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J.Riddle 1:58 Fri May 25
Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Good news as Manuel will already have a good idea who he wants out and in and be able to move fast.

C&P football.london
Manual Pellegrini was an appointment nearly seven months in the making.

Manuel Pellegrini let it slip in his first on-camera interview with West Ham, probably unintentionally, that he had watched a lot of Hammers matches last season while manager of Hebei China Fortune in the Chinese Super League. There is a reason for that.

Slaven Bilic was sacked as West Ham manager on November 6 after Karren Brady arrived at the Rush Green training ground, two days after the 4-1 defeat to Liverpool at the London Stadium to deliver the news we all knew was coming.

What we didn't know was that very soon after, the wheels were already in motion to bring former Manchester City manager Pellegrini to east London.

Back in October 2017, Croatian Bilic was clinging to his job in the capital. The 3-2 win against Spurs in the Carabao Cup bought Bilic some time but it was not going to be enough. He was eventually dismissed with the Hammers in the Premier League relegation zone after a dismal start to the season.

Pellegrini engaged in talks with West Ham in the immediate aftermath of Bilic's sacking to return to the Premier League and to take the reigns in east London. Numerous telephone and email conversations were exchanged but Pellegrini didn't meet with West Ham at that time.

Before 2017 was out though, the two parties had met, talks progressed and Pellegrini and the club had a handshake plus a gentleman's agreement that it would be him that would eventually take over in east London.

The new manager had already discussed transfer targets, his backroom staff joining him in the capital and the transfer budget with the club. That is expected to be fulfilled this summer.

Enter David Moyes.

The Scotsman was employed with the sole task of keeping West Ham in the Premier League, essentially warming the seat until Pellegrini arrived. Moyes was never going to spend more than half a year at the London Stadium. There was a reason he was only given a six-month deal. Moyes was always a stop gap between Bilic and Pellegrini.

The former Sunderland boss held up his end of the bargain and steered West Ham to a 13th place finish in the Premier League and while he may not have known it, he wasn't going to be sticking around after May 2018. He was handed £2.5m for his six months employment in east London.

Not bad work if you can get it.

That also explains why Moyes was somewhat undermined at the end of his tenure when pictures emerged of Shakhtar Donetsk manager Paulo Fonseca arriving at Hammers co-owner David Sullivan’s Essex mansion to have “talks” with the top brass. Those talks were never going to amount to anything, as proved by Fonseca signing an extended contract in Donetsk - it was a smokescreen.

The same applies to Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez. It was all a ruse.

Stories emerged that the Spaniard was proving hard to lure away from Tyneside but he was never likely to take over thanks to the agreement with Pellegrini.

Pellegrini had said to West Ham back in 2017 that there was no chance of him leaving the Far East and his incredibly lucrative contract when he was first approached to take over at the London Stadium. Give it six months however then a severance deal could be done.

Six months later, that’s how it has turned out

Pellegrini announced his departure from Hebei China Fortune on May 19 after their 2-1 victory over Chonqing Lifang in the CSL and as quick as a flash, the 64-year-old was on a flight to London. Before his flight had landed in the UK, Pellegrini's £8m-per-year contract was officially agreed to take over West Ham.

The manager and co-chairman had a pleasant time in central London that evening following touchdown for the Chilean, before returning to Sullivan’s home. That was nothing but a formality, the club photographer had already arrived to capture the moment and contracts were signed that evening.

Pellegrini was announced as West Ham’s new manager at 8am on Tuesday morning.

The new manager has spoken of his excitement and the project in store for him in east London in his first words as West Ham’s 17th manager. In reality, that project began way back in November 2017.

West Ham have got their man. It was a process that started some time ago and was the long-term plan for the club after a torrid 18 months at the London Stadium that led to Bilic's sacking. Now, we wait and see what the future holds.

Tall-Hammer 2:36 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

But what was the need for the smokescreen / ruse with Rafa and Fonesca? Just purely to help them out with bigger deals, or to get the wheels rolling along quicker with Pellegrini?

chim chim cha boo 2:40 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Maybe Sullivan should have told his co-chairman about this plot as Gold clearly said he hoped Moyes would stay only the other day.

That is unless Gold was being completely disingenuous saying that? I can't really believe that sweet old doddery man we'd all like as our granddad would lie out of his arse, would he?

DukeofDevo 2:44 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Just to disguise the fact that a deal had already been done I'm guessing. And to convince everybody ie 'the fans' that a process was being followed before the real deal was finalised.

Shadey fuckers, should be exciting times ahead before the start of the season!

andyd12345 2:44 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Smells like bullshit.

Spin from the board to try and prove that they always has a plan, and they executed it perfectly.

Has this journalist ascertained all of this information simply because Pellegrini 'let slip' that he watched some West Ham games last year?

I watched some Liverpool games last year, doesn't mean im going to be their next manager.

chim chim cha boo 2:44 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Tall Hammer.

Reading some articles from the Newcastle perspective like the local press up there it was clear that there was never a chance that Rafa was coming to West Ham.

He was purely using us as a bargaining tool to squeeze Ashley into giving him more dough.

DukeofDevo 2:48 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Does this mean Pelligrini sanctioned the Hugill deal?

Jose+ 2:49 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

More likely:

We approached Pellegrini. He said no but suggested he'd invite an approach at the end of the season dependant upon our premier league status.

Pellegrini kept an eye on his prospective exit route from China.

We hired Moyes on a short term contract, painfully aware of his potential for failure and our flirtation with relegation.

The end of the season rolls around, the feelers go out for managers, mainly focused on our prior targets.

Not wanting to limit the options, we interview Fonseca et al, from the pool of European managers looking to enhance their own contract renewal talks.

Pellegrini is still interested. He gets the job.

**It's the same story but without the somewhat far-fetched Pellegrini master plan**

Pagey 2:50 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

What a pointless article. As if Fonseca was flown over for talks just to create a smokescreen! An absolute crock of shit.

Tall-Hammer 2:51 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

chim chim cha boo 2:44 Fri May 25

But Fonesca coming to Sullivan's house with Jorges Mendes? I'm guessing they didn't just pop round for a cuppa, the three old mates....

Iron Duke 2:59 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

DukeofDevo

Hugill was all part of the smokescreen of course. Keep up boy.

ludo21 3:00 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Don’t worry chaps, it’s all in the master plan that Fonseca will take over in three years to retain the CL title.

On The Ball 3:03 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Yes, the 'Fonseca deal'

Swiss. 3:11 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

well a contract ain't a contract until it's signed so I guess Fonseca (the photo are a bit dodgy) and Bebeitez could have been backups.

Swans Of Never 3:51 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Clearly all linked to the Carrick deal...

On The Ball 3:57 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Don't buy it myself. There was no need to get Fonseca over as a "smokescreen" - Benitez speculation did enough of that.

I don't doubt that they tapped him up beforehand though.

jack flash 4:02 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Sounds like a masterplan to attempt to explain away why no money was spent on transfers during the winter transfer window

Irish Hammer 4:02 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

On The Ball 3:57 Fri May 25

Eerie Descent 4:06 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

Well, happily this means no more Kouyate, surely.

SURELY?

E12Hammer 4:26 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

It would certainly explain their lack of investment in January.

Lee Trundle 4:35 Fri May 25
Re: Pelligrini agreed to join 7 months ago and watched our games

I can't believe this. There were strong rumours after Bilic was sacked that there was a manager who wanted to join us, but wanted to wait until the end of the season.

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