OPINION
With four defeats under his belt as West Ham manager, many would think that Manuel Pellegrini would spend his international break trying to fix the problems that his Irons squad have in order to avoid battling relegation for the rest of the season.
Things have not looked good for the Hammers, with the joint most goals conceded and the joint least goals scored, and with a run of tough fixtures on the horizon, including against unbeaten Everton and Chelsea sides, their prospects do not look like improving any time soon.
Some in the media have already been calling for Pellegrini’s head, and while their opinions are a little premature, there is no doubt the Chilean manager – who the Times report is on £5million-a-year – is under pressure with his side propping up the table.
So why on earth has he been allowed to head back to South America when the club are facing an early season crisis?
The Times not only claim that the former Manchester City boss has surprisingly been allowed to leave on holiday for part of the mid-season break for internationals, but that the club also failed to include a break clause in his contract, meaning they have to fork out a full £15million to sack him.
These are not simply minor errors – they are mistakes which could be catastrophic for the Hammers’ season, especially if Pellegrini cannot kick his side into gear any time soon – and there needs to be a boardroom inquest into how such a scenario was allowed to occur.
Pellegrini, whether the holiday was pre-planned or not, should not have been allowed to head home with the club in such dire straits this season, and on £5million-a-year, it is not like he could not afford to cancel or rebook.
With just four players of the Irons called up for international duty, this would have been the perfect time for the manager to get his team working together in a bid to turn their fortunes around, but instead he is absent from training for his personal getaway.
As for the £15million cost of axing him, that falls to those who negotiated the contract, and they should have known it was a gamble taking on a new manager with practically a new squad.
A investigation needs to be launched and heads may well have to roll as a result – although it looks unlikely to be Pellegrini’s right now with how much it would set back the Hammers.