West Ham plan to provide Manuel Pellegrini with record transfer funds

Pellegrini said he is targeting 'four or five' new signings to ensure no repeat of last season's relegation struggle

Manuel Pellegrini was confirmed as West Ham's new manager on Tuesday (Getty)

David Gold says West Ham United plan to provide new manager Manuel Pellegrini with more transfer funds this summer than in any previous transfer window.

Pellegrini was confirmed as Hammers boss on Tuesday and immediately targeted "four or five" new signings to ensure no repeat of last season's relegation struggle.

Gold and fellow joint-chairman David Sullivan have come under fire for a perceived lack of spending in the past, but the 81-year-old has promised to splash the cash with Pellegrini already putting together his wish list.

"He's working on it right now, that's why he's been brought in," Gold told talkSPORT.

"He's identified the positions he feels we need to strengthen, and it's up to him now to tell us the players and we'll do everything we can to bring them in.

"You can't put a figure on it because you don't know which players are going to leave and that will add to the kitty, but what I can assure everyone is we will probably spend more money in this window than we've spent in any window in the past."

Gold also revealed the door is not closed on a return to the club for veteran defender James Collins, who is out of contract.

Fans were angry to hear claims that Collins was informed of his release by email, but Gold insists he spoke to the popular Welshman after the last game of the season.

"You have to do that, what the league and the FA demand when you release a player is that you must send an email to the player and a copy to the Premier League and the FA," he added. "But I spoke to James after the last game.

"You can still bring James back. It's the manager's decision, we could re-employ James tomorrow. But I did speak to James on the basis that he might not be coming back, we had a conversation, so that's not quite true."

PA