Former West Ham defender Tony Gale has insisted the club need up to £100million of investment in the playing squad this summer.
Gale told the Sky Sports website that he fears the appointment of Manuel Pellegrini as the new manager could be a ‘smokescreen’ from the board so they don’t have to plough in transfer funds.
The former centre-back explained that the Chilean, 64, cannot be expected to work miracles with an average squad.
“I will only be happy when West Ham release the funds to buy players because managers are only as good as the players they are working with,” Gale told Sky Sports. “Let’s hope this isn’t a smokescreen by the West Ham board so that they don’t have to buy players. There is a lot of money in those West Ham coffers and they need to spend it.
“They need major surgery to that football team in the region of £75m to £100m. Money attracts top players. I think they have to back up their position with Pellegrini by giving him that money to spend on players. The whole club needs a turnaround not just the manager and hopefully he is someone who has the experience to convince them of that.”
OPINION
Like many who follow West Ham and have the club’s best interests at heart, Gale doesn’t entirely trust the board led by co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold. The duo have made too many broken promises during their near-decade-long reign, as well as spearheading the move to a rented stadium that has backfired disastrously. Supporters have broadly welcomed the appointment of Pellegrini, whose CV demands respect as does his track record of producing teams who play eyecatching football. Gale was a member of the Hammers side that punched above their weight to finish third in 1986, and knows that supporters don’t just want a winning side, but want that can also entertain. Pellegrini is a man who is well capable of doing both, but only if he is given the proper backing to bring in players who can adhere to the style of football he is trying to implement.
