West Ham United legend Sir Geoff Hurst feels the club has been in decline since they sold out to the Icelanders.
Discussing the prospect of relegation and the expected firesale, Hurst wrote n his column for the London Evening Standard: "The loss of players like Parker, Matthew Upson or Robert Green would simply be one of the consequences of a long, slow decline that started at Upton Park when the former chairman Terry Brown sold out to an Icelandic consortium.
"Back then, West Ham still adhered to standards set down in the Ron Greenwood-John Lyall era when Bobby Moore, Martin Peters and myself helped the club enjoy a period of 20 unbroken years in the old First Division.
"The Hammers produced a conveyor belt of good youngsters and until a decade ago were regularly turning out players of the calibre of Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard, Joe Cole and Michael Carrick.
"Stability and caution underpinned the club but in the last 10 years we've had six different managers at Upton Park and relegation would almost certainly add the hapless Grant to that list.
"Furthermore, we've had bewildering transfer policies that have allowed the club to invest unrealistic fees and salaries in players like Kieron Dyer and Freddie Ljungberg."
