Hammers loan move will help Bellion improve, says Ferguson

John Chambers

West Ham yesterday signed the 22-year-old on a season-long loan as talk of a takeover at the east London club grew.

Bellion made only 40 first-team appearances and scored nine goals in two seasons at United after they bought him, via a transfer tribunal, from Sunderland for £2 million.

Ferguson said: “It is similar to Keiran Richardson (who went on loan to West Brom last season). He needs match experience.

“Playing in the Premiership will be very beneficial to him and I’m sure he will come back to Manchester United a better player.”

Bellion was touted as one of the hottest properties to come out of France when Sunderland signed him on a Bosman free transfer from Cannes in 2003.

But United snapped him up a year later after he refused to sign a contract at the Stadium of Light, and Sunderland chairman Bob Murray accused the Old Trafford giants of going behind his back to sign the player.

“David is in the same mould as several other young players we have developed in recent years,” Hammers boss Alan Pardew said.

“The club has enjoyed outstanding success with players like Matthew Etherington, Nigel Reo-Coker, Anton Ferdinand and Mark Noble.

“David is 22 and will reinvigorate the right-hand side of our attack and give me a whole new set of options. He is the sort of player that can break a deadlock with his pace as he is without question one of the quickest players in the Premiership.

“We are not in the position to compete financially with Chelsea and Manchester United yet, but step by step, we’re rebuilding West Ham into a club that can compete with the best.”

That aim received a boost from the comments of Kia Joorabchian, the Iranian-born, head of London-based consortium Media Sports Investment, who gave notice of a bid for the Hammers earlier this month.

Joorabchian yesterday said he has not made a bid yet but it is only a matter of time.

“My West Ham project has to be worth around £200m,” he said.

“That’s £45m on buying the club, £30m on its debts, another £30m on keeping the cash-flow going and around £100m on new players.

“There is no point in buying West Ham unless you are going to turn them into one of the top teams in the country.

“There is huge potential there and at one point we are going to make a bid, although at the moment we have not done anything.”

However, he warned: “There is still a possibility it could be a Premiership club other than West Ham.”