It was announced at 8am that Manuel Pelligrini is our new manager. I cannot believe there is any West Ham fan that won’t want to join us all on this site in welcoming him to the club. He’s a quality manager with a superb track record. Yes he’s proved to be quite an expensive acquisition but if you want quality you have to pay for it. We know he plays the type of football we like and it will be interesting to see who he recruits in the next couple of months.
Announcing the signing on WHUFC.com, Co-chairman David Sullivan said…
“I am delighted to welcome Manuel Pellegrini to West Ham United. He is one of the world’s most respected football coaches and we look forward to working with him. It was important that we appointed someone with knowledge and experience of the Premier League, who already has an understanding – not only of the teams and players we face – but of West Ham United and our ambitions. Manuel brings a reputation for attacking football and getting the best out of his players. We believe he will attract new talent to the London Stadium as well as improving the current squad. Above all, he is a winner, who knows what it takes to succeed at the highest level and is driven to continue that success. Manuel is the first West Ham United manager to have a Premier League title on his CV, and we believe that his experience, quality and proven record of taking teams forward quickly will ensure that he is successful here. We have listened to fans who asked us to be ambitious. We hope they agree it is an exciting appointment. Manuel will shortly announce the names of the new staff he will bring in and he will then get down to shaping the squad he wants. We all wish him the very best of luck.”
Given some of the managers we have endured in our recent history, this really is a move towards the so-called ‘next level’. But let’s have a bit of patience. It wll take a bit of time for him to bed in and get the players he wants. If we finish in the top half next season, that would be a result. We cannot expect instant success. So let’s get behind our new manager and wish him well.
And it’s not often that this is said, but well done to David Sullivan. He’s played a blinder here.