West Ham United Football Club News

• Nickname:Hammers
• Founded:1895
• Manager:Sam Allardyce

• Ground:Upton Park
• Capacity:35,595

Pardew calls the shots

04 Sep 2006 - 10:30:44

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The man behind the transfers of Argentina stars to Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano to West Ham has denied that Hammers boss Alan Pardew will be forced to select the duo for every game.

MSI chief Kia Joorabchian was a key figure in the pair moving to England from Brazilian side Corinthians, but he insists that no selection clause was part of the deal.

He told The Guardian: "There is no clause for them to play or not to play.

"That is totally the manager's choice. If Alan Pardew doesn't think they are good enough to play any game, or for tactical reasons, then that is his choice."

Meanwhile, UEFA have voiced their concern at the growing trend of foreign investors taking control of Premiership clubs, with the Hammers facing a takeover bid soon after American Randy Lerner took charge at Aston Villa.

UEFA director of communications William Gaillard told The Daily Telegraph: "The trend is going against what we want to see - more clubs being owned by the community and the people who really care for them.

"This is a wake-up call and the UK Government have a responsibility to start investigating. After all it's a part of the UK economy."