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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
Dom Smith

'Grow up!' Charlton co-owner Charlie Methven accuses Crystal Palace and West Ham of stalling EFL funding deal

Charlton co-owner Charlie Methven has hit out at Crystal Palace and West Ham and accused the two clubs of stalling a funding deal between the Premier League and the EFL.

At a meeting on Monday, Premier League clubs refused to back a proposed £900million payout package to fund the rest of English football.

Clubs instead prioritised reform to their own spending rules and Methven has accused Palace and West Ham of “narrow self-interest” and told them to “grow up”.

Methven told talkSPORT: "There are a few Premier League clubs that are holding the industry back and are driving the rest of the industry mad for only thinking of their own short-term, narrow self-interest. Frankly, everything else is just noise.

“It's on record that Palace and West Ham are leaders of this King Canute-style movement. It's not yet a matter of public record which clubs they've persuaded to be in their corner.

“If you speak to executives from other clubs in the Premier League, they are almost as frustrated as we are. They know because they see a bigger strategic vision of what will happen with the public regulator.”

Methven added: “I would ask them to grow up. Remember that these clubs, the clubs they run, were very recently Football League members and the fact that in a game of musical chairs they are in the seats they are currently at.

“It doesn't mean that at some point their clubs won't be back in the Football League.”

West Ham did not comment when approached by Standard Sport. Crystal Palace and Charlton have both been contacted for comment.

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