Daily WHUFC News - 2nd May 2015

Preview - Burnley
WHUFC.com

Preview - Burnley
In brief

West Ham United welcome struggling Burnley to the Boleyn Ground on Saturday
looking to start the final month of the season in style.
With four games left, the Hammers are still within sight of the 50-point
mark and will be keen to move three points closer to their target against a
team who are without a win in five. The Clarets' problems are evidenced by
their lack of goals - they have failed to score in seven of their last eight
outings - with that run unsurprisingly yielding a total of just four points.
Sean Dyche's men last recorded a victory when they came up against
Manchester City at Turf Moor and they currently sit at the foot of the
Barclays Premier League table with 26 points from 34 games. The Hammers'
form has not been an awful lot better, although they have collected four
points from their last two home matches, defeating Sunderland 1-0 before
drawing 1-1 with Stoke City last time out at the Boleyn Ground.

Who are they?

The Clarets were formed in 1882 as Burnley Rovers and six years later became
one of the 12 founder members of the Football League.
Their colours of claret and blue were adopted in 1910 as a tribute to the
dominant force in the English game at the time, Aston Villa.
Twice league champions, in 1921 and 1960, they are one of three clubs,
alongside Wolverhampton Wanderers and Preston North End to have won all four
divisions of the Football League. They are currently in their second Premier
League season, having also featured at that level in 2009/10.

Team News

West Ham United

Sam Allardyce is likely to have the same squad of players available to him
as at Queens Park Rangers last weekend. James Tomkins (shoulder), Andy
Carroll (knee), Guy Demel (calf), Winston Reid (hamstring) and Diafra Sakho
(thigh) remain sidelined, while Alex Song missed out at Loftus Road with a
back problem. Reece Burke could continue at centre back alongside James
Collins after impressing on his top flight debut last week.

Burnley

Sam Vokes will have a fitness test on a thigh injury after missing last
weekend's defeat to Leicester City. However, fellow forward Ashley Barnes is
available again after serving his suspension.

Referee

Saturday's referee is Jonathan Moss., who has been appointed to referee this
season's FA Cup final between Arsenal and Aston Villa.
Sunderland-born, West Yorkshire-based Moss has taken charge of eight
previous West Ham United matches, six of which have ended in draws.
Three of those stalemates have occurred this season - 0-0 at home to Aston
Villa, 1-1 here against West Bromwich Albion and 1-1 at Swansea City. Prior
to that, Moss's first two Hammers appointments came during the 2011/12
season in the Championship - a 2-1 away defeat to Derby County and a 3-3
Boleyn Ground draw with Birmingham City.

One to Watch

West Ham United

Aaron Cresswell

Aaron Cresswell's prowess from free kicks has come to the fore in recent
weeks, after he followed his super strike against Stoke with another fine
effort at QPR, which needed a wonderful save from ex-Hammer Robert Green to
touch onto the crossbar. The 25-year-old left back has handled the step-up
to the Premier League with ease since his summer move from Ipswich Town and
is set to continue his second of playing every second this season when the
Hammers take on the Clarets.

Burnley

Danny Ings

England U21 striker Danny Ings's goals have kept Burnley in the hunt to
avoid an instant return to the Championship, although the former Bournemouth
man has struggled to hit the back of the net quite so regularly in recent
weeks. His total of nine goals is nonetheless impressive in his first top
flight campaign and the 23-year-old enjoyed a real purple patch at the turn
of the year, notching five times in his first seven games of 2015.

Tickets

Tickets for this game have SOLD OUT.

Travel

There are no planned closures on the District or Hammersmith & City lines
serving Upton Park station on Saturday. Click here for full TfL travel
information.

Good services are also anticipated on the Greater Anglia and c2c lines into
Liverpool Street and Fenchurch Street respectively.

Weather

A dry, cloudy afternoon is expected on Saturday, with temperature at
kick-off of 12C (54F).

Last home meeting

West Ham United 1-2 Burnley
npower Championship
3 December 2011

West Ham United: Green, McCartney, Tomkins, Faye, O'Brien (Carew 80),
Faubert, Nolan, Collison, Taylor (Piquionne 56), Noble, Cole
Subs: Stech, Demel, Diop

Burnley: Grant, Trippier, Duff, Edgar, Mee, McCann, Marney, Stanislas (Vokes
69), Bartley, Treacy (Wallace 58), Rodriguez
Subs: Stewart, Easton, Hines

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Medals stolen from legend Brown
WHUFC.com

West Ham United legend Ken Brown has been left devastated after his
priceless medals were stolen in a burglary at his home. The Hammers great
and his wife returned to their house in Norfolk following a cruise holiday
to find callous thieves had broken in and made off with his 1964 FA Cup and
1965 European Cup Winners' Cup medals. The 81-year-old's 1986 League Cup
winner's medal won while manager of Norwich City was also stolen, leaving
Brown so shocked and shaken that he has reluctantly cancelled his weekend
return to the Boleyn Ground - where he was to join former teammates to
celebrate the 50th anniversary of their Cup Winners' Cup success. Having
immediately called in the police, Brown has appealed to West Ham fans and
the wider football community to keep an eye out for his stolen mementoes,
and alert the authorities should they be approached to buy them or see them
being advertised for sale. "I had such a great time with both West Ham
United and Norwich City and feel a great deal of pride when I look back at
my medals and to think that someone has entered my home and taken them hurts
me a lot," said Brown, who is a welcome regular visitor to the Boleyn Ground
on matchdays. "To me it's the sentimental value of what's been taken that
matters more. I have grandchildren who play football and I love being able
to show them the medals when they come and visit. They won't like to see
their granddad upset but unfortunately that's how I feel at the moment. "My
wife and I feel violated that someone could take items of such personal
significance and I can only hope those responsible for doing this can see
how pointless it is to take something that has no value to them and such
great value to us."

Forest Gate-born Brown enjoyed a storybook career with West Ham, graduating
from the Academy and spending 14 seasons in the first-team squad between
1953 and 1967. The centre-half played a central role in the greatest period
in Hammers history, playing alongside Bobby Moore for nearly a decade as the
Club won promotion before lifting their first major domestic and European
trophies. Voted Hammer of the Year in 1959, Brown earned his sole England
cap against Northern Ireland the same year. In all, he made 474 appearances
for the Club, scoring four goals. Brown later enjoyed a successful
management career with Norwich City, Shrewsbury Town and Plymouth Argyle.
His son, Kenny, also played for the Club during the 1990s. Police are
appealing for further information and asking anyone who thinks they may have
come into contact with any of the stolen items to contact DC Matthew Jenkins
at Great Yarmouth CID on 101, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800
555 111.

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Sylvestre aiming for third win on the spin
WHUFC.com

West Ham United U18 midfielder Noha Sylvestre is expecting his team to put
in another solid performance this Saturday when the young Hammers travel to
the North East to play Sunderland. Having beaten Wolverhampton Wanderers
and Liverpool in their last two games of their Play Off campaign, Sylvestre
is hoping to make it a third win on the bounce. Speaking ahead of
Saturday's game with the Black Cats, the Swiss U17 international said:
"We're all looking forward to the match. We've started the Play Offs pretty
well. We know we can still improve and we just want to finish as high up the
table as possible. Having said that, the team performance is more important
than the league table. "Beating Liverpool was a good win for us. They're
always a good side but we played well and deserved the victory. "My
confidence is high after the last two games, so is the team's after winning
the last two games."

Despite normally playing in separate divisions, and therefore rarely playing
each other, Sylvestre enjoyed a successful experience in his one and only
experience of playing the Mackems. As the 17-year-old continued to
explain: "I've played against them once before, we won 1-0 at under 16
level. I think I played well that day, it was a very long journey! I think
we're capable of playing well again on Saturday. "The distance shouldn't be
a factor because we're going up on the day before. We should play well."

Reflecting on an impressive season in claret and blue, Sylvestre has settled
in at West Ham remarkably quickly given the fact he left his native
Switzerland at such a young age. Assessing a season in which he has made 22
appearances - the joint-highest alongside fellow playmaker Grady Diangana,
Sylvestre summarised: "I think I've had a good season. I've played a lot of
games despite having an injury for a month. I'm looking forward to finishing
the season strongly."

The talented midfielder, who has previously named Xabi Alonso as his role
model, nominated teammate Reece Burke as his U18s' Player of the Year,
stating: "I'd have to say Reece Burke. He made his first team debut last
weekend against Queens Park Rangers which is obviously a fantastic
achievement."

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On this day - 1 May
WHUFC.com

Classic match

West Ham United 4-0 Watford
Division One
1 May 2004

Alan Pardew's Hammers had their eyes on the Division One Play-Offs when they
welcomed Watford for their final home fixture of the regular season on this
day eleven years ago. With just two games to play, top two Norwich City and
West Bromwich Albion had the automatic promotion slots sewn up, while the
Hammers were in fifth position, with their place in the end-of-season
showdown threatened by the likes of Reading and Sheffield United. So it came
as a relief to the majority of the 34,685 crowd at the Boleyn Ground when
Don Hutchison gave the Hammers a 17th minute lead. The Scottish midfielder
netted four league goals that term, and another was to follow from the spot
before the break as the hosts took a firm grip on proceedings. Top league
scorer Marlon Harewood weighed in with two further goals in the second
period as West Ham took the points in some comfort to move up to third. That
all but secured the Hammers' Play-Off berth, which was confirmed with a 1-1
draw at Wigan Athletic the following week, and although Pardew's side
defeated Ipswich Town in the semi-finals, they would suffer final heartbreak
at the hands of Crystal Palace.

Complete record - 1 May

1920 West Ham United 2-0 Stockport County (Division Two)
1926 West Ham United 0-2 Bury (Division One)
1937 West Ham United 1-0 Sheffield United (Division Two)
1948 Fulham 1-1 West Ham United (Division Two)
1953 Lincoln City 3-1 West Ham United (Division Two)
1963 Birmingham City 3-2 West Ham United (Division One)
1968 West Bromwich Albion 3-1 West Ham United (Division One)
1971 West Ham United 0-1 Huddersfield Town (Division One)
1972 West Ham United 1-0 Southampton (Division One)
1982 Arsenal 2-0 West Ham United (Division One)
1999 West Ham United 1-5 Leeds United (Premier League)
2004 West Ham United 4-0 Watford (Division One)
2006 West Bromwich Albion 0-1 West Ham United (Premier League)
2011 Manchester City 2-1 West Ham United (Premier League)

Played 14, Won 5, Drawn 1, Lost 8, Scored 17, Conceded 22

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West Ham v Burnley
KO 15:00
1 May 2015
Last updated at 11:18
By Guy Mowbray
BBC Match of the Day commentator

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
Venue: Upton Park Date: Saturday, 2 May

TEAM NEWS

West Ham have no new injury worries, with Alex Song hoping to return after a
back problem. Manager Sam Allardyce has confirmed teenage defender Reece
Burke will start after impressing on his debut last weekend.

Burnley's Sam Vokes will have a fitness test on the thigh injury that ruled
him out of last weekend's defeat by relegation rivals Leicester. Fellow
forward Ashley Barnes is available again after a suspension.

MATCH PREVIEW

Forget "No, Nay, Never"*, for Burnley it's NOW or never for getting the
points they need to stay in the Premier League - or they'll "play B******
Rovers" again sooner than they'd like to. Five points away from safety, the
Clarets are more than likely looking at a minimum of three wins from their
remaining four games to stay up - a tall order for a team that have only
won five of 34 this season. Scoring goals is the problem, with only one
netted in the last eight games and leading scorer Danny Ings without one in
nine appearances. So not a lot of hope then? Well, you wouldn't believe that
listening to manager Sean Dyche, whose calm manner and matter-of-fact way of
speaking would have us believe that anything is possible.

Lawro's prediction "I think Burnley know their chances of staying up are
fading fast. The goals have dried up - for Danny Ings and the rest of the
team - and especially with Leicester's form of late, the Clarets are
probably looking at their situation and thinking they are doomed." He's
pointed to Burnley scoring nine in four games at the turn of the year as
evidence that there are goals in his team, and called on his players to
"retain that relaxed focus and play freely". With Sam Allardyce having set
a target (of sorts) of 50 points and a ninth-place finish to represent
"progress" this season, his West Ham team need to re-focus for the run-in -
not least to help the position of a boss Stewart Downing says the players
"love playing for". Having won just two of 17 league games since Boxing Day
(they'd won nine of their first 17 this season), we're back to a position of
there not being a lot of love from many Hammers fans towards Big Sam, who
has said there's no truth in reports of talks over a new contract - and
seems perfectly relaxed himself about that. His current deal expires in the
summer. He might need a big finish to avoid a new start elsewhere in August.

*The words of Burnley fans' ode to their Blackburn rivals, sung to the tune
of "The Wild Rover".

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head
The three Premier League meetings between these sides have averaged five
goals per game.
Burnley lost 5-3 on their last Premier League visit to Upton Park in
November 2009.
West Ham
West Ham have won just one of their last 12 Premier League matches, and have
scored just three goals in their last seven games.
The Hammers were fourth at Christmas but have since won just twice.
They have scored 15 headed goals, more than any other team in the top
flight.
Adrian is the ninth goalkeeper in Premier League history to save three
penalties in a row; no keeper has ever managed four.
However, the Hammers are the only top-flight team not to score from the
penalty spot this season.
Burnley
Burnley have failed to score in their last five league matches, spanning
seven hours and 59 minutes, and have managed just one goal in their last 10
hours and 39 minutes of Premier League action.
The Clarets have picked up one point from the last 15 available. Defeat at
Upton Park would be their fourth in a row, making it their worst losing run
of the season.
Burnley have conceded exactly twice as many goals as they've scored in the
league this season (52:26).
One third of the goals they have conceded have been from headers, the
Premier League's highest proportion.

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Legend cancels Boleyn return after medals stolen
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 1st May 2015
By: Staff Writer

Hammers legend Ken Brown has cancelled a trip to the Boleyn Ground this
weekend after he returned from holiday to discover he had been the victim of
a burglary.

81-year-old Brown was due to be a star guest at the Boleyn Ground this
weekend along with several fellow members of the 1965 Cup Winners' Cup
Final-winning team. However he has now cancelled his return to Upton Park
after returning from holiday to discovered that his home had been burgled.

As well as a number of valuable items, Brown also lost his 1964 FA Cup
winners medal and 1965 Cup Winners' Cup winners medal. "To think that
someone has entered my home and taken them hurts me a lot," he told
whufc.com.

"But it's the sentimental value of what's been taken that matters more. I
have grandchildren who play football and I love being able to show them the
medals when they come and visit.

"They won't like to see their granddad upset, but unfortunately that's how I
feel at the moment. I can only hope those responsible for doing this can see
how pointless it is to take something that has no value to them and such
great value to us."

Brown, who received one England cap during his playing career was a key
member of the West Ham United team that won both the FA Cup and the Cup
Winners' Cup within a year at Wembley between 1964 and 1965.

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West Ham v Burnley preview: Clarets face critical Hammers test
Last Updated: 01/05/15 3:42pm
Ssn

With just four games remaining, Burnley travel to West Ham for a must-win
game in their bid for Premier League survival on Saturday.
Sean Dyce's side suffered a major blow as they lost at home to fellow
strugglers Leicester last weekend. Jamie Vardy was the man to make them pay
for missing a second half penalty, Matt Taylor the culprit. The result
leaves Burnley rooted to the bottom of the table and five points form safety
having lost four of their past five games, picking up just a point in that
run. West Ham are also desperately out of form having failed to win in their
past four matches. Ed Chamberlin looks ahead to the Premier League game
between West Ham United and Burnley. Sam Allardyce's men have slipped into
the bottom half of the table having been in the hunt for the European places
just a couple of months ago.

Team news

Sam Allardyce has no fresh injury concerns. The 60-year-old has confirmed
teenager Reece Burke will start after impressing on his Premier League debut
at QPR last week - with fellow defenders Winston Reid (hamstring), James
Tomkins (shoulder) and Guy Demel (calf) all ruled out. Alex Song missed the
trip to Loftus Road with a back problem but may return, whilst strikers
Diafra Sakho (thigh) and Andy Carroll (knee) still missing.

Ashley Barnes returns from suspension for Burnley on Saturday. Fellow
forward Sam Vokes will have a fitness test on Friday to see whether he has
recovered from the thigh injury that ruled him out of the 1-0 defeat to
Leicester last weekend. Long-term knee injury victims Dean Marney and Kevin
Long remain sidelined.

Opta facts

West Ham have won just two of their last 17 Premier League games (W2 D7 L8)
but those two victories in that run have been at Upton Park (W2 D3 L3).
Burnley have failed to score in seven of their last eight Barclays Premier
League matches and netted only one in the other game. The Hammers have
scored more headed goals than any other team in the top flight (15). 33% of
the goals Burnley have conceded have been from headers; the league's highest
proportion. Adrian is the ninth goalkeeper in Premier League history to save
three penalties in a row; no keeper has ever done four. The Clarets have the
worst chance conversion rate in the top flight this season, scoring with
just nine per cent of their shots.

Merson's prediction

Burnley just don't seem to score goals - that's seven out of eight games
they've failed to score, and you just can't do that. Danny Ings has scored
over a third of their league goals, and that says it all. West Ham have to
win a game sooner or later, and it should be this weekend. If Matty Taylor
had scored that penalty against Leicester last week, and QPR had scored
their penalty, they're both above Leicester. That's how tight it is at the
moment.

PAUL PREDICTS: 2-0 (17/2 on Sky Bet)

Betting

Sky Bet make Burnley 12/5 to boost their waning survival hopes by securing
three points at Upton Park, with West Ham 23/20 favourites while the draw is
priced 9/4. The Clarets were pushed out to 8/1 to stay up following last
weekend's defeat to Leicester and are considered joint favourites to finish
bottom at 1/1. Danny Ings is considered their most likely source of
salvation at 11/2 to open the scoring, while Diafra Sakho heads the first
goalscorer betting at 5/1.

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Sam Allardyce says West Ham players are letting themselves down and must
''look in the mirror''
22:30, 30 April 2015 By Neil McLeman
Hammers have won just two league games since Boxing Day and their manager
looks looking increasingly likely to be released in the summer
The Mirror

Sam Allardyce has told his players to "look in the mirror" over their own
performances and not worry about his future. Stewart Downing is the latest
Hammers player to publicly speak in support of their manager, who is out of
contract at the end of the season.
The Londoners' boss is in danger, with his side winning only two of the 17
Premier League games they have played since Boxing Day.
But Allardyce, who will give teenage defender Reece Burke his home debut
against Burnley on Saturday, insisted: "I just think the players should
think about not letting themselves down more than [letting] me down. "They
know that they have been capable of much better results.
"There are limited things I can do because of all the injuries. "And for me
it is always been, 'Are you happy the way you are playing yourself?' And if
you are not, do something about it. "Look at yourself in the mirror in the
morning. You can't look at yourself in the mirror and say, 'I am playing on
top of my game' when, deep down inside, you know you are not. "Look at
yourself and just say, 'I have got to play better and I have got to produce
wins.'"

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Burnley boss Sean Dyche backs Matt Taylor to take another penalty against
old club West Ham
22:30, 30 April 2015 By David Anderson
Midfielder missed a spot-kick in six-pointer defeat to Leicester last week
which has left rock-bottom Clarets five points from safety with four games
to go
The M irror

Sean Dyche has backed Matt Taylor to take another penalty on Saturday
against his old club West Ham after his spot-kick agony. Dyche says Taylor
has not brooded over his costly miss during last Saturday's loss to
relegation rivals Leicester. The Burnley boss claims the midfielder is
experienced enough to get over it and says he would have no qualms over him
taking another spot-kick. "It's part of the game," said Dyche. "His history
taking penalties is clear and he's done well with big occasions and big
moments, so we move forward. We don't keep looking at that. "He's old enough
and wise enough to know about the good, the bad, the ins and the outs of
football. And he's also an honest campaigner, which we like here. "If he's
ready to take a penalty, then he'll take a penalty. The way he gripped the
ball and walked after it, I had no other thought than he would score."

Dyche claims Taylor's focus is on returning to Upton Park and the former
Portsmouth wide man helped the Hammers win promotion to the Premier League
during his three seasons there. He is set for his second start since August
for rock-bottom Burnley, who are five points from safety, and Dyche said: "I
don't think last week is relevant, but playing against his old club might
be. "I think he wants to play full stop because he's had a tough time with
injuries since he's got here. "He's a super-fit lad and for the first time
in his career virtually he's had an awkward spell out with something we
thought would be moderate term. "He's fit and well now and looking forward
to playing if selected."

Taylor's penalty miss means Burnley have gone seven hours and 59 minutes
without a goal, while striker Danny Ings has not netted since February 11.
Dyche defended Ings, saying it is not just down to him to score. "It's not
just Danny, the team have to stand up," he said. "He's certainly trying. And
that's one of the key components, showing that willingness. It's not a
situation where you can just rely on one player."

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Allardyce tells players: "Look in the mirror."
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 1, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

Sam Allardyce has told the West Ham players to look in the mirror at
themselves and produce a performance. Speaking at his press conference he
said: "For me, the focus is 'are you happy with the way you are playing? And
if you aren't then do something about it.
Look at yourself in the mirror in the morning because you can't kid that
person. Deep down inside you know you are not playing, so just say 'I have
to produce wins with performances and entertainment value' which is what we
had been doing all season."

With four games to go, the manager feels that they could get 12 points to
thrust them back up the league, where he thinks they belong.
He insisted: "The true fact of the matter is we should have already nailed
ninth place or better by a long way. "We want to finish higher than 10th,
but the more and more we don't pick up three points the more the season ebbs
away to a disappointment. "I keep saying to the players, let's not be a
disappointment at the end of the season, because that is not good enough.
"We need to try and win every game. Four games to go we are still trying to
reach the 50-point mark and finish higher than 10th if we can. Games like
Burnley at home, Aston Villa away, Everton at home and Newcastle away, if we
reach our top form and be more ruthless we can beat them."

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Sam's D-Day close - abuse won't change a thing
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 1, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

Could there be a more dreary, disruptive and disappointing climax to a
season gone badly wrong?

Tomorrow it's rock-bottom Burnley at the Boleyn for a game in which there's
little interest or enthusiasm - it should all have been so different.

Over recent days we have seen our co chairman DG abused on Twitter because
he claimed injuries contributed towards a lack lustre performance at QPR
before later declaring himself "tired" of abuse directed at the club with
one follower calling it a "joke."

Meanwhile the team's general form and results is nothing less than appalling
with the managerial situation remaining entirely at the forefront of most
people's minds.

It's all so West Ham. You don't need a time machine to revisit Hammers
history.2014-15 is a repeat of 2013-14.

Little or nothing, including the League position, has changed and once again
we await an end of season review with not a day going by and the managerial
situation not being discussed,

In a word West Ham is once again in a "mess" with fans demanding answers,
not getting any and thus venting their spleen all over Twitter at David Gold
or any other handy target.

There sole reason for this is the the Sam Allardyce situation.

Once David Gold had described himself of "tired" of Twitter abuse and later
said if he and David Sullivan weren't wanted they could leave, the real
issue emerged.

A huge number tweeted that it was all about the manager. One claimed that if
DG wanted an end to the Twitter twatter he should get rid of him like NOW
.it was a theme rapidly taken up by many others.

None of it was about DG - it was about the manager and it always will be
until the matter is sorted. DG will understand that as he nurses the hurt
inflicted by non-thinking keyboard warriors

The Davids are friends to this site and we know they both read it with DG
often being good enough to grant us interviews. The know how the fans feel -
trust me on this!

David Sullivan made his position clear back in November during a question
and answer session with us. Here's a reminder of what was said:

CandH: There seems to be a constant war between the pro and anti Sam
brigades. Do you have a message for them?

DS: People are entitled to their opinions. We live in a democracy. I'd say
'judge him over the season.'

Most will feel we are now in a position to do that despite four games being
left.

The reality is there has been little or no progress either in league
position (that may change for better or worse!), the atmosphere within the
club is as grim as ever, and the type of football for the second half of the
season is where we were this time last year despite demands for something
much better by fans and board alike last summer.

Within a few weeks the manager's fate will be revealed. Until then however,
let's lay off the co chairmen because effing and blinding on social networks
will make not a blind bit of difference to anything.

I have believed for a long time that a new manager will be installed this
summer and I think that will be good for West Ham United and Sam Allardyce.

Despite a bright start we are again in the pack of also rans. It's been like
backing a horse and watching it run a great first mile before fading into
the no hope category long before the end.

David Sullivan has been in the racing industry as well as football for 25
years - he will get it!

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Inter Milan defender linked with Hammers
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 1, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

According to Gazzetta TV in Italy, West Ham are interested in signing Inter
Milan defender Marco Andreolli. Andreolli, 28, was lured to the Inter Milan
as a teenager having come through the ranks at Padova, and after spells with
Roma, Vicenza, Sassuolo and Chievo he returned back to Inter in 2013.
Andreolli has featured in just 18 games in almost two years at Milan and is
allegedly ready to move again desperate in search of first-team football
with his ideal move to the Premier League. The report in Italy suggests that
Fiorentina and Lazio will offer him the chance to stay in Serie A.

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Benitez is set to leave Napoli in June
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 1, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

Rafael Benitez is set to leave Napoli at the end of the season even if he is
offered a new contract by the Italian club claim sources close to the 54
year old in Italy.

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis revealed this week that Benitez can
remain at the San Paolo "for the next five years" if he wants to. However,
sources close to Benitez say he will quit Napoli when his contract expires
in June, putting clubs in the Premier League including West Ham on alert
over his availability over the summer.

The former Liverpool and Chelsea manager Benitez joined Napoli in the summer
of 2013 and led them to the Coppa Italia and third place in Serie A in his
first season in charge. This season Napoli has failed to mount a serious
bid for the title, but Benitez has guided the club to the semi-finals of the
Europa League.

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Dyche: Matt Taylor ready for Irons
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 1, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

Burnley boss Sean Dyche is backing Matt Tayklor for a big performance
against us on Saturday. The former Iron missed a very important penalty
against Burnley last week but the Clarets boss reckons he has put that one
away in his mind. He said: "I don't think last week is relevant, but playing
against his old club might be. "I think he wants to play full stop because
he's had a tough time with injuries since he's got here. "He's a super-fit
lad and for the first time in his career virtually he's had an awkward spell
out with something we thought would be moderate term. "He's fit and well now
and looking forward to playing if selected."

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Allardyce hands Howe advice
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 1, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

Sam Allardyce reckons it's great to see one of those guys tipped as his
possible replacement at West Ham - Eddie Howe - doing so well!
It looks unlikely that the 37 year old Bournemouth manager will arrive at
the Boleyn however, despite widespread praise across the game.
Some felt he would like to step up to an established Premier League outfit
but all the signals are that he will stay where he is.
Allardyce said in his Evening Standard column: "Eddie Howe went back home to
Bournemouth after an uncomfortable time at Burnley and look what he has
achieved. "Eddie seems to have a good relationship with the club owner, who
has supported him financially, and together they made their dream a reality.
"My one piece of advice for Eddie now is to make sure you stay in that
Premier League. Nothing else matters.
"If you do that, you can establish yourself as a quality, British manager in
the Premier League. "Some manage it, others don't but it's a great challenge
for Eddie and I wish him every success for next season and beyond."

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Valencia on his topsy turvy season
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 1, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

Enner Valencia has admitted life has not been straightforward in his first
West Ham season. Speaking to the official site Enner said: "Looking back on
my first season at West Ham, I think it has been a year of ups and downs. "I
had a few injuries at the beginning, and the Premier League is a very
strong, dynamic league. I've had to adapt, which has been hard, but I think
I've done well in the process." Injury has caused problems and he is now
only just beginning to find his fitness again as the end of season
approaches.
However he said: "I have learned a lot about the Premier League, the teams
that play well, the teams that play strong and different kinds of football.
I've adapted and I think next season will be better than this one."

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