Daily WHUFC News - 8th September 2012

Turgott makes Under-19 bow
WHUFC.com
Blair Turgott made his England Under-19 debut on Thursday in a 3-1 defeat in
Germany
07.09.2012

Blair Turgott made his England Under-19 debut as a second-half substitute as
the Young Lions lost 3-1 to Germany in Hamburg. Turgott came on in the 75th
minute for Liverpool's Adam Morgan but it was another of the Reds starlets
who stole the show. Summer signing Samed Yesil scored a superb double,
opening the scoring after just two minutes, showing fine trickery in the box
before smashing the ball home. After Yesil's opener the Under-19s rallied
and drew level on 31 minutes when Nick Powell expertly chipped Odisseas
Vlachodimos. But Yesil once again put the hosts in front when Jordan
Pickford was only able to palm the youngster's initial effort straight back
at him and he tapped the ball into the empty net two minutes into the second
half. SC Freiburg's Sebastian Kerk completed the scoring, slotting the ball
calmly past Pickford to ensure that there was no way back for England.
Daniel Potts was also part of the squad but was an unable to play after
picking up a minor injury in training on Wednesday. Both Turgott and Potts
will be hoping to be part of the Under-19s squad for the UEFA European
Championship qualifiers against the Faroe Islands, Ukraine and Estonia later
this month.

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Joey ready for national service
WHUFC.com
Proud Irishman Joey O'Brien is looking forward to representing his country
in Kazakhstan on Friday
07.09.2012

For proud Irishman Joey O'Brien, pulling on the emerald green shirt of his
country is a feeling like no other. The West Ham United player was
considered to be one of Ireland's brightest young prospects when he broke
into the senior national side just two weeks after his 20th birthday, only
for a series of serious knee injuries to see his international prospects
seemingly disappear forever. To O'Brien's immense credit, he battled and
worked his way back to fitness. On 15 August the 26-year-old made his fourth
appearance for Ireland in a goalless friendly international draw in Serbia,
nearly five years after earning his third cap in a 2008 UEFA European
Championship qualifier with Cyprus. He may have been on the pitch for just
eleven minutes in Belgrade, but for O'Brien they were among the best eleven
minutes of his life. "It was brilliant," he confirmed. "Obviously it was a
long time since the last time I had played at an international level so it
was great to meet up with the lads again." "I didn't expect to come on as a
substitute, so I was delighted to get on the pitch and I think we played
really well and got a good result."

O'Brien is hoping to earn his fifth cap in Friday's opening 2014 FIFA World
Cup Group C qualifier in Kazakhstan and pick up his sixth in next Tuesday's
international friendly with Oman at Craven Cottage. "We play Kazakhstan on
Friday and we're playing Oman on Tuesday and, please God, I'll be involved
in both matches. Hopefully we'll pick up three points in Kazakhstan and make
a good start to our World Cup qualifying campaign. "We played well over in
Serbia in our last friendly match, so hopefully we'll go over there and get
three points. "The last World Cup qualifier I played in was against Cyprus,
which was a long time ago, so obviously it would be great to play my part in
the qualifying campaign and our aim is to try to qualify. "I've been asked
hundreds of times about my injuries but those are in the past now and for me
it's all about looking forward and playing games now."

Ireland are, of course, aiming to qualify for their second major
championship in succession after reaching the 2012 UEFA European
Championship finals. There, Giovanni Trapattoni's side were beaten by
Croatia, eventual winners Spain and runners-up Italy to go out at the group
stage. To qualify, the Boys in Green must finish in the top two of a group
that also contains Germany, Sweden, Austria and Faroe Islands, but O'Brien
is confident that they can do just that - regardless of the relatively small
size of the Irish population and pool of available players. "The lads did
unbelievably well to qualify for the EUROs and I think the achievement of
getting there was taken away by the results over there, but at the end of
the day we got beaten by two of the countries who made it to the final. "We
do unbelievably well for the size of our country. We've got a great track
record for producing players who go onto the world stage. "The first time we
ever qualified for anything was back in 1988, which isn't that long ago. To
be able to produce players and qualify and do well in tournaments is some
achievement. "Even this time, we have a hard group but we'll be looking to
qualify and that's a great way to be - it's great to be going out and
knowing we can qualify."

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Ginge's World Cup dream
WHUFC.com
James Collins wants to help Wales qualify for their first FIFA World Cup
finals in 56 years
07.09.2012

James Collins is dreaming of helping Wales to qualify for their first FIFA
World Cup finals in more than half a century. The West Ham United defender
has not played for Wales since March 2011 but is expected to start for his
country when they begin their Brazil 2014 qualifying campaign by facing
Belgium in Cardiff on Friday evening. Wales, who are in Group A alongside
the Belgians, Serbia, Croatia, Scotland and FYR Macedonia, have not reached
the FIFA World Cup finals since their only previous appearance in 1958.
Collins knows the likes of Barclays Premier League stars Eden Hazard,
Vincent Kompany, Marouane Fellaini and Moussa Dembele will not make it easy
to change that record, but he is confident Chris Coleman's men can build on
the foundations left by the late Gary Speed. "I can't wait to play for Wales
again as it really has been too long," he told whufc.com "I have had to pull
out of the last few squads with little niggles so I am delighted to be fully
fit and I am really looking forward to it. "The key even when Speedo took
over was to qualify for a major tournament, particularly the 2014 World Cup
in Brazil, and that is what we are going to try to do. "We begin with two
very tough games, starting with Belgium on Friday. If you look at their
squad they have a great team. We will have to be at our best and then we
face another difficult game out in Serbia next Tuesday."

While Belgian football is undoubtedly on the rise, Collins believes the fact
so many of their players ply their trade in the Barclays Premier League will
aid Wales' cause.
"I think that around 90 per cent of the Belgium squad play in the Premier
League, so we will have a good understanding of how they play. "That will
help us and, if our players perform how we know they can, there is no reason
why we can't come away with a positive result. We can beat anyone on our
day."

Collins admitted that the last year had been a difficult one for the Welsh
squad following the death of Speed and insisted the best way to honour his
memory would be to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. "It's been very
tough, particularly because the circumstances were so horrendous. He was a
great man and he is sorely missed, but the lads now have to move on. He put
in place a plan to qualify for Brazil and that is what we hope to do in the
way he set out."

With the international break following Saturday's 3-0 home win over Fulham,
Collins left for national duty on a high following his disappointing
performance in the 3-0 defeat at Swansea City. "It was good being at home,
getting the three points and putting the disappointment of the previous
weekend behind us. Nobody was happy with the result against Swansea, myself
more than anyone, so to bounce back and win 3-0 was great. "I think the
disappointment of losing 3-0 really spurred us on. We knew no-one was good
enough at Swansea and that individual errors cost us the game so we were
focused from the start."

Collins also paid tribute to the work done by Sam Allardyce and the club
during the final days of the Transfer Window in adding Andy Carroll and his
former West Ham team-mate Yossi Benayoun. "We have made some terrific
signings with Andy and Yossi coming and I think they have really given
everyone a boost. I think we had a great squad already when I arrived, so to
add a few more top-quality players is great, it has given everyone a lift
and I think it showed on the pitch."

Collins played alongside Benayoun previously between 2005 and 2007, reaching
the FA Cup final and staving off relegation in amazing style, and the
Welshman believes the Israel captain can play a huge part over the course of
the season. "To have Yossi back is great. The first time he was here he was
a fantastic player. I have kept in contact with him over the years and when
I spoke to him he couldn't wait to get back. "Yossi would be great in any
team - we have seen that since he left the club with Liverpool, Chelsea and
last season with Arsenal. To have him playing for West Ham United again is
fantastic."

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Moore than just a footballer
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 7th September 2012
By: Staff Writer

A new book is calling for West Ham United legend Bobby Moore to be
posthumously knighted. Former Fulham manager Bobby Campbell - who managed
the Cottagers during Moore's brief stint at the club in the mid-1970s -
calls for the former England captain to receive the ultimate honour in 'The
Centurions: England's 100 Club', which is published next week. "I don't
believe that he received the accolade and credit that he deserved," says
Campbell. "He should have been knighted.
"Tell me this, if any player captained England to a World Cup triumph in the
future, do you think they would be knighted? I am sure that they would. So
why wasn't Bobby knighted? "In fact, it's not too late. He should be
knighted posthumously."

Moore, who was capped 108 times between 1962 and 1973 is one of only five
players to have made more than 100 appearances for England; the others being
Billy Wright, Bobby Charlton, Peter Shilton and David Beckham. At the end of
1966 he was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the
British Empire), the second-lowest of the five orders of chivalry - but no
further honours until his passing in 1993. Bobby Charlton - a team mate of
Moore's in that 1966 World Cup-winning team - was knighted for his services
to football in 1994. Geoff Hurst, another of the 1966 team and a team mate
of Moore's at West Ham was also knighted four years later. Yet as of now,
the captain of the team, the only Englishman to lift the World Cup and the
player considered by many to be the greatest English footballer of all time
is yet to have received that ultimate accolade.

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The West Ham Academy Graduates Key in England's 0-5 Victory Over Moldova
By S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die

West Ham's 'Golden Generation' continue to provide the back bone of the
current England team, with Glen Johnson, Micheal Carrick, Frank Lampard and
Jermaine Defoe all featuring in the 0-5 victory over Moldova. You could
even, at a push, technically include John Terry in that list, Terry having
started his football career in the West Ham Academy. With Lampard grabbing a
brace and Defoe weighing in with one of the other goals, they were obviously
crucial to securing such an emphatric away victory.

Of that much celebrated stable of ex-Hammers Academy graduates, only Rio
Ferdinand and Joe Cole seem to have acquired ex-England international
status. Since leaving West Ham all of the Academy graduates have gone on to
join the 'bigger' PL clubs (with perhaps the exception of Defoe at Spurs!)
and have won trophies. Yet, the greatest dissappointment must be that their
club success has not been replicated with England at international level.
Ideally, this very talented group of players should surely have formed the
back bone of a victorious England team at a European Championship or World
Cup competition.

At club level, the majority of them played at the highest level and won the
biggest prizes, so that success cannot be challenged. However, when looking
at their individual development since leaving the club, I have always felt
that some aspects of their outstanding early promise were not realised. Rio
Ferdinand developed in to one of the best central defenders in club
football. At Leeds Utd and Man Utd, Ferdinand perfected the art of defensive
play, but arguably did not similiarly develop his early ability to carry the
ball out of defence in the manner of Bobby Moore. Glen Johnson was
introduced to the West Ham first team in the ill fated 2002-03 season, to
universal acclaim. He was undoubtedly one of the best right-back prospects
that English football has produced, showing equal proficiency defensively
and in supporting the attack down the right flank. A subsequent ill-fated
move to Chelsea disrupted that promise and arguably set back his early
progress. It is only more recently at Liverpool, via a period at Portsmouth,
that he has now started to actualise that exceptional early promise and has
taken it forward at international level. Time is stll on his side, being the
youngest of the group, and he may yet fulfill his full promise.

Micheal Carrick was richly talented young midfielder whose passing ability
was often compared to Glen Hoddle's. At West Ham, he also showed potential
as a midfielder, who could not only orchastrate the play with his passing
ability, but also find the back of the net. After leaving West Ham, he
developed in to a deeper lying midfielder, who used that passing ability to
good effect. However, the 'opportunity cost' of that was that he did not
really develop his goal scoring ability to a level that once seemed
possible. At international level, Carrick has not received the number of
caps for England that his talent merited and that is a great pity. Joe Cole
was seen as the most naturally talented of the lot, a creative midfielder
who possessed great technical ability and sublime skill on the ball. Cole
won trophies at Chelsea, but he was another who suffered during his time at
Stamford Bridge, being 'in and out' of the first team and often played out
of position. He still became a top midfielder, but can we say, 'hand on
heart,' that he has fulfilled his original potential? Jermaine Defoe is a
natural born goal scorer, who has done the business for both club and
country. However, his achievements at Spurs have not matched those of his
fellow Academy graduates, at club-level, and he has had a strangely
chequered career for England, even being excluded from the final Squad of 23
for the 2006 World Cup.

Much as it pains me to say it, the player that has probably exceeded all
expectations is Frank Lampard Jnr. His talent was evident at West Ham,
including his invaluable ability to consistently score goals from midfield.
He has been a consistent goal scorer throughout his club career and has
largely replicated that at international level as well. He has also
subsequently developed in to a fitter, industrious and more complete
midfielder.

From our perspective, there is natural disappointment that these Academy
players did win their trophies at West Ham. Can you imagine what we could
have achieved if we had kept them together and additionally, had the
financial resources to bring in the extra players quality to supplement and
show case their talents. After leaving West Ham, there is an argument that
successive England managers have failed to best exploit the talent that they
brought to the national team. However, did the players themselves also
develop every aspect of their early game to its full potential? In some
cases, and in some respects, as expounded above, I feel not. It is probably
a minority viewpoint I know, but it is one that I have held for some
considerable time.

SJ. Chandos.

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Karren Brady's football diary – Keep privates private
By KARREN BRADY
Published: 07th September 2012
The Sun

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 1

WE beat the 11pm deadline by three seconds to submit deal paperwork which
gives you an extension until 1am to fully complete a transfer. And I use the
extra time to tie up a loan deal with Chelsea for Yossi Benayoun. At
12.59am after a small hiccup it's all registered and I can sense our manager
Sam Allardyce smiling down the phone.The Israeli captain comes back to us
almost under the radar as, in the excitement of Andy Carroll's signing,
there is little fuss over his return. Half a day later West Ham play
beautifully to beat Fulham. Andy's injury means he will be out for a maximum
of six weeks — but the physio will try anything and everything to reduce
that length of time.

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 2

SAM sends an email thanking me for being so supportive with our 11 summer
transfers. My board has made a statement of intent and I'm dreaming of 40
points by March when Robin van Persie scores Man U's winner.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 3
PAOLO DI CANIO is a crazy Italian and West Ham fans love him for it. His
words will have bosses cheering, too, after Swindon keeper Wes Foderingham's
strop.
Paolo called him arrogant and unprofessional — and today announces
Foderingham apologised.

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4
AVRAM GRANT has chosen Clint Eastwood as the actor he would like to portray
his life. I dread to think the film would be entitled Dirty Avram. In the
same survey, Mick McCarthy fancies Brad Pitt playing his part. I love Mick's
sense of humour. For me, the smartest choice is Alex McLeish for look-alike
David Caruso, from TV series CSI Miami. But for some reason not one of the
30-or-so went for Danny DeVito.

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
A PREMIER LEAGUE house-warming party in a £20million-plus mansion in Central
London proves to be a great place to be if you are into football, business
and media.
One chairman describes himself as being in the fabric business. As my other
Premier League friend whispers in my ear, he's on his third wife, he used to
be in the underwear business!
It's not as crazy as the last Premier League house-warming I went to when
the new and very drunk wife of a very respected club chairman told me in
graphic detail about her recent plastic surgery. I thought nose or possibly
chest, but she had actually been in Los Angeles having 'vaginoplasty' —
trust me, you really do not want to know and I know I certainly didn't. She
told me she had it done in LA as she did not want anyone in London seeing
her privates. As another chairman's wife pointed out, half of London had
seen it anyway — and not just the male half! At least my eyebrows raised.
The rest of them are botoxed!

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 6
RAUL MEIRELES' move to Turkish side Fenerbahce leaves both the Premier
League and Chelsea with one bad haircut fewer. Roberto Di Matteo probably
has a year in which to prove he is more than just a Champions' League
winner. And he's acting like AVB on speed, scattering internationals to the
wind while changing the playing style. As a new Roman empire rises so there
are victims. The latest is Florent Malouda — but sadly he didn't want to
come to West Ham, so I have little sympathy for him.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7
I HAPPEN to be chatting with a QPR director who tells me the story, warts 'n
all, of the Paddy Kenny phone rant insulting former Hammers keeper Robert
Green.
It reminded me of one call I had myself, although it was not from eejit
Paddy. A voice on a withheld number called me "a f***ing bitch" and things a
lot less flattering and a lot more menacing. I rang the police who found the
culprit pretty quickly. It was a player who had been on loan at my club, but
sent home after a lacklustre performance. The next morning the player had
his collar felt or, rather, his training top, because the police tackled him
on the pitch at his training ground. Do it again and you'll be in court, he
was told.

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West Ham record-signing Matt Jarvis could be back in action after the
international break for the trip to Norwich.
TalkSport

The £10.75million arrival from Wolves, who made his debut in the defeat at
Swansea, missed the 3-0 win over Fulham because of a thigh injury, but is
expected to resume training ahead of the televised clash at Carrow Road.
Midfielder Jack Collison has been sidelined by a knee injury, but the
23-year-old hopes to be back in action soon. He said: "I'm pretty much there
or thereabouts. I just need to get some minutes under my belt."

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West Ham Focus - Who is Mobido Maiga?
Adifferentleague.co.uk
By Sam Carleton
Friday 07 September 2012

West Ham have a predominantly tried and tested squad for the Premier League
this season which many will see as a benefit, but manager Sam Allardyce has
brought in someone less well-known to bolster his options, and that is
Modibo Maiga.

Maiga, who turned 25 this week, is a Mali-born striker who made a name for
himself in France with Sochaux. He scored at a rate of almost a goal every
two games over a period of two years with the club, a goal record that
should not be sniffed at in any domestic European league.

He signed for West Ham during the summer transfer window for an undisclosed
fee, and while he has only a couple of appearances in the claret and blue so
far he has whet the appetites of the fans at this early stage. Maiga came
off the bench in the opening game win over Aston Villa and almost scored
moments after his arrival on the pitch - he then went one better in the
League Cup victory against Crewe Alexandra, scoring the second in a 2-0 win
as the Hammers progressed to the next round.

Also a regular for his Mali, Maiga will enjoy the presence of Andy Carroll
in the side. Allardyce would benefit from two strikers linking up well, and
when he decides to play a five-man midfield and a lone forward to be a
little more conservative, he will be spoiled for choice up top.

Maiga though has a history of being part of a lethal strike force with his
last team - he and Adeye Brown scored 30 goals between them in the 2010-2011
campaign, bagging 15 apiece.

Twice Maiga was on the verge of joining Newcastle, and after he was refused
a move to the Toon in August, he had said he would never play for Sochaux
again. The deal collapsed and he was forced to backtrack. In January the
move was rekindled, but after the two clubs agreed fees Maiga was once again
left frustrated as he failed a medical.

Now finally in the Premier League where he so longed to play, but at West
Ham instead, Maiga is desperate to prove his worth and show exactly why he
deserved his big move to England.

With new boy Carroll out for up to six weeks, Maiga may get his chance
sooner than expected. West Ham go to Norwich next and soon that is soon
followed by games against Sunderland and Queens Park Rangers. Maiga will be
hoping he can help his team come through those games with a flourish and
hopefully put himself on the map in the Premier League.

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