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Tottenham chief Levy falls from perch as the capital's most popular chairman
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04 June 2008
Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has fallen from his perch as London's most popular chairman. Chelsea's Roman Abramovich and Fulham's Mohamed Fayed were also given a bloody nose by the supporters of their clubs.
Levy, Fayed, and Abramovich have all suffered slumps in their approval ratings over the last 12 months, according to figures revealed in the Evening Standard's London Football Report 2008.
Tottenham's Levy was the most popular club chief in last year's poll but his reputation has taken a battering following the bungled sacking of Martin Jol in October.
Watch out: Daniel Levy is no longer London's most popular chairman
The report was compiled by research company Football Fans Census, who questioned nearly 3,000 supporters, with a minimum of 100 from each club.
Fans were asked to assess the performance of their club's manager and chairman/board over the past 12 months and approval ratings were calculated using a sliding scale.
Fulham's Fayed is now the most unpopular chairman in the capital with his own fans after a season in which the club escaped Premier League relegation only on the last day.
The appointment of Lawrie Sanchez was blamed by many Fulham supporters for their miserable start and sacking him in favour of Roy Hodgson has not been enough to restore the Egyptian's standing.
Despite Abramovich investing £500million since his arrival at Stamford Bridge in 2003, support for the Russian's regime is also on the wane.
His lieutenants, chairman Bruce Buck and chief executive Peter Kenyon, oversaw the removal of Jose Mourinho and the promotion of Avram Grant -moves that have clearly tested their fans' patience.
Chelsea supporters' were the fifth most unhappy with the performance of their directors despite following a team that finished runners-up in the Premier League and Champions League.
While the natives are restless at Fulham, Spurs and Chelsea, there is a new mood of optimism at Queens Park Rangers.
Flavio Briatore has claimed the title as most London's most popular chairman which reflects the gratitude of the fans for rescuing the club from the financial abyss.
New money and personnel - following the F1 tycoon's takeover last September - have transformed QPR's fortunes after years spent struggling against the burden of long-term debts.
In second place is Crystal Palace's Simon Jordan who, despite a reputation for antagonising other football figures, is increasingly popular with Eagles fans.
The table below shows the ratings for the capital's chairmen and managers.
The big issues: how do you rate the performance of your chairman and manager?
The capital's favourite football manager among his own fans is Palace’s Neil Warnock, who gained an astonishingly high approval rating of 4.9 out of five.
The former Sheffield United boss took over from Taylor in October and masterminded a late-season charge culminating in a narrow play-off defeat by Bristol City.
Second is Arsenal's Arsene Wenger, whose popularity shows no sign of diminishing despite a third successive year without silverware.
But London's under-performing bosses need to tread carefully.
The bottom three in last year's manager ratings - Scott Fitzgerald of Brentford, Sanchez of Fulham and Peter Taylor of Crystal Palace - are no longer at those clubs.
Therefore Charlton's Alan Pardew, Watford's Adrian Boothroyd and West Ham's Alan Curbishley need to turn things around quickly at the beginning of next season.
Pardew was the worst-performing boss, according to the poll, with Charlton fans dismayed at the way their promotion challenge fell apart.
Like Charlton, Watford also failed to convert the advantage of Premier League parachute payments, and Boothroyd's methods were repeatedly questioned by Hornets followers.
Although West Ham won their relegation battle in 2006/7, fans were clearly unhappy that Curbishley's injury-hit side struggled to inspire this season, particularly in home matches.
Alan Curbishley
Adrian Boothroyd
Alan Pardew
A shift in the traditional rivalry at two of London's biggest clubs, Arsenal and Chelsea, revealed in last year's report is confirmed this time.
No longer do most Arsenal fans look down the Seven Sisters Road for the club they dislike the most, instead it's the nouveau riche of west London.
Thirty three per cent of Gunners opted for Chelsea compared to 28 per cent saying Spurs.
But the feeling is not mutual on the Kings Road, with 51 per cent of Chelsea fans citing Liverpool as the club they love to hate following repeated clashes in the Champions League.
Elsewhere in the city, most rivalries follow traditional lines though Leyton Orient have a new-found hostility towards Leeds following a couple of fiery League One encounters between the clubs.
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