Fernandes tried to buy West Ham United in May 2011, but later became involved at Queens Park Rangers.
Queens Park Rangers owner Tony Fernandes has responded when asked whether or not he’d have moved West Ham United away from Upton Park if his takeover of the Hammers had gone through.
Fernandes, who grew up supporting West Ham in his home country, Malaysia, tried unsuccessfully to acquire the east London club in May 2011.
Instead, West Ham continued under the reign of current owners David Gold and David Sullivan, who made the controversial decision to relocate the Irons to London’s Olympic Stadium at the start of last season.
But Fernandes, who became involved in Queens Park Rangers three months after his failed West Ham bid, told Talksport on Wednesday (15:42) that he can see why they did it.
“Wow, that’s a hard thing,” the 53-year-old replied when asked if he’d have done likewise. “But I think the [West Ham] owners, like us, we need to have a bigger stadium and I think they thought that was a big step forward.
“I loved Upton Park, […] really special, but it’s hard for me to comment because you don’t know where you are.
“But it’s amazing when I look at the crowds every time West Ham play, there’s over 50,000 people. So it’s made that step up from a 28-29,000 to 50-odd, so you can see why the owners did it.”
West Ham have so far struggled to recreate the form they showed in their final season at Upton Park, when they finished seventh in the Premier League.
The Hammers currently sit 16th under Slaven Bilic, whose position is under increasing pressure.
Would the QPR owner have been better for West Ham than Gold and Sullivan?
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