(((Greg Barnes)))

Karren Brady delivered for West Ham United’s shareholders but not for the club’s supporters. In 2013, she promised fans “a world-class stadium with a world-class team”. West Ham currently have neither. They have an athletics arena with a team fighting relegation. Brady has done some good things in her 16 years at West Ham, during which they won a European trophy, but ultimately she will be remembered for letting the fans down. Her departure from West Ham, first reported by the Times and now confirmed by the club, is being celebrated by many fans. Sadly, some cross the line with their offensive comments about Brady. Supporters are quizzical about West Ham joint-chair Daniel Kretinsky’s statement about Brady leaving. “Her contribution to West Ham United’s growth, such as the long-term contract for the London Stadium, shareholders transition and the British record transfer of Declan Rice, has been absolutely essential and not always fully appreciated.” Much to unpick here... 1) how much growth? West Ham reported a £104.2m loss in their most recent financial figures. A club record. Revenue down. Accounts show a substantial loan taken out from Rights and Media Funding Limited. 2) London Stadium. Great deal for board and for Brady but not for fans, manager or the team. Not for anyone who loves football. Crowd distant from the pitch, players detached from energy of the fans, it's a terrible place to watch football. They’ve gone from a much-loved, intimate, often intimidating family home at Upton Park to a soulless bowl. West Ham had to leave Upton Park to expand commercially, and meet ticket demand, but grabbing the Olympic Stadium was all about the deal and not the feel. 3) British transfer record. Yes, Brady got a good deal for Rice but Kretinsky should know that mention of selling your best player, your captain, your home-grown star and England international at a club that cherishes them, seems a strange way of suggesting achievement and ambition. 4) “not always fully appreciated”? not always fully sensible to have a dig at fans. Maybe appreciate their concerns. Brady deserves some praise. She’s a pioneer, got things done, drove community initiatives (I hosted an event for her once and her knowledge of the issues and engagement were impressive). She also encouraged entrepreneurship (and not just on TV). Kretinsky, in his statement, adds that Brady is “also very highly appreciated in the Premier League leadership community and was an excellent representative of our club there”. Many West Ham fans didn’t feel she represented them well enough. Ill-advised comments in 2016 about a desire “to rebrand the club” didn’t go down well. Brady tried to clarify the comments but fans remained concerned about anything that could change their heritage. An attempt to limit ticket concessions triggered further anger. More widely, Brady’s criticism of the incoming Independent Football Regulator came against a backdrop of fans’ growing distrust of some owners and the leagues’ inability to police them properly. Read the room. Understand the concerns. The growing disconnect between West Ham fans and Brady and chairman David Sullivan has led to protests against the pair. Brady has now left. Will Sullivan follow? “1-0 up,” came the message from a high-profile West Ham fan. “It’s half-time.” #WHUFC

🚨🎙️ Wayne Rooney ; we all saw the red card given to Lisandro Martinez against Leeds United. Today, we witnessed a very similar challenge involving Bassey against Brentford, yet there was no VAR intervention and no call for the referee to review it.🔴 I was honestly waiting for VAR to step in, but nothing happened. At this point, it’s becoming hard not to feel like there is clear inconsistency when it comes to Manchester United. If the same kind of incident led to a red card before, why was this one treated differently? It raises serious questions, especially when United are fighting for a Champions League spot next season. This isn’t the first time, and it definitely doesn’t feel like the second. Decisions like this make it seem unfair, and many fans will understandably feel that the club is constantly being treated differently. The level of hostility towards Manchester United is becoming impossible to ignore.

Ally McCoist misreads Noussair Mazraoui's fine challenge and falls off his chair in the commentary gantry 😆 📺 TNT Sports and HBO Max

Harry Maguire getting an additional one-game ban for swearing at a ref after being sent off. Meanwhile, Rodri's ability to escape punishment on and off the field is unrivalled.

@LancsCCMG Really helpful. Thank you

@leighwright45 @MichaelRosenYes However did we manage when we could use a 12 month passport? It would be almost unusable the moment we stepped out of the Post Office!

@MichaelRosenYes You always had to have 6 months on your passport even when we were in the EU.

Ha! I’ve just been refused entry onto a plane from Stansted to Bologna because my passport issue date is March 2016. The expiry date is August 2026 but the rule is 10 years from issue date. Another Brexit benefit. Apparently. Go home now.

@AnnieEaves Don’t think he’ll be popping over to Greenland again anytime soon, despite what his bloated boss is pronouncing. They sussed him straight away.

JD Vance is a man built on projection of power. In essence, a bully. He’s tried to bully Europe, failed miserably. Tried to bully Hungary, similar. Tried to bully Iran, same. Being a bullshit artist can get you far in the US, but not out of it. He’s vastly out of his depth.

Outstanding

@DaveThroup @david55034076 Don’t be bringing facts into this, it isn’t the place. Great choice.

@david55034076 Haven’t bought it as an investment david. Just lost 75% of value of my old ICE car in 4 years.

Taken the plunge. Gone electric. Never been an early adopter, but time feels right (even without the Trump effect). Early reaction, one week in - what an incredible piece of engineering.

@StateDept When those bases become a liability for the host countries because of the illegal activities of the USA, then perhaps it’s time they were vacated.

SECRETARY RUBIO: NATO wasn’t just about defending Europe, but allowing us to have military bases in Europe for our national security. If we’ve reached a point where the NATO alliance means that we can’t use those bases to defend our interests, then it’s a one-way street.

@afneil @TimesRadio It’s not often I find myself agreeing with much of what you say, but I’m with you on every single word here. Let the retreat begin. Still, all that money from skewing the markets for insider trading. Shameless

My monologue on The Times at One with Andrew Neil on @TimesRadio on Trump’s War: Donald Trump woke up this morning to tell Britain to open the Strait of Hormuz without US help and to ‘start learning how to fight’ for ourselves because America ‘won’t be there to help you.’   Well, we learned how to do that in 1940, Mr President, when your country was nowhere to be seen and only Britain stood with its Commonwealth allies to defend civilisation against the greatest evil the world has ever seen.  For those of you wondering if the Atlantic Alliance still has a future, you can stop wondering. As long as Trump is in the White House clearly it doesn’t.  Meanwhile Trump’s Secretary of State Marco Rubio is impatient with media criticism that the aims of Trump’s War are confusing and uncertain. So yesterday on American TV he helpfully listed them. Write them down, he advised, implying this was the definitive list. So I did: 1. The destruction of Iran’s air force 2. The destruction of their navy 3. The severe diminishing of their missile launching capability 4. The destruction of their factories Which is clear enough — except that it’s not the list with which President Trump started the war. That list clearly included regime change and the end of Iran’s ability to develop nukes.  They didn’t make Secretary Rubio’s list. Nor did the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.  There is further cause for concern. IF Rubio’s list is now the definitive one, then Trump could claim war aims achieved, victory declared even with Iran still in control of the Strait of Hormuz, still able to develop a nuclear arsenal.  Not quite the victory anybody envisaged.  Yet that may well be the route we’re now going down. Late last night in Washington we discovered that Mr Trump was telling aides he WAS prepared to end the war even if the Strait of Hormuz was still closed.  That opening it would prolong the war beyond his deadline. That it was up to the Europeans and the Gulf States to take the lead in opening it because they needed it more than America.  Well, thanks a lot Donald. You start a war without consulting your allies, you change your war aims more often than Keir Starmer performs U-turns and now you talk of ending it, leaving us to hold the baby. Just great.  This matters. Because the longer the Strait of Hormuz is closed the more the global economy faces something close to catastrophe. 1/2

@atrupar The consequences of slagging off and threatening to invade allies are becoming ever more apparent.

Hegseth: "The president was clear this morning in his Truth that there are countries around the world who ought to be prepared to step up on this critical waterway as well. Last time I checked there was supposed to be a big bad Royal Navy that could be prepared to do things like that."

Don’t say it lightly. The BEST phone in guy ever. I joined Key 103 in 2000 “Baby,they are all Cheshire wankers, wouldn’t know Moss Side from Knutsford” loved 3 pints before, during and after. I was so happy when I listened to JS with someone out of the area. Simply the very best

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on behalf of Donald Trump, expressed regret that the Saudi authorities signed defense agreements with Ukraine without consulting the United States, which had been Saudi Arabia’s main ally. In response, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman noted that the U.S. had failed to fully protect the Kingdom from Iranian strikes, and therefore Saudi Arabia made a decision that could quickly strengthen its defense capabilities. The Crown Prince also stated that his country will continue to be guided by its own national interests when making decisions regarding its defense. This was a slap in the face to Trump from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in response to Trump’s crude and scandalous public statement that “…now let the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia kiss my ass and be polite to me from now on.” Thus, Trump’s reckless and irresponsible remarks have effectively put U.S.–Saudi relations on pause. The Saudi Crown Prince proved to be more diplomatic than the American president and, notably, did not respond to Rubio by saying that Trump should “kiss my ass” and behave politely toward him in the future 😉

@terrychristian @1990sUtd Spot on Terry. He was an absolute pioneer.

James Stannage death is such a sad thing. He was the true pioneer of the late night phone in. Many of my fellow Mancunians enjoyed his later stints on Piccadilly Key 103 but when he fiest came on Piccadilly Radio around 1975 - 11pm -2am he was a phenomenon. Every kid in Greater Manchester got a little transistor radio with that tiny one bud headphone for Xmas 1975 to listen to his show in bed under the covers. Discussing what was said - bleary eyed at school the next day . A true radio legend and the man who put Piccadilly radio on the map and made it special at that time.

The £9bn car finance mass redress scheme's just been CONFIRMED. This is Martin’s instant help video on how to complain, & what if you already have complained, to see if you're due an AVERAGE £830 (some get more some get less) Free complaint tool: moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/reclai…

Lovely Manchester to Liverpool in two minutes. Enjoyed this.

Geoff was the loveliest man. He was so proud of Rob. God bless you Geoff 💙

Every club needs to be doing this.

If you are a passionate Lancashire CCC Member your voice is the HEARTBEAT of this great club. Do not allow it to be SILENCED!           VOTE AGAINST ALL 7 Resolutions proposed by the Board at the SGM on 9 April.