Socceroo stopper Lucas Neill has defended spurning Liverpool to make his move from Blackburn Rovers to West Ham.
And he insisted it was nothing to do with the money on offer - but was about new owner Eggert Magnusson's vision for the club.
"I know about his ideas now, but the majority of people out there don't,' Neill told the UK's Daily Telegraph.
"They can't buy into it because they've never heard the fairytale. But until we secure Premiership status, no one's going to see it.
"I just hope the whole of England gets to see it because his plans are unbelievable.
"And it would be great for football. It wouldn't be the same four teams at the top all the time."
With West Ham facing possible relegation after a disastrous last half of the season, Neill has been accused of simply selling himself to the highest salary to join the Hammers over Liverpool.
"I got the impression that I might have been a bit-part player[at Liverpool] - sometimes playing, often not," he revealed.
"I got that squad feeling, and it was a squad of 20, not 14. At 29 years of age, captain of my club and having missed four games a season for the last six years, to then go to playing only 10 or 15 games a season. . . is it what I really wanted?
"It's hard to justify my move at the moment because of our league position," Neill admitted.
"But I've bought into Mr Magnusson's dream and I really, really want to see it through."
He also denied that he was on a super salary that had caused friction with his new team-mates.
He insisted: "To be quite honest, the figures were way off the mark, which is unsettling for everyone else in the team.
"What I found was a lot of young guys frustrated by the way this season had gone compared to last.
"Some of them just need a little bit of guidance on the field. Off the field, I didn't see too much of the carry-on we've all read about. There wasn't a rift in the changing room, there wasn't an us-and-them situation, there weren't two groups.
"I suppose the manager and chairman just wanted to bring in more experience to sit in the middle of all that and guide them through the tough times. I could come in fresh and give a positive outlook. Hopefully that's starting to rub off."
But Neill confesses that if the Hammers do go down, he will jump ship elsewhere after a relegation release clause was included in his contract.
"There is something in the contract but it was actually the club that spoke about it first, rather than me suggesting it," he said.
"I've gone along with that but I don't want to bring that clause into play. I'd rather be in a position to go in and ask for a longer deal at the end of this season.
"This is definitely the hardest, worst position I've ever been in but I'm kind of licking my lips at the challenge. We could be mini-heroes if we keep West Ham in the Premiership now. So many people have written us off.
"The crowd had almost given up three weeks ago. Now we've given them hope again, given ourselves hope. There's everything to play for."
"I know about his ideas now, but the majority of people out there don't,' Neill told the UK's Daily Telegraph.
"They can't buy into it because they've never heard the fairytale. But until we secure Premiership status, no one's going to see it.
"I just hope the whole of England gets to see it because his plans are unbelievable.
"And it would be great for football. It wouldn't be the same four teams at the top all the time."
With West Ham facing possible relegation after a disastrous last half of the season, Neill has been accused of simply selling himself to the highest salary to join the Hammers over Liverpool.
"I got the impression that I might have been a bit-part player[at Liverpool] - sometimes playing, often not," he revealed.
"I got that squad feeling, and it was a squad of 20, not 14. At 29 years of age, captain of my club and having missed four games a season for the last six years, to then go to playing only 10 or 15 games a season. . . is it what I really wanted?
"It's hard to justify my move at the moment because of our league position," Neill admitted.
"But I've bought into Mr Magnusson's dream and I really, really want to see it through."
He also denied that he was on a super salary that had caused friction with his new team-mates.
He insisted: "To be quite honest, the figures were way off the mark, which is unsettling for everyone else in the team.
"What I found was a lot of young guys frustrated by the way this season had gone compared to last.
"Some of them just need a little bit of guidance on the field. Off the field, I didn't see too much of the carry-on we've all read about. There wasn't a rift in the changing room, there wasn't an us-and-them situation, there weren't two groups.
"I suppose the manager and chairman just wanted to bring in more experience to sit in the middle of all that and guide them through the tough times. I could come in fresh and give a positive outlook. Hopefully that's starting to rub off."
But Neill confesses that if the Hammers do go down, he will jump ship elsewhere after a relegation release clause was included in his contract.
"There is something in the contract but it was actually the club that spoke about it first, rather than me suggesting it," he said.
"I've gone along with that but I don't want to bring that clause into play. I'd rather be in a position to go in and ask for a longer deal at the end of this season.
"This is definitely the hardest, worst position I've ever been in but I'm kind of licking my lips at the challenge. We could be mini-heroes if we keep West Ham in the Premiership now. So many people have written us off.
"The crowd had almost given up three weeks ago. Now we've given them hope again, given ourselves hope. There's everything to play for."
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