In a major twist, West Ham had expected
to announce on Tuesday that Rafael
Benitez would then take over as their
manager. But it is understood that deal
has broken down after a dramatic
intervention by Real Madrid last week.
Real called Benitez, the former Liverpool
manager who is leaving Napoli, last
Monday to offer him the opportunity to
succeed Carlo Ancelotti, who is expected
to be sacked in the wake of last night's
final La Liga match of the season against
Getafe.
By last Tuesday, Benitez had told West
Ham that he was not going to be joining
them. The decision is a serious blow to
West Ham, but there appears to be no
chance that Allardyce will stay.
The 60-year-old, who is to fly out for a
short holiday in Spain, has already
received an intriguing offer to move into
international management by taking over
as the coach of Nigeria, even though the
current coach, Stephen Keshi, who has
endured a tumultuous time, recently
signed a new contract.
There is also understood to be a Premier
League club who are interested in
Allardyce. Although he would be keen to
remain in London he does not want to
return to the Championship, which rules
out Fulham, who have also shown an
interest.
Having lined up a deal to bring in Benitez,
West Ham are now considering their
options.
On their list of candidates have been Real
Sociedad coach David Moyes,
Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe,
former West Ham player Slaven Bilic, who
is leaving Turkish club Besiktas, and
former Swansea City manager Michael
Laudrup, whose coaching contract in
Qatar is also coming to an end.
Telegraph.co.uk
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