West Ham United would like to clarify the club's position on agents' fees after stories in the media on Friday.
Following the club's relegation to the npower Championship at the end of the 2010/11 season, the Board decided on a clear strategy to attack the new season with ambitious and exciting singings capable of firing West Ham United back to the Barclays Premier League at the first attempt.
The Board and manager Sam Allardyce quickly set about recruiting high-quality Premier League players, who possessed the quality to return the club to the top tier of English football and then stay on once they were promoted.
The likes of captain Kevin Nolan, signed for an undisclosed transfer fee, Matt Taylor, Joey O'Brien and George McCartney were all recruited from the top division to aid the promotion push. The associated costs of recruiting Premier League players does mean that occasionally agents' fees do have to be paid out, although West Ham continue to campaign for a cap on such payments.
Although the club will always strive to keep these fees to a minimum, the reality is that agents are a part of the modern game and when high-quality signings are made, such costs have to be factored into the deal. The fees that West Ham United committed to pay last season would not stand out at a Premier League side, which was how the club viewed itself last season.
Attacking the Championship with high-profile signings was an ambitious strategy, but ultimately it was one that proved correct with the Hammers securing promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.