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Sullivan on cutbacks


Filed: Tuesday, 9th February 2010
By: Staff Writer

David Sullivan has revealed that several staff will be asked to take pay cuts this summer in order to ease the club's financial problems - whilst admitting that relegation would equate to 'Armageddon'.

The club's new joint owner, speaking ahead of the visit of his former club Birmingham City tomorrow night insisted that he had full faith in the current squad's ability to avoid the drop - but confirmed that even should they do so, many club employees will be asked to take wage cuts at the end of the season - whilst '20 or 30' other non-playing staff are set to face redundancy.

"[Gianfranco] Zola will prove himself over the next few games," said Sullivan. "I was always a very good judge. The season Birmingham got relegated I said after 10 games 'We're going down'. Maybe I've lost my judgement but I just don't see us getting relegated. Maybe it's the West Ham fan in me coming out and I've become an eternal optimist.

"[But] things have to change at West Ham. We want to spend the money on putting the best team possible on the pitch. We have made cutbacks already but may have to make another 20 or 30 people redundant by the summer.

"We have already had people in senior positions offer to take a voluntary 25 per cent reduction to keep their jobs. It's been gratefully accepted. If someone is doing a good job but is overpaid you still want to keep them.

"But many people at the training ground should take a voluntary pay cut. There's an army of people supporting the first team. Everyone at the club will be asked to take a salary cut in the summer. Every position is overpaid, whether in administration or on the playing side; all are earning more than they would at other clubs.

"I'm drawing nothing forever, neither is David Gold. We are paying the first 12 months of Karren Brady's salary as Vice Chairman. And we are not claiming back expenses. Every penny we spend is down to us. The club is in a mess and we all have to pull together. If we go down I can't even consider the situation. It'll be Armageddon; it'll be worse than what's gone on at Newcastle."

Despite all the problems he has inherited since returning to the board last month, Sullivan remains sure that he did the right thing in buying into the club - although he reserved the right to change his opinion should the Irons fail to beat the drop come May.

"I still don't regret taking over," he inisisted. "But if we get relegated I would. We'd have to sell half the team. Normally you don't have the debt we've inherited or the wage bill we've inherited."

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   arrow   The transfer window closes [31st Aug 2010]
   arrow   Deadline day latest: T minus 90 minutes [31st Aug 2010]
   arrow   Sullivan: Parker still not for sale [15th Aug 2010]
   arrow   Aston Villa 3 West Ham Utd 0 [14th Aug 2010]
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   arrow   Brown in [13th Aug 2010]
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Your Comments


by Mike
09:39PM 9th Feb 2010
''Oh, man! This is pretty much what I feared with them taking over. There was too much spin before they won the money battle and there's been little but spin since.

"We've got debts three times the size wot everyone else sez" - depends how you define 'debt' I suppose, I'm no financial wiz; "we're going to sign a striker for 100k", face, say hello to egg... yup...; "everyone's overpaid!", way to piss Zola off (and I'm ignoring the earlier remarks about the financial condition of the average Premier League club).

It's all "Warm to us folks. Really, no honestly, truly, truthfully, we're West Ham fans or we'd never have taken this on! Look what we're doing for you against *all* the odds!" Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

I, for one, would be a lot happier if the pair of pygmies (dunno about you, I always though it was a cheap shot. And Goliath got bad press anyway... ;-) ) would STFU. Keep quiet, sort the financial side out, and let Zola and the club do the talking. No-one cares about you pair of egotistical idiots anyway.

I want stability at our club, not gob. If the press are interested in talking to anyone past the manager and the players, there is something deeply, deeply wrong. Vultures circle, after all...''

by g portugal
11:48AM 9th Feb 2010
''It's good that he has laid out the facts. The players should know exactly what the consequences of failure are and that should provide added motivation to beat the drop. That said if they need extra motivation then they are not good enough in any case.

This set of players has a chance to build a sustainably good club. If they fail it is down to them and their own lack of desire, as given the talent, there is no excuse. And that means there is no excuse for Zola and Clarke.

The managers and players are under real pressure now, and in fairness, they were dealt a poor hand by the previous inept owners. But what comes now is in the hands of the players and the managers. They either have the heart and the fight. Or they don't and we get relegated.

With 14 games to go it is about one thing now: how bad do these guys want it?''

by Pete
11:00AM 9th Feb 2010
''These guys need to SHUT UP. Everything they say demoralises someone. Usually the players. Seriously - GET OUT OF THE PRESS AND DO YOUR JOB. Double D's - you are not helping the cause.''



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