From the Boardroom - David Gold

Gold
I am saddened by the recent revelations that Dimitri Payet wants to leave West Ham United.

We have met all of his requirements since he joined and we committed long-term to him when we gave him a new five-year contract back in February 2016, so this is hugely disappointing.

We have made it clear that he is not for sale and we want to see some loyalty from him, after Slaven, the players and all the fans have given him so much support.

We gave Dimitri the opportunity to play in the best league in the world when he wasn't in the France team and a platform that has helped him become one of the best players in Europe.

Slaven gave him the confidence to excel in the Premier League and he got back into the France team due to his impressive form at West Ham United.

He signed a long-term contract last year and we want him to honour that.

I know this news will come as a big shock to our fans, but knowing them like I do, I am sure they will do everything to get behind the team on Saturday and help us get back to winning ways.

We know we have still got work to do but I am confident that Slaven and the players will dig deep to get a positive result on Saturday.

We had a great result against Crystal Palace back in October and it was a great team performance.

It is never easy to play at Selhurst Park but the players showed all their quality to come away with the three points and I hope we will have a similar result this weekend.

We have some familiar faces coming back to the Club in James Tomkins and Sam Allardyce. We have always said that Sam did a great job during his time at West Ham and he helped us get back into the Premier League.

We will always remember that memorable win at Wembley in the Play-Off final and I will always have fond memories of seeing Ricardo Vaz Te scoring that memorable winner.

I know the fans will also show their respect to James Tomkins who was a great servant for West Ham United and played over 200 games for the Club.

This is a big London derby and there is so much at stake. We know the importance of coming away with all three points and I hope it will be an enjoyable weekend for everyone connected with the Club.

Enjoy the game.