Football Talk - West Ham takeover complete - 19/01/10
David Sullivan and David Gold have completed their takeover of West Ham and Sullivan has already confirmed that he hopes to take the Hammers into the Champions League.
"We're taking on a huge task at a club with enormous problems and it will take time for us to turn it around," Sullivan told BBC Radio 5 live. "We have short-term goals and long-term goals. In the short term, we want to stay in the Premier League and in the long term we would like to be challenging for the top four and Champions League football.
"There will be some transfer funds available to the manager this month. January is not the best time to buy players - you don't get many bargains in January - but the club has such an unbalanced squad, players will have to be bought, loaned or acquired.
"Myself and my partner David Gold will be honest with the fans about the books, the imbalance of the squad and the crazy wages the Icelandic owners paid out that has brought the club to its knees. But this is an important day for us. For 20 years, this is the club we wanted."
Sullivan and Gold have paid around £50 million for a 50% stake in the club, with an option to buy the other 50%. The source added: "All the money goes straight into the club." That will enable Sullivan and Gold to finalise at least two transfers immediately. It is understood that the new owners have had two signings in the pipeline for some time.
