Karren Brady on executives of the Premier League's big six clubs: "No wonder Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin called them snakes. At last Tuesday's meeting of the other 14 clubs, I can assure you they were called worse"
Saturday 24 April 2021 16:08, UK
West Ham vice-chairman Karren Brady says "trust has been vanquished" between the Premier League's breakaway 'big six' and the other 14 clubs.
Brady represented West Ham at last Tuesday's meeting of the Premier League sides not involved in the controversial European Super League breakaway.
She says criticism of the executives of those clubs at the crisis meeting was unanimous and passionate. While UEFA president Alexander Ceferin branded those involved as 'snakes', Brady insists the insults going round in the meeting were worse.
Writing for The Sun, Brady said: "I watched four of the six give apologies to their fans and players for being part of the money cartel and wondered where the apology was to their colleagues in the Premier League, as well as all our managers, players and fans.
"The crime was great. All six clubs pretended to be working for the best interests of the Premier League they were plotting to destroy. No wonder Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin called them snakes.
"At last Tuesday's meeting of the other 14 clubs, I can assure you they were called worse.
"So many can see that they have breached the chairman's charter - the rule that says executives and clubs have to act in good faith to one another.
"Trust has been vanquished. In future, how could my board ever ask one of them to represent the best interests of the PL and West Ham on a committee or working group?"
West Ham manager David Moyes joined the chorus of disdain towards the failed breakaway Super League and called for a unified British competition instead.
The Scot, who said he was "really disappointed" with Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal, and Tottenham for their involvement in the ill-fated ESL, added: "I think reform is needed.
"Change is needed in some way. I think the Premier League has a brilliant product, I really do, but at the top clubs you're talking about too many games, so could we have Premier League I and Premier League II?
"Could we have a situation where we do invite Rangers and Celtic to Premier League II? Why can we not unite the UK? Why do we have to be England and Scotland and not unite it?
By Kaveh Solhekol, Sky Sports News reporter
The officials at the six clubs who plotted the European Super League breakaway should be removed from their jobs, according to the other Premier League clubs.
The 14 teams not involved are calling on the owners of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham to "do the right thing" because they will never be able to trust or deal with their executives again.
Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has already resigned and the other clubs want more heads to roll because lines have not just been crossed, "but trampled all over".
"We had been told repeatedly that they weren't setting up a Super League so after what's happened this week, we simply can't deal with these people again," one chief executive told Sky Sports News.
"The owners of these six clubs need to find new people to represent them at Premier League meetings. They have to be replaced. Some of these people have more faces than the town clock.
"We all disagree (on things) and we all look after our own interests but there are certain lines which can't be crossed and so many lines have been trampled all over this week."
Despite the backlash, the owners of the majority of the 12 Super League clubs reportedly still think the European Super League is a good idea and are blaming each other and a poor communications strategy for why the breakaway failed.
Real Madrid and Barcelona are said to believe Manchester City had doubts about joining from day one, and that their unease and reservations quickly spread to the other English clubs.
"Lots of them still think it's a great idea," one Premier League chief executive said. "The only thing they're sorry about is that it's turned out to be such a disaster.
"They are blaming each other and blaming their PR people for failing to get their message across. If we're not careful they'll do it more professionally next time."
Chelsea told their supporters on Friday that the club regretted joining the short-lived Super League project that collapsed within 48 hours of being announced.
"As a club, we are committed to an open and regular dialogue with our fans and other stakeholders, but, on this occasion, regrettably, due to time constraints and confidentiality restraints, this was not achieved," Chelsea said in a letter to fans.
"We also recognise the sentiment that had been expressed about whether the ESL (Super League) relied strongly enough on sporting merit. We recognise we should have addressed these issues in advance of joining the group.
"The owner and board understand that involving the club in such a proposal was a decision we should not have taken. It is a decision we deeply regret."
The six would-be breakaway Premier League clubs attempted to "kill English football forever" and both punishments and new legislation must follow, Gary Neville told Sky Sports' Football's Civil War special show documenting a historic week for the game.
Neville said: "We nearly lost it, we nearly lost football in this country, in the way in which we've always known it which is fair and competitive. And we nearly lost our top six clubs from it. How can we be in that position ever again?
"Most of us would go along with a theory of an apology is acceptable. An apology is not acceptable in this instance, with regards to the six clubs. It can never be accepted, because last Sunday what they announced was the attempted murder of English football.
"They attempted to kill English football forever, and they would have done it if they could."
