Eduardo Can Replace Henry - Croatia Coach Bilic
Slaven Bilic had backed Eduardo da Silva to make his mark at
Arsenal.
Despite Dinamo claiming otherwise, the transfee is supposed to be
in the region of £8-10m. The 24-year-old signed a four year
contract at the Emirates.
Croatian coach Slaven Bilic, who has made him a regular
international, tips him for some great things while asking the
Gunners to be patient.
"He is not yet a big name in the Premier League but, dont forget,
he has already scored a goal against England," began Bilic.
"In fact, last season, he scored 54 goals combined for Croatia and
for Zagreb. He is certainly a goalscorer.
"No one can replace Thierry Henry at Arsenal right now. He is the
one of the best strikers in the world. And the things he did for
Arsenal over the last six or seven years were amazing.
"But, as I remember it, while he clicked with the club from the
start, he didnt play beautifully for them in his first season. He
did well but it took him time to adjust.
"Eduardo can replace Thierry Henry but the Arsenal fans need to
give him time."
"Zagreb did not want to sell their captain," he continued. "The
president of the club told me he had received much bigger offers
from teams in Russia and the Ukraine for Da Silva.
"He resisted them all but when Arsenal called, I told him how can
you deny the boy this dream?
"This is Arsenal Football Club, one of the most respected and
famous clubs in the world. He couldnt do it to Da Silva and
reluctantly agreed to sell."
Coming back to the Gunners, Bilic added: "Its a big blow to
Arsenal to lose Thierry Henry to Barcelona. But with Emmanuel
Adebayor, Robin Van Persie and Theo Walcott, Da Silva will sort out
most of their problems in attack.
"Eduardo scores great goals but that is not all he can do. He can
open space for other players in the team. Last season he had the
most assists in the Croatian League. Arsenal fans will be delighted
with him, I am sure of it."
