Daily WHUFC News - 8th June 2014

On this day - 8 June
WHUFc.com
West Ham United lifted the Football League War Cup at Wembley on this day in
1940
08.06.2014

Classic match
West Ham United 1-0 Blackburn Rovers
Football League War Cup final
Saturday 8 June 1940, Wembley Stadium, London
West Ham United won their first Wembley final on this day in 1940, edging
out Blackburn Rovers 1-0 to lift the inaugural Football League War Cup. Sam
Small was the hero of the day, following up after Alec George Foreman's shot
had been parried by Blackburn goalkeeper James Barron to score the only goal
of the game on 35 minutes. A crowd of 42,300 braved the war-time bombing of
London to attend the final at Wembley Stadium, but they were not rewarded
with a classic match. West Ham began the game as favourites and they held
the upper hand for much of what was described by The Times as a 'grim' game.
When West Ham did get things right, they troubled Rovers, with Foreman, Len
Goulden, Stanley Foxall and Archie Macaulay all heavily involved. The best
move of the match culminated in Small's all-important goal. Foxall and
Goulden combined to find Foreman, whose shot looked certain to find the net
until Barron flung out a hand to make the save. However, the Blackburn
stopper was unable to recover quickly enough to prevent winger Small
finishing into the net. Both teams came close in the second half, but West
Ham goalkeeper Herman Conway and his defenders were largely untroubled by
their opponents and the Londoners held on to win.
The trophy was presented to the winning team by A.V.Alexander, First Lord of
the Admiralty, while the crowd was made up in part by servicemen. Following
the final, a number of players from both sides immediately returned to their
service units in the various Armed Forces.
War Cup final
Anniversary
England 2-0 Soviet Union
UEFA European Championship third-place play-off
8 June 1968, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
While the 1966 and 1970 FIFA World Cup finals will live long in the memory
of every West Ham United and England supporter, the 1968 UEFA European
Championship finals tournament remains relatively unknown. England had
qualified for the four-team tournament by topping a qualifying group that
included Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland before overcoming Spain 3-1 on
aggregate in a two-legged tie. EURO 1968 was held in Italy, with England
joining the host nation, Soviet Union and Yugoslavia. As world champions,
England were expected to do well, only to lose 1-0 to Yugoslavia in Florence
in the semi-finals, with Dragan Džajić scoring an 87th-minute winner. Italy
and the Soviets drew 0-0 after extra-time, with the hosts going through to
the final on a coin toss - no penalty shootouts in those days! The
third-place play-off was held in Rome on this day in 1968 and England boss
Alf Ramsey named three West Ham players in his starting XI - captain Bobby
Moore, Martin Peters and Geoff Hurst. Fellow 1966 FIFA World Cup winner
Bobby Charlton opened the scoring on 39 minutes before Hurst netted his
tenth goal for England 18 minutes after half-time to ensure England would
finish in third place. Moore and Hurst were later named in the Team of the
Tournament.

Complete record
1940 West Ham United 1-0 Blackburn Rovers (Football League War Cup final)
Played 1, Won 1, Drawn 0, Lost 0, Scored 1, Conceded 0

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World Cup Countdown - Carlton Cole
WHUFC.com
West Ham United striker Carlton Cole will be supporting England all the way
this summer
08.06.2014

There is only one country who will receive Carlton Cole's backing at the
summer's FIFA World Cup - and it should come as no surprise that it is
England. The seven-cap Three Lions international believes the World Cup
could be the stage for England's youngsters to announce themselves at elite
level and says their challenge should not be underestimated. He said; "I'll
definitely be watching, relaxing, taking it all in and wishing England all
the best. "I think England have a chance, we have young players trying to
learn their trade at that level, and hopefully the experienced pros will
lead them to success. "Obviously I want England to win, so they're my tip -
I wouldn't tip anyone else to win! "At the end of the day there are a load
of world class players out there, and there are a lot of unknown players who
are going to get seen. It's up to them to produce the goods to make them
shine and stand out - hopefully it's England players. "Reidy was one of them
a few years ago and now he's New Zealand captain so he's done ever so well
to get in that position."

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European success for U15s
WHUFC.com
The Under-15s rounded their season off in style by winning in the Nordhalne
Cup in Denmark
07.06.2014

West Ham United's U15s saw off competition from top clubs across Europe to
claim the Nordhalne Cup title last weekend. The young Hammers remained
undefeated during the two-day tournament in the northern Danish city of
Aalborg to take top honours and complete a rewarding trip. Drawn against
Danish outfits B1903, Hobro IK and FC Federicia and Dutch side De Graafschap
in the opening round, the Hammers won all four games to secure their place
in the four-team final round. Only B1903 gave the Hammers a fright in that
first stage, with the Londoners triumphing 2-1 in that game. By contrast,
Hobro (3-0), Federicia (4-0) and De Graafschap (5-1) were all seen off
comfortably. West Ham were well set up for the final stage, and another pair
of Danish sides, Aab Aalborg and Marienlyst were defeated 2-0 and 6-0
respectively to land the trophy. Youth Development Phase Lead Coach Trevor
Bumstead was understandably delighted. He said: "It was a fantastic end to
the season for us. We took a mixture of U14 and U15 players so the challenge
was for the team to gel in a short space of time and credit to the players
that they were able to do that so smoothly. "We set ourselves the goal of
playing as many matches as we could against the best teams possible at the
tournament whilst continuing to play the West Ham way and we more than
achieved this aim. "We came up against a lot of challenges against teams who
are very rigid defensively but it is really pleasing we stuck to our guns
and played the way we wanted to play, scoring a number of great goals during
the tournament - the pick being an overhead kick from the penalty spot. The
tournament acted as fantastic tool for each player's development and we hope
each of these players learn from this experience and progress up the levels
into the first team."

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West Ham eye move for Red Bull Salzburg ace Sadio Mane
Last Updated: 07/06/14 11:43pm
SSN

West Ham are readying a move for Senegal sensation Sadio Mane, Sky Sports
understands. A host of Premier League clubs have been tracking Red Bull
Salzburg attacker Mane for some time, but West Ham are hoping to pull a coup
by luring him to Upton Park. Mane has been a revelation at Salzburg since
joining from Metz in 2012 and his performances for club and country have
established himself as one of the best young talents around. The
22-year-old, who can play out wide or up front, has scored 42 goals in 79
appearances for Salzburg and also contributed 28 assists for the Austrian
champions. Mane has also impressed at international level, scoring four
goals in 15 appearances and he also represented his country at the 2012
Olympics in London. Salzburg are bracing themselves for offers for their
prize asset and it is understood the club have promised Mane they will let
him leave this summer for the right offer.
Mane is thought to be keen to try his luck in England and the pacey and
powerful attacker would fit the bill for West Ham as they look to bolster
their attacking options next season.

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ARE WEST HAM SET TO BID FOR SADIO MANE?
By S J Chandos 8 Jun 2014 at 08:00
West Ham Till I Die

Following on from West Ham pulling the plug on the M'Baye Niang deal, Sky
Sports are reporting that the club have now shifted their attention to
promising young Senegal forward, Sadio Mane. Mane currently plays for Red
Bull Salzburg, having moved there from Metz in 2012. And his displays for
both club and country, over the last two seasons, have identified Mane as
one of the best prospects around. The pacy 22 year old attacker can play
wide or upfront and is thought to be keen to try his luck in the Premier
League. Mane has scored 42 goals in 79 appearances for Salzburg and provided
28 assists; while for Senegal, he has has scored 4 goals in 15 appearances.

There has been a lot of recent PL interest in Mane and it is thought that
Everton, amongst others, have been monitoring his progress. Yesterday
evening, however, there was speculation that West Ham may be the first to
the punch, in submitting a concrete bid for the player. It is also
distinctly possible that they may attempt to set up a deal to take Mane on
loan next season, with a view to a permanent transfer in the summer of 2015,
although it is unlikely that the Austrian champions will consider anything
other than a permanent deal for one of their major playing assets. If so,
the club will need to back their judgement of Mane's ability by cash rolling
a permanent move to East London.

Elsewhere, there have been a number of recent reports indicating that we are
preparing a loan bid for Chelsea's Oriol Romeu. The midfielder spent last
season on loan to Valencia, where he made a total of 18 appearances in all
competitions. The player will want to play more frequently than that next
season and could jump at the prospect of a loan to another PL club.
Similarly, there has been much speculation that West Ham are seeking to
hijack Spurs bid for Napoli forward, Blerim Dzemali. The Swiss international
is a player that Sam Allardyce is familiar with, having previously managed
him at Bolton Wanderers in the 2007-08 season. If the club's interest is
real, then that prior connection with the West Ham manager could prove a
decisive factor in beating rivals to his signature.

Finally, the emphasis in our transfer dealings is rightly on our incoming
targets. However, we must also start to move out our various fringe players
to both free up further slack in the player salary budget and generate more
money up front. In particular, it must be a priority to move on the likes of
Maiga, Vaz Te and Diarra, three players who are now surely surplus to
requirements. Presumably the best exit route for Diarra and Maiga will be a
return to French football, while Vaz Te will surely be snapped up by some
aspirant Championship side. Indeed, Vaz Te is a real goal scoring asset at
that level and there should be no shortage of interest in him this summer.

SJ. Chandos.

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HOW ABOUT TOM INCE?
By Iain Dale 7 Jun 2014 at 18:34
West Ham Till I Die

I see Tom Ince isn't going to Inter Milan after all. Not sure of the reason
but he apparently is now going to stay in the Premier League. Now, don't we
need a wide forward player who knows where the goal is? I like both Downing
and Jarvis on their day, but neither gets enough goals. I certainly wouldn't
suggest we offload them unless a really good offer came in, but it strikes
me they need a little more competition. Wouldn't Tom Ince be just the type
of player to provide it? And yes, I know whose son he is, but let's not
visit the sins of the father on the son. He even knows the Hammers sign too.
It's an omen, I tell you. An omen!

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Dzemaili? "It's news to us" say Hammers
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on June 7, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & HUGH

West Ham have strongly denied that they are attempting to buy Napoli
midfielder Blerim Dzemaili. Spurs have been linked with the Swiss
international but morning reports suggested the Irons are ready to get
involved in the bidding process. The 28 year old worked under Sam Allardyce
when he was manager at Bolton which may have helped the speculation However,
inquiries by ClaretandHugh this afternoon suggest that there is very little
in the rumour. We were told: It seems a case of find a player the manager
knows and let your imagination run wild. This is all news to those inside
the club and unlikely at best!"

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Irons transfer market policy becomes clear
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on June 7, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

West Ham are determined not to blow their wage pot on rapid early summer
moves and misS out on a star loan signings later! The events of last year
when there wasn't sufficient left in the pot to entice a Demba Ba appeared
to be available on loan has focused minds sharply among club negotiators.
And they are determined that caution will be the watchword to ensure they
can realistically bid if the opportunity presents itself. And although co
owner David Sullivan has made it clear the board will be more involved in
signings, ClaretandHugh can reveal that manager Sam Allardyce is anything
but a 'passenger' in the process .

Indeed, we have been reliably informed that it was the manager who put the
block on M'Baye Niang's possible switch to the club from AC Milan on loan.
A source told us exclusively: "Sam was the one who decided against taking
him . He wasn't sure about his attitude. It may have been an error. We'll
see.
"One thing's for sure. The club won't be blowing their funds early. They
won't be caught in last season's situation when Demba Ba looked to have come
on the market and they hadn't the moneyleft in their wage kitty to make a
realistic bid. "Lessons have been learned from last season's problems and
there have been too many bad buys for the club to rush into things. "We
should be a much better team than we are on the money that's been made
available and moving forward everybody is determined to do better. "They
know these last couple of years haven't been the best so they will be
rushing nothing."

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The Irons badge.to change or not to change
Posted by Sean Whetstone on June 7, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

The debate has begun on whether the current badge should be altered in the
run up to our move to the Olympic Stadium.moore I will concentrate on the
two main proposals; adding the word London and the possible removal of the
castle. Personally I think the current badge could do with an update, having
last been changed in 1997 to soften the castle features. Let's tackle the
castle first. After 2017 there will be no castle as the Boleyn ground will
be transformed into housing and shops. There is strong historical evidence
that the Boleyn castle
a) Wasn't a castle anyway
and b) had no connection to Anne Boleyn.

Green Street House was built in 1544, eight years after her the execution.
A couple of turrets were added two years later to enhance the beauty of the
ground and that is why it was called a castle by locals. It was demolished
in 1955. The tacky yellow castles were emerged in 2001 during the
rebuilding of West stand and have made us a laughing stock for visiting
supporters - they will not be missed when demolished in 2017.
Traditionalists won't want change but the removal of the castle doesn't
bother me in the slightest but I would not support it being replaced by the
Olympic Stadium. The more contentious issue in my opinion is the use of the
word London on the badge. Traditionalists will point out West Ham was
originally part of Essex and not at the heart of London but we have to
understand that the Premier League is now a global brand. I am sure many
overseas supporters do not automatically know West Ham is a London club and
I do see the attraction of associating the Hammers to a super brand like
London. Many will say it should say East of London, Pride of London, Made in
London but I don't see an issue with a small discreet London somewhere on
the badge. I know football supporters do not like talking about marketing
and brands but the most successful Premier league teams such as Manchester
United, Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal do it so well. We need to as
well if we are to complete on the global stage. If we want better football
and one day achieve a European dream we need to generate more money so in
the end we need to be a global player with a global brand. For those reasons
I back a change of the badge but I agree with the club that the majority of
fans should decide.

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