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DG: “One game can change everything but it’s been grim

gold_2446989bExclusive

David Gold gulped with relief as the Hammers finally clawed their way to safety via the brilliant victory over Spurs and declared: “The problems have been immense this year and I’m thrilled to bits we can now concentrate on the future.”

In deeply reflective mood during an exclusive and wide ranging ClaretandHugh interview he said: “It’s amazing how  90 minutes can have you forgetting so much of what’s gone before but we should remember them:

O moving to the new stadium itself

O the standing or no standing row

O the awful problems at the Chelsea EDF Cup tie

O massive injuries

O the Payet affair

O and it all ending with that tax raid.”

It’s hard to disagree with his assessment that the club has been battered on all sides or to put it in his words: “We’ve been knocked from pillar to post.”

Yes, we got it wrong with the summer transfer market but other factors listed by him have had a big impact – aided and abetted by a very hostile media.

Finally, however, it all came together on Friday night when Spurs were brushed aside, our Premier League status secured   and a nightmare season all but laid to rest.

Gold enjoyed the night of his life and said:  “The response of our fans on Friday saw the LS finally become home and that was wonderful. We knew it would take time but to see the response, to hear that level of noise was fabulous for all of us.

” You an never relax in football but finally the worries were over and I’d like to think that game was a fitting memorial to the Boleyn. Hopefully we can now settle into the new stadium after having had Upton Park in our heads for so long.

To finally secure our position was enormous – it was an overwhelming moment in my life and that it was Spurs who were our victims made it so much sweeter.

“The bookies said we were 80/1 against being relegated before the game but you are never really sure. Who for example would have imagined Swansea would go to Manchester United and get a point?

“Now though we can look to end the season in style and the business of bringing in new players is underway. We have to get that right and we will.

We understand that last summer wasn’t what we had hoped for – we will move forward having put a very difficult season behind us.”

 

About Hugh5outhon1895

Hugh Southon is a lifelong Iron and the founding editor of ClaretandHugh. He is a national newspaper journalist of many years experience and was Bobby Moore's 'ghost' writer during the great man's lifetime. He describes ClaretandHugh as "the Hammers daily newspaper!" Follow on Twitter @hughsouthon

27 comments on “DG: “One game can change everything but it’s been grim

  1. “The LS finally become home” so says our beloved Mr Gold. Well well! It’s been ‘our home’ since August 2016. Do us all a favour and stop trying to justify, in my opinion, the unnecessary move from the Boleyn. Anyone with half a brain would take the opportunity to improve their investment by £40 million. The former Olympic Stadium will NEVER be a proper football ground. You cannot put a price on losing ones soul.

    • Its a stadium get over it. Its the fans with their negative thoughts that are the problem. When will they ever stop moaning? It seemed like a stadium when we beat Chelsea & Spurs. Its down to the team to put on a performance and the fans to enjoy it. Some people just can’t handle change.

      • What an apologist DG is.

        As for:
        “Some people just can’t handle change”

        The problem is when that applies to the Owners, Coach and Players!

        Perhaps the other clubs should to change their name to Tottenham#2, Tottenham#3……and all will be well in the camp.

        One-dimensional Owners and Coach and therefore Players.

        Obviously its down to the team to put on a performance, but they are paid to do that for 38+ games a year not TWO!

    • they have improved their investment by £40 million? Good so the club only owes them £80 million. Soon they might be in profit.

  2. The club has sold its soul.How tiresome that statement is.
    Tell that to my 12 year old grandson who was crying his eyes out last night with pure joy at the final whistle.I hope he and the younger generation will carry the fan base forward because trust me in five ten twenty years time none of the new generation will care one jot about the “sold our soul” crew.
    I will be pushing daisies up by then but im sure as hell going to enjoy my last few years going to watch the team no matter what some of you grumpy buggers think.

  3. x2 Stan.Gets right on my **** hearing em banging on.

  4. Yeah well said Stanley. Fed up with the moaners who’s sole agenda is to drag our club down. God forbid David Gold should have an opinion of his own eh? People who have moaned about the place all season saying they won’t renew have suddenly decided after the Spud match they will now renew!! That’s fine, the more the merrier, I’m pleased our core support want to stay with us, but please don’t spend the whole of next season moaning!

    It’s a simple recipe to make the London Stadium an unforgettable experience and it’s this – play decent football, give it all on the pitch and win more often than not. If that happens on the pitch then the fans respond off the pitch both inside and outside the stadium = unforgettable experience.

    The ones that can’t find positives after beating the Spuds under lights in that atmosphere thus ending their title challenge for a 2nd year running will never be won over or want to be won over.

  5. Completely agree been saying that all season performance on the pitch and listen to the LS roar. Sold our soul my ar $e…….

  6. Hugh,
    Too simplistic a line to say Spurs were brushed aside, in fact for the first 20 minutes It seemed they were playing with 12 men….but we were the 12th man on Friday night under the lights. It was a magical moment from start to finish and one that compared to the last night at Upton Park. As was mentioned previously those who constantly complain will never be happy, but the supporters I have seen this season around me, blue language, hoarse throats from singing, and hammer tats on arms and necks are the heart and soul of this club.Yes get the summer signings right, not masses but quality…and on the pitch …passion like Friday night …sliding tackles all over the place…..you could feel the atmosphere and when that goal went in seeing the dejected Spurs players in the box was it’s own story…yes great….

    • “blue language, hoarse throats from singing, and hammer tats on arms and necks”. Tell me about it Trev, you wouldn’t pick an argument with those girls would you mate? 😂😂

  7. The ‘Sold our Soul’ lot should just move on. If you haven’t got anything positive to bring to this, then we don’t want to hear it. That stadium was bouncing on Friday night. The sheer look of disbelief and joy on my 9 year old sons face will live with me for years.
    He’s going to school tomorrow with his head held high with his West Ham lunchbox in hand! You know how loud it was. I don’t need to encourage anyone to watch the highlights but you would have thought there was an earthquake the way those cameras were bouncing.
    What a great advert for the club too. It was watched by a million people in the UK alone and was televised across the world.

  8. Doughballs are known to be stodgy and hard to swallow. COYI.

  9. Im sick to the back teeth of reading the same sad buggers repeating themselves all the time.
    The same as the fans who deciede to write Churchillian messages on blogs declaring that they will not be renewing their ST.Followed by tear jerking replies about feeling their pain and telling them what a tragedy it is.
    Why fans think they need to tell the world with this great pomp and ceremony i have no idea.
    If you are not going to renew then dont renew.Ok you have made a personal decision not to but dont expect me to send a wreath and a card of condolence you wally brains.

  10. Yeah dreadful to hear people repeating themselves…..after about 15 posts all saying the same thing. A difference of opinion is a healthy thing.

    • The SAME people repeating the SAME tired mantra every day H64.But you in all likelihood knew what i ment but fancied being an old smartie pants!

  11. But the same difference of opinion – all the time?
    There was much else to discuss but no we can’t have that.
    Where’s the LS hobby horse

  12. Well certainly ‘old ‘ something Stan. I actually backed the move, but with big misgivings. If the financial benefits the owners predict do happen this should help to stabilise the club & avoid another 2016/17. That’s good. But we are giving up things in other ways. I don’t object to the people who oppose the move raising these issues. They are not just ‘moaners’ when they say moving away from the Boleyn changes what the club is. Some don’t care about that. Some care but think it’s a price worth paying. And some think the gains might have been exaggerated & are not worth the price.

  13. It reminds me a tiny bit of the fans at Manure who objected to the Glaziers taking over.Big protests and some vowed to never go again.Went off formed their own club FC United of Manchester and now about 12 years down the line no one could give a shyte one way or another about whether they stopped going to see Manure or not.
    Life goes on & in a few years time no one in the crowd at the LS will give a shyte about the fans who dont renew or stopped going.
    I have always said that people like Nigel who were against the move from the off i admire & also agree with on many points.Its the f*cking drama queens i cant be bothered with 😂
    Anyway i hope you filled your half empty glass to the brim after Friday night 64 🍺😁

    • Doffs my cap, for the kind words, lol.
      The success of the move though is not made in 1 game, or 1 season,
      its the state of the club in 5-10 years time.
      Where and when WHUFC play i will be there, but i will never accept that the club moved for the right reasons to the right place.
      Friday was fun, but if that is the best we can do, well god help us

      • Why if that’s the best we can do God help us Nigel?

        • We celebrated as if we were arsenal getting 4th spot,
          when the reality was we’re years off ever being any where near them,
          I really hope that i can witness scenes like that next season, but preferably when we won something meaningful.

      • Lol make the most of it Nige thats the best you will get from me 😁
        Im not ashamed to have celebrated screwing up The Spuds title ambitions,thats what i enjoyed more than just beating them,though that was sweet.
        Dont forget that when Citeh were shyte their fans used to be just the same when they occasionally beat Manure.For years they sung their Bishop,Morley song.
        Just enjoy it dont be a grumpy f*cker 😂😂

  14. There were rather too many glasses that were definitely full to tell the truth Radai. I think yesterday was Saturday but it is all a bit blurry. Mind you, correct me if I am wrong but before the game even you were a bit reluctant to predict a win!

    Think you are right about the move in the long run. Time is a great healer! And somebody will think of a song we can sing when we play the Spuds on the theme of ‘when will you finish paying for your ground- ours cost us “**** all”. It will feel better then for sure. Based on our experience Spurs should have a bad season at Wembley and a bad one in the ‘new’ WHL’. So they may be playing Burton Albion by 2019 ha ha.

    • Yeah i was a little hazy Saturday morning 64 😁
      You are right i feared the worst for Friday night and i hold my hands up i definately didn’t think we would win.It was only a brave man or lunatic who would have seriously believed we could i would imagine 😁

  15. What Cas and Rads says. Absolutely spot on, couldn’t have put it better. The thing is with ST renewal coming up you need to make your choice. It makes me laugh when I see fans who’ve been saying all season they won’t renew now say they will because of the Spuds match. Don’t get me wrong I’m pleased, because I want what’s best for the club and I certainly don’t want fans walking away. But we all now have to get behind the club, I hope those that have moaned all season saying they will walk away will now get behind the club. I hope we all do tho I won’t hold my breath.

    Nigel is right, it’s all about where we are in 5 years time but surely we need to give the club our support to realise those goals. I predict we will own the stadium within 5 years and we will be challenging (along with 7 other clubs!) but that’s progress in my book.

    Anyhow sermon over. COYIs.

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