Appointment of Grant will bring stability to West Ham, says Gold

Gordon Tynan
Thursday 03 June 2010 00:00 BST
Comments
Grant (above) will replace Gianfranco Zola at Upton Park
Grant (above) will replace Gianfranco Zola at Upton Park (GETTY IMAGES)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

West Ham United are expected to appoint Avram Grant as their new manager today after concluding their search for Gianfranco Zola's successor.

The club released a statement yesterday afternoon revealing they will make a formal announcement over the identity of their new coach within 24 hours. Co-chairman David Gold has indicated that Grant, who left Portsmouth nearly two weeks ago, is on the brink of taking over at Upton Park.

"After an hour, we knew we could work with this manager. We are very optimistic," Gold said. "I think it's time for the club to get some stability with people that have been there, done that and got the T-shirt. The bottom line is the relationship between the manager and the chairman is critical. In our case it's two chairmen so it's even more difficult as you need to have a relationship between three people."

Zola steered West Ham to safety with 35 points, enough to keep them one place above the relegation zone, but was sacked soon after. The Hammers were saved by the shortcomings of the teams below them as much as their own efforts, prompting Gold and his co-chairman David Sullivan to act.

"West Ham will make a formal announcement within the next 24 hours," a statement read. "The club have been conducting a thorough recruitment programme in recent weeks and made excellent progress."

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in