Chris Lepkowski reacts to West Brom controversy as Ron Gourlay slammed by ex-Reading colleague
Chris Lepkowski believes Brian Tevreden has an “axe to grind” with Ron Gourlay after he heavily criticised the West Brom CEO for the job he undertook at Reading.
The Baggies chief worked with Tevereden during his time at Reading, where he was the club’s chief executive officer from 2017 to 2018.
Speaking on the 1871 Podcast (16 May), Tevereden slammed his former colleague and cited Gourlay as one of the reasons behind his decision to leave the club in 2018.
Taking to his personal Twitter account (17 May) to react to the comments, Lepkowski said: “Blimey. Somebody has an axe to grind.
“There is going to be inevitable damage limitation, so I take some of this with a pinch of salt.
“Other than his perseverance with Bruce, I have few complaints with what he’s done with us (on the face of it, at least).”
Worrying
Comments such as this about Gourlay will certainly worry West Brom fans – especially when considering the financial issues of the club at the moment.
It could just be a clash in personalities or Tevreden having an axe to grind, as Lepkowski suggested, but it still doesn’t instil confidence that he’s the man to help get West Brom back to the Premier League once again.
There can be no denying that Gourlay was the man to blame for the hiring of Steve Bruce at the club and his resistance to fire the Englishman for several weeks earlier this season.
When considering that the Baggies finished a mere three points off the Championship playoffs, a more proactive approach to ending Bruce’s time as manager could well have been decisive.
Thankfully, he rectified this poor managerial decision through the appointment of Carlos Corberan, with the Spaniard also penning a new long-term contract at the club.
The jury is still out on Gourlay, but these comments wouldn’t have done his reputation any good whatsoever.
In other West Brom news, the club have made a desperate attempt to rip fans off now the season has ended.