Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy's refusal to cut deal with West Ham over Emmanuel Adebayor stokes rivalry

Posted Wednesday, February 04, 2015 by Telegraph.co.uk

Emmanuel Adebayor to remain at Spurs despite interest from rival London clubs

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy's refusal to cut deal with West Ham over Emmanuel Adebayor stokes rivalry
Staying put: Emmanuel Adebayor was linked with moves to Queens Park Rangers and Crystal Palace but it was the proposed move to West Ham that sparked most controversy

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West Ham co-chairman David Gold has taken a swipe at Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy for refusing to allow Emmanuel Adebayor to move to Upton Park on loan.

Levy agreed to subsidise part of Adebayor’s £100,000-a-week wages for any club but West Ham, which eventually resulted in the striker staying put.

Adebayor turned down moves to Queens Park Rangers and Crystal Palace on transfer deadline day in favour of finishing the season at Spurs.

QPR were willing to pay £60,000-a-week towards Adebayor’s wages and Crystal Palace offered to contribute £70,000-a-week towards the player’s salary, with Levy prepared to accept either deal.

But Levy twice refused to subsidise any part of Adebayor’s wages for him to move to London rivals West Ham, with the Hammers prepared to pay half of the Togo international’s pay packet.

Gold expressed his frustration with Levy on Twitter by posting a series of messages that read: “Sorry for keeping you up late, but at the last moment the main deal collapsed and the rest folded like a pack of cards.

"I’d like to thank David Sullivan and Sam (Allardyce) for their efforts to secure new players during this window.

"However, no matter how hard you try, there are people out there that you just can’t do business with.”

The Adebayor saga has increased the bad feeling between West Ham and Tottenham, and, in particular, Levy and the Hammers board.

Levy has fallen out with West Ham on numerous occasions, most recently and most spectacularly over the Hammers’ winning bid to move into the Olympic Stadium ahead of Spurs.

On the subject of Adebayor, Levy told West Ham officials that he could not pay a player to appear in the claret and blue of Tottenham’s bitter rivals, particularly with the clubs only separated by six points in the Premier League table.

Tottenham head coach Mauricio Pochettino is now stuck with Adebayor for the rest of the season and faces the potentially difficult task of trying to keep him motivated.

Adebayor was granted compassionate leave earlier in the season and has since been booed by the Tottenham supporters. He has not scored for the club since October.

With his contract due to run until 2016, Spurs will try again to get rid of Adebayor in the summer.