WHUFC.com
Carlton Cole and Zavon Hines are with their national teams but James Collins
and Valon Behrami are not
10.02.2009
Several West Ham United players are on international duty this week with a
midweek round of fixtures across the globe. All of the West Ham United
internationals will be in friendly action on Wednesday with the exception of
captain Lucas Neill who has a World Cup qualifier on the same day. James
Collins (Wales) and Valon Behrami (Switzerland) have stayed behind at
Chadwell Heath for treatment on minor knee and hamstring troubles
respectively.
England
Carlton Cole, called up alongside Robert Green and Matthew Upson, is in line
for his first England cap against Spain in Seville. Upson has been capped 12
times with one goal while Green's solitary cap came in May 2005 as a
second-half substitute in a 3-2 friendly win against Colombia. The trio all
trained in Seville on Tuesday evening under the watchful eye of Fabio
Capello.
Of Cole, Capello said: "He gets better and better every game. His movement,
his strength and his movement without the ball impress me. When he is in
front of goal he has to be calmer. Sometimes he is too fast and he wants to
shoot too quickly, but he is good at the moment. He is young, he is
interesting."
Jamaica
Zavon Hines could make his international bow after being called up by
Jamaica for the friendly against Nigeria to be played in south London.
Hines, 20, has returned to fitness recently after a knee injury and will
hope to impress new Reggae Boyz manager John Barnes.
Czech Republic
Radoslav Kovac was an unused substitute against Manchester United but should
figure for the Czech Republic when they face Morocco in Casablanca. Kovac,
who arrived at the Boleyn Ground on loan until the end of the season from
Spartak Moscow last week, will hope to earn his 29th cap.
Australia
Lucas Neill is the only player on competitive duty with the Socceroos facing
a 2010 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifier round four match against Japan in
Yokohama. The 30-year-old captain is expected to win his 47th cap. Australia
go into the match sitting top of Asian Group A, two points ahead of their
hosts and on course to go to the finals in South Africa next year.
Wales
Jack Collison may figure for Wales against Poland, with the match to be
played in Vila Real, Portugal. Central defender James Collins, who has
scored once in 27 games for his country, was also named originally, but has
withdrawn from the party. Collison has earned three caps since making his
debut in Iceland last summer.
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Spence loses out
WHUFC.com
West Ham United defender Jordan Spence was part of the England Under-19 side
beaten by Spain
10.02.2009
West Ham United defender Jordan Spence was unable to stop England's Under-19
side falling to a 3-0 friendly defeat to Spain on Tuesday.
The 18-year-old, who is currently enjoying a loan spell at League One Leyton
Orient, lined up alongside Arsenal's Jack Wilshere, Everton's Jack Rodwell
and Dan Gosling, Aston Villa's Nathan Delfouneso and a host of other future
Premier League stars.
A bumper crowd of 8,202 turned out at Bournemouth's Dean Court stadium, only
to see Brian Eastick's team soundly beaten by a skilful Spanish outfit, who
scored through Iago Falque, Jordi Pablo and substitute Raul Ruiz.
England's misery was complete late on when replacement Andrew Tutte of
Manchester City was sent off for a challenge on Ruiz.
The Young Lions will hope for better fortune when they return to action in
the European U19 Championship Qualifying Elite Round in late May and early
June, when they face Scotland, Slovakia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
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Cowling: We`ve Won Walker Signature
Vital Football
Colchester`s Jimmy Walker, loaned from West Ham, will start in goal for
tonight`s Tranmere game. This is despite the prolonged confusion over the
35-year-old`s contract negations and the expiry of his old deal last
weekend. Vital Football had previously reported the fiasco, which U`s boss
Paul Lambert said made him, "an angry man." To read the report, click here.
Now, United`s owner Robbie Cowling had joined the calls for Walker to sign
full-time. He explained last night to the local media that the player has
indeed immediately signed an extended contract once more. "We are still in
communication with the Football League at the moment, with regards Jimmy
Walker," said Mr. Cowling in today's East Anglian Daily Times. United say
they had previously submitted a request to keep the stopper for longer than
three consecutive months, having agreed a move in principle with the
Hammers. But the League are rejecting that claim, hence the mix-up over
Walker`s future. "Negotiations at the time were difficult and we did not
receive the paperwork back from Jimmy Walker until ten-to-five, giving us
just 10 minutes before the transfer deadline," he explained.
Cowling has said he believes the club met the deadline, which should have
afforded them to another 24 to 48 hours to tie the agreement, under special
dispensation granted to all English teams by FIFA because of the recent
difficult weather conditions. "We had initially explored all avenues with
regards Jimmy, and in the end we decided to sign him on a standard loan
until the end of the season." It means that Walker can continue his
impressive form as Colchester mount an impressive League One promotion-push.
Cowling added: "As a fall-back, we have signed him for the third month to
take him up to the 93 days. The situation has been confusing, but we are
still hopeful that we have signed him until the end of the season."
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PREMIER LEAGUE - WEST HAM, WALES
COLLISON: ZOLA IS TURNING ME INTO A PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYER
ComeOnBoro.com; Tue 10 Feb 2009
Wales youngster Jack Collison credits his West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola as
the man who is turning him into a Premier League player. And Collison, 20,
admits he would hate the thought of the Italian leaving the Boleyn Ground.
Collison will win his fourth Wales cap on Wednesday in the friendly
international against Poland. It is another mark of the impressive progress
that Collison has made this season under Zola's guidance, with a starting
role in the last 10 West Ham matches. Zola has been linked with the Chelsea
job this week following the departure of Luiz Felipe Scolari from Stamford
Bridge. And although it now looks as if Chelsea are set to turn to Russia
boss Guus Hiddink, Collison has made it clear he wants Zola to continue
helping him improve. Collison, talking to BBC Radio Wales, said: "The boss
has been doing one-on-one tuition with me and I am learning from him all of
the time. "There's no better player for me to learn from, he was one of the
best." Collison added: "Gianfranco going is the last thing anyone at West
Ham wants. "He has given us a confidence, he comes into training with a
smile on his face and he wants us to enjoy playing football. "Gianfranco has
come in and put a real buzz into the place and no-one wants him to go, he is
a really good young manager and things are going really well at West Ham at
the moment. "People may be a little surprised by his impact at West Ham but
he played at the very highest level and played under some top managers."
Collison could have gone to Peterborough on loan last year, but claims his
improvement is thanks to private training sessions with Zola. "I am a little
bit surprised to be a regular, as at a club like West Ham it is hard to
break through. But I've managed to keep my place and want to push on."
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Noble delighted as Hammers hold on to Zola
Sport.co.uk
Author: Nigel Brown
Posted on: 10 February 2009 - 8:57 PM
Mark Noble reckons West Ham have pulled off a managerial masterstroke by
keeping Gianfranco Zola away from the clutches of London rivals Chelsea. The
Hammers boss was heavily linked with a return to Stamford Bridge following
the sacking of Luiz Felipe Scolari along with assistant and former Blues
team-mate Steve Clarke.But Noble believes the east London club are on the
verge of a successful new era under the Italian and says Zola must remain at
West Ham if any progress is to be made. "The manager and Steve Clarke have
been a great asset to the club," Noble said. "I think we look so much more
solid now and it's about time that we were able to compete. I'm only 21 and
I've already seen a lot of managers come and go but the way the boss and
Steve bounce off each other really works. "Steve has been in the game for so
long and you respect the manager for who he is and what he has done." He
added: "They complete each other in a way and they really get their point
across and they know exactly how they want to play. "The manager came in and
put so much belief in everyone that they have so much talent and they go out
and play freely. "You listen to him when he talks to you and he builds that
confidence inside of you to go out there, try your best for him but put a
smile on his face and enjoy it."
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Clubs mull quota system
9:36pm Tuesday 10th February 2009
Echo
PREMIER League clubs are considering a quota for a minimum number of
'homegrown' players in their squads in a bid to stave off attempts to impose
spending controls. Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry has revealed the 20
clubs discussed the move at a meeting last week and there was consensus over
the general principle. The move comes as the European Clubs' Association, of
which Parry is a board member, today shelved a proposal for clubs in UEFA
competitions to be limited to spending a maximum of 50% of their turnover on
wages. Clubs in the Champions League and UEFA Cup are already obliged to
have eight homegrown players - of any nationality, but who have spent three
years under the age of 21 at the club - in their 25-man squads. Parry,
speaking in Geneva, said: "It was discussed at the Premier League last week
after being put up by the Premier League board. "We have not accepted a
figure, just the principle that some minimum limit of homegrown players
makes sense. "For those of us in the Champions League we could introduce it
now and it wouldn't be an issue. Indeed the Premier League did produce an
analysis which showed that actually a lot of the clubs would not have too
much difficult complying. "It will certainly be given more consideration,
it's a way off being decided but it was certainly a constructive
discussion."
The Football League have already agreed that from next season at least four
out of the 16 players in matchday squads have to come through the ranks of
clubs in England and Wales. Other proposals being considered by the Premier
League include giving financial incentives to clubs to use academy products,
but the 'homegrown' rule looks the most likely. It will also allow clubs to
argue they will bring more players through the ranks rather than spending
big on established stars. Parry said the Premier League's discussions have
come in response to pressure from the Government, UEFA president Michel
Platini and FA chairman Lord Triesman for top-flight clubs to create a more
level playing field and reduce debt. He added: "We are aware that there is
concern at Government and FA level and what we have to do is engage in that
debate and be part of the solution. "They want to see something, as does
Michel Platini, so it's about not being completely negative and isolationist
about those ideas that do have merit and perhaps being in step with Europe
rather than being completely out of step."
The clubs will return to the issue at their summer meeting in June when a
range of options on encouraging youth players will be put to chairmen. A
Premier League spokesman said: "There has been an ongoing discussion about
raising the standards of youth development and progressing academy players
but no definitive policy decision has been taken."
Parry said that the 93 member clubs of the ECA who turned up for today's
general assembly viewed a 50% turnover-wages limit as a "blunt instrument".
He said: "The debate on should we just have a simple 50% limit on turnover
threw up all sorts of issues such as does that mean the big clubs stay big
and the small ones never have a chance to catch up? "Does it mean that clubs
in countries with different tax regimes suffer? "A lot of clubs felt it is a
bit of a blunt instrument and maybe the debate over young players is a
better approach. "What we in England don't want to see is a dumbing down and
be penalised for the success we have achieved."
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Pompey switch could cost Curbishley millions
Matt Scott The Guardian, Wednesday 11 February 2009
Alan Curbishley's hopes of a return to management with Portsmouth could cost
him millions in compensation as he battles West Ham United for a payout.
The Upton Park club must file their defence this week in a case brought by
Curbishley to a tribunal that has been arranged through the Premier League.
Curbishley is aware that if he takes up a job it could have a material
effect on the size of any award the three-man tribunal might rule in his
favour. But employment law also obliges him to be available for work while
the tribunal deliberates, and that means he must make efforts to get a new
job.
West Ham are confident the tribunal will rule in their favour, arguing that
the former Charlton Athletic manager resigned from his position
unilaterally. Curbishley, who is claiming two years' salary totalling £3m,
alleges that he was not accorded sufficient control over transfer matters
and that this amounts to constructive dismissal.
The case will swing on minutes of board meetings held to discuss transfer
business. A provisional date for the hearing has been set for April or May,
meaning that, if Curbishley does take up the Portsmouth position, legal
argument could intrude on his preparations in the club's end-of-season
run-in.
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West Ham No1 Green happy with England recall
11.02.09 | tribalfootball.com
West Ham United goalkeeper Robert Green is pleased with his England call-up.
He told whufc.com: "It's good to go. I'll go there, train hard and see what
happens with the game on Wednesday. My name is first on the squad list but I
think that's an alphabetical thing! Seriously, though, I wouldn't go if I
didn't see it as an opportunity. It's another chance to show the manager and
his staff what I can do and hopefully give myself a chance. "There are
three West Ham United players [Green, Matthew Upson and Carlton Cole] in the
squad and two Manchester United players [Rio Ferdinand and Michael Carrick]
- both of whom are former West Ham players - and it is recognition of the
form that the lads have been in here."
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2012 Olympic Stadium to house school after Games
Reuters - Yesterday, 19:46
FourFourTwo.com
LONDON - The 2012 Olympic Stadium will house a school rather than a Premier
League club after the Games under legacy plans for the 500 million pounds
($740 million) venue, London Mayor Boris Johnson said on Tuesday. "In the
end there were insuperable obstacles with the shape of the stadium," he told
reporters at the launch of a detailed masterplan for post-2012 which
includes building 10,000 new homes and creating 10,000 jobs in east London.
"It would also have cost far, far more in the end to create a stadium
suitable for Premier League football even if there had been a Premier League
football team willing to come to the table. In the end there wasn't. "And if
you look back at our negotiations with West Ham United maybe we were lucky
not to get too far down that track," he added. West Ham, whose Icelandic
owner has been hit hard by the global banking crisis, did initially express
an interest in moving to the Olympic Stadium after the Games but were put
off by the requirement to retain an athletics track. Johnson said the idea
of a lower league footall club or rugby club using the stadium had not been
totally discounted. "If a club came forward with a coherent plan, of course
we would consider it," he said. When Johnson was elected last year he was
critical of the lack of a blueprint for the legacy use of the 9.3 billion
pounds Olympic Park and surrounding areas and appointed a board of advisers
to maximise its use. As well as a sport's academy for 400 secondary school
pupils inside the stadium, there are plans for the English Institute of
Sport and a National Skills Academy to be based there. Johnson said the
stadium, which will be scaled down from it's 86,000 Olympic-capacity, will
host international athletics events as well as other sporting events and
concerts. Olympic Minister Tessa Jowell said she hoped the Olympic Park
project would become a "hub for sport in London" and act as "a magnet for
business and investment".
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England by the numbers
By Dominic Raynor
Soccernet
February 10, 2009
One of the UK's daily newspapers has been heavily promoting their new
"chalkboard" utility this week, claiming that the match-by-match player
stats can help us amateurs analyse football matches the same way the pros
do, or simply settle arguments as to who is the better footballer.
So rather than indulge in a bout of thumb-twiddling during the dire weather
this week I decided to crunch some numbers to see if England's latest new
recruit, West Ham United striker Carlton Cole, deserved all the criticism he
received upon winning a call-up to Fabio Capello's squad.
The former Chelsea striker has tapped into the form of his life since former
Blues team-mate Gianfranco Zola became Hammers boss earlier this year and
the muscular target-man has emerged as Capello's alternative to Emile Heskey
for the role of England's No.9.
Cole's detractors point out, and rightly so, that while Aston Villa striker
Heskey has won a series of trophies at club level and racked up 50
international caps his West Ham rival has breezed into the England squad
after playing well for approximately five months of a previously
underwhelming eight-year career. But what does the raw data say?
Well, if we compare the strikers' performances using a randomly chosen match
from this season - a home game against Newcastle United - we can see that
while neither forward scored, and a lack of goals has been a criticism of
both forwards, the rest of the stats fall in Cole's favour.
Cole mustered three shots and an assist in West Ham United's 3-1 win while
Heskey didn't have a single attempt on goal while playing for Wigan during
their 2-1 defeat of the Newcastle. Cole also out-passed Heskey, 14
successful passes to 10, and in terms of tackling back to help out his
team-mates the West Ham forward made nine challenges to Heskey's five.
This intriguing result led to the pondering of another comparison. A quick
check of the match stats for Everton's Phil Jagielka and Chelsea captain
John Terry shows that the Everton centre-back came out on top in terms of
interceptions, tackles and blocks. If this were a football management game I
would be spending my money on Jagielka rather then the England skipper.
And so, with curiosity piqued, the obvious question followed: if Capello
were to pick his starting 11, from the current squad, based purely on the
stats who would make the starting line-up against Spain on Wednesday night?
Well, if we take home games against a mid-table Premier League team such as
Fulham as the common denominator (or a comparable team in terms of league
position if the featured player didn't play against the Cottagers) then the
numbers would stack up something like this:
Goalkeepers:
Robert Green: Goals conceded 0, saves 1, successful passes 8, clearances 1
Joe Hart: Goals conceded 0, saves 0, successful passes 12, clearances 0
David James: Goals conceded 1, saves 5, successful passes 7, clearances 0
David James made the most saves but if we stick to the premise of going with
the pure stats, rather than factoring in all manner of variables, then the
most important thing data is a clean sheet. Joe Hart and Robert Green both
managed to keep the ball out of the net and with one additional save the
latter gets the nod.
Left-back:
Wayne Bridge: Tackles 5, interceptions 1, blocks 0, clearances 8, successful
passes 33
Ashley Cole: Tackles 4, interceptions 1, blocks 0, clearances 1, successful
passes 30
Wayne Bridge has the better stats of these two left-backs; making one more
successful tackle, three more passes and eight clearances to Cole's one.
Based on this data the Manchester City defender gets selected ahead of his
former Chelsea colleague for once.
Centre-back
Rio Ferdinand: Tackles 5, interceptions 1, blocks 1, clearances 1,
successful passes 61
Phil Jagielka: Tackles 4, interceptions 2, blocks 1, clearances 6,
successful passes 25
John Terry: Tackles 5, interceptions 2, blocks 0, clearances 3, successful
passes 107
Matthew Upson: Tackles 6, interceptions 2, blocks 1, clearances 7,
successful passes 28
It is a close call at centre-back but West Ham United's Matthew Upson is the
leader of the pack with more tackles and clearances than his peers, who he
at least matches in terms of interceptions and blocks. The rest are much of
a muchness but with of his massive tally of 107 successful passes John Terry
has elevated himself above both Phil Jagielka and Rio Ferdinand.
Right-back
Luke Young: Tackles 4, interceptions 0, blocks 0, clearances 6, successful
passes 43
Glen Johnson: Tackles 7, interceptions 2, blocks 0, clearances 4, successful
passes 38
Going forward Aston Villa's Luke Young has more successful passes but when
it comes to the defensive side, and the most important side, of a
full-back's role Portsmouth's Glenn Johnson wins his place in the England
team with more tackles and interceptions.
Soccernet
Check out Soccernet's own comprehensive stats by clicking on the 'match
action' tab in any match report, gamecast or match file. Click the pic to go
there now.
Left Midfield
Ashley Young: Shots 4, passes 17, tackles 1, free-kicks won 4
Stuart Downing: Shots 1, passes 32 (1 assist), tackles 2, free-kicks won 1
Although Aston Villa's Ashley Young is the golden boy of the Premier League
at the moment it is the much derided Boro winger Stuart Downing that edges
the battle of the stats. With double the amount of successful passes and one
assist it is the lad from Teesside that makes the team.
Central Midfield
Frank Lampard: Shots 3 (1 goal), passes 62, tackles 3, interceptions 1
Michael Carrick: Shots 5, passes 74, tackles 4, interceptions 3
Gareth Barry: Shots 5, passes 17, tackles 2, interceptions 3
The options are a bit limited in central midfield and only Aston Villa's
Gareth Barry misses out due to a poor tally of only 17 complete passes.
Frank Lampard's goal is the icing on the cake for his overall stats and
Carrick's impressive tally of 62 successful passes, in addition to his high
defensive contribution, wins him a place in the team.
Right Midfield
James Milner: Shots 1, passes 19, tackles 3, free-kicks won 3
Wright-Phillips: Shots 2, passes 10, tackles 3, free-kicks won 2
David Beckham: Shots 0, passes - (2 assists), tackles -, free-kicks won 3
Neither Shaun Wright-Phillips nor James Milner really catches the eye with
their stats. So despite having only limited information available for David
Beckham his two assists (using his recent performance against mid-table
Lazio) are not to be sniffed at - the game is about goals after all - and
gives the old man the edge over his younger rivals.
Strikers
Emile Heskey: Goals 0, shots 0, successful passes 11, free-kicks won 1
Carlton Cole: Goals 1, shots 3, successful passes 9, free-kicks won 3
Gabriel Agbonlahor: Goals 0, shots 1, successful passes 13, free-kicks won 0
Peter Crouch: Goals 1, shots 4, successful passes 19, free-kicks won 1
As mentioned earlier Carlton Cole's stats are surprisingly impressive and
even stand up to those of the injured Wayne Rooney, at least until the pass
completion rate is factored in, but most surprising of all is that
Portsmouth striker Peter Crouch is England's best forward, at least
statistically speaking. A goal apiece helps win the duo a place in the
England side.
The result of all that is an unfamiliar looking England team:
GK: Rob Green
LB: Wayne Bridge
CB: John Terry
CB: Matthew Upson
RB: Glen Johnson
LM: Stuart Downing
CM: Frank Lampard
CM: Michael Carrick
RM: David Beckham
ST: Peter Crouch
ST: Carlton Cole
Of course, all this is based on the stats for a single Premier League match
and only provides food for thought. But if you were of a statistical bent
and had sufficient time on your hands it would be easy to compile a more
comprehensive analysis. I have thumbs to twiddle, so it's over to you.
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