Karren Brady has revealed an arrangement between West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic and the club’s owners when it comes to transfers.
Supporters were split over who to blame for the club’s transfer failings last season with a lack of clarity from the Hammers over exactly who is in charge of transfers between David Sullivan, fellow co-owner David Gold, Slaven Bilic and chief talent spotter Tony Henry.
Recruitment seems to be much improved this summer with Bilic bringing in five new players so far as Pablo Zabaleta, Joe Hart, Marko Arnautovic, Javier Hernandez and young prospect Sead Haksabanovic arrived in East London.
The club is also in negotiations to complete the record signing of Portugal midfielder William Carvalho, which would represent a real coup for Bilic.
Now during her appearance on Sky Sports’ The Debate, vice-chairman Brady has revealed for the first time an arrangement the owners have with Bilic when it comes to the club’s transfer budget and dealings.
“He (Bilic) makes, predominantly, all the decisions (over player signings and targets),” Brady said on The Debate.
“There is a separate budget that my chairman (Sullivan) uses to buy younger players that are not immediately required for the team but they are for the future and I think that works very well.
“I think the most important person at the football club, without doubt, is the manager because if he sets the tone of the football club, he sets the discipline, he sets the attitude, he sets the way forward and your job as the board is to help him be as successful as possible and interfere as least as possible.”
The separate budget for promising young players has clearly been in action since the club brought in talent spotter Henry with the likes of Domingos Quina, Toni Martinez, Martin Samuelsen, Edimilson Fernandes, Nathan Holland and now Haksabanovic all joining with one eye on the future.
Some supporters may be concerned at the prospect of owners signing their own players.
But in reality Sullivan and Henry are acting no differently to the increasingly commonplace directors of football employed by many clubs to identify and recruit players who can benefit the club over the long term, usually beyond the tenure of most managers.
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