West Ham deny asking Pardew to quit Reading

West Ham have denied encouraging Alan Pardew to walk out on Reading after the League Managers' Association called for an inquiry yesterday into his resignation as the Royals' manager.

The Hammers were twice denied permission to speak to Pardew about their vacant managerial post by the Reading chairman, John Madejski, who is refusing to accept his manager's resignation. But calls from the LMA chief executive, John Barnwell, for a Football League inquiry into West Ham's role prompted an angry response from the Hammers.

Scott Duxbury, the club's company secretary, said: "Mr Barnwell states the LMA is keen to uncover just how it became public knowledge that Alan Pardew's name was top of West Ham United's wanted list.

"The clear implication is that West Ham United made this information public in an attempt to induce Alan Pardew to breach his contract with Reading. This accusation is categorically denied. As the Football League rules require, West Ham United approached Mr Madejski directly and did not release publicly the fact it has made such an approach.

"It was Mr Madejski alone who chose to tell the world that West Ham United had made an approach for Alan Pardew."