish and narrowly missing out on the Champions League.

However, after then guiding France to the finals of Euro 2016, the 29-year-old now wants a transfer to a Champions League club, something Bilic says, for now, won’t happen.

“We have said we don’t want to sell our best players but Payet does not want to play for us. He wants to leave,” Bilic said.

“We are not going to sell him. This team, the staff, we gave him everything, we were always there for him. I feel let down. I feel angry. I spoke to the chairman and this is not a money issue. We gave him a long contract because we want him to stay.

“We aren’t going to sell him, not whatsoever. It’s not a money issue or anything. We want to keep our best players. I expect from him to come back and to show commitment and determination to the team like the team has shown to him.”

Payet has been told to stay away from training as the team prepares for the arrival of former Hammers boss Sam Allardyce to the London Stadium.

The attacker was heavily linked with a move away from the club in the summer on the back of his debut season in England and his performances in France.

However, the free-kick specialist instead penned a new deal with the club in an attempt to end the speculation and commit his long-term future to the club.

Bilic believes that his player has been “tapped up” by another club, adding: “That’s why we gave him a long contract and then a new contract four months later.

“I phoned him with that and he refused to play for us. I have a team to manage.

“He’s probably been tapped up by some clubs or whatever. That is usual at this time of year.

“But until he changes his attitude he is out of the team and he’s not going to train with us. But we are not going to sell him, not whatsover.”

Payet has cut a frustrated figure on the pitch this season but still leads the team in chances created.

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