Daily WHUFC News - 21st September 2012

Big Sam on - Sunderland
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce looks ahead to the Barclays Premier League visit of Sunderland on Saturday
20.09.2012

Sam Allardyce was in optimistic mood ahead of West Ham United's Barclays Premier League encounter with Sunderland at the Boleyn Ground on Saturday.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Big Sam spoke about the season so far, the visit of Martin O'Neill's men and gave updates on the fitness of Jack Collison and Andy Carroll. With a limited number of tickets still available for Saturday's Youth Academy Free fixture, the manager and his players are ready for the Black Cats.

You had your team photo taken today, so were the players in good spirits?

SA - "Yes, very good, I think it was the quickest team photo I have had taken during my time in football. We spent about 20 minutes on it when normally it takes hours and hours trying to get players in the right places making sure they look the part. It went very well and like I mentioned last week it is nice to see the squad train in its entirety. This week has been a good week in training and we hope to pick up where we left of last time at Upton Park, which was of course the 3-0 win over Fulham."

Do you mind having the team photo taken so late, or is it preferable to take it after the transfer window has closed?

SA - "Yes it is better, we wouldn't want to have to slot people's heads in after, we wanted to wait and make it more professional. It goes all over the world today so it is important to get it right and deliver the right picture as it travels throughout the world of football."

Does that mean we can count against any new faces being added to the squad before the January window?

SA -"Yes, we have had one or two trialists in but none of them have been offered a contract because I think that I already have enough quality within my squad. I don't want to take a player for the sake of it, even though we had some very good players come in on trial. My decision was to not offer them anything and I am happy with the squad I have now and hopefully it will continue to improve as they get to know each other better."

Do you have any new injury news ahead of the clash with Sunderland?

SA -"No we have no new injury concerns. The only players who are unavailable are Andy Carroll and Jack Collison, Jack is obviously the big concern because he hasn't kicked a ball since the end of last season and he was a very influential player when we won promotion. We would love to get Jack back as soon as we can and Andy is improving every day. He has started some light training now and we will continue to monitor it on a daily basis until he is fit and ready to go back into the
team."

The initial timeframe stated for his recovery was six weeks. Has this changed and, if so, when do you think he will be back?

SA -"At the very earliest, if we are very lucky, it will be the final game before the next international break which is Arsenal at home. If not it will be after that."

Defensively, you have a record to be proud of after keeping four clean sheets in your five games this season?

SA -"Yes it has been a very good start from our point of view. We know the emphasis of shutting the opposition down when they have possession and we have also worked hard when we have the ball ourselves. The start that the lads have made has given us a massive platform going into the rest of the season, but if I had to be slightly critical it would be that our finishing is not as good as it could be. We have created a lot of chances this season which is pleasing and we will keep working hard to ensure more of them end up in the back of the net. The hardest thing in the Premier League is scoring goals but if our defence plays as well as they have been we only need one."

Will Matt Jarvis make his home debut this weekend?

SA -"You will have to wait and see. He is fit and has been training all week, like I said the squad has really come together this week and got to know each other better. I am very excited about the squad and hope they continue to grow and put in winning performances. We have experienced Premier League players in the squad and my hope is that they replicate what they have done at their previous clubs for West Ham United."

You currently sit in eight position in the Barclays Premier League, you surely would have taken that position if offered it at the start of the season?

SA - "For me it is all about points. Points per game is much more important that league position, I think that we have delivered two very important home wins and coupled with the back end of last season we have won six home games in a row and only conceded one goal. I think in the games we have had here including the cup game against Crewe we have done exceptionally well. We want to continue that against a very strong Sunderland side who have gone away to Arsenal and Swansea and come away with points. It will be very difficult for us."

Sir Alex Ferguson has publicly spoken about the need to stop abusive chanting. Do you share this view and is it time to put a stop to these acts?

SA - "Absolutely, I think that whatever form the offensive chanting is in it should be stopped and I think the best way to stop it is through the fans. If you are stood next to somebody chanting offensive material you should turn round and say 'Please stop, you are offending me, I support this team and I don't want to hear you say that'. If everybody could do that I think it would bring an end to such chants, but it is very difficult other than that to prevent these things from happening."

Looking at the other promoted teams who haven't done as well as West Ham United so far, do you have a sense of pride after such a great start?

SA - "We are very pleased with the start we have made. Unfortunately for Southampton and Reading, they haven't been able to do the same but admittedly the fixture list was much kinder to us. Pressure will be on every team at some point in the season, their tought time happens to be right now because they haven't picked up many points, but based on the games they have played that is understandable. It's a marathon not a sprint but as we all know pressure is heaped on you, especially in this league, if you don't start well."

How much has changed since West Ham United were relegated from the Barclays Premier League?

SA - "Around 40 players have left and 28 have replaced them in the space of 12 months. We have also increased the staffing level but certainly the biggest thing is that so many players have left within a year. Hopefully that is something that will benefit the club in the long run because we have built a squad now that will hopefully maintain and sustain our Premier League status."

Sunderland have yet to win a game in the Barclays Premier League, so is now the perfect time to play them?

SA - "I don't think so because the last two away games they played were against Arsenal and Swansea. Everybody is buzzing about the free-scoring nature of Arsenal yet Sunderland managed to get a 0-0 draw. Then, against Swansea they took the lead twice and knowing Martin as I do he will have felt disappointed not to win the game. I know what to expect from Sunderland having studied those two games and also from knowing Martin and the way he structures his teams. We have to make sure we are capable of breaking them down and ensure that when we create opportunities, we take them."

Steven Fletcher has obviously settled well at Sunderland. Just how much of a threat will he pose to your side?

SA - "It is a great move for him and I think that he has already began to reward Sunderland for the fee they paid by becoming the scorer he was at Wolves. After moving from Scotland to Burnley where he was relegated, then to Wolves where he was relegated again, he now has the opportunity to score goals on a regular basis for an established Premier League side. It looks like a great bit of business."

How important is it that West Ham United show they can play and win without Andy Carroll in the side?

SA - "That all depends on the impact of Carlton Cole and Modibo Maiga, who need to step in and do the business. We only have two players injured at the moment and other clubs have a lot more. That also shows how hard we work on injury prevention. Andy Carroll has only played 68 minutes for the club and during four games we have scored four goals and kept three clean sheets. It is not all about Andy but about performing well as a team and focussing on winning the next game."

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Ludo back in London
WHUFC.com
Ludek Mikloško popped into Chadwell Heath this week to talk all things West Ham United
20.09.2012

Luděk Mikloško dropped into West Ham United's Chadwell Heath training ground this week to talk about his life after football, the Czech Republic and of course West Ham United. The 1991 Hammer of the Year is now working for a sporting agency after leaving the club as goalkeeping coach in March 2010, but still keeps a keen eye on the goings on in east London. He is delighted to see West Ham United not only return to the Barclays Premier League, but make an impressive start to their new season "I have not seen any games yet but I have seen the results, which have been fantastic. It is great for the club to be back in the Barclays Premier League.
"It is where they need to be and I am very happy that they are doing well. Hopefully after a very good start they can continue to play well throughout the season and finish in the top half."

Miklosko also hailed the impact of Jussi Jaaskelainen, after the Hammers new No22 kept his third clean sheet in four games against Norwich City last weekend. The Finland international is now 37, but Miklosko believes that talent is the only attribute that should matter when it comes to goalkeepers. "He is a fantastic goalkeeper, who has proved it in the Premier League over the course of many years. He has great experience and it is so far proving to be a great move for him. "I think that sometimes as a goalkeeper age isn't important, it all depends on how he is feeling and if he is feeling well he can continue to play for a few more years."

Like many professional footballers, Mikloško was faced with the question of what to do next after retiring, but after a spell in coaching he admitted he was simply happy to still be involved in the game. I am working for a sporting investment agency which tries to find young talent in the Czech Republic - I am looking after the goalkeepers who have already signed. "It is very different to trying to keep the ball out of the net but I am just happy to still be working in football, which for me is the most important thing. "Hopefully we will see more Czech players come and play for West Ham in the future, especially younger players whose development would be aided by coming to England. "I am back in England because I came to see Marek Štěch, who left West Ham in the summer to join Yeovil. I think Yeovil are very pleased with him and the way he is progressing, I think it is just what he needed," explained Ludo. "He needed to drop down a few levels and also start playing regularly, now he is he can build from there."

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Striker ruled out for season
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 20th September 2012
By: Staff Writer

Former West Ham United striker Nicky Maynard's season is over after he sustained ligament damage during Tuesday night's 2-0 win against Millwall. Maynard, who moved to Cardiff on the final day of the summer transfer window just three weeks ago was stretchered off after catching his leg in the ground during the win at the New Den. And his worst fears were confirmed today when he was ruled out for the rest of the 2012/13 campaign with serious damage to his anterior cruciate ligament, which will require surgery to repair. Cardiff's head of performance Richard Collinge told walesonline.co.uk: "Nicky will remain under the care of a local orthopaedic specialist and the Cardiff City medical team, working through a substantial rehabilitation programme with the goal of returning to first team action when possible. "Instances such as this can see varied recovery times and we will do everything to support and guide Nicky through the rehabilitation process. The player has the backing of all of us at the club and we all wish him a speedy recovery, coming back stronger than ever."

Maynard moved to West Ham from Bristol City in January 2012 and scored four goals for United before being sold to Championship side Cardiff just seven months later.

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Sam Allardyce wants West Ham to show it's not all about Andy Carroll
Last Updated: September 20, 2012 6:34pm

Sam Allardyce wants West Ham United's squad strength to come to the fore in the absence of Andy Carroll and remains uncertain when Jack Collison will return from injury. Carroll is not expected to return to action for the Hammers until after the next international break after hurting his hamstring on his debut against Fulham earlier this month. The on-loan striker is back in light training, but Allardyce is hoping that his absence will provide an opportunity for other players during a testing run of fixtures. "It depends on the likes of Carlton Cole and Modibo Maiga stepping in and doing the business, making sure we use the strength of the squad when we need to," said the Hammers boss. "We have only got two players injured at the moment, a lot of other teams in the Premier League have more. If that continues, it will help us to be more and more consistent. "Andy Carroll has only played 68 minutes for us. We have conceded just three goals, all at Swansea, and kept clean sheets in the other games. "It is not all about Andy, but it is about us trying to perform as a team again on Saturday against Sunderland."

However, Allardyce concedes the fitness of midfielder Collison, who is sidelined by an ongoing knee problem, remains a worry. "Obviously Jack is a big concern because he has not kicked a ball for us yet since the end of last season," Allardyce added. "He was a major influence in our promotion year so we would love to get Jack back as quickly as we possibly can."

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Win on Saturday and We Are 1/4 of the Way to Safety!
By S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die

It is a comforting thought that if we we win on Saturday, we will have amassed 10 points in five matches. Effectively that means that that we are 1/4 of the way to the magic 40 points total and safety. Obviously, the fixtures fell kindly for us in the opening phase of the season and a much tougher sequence of matches lies ahead in November-December. That is why we need to amass as many points in the opening matches as possible. That way, there will not be so much desperation to win the matches to make up for lost points and lost ground.

Indeed, if we go in to that second phase in a healthy position, the challenge becomes a very different one. It then becomes about winning extra, less likely points to strengthen our overall position to a point where we can realistically start thinking about a top 10 finish. Teams can and do have good starts and then suffer a poor second half of the season and sink like a stone towards the danger zone. However, it is usually the predominant pattern that relegated teams, and those that struggle around them, start very badly and never recover. Think of 2010-11, when we lost the first few matches on the trot and where, regardless of a few good isolated results, we never recovered. Or the 2002-03 season, when we did not win a home match until November and, despite a brilliant, late resurgence under Sir Trevor's temporary management, we just could not do enough to save ourselves.

If there was one thing that we knew about Sam Allardyce's management, it was that he was a proven exponent of the PL 'survival game.' More than that, under his management, Bolton not only survived every season, but prospered and even gate crashed the upper reaches of the PL and European qualification! Newcastle Utd were never in danger of relegation during his sort period there and he lost his job before he was able to put his stamp on the squad. While at Blackburn, at the time of his sacking, they were sitting very comfortably in 11th place. Allardyce did not have massive resources at Bolton, but what he did have was a board that backed him and time to develop his squad. It is measure of how far Allardyce took the club that a parting of the ways came because he did not believe that the club's ambitions matched his own! Yet, it is a fact that all three clubs suffered relegation from the top tier following his exit from the manager's position.

So far, Allardyce has done exactly what we had expected of him. He has moulded a solid team unit, built upon a fairly water tight defence. He has constructed a hard working team, in which every member of the side works for the others and there are no passengers. And the team are delivering clean sheets and solid away performances. These are all positives and are important factors in ensuring PL survival. But he has also brought a number of talented footballers to the club. Demel is a powerful and experienced right-back. Nolan is potentially deadly in the final third and is the ideal player to have running on to the second phase ball. Diame is one of the bargains of the season and Diarra will definitely make his mark before much longer. Vaz Te is a richly gifted and flamboyant player, who has the ability to make a major impact at PL level. Maiga is a striker with pace and a good eye for goal, we have not seen the best of him yet, but when we do he could be a sensation. The link up between Carroll and Jarvis is a mouth watering prospect and it has 'goals' running through it look a stick of Southend rock! Finally, he did some very good business in bringing former heroes, James Collins and Yossi Beayoun back to the club. Collins is a tower of strength at the back and his signing gives us a nice mix of experience and youth in central defence, with Tomkins, Reid and, possibly, Mensah. While Benayoun provides the vision, guile and the killer final ball that we have been missing for so long. He may be 32 years of age, but he is fit and you never lose that vision and technical ability to play the ball.

Add these players to the established West Ham stars like Tomkins, Noble, Collison and Cole and we have a good mix of youth and experience. And of course, factor x is the very good youngsters bubbling under, such as Potts, Hall, Famino, Moncur, Turgott and Lee, and their ability to force their way in to the first team reckoning. There have been some fan reservations about our strength at full-back, but so far it has held up. It remains to be seen whether that is still the case when they come up against the top sides, but we have what we have and that will have to be tested. It will certainly be interesting this Saturday to see how Joey O'Brien performs at left-back if he comes up against a wide player of Johnson's ability? I like O'Brien, he is a good squad player, but he does worry me at left-back. He looks very right footed and constantly needs to change on to his right foot when playing the ball. We saw him make a couple of bad mistakes against Norwich City that could have cost us. They arguably happened because he is a right footed player trying to play at left-back. Personally, I would play Potts there.

Still, all in all, it is probably a 8/10 start to the season and most Hammers fans would have been more than happy to settle for that prior to the big kick-off. As for playing style, I thought that the side played some very impressive passing football against Fulham and they also tried to play to it on the floor against Norwich City. We need to see how things develop over the next few matches before we capitulate once again before the steretypical media narratives about being 'direct' and playing 'the long ball.' It is still early days and no doubt there will be one or two poor results along the way, but all things being equal, we look set up for a decent season.

SJ. Chandos.

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That's Andy! West Ham think Carroll could be back in time to face Arsenal
The Mirror

Sam Allardyce has pleaded with England boss Roy Hodgson not to jeopardise Andy Carroll's rapid return to fitness. West Ham's on-loan Liverpool striker was expected to be sidelined for six weeks after picking up a hamstring injury on his debut against Fulham three weeks ago. But he is back in light training already, after the Hammers medical team worked around the clock, and is hoping to be fit to play against Arsenal on October 6. The news will come as a major boost to Hodgson, who will be desperate to have Carroll available for the World Cup double-header against San Marino and Poland a week later. But Hammers boss Allardyce insists Carroll will not be ready to play two full games for England in the space of four days. Allardyce said: "It would be something that would need a conversation between me and Roy to say that Andy is back but please be careful if he goes to England. "I'm not saying, 'Don't play him' but just be careful of the situation. "The last thing we'd want is to spend all that time to get him fit again, play for us, go to England and get injured playing for England. "His lack of first-team appearances is a major concern to us, when we get him fit again. "The situation for both of us is we'd want Andy ­available as often and as quick as possible. If I was lucky to have him fit for Arsenal he wouldn't play all game."

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Allardyce makes Carroll plea
JIM VAN WIJK FRIDAY 21 SEPTEMBER 2012
The Independent

Sam Allardyce, the West Ham manager, has urged Roy Hodgson to go easy with Andy Carroll in the next set of World Cup qualifiers. The 23-year-old impressed during his West Ham debut against Fulham on 1 September following a loan switch from Liverpool – only to limp off in the second half with a hamstring problem which ruled him out of the England's games with Moldova and Ukraine. Carroll has now resumed light training and if all goes well, the striker could be back in contention for the visit of Arsenal on 6 October. That would almost certainly see the 6ft 3in striker included for England's games the week after. "It would be something that would need a conversation between me and Roy to say 'Andy is back, but please be careful if he goes to England," said Allardyce. "I am not saying 'don't play him', just be careful of the situation where he has come from."

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Sullivan: We're paying Carroll's wages out of our own pockets... We want the best team because we are West Ham fans
By MATT LAWTON
PUBLISHED: 23:17, 20 September 2012 | UPDATED: 23:17, 20 September 2012
Daily Mail

The last owner of West Ham who also owned a bank took the football club to the brink of administration. But when David Sullivan says he owns a bank, and it is a bank in one of the prime locations on the Monopoly board, what actually goes on inside, and beyond in the global banking world, is not his concern. 'I own the building,' says Sullivan. 'It's the Lloyd's Bank on Oxford Street actually. I own a shoe shop on Oxford Street too. And a mobile phone shop.' Once rated the 68th richest man in Britain with assets valued at more than £500million, he has an impressive property portfolio. He owns 'a huge Sainsbury's' that pays him £3million a year in rent as well as a 'couple of Marks & Spencers'. Just the buildings, you understand, which the retail giants rent from him. There is 'a big chunk of central Bath around the Roman Baths' that belongs to Sullivan. Not to mention 100 sex shops.

He made his money in the sex industry, starting out in mail order with a couple of carefully placed advertisements in the colour supplements of the more upmarket Sunday newspapers. 'I sold a love-making manual called The XYZ of Love,' he says. 'Back in the early Seventies it was making me six grand a week, a lot of money in those days.'

It might not have been what his lecturers had in mind when they taught him economics at Queen Mary College in London, but Sullivan clearly has a knack of making money. He breaks from this interview to take a quick phone call at his desk in his sumptuous Essex home, earning £10,000 in 20 seconds during a conversation with his broker. 'That won't even pay a football agent but it's still 10 grand I didn't have a minute ago,' he says with a twinkle in his eye.

It would enable him to buy some state-of-the-art home entertainment equipment. As well as Victorian racing trophies and some rather spooky waxwork figures, Sullivan's home is littered with old TVs and video recorders. 'I'm not very technical,' he says. 'I still can't send a text message. I bought that telly because it was brilliant for Teletext. I used to love Teletext.'

He does seem to laugh an awful lot. He complains of being 'absolutely knackered after the transfer window' but he talks about his life, and about his passion for the football club he part-owns with his long-time friend and business partner David Gold, with infectious enthusiasm. He also seems keen to stress that he is no longer in the sex industry. 'The internet finished my old business,' he says. 'I'm in the property business now. The sex shops don't make a penny. I keep them going to provide employment to the two or three hundred people who have worked for me. As long as they don't have to come to me for money to subsidise the business I will keep them open. 'I will always be seen as being in the sex business because that is where I started. If I had the time I'd update my Wikipedia page.' Not, he insists, because he is in anyway ashamed or embarrassed about his past. 'I started there so there's no point in denying it,' he says. 'If I was a cigarette manufacturer or an arms manufacturer or a drug dealer, I might have a doubt about how I've spent my life. But, to be honest with you, I like to think I put a smile on people's faces.
'I've made a lot of people happy. British people don't like to talk about sex but Fifty Shades of Grey has proved what a huge market the sex market remains.' Has he read the fastest-selling paperback in history? 'My girlfriend has and she's told me every detail,' he says. 'But I read racing fiction. I collect old racing fiction, along with Victorian racing trophies. I've read all the books on those shelves and all those over there I've yet to read. I'm into fantasy, not reality.' Football, he says, is an interest that transcends both; a mixture of fantasy and reality. 'You face a daily reality,' he says.

Sitting there in a Dolce & Gabbana 'Muhammad Ali' tracksuit, Sullivan takes a deep breath. Since joining forces with Gold in 2010 to take control of the club they have both supported since childhood, it has not been easy. When West Ham were relegated in May 2011, he likened it to Armageddon. 'It was Armageddon because David and I had to put 35million quid in,' he says, laughing again.

'Because of the mess we inherited we have to service a £100m debt. There are commitments that have to be paid and we have to pay interest on the debt. But we also had to put the money in to put together a team that would get us promoted. 'Armageddon might be an overstatement but it was very unpleasant to have to put that kind of money in just to get back to where we were. It particularly hurts because David and I didn't earn 35 million quid last year. We certainly didn't earn that much after tax. So we are spending capital. Spending our life savings. There is no point kidding ourselves.'

Had it not been West Ham, Sullivan says he and Gold would have avoided such a financial risk. The debts were enormous. There were millions owed to Sheffield United in the wake of the Carlos Tevez affair; all this when the assets amounted to so little and there was no guarantee of securing the Olympic Stadium. 'As a business venture it made no sense at all,' he says. 'Not the deal we did. The club was £120m in debt with very few assets. It was a mess. I knew, when the Icelandics were signing the players they were for the money they were paying, it made no financial sense. I sold them Matthew Upson from Birmingham. He came to me and said, "They've offered me four times the wages, please let me go". I knew then that it wasn't right. 'But David and I are not in it for the money. We don't want to go bust either. The aim is to make the club self-sufficient. But we want to put the best possible team on the pitch for the supporters of West Ham because we are supporters too.'

He agrees that people buy football clubs for different reasons. 'Some of them make money,' he says. 'Blackpool made £30m last year. Swansea are making £15m a year, and they are doing a marvellous job because they have a fantastic team. If we ever get to a position where we are making money it will be ploughed back into the team. But we have to keep it alive in the meantime. 'We are the guardians and custodians of the club for the supporters. We are just trustees really. And we are good custodians. In our 18 years at Birmingham the club was solvent the whole time. But we still owe money on Tevez. Because it's a confidential agreement I can't go into the figures but there is still a substantial amount to pay off. In fact we've just started litigation against the old solicitors because we think the club was wrongly advised. We are commencing High Court proceedings against them.

'Just before we arrived, the previous owners took an advance on the next two years' season-ticket money. So we got no season-ticket money in the first two years. They'd taken part of the shirt sponsorship money quite a few years up front, so all the normal sources of income weren't there. The cupboard was bare. 'Every player was being paid on the drip. Sheffield United were being paid on the drip. Every possible loan had been taken out. The assets were the players being paid on fat contracts and a stadium — because of where it is — that is probably worth less than my supermarket. 'Now we obviously want to move to the Olympic Stadium. For three years we've been trying to secure it. We believe we have the best bid. We will make football affordable to all because we will have the seats to do deals, and we will make the whole stadium economically viable. We will embrace the athletics legacy and make it a brilliant, multi-purpose facility.'

So who is paying for players like Andy Carroll and Kevin Nolan? 'We are financing everything out of our own money,' says Sullivan. 'Had we not put money in this year we could not have bought a player. Because there is not sufficient money to pay the debt. I cannot give confidential details of contracts but for the period of time Andy will be with us it's as expensive a player as we have ever signed. 'But our manager thought he was the most important player we could sign this summer and that is why we pursued him. Unfortunately he got this hamstring injury. But that's just bad luck. 'Against Fulham he made an enormous impact. He was the most important player on the pitch. He lifted the whole team. 'Kevin Nolan was a very bold and pleasing signing. We signed the captain of Newcastle when he had just scored 12 goals in the Premier League and convinced him to come to the Championship. It was expensive but he's the most fantastic captain, the most wonderful influence in the dressing room. And he's scored two goals in three games. 'We wanted to make a statement to our supporters, that we weren't going to run the club like an administrator. That's why we've continued to bring in more top players like Diame, Diarra and Jarvis. Others, too.'

You do wonder why, having sold Birmingham City, he and Gold did not just buy themselves a box at Upton Park. 'It's not the same though,' he says. 'You want to influence things. You want to make things happen. I think the club might have gone bust had we not stepped in. It is our intention, over the next couple of years, to pay off the debt and then be owed the money by the club. But we will be friendly bankers. The club won't have to pay any interest if they don't want to. If and when the club have some money they might pay a bit off. 'It means my kids will inherit less money because of West Ham and it will be the same for David Gold's kids. But we've got very supportive families who also love the club. We're all committed.

'Now, if the king of Saudi Arabia wants to buy West Ham we would happily step aside for the good of the club. But we wouldn't step aside for a mystery foreign buyer whose financial resources we have no knowledge of.' He has mixed feelings about certain foreign owners, his views influenced by the erosion of what he considers a boardroom tradition at matches. 'There are good examples of foreign ownership,' he says. 'Man City and Chelsea are terrific. But if things go bad for a foreign owner it's easy to walk away. 'Roman Abramovich and Sheik Mansour are in it for the fun. It's a hobby. Randy Lerner is here to make money. The Americans at Man United and Liverpool are here to make money. The Sunderland guy has a strategy to make money. But when it comes to the boardroom you rarely meet them. It's sad. In the old days it was lovely. There would be banter but you'd also exchange ideas, share thoughts. But the new brigade, you don't see. 'It actually started with Sir John Hall at Newcastle. He'd pop his head around the door, say hello and then disappear. I thought it was rude. The worst is Aston Villa, because they put the visiting directors in a room with the corporate home fans. We got loads of abuse because we were the former owners of Birmingham. We were treated appallingly. I nearly did it to them in retaliation but I wasn't prepared to stoop to their level. 'At West Ham we've got the best boardroom in the Premier League. We give the visiting directors the best table, right in the middle. It's the friendliest. It's lovely.' He also likes to think it is now in safe hands.

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Players must fill gap left by Andy Carroll says West Ham manager Sam Allardyce
The Independent
JIM VAN WIJK THURSDAY 20 SEPTEMBER 2012

Manager Sam Allardyce maintains West Ham must use the next couple of weeks to show they are not just "all about Andy Carroll". Carroll impressed during his debut against Fulham on September 1 following a loan switch from Liverpool, only to limp off in the second half with a hamstring problem which ruled him out of England's World Cup qualifiers with Moldova and Ukraine. The 23-year-old striker has now resumed light training and could be back in contention for the visit of Arsenal on October 6. Before then, however, the Irons have some testing fixtures, including a home tie with Sunderland this weekend as well as a Capital One Cup clash against Wigan ahead of a trip to QPR. Allardyce expects the rest of the squad to step up to the challenges ahead. He said: "It depends on the likes of Carlton Cole and Modibo Maiga stepping in and doing the business, making sure we use the strength of the squad when we need to. "We have only got two players injured at the moment, a lot of other teams in the Premier League have more. If that continues it will help for us to be more and more consistent.

"Andy Carroll has only played 68 minutes for us. We have conceded just three goals, all at Swansea, and kept clean sheets in the other games. "It is not all about Andy, but it is about us trying to perform as a team again on Saturday against Sunderland." Allardyce hopes Carroll will be able to rejoin the rest of the squad soon enough. "Andy is improving day by day," he added. "He has started some light training now and we continue to try to monitor it day by day and see when he's going to be available and ready to join back in with the players. "The very earliest, if we are very lucky, would be the last game before the international break which I think would be Arsenal."

Midfielder Jack Collison, however, remains sidelined by an ongoing knee problem. "Obviously Jack is a big concern because he has not kicked a ball for us yet since the end of last season," Allardyce added. "He was a major influence in our promotion year so we would love to get Jack back as quickly as we possibly can."
West Ham battled to a goalless draw at Norwich last weekend, which was their fourth clean sheet of the season, and Allardyce will be looking for more of the same against Sunderland. The emphasis of shutting the opposition out has been crucially important for us," he said. "If I have to be slightly critical, it is about our finishing, which has not been quite as good as it should be to promote the chances we have created. "But if we work hard to get that clean sheet, then one goal can win us a game."

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