West Ham United plan to pay their next manager just £4,000-a-week if they are relegated this season.

Hammers must shell out £3million to get rid of Gianfranco Zola and his No 2 Steve Clarke.

Zola earns £1.8m a year but owners Sullivan and David Gold will only hand his replacement a £200,000-a-year deal - one of the lowest in the Championship.

An Upton Park insider told The Sun: "Relegation would be a financial disaster and the owners will not have players nor the manager on Premier League wages.

"Remember, we'll be up against Doncaster and Scunthorpe - not Manchester United or Chelsea."

Even if Hammers stay up, there is little hope for Zola. The insider added: "The defeat at Liverpool has bitten viciously because of the manner in which the team surrendered."