Wilkins hammers Payet over return to ´pathetic´ Ligue 1

Ray Wilkins has labelled Ligue 1 “pathetic” and claims West Ham should have stopped paying Dimitri Payet after he refused to play for the club.

Payet completed a transfer back to his former club Marseille on Sunday for a fee of £25 million, several weeks after the player indicated he no longer wanted to feature for the Hammers.

And Wilkins – who spent a brief spell at Paris Saint-Germain in 1987 – felt the Premier League side should have been more ruthless with the France international, having given the exciting playmaker an opportunity in what he considers to be a superior competition. 

“You shouldn’t have to pay players if they say they don’t want to play for a club,” the 60-year-old told Sky Sports News.

“West Ham have been so good to this guy. They pulled him out of a pathetic league in France and played him in the best league in the world. They gave him a stadium in which to play. 

“No doubt about it, he played well for West Ham but as soon as he made the statement he should have been struck off at the club.”