Premier League rivals West Ham and Manchester City have enjoyed a close bond for nearly four decades but now it’s in jeopardy.
Two clubs and sets of fans getting along is increasingly rare in the modern game.
So the special relationship between West Ham and Man City certainly stands out.
The Irons and Manchester City are two clubs very much of the working class.
West Ham don’t have a great deal in common with the Blue Moon Premier League title-winning machine nowadays.
Historically, though, the two club rivals have spent much of their existence living in the shadows of rivals.
Fans of both clubs celebrated one another’s European triumphs last summer.
And the love-in between West Ham and Manchester City fans when the Hammers lost 3-1 at the Etihad on the final day of last season to ensure Arsenal did not win the title, rattled a few cages in north London.
The bond actually dates back to a famous game between the Hammers and City in 1987.
It is perhaps quite apt that new West Ham head coach Julen Lopetegui and his compatriot Pep Guardiola are close pals too.
In the wake of the 115 charges and criticism from most rival fans, Man City supporters have found allies in most Hammers fans.
West Ham refused to take a stance against Man City when speaking to Hammers News about the situation between the champions and the Premier League.
West Ham blasts Man City ahead of meeting
“The Man City situation is a legal matter,” the top spokesman close to the owners told Hammers News last month.
“So we assume at the end all will be revealed?”
Now it seems the bond could be in jeopardy.
Because a West Ham chief has damaged one of the closest friendships in football with a Man City blast.
It’s fair to say Hammers vice-chair Karren Brady is not the most popular individual among the club’s fans.
Not least because she once infamously referred to them as “customers”.
Brady has, undeniably, done a superb job turning around West Ham’s financial situation since arriving in 2010.
The Baroness has few fans among the Hammers faithful, though.
One of the big – and many – reasons for that has been some of the content in her regular column in The Sun newspaper over the years.
Many West Ham fans hated seeing Brady regularly air the club’s dirty linen so publicly.
The vice-chair has eased off in that regard in recent seasons.
But now she may have just killed relations between West Ham and Man City forged nearly four decades ago.
Speaking in her latest column Brady says the likes of Man City ‘must be stopped from spending what they like’ or the Premier League is doomed.
Brady damages relations between Hammers and Man City
“Manchester City versus the Premier League feels like a boxing match, where at the end of the final round both fighters put their hands up claiming the victory,” Brady said.
“If the judges of this heavyweight bout were the public, then City would be clear winners. They not only have the world’s best team on the pitch but also have the best off it too
“The Prem needs a financial system to ensure that football is, remains and will always be competitive. The undiminished competitiveness of the Premier League is the envy of every other foreign league and club and the reason why our top-flight is the best in the world.
“No one wants it to become a competition between too few clubs, usually by the rich ones who can afford multiple multi-million transfer fees and top wages.
“So next week clubs have to agree to make the necessary changes to the APT rules to address the Tribunal’s concerns.
“This requires 14 votes — at least 14 clubs have to agree — or the whole system is thrown into chaos…
“It needs to be so that the system can continue to be effective.
“We must stop clubs spending whatever they like to get an unbeatable team and create an uncompetitive league.”
One look at social media shows many West Ham fans making it clear to their Man City counterparts that Brady doesn’t speak for them.
Some Hammers supporters will also feel Man City do need to be reigned-in, in accordance with the rules – regardless of the friendship between the two clubs.
This week should be very interesting indeed. But a rare and longstanding friendship may never be the same again.
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