West Ham Scraps Plans to Hire Director of Football, to Give David Moyes Transfer Control
West Ham have ended plans to appoint a director of football, in favor of putting their faith in manager David Moyes. The Hammers boss will be handed control of transfer dealings and is due to be offered a permanent position at the London Stadium.
According to the Times, negotiations between Moyes and the club are due to commence once the Hammers are mathematically safe from relegation. West Ham are currently seven points above the drop zone with a game in hand on many of the teams around them.
Moyes was appointed as manager initially on a short term basis following the sacking of Slaven Bilic. The former Everton and Manchester United manager's deal at West Ham is up at the end of the season, but the club will hope that giving Moyes full control over transfer targets this summer may tempt him to stay on.
Moyes has already become increasingly more involved in the behind the scenes dealings at the club following the sacking of the director of player recruitment Tony Henry. In February, Henry was dismissed from the club following comments he made saying he would no longer sign African players.
It has already been made clear by Moyes that he would prefer to work without a director of football at the club. He has already taken a hands-on approach to transfers this season by personally recommending that West Ham sign striker Jordan Hugill from Preston North End in the January window.
The Hammers will need to strengthen in the summer if they wish to push on and fight for a place higher up the Premier League table. It would seem that the club believe Moyes is the man who can take them to that next level, with contract negotiations due to commence before the end of the season.
