WHUFC.com
Matthew Upson is ready for Sunday's big FIFA World Cup second-round clash in
Bloemfontein
24.06.2010
Matthew Upson believes he can emulate the achievement of fellow Hammers
Bobby Moore, Martin Peters and Geoff Hurst by enjoying a FIFA World Cup
victory over Germany.
The revered trio were the star turns in England's unforgettable 4-2 final
win over West Germany at Wembley in July 1966. Forty-four years later, Upson
looks almost certain to line up against the Germans in Sunday afternoon's
mouth-watering second-round meeting at the Free State Stadium in
Mangaung/Bloemfontein after impressing in Wednesday's 1-0 Group C success
against Slovenia. While the Hammers captain is playing down the significance
of facing Joachim Low's side, he is itching to help England reach the
quarter-finals and take a step closer to matching the achievements of the
heroes of 1966. "To me it doesn't, personally [matter that England finished
second in Group C and missed out on a second-round meeting with Ghana and a
quarter-final meeting with either Uruguay or Korea Republic]," said Upson,
who was back in training at the Three Lions' Royal Bafokeng training base on
Thursday. "Some people say you need the best route to the final, which you
would agree with - you want to play as weak teams as you can. "But
eventually, you are going to have to beat the best teams and Sunday will be
a great opportunity for us to go into another situation where it is a
win-only opportunity. That doesn't bother me."
Upson had been issued with a watching brief as Ledley King and Jamie
Carragher partnered John Terry in England's opening two matches, but the
31-year-old settled quickly into what was his first World Cup match. An
assured display was capped by a fine lunging tackle on substitute Tim Matavz
to deny Slovenia the late equaliser that would have put England out of the
competition. "It was kind of straight into the cauldron, really and
difficult circumstances in a way, but in others it was an opportunity to
shine and to step up.
"I was pleased with the way things went and I thought we thoroughly deserved
the win."
*West Ham United midfielder Valon Behrami will miss Switzerland's final
Group H fixture against Honduras on Friday evening through suspension after
being sent off in the 1-0 defeat by Chile on Monday. Should Switzerland win,
they will qualify for the last 16 for the second consecutive FIFA World Cup
finals and are likely to face either Brazil or Portugal in the second round.
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All set for SBOBET Cup
WHUFC.com
The club's principal partners SBOBET have backed the home pre-season
friendly in aid of the Academy
24.06.2010
West Ham United are delighted to confirm the glamour pre-season friendly
against RC Deportivo La Coruna will be played for the SBOBET Cup in aid of
the Academy. The Hammers will play host to the former Spanish champions and
UEFA Champions League semi-finalists at the Boleyn Ground on Saturday 7
August - a week before the start of the new Barclays Premier League season.
The club's principal partners SBOBET first joined forces with the club in
December 2008 and the relationship has gone from strength to strength,
making them an obvious choice to sponsor the prestigious Deportivo fixture.
SBOBET also have close links with the club's renowned youth system, backing
the special award given to Tony Carr at May's gala dinner. SBOBET and the
club continue to have the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research logo featured
on all the Academy kit and children's replica shirts. The club will also
again designate a Barclays Premier League home match as an awareness game
for the Fund and work with other good causes across the community throughout
the season. The online sports bookmakers also sponsor the whufc.com player
of the month award and, last December, SBOBET gave a commemorative Bobby
Moore Fund scarf to fans who attended the home match with Manchester United.
West Ham United Chairman David Sullivan said: "I am very excited by the
prospect of the new season and the match against Deportivo La Coruna will be
the ideal way to kick things off. It will be great to get the first look at
our new signings in action under Avram Grant and also to see a top Spanish
side at the Boleyn Ground. "I am very grateful to SBOBET for their continued
support, particularly the way they have endorsed our hugely successful
Academy and our close relationship with the fans. Our work at the club is
very much about building successful partnerships and SBOBET are continuing
to have a major role in helping us to move forward."
Bill Mummery, SBOBET Executive Director, said: "We are all looking forward
to the new season with great optimism and the SBOBET Cup against Deportivo
La Coruna will be the perfect match to get things started. As we move into a
new era for the club, SBOBET look forward to working together with West Ham
United to achieve all of the success it deserves. "The emphasis on
developing the Academy system is important to us as SBOBET has a firm
commitment to social responsibility and the communities in which we work.
From our first meeting with West Ham, it was clear just how strong the bond
was between the club and the supporters and we are delighted to play our
part."
The confirmation of the Deportivo match has focused minds on the start of
the new season and Scott Parker, the reigning Hammer of the Year, is looking
forward to renewing old acquaintances. While many West Ham players will be
treading new ground, Parker faced Deportivo in the UEFA Intertoto Cup
semi-finals in the summer of 2005. After missing the first leg in Spain, the
29-year-old was in the lineup for the return match at St James' Park, but
could not prevent his side falling to a 2-1 loss and a 4-2 aggregate defeat.
Five years later, the Hammer of the Year will get another crack at the
Galicians, whose squad will feature three members of their 2005 squad in
Manuel Pablo, Sergio and Juan Carlos Valeron. "Deportivo are a good club
with good players and I am sure they will bring a very useful team to play
against us," Parker said. "It will be a tough game, as it is whenever you
come up with a top team from a country like Spain. They will be very good
technically and will keep the ball well, so it is going to be a good workout
for us a week ahead of the start of the new season. "A game like this one
will let us know exactly where we are at that stage and also tell us what we
need to improve on to be ready for the Premier League."
Tickets for the eagerly-awaited friendly are selling well, with advance
adult prices starting as low as £10 for season ticket holders, £13 for
Academy members and £16 for non-members. All under-16 tickets priced at just
£5.
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Moore Cup dumped
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 24th June 2010
By: Staff Writer
The Bobby Moore Cup had been dumped in favour of the SBOBET Cup. The
newly-introduced SBOBET Cup will be the reward for the winners of this
season's Boleyn Ground prestige pre-season friendly, which sees the Hammers
pitched against La Liga outfit Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday, 7th August.
The trophy effectively replaces the Bobby Moore Cup, which has been played
for in the last two pre-seasons. In 2008 the trophy was shared between the
Hammers and Villareal following a 1-1 draw - goals coming from Carlton Cole
and Santi Cazorla - before Napoli stole a 1-0 win courtesy of a a late Fabio
Quagliarella header last season. David Sullivan, West Ham's joint Chairman
told whufc.com: "I am very grateful to SBOBET for their continued support.
Our work at the club is very much about building successful partnerships and
SBOBET are continuing to have a major role in helping us to move forward. "I
am very excited by the prospect of the new season and the match against
Deportivo La Coruna will be the ideal way to kick things off. It will be
great to get the first look at our new signings in action under Avram Grant
and also to see a top Spanish side at the Boleyn Ground."
* The Bobby Moore Cup was resurrected in 2008 to tie in with the decision to
permanently retire Moore's number six shirt.
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Henry set to snub West Ham and join Red Bulls
Published 22:30 24/06/10 By John Cross
The Mirror
Thierry Henry is set to join New York Red Bulls on a two-year contract.
Former Arsenal captain Henry is being allowed to leave Barcelona a year
before his contract at the Nou Camp expires and the Red Bulls closed in as
soon as France crashed out of the World Cup. Henry has had offers from the
Premier League - including West Ham - but New York Red Bulls have been
chasing the French striker for more than a year and are confident of getting
their man.
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Deportivo La Coruna lined up in pre-season friendly
5:01pm Thursday 24th June 2010
Guardian Series
WEST HAM will take on RC Deportivo La Coruna for the SBOBET Cup. The
mouth-watering pre-season friendly takes place at Upton Park on Saturday,
August 7. The fixture is just seven days before the Hammers kick off their
Premier League campaign.
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World Cup 2010: Rift rumours helped England bond, says Matthew Upson
Upson says England team are united
Defender eager to face Germany
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 24 June 2010 14.09 BST
Matthew Upson believes the rumour and speculation surrounding the England
camp in recent days has served to strengthen the team's resolve. England's
1-0 victory over Slovenia came after John Terry sparked talk of rifts within
the camp with his comments in the wake of disappointing performances in the
opening two games. However, there was no obvious lack of unity after the
final whistle when the manager, Fabio Capello, joined his players in their
celebrations. Upson told BBC Radio 5 Live: "You can use all those things and
use all the rumours and all the accusations as fuel to improve and succeed
and get tighter together. "That's something we have improved on as a team
and I think we can still get better at it, as we can in a lot of other
areas. "It's the key to winning, for me. Forget everything else, tactics,
the lot – it is about you as human beings and people and what you are
willing to commit and your attitude, and I thought we did that really well."
England's joy was partially tempered by the news of the USA's late winner
against the Algerians in Pretoria, a goal which led to them topping the
group and pitch Capello's side against Germany in Bloemfontein on Sunday.
But when asked if it mattered his side had not won the group, Upson replied:
"To me it doesn't, personally. "Some people say you need the best route to
the final, which you would agree with – you want to play as weak teams as
you can. "But eventually, you are going to have to beat the best teams and
Sunday will be a great opportunity for us to go into another situation where
it is a win-only opportunity. That doesn't bother me."
Upson, of course, was in the team because of Ledley King's persisting
fitness problems and Jamie Carragher's suspension, and he knows he may have
a fight on his hands to line up against the Germans. Whether he makes it or
not, the 31-year-old will be able to reflect back upon an eventful World Cup
finals debut, which saw him make a nervous start, but grow into his role.
Indeed, he contributed a vital late block to preserve England's clean sheet
as Slovenia made a final desperate push. "It was just an opportunity to win
the ball. It had been flicked on and knocked down inside of me, and it's a
reaction more than anything," he said. "You don't think, you just see it and
you make the play for it. I got there, thankfully, and we saw it through.
"It was straight into the cauldron, really, and difficult circumstances in a
way, but in others it was an opportunity to shine . "I was pleased with the
way things went and I thought we thoroughly deserved the win."
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West Ham scared off Ben Haim by wage demands
ESPN Soccernet staff
June 24, 2010
est Ham United boss Avram Grant wants to take Tal Ben Haim with him to Upton
Park - but the Hammers are unwilling to match his £45,000-a-week salary or
pay a £1 million fee demanded by his agent. Although the experienced Ben
Haim can leave on a free transfer due to Portsmouth's relegation, which
triggered an escape clause, it emphasises the problems the south-coast club
have in trimming their wage bill. The Israel international still has two
years to run on his deal at Fratton Park so is unlikely to walk out on the
club for vastly reduced wages. A source at West Ham told Soccernet: "Yes, we
would love to sign the player, but not at the moment as his wages are
£45,000-a-week and his agent wants a £1 million fee - both too high. "The
problem is he has two years left on his Portsmouth contract, though he can
leave for nothing as they were relegated. "Why should he leave unless he
gets the same wage? But a club like West Ham can no longer afford to pay
every player £40-45,000-a-week. Clubs like West Ham have to draw the line
somewhere or every club will go broke." The Hammers might make one exception
this summer in the area of big wages if they can capture a marquee signing
and have been linked with a procession of stellar names, including David
Beckham, Joe Cole, Juan Roman Riquelme and Thierry Henry.
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