West Ham Finance Director Quits

According to today's Sunday Mirror West Ham's finance director Nicky Igoe has quit West Ham after a boardroom row with Brown over the takeover deal fronted by Iranian-born businessman Kia Joorabchian.

According to the Mirror Joorabchian will announce tomorrow the name of the Israeli billionaire who is his main backer. If Joorabchian can prove his group's financial standing this week, the takeover could be finalised by the end of October.

The Israeli financier could well be football agent Pini Zahavi who is attempting to put together a £100 million fund to sign young footballing talent. The players will then be leased to clubs and the fund will retain ownership of their contracts. Already around 80 per cent of players in South America are partly owned by investors as well as the clubs they play for and it is rumoured this is the sort of arrangement that has seen Tevez and Mascherano join West Ham.