Report: Slaven Bilic Turns Down West Brom Manager Job; Alan Pardew the Favourite

Slaven Bilic has reportedly rejected the opportunity to make an instant return to Premier League management after spurning an approach from West Bromwich Albion.

West Ham United announced Bilic's departure at the beginning of November before West Brom sacked Pulis on Monday, and Jason Burt and John Percy of the Telegraph reported the former has since turned down the Baggies. 

Bilic is understood to have conveyed it's "too early for him to return to football," and Alan Pardew is still said to be favourite to take over at the Hawthorns, having been out of a job since leaving Crystal Palace in December 2016.

Former Everton and Manchester United manager David Moyes has since succeeded Bilic at the West Ham helm, but West Brom remain without a boss and have Gary Megson in charge as caretaker at present.

Bilic led West Ham into their new era at London Stadium but couldn't maintain the progress witnessed in the past two seasons, when they finished seventh and 11th in the Premier League.

One former charge of the Croatian's who was anything but saddened by Bilic's exit was former West Ham full-back Alvaro Arbeloa, who took to Twitter to express his lack of sympathy after his firing:

Pardew, on the other hand, may be ready to make a return to management after 11 months on the sidelines, having left Selhurst Park last year after a miserable start to the 2016-17 campaign.

While some might view the Englishman as a limited option, The Times' Oliver Kay argued Pardew's limitations may suit the Baggies just fine for the predicament they're in:

West Brom sit 17th in the standings, one point above the relegation zone, and have failed to win a match in their last 11 outings across all competitions, comprising four draws and seven defeats.

It also helps Pardew's case that he has a contact inside the Hawthorns, according to the Daily Mail's Laurie Whitwell:

In any case, Megson doesn't look likely to take the reins on permanent terms as Percy and Burt's report referenced recent quotes from the stand-in boss: 

"This is absolutely not an audition for me and while everyone aspires to be in the Premier League, this is in the most unfortunate of circumstances. I've obviously been out football for some time and this isn't something I was expecting to happen earlier this year. 

"I was on my way to Corsica on holiday with my wife when Tony called me and asked to come in as his assistant. I wasn't sure about it as I'd never done the role before."

The west Midlands side haven't won a match since Pulis led them to back-to-back victories at the beginning of this season, a run Megson will hope to end when he leads the team at Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.