West Ham United legend Tony Cottee says the capture of Andy Carroll is one of the club's greatest transfers.

Carroll signed permanently from Liverpool last week.

"I'm absolutely delighted," he told whufc.com. "We've all been waiting patiently since the end of the season but I think it was clear from the start that Andy wanted to sign for the club.

"That was a real positive, that gave the Club great grounds for optimism in terms of signing him - it was always going to drag on a bit, there was a huge transfer fee involved when he went to Liverpool, but as a West Ham fan I'm delighted that he's signed.

"We saw some real quality glimpses from Andy last season and we can now look forward to him starting the season as a permanent West Ham player. It's a big signing for the Club.

"It's a massive statement of intent from the Board and they need congratulating for bringing a player of Andy's standing to the Club."