Slaven Bilic likens Dimitri Payet's free kicks to David Beckham's

Jason Steele fails to stop Dimitri Payet's strike during the FA Cup game between Blackburn Rovers and West Ham United on February 20, 2016
© Getty Images
Slaven Bilic believes that Dimitri Payet's stunning free kicks this season have put him in the same bracket as David Beckham.

West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic has likened his star midfielder Dimitri Payet to former Manchester United and Real Madrid playmaker David Beckham.

Bilic compared the Frenchman to Beckham because of the multiple free kicks that he has scored this season for both club and country, including three in the last month against Manchester United, Russia and Crystal Palace.

"They are both great free-kick takers," Bilic told reporters ahead of Saturday's visit of Arsenal in the Premier League. "You can't say that anyone was better than Beckham at taking free kicks.

"But then again you can say the same thing about Dimitri this season. In no time we can name five or six great ones.

"The last one was unbelievable. Then for France, [at] Old Trafford and then [against] Blackburn and Bournemouth. It all happened in a couple of months. The tempo he is putting them in is amazing."

West Ham are in the race for a top-four finish this season as they sit sixth, four points behind Manchester City in fourth, with seven matches of the Premier League season remaining.

Slaven Bilic models the West Ham beanie during the Premier League game between Southampton and West Ham United on February 6, 2016
Read Next:
Bilic: 'We are fully focused on Arsenal'
>
Related Video
Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Leicester CityLeicester33219357312672
2Tottenham HotspurSpurs331811460253565
3Arsenal32178755332259
4Manchester CityMan City32176958332557
5Manchester UnitedMan Utd3215893930953
6West Ham UnitedWest Ham321313652401252
7Southampton331481144341050
8Liverpool3113995042848
9Stoke CityStoke33138123743-647
10Chelsea321111104942744
11Bournemouth33118144055-1541
12Everton32913105243940
13Swansea CitySwansea331010133442-840
14West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom321010123139-840
15Watford32108143137-638
16Crystal Palace33108153542-738
17Norwich CityNorwich3387183557-2231
18Sunderland3269173657-2127
19Newcastle UnitedNewcastle3267193261-2925
20Aston Villa3337232364-4116
LIVE SCORES VIDEPRINTER
expand