Avram Grant slates Stoke over approach for Hammers hot-shot Demba Ba

07 March 2011 08:14
  Avram Grant has taken a swipe at Stoke for their attempts to hijack his move for Demba Ba. [LNB]The West Ham manager claims he noticed the talents of the club'slatest hero over 12 months ago and accused rival clubs of jumping onthe bandwagon after hearing of his interest. [LNB]Ba scored his fourth goal in three Barclays Premier League startssince arriving from Hoffenheim as West Ham eased their relegation fearswith a 3-0 victory over Stoke on Saturday. [LNB] Net gains: Demba Ba scores a bizarre opening goal for West Ham against Stoke[LNB] The 25-year-old's strike was all the more satisfying given the fact that Stoke boss Tony Pulis rejected the chance to sign him in January after he failed a medical due to a long-standing knee injury.[LNB] In addition to Stoke, Ba was also linked with Everton and Blackburn, but Grant claims Ba's arrival at Upton Park is a sign of justice for him and the Hammers. [LNB]Grant refused to point the finger directly at Stoke but, given how close they were to signing Ba, it was clear the West Ham boss was far from happy with Pulis' intervention. [LNB]Grant said: 'Nobody knew Ba before we wanted to sign him. The minute his name was in the paper, everyone wanted him.[LNB] [LNB] Shouting the odds: Grant (left) unhappy with tactics employed by Pulis (right)[LNB]'It is justice that he is with us. I don't try to steal players from other teams.' [LNB]While the grass is looking greener in West Ham's fight for survival, the same cannot be said for the state of their training pitch. [LNB]The Hammers flew to Portugal yesterday for a mid-season training camp, and Grant admits the main reason behind the trip is to get away from the club's Chadwell Heath training complex. [LNB]'We have a problem with our training pitch,' he said. 'It is not good and it was one of the reasons why Scott Parker was injured last week. So, we are taking them to some good pitches to train. We want to use every opportunity to be together. The players like that and they also want good facilities.' [LNB]Skipper Matt Upson said: 'It'll be nice to go and get a nice bit of grass for three days. I think we'll get some golf in, definitely. The team bonding is a big part of it.[LNB] 'Everyone's been working and training hard for six, seven months. So, it's nice to get mental as well as physical relaxation.' [LNB]Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross said: 'We're four points off relegation, so if we say we're not in it, there's something wrong. We're going to have to work to get away, like we worked at the start of the season.' [LNB] West Ham 3 Stoke 0: Hammers on the rise after back-to-back victoriesPulis: West Ham have bought a sicknote - buying Ba is a 'massive risk' All the latest West Ham news, features and opinionAll the latest Stoke news, features and opinion[LNB] [LNB]  Explore more:People: Tony Pulis, Ryan Shawcross Places: Portugal

Source: Daily_Mail