West Ham's new manager, Avram Grant, has said all his players "have every chance" of staying at Upton Park despite the club's parlous financial position, as he insisted that he retains full control of team matters.
After buying West Ham in January David Gold and David Sullivan, the joint owners, often spoke publicly during the tenure of Gianfranco Zola, who admitted this did not aid his management of the club.
In April one statement from Sullivan claimed that all players would be up for sale except Scott Parker, the captain. Asked if Grant had informed Sullivan that this should not now be the position, he said with a smile: "Give him the telephone [number] of the chairman. You need to ask him, not me.
"Everyone has a chance. Sometimes even chairmen are disappointed and they say something but all the players are here and they have a chance. They could do a good job for West Ham."
Had Grant asked Sullivan and Gold for specific assurances that they would not take decisions without consulting him? "I didn't need it because he [Sullivan] said to me from the beginning: 'I am bringing you as a coach for the next years – I signed for four years – and we have plans. First year we will want this and then we will want to progress,'" Grant said. "Of course he said any decision about the players [is] your decision. For me it's obvious. It was all my life. I cannot agree for something else. I cannot work in a team that someone else will decide about the players and where it would not be my responsibility.
"All the football issues are my responsibility and I have the final word. I always said to the chairman, 'You hired me to do a football job. If you don't like it you can say to me stop.'"
Grant's first priority is to assess his new squad. While the former Portsmouth manager saw a second bid of £5m for West Bromwich Albion's Graham Dorrans turned down today, he hopes to keep hold of the England contingent of Parker, Matthew Upson and Robert Green.
In England's opening group game Green made a mistake from a Clint Dempsey shot that allowed the USA a soft goal and Grant said he has spoken to the goalkeeper. "I like it when I spoke to him. I spoke only about the future and what will happen. He looks very strong and very intelligent.
"I don't think it will have an effect on him. I can give examples, I was at the World Cup [final] in 2002 and I saw the goalkeeper [Oliver Khan] who didn't stop a ball that my daughter could stop. Germany lost the World Cup and after this he was still the best goalkeeper. This is the life of a goalkeeper. Even with a striker, you need to have a short memory. For me Robert Green is a great goalkeeper."
About Upson Grant added: "Any club, especially a club like West Ham, needs to do everything to keep a player like Upson. But also the West Ham fans deserve players who want to play for the club. I only want players who want to play."
Grant has received good luck messages from Portsmouth fans addressed to him at Upton Park. But he did admit that finances at West Ham, which is at least £100m in debt, are tight. "The economic situation is not too easy, not just for West Ham, but for other clubs," he added. "We have a vision in our club and I can tell you that our target not only for next season but for the following is progression.
"We want our own Academy to progress, attracting good players. We are moving to a new facility, which will be good for the club."
