I‘ll get West Ham out of this jam
MOYES IS MR FIX-IT
DAVID MOYES says he wants to be the man to fix West Ham – on the day the owners revealed the club is in danger of going broke.
Figures released yesterday show a pre-tax loss of £28.2m and came with a warning from co-owner David Sullivan that staying up was “an absolute necessity for the future wellbeing of the club”.
He added: “The principal business risk remains that of the club being relegated from the Premier League with the serious financial consequences which follow.”
Despite a £214.4m net spend on players in the last four years, the Hammers sit just above the relegation zone going into tonight’s home clash with leaders Liverpool.
Moyes, in his second spell at the club, still believes he’s the right man to sort out the turmoil and – just as he did with Everton – take them into Europe.
But he warned fans it will take time and hinted that star players like Declan Rice might have to be flogged to balance the books.
“I want to be the person who comes in to mend the club and I always think the person who mends it is the manager and the team,” said Moyes.
“I don’t think we can mend it immediately but if we can get through this period, I think we can make things much better. When you spend the money, it’s when it doesn’t work you get questioned.
“Some clubs have had to spend an awful lot of money but have probably had enough sales to back that up.
“At Everton, we had to sell Wayne Rooney along the journey. Did we want to sell him? No chance. I was heartbroken.
“Then there was Joleon Lescott. We got him from Wolves and then Manchester City were trying to sign our best players while I was trying to make the club better.
“West Ham are on that journey, but we are only starting, as far as I am concerned.”
Academy protege Rice is the club’s one major saleable asset. Does that mean Moyes might have to sell the 21-year-old England international?
“I am not for a minute using Declan as an example,” added Moyes. “But if you are a star player, you want to play for the star teams. That is what happens.”
The Hammers have signed Czech Republic midfielder Tomas Soucek for £20m and a bid has gone in for another player, believed to be RB Salzburg right-back Rasmus Kristensen.