Razak is now playing in Sweden while Allardyce is in charge of Crystal Palace, less than two years after his West Ham departure.
Manchester City’s Abdul Razak in training with Manchester City
Former West Ham United midfielder Abdul Razak has blamed Sam Allardyce for his unsuccessful spell at Upton Park.
The Ivorian midfielder spent four months on the Hammers’ books in 2014, but failed to appear in a single competitive fixture.
Razak arrived in east London as a five-cap international, with Manchester City and Anzhi Makhachkala his two previous clubs.
Since then, however, the 24-year-old has turned out for OFI Crete, Doncaster Rovers and AFC United, whom he left for fellow Swedish side IFK Goteborg earlier this year.
“It didn’t work at West Ham due to Sam Allardyce, as I like to play football and that’s not his style,” Razak told ITV Sport.
“Then my work permit expired, so I had to wait for another one. The Home Office take a long time to reply, so then I was without a club. So I ended up four months without a club.”
West Ham eventually tired of Allardyce’s tactics themselves, allowing him to leave Upton Park at the end of his contract in 2015.
In a statement, Hammers co-chairmen David Sullivan and David Gold said they were seeking “a new manager with a new philosophy to lead us into two of the most exciting years in our great club’s history”, and eventually turned to current incumbent Slaven Bilic.
Crystal Palace manager Sam Allardyce
Allardyce is now on to his third role since then, having managed Sunderland, England and now Crystal Palace, with whom Razak spent time as a youth.
What do you remember of Abdul Razak at West Ham United?
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