Trevor: On We Go

Trevor Brooking says he is glad that the question of the next manager of the club has been resolved - and is more than ready to lead the team for the next six games...

After the lawyers had their day in the high court on Thursday - meaning that Alan Pardew is not allowed to manage West Ham for a month - Trevor realised he was to remain in charge on a temporary capacity for another month.

"From my point of view I am only too pleased to carry on because I believe Alan will be the right person to take us on," he says with a smile.

"I am happy it has all been sorted out and Alan can relax a little bit more and look forward, I am sure, to mid-October.

"The only minus is risking the unbeaten record when I could have gone out on a high!" A high may not be exactly what Alan Pardew felt after the court's decision - he admitted here that he did not exactly get the outcome he wanted - and Trevor acknowledges that.

"It is one of those circumstances where it has been a difficult period, particularly for Alan in a limbo situation," he says.

"But it looks as if a deal has been done that satisfies both parties; I suppose Reading in particular will feel they have made their point by delaying the transition until mid-October.

"There are five league games and a cup game next Tuesday, but the league games for me are the big priority.

"The Wimbledon game away will probably be called off the week of the internationals which leaves us with Gillingham, Millwall on the Sunday, then midweek Palace at home, and Derby away.

"Then it is Norwich at home after a 10-day break before Alan's game on the Saturday which is Burnley at home.

"For me it is about trying to muster as many points as we can in those five games in the league so that when Alan does come in he is there or thereabouts near the top.

"Then there are 30-odd games to help us try and bounce back, which has always been the priority from the start of the season."

Trevor admits he is amazed to still be in charge, adding:

"It is freakish, really, and to be honest, if you had told me two or three weeks ago I would be managing the role for what will be nine league matches and a cup game I would have taken your temperature.

"I didn't envisage it going on for quite that length of time, but obviously you enjoy it and feel good about the fact that you manage to get the four wins.

"But more than anything it is the players that have really instilled a lot of confidence in the team, have a lot of belief at the moment, and are doing the business - it becomes enjoyable to help them move on from each game and try to sustain that run."

Finally, then, no more talk of persuading Trevor to change his mind about taking the job himself.

"There has been a lot of talk about the reasons for not wanting that full time commitment and obviously family has come into that discussion," he reveals.

"But they have been very supportive coming to the games and obviously they are keen West Ham fans as much as I am.

"They are being supportive about me carrying on and the time to look back on it all will be when it is done and Alan in charge."

Alan says he will not be making wholesale changes, recognising the work Trevor has done, and adds:

"I am sure he and I will work well together behind the scenes and I will be there if he wants any support or information or whatever, but he will be his own man as a manager.

"But I am sure it will be an easy transitional period because I know the type of person he is - and I am sure he will be looking forward to that first game."

Talking of Alan's qualities, he adds:

"He is very confident, ambitious, pretty decisive and knows where he wants to go; I think he will be a strong manager, but fair - all those positives we need.

"One or two are saying 'will he be all right in the Premiership?' but the fact is that we haven't got out of this division and our top priority is that.

"But I do believe he will be okay and with all those helping him let's worry about that when we are in that position.

"More than anything everyone tells us as a club when we were relegated in the summer 'you are going to have to bounce back in the first year because it gets harder after that.'

"I believe Alan will give us as good an opportunity as anyone to get one of those promotion places because that is the top priority in the next few months."

Trevor played a big part in the decision to bring Alan in, and he adds:

"I have been involved; his record at Reading was very good, he brought good people in, and a lot of them were frees who had played a lot of games.

"That record was very good for three seasons and I do believe he is the right person which is why I am happy that after eight weeks in this role it will be worth it to get the right person who I think can take us on."

As for the legalities of the case, he adds:

"I don't quite know the ruling and how strict and emphatic it is but it must be fairly strict.

"I assume he can come and watch all the games and that will be important because he will be able to gage what all that means, but generally speaking as to what the ruling is we will only find out in the next couple of days because it only happened on Thursday afternoon."

As for the relationship between West Ham and Reading in the light of the court proceedings, he says:

"I am sure it will be okay; I think Reading felt aggrieved and the chairman wanted to make his point, which they will feel they have achieved.

"It is a period of time, in the end, where it will become the best part of seven or eight weeks because Alan tried to resign the best part of a couple of weeks ago.

"The fact is, Kevin Dillon had a good win as caretaker manager in midweek against Cardiff; I don't know who will get the job but if he does and the continuity is there hopefully they can move on and who knows, it could be us and Reading that go up next spring."