KEN Anderson says he had “no alternative” but to sell Zach Clough to Nottingham Forest last week.

The Wanderers chairman admits some of the disappointment felt at the striker’s exit was understandable, given his previous statement that the club would not cash in on its young stars.

But in a statement released on the official website he insisted the decision was unavoidable, given the club’s financial situation at that point.

“There have been some comments on social media sites and in the press about the sale of Zach Clough last Tuesday, which are fully justified and are only to be expected bearing in mind my previous comments about him and Josh Vela,” he said.

“As previously stated, I am having to make some very difficult and unpleasant decisions to try and achieve a sustainable business plan for the club and hotel going forward.

“Obviously, like everyone else, I was extremely disappointed to see Zach leave, but Nottingham Forest were very persistent in their pursuit of him and after rejecting their initial approaches, the ever increasing sums of money being offered to both Zach and the club, I had to weigh up the financial benefits for the club of selling him and regrettably, following Dean’s refusal last week to contribute any funds to financially support the club, alongside me, I was left with no alternative but to try and reach the best deal possible with Forest.

“Over a number of calls and many hours of negotiations to ensure that we got a substantial portion of the fee paid immediately with further bonuses and a future sell on fee, I reluctantly agreed for Zach, his father and agent to meet with them.

“I would mention that despite all the comments made by people who have no knowledge of what the fee was, or how we were selling off the 'crown jewels ' Forest were the only club who made an offer.

“Furthermore, at no time did Zach ever put any pressure on the manager, or me personally, to let him leave. However, Zach's departure has greatly helped the club’s current financial position and also gave us the ability to freshen up the squad and bring in a number of players which also gives us other options, in the style of play, we now have and hopefully will help us achieve our target of promotion this season.

“We all have a great deal to thank Zach for, both on and off the field, and I feel sure, like me, you wish him all the best for the future.”