Scott Parker is hoping to replicate the “warmth and love” he enjoyed as a player at West Ham after being appointed the club’s new head coach on Wednesday.
Parker succeeds Nuno Espirito Santo, who was sacked yesterday with the Hammers eighth in the Championship table and having suffered successive home defeats to promotion rivals Southampton and West Brom.
The 46-year-old has signed a two-and-a-half-year contract at the London Stadium and will be in the dugout for tonight’s game at Cardiff.
It is an emotional return to the capital for Parker, who made 129 appearances for West Ham as a player and was named Hammer of the Year three times as well as winning the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year award in the 2010/11 season.
He told the club’s official website: “It is a very proud moment for me to step into this role and return to a club that means so much to me and my family. A lot of very fond memories of my time here – four years of probably the best football I played in my career.
“There was a warmth, a love, a feeling that I probably didn’t have anywhere else. There was something which stood out constantly and that was the relationship that I built up with the fanbase here. That rapport and respect, that I felt instantly.
“More than anything, this is an opportunity that I am very excited about. I feel privileged and honoured to be the guy that wants to lead us back to the Premier League and be the head coach of this football club at this moment in time.
“My energy levels, my enthusiasm, my desire, my passion – it’s absolutely running through and that’s the feeling I had as soon as there was a conversation that this was possible. That’s exactly why I’m here and why I want to be here.”
Parker aiming for fourth Championship promotion with West Ham
Parker has experience of getting out of the Championship having achieved it with Fulham, Bournemouth and Burnley. He added: “I’ve been in this division three times and I’ve got out of this division three times. This is a tough division, there is absolutely no denying it. And I will use every ounce of my experience, every ounce of my knowledge, to have an understanding of what we’re going to need to bring consistency.
“And that’s going to be the key word for all of us really. The consistency of what we do and the commitment levels that we go to will give us the best opportunity to get out of this division and be the team that we can be.”
West Ham United interim CEO Karim Virani added: “We are delighted to welcome Scott and his family back to the club. He is someone who is held in high regard at West Ham United and throughout the game, and he was the unanimous choice of the board to become our new head coach.
“He has fantastic experience and pedigree across an outstanding playing and coaching career, a clear and proven track record of success as a head coach in the EFL Championship, and a deep understanding of West Ham United, its identity and our loyal and passionate fanbase.
“We believe that all of these factors together make him the right man to lead us forward and help the club to achieve our objectives this season and beyond. Scott has the complete support of everyone here and, from the conversations we have had with him already, we believe he will represent West Ham United and our supporters in a way that we can all be extremely proud of.”
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