West Ham United Saga Shrouded In Mystery

We’re not even into week three of the Premiership, but who would have expected the Tevez and Mascherano transfers to ever happen and to West Ham of all places?

Never before have transfer signings been clouded in so much mystery. No one publicly knows what the transfer fees were, how long their contracts are for, and how the proposed takeover of the club is tied to the whole events. Right now, there appears to be a Middle Eastern consortium and a Georgian billionaire interested (Georgia, as in eastern Europe and not the southeastern US state).

Football writer Patrick Barclay in the Sunday Telegraph demands an end to secrecy and asks for more transparency regarding transfers. Although not hopeful, he would like to see the government step in to require more openness from clubs, especially when ticket holders pay so much each season. Read the article here.

The Independent newspaper, meanwhile, has a fascinating article about the Tevez and Mascherano deal. Writer Ronald Atkin takes the approach of comparing the transfer signings to the Ossie Ardiles and Ricky Villa signings by Spurs from the late 70s by Spurs. Read that article here.

Whatever happens, the next few weeks to months are going to be a soap opera at West Ham United with the takeover talks and the play of Tevez and Mascherano. It’s incredible to think, but next Sunday’s West Ham versus Aston Villa match is going to be one of the most anticipated matches in a very long time. Not only will be Villa and Hammers fans be watching, but the neutrals will be watching this one more closely than ever before to see how the Argentines fair.

Just a few weeks ago, how many of you would have been excited by watching Villa versus West Ham United match? But now that Martin O’Neill and Tevez/Mascherano will be involved, the match takes on a whole new importance.