West Ham antes up for Hartson
Poor club finally pays big money for Welsh star
Posted: Friday January 15, 1999 12:50 PM
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Hartson shouldn't expect superstar treatment despite being easily Newscastle's most expensive acquisition Ben Radford/Allsport |
LONDON (AP) -- John Hartson moved from West Ham to Wimbledon in a
7.5 million pound ($12.5 million) transfer deal on Friday.
While the tall, 23-year-old Welsh international was signing for
the fifth highest transfer fee between English clubs, Hartson's new
Wimbledon teammates, known as the Crazy Gang because of their wild
behavior, hung his tracksuit outside the locker room window and set
fire to it.
Wimledon owner Sam Hammam said it was the sort of traditional
welcome the players are famous for and would remind Hartson he
would get no superstar treatment despite being easily the club's
most expensive acquisition.
Hammam's team, often criticized for its crude style of long-ball
tactics, repeatedly aiming high crosses to its tall, muscular
strikers, has climbed to sixth in the standings and is targeting a
place in next season's UEFA Cup.
Hartson said he needed the move.
"My career wasn't going forward at West Ham," he said. "I was
flying when I first went there and, if you ask [West Ham manager]
Harry Redknapp, he'll probably say the same.
"I haven't been firing on all cylinders and I haven't been
getting a lot of chances. I got left out of the West Ham team and I
didn't have a lot of complaints really.
"I want to make a fresh start and I'm just delighted Wimbledon
have come up with the money to get me here. It was obviously going
to take that much money to get me away because tha's what West Ham
thought I was worth," said the striker, who moved to West Ham from
Arsenal for 5 million pounds ($8.35 million) three seasons ago.
"I broke a trnsfer record when I went [from Luton] to Arsenal
and again when I went to West Ham and again today."
Until this transfer, which will be paid by instalments, the club
has never been able to compete with the big spenders. It has a
following of only 7,000 fans and doesn't even own its own stadium.
It shares Selhurst Park with division one Crystal Palace.
"My attitude is always to try to be stronger than we were the
day before. It's as simple as that," Hammam said.
"In a couple of years time we hope to achieve the aim of being
in the top three. I think it's near impossible. I don't think we
will succeed but we are going to have a go at it.
"Hartson's an addition to make Wimbledon stronger and that's
it. The money is not an issue at all. It's football. We are a
football club. I am not a city man or a yuppie, I'm a football
man," Hammam said.
"We've got Hartson and the reason we've got him is to augment a
large number of players who are at least the equal of him.
"Ben Thatcher, Kenny Cunningham, Dean Blackwell, Michael
Hughes, Jason Euell and Carl Cort are all in that category. We've
got Hartson to try to complete the bouquet."
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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