‘I understand the emotion of leaving Upton Park,’ Karren Brady has told Lee Clayton from the Daily Mail ahead of the last game ever at the Boleyn Ground on Tuesday night.
‘I know generations of families have been loyally part of the history of our club and that these final matches are about memories.But I don’t look back. I only look to the future. We are at the start of something here. I see West Ham challenging for the top six consistently, becoming one of the top 10 most successful clubs in Europe — and short term (I see) breaking our transfer record this summer, selling nobody we want to keep, filling our new stadium . . .’
And announcing doubling the current 26,000 season ticket holders for next season to an incredible 52,000 Brady said:a
‘Yes, only Manchester United sell more, getting the stadium is one thing, selling it out is another. Our attendances next season will include 10,000 children because of our affordable seating (£99 for U16 season tickets) and we have 30,000 supporters on our waiting list. So the demand and desire to see West Ham at our new stadium is there.’
‘I take great pride in what we have done, on and off the field. I want to praise the manager. I always think the manager is the most important person at any club and Slaven Bilic has done an excellent job in his first season. There is a connection with the fans, who remember him as a player, and he understands the values of West Ham. Some people have asked ‘what is the West Ham way?’
‘The way Slaven plays is the answer — that’s the West Ham way.’
‘The new target now is to raise the capacity from 60,000 to 66,000. West Ham fans share the desire to make progress and that is reflected with the sale of the tickets for the new stadium. Their support is essential for this transition. People on the outside will always be negative and say we have been opportunistic. The opportunity was there and we have taken it through a fair and transparent process which was open to everyone, but we were the only ones with the vision, the foresight to achieve this.
‘Yes, it’s a good deal for West Ham. Should I have to apologise for that? The timing is right, the club is moving in the right direction and now we have to push on. We cannot stand still.
‘The co-chairman, David Sullivan, has recruited well and has been working on new players for months. We want a goalscorer, someone who can score 20 goals in the Premier League. Easier said than done, but David loves hunting for players on behalf of the manager and the team.We are all about looking up. In that list of Europe’s top 20 most valuable clubs, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Barcelona were at the top. West Ham were 19th. I want to get into the top 10. This is a perfect storm.’