HOW WE THREW IT ALL AWAY
Saturday, 21st August 2004
by Graeme Howlett
The last remaining jewel in West Ham's crown was sold last night as the club completed their dismantling of what promised to be one of the greatest home-grown teams ever produced.
Here's a comprehensive list of when and to where those players went:
Rio Ferdinand - £18m, Leeds United (December 2000)
Considered by many to be the catalyst of our downfall, West Ham sold Rio Ferdinand to Leeds just before Christmas 2000 despite having previously issued a string of denials refuting a deal. Hammers Chairman Terry Brown hailed the deal as the last big domestic transfer; 12 months later Leeds sold Ferdinand to Manchester United for a then world record fee of £29m. Meanwhile, Harry Redknapp threw away the £18m on a string of second rate replacements, drunks and misfits.
Frank Lampard - £11m, Chelsea (July 2001)
The sale of Ferdinand effectively told the rest of the squad that the club had no ambition - and with best buddy Rio gone, Frank was sure to follow soon. It took six months or so and the sacking of his father and uncle to persuade him, but when Chelsea stepped in he had little hesitation in making the move across town. Hailed at the time as a hugely inflated fee, it's Chelsea who are having the last laugh.
Glenn Johnson - £6m, Chelsea (July 2003)
The one that shocked supporters more than any other (bar perhaps the Rio sale). The hugely popular Johnson, who had made just 14 appearances for West Ham was the first to go in a summer which saw a string of first team players leave Upton Park (despite Terry Brown famously stating 'while one or two players may leave in the summer, the outward movement of players will not be drastic').
Joe Cole - £6.5m, Chelsea (July 2003)
Relegation for the Hammers - no doubt spurred on by the loss of players such as Ferdinand and Lampard - guaranteed wholesale changes at Upton Park as the club set about reducing a wage bill which, at the time, exceeded an astonishing £40m per year. Rather than taking a gamble on retaining Cole in a push for instant promotion, the club sold him to Chelsea for £6m - less than a month after Terry Brown had dismissed a reported bid of £5m from the Blues as 'derisory'.
Jermain Defoe - £7m plus Bobby Zamora, Tottenham (January 2004)
Not strictly home grown as he was poached from Charlton as a 16-year-old, but Defoe still qualifies as he spent his formative years at West Ham. Destined for great things he may be, but having become utterly dejected at watching his team mates sold left, right and centre there was little choice but to part company with the 21-year-old striker.
Michael Carrick - £3.2m, Tottenham (August 2004)
The final nail in the coffin. Carrick, like Cole and Defoe before him had (not surprisingly) refused to sign a new contract with the Hammers and having been told to find another club opted for Tottenham despite interest from several Premiership outfits. A sad day for Hammers fans, as he became the sixth - and final - home grown English international to say goodbye to Upton Park.
In addition to the above players, the Hammers have also lost Trevor Sinclair (a current English international at the time of his sale) to Manchester City (£2.5m), and David James - also to Manchester City - for around £1.5m - meaning the Hammers had earned around £56m from the sale of the eight players.
Six of those eight - Ferdinand, Lampard, Johnson, Cole, Defoe and James - are currently involved with the England team, whilst no doubt Michael Carrick will once again be introduced to the squad in the near future.
Scant consolation for West Ham fans, who must be wondering today just how the club managed to throw it all away.
Saturday, 21st August 2004
by Graeme Howlett
The last remaining jewel in West Ham's crown was sold last night as the club completed their dismantling of what promised to be one of the greatest home-grown teams ever produced.
Here's a comprehensive list of when and to where those players went:
Rio Ferdinand - £18m, Leeds United (December 2000)
Considered by many to be the catalyst of our downfall, West Ham sold Rio Ferdinand to Leeds just before Christmas 2000 despite having previously issued a string of denials refuting a deal. Hammers Chairman Terry Brown hailed the deal as the last big domestic transfer; 12 months later Leeds sold Ferdinand to Manchester United for a then world record fee of £29m. Meanwhile, Harry Redknapp threw away the £18m on a string of second rate replacements, drunks and misfits.
Frank Lampard - £11m, Chelsea (July 2001)
The sale of Ferdinand effectively told the rest of the squad that the club had no ambition - and with best buddy Rio gone, Frank was sure to follow soon. It took six months or so and the sacking of his father and uncle to persuade him, but when Chelsea stepped in he had little hesitation in making the move across town. Hailed at the time as a hugely inflated fee, it's Chelsea who are having the last laugh.
Glenn Johnson - £6m, Chelsea (July 2003)
The one that shocked supporters more than any other (bar perhaps the Rio sale). The hugely popular Johnson, who had made just 14 appearances for West Ham was the first to go in a summer which saw a string of first team players leave Upton Park (despite Terry Brown famously stating 'while one or two players may leave in the summer, the outward movement of players will not be drastic').
Joe Cole - £6.5m, Chelsea (July 2003)
Relegation for the Hammers - no doubt spurred on by the loss of players such as Ferdinand and Lampard - guaranteed wholesale changes at Upton Park as the club set about reducing a wage bill which, at the time, exceeded an astonishing £40m per year. Rather than taking a gamble on retaining Cole in a push for instant promotion, the club sold him to Chelsea for £6m - less than a month after Terry Brown had dismissed a reported bid of £5m from the Blues as 'derisory'.
Jermain Defoe - £7m plus Bobby Zamora, Tottenham (January 2004)
Not strictly home grown as he was poached from Charlton as a 16-year-old, but Defoe still qualifies as he spent his formative years at West Ham. Destined for great things he may be, but having become utterly dejected at watching his team mates sold left, right and centre there was little choice but to part company with the 21-year-old striker.
Michael Carrick - £3.2m, Tottenham (August 2004)
The final nail in the coffin. Carrick, like Cole and Defoe before him had (not surprisingly) refused to sign a new contract with the Hammers and having been told to find another club opted for Tottenham despite interest from several Premiership outfits. A sad day for Hammers fans, as he became the sixth - and final - home grown English international to say goodbye to Upton Park.
In addition to the above players, the Hammers have also lost Trevor Sinclair (a current English international at the time of his sale) to Manchester City (£2.5m), and David James - also to Manchester City - for around £1.5m - meaning the Hammers had earned around £56m from the sale of the eight players.
Six of those eight - Ferdinand, Lampard, Johnson, Cole, Defoe and James - are currently involved with the England team, whilst no doubt Michael Carrick will once again be introduced to the squad in the near future.
Scant consolation for West Ham fans, who must be wondering today just how the club managed to throw it all away.
