The miracle of Prague, the European victory that should have been the catalyst to a golden future for West Ham. Three years ago almost to the day, don’t ever let the people who have run and ruined our club forget it.
The irony that the departure of David Sullivan from West Ham should overshadow memories of that great night in Prague is not lost on many. Sullivan would claim it was the biggest achievement of his tenure as owner and chairman. Others would say that for it to happen at all under his leadership was the miracle.That David Moyes managed to put together a band of brothers to win the European Conference League was the triumph. And we should never forget it.
I’ve been banging on about the three wasted years at West Ham for months, for which Sullivan and the board are entirely responsible. It was a hard won platform presented to them by Moyes that has been criminally discarded. Four managers, a technical director, countless poor signings and money wasted along the way.
It could have been so different in the hands of others. So when this anniversary comes around, 7 June 2023 at the Eden Arena, 2-1 win over Fiorentina and the joy that followed, I’ll never miss the opportunity to apportion blame for what followed. The financial mismanagement has been inexcusable.
For many fans under the age of 50, that night in Prague was as good as it can get. You’ve got to be my age to remember that golden era of the 1960s and 1970s to have experienced anything like that.
But that night... the superb pass from Lucas Paqueta—to be seen shortly in the World Cup finals in the yellow of Brazil. That perfectly-timed run from Jarrod Bowen, the cool finish under pressure and the eruption of emotions that followed from West Ham fans who had never seen anything like that before.
What has followed has been a disgrace, a disaster overseen by Sullivan. That he has gone from the board and WH Holdings, was something of a shock when the news unfolded on Saturday.
It’s the beginning of the end, and he can’t just pass those shares onto his sons Jack and David Jnr. The laws have changed a bit, the Independent Football Regulator—now engraved n law—would have an issue, Fit and Proper comes into play.
I tend to come from the position that you don’t get rid of vampires until a stake is driven through the heart. Maybe Sullivan is a football version, having—it is alleged—sucked the life out of West Ham.
You can see now why the recently departed Karren Brady fought so hard in the Lords to scupper the new laws, to the point that she was criticised by Sports Minister Lisa Nandy. You can think that the last thing Sullivan wanted was government scrutiny of his tenure at West Ham.
So, while you are all rightly celebrating the beginning of the end for Sullivan and look back in anger and nostalgia at Prague, it may never come around again. We have gone from champions of Europe to the Championship in three years. That is Sullivan’s testimony, not that he was out on the pitch in Prague contemplating the sale of Declan Rice.
What happens now to Sullivan and the allegations about his private life is in the lap of the gods. He insists no wrong doing and he has stepped away from the club to concentrate on the legal issues. He’ll fight to the last.
My opposition to his term of office is based on the fact that I hate the industry where he made his millions. It’s legal and adults have a right to be involved if that is their wish, I get that. But it doesn’t change my views.
Along with the late David Gold, Sullivan has been a stain on this club for 16 years. Before that the Birmingham City fans felt likewise. Five relegations from the top flight later is Sullivan’s legacy to football.
We are not, I believe, a much loved club. Folk, I’m told, don’t enjoy involvement with us. Sullivan , of course, can’t see it. Even in his statement on Saturday, he was happy to praise his business success in the adult industry.
Although Sullivan’s departure took everyone by surprise—it was even top of the BBC news agenda and website ahead of the commemoration of the Normandy landings. Such is news value it seems.
But it has been coming for a long while. So much has been played out in the courts with the anonymity clause being lifted after being challenged by the BBC, the Times and Elon Musk’s X, formerly twitter.
The few weeks have been chaos backstage at West Ham since the relegation. But it is believed that the shares sell-off by Vanessa Gold to Danny Kretinsky and Sullivan has not been signed off yet. A deal seemingly facilitated by Brady which would have left Kretinsky and Sullivan each having 40% stake in the club.
Now Kretinsky and Vanessa Gold are joint-chair and running the club. The battle for power is underway. Our massive debts, over £104m have to be addressed. There are payments to other clubs due this summer, and a long list of players who could be sold.
We have to move quickly before our financial issues start to concern the EFL. Kretinsky, you would expect, has to inject capital and make his move to buy more shares to complete a takeover. Anything else will leave the club in limbo and a sitting target for other clubs to strip us of our best players.
There are, of course, plenty of conspiracy issues now, certainly involving the ownership of the London Stadium. Mayor Sadiq Khan has made it clear this past year that there are deal to be done.
We have a kit launch and a retained list that must be published by the end of the month when contracts terminate.
What Vanessa Gold and Tripp, the other main shareholder with 9% do in all this is open to debate. Tripp has long been a shareholder who, it is claimed, has several buyers and investors waiting in the wings.
Now is the time for Kretinsky, Gold and Tripp to present a united front, appoint a director of football and get the show on the road. It has been floundering, listing, for too long.
So do spend your time folks contemplating life after Sullivan, the future will be rocky for a while but needs to be stabilised. But don’t you dare forget Prague and the people that made that happen.
And the people who wrecked the aftermath, so spectacularly.
* Like to share your thoughts on this article? Please visit the KUMB Forum to leave a comment.
* Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the highlighted author/s and do not necessarily represent or reflect the official policy or position of KUMB.com.
