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West Ham draws fans' ire after academy guru Tony Carr leaves

Avril Husband / West Ham United FC / Getty

West Ham United has felt the fury of its supporters after Tony Carr, the man responsible for schooling some of the finest players in the club's history, has been allowed to leave with an apparent derisory redundancy package.

The Sun's Alex Terrell estimates that the money collected from the sales of Carr's kids - a list which includes Frank Lampard, Michael Carrick, Joe Cole, and Rio Ferdinand - earned the club a £50-million profit, but after 43 years of service the former academy chief exits with a redundancy payout of just £14,000.

David Gold, co-chairman of the Irons, has been among those targeted with criticism after what appears as a limp fight to retain Carr and then subsequent inadequate farewell surrounding the 65-year-old's departure.

Gold extended his version of events in a further tweet:

Carr's fledglings showed no signs of slowing their ascent into first-team contention either. Reece Oxford burst onto the scene last season with a commanding opening day performance against Arsenal, and is reportedly subject to interest from Manchester City.

"I don't want things to end this way but the facts are as presented today," Carr is quoted in the London Evening Standard. "West Ham have been a way of life more than a job for me for more than 40 years and the last thing I want is to feel bitter about how things have ended.

"Yes, I did think that the offer made to me by the club was paltry but hopefully we can talk about this. I feel I have a lot more to offer the club."

The veteran West Ham stalwart grew up in the Bow district of London, and attended matches as a boy before failing to make the grade as a player. But the part-time coaching job he was offered in 1973 grew into an influence on the club that none could have foreseen.

The end of his term at West Ham coincides with the outfit's shift from Upton Park to the Olympic Stadium in Stratford.

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