Hammers unbeaten run comes to an end
WHUFC.com
West Ham's impressive unbeaten run came to an end after goals from Romelu Lukaku and Ross Barkley helped Everton record a 2-0 victory at Goodison Park.
Slaven Bilic's side were hoping to make it four consecutive victories following a superb run of form in recent weeks but they failed to make their early pressure count and were made to suffer as Lukaku kept up his formidable record against the Hammers.
The Belgian striker has been a nemesis for West Ham in recent seasons and it proved to be the case once again when he opened the scoring on 50 minutes.
Lukaku made it nine goals from just 11 games – scoring in the last seven consecutive games against West Ham.
Barkley wrapped up the victory for the home side with a volley late in the game and it was hard luck on the Hammers players who had worked so hard to record back-to-back home wins over Sunderland and Chelsea in the last week.
Bilic will of course be looking for an immediate response when the Hammers return to London Stadium next weekend and face Stoke City.
Following the memorable EFL Cup win over Chelsea in midweek, Slaven Bilic opted to make just one change to the starting line-up with Adrian returning to the Hammers goal in place of Darren Randolph.
That meant Michail Antonio was chosen as the man to play through the middle once again why goal hero Edimilson Fernandes retained his place in the starting line-up.
You could see the confidence among the Hammers players following the recent victories and they dominated the opening exchanges at Goodison Park.
After the Everton fans paid a special tribute to former manager Howard Kendall, it was Antonio who could have broken the deadlock after just five minutes.
Dimitri Payet's cross fell perfectly for the England forward inside the box but his close-range effort flew just over the bar.
Payet was involved in the heart of the action once again on 12 minutes when he played the perfect through ball for Pedro Obiang who only had Joel Robles to beat in the Everton goal but he fired his shot just over the bar.
It was all one way traffic at his point and Payet came even closer to getting on the scoresheet just sixty seconds later when his shot produced another fine save from Robles diving low to his left.
The Hammers could have been made to pay for those missed opportunities when Romelu Lukaku broke clear of the West Ham defence on 16 minutes and burst towards goal.
Yannick Bolasie saw his shot well blocked by Mark Noble. The rebound fell to Gareth Barry who curled a shot inches over the bar.
The Hammers continued to create the best openings and had another golden chance on 22 minutes when Manuel Lanzini superbly turned Ramiro Funes Mori and played the ball across goal but there was no Hammers player to turn the ball home.
Everton still looked dangerous on the counter attack and Adrian had to be at his very best to stop Ross Barkley opening the scoring on 26 minutes.
Bryan Oviedo burst clear past Fernandes and crossed in for the England midfielder who looked destined to score but his shot produced a world class one handed save from Adrian.
Adrian was then called upon once again on 37 minutes when he tipped over a cross shot from Mirallas.
Everton made the Hammers pay as they opened the scoring early in the second half.
Seamus Coleman's low shot was well kept out Adrian. Yannick Bolasie beat Winston Reid to the ball with a sliding cross and Lukaku had the easy task of heading home from close-range for his 50th Everton goal.
The Hammers refused to lie down and could have drawn level on 65 minutes when Antonio used his pace to beat Ashley Williams down the left hand side and burst clear into the box but he saw his low shot kept out by the legs of Robles.
Antonio then turned provider on 68 minutes as his pass picked out substitute Andre Ayew but his shot was deflected inches past the post.
Everton put the game beyond West Ham when Barkley added a second on 76 minutes.
Lukaku's cross picked out the Everton midfielder and he made no mistake volleying the ball into the back of the net.
Everton: Joel; Coleman, Funes Mori, Williams, Oviedo; Gueye, Barry, Barkley (Lennon 88); Bolasie (Jagielka 82), Lukaku, Mirallas (Cleverley 71)
Subs not used: Hewelt, Deulofeu, Calvert-Lewin, Holgate
Bookings: Gueye, Oviedo
West Ham: Adrian; Kouyate, Reid, Ogbonna; Fernandes (Zaza 70), Obiang (Ayew 60), Noble, Cresswell, Lanzini (Feghouli 77), Payet, Antonio
Subs not used: Randolph, Nordtveit, Collins, Fletcher
Bookings: Obiang, Reid, Antonio
Referee: Anthony Taylor
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Bilic - Everton were more lethal
WHUFC.com
Slaven Bilic felt Everton's ability to be 'more lethal with their chances was the difference in West Ham United's 2-0 Premier League defeat at Everton.
The Hammers saw their three-match winning streak ended at Goodison Park, where second-half goals from Romelu Lukaku and Ross Barkley settled what had been a closely-fought game.
Both teams created plenty of chances to score, in truth, but for the visitors Pedro Obiang, Michail Antonio, Manuel Lanzini, Mark Noble and Dimitri Payet all either failed to hit the target or found Toffees goalkeeper Joel Robles in fine form.
At the other end, Adrian produced a stunning save to deny Barkley in the opening half, but he was powerless to prevent Lukaku scoring his ninth goal in nine games against West Ham five minutes after the break.
With the Hammers committing more and more men forward, Lukaku then ran in behind before crossing for the unmarked Barkley to settle matters 14 minutes from full-time.
"I have the feeling that, while you are always not happy after a defeat, I am more disappointed today because we could have taken something from this game," Bilic reflected.
"I'm not saying that they didn't deserve it, because at the end of the day they were more mature when the game was on the line, but we should have done better with the start we had.
"In the first few minutes we were much better than them and we should have built on that. Then they came back in the second part of the first half with their aggression to get to the second balls, and they created a great chance for Barkley and that was a massive save from Adrian.
"With the first goal, I'm really disappointed because we gave a cheap goal away. It was cheap because we had the chance to clear the ball, we waited too long and Bolasie committed himself to the tackle and fortunately it went to Lukaku.
"After that, we had a couple of chances to equalise but they were always dangerous on the counter-attack and they scored the second one.
"It's a big disappointment because I thought we would take something."
While defeat leaves West Ham looking over their shoulders ahead of a difficult-looking November, the manager is not about to panic.
"We didn't go high-flying after the three wins, and likewise we're not going to drop after one defeat," he said. "We showed some good football, but I'm big-time disappointed because I expected us to create some situations.
"When we offered them opportunities, they took them. They offered us chances in the first half and even in the second after they went one-nil up, but we had to penetrate better.
"They were more lethal and more cruel when they were offered something from us. We didn't capitalise on our chances."
When asked for his assessment of West Ham's nemesis Lukaku, the former Croatia defender could not hide his admiration for the Belgium forward, who came into his own in the closing stages of Sunday's game, pulling the visiting defence all over the place forcing Adrian into a fine late save.
"Lukaku is a world-class player," said Bilic. "On one hand it's a pleasure to see him live when the game is open – his pace, strength, physique and the plan in his head – but when we were tight in the first half, we coped with him really good. Of course he's a world-class players and he seems to always do it against us!"
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Adrian - We lost our composure
WHUFC.com
West Ham goalkeeper Adrian said his side lost their composure during a 2-0 defeat to Everton
Romelu Lukaku and Ross Barkley grabbed goals for the hosts to give them all three points at Goodison Park
Adrian vowed to keep working hard ahead of the Irons' next fixture against Stoke City
Goalkeeper Adrian admitted the Hammers lost their composure during the side's 2-0 defeat to Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday.
In an even game which was level at half time, Romelu Lukaku broke the deadlock five minutes into the second period, nodding home after Yannick Bolasie's centre.
And Ross Barkley put the result beyond doubt with a quarter of an hour remaining, half-volleying past Adrian to double the Toffees' advantage.
The Spaniard was left disappointed at the final whistle, and said his side struggled to regain a foothold in the clash after they fell behind.
"The play was so open in the first half and us and them both had good chances," he explained. "The first goal for them was a little lucky and then we started to lose our composure and they scored again.
"Everyone is disappointed and the second half was not good enough for us. But we need to keep going and concentrate on the next game.
"Every game in the Premier League is tough. We need to keep working harder for the next game and we will have another good opportunity at home next week."
The stopper was on hand to deny Seamus Coleman in the build-up to Lukaku's strike, diving low to his left to push away the Irishman's effort from the edge of the box.
And it wasn't the first save of note Adrian had made, having denied Barkley in the first half with a superb one-handed block.
"The save in the first half was a deflected shot and then a save, and it was important to save that goal and stay at 0-0," he said. "But at the end of the day, it means nothing because we lost the game.
"Bolasie reacted quickly unluckily for us [for the first goal], but we have to defend. We are not happy with conceding two goals but we must keep going and fighting for the next one.
"We started the season poorly but we changed the situation and got a few good results and we beat Chelsea in the week. Today was a hard game for us because we lost but we have to pick ourselves up and keep working for next week."
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Everton 2-0 West Ham United
BBC.co.uk
Everton ended a sequence of five matches without a win with a scrappy victory against a West Ham side who remain close to the relegation zone.
Romelu Lukaku put Everton ahead, heading home from close range for his seventh Premier League goal against the Hammers.
Everton improved as the match progressed and Ross Barkley, under scrutiny this season for some inconsistent performances, capped a fine display with a half-volley that secured the points for the hosts.
West Ham, who had been unbeaten in October, had chances and were the better side in the first half but were left to rue Angelo Ogbonna's miss, which could have given the visitors the lead.
Despite their recent revival - the Hammers were aiming for a third consecutive league victory - Slaven Bilic's men remain just three points above the relegation places as they continue to pay the price for four straight losses at the start of the season.
Barkley, Bolasie and Lukaku shine
Before the game, Everton manager Ronald Koeman said his offensive players had to improve and provide greater support to top scorer Lukaku.
The Dutchman knows his team's weakness, but there were signs in this match that £25m summer signing Yannick Bolasie and Barkley especially can become the consistent threats he craves.
The Toffees' attackers made little impression in the first half and the hosts had just one shot on target - a rasping, deflected Barkley effort which was saved fabulously by Adrian.
But Everton were more adventurous after the break, with Lukaku, Bolasie and Barkley the bright lights as they put West Ham on the back foot.
Winger Bolasie, criticised for not making an impact since his move from Crystal Palace, was key to the opener.
Adrian could only push Seamus Coleman's low drive a few yards away from goal and it was the DR Congo international who reacted quickest to scoop the ball across for Lukaku, who headed home unchallenged from close range.
Barkley, who has been dropped this season, became a greater influence in the second half and the midfielder made a difficult finish look easy for Everton's second.
Hammers lack ruthlessness
West Ham began with the confidence of a team who have collected seven points from their past three league games and progressed to the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup.
In the first half, Dimitri Payet was the game's creative force and the French playmaker was supported by the lively Manuel Lanzini, with Michail Antonio adding muscle up front.
Payet was involved in the moves that led to six of West Ham's seven shots in the opening 45 minutes and Ogbonna squandered a wonderful opportunity to put his team ahead after being put through by the 29-year-old.
Hammers defeat leaves 'bitter taste' for Bilic
In terms of statistics, there was not much to separate the teams - Everton had 49.1% of possession and West Ham made just 12 passes more than their rivals.
But Bilic's men were lacklustre after the break and failed to make the most of the opportunities they did create. Antonio failed to capitalise on a series of mistakes by Ashley Williams, while Joel Robles saved a Mark Noble effort that was heading into the net and a brilliant tackle by Bryan Oviedo was enough to put off Andre Ayew in front of goal.
Man of the match - Ross Barkley (Everton)
Barkley scored his first league goal since the opening day of the season. He had total of five shots, two of which were on target, and grew in influence as the match progressed
What the managers said
Everton boss Ronald Koeman: "It's a good win - a deserved win. "We played well in the second half. Maybe the first half was not what we expect if we play at home. Maybe because of the last few results we didn't have belief and confidence, and that was the difference between the first and second half." Koeman on Barkley: "That's how he needs to play. He worked very hard, he was running, and that's what you need to do. He had some shots on target, scored the second goal, and that's what we want to see from midfield."
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic: "While you are always not happy after a defeat, I am more disappointed because we could have taken something from this game.
"I'm not saying that they didn't deserve it, because they were more mature, but we should have done better. "They were more lethal and more cruel when they were offered something from us. We didn't capitalise on our chances."
The stats you need to know
Lukaku has scored in his past seven Premier League games against West Ham - only Robin van Persie (eight versus Stoke) has had a longer run.
Lukaku has had a hand in 10 Premier League goals against West Ham (seven goals, three assists).
Koeman is only the third Everton manager to remain unbeaten in his opening five home Premier League games (also Mike Walker and Roberto Martinez).
West Ham have now conceded in their past 17 Premier League games against Everton, their joint-longest run without a clean sheet in the competition.
Barkley has been involved in 19 Premier League goals since the start of last season (10 goals, nine assists). The only English midfielders with more are Dele Alli (22) and James Milner (21).
Bilic's side have lost four of their five Premier League away games this season, just one fewer than they lost in the whole of last term.
What next?
Everton, sixth in the table, will play Chelsea in the league on 5 November, while West Ham host fellow strugglers Stoke on the same day.
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West Ham linked with goalscorer
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 30th October 2016
By: Staff Writer
West Ham have been linked with a move for Manolo Gabbiadini as Slaven Bilic seeks to address his goalscoring problems.
With November less than 48 hours away, West Ham's group of strikers - including Simone Zaza, Andy Carroll, Diafra Sakho and Jonathan Calleri - have failed to score a single goal between them this season.
And that chronic inability to find the net - one of the reason the Hammers are currently perilously close to the relegation zone, ten matches into the Premier League campaign - has led Bilic to cast his eye across Europe once again.
According to reports, one of those being closely monitored by Bilic is Napoli striker Gabbiadini, who whilst hardly prolific has at least found the net already twice this season )once in Serie A, once in the Champions League).
And with current Hammer Zaza said to be admired by Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri, Bilic is rumoured to be hoping to swap the misfiring Italian who is yet to register a single shot on target, let alone find the net, since joining West Ham on loan back in August.
West Ham have been linked with a potential move for Gabbiadini on several occasions in the past, most recently during the summer when Italian media sources claimed West Ham had offered Napoli €23million + bonuses for the 24-year-old.
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Evertonian praises 'fantastic' Hammers fans
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 30th October 2016
By: Staff Writer
An Everton supporter has written to KUMB in order to thank West Ham United's travelling fans for their contribution to the tributes that were held at Goodison Park before and during this afternoon's Premier League meeting between the two clubs.
With today's encounter being the Merseyside club's final home game prior to Remembrance Day on Sunday, 13 November the annually-observed minute's silence was held prior to the game - impeccably, by both sets of supporters.
Four minute's into the match home fans staged a minute's applause to mark the first anniversary of the passing of Everton legend Howard Kendall, who won the League championship as a player in 1970 before leading the team as manager to two further titles in the 1980s and European Cup Winners' Cup success in 1985.
Later, there was extended applause for Everton fan Rhys Jones, the football-mad 11-year-old who was tragically shot and killed in 2007, whose family were guests at Goodison Park this afternoon.
Having returned from the match, Evertonian Lenny Jameson took the trouble to write to KUMB.com in order to express his gratitude to West Ham's travelling supporters for their contribution to the tributes.
"As an Evertonian," he wrote, "I was at the game today, seated with my disabled friend behind the goal right next to the West Ham supporters. The support for their team was first class throughout the whole game.
"My main point however is their reaction to the minute's silence and two different minute's applause that were held today.
"The remembrance day silence was, as it should be, impeccably observed. And the response from the West Ham fans to the minute's applause for Howard Kendall and Rhys Jones was absolutely fantastic.
"The wholehearted way in which they all joined in was a wonderful sight to see. I hope you can pass this message on from us Evertonians and thank them all from the bottom of our hearts."
Mr Jameson, like his fellow supporters left Goodison Park in good spirit this afternoon after watching his team beat former Evertonian Slaven Bilic's Hammers 2-0, thanks to goals from West Ham's current nemesis, Romelu Lukaku, and England midfielder Ross Barkley.
But given the club's recent negative press, which reached fever pitch following the midweek EFL Cup win over Chelsea, he felt it important to redress the balance by extending his best wishes to West Ham's travelling supporters.
"After the negative publicity your club has received during the last couple of weeks, your fans at Goodison today were brilliant in their show of support and respect for another club," he added. "They were an absolute credit to their club and to football."
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WHAT HAS CHANGED BETWEEN THIS SEASON AND THE LAST?
BY EXWHUEMPLOYEE ON 30 OCTOBER 2016 AT 9:49AM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
By @Eoin_Lennon
9 games in and our beloved team is under extreme scrutiny due to an incomprehensibly poor spell. Up until recently the string of losses and bad results are something we all couldn't believe nor understand. But why? Why is this being focused on so intensely are people mixing up our beloved West Ham with Barcelona?
I firstly would like to say last season was the best season I can remember as a West Ham fan. Usually a West Ham fan at 2-0 up there has a stomach churning thought that we would squander our lead, due to the pressure of a bombardment of attacks. But last year on multiple occasions I felt us behind by 2 goals and still likely to win. And we did, with our fans pushing the team on until the very end.
But from this fantastic season I would like to pick out two spells of form. Firstly from Oct 31st until Dec 28th 9 games, the equivalent of our upcoming 9 games. This spell seen us without Dimitri Payet for the first time since the magnificent find. There were hard games in there but there was also a lot of poor teams. Our form here got us 9 points from these 9 game (one less point then our current form). There was not outcry here, no blaming Upton Park and no talks of Bilic getting the boot.
The second period is which seen our season to a close, the last 9 games. This period also had to tough games but not enough to warrant a miserable 13 points (only 3 more than our current run) especially when the team was full of confidence fighting for a champions league place. This means that in a spell of 18 games, nearly half the season, we managed 21 points. That sort of form is very bottom half material yet still it was, without a doubt, the best season I have ever witnessed as a West Ham fan.
I think there is an element of delusion amongst some fans which is being fuelled by media looking at every opportunity to bury the London stadium coupled with pundits slamming West Ham because we constantly made fools of them last year when they predicted we would fail. My biggest fear is seeing fans backing pundits rather than our teams and I see it on social media. West Ham fans agreeing with media and pundits saying the stadium is bringing about the end of West Ham and that Bilic wasted the transfer window. I know what WHU faithful would of told these pundits and media is previous years and it was not an agreeing pleasantry.
So if it's not the form to blame, or Bilic, or the stadium to blame what is it? I fear it is the fans! The fans are divided, a family no more and by our own doing only. We really needed to come together and support the team and we havent. We have fought with the board, fought with away fans, fought with the stewards and to everyone's disgust fought with ourselves. The only difference between this season and last is negativity in our own fans spreading like a disease making everything seem and feel worse when really it's nothing we haven't seen before. Everyone need to see there is only one way around it; stick together, welcome the new support, embrace the stadium and we must because at the end of the day it is our future and I still have belief that it is bright.
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REF WATCH – EVERTON V WEST HAM – ANTHONY TAYLOR
BY BRIAN KNOX ON 30 OCTOBER 2016 AT 5:39PM
Written by Sam Roydell-Ryell
After a great last minute Winston Reid winner against Sunderland last weekend and a very impressive win against Chelsea in the EFL Cup, West Ham go to Everton with bags of confidence and hoping for a win that could've taken West Ham up 7 places into 9th in the league. Anthony Taylor was the referee appointed for this Super Sunday fixture. Taylor was also the referee who officiated this exact fixture last season, when Kevin Mirallas was sent off for two bookable offences and West Ham came back from 2-0 down to win 3-2.
In a first half with only a handful of chances for both teams, it was Anthony Taylor that was causing a lot of the issues for both teams. Taylor was poor in the first half and was very soft on a couple of decisions that he made. Gareth Barry has always been a very physical figure throughout his career and it was business as usual in the first half against West Ham. You can look at Barry's challenges in one of two ways: It's either old school tackling: hard, firm and strong or in the modern game it's a foul. There is no middle ground and referees have different opinions on when a tackle is deemed as fair or dangerous. 9 times out of 10, strong challenges this season have been penalised. Barry made some questionable challenges which Taylor overlooked.
Romeu Lukaku was causing issues for the West Ham defence in the first half including catching one or two players with his eblow/forearm. The Belgium is a big presence and I feel that he does need to be careful when climbing to challenge for the ball. From a players prospective, the use of arms is for elevation and in my opinion Lukaku wasn't actions weren't deliberate to elbow Winston Reid. Idrissa Gueye was cautioned in the first half for clearly pulling Pedro Obiang's shirt and fouling the West Ham midfielder in the process. Gueye was the last man between the ball and Everton's goal but a yellow card was the correct decision as the foul was 30 yards from goal and wasn't denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity. Gueye was also involved with an incident with Michail Antonio and the assistant referee initially flagged for the foul after Gueye caught Antonio with his hand. Taylor decided not take any action and I feel although there was contact by Gana on Antonio, it wasn't deliberate. Mark Noble was in the thick of things in the first half, which included blocking a promising strike from Ross Barkley. Although the ball hit Noble's arm, it wasn't deliberate handball by the West Ham midfielder.
In a second half, where West Ham's defensive mistakes led to two Everton goals, Anthony Taylors performance and decision making was very poor at times. Taylor missed some very obvious fouls but also gave fouls against both teams when the ball was fairly won. Taylor failed to give Payet a yellow card for clearly body checking Funes Mori early in the second half but issued Pedro Obiang a yellow card for the exact foul on Ross Barkley. It's a lack of consistency from Taylor. Winston Reid was penalised for a hand ball and Taylor issued a yellow card which means that Reid will miss West Ham's next game at Stoke for getting 5 yellow cards this season. Bryan Oviedo was the second Everton player to be cautioned after a late challenge on Michail Antonio. West Ham's defence was awful at times and this wasn't any different for Ross Barkley's goal, when 5 West Ham players were rushing to defend and nobody picked up Barkley at the back post. There was a questionable decision by the assistant referee to determine whether Lukaku was offside in the build up to Everton's second goal. This would have been an extremely tight decision and in this instance as it was too tight to call, the assistant gave Lukaku the benefit of the doubt. One decision that the majority of West Ham fans will not agree with me for is that Gueye was fouled by Obgonna inside the penalty area in stoppage time. The Italian tried to get himself between the ball and Gueye but Ogbonna was nowhere near the ball, making contact with the Everton midfielder and brought him down inside the box. In my opinion, I felt that Taylor should have given Everton a penalty 2 minutes inside stoppage time.
Overall, I felt that Taylor was very poor in this fixture. I felt that he was inconsistent with his decision making, allowed challenges to go unpunished and punished certain challenges unnecessarily when they were perfectly timed. The penalty appeals in the final minutes was the icing on the cake on Taylor's performance and as a referee you need to ensure you're switched on from the 1st minute to the 90th plus stoppage time. Regardless of the score and the time remaining in the game, a foul is still a foul. A note on West Ham; I felt that we started very well but then gave Everton too much time to settle especially with their recent poor form. It's concerning that some of the West Ham players are failing to put a shift in this season and as I hate to admit this but Payet really needs to get into the game a lot more. He's been very slow to track back and lost the ball a number of times in promising positions. We sit 3 points above the bottom 3 and our fixture is at home next Saturday against Stoke.
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Slaven Bilic rues West Ham lack of killer instinct in Everton defeat
By James Walker-Roberts
Last Updated: 30/10/16 4:42pm
SSN
Slaven Bilic rued West Ham's inability to capitalise on a bright start as they were beaten 2-0 by Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday.
The Hammers were the better side in the opening 25 minutes and went close through Pedro Obiang, Dimitri Payet and Manuel Lanzini.
But after failing to score, Everton responded and secured victory through second-half goals from Romelu Lukaku and Ross Barkley.
"I am disappointed because we should have taken something," Bilic to Sky Sports. "I am not saying they didn't deserve it, they were more mature when the game was in the balance, but we should have done better, especially after the start we had for the first 20-25 minutes.
"We were much better and should have built on that. When we offered them a little they took it straight away, they offered us a lot, in the first half especially, but you have to be more cruel and penetrate better and score goals. If you don't score you have a big chance of losing the game."
The Hammers boss was also disappointed that his side did not manage to clear the ball before Lukaku made it 1-0.
After Adrian saved from Seamus Coleman, there were a couple of defenders in close proximity, but they were beaten to the rebound by Yannick Bolasie, who crossed for Lukaku to finish.
"We had chances to clear the first goal," said Bilic. "It was a good save from Adrian then we had a chance to clear, we didn't, we waited too long.
"We had the ball at our feet, if you concede like that you have to say it's very cheap."
Despite his disappointment, Bilic praised the performance of Lukaku, who scored his ninth goal in his last nine matches against West Ham.
"He is a world-class player," Bilic added. "Until 2-0 we coped with him really well but he is a world-class player and he is always doing that against us."
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West Ham 'crying out for striker' after Everton loss, says Graeme Souness
Last Updated: 30/10/16 5:39pm
SSN
Graeme Souness thinks West Ham are 'crying out for a striker' after seeing them lose 2-0 to Everton on Sunday. The Hammers signed both Andre Ayew and Simone Zaza over the summer, but the former has only just returned from an injury suffered on the opening day, while Zaza has yet to settle after joining from Juventus. In a bid to solve the issue, the versatile Michail Antonio has been used as a forward in the last two matches. But he was unable to make an impact in the defeat at Goodison Park, leaving boss Slaven Bilic with much to ponder "West Ham are crying out for a striker," Souness said on Sky Sports. "They are playing without a centre forward. "Ayew is short of match fitness and that is the hardest place to play - you have to be bang on it to get goals at the highest level.
"Zaza runs around with no real thought to his game, and they are playing without any real threat at the moment." The Hammers had chances in the early stages against Everton but Pedro Obiang, Dimitri Payet and Manuel Lanzini failed to convert. "West Ham played so well in the first half, but I don't know what happened to them in the second half," said Jamie Redknapp. "They stopped doing all the right things and they were so poor. Zaza runs around with no real thought to his game, and they are playing without any real threat at the moment. Hammers boss Bilic also rued his side's inability to capitalise on their bright start. "I am disappointed because we should have taken something," Bilic said. "We should have done better, especially after the start we had for the first 20-25 minutes.
"We were much better and should have built on that. When we offered them a little they took it straight away, they offered us a lot, in the first half especially, but you have to be more cruel and penetrate better and score goals. If you don't score you have a big chance of losing the game."
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Monday, October 31
Sunday, October 30
Daily WHUFC News - 30th October 2016
Preview - Everton
WHUFC.com
What's the story?
West Ham United travel to Merseyside seeking to continue their recent renaissance, while hosts Everton are looking to turn around a downturn in results.
The Hammers are four games unbeaten in all competitions, having drawn at home to Middlesbrough, won 1-0 at Crystal Palace and repeated that scoreline against Sunderland in the Premier League, before defeating Chelsea 2-1 in the EFL Cup fourth round on Wednesday evening.
Everton, in contrast, drew their opening Premier League game before winning five on the trot in the league and EFL Cup. Since then, the Toffees are five matches without a win, losing three, and were dumped out of the EFL Cup by Championship side Norwich City at Goodison Park.
With those statistics in mind, West Ham seemingly have a fantastic opportunity to win in L7 for the second straight season, following their dramatic 3-2 come-from-behind victory in March this year.
To do so, however, the Hammers will need to stop the Toffees' Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku, who has score in all eight Everton appearances he has made against the east London club.
Team news
West Ham do not have any new injury concerns, despite playing two testing fixtures in the past seven days. Slaven Bilic may be tempted to field the same starting XI that defeated in-form Chelsea in midweek, which means Michail Antonio would continue as the centre forward, Swiss youngster Edimilson Fernandes at right wing-back and Liverpool-born Aaron Cresswell at left wing-back. If Bilic does make any changes, it could mean Ghana striker Andre Ayew is handed his first start in a Claret and Blue shirt after impressing as a substitute against the Blues.
Everton will be without injured left-back Leighton Baines and central midfielder James McCarthy, as well as midfielders Muhamed Besic and Darron Gibson, while on-loan West Ham striker Enner Valencia is ineligible.
Any links between the two?
Aside from the on-loan Enner Valencia, no, but Edimilson Fernandes' cousin Manuel played for Everton for a short period on loan during the 2006/07 season.
A number of players have lined up alongside one another for their former clubs, including Manuel Lanzini and Ramiro Funes Mori, who won the Argentine Primera Division with River Plate in 2014.
Idrissa Gueye and Oumar Niasse have shared the Senegal dressing room with Cheikhou Kouyate, who also played with and won the Belgian title with Anderlecht with Romelu Lukaku.
James Collins has partnered Ashley Williams in the heart of the Wales defence many times, while Seamus Coleman and James McCarthy lined up in front of Darren Randolph at Euro 2016.
How do I get to the game?
For directions to Goodison Park click here.
How can I watch the game?
The Hammers' visit to Goodison Park is being screened live in the UK by Sky Sports, with a 1.30pm GMT kick-off. Don't forget the clocks go back an hour tonight, meaning you get an extra hour in bed!
For full worldwide Premier League TV listings click here.
Alternatively, you can follow live coverage on Twitter @westhamutd or listen to the game with our friends at BBC London Sport by clicking here.
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Hutchison - Hammers are heading in right direction
WHUFC.com
Don Hutchison knows a thing or too about West Ham and Everton having made over 150 appearances for both Clubs and is expecting a great game at Goodison Park on Sunday.
Hutchison is thrilled that his former team-mate Slaven Bilic has managed to turn the Club's season around and believes the team will be brimming with confidence as they look to make it four wins in a row....
This is obviously a hard game for me as I captained Everton and had two spells at West Ham.
I hope Everton put on a good show but at the same time want West Ham to continue this good run of form they are showing.
I thought the victory over Crystal Palace was superb and really set the lads on their way. Getting an away win is great and brings back the confidence.
They needed to follow that up with a home win and managed to get the last minute victory over Sunderland.
I was looking at the league table the other day and another win over Everton could see the Hammers move up to eighth and that is incredible.
I know Slaven would love to see his team repeat the performance they showed at Goodison Park last season when they came from two goals down to win 3-2.
Everton is always a hard place to go and I can remember playing for Everton and thinking West Ham were a soft touch back in the day.
I was then playing for the Hammers and I don't recall us getting much from our visits to Goodison Park. It is a hard place to go and there is always a great atmosphere.
I think if the Hammers can take a point, it would be a plus and if Slaven could take all three it would be wonderful.
I played at West Ham and Everton with Slaven and when you play for both teams you get a great association with both Clubs and former players love going back.
I am delighted that Slaven has managed to turn things around and send him a few text messages to say I am right behind him like most of the fans are.
If you are knowledgable about football, you will know that West Ham have suffered a lot of injuries.
Cresswell has been badly missed but he showed what he can bring to the team when he came back against Crystal Palace and a number of the injured players are now back so it all looks good.
Slaven has always wanted a fully fit squad and that is when he should be judged. The players who have been missing are not squad guys, they have been bought to play in the first-team so when you get them back I can see West Ham moving right up the table.
Crystal Palace showed with a couple of wins how quickly you can move up the table and it is the same with West Ham.
We need to get a few more home wins and I am still convinced that London Stadium is a magnificent Stadium.
I played at Upton Park when there were 35,000 fans getting behind you. I can't imagine what it is like when you have nearly 60,000 fans so we need the fans to get behind the team and generate a great season.
Who would not want to perform in such a great arena and that is why opposing players want to play here as well because it is a beautiful surface and a magnificent Stadium.
I have been down to the training ground and you have got people like Mark Noble and James Collins and you have guys who know how to train and are down to earth. More importantly on the pitch they know how to put a shift in.
If you are asking me for a prediction for the game I will go for a 3-3 thriller! I am sitting right on the fence.
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U18s make it three wins in a row
WHUFC.com
West Ham United U18s made it three wins in a row with a 2-1 victory over Aston Villa
Jahmal Hector-Ingram and Korrey Henry (pen) scored the goals despite Ben Johnson being sent off in the first half
Coach Mark Phillips was delighted with his team's endeavour and team spirit
Mark Phillips praised his team's commitment and desire to see their 2-1 victory away at Aston Villa out, despite playing the second half with ten men.
Ben Johnson saw red on the stroke of half-time for a professional foul but goals from Jahmal Hecotr-Ingram and Korrey Henry (pen) were enough to see the Hammers thoruhg as close winner.
Phillips was delighted with his player's effort throughout and believes the type of match that was played out will benefit them.
"With 20 minutes left, some of the people seemed out on their feet. We thought about making some changes but decided to see how the lads would get on," said Phillips.
"We wanted to see how much commitment and desire they had when they were fatigued and the lads did brilliantly.
"Korrey and Jahmal were both a constant threat and made sure their defence was always occupied."
The Hammers preparations were hindered when confusion surrounding the kick-off time meant they only had a few minutes to warm-up.
They responded magnificently though and were ahead inside three minutes. Joe Powell's excellent ball over the top of the defence laid in top scorer Jahmal Hector-Ingram who showed great composure to slide the ball home.
The game was end to end for the rest of the half with chances at a premium, until the stroke of half-time, when a long ball found Jake Humphries who was subsequently tugged back by Ben Johnson.
The referee showed Johnson a straight red card and although the penalty was superbly saved by RIhards Matrevics, the rebound was put away by Harvey Knibbs.
It was always going to be a rearguard effort in the second half but the Hammers were always a threat on the break, despite being down to ten men.
Jahmal Hector-Ingram terrorised the Villa defence all afternoon and was brought down in the area on the hour mark.
Korrey Henry proved a trusted penalty taker once again as he stroked the ball home for his fifth goal in his last three matches.
The Hammers had to defend for the final 30 minutes but did so superbly. Villa had Mitchell Clark sent off with five minutes to play as the Hammers saw the game out for their third win in succession.
The result means the Hammers are still top of the U18 Premier League South table ahead of their much anticipated clash with Arsenal next weekend.
WHU U18s: Matrevics; Eggleton, Akinola, Wells, Longelo; Coventry, Lewis; Johnson, Powell, Henry; Hector-Ingram. Subs not used: Ngakia, Forde, Barrett, Hamilton, Hannam.
Goals: Hector-Ingram, Henry (pen).
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Five Talking Points - Everton
WHUFC.com
The major points for discussion ahead of Sunday's Premier League lunchtime kick-off at Goodison Park...
Will Sunday go by the form guide?
While West Ham United's fortunes have picked up in recent weeks, with seven points from three matches and a stirring EFL Cup win over Chelsea, Everton appear to be going in the opposite direction. The Toffees began 2016/17 in fine form under new manager Ronald Koeman, they are winless in four Premier League matches and lost at newly-promoted Burnley last weekend. It would be foolish to write off a team and manager as able as Everton, but on recent form and results alone, the Hammers have a great chance of extending that run to five on Sunday.
Have the Hammers banished their Goodison nightmare?
Everton has not historically been a happy hunting ground for West Ham, but that all changed in 12 second-half minutes in March. The Hammers trailed 2-0 going into the closing stages at Goodison Park, only for a sensational comeback to secure a first victory there in more than a decade. The memory of scoring will no doubt inspire Michail Antonio and match-winner Dimitri Payet, while Adrian can also look back fondly on his penalty save from Romelu Lukaku which paved the way for the visitors' recovery. So, on the eve of Halloween, have West Ham finally vanished their Halloween nightmare?
Cheiking the Lukaku factor
Ask any West Ham supporter what he expects to happen on Sunday and their answer will invariably be 'Lukaku will score!'. The big Belgian has had his way with West Ham repeatedly since moving to English football, scoring in an Everton record eight consecutive appearances against the Hammers. On Sunday, one of the men charged with stopping him will be his former Anderlecht teammate and newly-installed centre-back Cheikhou Kouyate. It will not be easy, but if the Senegalese can maintain his recent form, Lukaku could finally have a game for forget against his favourite opponents.
Can Edi continue his fast start?
Of all West Ham's summer signings, Edimilson Fernandes arguably arrived with the least fanfare. The Swiss youngster flew in under the radar from Sion, where he had been a first-team regular since the age of 18. Still just 20, Fernandes has yet to start in the Premier League in his favoured central midfield position, but his performances in the wing-back positions against Sunderland and Chelsea have rightly got people talking. On Thursday, manager Slaven Bilic said Edi has 'everything' required to become a top player. With the U21 international set to retain his position on the right flank at Everton, Sunday will give Fernandes another opportunity to prove his boss correct.
Can the Hammers complete an unbeaten October?
West Ham can complete a full calendar month without defeat for the first time this season should they win or draw at Goodison Park. After losing one match in April, two in May, one game in July, and three each in August and September, the Hammers can go through the whole of October without losing a single game for the first time since March. Believe it or not, despite enjoying a fine 2015/16 campaign, West Ham only completed two unbeaten months last season - March and December, when the injury-depleted Hammers drew four straight Premier League games before ending the year with a 2-1 home win over Southampton.
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Bilic - Edi has got everything
WHUFC.com
Slaven Bilic has hailed the impact made by Edmilison Fernandes following the Swiss youngster's encouraging start to life with West Ham United.
The 20-year-old arrived from Sion in August, with the £5.5 million transfer generating relatively little interest from a media who were largely unaware of the midfielder's considerable talents.
With the Swiss Super League not available to view on British television, Fernandes' outstanding abilities flew under the radar – until now!
After impressing as a left wing-back in the 1-0 Premier League win over Sunderland last weekend, the No31 produced an even better display in the midweek EFL Cup victory over Chelsea, scoring a fine first goal for the club to clinch a 2-1 success.
"It's a great thing to see him make an impact like he has," said Bilic. "It's always great to see a new player doing well, especially if it's a young player like he is.
"We shouldn't forget that he's only 20-years-old, he came to a new country and doesn't speak great English, so it was probably hard for him.
"But since the first day, he has been really good and positive and very brave in training and you could see from the start that he's a very talented player.
While relatively unknown in these parts prior to his arrival, Fernandes is no rookie, having played more than 100 times for Sion, including eight times in last season's UEFA Europa League. He also netted for his club in their 2015 Swiss Cup final win over Basel.
With maturity and composure beyond his years, Bilic is excited about the prospect of working with the youngster in seasons to come.
"He is very comfortable on the ball in different positions and I'm sure that him, the Club, the fans and all of us are going to benefit from him, big time. He has got everything."
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Angelo's World
WHUFC.com
In a regular feature on whufc.com, we speak with Hammers defender Angelo Ogbonna and go behind-the-scenes with our Italian central defender.
Ogbonna shares his views on life both inside and outside the camp and gives his honest opinions on all the matters that count.
In the latest blog, the 28-year-old reflects on a memorable week for the Club and reveals how he is going to try and stop Romelu Lukaku getting on the scoresheet....
Hello everyone,
This has been a great week for everyone at the Club but we cannot afford to get carried away and must stay focused. We need to take it step-by-step.
The most important thing is that we now stay clever because all the players gave everything in the midweek victory over Chelsea.
It was one of the best atmospheres I have experienced for West Ham at London Stadium and maybe it was because it was our first derby at home and the game was being played under the lights.
We had a big opportunity to win and with nearly 50,000 fans behind us it made a big difference.
As players we felt the amazing atmosphere and it is really important for us. Maybe it was because the game was being played at night and it has a totally different feel about it.
In London you can have four different types of weather in one day. Everything made for such a great atmosphere playing under the lights and it makes everyone excited.
It is the same when you go to the cinema – it is a different feeling when you go at night to during the day! That is the point I am trying to make.
We had such a strong home record at the Boleyn Ground last season and we would love to do the same at London Stadium. Why can't we do the same?
We have spoken about the spirit among the players and we know the level that we can go to.
The Premier League is such a tough league but we have stayed professional and the expectation is so high. We were just focused on concentrating on our own expectations and we are now getting back to our best.
We have another big game on Sunday and we know that we will need to stop Romelu Lukaku getting on the scoresheet. I am well aware of his record against West Ham!
Romelu is a very good player and we all want to stop him. But if our performance is like the one we have shown in the last few games we stand a very good chance of winning the game.
Everton have had a clear week and they will be fully prepared, but we cannot have any excuses and go into the game with a lot of confidence.
Playing against people like Lukaku can motivate us even more that we want to stop him. We have to play like we did against Chelsea and Sunderland.
We managed to stop Diego Costa on Wednesday and I hope it will be the same with Lukaku as it would be great for us to come away with another three points.
I still have fond memories of our last victory at Goodison Park and it was an amazing comeback after we went two goals down. Nobody expected us to do that.
It showed once again the character of the team and no-one is prepared to give up and lose. That is so important for us.
We had some big results last season but I thought it was one of our best performances along with the game at home to Arsenal when we were also two goals down.
It is better for us if we can score first and not have to come from behind!
I want to say a special word about Edimilson Fernandes who has made such a big impact in his first two games.
It is so important for the Club because we have a really good young player and he is so humble. He can play in a number of positions.
He has time to improve and get even better. We don't need to put too much pressure on him and it is good for him to get this experience because he has a big quality.
We are really proud of him, not just because he is young but because he is so humble. Before you become a footballer you need to become a man and it is very difficult to find people as humble as he is.
With all the games we have been facing recently I have not had much time to do anything apart from rest in-between games and make sure I am in the best possible shape.
I want to make sure I am ready for the game once again on Everton and I hope the fans can celebrate another big victory on Sunday.
Enjoy the game.
Angelo
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MATT LAWLESS EXCLUSIVE: DO THE MEDIA HATE WEST HAM?
BY EXWHUEMPLOYEE ON 29 OCTOBER 2016 AT 8:38PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Written by Matty Lawless @mattylawless
Do the media hate West Ham? If it's left for me to answer, then categorically no. The media, as I've known it in over 15 years working in the industry, do not hate any team.
Understandably, this week, there are West Ham fans asking that question.
After what was a magnificent performance against Chelsea, the focus was firmly on the trouble that marred Wednesday's win.
It's a real shame that such a special night, with an incredible atmosphere and an amazing result was ruined.
So, why did the media focus on the small minority who attempted to spoil it for everyone else?
I can't speak for everyone but I do know that the facts speak for themselves.
The chaotic scenes were there for all to see – and it was appalling. Chairs being thrown. Coins hurled. Thankfully nobody was reported to be seriously hurt.
Unfortunately, every game played at the London Stadium has witnessed trouble of some sort – and on more than one occasion it has erupted within the stadium.
You cannot defend it. It's embarrassing for the game. Yet some fans seem to be in-denial and query whether it all part of a wider agenda against West Ham.
The truth is there is no agenda (not that I know of anyway). The reportage has been fair across the board. And it would be the same if it happened every week at The Emirates, White Hart Lane etc.
The Manchester City supporters who allegedly smashed the toilets up at Old Trafford during the week were highlighted. The depressing scenes north of the border before and after the Old Firm game last weekend did not escape the headlines either. So, it's not just West Ham being singled out.
But as a West Ham season ticket holder it does hurt. I'm one of the many who go to the stadium with the sole intention of supporting my team. It's not fair that West Ham fans are generalised with a reputation of being thugs. Honest Guv, we're not.
The mindless few who are won't be around for long. The club has conducted itself in the right way and vowed to ban them all. Good riddance.
Increased measures of segregation will now be put in place, which is also reassuring.
Visiting teams must take responsibility too, however.
Last Saturday's win against Sunderland was spoiled by reports that away fans set upon home supporters outside the stadium. That's not on.
Then on Wednesday, one moronic Chelsea follower breached the segregation line inside the stadium to goad the home section. Why wasn't he stopped?
While I don't condone violence of any sort, it feels unfair that West Ham fans are totally blamed for everything. Yes, it's clear some were at fault but many were not.
Lots of fellow Hammers have tweeted me. Where they sit they have been oblivious to any disorder. The atmosphere in their area, in particular against Chelsea, was rocking for all the right reasons. It felt like a proper London derby. And so they were left baffled over reports of bad behaviour.
I've been excused of being melodramatic. I apologise if that's what people think. The truth is I only ever want to read positive press about the team I love. Believe me, I don't want to be tweeting about total disorder. But if something is wrong, I feel obliged to write fairly and accurately about it.
My tweets got a lot of attention during the Watford game, for instance. What I witnessed that day was nasty. Kids around me were crying. It was wholly unpleasant.
But since then, and until the Chelsea game, everything has been absolutely fine.
I've enjoyed going again. I love taking my son with me. He's 9 and football mad.
It's a big bad world out there and I know I can't protect him from everything.
Yet I don't want to be deterred from taking him to the big games because of a minority of hooligans who want to spoil it.
I fell in love with West Ham because I went to the big games – home and away. Naturally, I want the same for him.
So, that's my major angst right now. One fan suggested I shouldn't bother going because "we don't want fans like you". Doesn't want the next generation to go to games feeling safe and enjoying it? Pathetic. Fortunately, he did say sorry.
It's fine. I get it. Things are said, sometimes unwisely, in the heat of the moment. We're all passionate about West Ham – hence why I despise seeing stories of unruly unrest, especially when the team deserves all the credit.
I'm confident, however, that we won't witness a repeat of those disgraceful scenes inside the stadium again. I believe it will be a safe place to take my son and have no qualms going there. Its not the Boleyn Ground but I genuinely do love it. Every game has a big game feel to it. And derbies are especially supposed to be edgy and intense. I want to be on the end of my seat singing "Who Are Ya?" whenever we're beating our rivals. Nothing wrong with that (works both ways too).
I just want an end to all the negativity. This really is a great time to be a West Ham fan. The future IS bright. Three wins on the spin. Two (almost three) clean sheets.
Let's see the focus shift onto Slaven Bilic's side.
After a terrible start to the season, it feels like we've turned the tide and got our old West Ham back.
It's a big game at Goodison on Sunday. If we win that – and follow it up with three points against Stoke next Saturday – West Ham should be making headlines again for all the right reasons.
Signing off, I'd like to pay a huge thanks to the West Ham Way for having me. Sorry to have kept you waiting for so long!
One love to all West Ham fans.
Come on you Irons!
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Goodison Park brings back memories for Slaven Bilic ahead of return
Last Updated: 29/10/16 1:12pm
SSN
Slaven Bilic will be on familiar territory when West Ham travel to Everton and attempt to build on their wins against Sunderland and Chelsea in the last week.
West Ham play Everton for the live Super Sunday match at Goodison Park - where boss Bilic played for two seasons after leaving Upton Park in 1997.
And Bilic admits he remains a fan of Everton's tight ground - and not just because West Ham clinched a dramatic 3-2 win there last season.
"It's a great stadium to play at," Bilic said. "I love the stadium, and not because I played there.
"It's going to be packed, it's a great stadium and also because we have a great memory from last year. Okay, I played there and everything but it's mostly because of the stadium and the crowd is very good there."
West Ham will also face a familiar foe in the shape of Romelu Lukaku. The Belgium striker has scored every time he has played against them, a total of eight goals in as many appearances.
"They have so many options up front," Bilic added. "They are a very physical side, they have pace up front. They have Lukaku who, I don't know how many he has scored - eight goals in 10 games against us, or whatever I read yesterday.
"So he is always scoring against us, unfortunately, so that's also going to be interesting. It will be a great game. They need points. We need points."
Bilic has another attacking weapon of his own, though, with £20.5m summer signing Andre Ayew finally fit again.
The former Swansea frontman had been sidelined by a thigh injury suffered against Chelsea in the opening game of the season, but made his comeback as a late substitute against the same opposition on Wednesday.
"It's great to have him back," said Bilic, who remains without strikers Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho through injury.
"He's been training with the group for a couple of weeks now and came on and did really good against Chelsea. He looked fit and aggressive, so it's great to have him back."
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West Ham offer £22.5m and Simone Zaza to Napoli: Italian striker eyed in return
WEST HAM have reportedly offered Simone Zaza to Napoli as a makeweight in their pursuit of striker Manolo Gabbiadini.
By JOE SHORT
PUBLISHED: 12:03, Sat, Oct 29, 2016 | UPDATED: 12:13, Sat, Oct 29, 2016
Express.co.uk
Zaza has failed to impress since joining the West Ham this summer on loan from Juventus. It is claimed West Ham are obliged to sign Italy international Zaza for £17.7million if he plays 10 games for the club. But manager Slaven Bilic appears uninterested in retaining the 25-year-old for long. According to Italian TV station Rai Sport, West Ham are willing to offer £22.5m (€25m) for Gabbiadini in January. They hope Napoli will be convinced to sell the 24-year-old in return for a heavy up-front fee and replacement forward Zaza. According to the report, Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri is an admirer of Zaza and would be open to signing him.
However, Napoli may prefer to retain Gabbiadini this season, despite the Italian scoring just twice so far this campaign.
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
What's the story?
West Ham United travel to Merseyside seeking to continue their recent renaissance, while hosts Everton are looking to turn around a downturn in results.
The Hammers are four games unbeaten in all competitions, having drawn at home to Middlesbrough, won 1-0 at Crystal Palace and repeated that scoreline against Sunderland in the Premier League, before defeating Chelsea 2-1 in the EFL Cup fourth round on Wednesday evening.
Everton, in contrast, drew their opening Premier League game before winning five on the trot in the league and EFL Cup. Since then, the Toffees are five matches without a win, losing three, and were dumped out of the EFL Cup by Championship side Norwich City at Goodison Park.
With those statistics in mind, West Ham seemingly have a fantastic opportunity to win in L7 for the second straight season, following their dramatic 3-2 come-from-behind victory in March this year.
To do so, however, the Hammers will need to stop the Toffees' Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku, who has score in all eight Everton appearances he has made against the east London club.
Team news
West Ham do not have any new injury concerns, despite playing two testing fixtures in the past seven days. Slaven Bilic may be tempted to field the same starting XI that defeated in-form Chelsea in midweek, which means Michail Antonio would continue as the centre forward, Swiss youngster Edimilson Fernandes at right wing-back and Liverpool-born Aaron Cresswell at left wing-back. If Bilic does make any changes, it could mean Ghana striker Andre Ayew is handed his first start in a Claret and Blue shirt after impressing as a substitute against the Blues.
Everton will be without injured left-back Leighton Baines and central midfielder James McCarthy, as well as midfielders Muhamed Besic and Darron Gibson, while on-loan West Ham striker Enner Valencia is ineligible.
Any links between the two?
Aside from the on-loan Enner Valencia, no, but Edimilson Fernandes' cousin Manuel played for Everton for a short period on loan during the 2006/07 season.
A number of players have lined up alongside one another for their former clubs, including Manuel Lanzini and Ramiro Funes Mori, who won the Argentine Primera Division with River Plate in 2014.
Idrissa Gueye and Oumar Niasse have shared the Senegal dressing room with Cheikhou Kouyate, who also played with and won the Belgian title with Anderlecht with Romelu Lukaku.
James Collins has partnered Ashley Williams in the heart of the Wales defence many times, while Seamus Coleman and James McCarthy lined up in front of Darren Randolph at Euro 2016.
How do I get to the game?
For directions to Goodison Park click here.
How can I watch the game?
The Hammers' visit to Goodison Park is being screened live in the UK by Sky Sports, with a 1.30pm GMT kick-off. Don't forget the clocks go back an hour tonight, meaning you get an extra hour in bed!
For full worldwide Premier League TV listings click here.
Alternatively, you can follow live coverage on Twitter @westhamutd or listen to the game with our friends at BBC London Sport by clicking here.
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Hutchison - Hammers are heading in right direction
WHUFC.com
Don Hutchison knows a thing or too about West Ham and Everton having made over 150 appearances for both Clubs and is expecting a great game at Goodison Park on Sunday.
Hutchison is thrilled that his former team-mate Slaven Bilic has managed to turn the Club's season around and believes the team will be brimming with confidence as they look to make it four wins in a row....
This is obviously a hard game for me as I captained Everton and had two spells at West Ham.
I hope Everton put on a good show but at the same time want West Ham to continue this good run of form they are showing.
I thought the victory over Crystal Palace was superb and really set the lads on their way. Getting an away win is great and brings back the confidence.
They needed to follow that up with a home win and managed to get the last minute victory over Sunderland.
I was looking at the league table the other day and another win over Everton could see the Hammers move up to eighth and that is incredible.
I know Slaven would love to see his team repeat the performance they showed at Goodison Park last season when they came from two goals down to win 3-2.
Everton is always a hard place to go and I can remember playing for Everton and thinking West Ham were a soft touch back in the day.
I was then playing for the Hammers and I don't recall us getting much from our visits to Goodison Park. It is a hard place to go and there is always a great atmosphere.
I think if the Hammers can take a point, it would be a plus and if Slaven could take all three it would be wonderful.
I played at West Ham and Everton with Slaven and when you play for both teams you get a great association with both Clubs and former players love going back.
I am delighted that Slaven has managed to turn things around and send him a few text messages to say I am right behind him like most of the fans are.
If you are knowledgable about football, you will know that West Ham have suffered a lot of injuries.
Cresswell has been badly missed but he showed what he can bring to the team when he came back against Crystal Palace and a number of the injured players are now back so it all looks good.
Slaven has always wanted a fully fit squad and that is when he should be judged. The players who have been missing are not squad guys, they have been bought to play in the first-team so when you get them back I can see West Ham moving right up the table.
Crystal Palace showed with a couple of wins how quickly you can move up the table and it is the same with West Ham.
We need to get a few more home wins and I am still convinced that London Stadium is a magnificent Stadium.
I played at Upton Park when there were 35,000 fans getting behind you. I can't imagine what it is like when you have nearly 60,000 fans so we need the fans to get behind the team and generate a great season.
Who would not want to perform in such a great arena and that is why opposing players want to play here as well because it is a beautiful surface and a magnificent Stadium.
I have been down to the training ground and you have got people like Mark Noble and James Collins and you have guys who know how to train and are down to earth. More importantly on the pitch they know how to put a shift in.
If you are asking me for a prediction for the game I will go for a 3-3 thriller! I am sitting right on the fence.
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U18s make it three wins in a row
WHUFC.com
West Ham United U18s made it three wins in a row with a 2-1 victory over Aston Villa
Jahmal Hector-Ingram and Korrey Henry (pen) scored the goals despite Ben Johnson being sent off in the first half
Coach Mark Phillips was delighted with his team's endeavour and team spirit
Mark Phillips praised his team's commitment and desire to see their 2-1 victory away at Aston Villa out, despite playing the second half with ten men.
Ben Johnson saw red on the stroke of half-time for a professional foul but goals from Jahmal Hecotr-Ingram and Korrey Henry (pen) were enough to see the Hammers thoruhg as close winner.
Phillips was delighted with his player's effort throughout and believes the type of match that was played out will benefit them.
"With 20 minutes left, some of the people seemed out on their feet. We thought about making some changes but decided to see how the lads would get on," said Phillips.
"We wanted to see how much commitment and desire they had when they were fatigued and the lads did brilliantly.
"Korrey and Jahmal were both a constant threat and made sure their defence was always occupied."
The Hammers preparations were hindered when confusion surrounding the kick-off time meant they only had a few minutes to warm-up.
They responded magnificently though and were ahead inside three minutes. Joe Powell's excellent ball over the top of the defence laid in top scorer Jahmal Hector-Ingram who showed great composure to slide the ball home.
The game was end to end for the rest of the half with chances at a premium, until the stroke of half-time, when a long ball found Jake Humphries who was subsequently tugged back by Ben Johnson.
The referee showed Johnson a straight red card and although the penalty was superbly saved by RIhards Matrevics, the rebound was put away by Harvey Knibbs.
It was always going to be a rearguard effort in the second half but the Hammers were always a threat on the break, despite being down to ten men.
Jahmal Hector-Ingram terrorised the Villa defence all afternoon and was brought down in the area on the hour mark.
Korrey Henry proved a trusted penalty taker once again as he stroked the ball home for his fifth goal in his last three matches.
The Hammers had to defend for the final 30 minutes but did so superbly. Villa had Mitchell Clark sent off with five minutes to play as the Hammers saw the game out for their third win in succession.
The result means the Hammers are still top of the U18 Premier League South table ahead of their much anticipated clash with Arsenal next weekend.
WHU U18s: Matrevics; Eggleton, Akinola, Wells, Longelo; Coventry, Lewis; Johnson, Powell, Henry; Hector-Ingram. Subs not used: Ngakia, Forde, Barrett, Hamilton, Hannam.
Goals: Hector-Ingram, Henry (pen).
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Five Talking Points - Everton
WHUFC.com
The major points for discussion ahead of Sunday's Premier League lunchtime kick-off at Goodison Park...
Will Sunday go by the form guide?
While West Ham United's fortunes have picked up in recent weeks, with seven points from three matches and a stirring EFL Cup win over Chelsea, Everton appear to be going in the opposite direction. The Toffees began 2016/17 in fine form under new manager Ronald Koeman, they are winless in four Premier League matches and lost at newly-promoted Burnley last weekend. It would be foolish to write off a team and manager as able as Everton, but on recent form and results alone, the Hammers have a great chance of extending that run to five on Sunday.
Have the Hammers banished their Goodison nightmare?
Everton has not historically been a happy hunting ground for West Ham, but that all changed in 12 second-half minutes in March. The Hammers trailed 2-0 going into the closing stages at Goodison Park, only for a sensational comeback to secure a first victory there in more than a decade. The memory of scoring will no doubt inspire Michail Antonio and match-winner Dimitri Payet, while Adrian can also look back fondly on his penalty save from Romelu Lukaku which paved the way for the visitors' recovery. So, on the eve of Halloween, have West Ham finally vanished their Halloween nightmare?
Cheiking the Lukaku factor
Ask any West Ham supporter what he expects to happen on Sunday and their answer will invariably be 'Lukaku will score!'. The big Belgian has had his way with West Ham repeatedly since moving to English football, scoring in an Everton record eight consecutive appearances against the Hammers. On Sunday, one of the men charged with stopping him will be his former Anderlecht teammate and newly-installed centre-back Cheikhou Kouyate. It will not be easy, but if the Senegalese can maintain his recent form, Lukaku could finally have a game for forget against his favourite opponents.
Can Edi continue his fast start?
Of all West Ham's summer signings, Edimilson Fernandes arguably arrived with the least fanfare. The Swiss youngster flew in under the radar from Sion, where he had been a first-team regular since the age of 18. Still just 20, Fernandes has yet to start in the Premier League in his favoured central midfield position, but his performances in the wing-back positions against Sunderland and Chelsea have rightly got people talking. On Thursday, manager Slaven Bilic said Edi has 'everything' required to become a top player. With the U21 international set to retain his position on the right flank at Everton, Sunday will give Fernandes another opportunity to prove his boss correct.
Can the Hammers complete an unbeaten October?
West Ham can complete a full calendar month without defeat for the first time this season should they win or draw at Goodison Park. After losing one match in April, two in May, one game in July, and three each in August and September, the Hammers can go through the whole of October without losing a single game for the first time since March. Believe it or not, despite enjoying a fine 2015/16 campaign, West Ham only completed two unbeaten months last season - March and December, when the injury-depleted Hammers drew four straight Premier League games before ending the year with a 2-1 home win over Southampton.
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Bilic - Edi has got everything
WHUFC.com
Slaven Bilic has hailed the impact made by Edmilison Fernandes following the Swiss youngster's encouraging start to life with West Ham United.
The 20-year-old arrived from Sion in August, with the £5.5 million transfer generating relatively little interest from a media who were largely unaware of the midfielder's considerable talents.
With the Swiss Super League not available to view on British television, Fernandes' outstanding abilities flew under the radar – until now!
After impressing as a left wing-back in the 1-0 Premier League win over Sunderland last weekend, the No31 produced an even better display in the midweek EFL Cup victory over Chelsea, scoring a fine first goal for the club to clinch a 2-1 success.
"It's a great thing to see him make an impact like he has," said Bilic. "It's always great to see a new player doing well, especially if it's a young player like he is.
"We shouldn't forget that he's only 20-years-old, he came to a new country and doesn't speak great English, so it was probably hard for him.
"But since the first day, he has been really good and positive and very brave in training and you could see from the start that he's a very talented player.
While relatively unknown in these parts prior to his arrival, Fernandes is no rookie, having played more than 100 times for Sion, including eight times in last season's UEFA Europa League. He also netted for his club in their 2015 Swiss Cup final win over Basel.
With maturity and composure beyond his years, Bilic is excited about the prospect of working with the youngster in seasons to come.
"He is very comfortable on the ball in different positions and I'm sure that him, the Club, the fans and all of us are going to benefit from him, big time. He has got everything."
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Angelo's World
WHUFC.com
In a regular feature on whufc.com, we speak with Hammers defender Angelo Ogbonna and go behind-the-scenes with our Italian central defender.
Ogbonna shares his views on life both inside and outside the camp and gives his honest opinions on all the matters that count.
In the latest blog, the 28-year-old reflects on a memorable week for the Club and reveals how he is going to try and stop Romelu Lukaku getting on the scoresheet....
Hello everyone,
This has been a great week for everyone at the Club but we cannot afford to get carried away and must stay focused. We need to take it step-by-step.
The most important thing is that we now stay clever because all the players gave everything in the midweek victory over Chelsea.
It was one of the best atmospheres I have experienced for West Ham at London Stadium and maybe it was because it was our first derby at home and the game was being played under the lights.
We had a big opportunity to win and with nearly 50,000 fans behind us it made a big difference.
As players we felt the amazing atmosphere and it is really important for us. Maybe it was because the game was being played at night and it has a totally different feel about it.
In London you can have four different types of weather in one day. Everything made for such a great atmosphere playing under the lights and it makes everyone excited.
It is the same when you go to the cinema – it is a different feeling when you go at night to during the day! That is the point I am trying to make.
We had such a strong home record at the Boleyn Ground last season and we would love to do the same at London Stadium. Why can't we do the same?
We have spoken about the spirit among the players and we know the level that we can go to.
The Premier League is such a tough league but we have stayed professional and the expectation is so high. We were just focused on concentrating on our own expectations and we are now getting back to our best.
We have another big game on Sunday and we know that we will need to stop Romelu Lukaku getting on the scoresheet. I am well aware of his record against West Ham!
Romelu is a very good player and we all want to stop him. But if our performance is like the one we have shown in the last few games we stand a very good chance of winning the game.
Everton have had a clear week and they will be fully prepared, but we cannot have any excuses and go into the game with a lot of confidence.
Playing against people like Lukaku can motivate us even more that we want to stop him. We have to play like we did against Chelsea and Sunderland.
We managed to stop Diego Costa on Wednesday and I hope it will be the same with Lukaku as it would be great for us to come away with another three points.
I still have fond memories of our last victory at Goodison Park and it was an amazing comeback after we went two goals down. Nobody expected us to do that.
It showed once again the character of the team and no-one is prepared to give up and lose. That is so important for us.
We had some big results last season but I thought it was one of our best performances along with the game at home to Arsenal when we were also two goals down.
It is better for us if we can score first and not have to come from behind!
I want to say a special word about Edimilson Fernandes who has made such a big impact in his first two games.
It is so important for the Club because we have a really good young player and he is so humble. He can play in a number of positions.
He has time to improve and get even better. We don't need to put too much pressure on him and it is good for him to get this experience because he has a big quality.
We are really proud of him, not just because he is young but because he is so humble. Before you become a footballer you need to become a man and it is very difficult to find people as humble as he is.
With all the games we have been facing recently I have not had much time to do anything apart from rest in-between games and make sure I am in the best possible shape.
I want to make sure I am ready for the game once again on Everton and I hope the fans can celebrate another big victory on Sunday.
Enjoy the game.
Angelo
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MATT LAWLESS EXCLUSIVE: DO THE MEDIA HATE WEST HAM?
BY EXWHUEMPLOYEE ON 29 OCTOBER 2016 AT 8:38PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Written by Matty Lawless @mattylawless
Do the media hate West Ham? If it's left for me to answer, then categorically no. The media, as I've known it in over 15 years working in the industry, do not hate any team.
Understandably, this week, there are West Ham fans asking that question.
After what was a magnificent performance against Chelsea, the focus was firmly on the trouble that marred Wednesday's win.
It's a real shame that such a special night, with an incredible atmosphere and an amazing result was ruined.
So, why did the media focus on the small minority who attempted to spoil it for everyone else?
I can't speak for everyone but I do know that the facts speak for themselves.
The chaotic scenes were there for all to see – and it was appalling. Chairs being thrown. Coins hurled. Thankfully nobody was reported to be seriously hurt.
Unfortunately, every game played at the London Stadium has witnessed trouble of some sort – and on more than one occasion it has erupted within the stadium.
You cannot defend it. It's embarrassing for the game. Yet some fans seem to be in-denial and query whether it all part of a wider agenda against West Ham.
The truth is there is no agenda (not that I know of anyway). The reportage has been fair across the board. And it would be the same if it happened every week at The Emirates, White Hart Lane etc.
The Manchester City supporters who allegedly smashed the toilets up at Old Trafford during the week were highlighted. The depressing scenes north of the border before and after the Old Firm game last weekend did not escape the headlines either. So, it's not just West Ham being singled out.
But as a West Ham season ticket holder it does hurt. I'm one of the many who go to the stadium with the sole intention of supporting my team. It's not fair that West Ham fans are generalised with a reputation of being thugs. Honest Guv, we're not.
The mindless few who are won't be around for long. The club has conducted itself in the right way and vowed to ban them all. Good riddance.
Increased measures of segregation will now be put in place, which is also reassuring.
Visiting teams must take responsibility too, however.
Last Saturday's win against Sunderland was spoiled by reports that away fans set upon home supporters outside the stadium. That's not on.
Then on Wednesday, one moronic Chelsea follower breached the segregation line inside the stadium to goad the home section. Why wasn't he stopped?
While I don't condone violence of any sort, it feels unfair that West Ham fans are totally blamed for everything. Yes, it's clear some were at fault but many were not.
Lots of fellow Hammers have tweeted me. Where they sit they have been oblivious to any disorder. The atmosphere in their area, in particular against Chelsea, was rocking for all the right reasons. It felt like a proper London derby. And so they were left baffled over reports of bad behaviour.
I've been excused of being melodramatic. I apologise if that's what people think. The truth is I only ever want to read positive press about the team I love. Believe me, I don't want to be tweeting about total disorder. But if something is wrong, I feel obliged to write fairly and accurately about it.
My tweets got a lot of attention during the Watford game, for instance. What I witnessed that day was nasty. Kids around me were crying. It was wholly unpleasant.
But since then, and until the Chelsea game, everything has been absolutely fine.
I've enjoyed going again. I love taking my son with me. He's 9 and football mad.
It's a big bad world out there and I know I can't protect him from everything.
Yet I don't want to be deterred from taking him to the big games because of a minority of hooligans who want to spoil it.
I fell in love with West Ham because I went to the big games – home and away. Naturally, I want the same for him.
So, that's my major angst right now. One fan suggested I shouldn't bother going because "we don't want fans like you". Doesn't want the next generation to go to games feeling safe and enjoying it? Pathetic. Fortunately, he did say sorry.
It's fine. I get it. Things are said, sometimes unwisely, in the heat of the moment. We're all passionate about West Ham – hence why I despise seeing stories of unruly unrest, especially when the team deserves all the credit.
I'm confident, however, that we won't witness a repeat of those disgraceful scenes inside the stadium again. I believe it will be a safe place to take my son and have no qualms going there. Its not the Boleyn Ground but I genuinely do love it. Every game has a big game feel to it. And derbies are especially supposed to be edgy and intense. I want to be on the end of my seat singing "Who Are Ya?" whenever we're beating our rivals. Nothing wrong with that (works both ways too).
I just want an end to all the negativity. This really is a great time to be a West Ham fan. The future IS bright. Three wins on the spin. Two (almost three) clean sheets.
Let's see the focus shift onto Slaven Bilic's side.
After a terrible start to the season, it feels like we've turned the tide and got our old West Ham back.
It's a big game at Goodison on Sunday. If we win that – and follow it up with three points against Stoke next Saturday – West Ham should be making headlines again for all the right reasons.
Signing off, I'd like to pay a huge thanks to the West Ham Way for having me. Sorry to have kept you waiting for so long!
One love to all West Ham fans.
Come on you Irons!
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Goodison Park brings back memories for Slaven Bilic ahead of return
Last Updated: 29/10/16 1:12pm
SSN
Slaven Bilic will be on familiar territory when West Ham travel to Everton and attempt to build on their wins against Sunderland and Chelsea in the last week.
West Ham play Everton for the live Super Sunday match at Goodison Park - where boss Bilic played for two seasons after leaving Upton Park in 1997.
And Bilic admits he remains a fan of Everton's tight ground - and not just because West Ham clinched a dramatic 3-2 win there last season.
"It's a great stadium to play at," Bilic said. "I love the stadium, and not because I played there.
"It's going to be packed, it's a great stadium and also because we have a great memory from last year. Okay, I played there and everything but it's mostly because of the stadium and the crowd is very good there."
West Ham will also face a familiar foe in the shape of Romelu Lukaku. The Belgium striker has scored every time he has played against them, a total of eight goals in as many appearances.
"They have so many options up front," Bilic added. "They are a very physical side, they have pace up front. They have Lukaku who, I don't know how many he has scored - eight goals in 10 games against us, or whatever I read yesterday.
"So he is always scoring against us, unfortunately, so that's also going to be interesting. It will be a great game. They need points. We need points."
Bilic has another attacking weapon of his own, though, with £20.5m summer signing Andre Ayew finally fit again.
The former Swansea frontman had been sidelined by a thigh injury suffered against Chelsea in the opening game of the season, but made his comeback as a late substitute against the same opposition on Wednesday.
"It's great to have him back," said Bilic, who remains without strikers Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho through injury.
"He's been training with the group for a couple of weeks now and came on and did really good against Chelsea. He looked fit and aggressive, so it's great to have him back."
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West Ham offer £22.5m and Simone Zaza to Napoli: Italian striker eyed in return
WEST HAM have reportedly offered Simone Zaza to Napoli as a makeweight in their pursuit of striker Manolo Gabbiadini.
By JOE SHORT
PUBLISHED: 12:03, Sat, Oct 29, 2016 | UPDATED: 12:13, Sat, Oct 29, 2016
Express.co.uk
Zaza has failed to impress since joining the West Ham this summer on loan from Juventus. It is claimed West Ham are obliged to sign Italy international Zaza for £17.7million if he plays 10 games for the club. But manager Slaven Bilic appears uninterested in retaining the 25-year-old for long. According to Italian TV station Rai Sport, West Ham are willing to offer £22.5m (€25m) for Gabbiadini in January. They hope Napoli will be convinced to sell the 24-year-old in return for a heavy up-front fee and replacement forward Zaza. According to the report, Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri is an admirer of Zaza and would be open to signing him.
However, Napoli may prefer to retain Gabbiadini this season, despite the Italian scoring just twice so far this campaign.
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Friday, October 28
Daily WHUFC News II - 29th October 2016
Fernandes hails London Stadium roar
WHUFC.com
Hammers hero Edimilson Fernandes says the London Stadium roar gave him 'goosebumps' after his unforgettable EFL Cup winner.
The rising 20-years-old star described how important the Claret and Blue Army's vociferous support has been in inspiring West Ham United to vital victories over Sunderland and Chelsea.
On Wednesday, he heard the loudest roar yet when he curled home the winning goal in the 2-1 EFL Cup fourth-round victory over the Blues.
He explained: "The stadium is magnificent, I really enjoy playing there, as do all the players. When you play in-front of 57,000 fans it gives you goosebumps, it's an amazing feeling and it helps you to play to your best.
"It is a brilliant Stadium and to play in front of 57,000 fans who push you forward is an unbelievable feeling."
Reflecting on his maiden goal in English football, the Switzerland U21 international said he was delighted to get off the mark against a club he watched from afar while growing up in the city of Sion.
Speaking at a half-term soccer school at the Club's Foundation Beckton base, he said: "When I was younger, I watched a lot of Chelsea matches. They are one of the best teams in England so there's nothing better than scoring against them, it was a dream come true!
"I didn't expect my time at West Ham to start so well, but at the moment it is going really, really well."
Having signed for the Hammers in late August, Fernandes was the tenth of eleven new signings during a busy summer.
After impressing in games against Accrington Stanley, Southampton and Crystal Palace, Fernandes excelled in his full home Premier League debut against Sunderland, another hugely memorable moment.
He reflected: "Playing in our magnificent stadium is something I'll never forget, and to win as well was something very special.
"I wasn't expecting to make my full debut so quickly, but I am delighted that I did. It was a very special moment for me, and also a very important game for the team."
Having hit the ground running in east London since joining from FC Sion in August, particularly playing in more unfamiliar wing-back positions, the midfielder by trade has seemingly taken to the Premier League like a duck to water.
Now, looking ahead to Sunday's enticing encounter away at Everton – a club his cousin Manuel played for a decade ago –Fernandes said the Hammers are determined to make it four victories on the trot.
"We are all delighted to have won three games in a row, the confidence and the atmosphere (among the squad) is good," he confirmed.
"We have to make sure we keep working hard every day in training and keep at this level. When you have confidence, it helps you win matches so it is very important.
"Everton are a very big club, so it will be a difficult game. They are strong all over the pitch, but we also have good players."
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From the Treatment Room
WHUFC.com
Head of Medical and Sports Science Stijn Vandenbroucke issues his latest update – in association with Spire Roding Hospital...
Hello everyone.
We will start this week with the positive news of Andre Ayew's return to first-team action as a substitute in the EFL Cup win over Chelsea on Wednesday.
It was a very intense and physical demanding game in which we gave a great performance, and a few of the boys got some bumps and bruises.
We are happy that Andre has made a quick recovery, but when a player returns from injury he is always a work in progress.
We have to keep doing things in the right way at the right time and the congested schedule this week is a challenge for the whole team, especially players coming back from injury.
Andre spent some time in France during his rehab, where he played previously, and we worked closely with the medical department at Olympique Marseille. It was nice to have that cooperation.
At the end of the day, though, it is down to the player to put in the hard work, not just in training and rehab but 24/7, work hard and recover hard.
The most crucial phase is the next few games and training weeks. Finding a balance between training, progressive 'game time' and recovery is crucial in completing the work in progress.
The next positive is that Aaron Cresswell keeps improving and progressing well.
It's not easy to re-introduce a defender from injury, because it is not often that you can play a defender
for 30 minutes and re-introduce him gradually, but once again the key is finding the good balance between games, training and recovery.
Diafra Sakho has been training all week with the Under-23s in controlled but hard sessions. Diaf is in the final stages of his own pre-season training schedule and he will join the first-team squad next week.
He will train for several weeks with the first team before he will be re-introduced gradually into games.
Arthur Masuaku is a natural athlete and is strong. He is making great progress in his rehab from the knee injury he suffered against Accrington Stanley in August. We expect Arthur to return to training some time in November.
Sam Byram was given a few days off between the phases of his rehab from his hamstring injury. He has returned and is working well in the gym at Rush Green, but it will be a while until he is available for selection again.
Andy Carroll and Gokhan Tore continue to work on their rehabilitation at Rush Green.
Stijn Vandenbroucke
Head of Medical and Sports Science
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Foundation launches Loughborough partnership
WHUFC.com
West Ham United Foundation and Loughborough University London are delighted to announce a new innovative research partnership.
This ground-breaking collaboration is one of the first of its kind in the country, and will see the Foundation provide research opportunities and support to post-graduate students from Loughborough University London – based just a long ball away from London Stadium at Here East Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
Projects will see the students will take part in a wide range of the Foundation's 40-plus schemes currently in delivery across east London and Essex, with the first brief giving students the opportunity to work directly with Foundation programme managers to identify areas of improvement and provide detailed methods of growth.
The findings from this research will then be directly applied to the Foundation's delivery methods, enabling growth and improvement.
Loughborough University London is Loughborough University's second campus, whose Stratford base is located just a few hundred metres from West Ham's new home.
As part of the partnership, students at Loughborough University London will also benefit from industry-led teaching, delivered by highly-skilled and experienced West Ham United guest lecturers.
The partnership will look to expand in the coming years, aiming to incorporate further work streams and projects, thus providing more opportunities for students within a Premier League environment.
Professor Mike Caine, Loughborough University London Dean, said: "We are delighted to be establishing an official partnership with West Ham United Foundation, and look forward to nurturing a dynamic and collaborative relationship which will benefit our students and the local community".
Joseph Lyons, West Ham United Foundation CEO, said of the partnership: "The growth of West Ham United Foundation has been considerable over the past three years, providing an ever-increasing number of opportunities to the communities surrounding the Club's old and new homes.
"As our delivery grows, so does our resource. In order to keep reaching our targets, we have a need for dedicated, thorough research that can help us create, develop and improve new initiatives, as well as expanding our current programmes.
"Our new partnership with Loughborough University London will enable us to focus on the impact the work of West Ham United Foundation has made in its communities which will equip us with the key information needed to optimise our life-changing work."
The collaboration sees Loughborough University London become the first post-graduate partners of West Ham United Foundation, alongside the undergraduate partnership with University of East London, where the WHU Foundation degree is currently in its second year of delivery.
In September 2015, Loughborough University opened an additional academic campus inside Here East, London's new innovation quarter. There, the institution offers postgraduate and executive-level education, as well as research and enterprise opportunities.
Loughborough University has an international reputation for research and teaching, with strong links with industry and unrivalled achievement in sport.
Among its many famous sporting alumni are West Ham United Ladies goalkeeper and 2015 Asian Footballer of the Year award in England winner Aditi Chauhan.
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Date set for EFL Cup quarter-final
WHUFC.com
West Ham United will travel to Manchester United in the EFL Cup fifth round on Wednesday 30 November 2016 at 8pm.
The Hammers are awaiting confirmation of the Club's ticket allocation for the Old Trafford tie, which will also be screened live by Sky Sports.
Slaven Bilic's side have beaten League Two club Accrington Stanley and Premier League side Chelsea to reach the last-eight, while Jose Mourinho's Red Devils have overcome League One outfit Northampton Town and local rivals Manchester City to set up their meeting with the Hammers.
West Ham and Manchester United have met twice previously in the League Cup, with each side progressing on one occasion.
Norman Whiteside's goal settled matters at Old Trafford in the third round in November 1985, while two goals apiece from Jonathan Spector and Carlton Cole saw off Sir Alex Ferguson's visitors 4-0 at a snowbound Boleyn Ground in a fifth-round tie in November 2010.
The two clubs met as recently as last season in the FA Cup quarter-finals, when a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford was followed by a 2-1 victory for Manchester United at the Boleyn Ground.
Ticket details will be published on whufc.com and the Club's social media channels as soon as they are confirmed.
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Sakho: pre-season over but still absent for weeks
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th October 2016
By: Staff Writer
One of the longest pre-seasons in history is finally scheduled to end next week when Diafra Sakho returns to training with the first team.
According to club doctor Stijn Vandenbroucke, and despite having begun pre-season training with the first team squad back in July, Sakho is reported to be "in the final stages of his own pre-season" and on the verge of joining up with the first team squad once again.
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"Sakho has been training all week with the Under-23s in controlled but hard sessions," said Vandenbroucke. "Diaf is in the final stages of his own pre-season training schedule and he will join the first-team squad next week."
However Sakho, possibly uniquely for a professional footballer, will remain absent from the first team picture for a while longer, according to Vandenbroucke. "He will train for several weeks with the first team before he will be re-introduced gradually into games," he added.
Meanwhile there was no new news regarding the progress of Andy Carroll, who was ruled out of action for "4-6 weeks" back in August. Both he and Gokhan Tore will "continue to work on their rehabilitation at Rush Green" with no return date set for either.
Finally both Arthur Masuaka and Sam Byram are continuing their own personal programmes of rehabilitation, with the latter expected to return to the first team sometime next month.
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West Ham reveal security plans to prevent further crowd trouble at London Stadium
By Sky Sports News HQ
Last Updated: 28/10/16 8:39pm
SSN
West Ham have announced new stringent security measures, including relocating some supporters and increasing the use of segregation netting inside London Stadium, in a bid to avoid further crowd trouble.
Clashes between rival supporters marred West Ham's 2-1 EFL Cup victory over Chelsea on Wednesday, with several missiles thrown across a segregated area of the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand.
There were further clashes along the walkway of the stand, with stewards struggling to keep fans apart before police in riot gear managed to quell the disorder.
West Ham confirmed on Thursday that they were close to finalising the identification of 200 individuals involved in the crowd disturbances and insisted they would issue seasonal or life bans, depending on the severity of the offence, to any fan found to have been involved in the trouble.
In a letter released to Sky Sports News HQ on Friday, West Ham have revealed a new robust plan to prevent any further violence inside their new home.
The plan includes:
▪ Creating more distance between opposing fans to prevent missile throwing. This will be achieved by widening the segregation line on both sides of the lower tier.
▪ Removing risk groups from the stadium permanently with our 'zero tolerance' banning policy as outlined above.
▪ Strengthening and widening the lines of segregation on the lower concourse walkway by creating higher barriers and a 10 metre wide sterile area. This is the area which became the pinch point at the Chelsea game, and despite the fact it wasn't actually breached, we feel it is a necessary step to prevent any similar scenes at future matches.
▪ Ensuring home/away fan egress is physically segregated upon exiting the Stadium to prevent clashes on the podium. This was in place and proved effective after the match against Chelsea. This consists of a physical barrier either side of the away supporter turnstiles, and prevents supporter integration after the game.
▪ Inside the stadium we will also be employing the enhanced tactic of issuing a group of stewards with handheld video cameras. Stewards currently have cameras attached to their armour but we believe this investment will act as a clear and visible deterrent.
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic also condemned the behaviour of the supporters involved in the trouble at his media conference on Friday, stating their actions hurt the club, the players and the majority of fans inside the stadium.
Prior to the match against Chelsea, West Ham had already banned 23 supporters this season for crowd disturbances.
The Metropolitan Police have confirmed three men have been charged following the trouble at London Stadium, with offences ranging from assault on a police officer to possession of class A drugs.
A further three men were arrested, but all were bailed pending further enquiries.
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Everton v West Ham preview: Leighton Baines and James McCarthy ruled out
By Patrick Surlis
Last Updated: 28/10/16 5:07pm
SSN
Everton will be without Leighton Baines and James McCarthy when West Ham visit Goodison Park on Super Sunday, live on Sky Sports 1 HD.
Baines has not been involved for five games due to a hamstring problem, while midfielder McCarthy, who sat out last Saturday's 2-1 loss to Burnley, has recently developed a similar issue.
Ronald Koeman's side are on a five-game winless run, most recently suffering a last-minute defeat to the Clarets at Turf Moor.
Meanwhile, West Ham are enjoying their best spell of the season. They recorded back-to-back Premier League wins over Crystal Palace and Sunderland before knocking Chelsea out of the EFL Cup on Wednesday.
And Hammers manager Slaven Bilic has pinned their recent upturn in form on his players' efforts, rather than any change in formation.
"We changed the system a bit," Bilic said. "OK, it's important, especially when the results come, but it's more about the players' movement.
"Cheikhou Kouyate helped to stabilise the defence and also helps us to create from the back."
Team news
Baines and McCarthy miss out through injury for Everton, while forward Enner Valencia, who is on loan from West Ham, is ineligible against his parent club.
For the Hammers, Bilic must decide whether Andre Ayew is fit enough to start after the £20.5m summer signing from Swansea made his comeback as a substitute against Chelsea in midweek.
He has recovered from the thigh injury he sustained on the opening day of the season but may not be able to play a full 90 minutes.
Arthur Masuaku, Sam Byram, Gokhan Tore, Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho are still out through injury.
Opta stats
Everton's defeat to West Ham in March ended a run of 15 top-flight games without defeat against them (W10 D5).
West Ham haven't won back-to-back league games against Everton since March 1973.
Romelu Lukaku has found the net eight times in 10 games against West Ham in all competitions, his favourite opponent since moving to the Premier League.
Lukaku has scored in his last six Premier League games against West Ham. Only two players have scored in seven successive PL games v the same opponent (Hasselbaink v West Ham 7 and Robin van Persie v Stoke 8).
Dimitri Payet has created more chances in the Premier League this season than any other player (30), while no one has provided more assists than the Frenchman (4).
West Ham last won three Premier League games in a row in March, the third of which came against the Toffees.
The Hammers' last Premier League clean sheet against Everton came in April 2007, a run of 16 games without one against them.
Merson's prediction
The turning point for Everton was the Norwich defeat. They're not going down, they're not challenging for the title and they're not in Europe so a cup run would have been ideal. But the way Koeman treated that game was worrying and they haven't won since. West Ham have had three big results in a row and this game looks more difficult than it did a few weeks ago, but Lukaku loves a goal against the Hammers and I think he nets again.
PAUL PREDICTS: 2-0 (Sky Bet odds 8/1)
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
Hammers hero Edimilson Fernandes says the London Stadium roar gave him 'goosebumps' after his unforgettable EFL Cup winner.
The rising 20-years-old star described how important the Claret and Blue Army's vociferous support has been in inspiring West Ham United to vital victories over Sunderland and Chelsea.
On Wednesday, he heard the loudest roar yet when he curled home the winning goal in the 2-1 EFL Cup fourth-round victory over the Blues.
He explained: "The stadium is magnificent, I really enjoy playing there, as do all the players. When you play in-front of 57,000 fans it gives you goosebumps, it's an amazing feeling and it helps you to play to your best.
"It is a brilliant Stadium and to play in front of 57,000 fans who push you forward is an unbelievable feeling."
Reflecting on his maiden goal in English football, the Switzerland U21 international said he was delighted to get off the mark against a club he watched from afar while growing up in the city of Sion.
Speaking at a half-term soccer school at the Club's Foundation Beckton base, he said: "When I was younger, I watched a lot of Chelsea matches. They are one of the best teams in England so there's nothing better than scoring against them, it was a dream come true!
"I didn't expect my time at West Ham to start so well, but at the moment it is going really, really well."
Having signed for the Hammers in late August, Fernandes was the tenth of eleven new signings during a busy summer.
After impressing in games against Accrington Stanley, Southampton and Crystal Palace, Fernandes excelled in his full home Premier League debut against Sunderland, another hugely memorable moment.
He reflected: "Playing in our magnificent stadium is something I'll never forget, and to win as well was something very special.
"I wasn't expecting to make my full debut so quickly, but I am delighted that I did. It was a very special moment for me, and also a very important game for the team."
Having hit the ground running in east London since joining from FC Sion in August, particularly playing in more unfamiliar wing-back positions, the midfielder by trade has seemingly taken to the Premier League like a duck to water.
Now, looking ahead to Sunday's enticing encounter away at Everton – a club his cousin Manuel played for a decade ago –Fernandes said the Hammers are determined to make it four victories on the trot.
"We are all delighted to have won three games in a row, the confidence and the atmosphere (among the squad) is good," he confirmed.
"We have to make sure we keep working hard every day in training and keep at this level. When you have confidence, it helps you win matches so it is very important.
"Everton are a very big club, so it will be a difficult game. They are strong all over the pitch, but we also have good players."
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From the Treatment Room
WHUFC.com
Head of Medical and Sports Science Stijn Vandenbroucke issues his latest update – in association with Spire Roding Hospital...
Hello everyone.
We will start this week with the positive news of Andre Ayew's return to first-team action as a substitute in the EFL Cup win over Chelsea on Wednesday.
It was a very intense and physical demanding game in which we gave a great performance, and a few of the boys got some bumps and bruises.
We are happy that Andre has made a quick recovery, but when a player returns from injury he is always a work in progress.
We have to keep doing things in the right way at the right time and the congested schedule this week is a challenge for the whole team, especially players coming back from injury.
Andre spent some time in France during his rehab, where he played previously, and we worked closely with the medical department at Olympique Marseille. It was nice to have that cooperation.
At the end of the day, though, it is down to the player to put in the hard work, not just in training and rehab but 24/7, work hard and recover hard.
The most crucial phase is the next few games and training weeks. Finding a balance between training, progressive 'game time' and recovery is crucial in completing the work in progress.
The next positive is that Aaron Cresswell keeps improving and progressing well.
It's not easy to re-introduce a defender from injury, because it is not often that you can play a defender
for 30 minutes and re-introduce him gradually, but once again the key is finding the good balance between games, training and recovery.
Diafra Sakho has been training all week with the Under-23s in controlled but hard sessions. Diaf is in the final stages of his own pre-season training schedule and he will join the first-team squad next week.
He will train for several weeks with the first team before he will be re-introduced gradually into games.
Arthur Masuaku is a natural athlete and is strong. He is making great progress in his rehab from the knee injury he suffered against Accrington Stanley in August. We expect Arthur to return to training some time in November.
Sam Byram was given a few days off between the phases of his rehab from his hamstring injury. He has returned and is working well in the gym at Rush Green, but it will be a while until he is available for selection again.
Andy Carroll and Gokhan Tore continue to work on their rehabilitation at Rush Green.
Stijn Vandenbroucke
Head of Medical and Sports Science
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Foundation launches Loughborough partnership
WHUFC.com
West Ham United Foundation and Loughborough University London are delighted to announce a new innovative research partnership.
This ground-breaking collaboration is one of the first of its kind in the country, and will see the Foundation provide research opportunities and support to post-graduate students from Loughborough University London – based just a long ball away from London Stadium at Here East Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
Projects will see the students will take part in a wide range of the Foundation's 40-plus schemes currently in delivery across east London and Essex, with the first brief giving students the opportunity to work directly with Foundation programme managers to identify areas of improvement and provide detailed methods of growth.
The findings from this research will then be directly applied to the Foundation's delivery methods, enabling growth and improvement.
Loughborough University London is Loughborough University's second campus, whose Stratford base is located just a few hundred metres from West Ham's new home.
As part of the partnership, students at Loughborough University London will also benefit from industry-led teaching, delivered by highly-skilled and experienced West Ham United guest lecturers.
The partnership will look to expand in the coming years, aiming to incorporate further work streams and projects, thus providing more opportunities for students within a Premier League environment.
Professor Mike Caine, Loughborough University London Dean, said: "We are delighted to be establishing an official partnership with West Ham United Foundation, and look forward to nurturing a dynamic and collaborative relationship which will benefit our students and the local community".
Joseph Lyons, West Ham United Foundation CEO, said of the partnership: "The growth of West Ham United Foundation has been considerable over the past three years, providing an ever-increasing number of opportunities to the communities surrounding the Club's old and new homes.
"As our delivery grows, so does our resource. In order to keep reaching our targets, we have a need for dedicated, thorough research that can help us create, develop and improve new initiatives, as well as expanding our current programmes.
"Our new partnership with Loughborough University London will enable us to focus on the impact the work of West Ham United Foundation has made in its communities which will equip us with the key information needed to optimise our life-changing work."
The collaboration sees Loughborough University London become the first post-graduate partners of West Ham United Foundation, alongside the undergraduate partnership with University of East London, where the WHU Foundation degree is currently in its second year of delivery.
In September 2015, Loughborough University opened an additional academic campus inside Here East, London's new innovation quarter. There, the institution offers postgraduate and executive-level education, as well as research and enterprise opportunities.
Loughborough University has an international reputation for research and teaching, with strong links with industry and unrivalled achievement in sport.
Among its many famous sporting alumni are West Ham United Ladies goalkeeper and 2015 Asian Footballer of the Year award in England winner Aditi Chauhan.
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Date set for EFL Cup quarter-final
WHUFC.com
West Ham United will travel to Manchester United in the EFL Cup fifth round on Wednesday 30 November 2016 at 8pm.
The Hammers are awaiting confirmation of the Club's ticket allocation for the Old Trafford tie, which will also be screened live by Sky Sports.
Slaven Bilic's side have beaten League Two club Accrington Stanley and Premier League side Chelsea to reach the last-eight, while Jose Mourinho's Red Devils have overcome League One outfit Northampton Town and local rivals Manchester City to set up their meeting with the Hammers.
West Ham and Manchester United have met twice previously in the League Cup, with each side progressing on one occasion.
Norman Whiteside's goal settled matters at Old Trafford in the third round in November 1985, while two goals apiece from Jonathan Spector and Carlton Cole saw off Sir Alex Ferguson's visitors 4-0 at a snowbound Boleyn Ground in a fifth-round tie in November 2010.
The two clubs met as recently as last season in the FA Cup quarter-finals, when a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford was followed by a 2-1 victory for Manchester United at the Boleyn Ground.
Ticket details will be published on whufc.com and the Club's social media channels as soon as they are confirmed.
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Sakho: pre-season over but still absent for weeks
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th October 2016
By: Staff Writer
One of the longest pre-seasons in history is finally scheduled to end next week when Diafra Sakho returns to training with the first team.
According to club doctor Stijn Vandenbroucke, and despite having begun pre-season training with the first team squad back in July, Sakho is reported to be "in the final stages of his own pre-season" and on the verge of joining up with the first team squad once again.
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"Sakho has been training all week with the Under-23s in controlled but hard sessions," said Vandenbroucke. "Diaf is in the final stages of his own pre-season training schedule and he will join the first-team squad next week."
However Sakho, possibly uniquely for a professional footballer, will remain absent from the first team picture for a while longer, according to Vandenbroucke. "He will train for several weeks with the first team before he will be re-introduced gradually into games," he added.
Meanwhile there was no new news regarding the progress of Andy Carroll, who was ruled out of action for "4-6 weeks" back in August. Both he and Gokhan Tore will "continue to work on their rehabilitation at Rush Green" with no return date set for either.
Finally both Arthur Masuaka and Sam Byram are continuing their own personal programmes of rehabilitation, with the latter expected to return to the first team sometime next month.
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West Ham reveal security plans to prevent further crowd trouble at London Stadium
By Sky Sports News HQ
Last Updated: 28/10/16 8:39pm
SSN
West Ham have announced new stringent security measures, including relocating some supporters and increasing the use of segregation netting inside London Stadium, in a bid to avoid further crowd trouble.
Clashes between rival supporters marred West Ham's 2-1 EFL Cup victory over Chelsea on Wednesday, with several missiles thrown across a segregated area of the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand.
There were further clashes along the walkway of the stand, with stewards struggling to keep fans apart before police in riot gear managed to quell the disorder.
West Ham confirmed on Thursday that they were close to finalising the identification of 200 individuals involved in the crowd disturbances and insisted they would issue seasonal or life bans, depending on the severity of the offence, to any fan found to have been involved in the trouble.
In a letter released to Sky Sports News HQ on Friday, West Ham have revealed a new robust plan to prevent any further violence inside their new home.
The plan includes:
▪ Creating more distance between opposing fans to prevent missile throwing. This will be achieved by widening the segregation line on both sides of the lower tier.
▪ Removing risk groups from the stadium permanently with our 'zero tolerance' banning policy as outlined above.
▪ Strengthening and widening the lines of segregation on the lower concourse walkway by creating higher barriers and a 10 metre wide sterile area. This is the area which became the pinch point at the Chelsea game, and despite the fact it wasn't actually breached, we feel it is a necessary step to prevent any similar scenes at future matches.
▪ Ensuring home/away fan egress is physically segregated upon exiting the Stadium to prevent clashes on the podium. This was in place and proved effective after the match against Chelsea. This consists of a physical barrier either side of the away supporter turnstiles, and prevents supporter integration after the game.
▪ Inside the stadium we will also be employing the enhanced tactic of issuing a group of stewards with handheld video cameras. Stewards currently have cameras attached to their armour but we believe this investment will act as a clear and visible deterrent.
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic also condemned the behaviour of the supporters involved in the trouble at his media conference on Friday, stating their actions hurt the club, the players and the majority of fans inside the stadium.
Prior to the match against Chelsea, West Ham had already banned 23 supporters this season for crowd disturbances.
The Metropolitan Police have confirmed three men have been charged following the trouble at London Stadium, with offences ranging from assault on a police officer to possession of class A drugs.
A further three men were arrested, but all were bailed pending further enquiries.
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Everton v West Ham preview: Leighton Baines and James McCarthy ruled out
By Patrick Surlis
Last Updated: 28/10/16 5:07pm
SSN
Everton will be without Leighton Baines and James McCarthy when West Ham visit Goodison Park on Super Sunday, live on Sky Sports 1 HD.
Baines has not been involved for five games due to a hamstring problem, while midfielder McCarthy, who sat out last Saturday's 2-1 loss to Burnley, has recently developed a similar issue.
Ronald Koeman's side are on a five-game winless run, most recently suffering a last-minute defeat to the Clarets at Turf Moor.
Meanwhile, West Ham are enjoying their best spell of the season. They recorded back-to-back Premier League wins over Crystal Palace and Sunderland before knocking Chelsea out of the EFL Cup on Wednesday.
And Hammers manager Slaven Bilic has pinned their recent upturn in form on his players' efforts, rather than any change in formation.
"We changed the system a bit," Bilic said. "OK, it's important, especially when the results come, but it's more about the players' movement.
"Cheikhou Kouyate helped to stabilise the defence and also helps us to create from the back."
Team news
Baines and McCarthy miss out through injury for Everton, while forward Enner Valencia, who is on loan from West Ham, is ineligible against his parent club.
For the Hammers, Bilic must decide whether Andre Ayew is fit enough to start after the £20.5m summer signing from Swansea made his comeback as a substitute against Chelsea in midweek.
He has recovered from the thigh injury he sustained on the opening day of the season but may not be able to play a full 90 minutes.
Arthur Masuaku, Sam Byram, Gokhan Tore, Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho are still out through injury.
Opta stats
Everton's defeat to West Ham in March ended a run of 15 top-flight games without defeat against them (W10 D5).
West Ham haven't won back-to-back league games against Everton since March 1973.
Romelu Lukaku has found the net eight times in 10 games against West Ham in all competitions, his favourite opponent since moving to the Premier League.
Lukaku has scored in his last six Premier League games against West Ham. Only two players have scored in seven successive PL games v the same opponent (Hasselbaink v West Ham 7 and Robin van Persie v Stoke 8).
Dimitri Payet has created more chances in the Premier League this season than any other player (30), while no one has provided more assists than the Frenchman (4).
West Ham last won three Premier League games in a row in March, the third of which came against the Toffees.
The Hammers' last Premier League clean sheet against Everton came in April 2007, a run of 16 games without one against them.
Merson's prediction
The turning point for Everton was the Norwich defeat. They're not going down, they're not challenging for the title and they're not in Europe so a cup run would have been ideal. But the way Koeman treated that game was worrying and they haven't won since. West Ham have had three big results in a row and this game looks more difficult than it did a few weeks ago, but Lukaku loves a goal against the Hammers and I think he nets again.
PAUL PREDICTS: 2-0 (Sky Bet odds 8/1)
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Daily WHUFC News - 29th October 2016
Slaven Speaks - Everton
WHUFC.com
Slaven Bilic was focused almost exclusively on football in his press conference ahead of Sunday's Premier League game at Everton.
The Hammers head to Goodison Park in fine form and confident mood, having picked up seven points from nine and defeated Chelsea in the EFL Cup fourth round in midweek.
The manager was asked about off-field incidents, but asked that the media refer to the Club's statements and allow him to concentrate on his job of producing a team to win in L4 for the second straight season.
Slaven, can we start by asking you to comment on the incidents near the end of Wednesday's EFL Cup tie at London Stadium?
"I have said enough about the Stadium. I want to talk about football and about the game. I am a football manager and not a police officer or whatever, so that's it basically. Ask me football questions, please, if there are any!"
What's your team news for Everton on Sunday?
"It's a big game. We played a very demanding game physically and psychologically on Wednesday and we have a few knocks and all that, so we're going to see how it is after training today, but nothing major. They should all be fit and available for Sunday."
Has Michail Antonio made a case to start up front again?
"Yes, he was really good and that's why we put him there. He did everything we hoped and expected that he would do. He used the space behind and it's very hard to make him in such a big space. Also, he's very strong. He did excellently in that game, to be fair."
How close is Andre Ayew to starting a game?
"He is very close. It was crucial [for him to get some game-time], because he had a long break from the first game of the season, and it's great to have him back. He's been training with the group for a couple of weeks now and came on and did really good against Chelsea. He looked fit and aggressive, so it's great to have him back."
You must be frustrated that the focus is not on the team's return to form?
"Yes, but I'm trying to get the focus back on the team! We are playing good at the moment. Those three wins – two in the league and one in the cup – we have to build on. We are positive but we are expecting an extremely difficult game on Sunday. If we continue to play like this and improve, then we have a chance."
You won at Everton in March, coming from 2-0 down, so you must have good memories of that game?
"Yes, I remember that. It was a strange game. We were two down and they had a penalty, which Adrian saved and we won at the end 3-2. It was a dramatic game and very good for us, but very bad for them. I remember, even when we were down, we were playing well and there was always a hope. We were always there, creating chances and hurting them in the last third of the pitch. I always believed that we were going to score some goals there.
"I don't know what I expect this year, but I know it'll be a very difficult game. They started the season really great, then they've had a little dip in form according to points. They're at home, have a great squad, great individuals and are very well organised and, as I said, I can't wait because it should be a great game of football."
Have the players been distracted by events of this week at all?
"No, I think they have been totally motivated and fully concentrated on the game on Sunday. Don't get me wrong, we really felt at home at the new Stadium with the crowd behind us in the game against Chelsea. It was loud, so we had great support, apart from that thing, of course.
"The Club didn't deserve it, the players definitely didn't deserve it and the vast majority of fans didn't deserve it, of course."
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Hammers back Bobby statue campaign
WHUFC.com
West Ham United stars past and present have backed Barking and Dagenham Council's campaign to have a statue built of the late, great Bobby Moore OBE.
Captain Mark Noble, two-time FA Cup winner Frank Lampard Senior and former player and manager Harry Redknapp have all endorsed the idea of building The People's Statue to the man who led the Hammers and England to unprecedented success in the 1960s.
Noble, who like Moore also born in east London and went on to captain his local club, threw his backing behind the initiative, saying: "Bobby Moore was an England, West Ham and London legend.
"A statue in the heart of his home town will be a permanent monument to his everlasting greatness."
The Council-led appeal aims to raise more than £160,000 for the statue, which will be placed in the heart of Barking.
The statue would form part of the Borough's wider celebrations of 50th anniversary of England's 1966 FIFA World Cup, which have also included the installation of an English Heritage Blue Plaque at his family home in Waverley Gardens.
The Council also invited Moore's fellow West Ham and England legend Sir Geoff Hurst to a West Ham United Foundation-run mini-World Cup tournament for local schools, which was held at Dagenham & Redbridge FC in July.
Leader of the Council, Councillor Darren Rodwell said: "We are extremely proud, as a borough that Bobby Moore was born and grew up in Barking and it is important that we honour this great man.
"We need to remember all of the iconic people that come from the borough including our footballing heroes. Let's remember what success looks like and help to fund a statue of a real great - Bobby Moore, in his home town, Barking."
A One Borough Community Day was also held in July to celebrate the 50th anniversary of England's 4-2 win over West Germany at Wembley, with Hammers heroes Tony Cottee and Tony Gale and champion fundraiser Jonjo Heuerman attending a special screening of the final and running a football tournament in aid of the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research UK.
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Everton v West Ham United
SUN, 30 OCT 2016PREMIER LEAGUE
13:30
Venue: Goodison Park
TEAM NEWS
Everton duo Leighton Baines and James McCarthy will both miss this weekend with hamstring injuries.
Matthew Pennington, Tyias Browning, Darron Gibson and Muhamed Besic also remain sidelined.
West Ham club-record signing Andre Ayew could start, having made his first appearance since 15 August on Wednesday.
The Hammers' injury list remains lengthy with forwards Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho among five absentees.
MOTD COMMENTATOR'S NOTES
Ian Dennis: "For those who believe '10 matches in' acts as a barometer for the rest of the season then Everton could be heading for a top-six finish.
"Fast forward seven months from now and you would think the current position would satisfy most Evertonians. However, there still appears to be an undercurrent of frustration and some fans feel frailties still fester from the Roberto Martinez days.
"West Ham and Slaven Bilic are more than aware results dictate the mood. The Hammers have started to win again - three on the bounce - and will hope for a repeat of last season's victory at Goodison."
Twitter: @Iandennisbbc
WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY
Everton manager Ronald Koeman: "The last game against Burnley we were very disappointed. You know you can lose in football, but that wasn't deserved. We need to accept it and improve.
"Overall I'm happy with the defensive organisation but I'm not happy with the offensive aspect. We need to improve and be more clinical and have more productivity.
"That's what we need to change."
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic on Wednesday's crowd disturbances at London Stadium: "It does hurt, of course it does. The club didn't deserve it, the players don't deserve it definitely, the fans didn't deserve it - the majority of them of course. The big majority, the vast majority. I have said enough, I want to talk about the game on Sunday. I have a big game. I said what I said and that's it. I want to talk about football and the game.
"There is no point talking about it because I would only repeat what I said. I am a football manager, not a police officer or whatever, so that is it basically."
LAWRO'S PREDICTION
One team has gone five games without a win, the other four without a defeat. Bearing that in mind, I am going for a draw.
Prediction: 1-1
Lawro's full predictions v England rugby league captain Sam Burgess
Think you can do better than Lawro? Predict the score for this match and the rest of this round's Premier League fixtures in our Predictor game.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Everton have dominated the all-time meetings - winning 67 to West Ham's 38, with 29 draws.
West Ham came from two goals down to win the corresponding game last season, Dimitri Payet scoring a 90th-minute winner.
It was Everton's first defeat in 16 Premier League matches against the Hammers (W10, D5).
Everton
Everton have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last five league matches.
They are unbeaten in the league at home this season (W2, D2).
Romelu Lukaku has scored eight times in 10 games against West Ham in all competitions, more than he has against any other Premier League opponents.
The Belgian has scored in his last six Premier League games against the Hammers.
West Ham
West Ham last won three league games in a row in March - the third of which came against Everton.
The Hammers have conceded nine goals in their four away league games this season.
Michail Antonio has gone five games without a goal having scored five in his previous five matches.
Dimitri Payet leads the Premier League this season for both chances created (30) and assists (four).
Most probable score: 1-1 Probability of draw: 24%
Probability of home win: 52% Probability of away win: 24%
SAM (Sports Analytics Machine) is a super-computer created by @ProfIanMcHale at the University of Salford that is used to predict the outcome of football matches.
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THE HOME OF THUGS
BY EXWHUEMPLOYEE ON 28 OCTOBER 2016 AT 9:01AM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
London Stadium
Written by Katie S @flump9
I wrote an article back in May after the Manchester United game, regarding the media bandwagon that seems to take place surrounding issues with West Ham. Once again, I feel compelled to write another article, sadly discussing mainly the same issues.
From the moment I witnessed both sets of fans throwing items at each other, I knew what the headlines were going to be and I also knew that the majority of it would be aimed at us and not Chelsea fans. I have read some rather absurd headlines suggesting the London Stadium should be shut down and that we should play behind closed doors. However, the headline that really got to me was 'The Home of Thugs'. How dare people suggest that all West Ham fans are thugs.
I have supported West Ham my whole life, I come from a family of lifelong West Ham fans, none of which have ever been involved in any hint of violence. I, like the majority of West Ham fans, go week in and week out to watch football. West Ham are my passion in life and to hear such negative comments, over and over again, is causing me real frustration. As sad as it may sound, it is like having to defend a family member, when someone has heard a rumour and then got the facts completely wrong.
Nobody with any sense or decency would condone any of the actions of the minority last night, but this is what we have got to remember, it was a tiny minority. There were nearly 46,000 fans inside the ground and apparently 200 fans were involved in any kind of fracas (even this number seems too high, from what I witnessed). This equates to less than half a percent of our fans. I think the media need to be looking at these facts before allowing such appalling headlines to be printed and condemning all West Ham fans.
As ExWHUemployee referred to in his article yesterday, the issues surround West Ham being awarded the stadium caused a huge backlash and it certainly feels as though the media are looking for a headline to rile the public further. Unfortunately, I cannot help but feel that there is a general feeling of wanting the stadium to fail, as they believe that we should not have been given a stadium that was paid for by the tax payer. I know this is a completely separate issue, but I really wish people would remember that it was either this or let it go to ruin!
For me there are many issues with the London Stadium, of course stewarding and policing are a major issue and no doubt changes need to be taking place. However, security in general really needs to be looked at. It concerns me greatly that fans were allowed to enter the ground last night without any security checks, especially when trouble was so highly anticipated. I can honestly say that I have not felt unsafe in the stadium at any point and I believe most fans feel the same.
Sadly, every football club will have a handful of pretend football fans, who have no interest in the football taking place on the pitch and instead want a night out where they cause trouble. These people (I cannot call them fans) are not welcome at West Ham United and hopefully they will no longer be allowed to enter.
Remember this – West Ham fans are not thugs, we are passionate fans who follow their club through thick and thin and this includes the barrage of abuse we are having to take at the moment.
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Stadium sponsor pull the plug
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th October 2016
By: Staff Writer
There was more bad news for West Ham this morning when it was revealed tech company The Mahindra Group will not be sponsoring the Olympic Stadium after they pulled out of the race to land naming rights.
The Indian multinational has been cited as a potential principal sponsor since last summer when their interest in taking up naming rights for the stadium as part of a multi-million-pound deal was first revealed.
However the Telegraph claim this morning that Mahindra have allowed a 'period of exclusivity' to expire after they failed to meet stadium owners' E20's (disclosed) asking price - and have no intention of returning with a higher bid.
According to marketing expert Tim Crow, who is quoted in the Telegraph's article, part of the problem is that the sponsorship deal would have included West Ham games only.
Next summer's Athletics World Championships, for example, is one of many 'unbranded' events planned for the OS in the near future.
"If you look at the stadiums that have staged Olympics in the last 50 years, lasting – or, indeed, any – naming-rights sponsorship is like a unicorn," he said. "The Olympic Stadium, you wouldn't say it's been chock-full of content since the Games, so that makes a key difference. Effectively, you're just becoming a sponsor of West Ham."
The Mahindra Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate based in Mumbai, India, with operations in over 100 countries around the globe. It was expected that a naming rights deal - worth around £6million per season - would be announced by April, although that was delayed.
Supermarket chain Tesco were also rumoured to be interested in securing naming rights for the Olympic Stadium, although the link was later denied.
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Is it time for the BBC to discontinue their coverage of football?
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th October 2016
By: Kit Robinson
The rights of the vast majority of live televised men's football matches are claimed between Sky and BT Sport whilst commercial radio stations are able to commentate on live football.
Highlights of matches are obtainable elsewhere after Match of the Day is broadcast, so the BBC are limited to almost exclusively spoken word only content, filling an increasing number of shows. Are the BBC still justified in demanding by law that licence fees be paid so that football fans are allowed to watch other subscribed or commercial channels who do supply the live content they want to watch, not just people talking about football?
At the start of this season the BBC asked 30+ pundits to predict what would happen in the Premier League. Some of the same pundits and presenters which appear on many of their programmes across all media are now seen on other channels football programmes. Much of the BBC radio content is supplied for free by fans ringing in to express their views and live coverage of the men's game on television is now limited to the odd cup match (having also already pulled out of Formula One) with ITV covering internationals.
So should the question now be asked, in a similar way to what are our taxes spent on if everything has been privatised? What is the BBC supplying to the predominantly male audience who are football fans? Pretty much all the BBC supply is people talking about football.
One might almost feel that if they could, the BBC would be happy to get rid of football because they seem to dislike it and the people involved in it so much. That would be if it wasn't for the fact that because fans pay such a large wedge of their funding through the licence fee and that they are supposed to cater for two genders as a public service broadcaster. Something which is questionable with the rest of their output and investment being in anything other than programming for men.
The BBC seem to have a fixation that men's programming is almost solely football and if football went elsewhere the BBC would struggle to supply any male orientated programming at all. Or certainly little which was positive or helpful.
The BBC seems to insist on a daily basis that social issues are forced into their football content across all media platforms, be it an offensive comment made, rape, LGBT issues, sexism, racism, the promotion of women's football, dodgy dealings within the game, violence etc.
This is not just due to filling airtime or column inches, it seems that the BBC has a big problem with the men's game from the sociopolitical standpoint of their programming and editorial staff. The agenda and viewpoint for every subject matter is negative towards football and the vast majority of men who are fans.
This wouldn't be so bad if the outcome of some of their talking points didn't still continue to be negative towards football even when it is found to be or proven positive. A typical example was the survey conducted by Radio 5 concerning attitudes towards gay players which they broadcast on 26 March 2016.
The main finding was that a negligible 8 per cent of 4,000 fans had a problem with gay players playing for their club. I should think that would be quite a favourable result compared to if that were a survey taken with non-football fans and a similar scenario, given that some people are intolerant towards gay people based solely on, for instance, their religion's attitude towards homosexuality. Yet the BBC stated that there was still a big problem in football.
Another area is race. The vast majority of the team who played against Chelsea on March 26th were non-white. No fans had a problem with this, or probably even noticed it, but is that fact celebrated by the media? No.
West Ham have brought the ladies team in-house after accusations of sexism. Manchester United don't even have a ladies team which was a specific business decision. I cannot help but feel that the great bulk of the negativity towards the club (and football in general) is actually that with a lot of the social issues which the likes of the BBC like to accuse football of, the game has largely got its house in order, not perfect, but miles better than in the past.
But the dislike of the game is based on the financial and emotional investment of almost wholly men over the past 100 years, during which men have been criticised, ridiculed etc for that investment. And now it's a huge multi-billion pound industry which on the whole, only one gender can profit from, it is to be criticised. I doubt that were football the size of men's hockey, the BBC would have a problem with it.
The current all-out negativity towards West Ham since they moved into the London (nee Olympic) Stadium is chronic and has reached fever pitch. The BBC are running three stories online as I write about football violence involving an eight-year-old girl, homophobic chanting and closing the ground for matches.
I am not condoning the behaviour of those fans at the Chelsea League Cup match on 26th March but let's have a bit of perspective. Seven arrests, including one who was a ticket tout, in comparison to Notting Hill Carnival with four people being stabbed (including one teenager who was disembowelled which didn't even make it onto the BBC news), 45 police officers injured and more than 450 arrested.
I had the BBC ring me on my way home from the game against Chelsea asking if I had seen anything and requesting that I go live on Radio 5 to talk about it. I said I went to a great match with my 15-year-old niece. In other words I should be the ideal football fan to them. From the other end of the stadium we saw a few people lobbing things at each other, but of course the BBC researcher was not interested in that but they were struggling trying to find anyone who witnessed the "violence".
All I saw was a stand-off or confrontation and the police and stewards actually doing a good job. And it is ironic that when the BBC can capture a huge male audience that they refuse to ever cover any men's issues. This coming from the broadcaster who constantly claims that "men don't talk".
But what shouldn't be forgotten is that the BBC is by far the biggest influence on society in the UK, above newspapers, politicians, online media, everything. But this is beyond solely West Ham, it is about all football. So maybe it is time for the BBC to admit that it dislikes football, it no longer wants to supply football to its licence fee payers, or that a huge quantity of substandard content and opinion is not actually supplying what those licence fee payers want ie; live matches. They are no longer fit for purpose.
Alternatively maybe it is time for football fans to see what little the BBC supply or which can be supplied elsewhere, that they consistently depict those licence fee payers with contempt and that they should simply not bother with the BBC anymore and start boycotting it?
Paying for Sky but having to pay for the BBC by law is like saying you buy the Independent but have to by law pay for the Daily Express. I am sure that most football fans, male or female, would rather discuss or debate societal issues without them being constantly and incorrectly attached to football.
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West Ham to identify 200 fans involved in crowd trouble against Chelsea
By Sky Sports News HQ
Last Updated: 28/10/16 8:16am
SSN
West Ham have confirmed they are finalising the identification of 200 individuals involved in the crowd disturbances during their EFL Cup victory over Chelsea on Wednesday.
The Metropolitan Police have also confirmed three men have been charged following the trouble at London Stadium, with offences ranging from assault on a police officer to possession of class A drugs.
A further three men were arrested, but all were bailed pending further enquiries.
West Ham have insisted they will issue seasonal or life bans, depending on the severity of the offence, to any fan found to have been involved in the trouble.
A spokesperson for London Stadium partners West Ham United, E20 Stadium LLP and London Stadium 185, said: "An extensive safety and security operation was delivered in and around London Stadium throughout Wednesday's match with close co-ordination between West Ham United, London Stadium 185 and the Metropolitan Police Service.
"A small number of individuals were intent on becoming involved in disorder and are being investigated, identified and banned from London Stadium as a matter of priority.
"The response of our safety and security teams was measured, fast and effective and we commend our stewarding and response personnel who were called to deal with several incidents of challenging behaviour.
"It must be stressed that the vast majority of West Ham United and visiting supporters have behaved impeccably and we are committed to ensuring that they can continue to support their team in a safe environment.
"We wish to thank the genuine supporters who are behaving impeccably when attending matches at London Stadium for their fantastic support. We wish to assure them that we will work tirelessly to ban those who seek to affect their enjoyment and match experience."
Both sets of fans threw missiles across a segregated area of the ground before breaking through security and clashing along a walkway of the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand. Police in riot gear managed to quell the disorder as the match concluded.
The FA will ask both clubs for their observations before assessing evidence and deciding whether to bring any charges.
A spokesperson for London Stadium Safety Advisory Group, said: "The Stadium's safety certificate was granted after all safety plans were agreed before the start of the season.
"The extensive security and safety operation implemented by all partners was robust. Therefore, there are no plans to review the safety certificate or to reduce the stadium capacity.
"The issues arising due to fan disorder at Wednesday's game will be discussed at the next Safety Advisory Group (SAG) meeting.
"The SAG consists of Newham Council and London Legacy Development Corporation as the Stadium owners, London Stadium 185 as the Stadium operators and West Ham United as the primary tenant.
"It also includes the Met Police, London Ambulance Service, London Fire Brigade, British Transport Police, Westfield, Transport for London and the Sports Ground Safety Authority. The group will continue to monitor safety and security at the stadium and will advise partners to take further action when necessary."
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Slaven Bilic says minority ruined first West Ham 'home' game at London Stadium
Last Updated: 28/10/16 12:13pm
SSN
Slaven Bilic says it hurts that a minority of troublemakers marred the first time the London Stadium felt like "home" for West Ham.
The Hammers are threatening to ban as many as 200 supporters after disturbances broke out during the final moments of Wednesday night's EFL Cup win over Chelsea.
Bilic made his feelings plain after the game and was reluctant to revisit the trouble at his press conference ahead of the Super Sunday trip to Everton.
The West Ham manager was clearly frustrated that what felt like a landmark night in the club's new stadium had been overshadowed.
"Don't get me wrong," he said, "but we really felt at home. Everything we were talking about before the game - 'Is it like home? Is it like the Boleyn Ground was?' - we really felt the crowd behind us.
"Of course [it hurts]. The club doesn't deserve it, the players don't deserve it, the fans don't deserve it - the big majority of them."
Bilic refused to take further questions on the subject, describing himself as "a football manager, not a police officer or whatever."
And he was keen to talk football, specifically the upturn in his side's form since Cheikhou Kouyate was dropped back to play as a third centre-half.
The new formation yielded Premier League wins over Crystal Palace and Sunderland before the Chelsea game, and Bilic said: "We changed the system a bit. Okay, it's important, especially when the results come, but it's more about the players' movement.
"Kouyate helped to stabilise the defence and also helps us to create from the back."
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"It was anarchy!" Chelsea supporter slams police segregation efforts at West Ham
12:36, 27 OCT 2016 UPDATED 12:36, 27 OCT 2016
BY MATT MCGEEHAN
Seven were arrested after violence broke out in the stands between West Ham and Chelsea fans during the EFL Cup tie
The Mirror
A Chelsea fan caught up in the crowd violence at West Ham has slammed the efforts at segregation describing the chaotic scenes as "like anarchy".
Seven were arrested after violence broke out in the stands between West Ham and Chelsea fans during the EFL Cup tie at the London Stadium.
Coins, seats and other objects appeared to be thrown between rival supporters, with the Hammers and Chelsea condemning the unsavoury scenes which are now under investigation by the FA.
Steve Cutting claims he was hit by a coin thrown after Cheikhou Kouyate's 11th-minute goal.
Cutting, a Chelsea supporter for more than 40 years, told Press Association Sport: "As soon as they scored there was abuse being hurled over and we were watching the game and all of a sudden I felt a massive thump on the side of my head, thinking it was a bottle or a stone.
"I put my hand up to my head and realised I'd been cut. I looked down and there were some coins, 50p and pound coins."
West Ham, Chelsea, the FA, EFL and Metropolitan Police condemned the violence in the stadium.
Cutting does not believe the separation outside the ground was adequate.
"Coming out of the stadium was a free for all," he added.
"To get back to Stratford station was ridiculous. It was running battles again, groups of people fighting and trying to get to each other.
"There's no real clear proper way to get people back to the station safely."
Cutting was in attendance with friends, including Stuart, who took a photo of Cutting's bloodstained head and posted it on Twitter.
"From Stratford station to that stadium is unpoliceable," Stuart, who did not wish to share his surname, told Press Association Sport.
"It was almost like anarchy last night."
The Metropolitan Police added that antisocial behaviour legislation was utilised prior to the match to order 30 people to disperse.
West Ham vowed to punish any perpetrators identified, while Chelsea have a history of taking the sternest available action on incidents of violence.
A FA statement issued on Thursday morning read: "The FA is investigating crowd disturbances at last night's EFL Cup match between West Ham United and Chelsea.
"We are in dialogue with all relevant authorities."
The League Cup is organised by the English Football League.
An EFL spokesman said: "The EFL strongly condemns the behaviour of a small minority of fans involved in the distasteful and unwelcome incidents during last's night's EFL Cup match between West Ham United and Chelsea.
"We are currently liaising with both clubs, the Football Association and Metropolitan Police as they look to identify those involved and take appropriate and decisive action."
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West Ham's London Stadium doesn't lend itself to segregation but those who want trouble will find it anywhere
11:53, 27 OCT 2016
OPINION BY STEVESTAMMERS
The scenes inside the London Stadium can't be justified but if some a minority of around 50,000 decide to cause mayhem, then mayhem they will cause
The Mirror
Nothing can justify the ugly crowd scenes that marred a night of high drama at the London stadium on Wednesday.
And the problems highlighted the difficulties of staging a high-octane football match between two bitter rivals in a stadium built for athletics.
The match between West Ham and Chelsea lived up to its billing. Sadly, so did the hype about potential clashes between the fans.
The environs around the stadium that held the Olympics four years ago do not lend themselves to segregation. Inside the stadium it is the same.
Back in 2012, there was no need to separate those cheering on Usain Bolt or Yohan Blake or Justin Gatlin in the 100 metres final.
Yet it is vital to stress that no matter where a match is staged, no matter what precautions are taken if there are those who want confrontation and trouble, they will find it.
Ask Tottenham and Arsenal. When Arsenal fans went to White Hart Lane not long ago, there was immense damaged caused in the visiting fans area. In the return fixture, similar damage was inflicted on the Emirates in retaliation.
It is not right, it is not acceptable but it happens. So if some 100-200 out of an attendance of around 50,000 decide to cause mayhem, then mayhem they will cause.
West Ham as a club must find a way to allow fans into their allocated section without clashing with home fans – particularly in matches where the rivalry is intense.
The unfortunate outcome was that the match was over-shadowed by the trouble among warring factions. West Ham were inspired by the highly-charged atmosphere, Chelsea were nothing like the team that demolished Manchester United.
True, they made several changes but the starting line-up was still one you would fancy to get a result in a Premier League match.
Michail Antonio ran John Terry and David Luiz ragged. Winston Reid was immense. He subdued the disappointing Michy Batshuayi and then ensured the belligerent Diego Costa knew he was in a match when he came on as the second half substitute.
No chance for a touchline dance of delight for Antonio Conte. And the dodgy knees that are the legacy of Slaven Bilic's playing ensured there would be no provocative antics in the coaches' zone when West Ham scored.
It might just emerge as the result and performance West Ham needed to convince sceptical fans the move to Stratford might just work.
And as a footnote to missile-throwing in the Chelsea match: on August 5 2012, the Olympic 100 metres final was held up briefly.
Why? Someone in the crowd threw a plastic beer bottle at the competitors.
Can't blame West Ham for that one. They were still at Upton Park.
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West Ham crowd trouble "hurts" admits Slaven Bilic: "The club don't deserve it"
11:22, 28 OCT 2016 UPDATED 11:22, 28 OCT 2016
BY JOE MEWIS , BEN BURROWS , JAMES WHALING
The club confirmed in a statement on Wednesday that they are currently in the process of identifying 200 individuals who will be given banning orders
The Mirror
Slaven Bilic admits he and West Ham are hurt by the damaging scenes of crowd trouble earlier this week.
Fans clashed inside the London Stadium with more questions being posed surrounding the policing and security measures at the Hammers' new home.
The club confirmed in a statement on Wednesday that they are currently in the process of identifying 200 individuals who will be given banning orders for their part in the violence.
And when asked whether the latest outbreak of trouble hurt him Bilic admitted: "It does, of course it does.
"The club didn't deserve it, the players don't deserve it definitely, the fans didn't deserve it.
"The majority of them of course. Big majority. Vast majority."
Bilic condemned the scenes after the game but spoke glowingly on Friday about the support the team got from the majority of supporters on Wednesday night.
"We really felt the crowd behind us in the game against Chelsea," he added. "It was loud, they were really behind us.
"It was great support apart from that thing of course."
Club vice-chairman Karren Brady has laid the blame for the unrest on a minority of "mindless individuals
"A disappointment to all who have worked so hard to put on such an exciting fixture in the face of a small minority of mindless individuals hell-bent on causing trouble," she wrote in the Sun.
"While the line of segregation between both sets of supporters was never actually broken — and supporters never made contact with one another — the baying behaviour that we witnessed is completely unacceptable to everyone at West Ham United and Chelsea Football Club and we will be taking the most severe action possible against individuals involved."
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Arsene Wenger fears West Ham crowd violence will make safe standing return difficult
10:17, 28 OCT 2016 UPDATED 10:17, 28 OCT 2016
BY NEIL MCLEMAN
Wenger insisted he has no fears about Arsenal fans visiting the London Stadium but is worried the trouble could effect the reintroduction of standing
The Mirror
Arsene Wenger has claimed the crowd violence at the London Stadium this week will make the re-introduction of safe standing more difficult in England football.
West Ham are seeking to ban 200 fans after riot police needed to be deployed in their new stadium during the EFL Cup clash with Chelsea.
Wenger insisted he has no fears about Arsenal fans visiting the London Stadium in the next scheduled London derby on December 3.
"I am surprised more than disappointed because West Ham usually has a strong fan base who are very motivated," said the Frenchman. "We are not usually facing this kind of problem anymore.
"I am in favour of the reintroduction of standing. The closer you are to the position of the player, the more passionate you are. As well it allows you to have lower prices and maybe more passion inside the stadium.
"That is not a good advertisement for standing. I am surprised and hopefully West Ham will get rid of the problem very quickly.
"I don't believe there is a problem with hooliganism in England. You can't say with one minor incident – 200 hundred people or so – that there is a problem in the country."
Theo Walcott faces a late fitness test on a "minor hamstring" injury before tomorrow's trip to Sunderland while Aaron Ramsey and Olivier Giroud are back in the squad.
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Karren Brady blames West Ham versus Chelsea fan violence on 'mindless individuals'
09:43, 28 OCT 2016 UPDATED 09:45, 28 OCT 2016
BY JOE MEWIS , JAMES WHALING
The Hammers' vice-chairman says the club are fully focused on identifying the troublemakers following the 'unacceptable' behaviour
The Mirror
West Ham vice-chairman Karren Brady has laid the blame for Wednesday's crowd trouble at the EFL Cup clash against Chelsea a minority of "mindless individuals".
Fans clashed inside the London Stadium with more questions being posed surrounding the policing and security measures at the Hammers' new home.
The club confirmed in a statement on Wednesday that they are currently in the process of identifying 200 individuals who will be given banning orders for their part in the violence.
And Brady insists the Hammers will be taking 'the most severe action possible' against those involved, while insisting the club did all they could prior to the match to try and ensure it passed off without trouble.
West Ham legend Tony Cottee fears dark days of hooliganism could return if Irons don't address issues
"A disappointment to all who have worked so hard to put on such an exciting fixture in the face of a small minority of mindless individuals hell-bent on causing trouble," she wrote in the Sun.
"While the line of segregation between both sets of supporters was never actually broken — and supporters never made contact with one another — the baying behaviour that we witnessed is completely unacceptable to everyone at West Ham United and Chelsea Football Club and we will be taking the most severe action possible against individuals involved."
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West Ham legend Tony Cottee fears dark days of hooliganism could return if Irons don't address issues
22:30, 27 OCT 2016
BY ADRIAN KAJUMBA
"If we don't deal with the situation and things are just left alone to fester there is potential for things to escalate," he said
The Mirror
Tony Cottee fears the dark days of hooliganism could return if West Ham don't resolve their Olympic Stadium security problems.
Cottee recalled playing in a 1984 game at Birmingham that was disrupted by three pitch invasions and being among the West Ham fans who were showered with missiles including a petrol bomb during one trip to Newcastle when he was just 14.
The Hammers legend said: "They are proper terrible things I saw that will live with me forever.
"This was nowhere near that scale but if we don't deal with the situation and things are just left alone to fester there is potential for things to escalate and all of a sudden we could be talking about something as bad, particularly when we play Spurs later in the season.
"If there are problems against Watford and Bournemouth – who with the greatest respect have never had problems with hooliganism – you know full well that when Chelsea, Man United and Spurs come to town something has to be done to make sure the stadium is safe."
Cottee slammed the minority of "idiots" ruining the London Stadium experience for the majority and whose behaviour has sparked calls for the ground to be closed.
Police are reluctant to enter the stadium because a suitable radio system won't be in place until February and only do when trouble flares.
Cottee added: "Everyone knew West Ham would be going to the Olympic Stadium three, four years ago so why has that been allowed to happen?
"The main reason there is trouble is there are no police inside the stadium.
"Whether it's the government, council, stadium, West Ham stadium operators, the police, get your heads together, stop blaming everyone and put some police in the stadium.
"We are all done with the talking now. It is time for action.
"This is West Ham's opportunity to push on and become a club that can compete at the highest level and it's being overshadowed by people not doing their jobs."
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Violence at West Ham: who is to blame and what must be done?
Six areas of contention emerged from events at the London Stadium, ranging from how rival fans could be so close together to how the FA will respond
The Guardian
@DaveHytner
Thursday 27 October 2016 20.47 BST Last modified on Friday 28 October 2016 00.30 BST
1 The stadium layout
The headline flashpoint during the EFL Cup tie between West Ham United and Chelsea on Wednesday night kicked off in stoppage time, when some of the visiting supporters made for the exit at the back of the lower tier of the Sir Trevor Brooking stand. A number of West Ham fans from the adjacent space rushed over towards them and it raised the uncomfortable question as to how they were able to do so. The stewards held their line bravely and the response of the police was swift – in under 60 seconds they had officers in riot gear on the scene. The rival fans were kept from coming to blows – but they were still too close to each other for comfort and many missiles were thrown, including ripped-up seats. For the stadium's first major match, with 5,182 Chelsea supporters in attendance, it felt as though there was an issue with the layout. Before kick-off the away fans had been asked to file in through a narrow entrance – only eight turnstiles – and there were delays and frayed tempers. Some of the Chelsea support feared a crush could develop. Furthermore it continues to be difficult to police the long, open walk back to Stratford rail station. Segregation is a headache.
2 The stewards
One of the niggling teething problems has related to the tone of the stewarding – overseen by the stadium operators, London Stadium 185 – and which some Chelsea fans complained about on Wednesday. The club have spoken about how "several key changes have been made to the stewarding since the beginning of the season", which betrayed an admission that there was a problem and, perhaps, the attempts to resolve it were ongoing. In the early matches, when West Ham supporters stood up, there were clashes with the stewards, who have been accused of lacking the experience to manage a football crowd. Some of the old Upton Park stewards have now been deployed to different areas of the stadium and the club are trying to build a rapport between all of the team, which was more than 900-strong against Chelsea, and the zones they oversee. Some of the new stewards, who have been necessary because of the rise in stadium capacity, are learning the ropes.
3 The police presence
There have been calls for a visible police presence inside the stadium and on Wednesday there were officers stationed in the concourses. In addition, there were units waiting outside to be called on in the event of trouble. When the call came, they rushed in. There has been much made of how the police's required radio system, Airwave, has not been permanently installed at the ground and it will not be done until February – which has felt like an oversight. But the club say a temporary solution has been found. Vans were parked outside the ground on Wednesday to provide the Airwave coverage, which allowed officers to communicate with each other.
4 Has the Football Association been strong enough?
The FA has opened an investigation into Wednesday's crowd trouble, essentially positioning itself as overseer, and so has the English Football League, as the cup tie fell under its auspices. The FA has an open channel of communication with West Ham as it is conscious of the number of incidents that have taken place at the club's home matches already this season. But can the FA do more? The thing to note from the governing body's side is that its rules apply only to the game's participants – in other words, the players, managers and so on; and not the fans. Those are the responsibility of the police. The clubs, however, are deemed by the FA as participants and, as the clubs have certain responsibilities for their supporters, the FA can get to them that way. The FA prefers not to punish the clubs for their fans' behaviour and, instead, seeks to educate and proactively raise awareness of various issues. To sanction the clubs for the actions of some supporters, they would have to prove they had been negligent with regard to security, which is difficult, given how clear the clubs usually are with the messages they send out. The FA is empowered to take extreme measures, such as the partial or total closure of stadiums, but that is a long way away in this case.
5 What have West Ham done?
It has been far from smooth sailing for the club at their new home and they admit the learning curve has been steep. In reactive terms – before Wednesday – they had scrutinised CCTV footage to identify and ban 23 fans for various offences and they now have their sights on 200 more. Those who threw missiles will be banned for life but others who, for example, made throat-slitting gestures or rushed over to confront the Chelsea fans, will be suspended from the stadium for the remainder of the season. The club are determined to stamp on those who are undermining their name. More proactively, they carried out a series of measures on Wednesday that they hoped would limit the potential for trouble. There were restrictions on who could buy tickets and also the sale of alcohol at the ground; there were so-called 'seat kill' zones to aid the segregation and a fence was put up outside to stop the rival fans from coming together afterwards. Chelsea recognised the work that West Ham had done before the fixture. They are committed to doing more.
6 The fans' behaviour
All of the preceding points would be rendered null and void if grown men could attend a football match and not do things such as tear a seat from its bracket and hurl it at another person. It is remarkable how so little of the discussion is given over to the basic requirement for adults to behave in a socially acceptable manner. At the end of last season, when the Manchester United team bus became stuck in gridlock en route to Upton Park and some West Ham fans responded by showering it with bottles, there was talk about how various logistical problems had led to the situation. But the fans did not have to throw the bottles. Passion among supporters is fundamental but criminality is another thing altogether. The Metropolitan police commander, BJ Harrington, said of Wednesday's crowd: "There were a minority of people who attended the match that were clearly intent on being involved in confrontation and violence." This minority is the most serious problem.
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Andre Ayew thanks West Ham fans for providing 'motivation' during thigh injury
SAM LONG 6 hours ago0 comments
Evening Standard
Andre Ayew has thanked West Ham's fans for their support during his recovery from a serious thigh injury.
Ayew joined the Hammers from Swansea in the summer but picked up an injury just 34 minutes into his debut in August.
The 26-year-old's problem has kept Ayew on the sidelines for over two months but he finally made his return as a late substitute in Wednesday's EFL Cup victory over Chelsea.
Ayew's fitness represents a huge boost for Slaven Bilic's side, who are still languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League table, and the Ghana international has thanked supporters for keeping him motivated during a difficult spell.
"I'm so grateful for all the support I received and it definitely kept me driven to recover faster," Ayew wrote on his official Instagram page.
"I can't thank the medical staff of West Ham enough for the big role they played in getting me back into shape.
"Most importantly I want to thank my West Ham fans for standing by me and motivating me when I was down."
West Ham travel to Everton this weekend and Ayew is expected to receive more game time off the bench as the Hammers go in search of their fourth to-flight victory of the season.
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West Ham count cost after naming-rights deal for London Stadium collapses
Telegraph.co.uk
Ben Rumsby, sports news correspondent
27 OCTOBER 2016 • 9:57PM
The toxic start to West Ham United's anchor tenancy of the London Stadium was compounded on Thursday night after it emerged that negotiations with a multinational conglomerate for the naming rights to their new home had collapsed.
One of the country's leading sponsorship experts also warned that the hooliganism which marred the club's EFL Cup win over Chelsea would make it even harder to sell those rights, stopping the taxpayer clawing back millions of pounds of public money spent on converting the London 2012 centrepiece into a Premier League ground.
Indian technology company and carmaker the Mahindra Group had been in advanced talks with the venue's owners, before West Ham moved in, over a deal, more than £4 million-a-year of which would have gone back to the E20 Stadium Partnership.
Mahindra had a period of exclusivity which expired in August and although there was optimism in the weeks afterwards that an agreement could still be struck, Telegraph Sport can reveal that is no longer the case after it failed to meet the asking price. E20 Stadium declined to comment but a spokesman said: "We are actively in the market for a stadium naming rights partner. We want to ensure we have the right deal and will make an announcement once we have that in place." Mahindra did not respond to requests for comment.
The chief executive of sports and entertainment marketing agency Synergy, Tim Crow, told Telegraph Sport there was no chance of a naming-rights partner being secured any time soon following the latest calamity at the stadium.
"I'm sure that anybody who was looking at it – and I doubt if there are many brands looking at it at all – would have been fairly dismayed by what they saw," he said, warning it could be a year before a major company even considered attaching its name to the venue.
"Ordinarily, it would be at least one year before they looked at it again, because they've got to get on with their business. They'd look at it again when their financial and their budgeting cycles permitted."
Crow claimed that, even then, it would be a hard sell.
"If you look at the stadiums that have staged Olympics in the last 50 years, lasting – or, indeed, any – naming-rights sponsorship is like a unicorn," he said.
"The Olympic Stadium, you wouldn't say it's been chock-full of content since the Games, so that makes a key difference."
Crow said firms could also be put off by being unable to brand the venue during next year's athletics World Championships, which will be held in a "clean stadium".
He added: "Effectively, you're just becoming a sponsor of West Ham."
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After the trouble at West Ham against Chelsea... don't blame the stadium, blame the hooligan fans
Notion events at West Ham can be blamed on the stadium is preposterous
People who fight, people who destroy, people who taunt are the problem
They are thugs besmirching a great chance of progress for West Ham
People acting that way are scaring off the next generation of supporters
The Olympic stadium is not ideal but the alternative would be even worse
By MARTIN SAMUEL - SPORT FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: 22:30, 27 October 2016 | UPDATED: 09:34, 28 October 2016
Stadiums do not riot. Stadiums do not smash seats. Stadiums do not throw bottles and coins. Stadiums do not shout abuse or punch you on the nose. Stadiums just stand there, unseeing, unfeeling. So let us turn from the preposterous notion that recent events at West Ham are the work of an unsatisfactory new arena.
People. That is the problem here. People who fight, people who destroy, people who taunt and abuse; uncivilised, violent, horrible people. That is what West Ham must be rid of, not the new stadium.
There will always be teething problems when a football club leaves home. Unfamiliar surrounds feel alien. Routes and haunts are altered, maybe the company too. Those lads you always used to have laugh with in the row behind might be in another part of the ground now. The new lot are all right but it's not the same.
Maybe you liked the old view, the old atmosphere, all supporters have the tendency to wallow in nostalgia, even at reborn clubs like Manchester City. Sport loves its traditions and rituals after all. None of this, however, explains or justifies what happened at the London Stadium on Wednesday night. This was nothing to do with the approval rating for West Ham's new home. These were the actions of opportunist thugs.
There is, it must be said, a right load of old twaddle talked about West Ham. The club that puts tradition, passion and trying to play the beautiful game ahead of success. The club that has lost touch with its fanbase by trying to build, rebrand and improve. Rubbish.
No team draws 54,000 to a Europa League second-round qualifier against NK Domzale of Slovenia if the punters don't care what the score is or where the club is going. Nobody thought West Ham would fill this new ground. They did because last season was a good one. People were optimistic about the future. They had Dimitri Payet. Kept him, too. Maybe all this talk of being a force in Europe wasn't just fantasy after all.
My brother's got five season tickets over at the new place. They're not cheap. So dead right he wants to see this team win something. He is not one to fantasise airily about the good old days of losing 2-1 at home to Bristol City (February 11 1978, we were there) or mythologise the past as if there was some great cultural experience in eating monkey nuts on the North Bank, or hearing monkey chants from the Chicken Run, before someone used your trouser leg as his personal water closet.
The London Stadium is not ideal, because compromises with an athletics legacy had to be made, but most fans know why the club took the leap. The alternative was not to remain the old West Ham, but to end up the new Fulham, or Queens Park Rangers. The poor relations, the never-will-bes. One look at the huge structure rising on Tottenham High Road, the ambitious plans for Stamford Bridge or the money machine that is the Emirates Stadium, told of West Ham's future. They took this opportunity or they signed up for life in the shadows.
West Ham are not even Sunderland or Newcastle. They do not have a city to themselves. Once Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea had their 60,000 capacity cathedrals in place, what would be left for West Ham? Oh, that's right — the tradition, the history, the passion, the myth, the pie and eels. Except that wasn't West Ham at all, some poxy little also-ran. West Ham had a go. West Ham got to Wembley. At least they used to.
In 1964, the year I was born. Then in 1975, when I was 10. And in 1980, beating Arsenal. And in 1981, losing to Liverpool. In 1976 there was an appearance in the European Cup-winners' Cup final, a competition the club had won 11 years earlier. So that's the team I grew up following, not some bunch of Cockney caricatures happy to have a sing-song, a plate of mash and liquor and their arses handed to them by Chelsea.
Here's another myth. Sam Allardyce didn't lose the West Ham public simply because he played dull football. He lost them because he lacked ambition. Everyone remembers that Allardyce was booed despite beating Hull at home. But that was on March 26, 2014. On January 5, 2014, almost three months earlier, Allardyce put a reserve team out in the FA Cup against second-tier Nottingham Forest and lost 5-0. That was when the rot set in. So this is not a club whose supporters are mystified by aspiration. There is still a wonderful football culture among the majority at the London Stadium, involving turning up and cheering the team.
The mistake is to paint the Neanderthals causing havoc near the Chelsea end — and there were plenty in the away section, too, but that's not the point, because it is happening at West Ham almost weekly now — as representative of some noble tradition, fighting for a dying, disenfranchised football culture. No, they are thugs besmirching one of the greatest chances for advancement a football club has had.
They are scaring off the next generation and risk dragging their fellow supporters down, limiting West Ham's ambition, and undermining their best efforts. And the biggest lie is that it was all somehow inevitable. Because stadiums don't kill football; hooligans do.
A TIMELINE OF THE TROUBLES AT LONDON STADIUM
AUGUST 4
Restricted-view seating provides a problem and some fans cannot find their allocated seats at the first competitive game at the London Stadium between West Ham and NK Domzale.
AUGUST 21
Some fans have to sit on bare concrete as 56 season-ticket holders are left without seats in the West Stand.
AUGUST 25
A man is arrested on suspicion of ABH after West Ham fans fight among themselves at the 1-0 defeat by Astra Giurgiu in a Europa League qualifier.
SEPTEMBER 10
The club warns life bans will be given to supporters involved in crowd trouble. Ten are ejected from the stadium after clashes with Watford fans. Stewards struggle to keep them segregated as the Hammers lose 4-2.
SEPTEMBER 13
Metropolitan Police say additional policing measures cannot yet be implemented inside the ground because of the lack of the Airwave radio system, which is used by the emergency services, at the £700million venue.
OCTOBER 1
Four people are arrested after yet more crowd disturbance, when West Ham draw 1-1 with Middlesbrough.
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
Slaven Bilic was focused almost exclusively on football in his press conference ahead of Sunday's Premier League game at Everton.
The Hammers head to Goodison Park in fine form and confident mood, having picked up seven points from nine and defeated Chelsea in the EFL Cup fourth round in midweek.
The manager was asked about off-field incidents, but asked that the media refer to the Club's statements and allow him to concentrate on his job of producing a team to win in L4 for the second straight season.
Slaven, can we start by asking you to comment on the incidents near the end of Wednesday's EFL Cup tie at London Stadium?
"I have said enough about the Stadium. I want to talk about football and about the game. I am a football manager and not a police officer or whatever, so that's it basically. Ask me football questions, please, if there are any!"
What's your team news for Everton on Sunday?
"It's a big game. We played a very demanding game physically and psychologically on Wednesday and we have a few knocks and all that, so we're going to see how it is after training today, but nothing major. They should all be fit and available for Sunday."
Has Michail Antonio made a case to start up front again?
"Yes, he was really good and that's why we put him there. He did everything we hoped and expected that he would do. He used the space behind and it's very hard to make him in such a big space. Also, he's very strong. He did excellently in that game, to be fair."
How close is Andre Ayew to starting a game?
"He is very close. It was crucial [for him to get some game-time], because he had a long break from the first game of the season, and it's great to have him back. He's been training with the group for a couple of weeks now and came on and did really good against Chelsea. He looked fit and aggressive, so it's great to have him back."
You must be frustrated that the focus is not on the team's return to form?
"Yes, but I'm trying to get the focus back on the team! We are playing good at the moment. Those three wins – two in the league and one in the cup – we have to build on. We are positive but we are expecting an extremely difficult game on Sunday. If we continue to play like this and improve, then we have a chance."
You won at Everton in March, coming from 2-0 down, so you must have good memories of that game?
"Yes, I remember that. It was a strange game. We were two down and they had a penalty, which Adrian saved and we won at the end 3-2. It was a dramatic game and very good for us, but very bad for them. I remember, even when we were down, we were playing well and there was always a hope. We were always there, creating chances and hurting them in the last third of the pitch. I always believed that we were going to score some goals there.
"I don't know what I expect this year, but I know it'll be a very difficult game. They started the season really great, then they've had a little dip in form according to points. They're at home, have a great squad, great individuals and are very well organised and, as I said, I can't wait because it should be a great game of football."
Have the players been distracted by events of this week at all?
"No, I think they have been totally motivated and fully concentrated on the game on Sunday. Don't get me wrong, we really felt at home at the new Stadium with the crowd behind us in the game against Chelsea. It was loud, so we had great support, apart from that thing, of course.
"The Club didn't deserve it, the players definitely didn't deserve it and the vast majority of fans didn't deserve it, of course."
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Hammers back Bobby statue campaign
WHUFC.com
West Ham United stars past and present have backed Barking and Dagenham Council's campaign to have a statue built of the late, great Bobby Moore OBE.
Captain Mark Noble, two-time FA Cup winner Frank Lampard Senior and former player and manager Harry Redknapp have all endorsed the idea of building The People's Statue to the man who led the Hammers and England to unprecedented success in the 1960s.
Noble, who like Moore also born in east London and went on to captain his local club, threw his backing behind the initiative, saying: "Bobby Moore was an England, West Ham and London legend.
"A statue in the heart of his home town will be a permanent monument to his everlasting greatness."
The Council-led appeal aims to raise more than £160,000 for the statue, which will be placed in the heart of Barking.
The statue would form part of the Borough's wider celebrations of 50th anniversary of England's 1966 FIFA World Cup, which have also included the installation of an English Heritage Blue Plaque at his family home in Waverley Gardens.
The Council also invited Moore's fellow West Ham and England legend Sir Geoff Hurst to a West Ham United Foundation-run mini-World Cup tournament for local schools, which was held at Dagenham & Redbridge FC in July.
Leader of the Council, Councillor Darren Rodwell said: "We are extremely proud, as a borough that Bobby Moore was born and grew up in Barking and it is important that we honour this great man.
"We need to remember all of the iconic people that come from the borough including our footballing heroes. Let's remember what success looks like and help to fund a statue of a real great - Bobby Moore, in his home town, Barking."
A One Borough Community Day was also held in July to celebrate the 50th anniversary of England's 4-2 win over West Germany at Wembley, with Hammers heroes Tony Cottee and Tony Gale and champion fundraiser Jonjo Heuerman attending a special screening of the final and running a football tournament in aid of the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research UK.
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Everton v West Ham United
SUN, 30 OCT 2016PREMIER LEAGUE
13:30
Venue: Goodison Park
TEAM NEWS
Everton duo Leighton Baines and James McCarthy will both miss this weekend with hamstring injuries.
Matthew Pennington, Tyias Browning, Darron Gibson and Muhamed Besic also remain sidelined.
West Ham club-record signing Andre Ayew could start, having made his first appearance since 15 August on Wednesday.
The Hammers' injury list remains lengthy with forwards Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho among five absentees.
MOTD COMMENTATOR'S NOTES
Ian Dennis: "For those who believe '10 matches in' acts as a barometer for the rest of the season then Everton could be heading for a top-six finish.
"Fast forward seven months from now and you would think the current position would satisfy most Evertonians. However, there still appears to be an undercurrent of frustration and some fans feel frailties still fester from the Roberto Martinez days.
"West Ham and Slaven Bilic are more than aware results dictate the mood. The Hammers have started to win again - three on the bounce - and will hope for a repeat of last season's victory at Goodison."
Twitter: @Iandennisbbc
WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY
Everton manager Ronald Koeman: "The last game against Burnley we were very disappointed. You know you can lose in football, but that wasn't deserved. We need to accept it and improve.
"Overall I'm happy with the defensive organisation but I'm not happy with the offensive aspect. We need to improve and be more clinical and have more productivity.
"That's what we need to change."
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic on Wednesday's crowd disturbances at London Stadium: "It does hurt, of course it does. The club didn't deserve it, the players don't deserve it definitely, the fans didn't deserve it - the majority of them of course. The big majority, the vast majority. I have said enough, I want to talk about the game on Sunday. I have a big game. I said what I said and that's it. I want to talk about football and the game.
"There is no point talking about it because I would only repeat what I said. I am a football manager, not a police officer or whatever, so that is it basically."
LAWRO'S PREDICTION
One team has gone five games without a win, the other four without a defeat. Bearing that in mind, I am going for a draw.
Prediction: 1-1
Lawro's full predictions v England rugby league captain Sam Burgess
Think you can do better than Lawro? Predict the score for this match and the rest of this round's Premier League fixtures in our Predictor game.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Everton have dominated the all-time meetings - winning 67 to West Ham's 38, with 29 draws.
West Ham came from two goals down to win the corresponding game last season, Dimitri Payet scoring a 90th-minute winner.
It was Everton's first defeat in 16 Premier League matches against the Hammers (W10, D5).
Everton
Everton have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last five league matches.
They are unbeaten in the league at home this season (W2, D2).
Romelu Lukaku has scored eight times in 10 games against West Ham in all competitions, more than he has against any other Premier League opponents.
The Belgian has scored in his last six Premier League games against the Hammers.
West Ham
West Ham last won three league games in a row in March - the third of which came against Everton.
The Hammers have conceded nine goals in their four away league games this season.
Michail Antonio has gone five games without a goal having scored five in his previous five matches.
Dimitri Payet leads the Premier League this season for both chances created (30) and assists (four).
Most probable score: 1-1 Probability of draw: 24%
Probability of home win: 52% Probability of away win: 24%
SAM (Sports Analytics Machine) is a super-computer created by @ProfIanMcHale at the University of Salford that is used to predict the outcome of football matches.
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THE HOME OF THUGS
BY EXWHUEMPLOYEE ON 28 OCTOBER 2016 AT 9:01AM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
London Stadium
Written by Katie S @flump9
I wrote an article back in May after the Manchester United game, regarding the media bandwagon that seems to take place surrounding issues with West Ham. Once again, I feel compelled to write another article, sadly discussing mainly the same issues.
From the moment I witnessed both sets of fans throwing items at each other, I knew what the headlines were going to be and I also knew that the majority of it would be aimed at us and not Chelsea fans. I have read some rather absurd headlines suggesting the London Stadium should be shut down and that we should play behind closed doors. However, the headline that really got to me was 'The Home of Thugs'. How dare people suggest that all West Ham fans are thugs.
I have supported West Ham my whole life, I come from a family of lifelong West Ham fans, none of which have ever been involved in any hint of violence. I, like the majority of West Ham fans, go week in and week out to watch football. West Ham are my passion in life and to hear such negative comments, over and over again, is causing me real frustration. As sad as it may sound, it is like having to defend a family member, when someone has heard a rumour and then got the facts completely wrong.
Nobody with any sense or decency would condone any of the actions of the minority last night, but this is what we have got to remember, it was a tiny minority. There were nearly 46,000 fans inside the ground and apparently 200 fans were involved in any kind of fracas (even this number seems too high, from what I witnessed). This equates to less than half a percent of our fans. I think the media need to be looking at these facts before allowing such appalling headlines to be printed and condemning all West Ham fans.
As ExWHUemployee referred to in his article yesterday, the issues surround West Ham being awarded the stadium caused a huge backlash and it certainly feels as though the media are looking for a headline to rile the public further. Unfortunately, I cannot help but feel that there is a general feeling of wanting the stadium to fail, as they believe that we should not have been given a stadium that was paid for by the tax payer. I know this is a completely separate issue, but I really wish people would remember that it was either this or let it go to ruin!
For me there are many issues with the London Stadium, of course stewarding and policing are a major issue and no doubt changes need to be taking place. However, security in general really needs to be looked at. It concerns me greatly that fans were allowed to enter the ground last night without any security checks, especially when trouble was so highly anticipated. I can honestly say that I have not felt unsafe in the stadium at any point and I believe most fans feel the same.
Sadly, every football club will have a handful of pretend football fans, who have no interest in the football taking place on the pitch and instead want a night out where they cause trouble. These people (I cannot call them fans) are not welcome at West Ham United and hopefully they will no longer be allowed to enter.
Remember this – West Ham fans are not thugs, we are passionate fans who follow their club through thick and thin and this includes the barrage of abuse we are having to take at the moment.
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Stadium sponsor pull the plug
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th October 2016
By: Staff Writer
There was more bad news for West Ham this morning when it was revealed tech company The Mahindra Group will not be sponsoring the Olympic Stadium after they pulled out of the race to land naming rights.
The Indian multinational has been cited as a potential principal sponsor since last summer when their interest in taking up naming rights for the stadium as part of a multi-million-pound deal was first revealed.
However the Telegraph claim this morning that Mahindra have allowed a 'period of exclusivity' to expire after they failed to meet stadium owners' E20's (disclosed) asking price - and have no intention of returning with a higher bid.
According to marketing expert Tim Crow, who is quoted in the Telegraph's article, part of the problem is that the sponsorship deal would have included West Ham games only.
Next summer's Athletics World Championships, for example, is one of many 'unbranded' events planned for the OS in the near future.
"If you look at the stadiums that have staged Olympics in the last 50 years, lasting – or, indeed, any – naming-rights sponsorship is like a unicorn," he said. "The Olympic Stadium, you wouldn't say it's been chock-full of content since the Games, so that makes a key difference. Effectively, you're just becoming a sponsor of West Ham."
The Mahindra Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate based in Mumbai, India, with operations in over 100 countries around the globe. It was expected that a naming rights deal - worth around £6million per season - would be announced by April, although that was delayed.
Supermarket chain Tesco were also rumoured to be interested in securing naming rights for the Olympic Stadium, although the link was later denied.
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Is it time for the BBC to discontinue their coverage of football?
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th October 2016
By: Kit Robinson
The rights of the vast majority of live televised men's football matches are claimed between Sky and BT Sport whilst commercial radio stations are able to commentate on live football.
Highlights of matches are obtainable elsewhere after Match of the Day is broadcast, so the BBC are limited to almost exclusively spoken word only content, filling an increasing number of shows. Are the BBC still justified in demanding by law that licence fees be paid so that football fans are allowed to watch other subscribed or commercial channels who do supply the live content they want to watch, not just people talking about football?
At the start of this season the BBC asked 30+ pundits to predict what would happen in the Premier League. Some of the same pundits and presenters which appear on many of their programmes across all media are now seen on other channels football programmes. Much of the BBC radio content is supplied for free by fans ringing in to express their views and live coverage of the men's game on television is now limited to the odd cup match (having also already pulled out of Formula One) with ITV covering internationals.
So should the question now be asked, in a similar way to what are our taxes spent on if everything has been privatised? What is the BBC supplying to the predominantly male audience who are football fans? Pretty much all the BBC supply is people talking about football.
One might almost feel that if they could, the BBC would be happy to get rid of football because they seem to dislike it and the people involved in it so much. That would be if it wasn't for the fact that because fans pay such a large wedge of their funding through the licence fee and that they are supposed to cater for two genders as a public service broadcaster. Something which is questionable with the rest of their output and investment being in anything other than programming for men.
The BBC seem to have a fixation that men's programming is almost solely football and if football went elsewhere the BBC would struggle to supply any male orientated programming at all. Or certainly little which was positive or helpful.
The BBC seems to insist on a daily basis that social issues are forced into their football content across all media platforms, be it an offensive comment made, rape, LGBT issues, sexism, racism, the promotion of women's football, dodgy dealings within the game, violence etc.
This is not just due to filling airtime or column inches, it seems that the BBC has a big problem with the men's game from the sociopolitical standpoint of their programming and editorial staff. The agenda and viewpoint for every subject matter is negative towards football and the vast majority of men who are fans.
This wouldn't be so bad if the outcome of some of their talking points didn't still continue to be negative towards football even when it is found to be or proven positive. A typical example was the survey conducted by Radio 5 concerning attitudes towards gay players which they broadcast on 26 March 2016.
The main finding was that a negligible 8 per cent of 4,000 fans had a problem with gay players playing for their club. I should think that would be quite a favourable result compared to if that were a survey taken with non-football fans and a similar scenario, given that some people are intolerant towards gay people based solely on, for instance, their religion's attitude towards homosexuality. Yet the BBC stated that there was still a big problem in football.
Another area is race. The vast majority of the team who played against Chelsea on March 26th were non-white. No fans had a problem with this, or probably even noticed it, but is that fact celebrated by the media? No.
West Ham have brought the ladies team in-house after accusations of sexism. Manchester United don't even have a ladies team which was a specific business decision. I cannot help but feel that the great bulk of the negativity towards the club (and football in general) is actually that with a lot of the social issues which the likes of the BBC like to accuse football of, the game has largely got its house in order, not perfect, but miles better than in the past.
But the dislike of the game is based on the financial and emotional investment of almost wholly men over the past 100 years, during which men have been criticised, ridiculed etc for that investment. And now it's a huge multi-billion pound industry which on the whole, only one gender can profit from, it is to be criticised. I doubt that were football the size of men's hockey, the BBC would have a problem with it.
The current all-out negativity towards West Ham since they moved into the London (nee Olympic) Stadium is chronic and has reached fever pitch. The BBC are running three stories online as I write about football violence involving an eight-year-old girl, homophobic chanting and closing the ground for matches.
I am not condoning the behaviour of those fans at the Chelsea League Cup match on 26th March but let's have a bit of perspective. Seven arrests, including one who was a ticket tout, in comparison to Notting Hill Carnival with four people being stabbed (including one teenager who was disembowelled which didn't even make it onto the BBC news), 45 police officers injured and more than 450 arrested.
I had the BBC ring me on my way home from the game against Chelsea asking if I had seen anything and requesting that I go live on Radio 5 to talk about it. I said I went to a great match with my 15-year-old niece. In other words I should be the ideal football fan to them. From the other end of the stadium we saw a few people lobbing things at each other, but of course the BBC researcher was not interested in that but they were struggling trying to find anyone who witnessed the "violence".
All I saw was a stand-off or confrontation and the police and stewards actually doing a good job. And it is ironic that when the BBC can capture a huge male audience that they refuse to ever cover any men's issues. This coming from the broadcaster who constantly claims that "men don't talk".
But what shouldn't be forgotten is that the BBC is by far the biggest influence on society in the UK, above newspapers, politicians, online media, everything. But this is beyond solely West Ham, it is about all football. So maybe it is time for the BBC to admit that it dislikes football, it no longer wants to supply football to its licence fee payers, or that a huge quantity of substandard content and opinion is not actually supplying what those licence fee payers want ie; live matches. They are no longer fit for purpose.
Alternatively maybe it is time for football fans to see what little the BBC supply or which can be supplied elsewhere, that they consistently depict those licence fee payers with contempt and that they should simply not bother with the BBC anymore and start boycotting it?
Paying for Sky but having to pay for the BBC by law is like saying you buy the Independent but have to by law pay for the Daily Express. I am sure that most football fans, male or female, would rather discuss or debate societal issues without them being constantly and incorrectly attached to football.
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West Ham to identify 200 fans involved in crowd trouble against Chelsea
By Sky Sports News HQ
Last Updated: 28/10/16 8:16am
SSN
West Ham have confirmed they are finalising the identification of 200 individuals involved in the crowd disturbances during their EFL Cup victory over Chelsea on Wednesday.
The Metropolitan Police have also confirmed three men have been charged following the trouble at London Stadium, with offences ranging from assault on a police officer to possession of class A drugs.
A further three men were arrested, but all were bailed pending further enquiries.
West Ham have insisted they will issue seasonal or life bans, depending on the severity of the offence, to any fan found to have been involved in the trouble.
A spokesperson for London Stadium partners West Ham United, E20 Stadium LLP and London Stadium 185, said: "An extensive safety and security operation was delivered in and around London Stadium throughout Wednesday's match with close co-ordination between West Ham United, London Stadium 185 and the Metropolitan Police Service.
"A small number of individuals were intent on becoming involved in disorder and are being investigated, identified and banned from London Stadium as a matter of priority.
"The response of our safety and security teams was measured, fast and effective and we commend our stewarding and response personnel who were called to deal with several incidents of challenging behaviour.
"It must be stressed that the vast majority of West Ham United and visiting supporters have behaved impeccably and we are committed to ensuring that they can continue to support their team in a safe environment.
"We wish to thank the genuine supporters who are behaving impeccably when attending matches at London Stadium for their fantastic support. We wish to assure them that we will work tirelessly to ban those who seek to affect their enjoyment and match experience."
Both sets of fans threw missiles across a segregated area of the ground before breaking through security and clashing along a walkway of the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand. Police in riot gear managed to quell the disorder as the match concluded.
The FA will ask both clubs for their observations before assessing evidence and deciding whether to bring any charges.
A spokesperson for London Stadium Safety Advisory Group, said: "The Stadium's safety certificate was granted after all safety plans were agreed before the start of the season.
"The extensive security and safety operation implemented by all partners was robust. Therefore, there are no plans to review the safety certificate or to reduce the stadium capacity.
"The issues arising due to fan disorder at Wednesday's game will be discussed at the next Safety Advisory Group (SAG) meeting.
"The SAG consists of Newham Council and London Legacy Development Corporation as the Stadium owners, London Stadium 185 as the Stadium operators and West Ham United as the primary tenant.
"It also includes the Met Police, London Ambulance Service, London Fire Brigade, British Transport Police, Westfield, Transport for London and the Sports Ground Safety Authority. The group will continue to monitor safety and security at the stadium and will advise partners to take further action when necessary."
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Slaven Bilic says minority ruined first West Ham 'home' game at London Stadium
Last Updated: 28/10/16 12:13pm
SSN
Slaven Bilic says it hurts that a minority of troublemakers marred the first time the London Stadium felt like "home" for West Ham.
The Hammers are threatening to ban as many as 200 supporters after disturbances broke out during the final moments of Wednesday night's EFL Cup win over Chelsea.
Bilic made his feelings plain after the game and was reluctant to revisit the trouble at his press conference ahead of the Super Sunday trip to Everton.
The West Ham manager was clearly frustrated that what felt like a landmark night in the club's new stadium had been overshadowed.
"Don't get me wrong," he said, "but we really felt at home. Everything we were talking about before the game - 'Is it like home? Is it like the Boleyn Ground was?' - we really felt the crowd behind us.
"Of course [it hurts]. The club doesn't deserve it, the players don't deserve it, the fans don't deserve it - the big majority of them."
Bilic refused to take further questions on the subject, describing himself as "a football manager, not a police officer or whatever."
And he was keen to talk football, specifically the upturn in his side's form since Cheikhou Kouyate was dropped back to play as a third centre-half.
The new formation yielded Premier League wins over Crystal Palace and Sunderland before the Chelsea game, and Bilic said: "We changed the system a bit. Okay, it's important, especially when the results come, but it's more about the players' movement.
"Kouyate helped to stabilise the defence and also helps us to create from the back."
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"It was anarchy!" Chelsea supporter slams police segregation efforts at West Ham
12:36, 27 OCT 2016 UPDATED 12:36, 27 OCT 2016
BY MATT MCGEEHAN
Seven were arrested after violence broke out in the stands between West Ham and Chelsea fans during the EFL Cup tie
The Mirror
A Chelsea fan caught up in the crowd violence at West Ham has slammed the efforts at segregation describing the chaotic scenes as "like anarchy".
Seven were arrested after violence broke out in the stands between West Ham and Chelsea fans during the EFL Cup tie at the London Stadium.
Coins, seats and other objects appeared to be thrown between rival supporters, with the Hammers and Chelsea condemning the unsavoury scenes which are now under investigation by the FA.
Steve Cutting claims he was hit by a coin thrown after Cheikhou Kouyate's 11th-minute goal.
Cutting, a Chelsea supporter for more than 40 years, told Press Association Sport: "As soon as they scored there was abuse being hurled over and we were watching the game and all of a sudden I felt a massive thump on the side of my head, thinking it was a bottle or a stone.
"I put my hand up to my head and realised I'd been cut. I looked down and there were some coins, 50p and pound coins."
West Ham, Chelsea, the FA, EFL and Metropolitan Police condemned the violence in the stadium.
Cutting does not believe the separation outside the ground was adequate.
"Coming out of the stadium was a free for all," he added.
"To get back to Stratford station was ridiculous. It was running battles again, groups of people fighting and trying to get to each other.
"There's no real clear proper way to get people back to the station safely."
Cutting was in attendance with friends, including Stuart, who took a photo of Cutting's bloodstained head and posted it on Twitter.
"From Stratford station to that stadium is unpoliceable," Stuart, who did not wish to share his surname, told Press Association Sport.
"It was almost like anarchy last night."
The Metropolitan Police added that antisocial behaviour legislation was utilised prior to the match to order 30 people to disperse.
West Ham vowed to punish any perpetrators identified, while Chelsea have a history of taking the sternest available action on incidents of violence.
A FA statement issued on Thursday morning read: "The FA is investigating crowd disturbances at last night's EFL Cup match between West Ham United and Chelsea.
"We are in dialogue with all relevant authorities."
The League Cup is organised by the English Football League.
An EFL spokesman said: "The EFL strongly condemns the behaviour of a small minority of fans involved in the distasteful and unwelcome incidents during last's night's EFL Cup match between West Ham United and Chelsea.
"We are currently liaising with both clubs, the Football Association and Metropolitan Police as they look to identify those involved and take appropriate and decisive action."
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West Ham's London Stadium doesn't lend itself to segregation but those who want trouble will find it anywhere
11:53, 27 OCT 2016
OPINION BY STEVESTAMMERS
The scenes inside the London Stadium can't be justified but if some a minority of around 50,000 decide to cause mayhem, then mayhem they will cause
The Mirror
Nothing can justify the ugly crowd scenes that marred a night of high drama at the London stadium on Wednesday.
And the problems highlighted the difficulties of staging a high-octane football match between two bitter rivals in a stadium built for athletics.
The match between West Ham and Chelsea lived up to its billing. Sadly, so did the hype about potential clashes between the fans.
The environs around the stadium that held the Olympics four years ago do not lend themselves to segregation. Inside the stadium it is the same.
Back in 2012, there was no need to separate those cheering on Usain Bolt or Yohan Blake or Justin Gatlin in the 100 metres final.
Yet it is vital to stress that no matter where a match is staged, no matter what precautions are taken if there are those who want confrontation and trouble, they will find it.
Ask Tottenham and Arsenal. When Arsenal fans went to White Hart Lane not long ago, there was immense damaged caused in the visiting fans area. In the return fixture, similar damage was inflicted on the Emirates in retaliation.
It is not right, it is not acceptable but it happens. So if some 100-200 out of an attendance of around 50,000 decide to cause mayhem, then mayhem they will cause.
West Ham as a club must find a way to allow fans into their allocated section without clashing with home fans – particularly in matches where the rivalry is intense.
The unfortunate outcome was that the match was over-shadowed by the trouble among warring factions. West Ham were inspired by the highly-charged atmosphere, Chelsea were nothing like the team that demolished Manchester United.
True, they made several changes but the starting line-up was still one you would fancy to get a result in a Premier League match.
Michail Antonio ran John Terry and David Luiz ragged. Winston Reid was immense. He subdued the disappointing Michy Batshuayi and then ensured the belligerent Diego Costa knew he was in a match when he came on as the second half substitute.
No chance for a touchline dance of delight for Antonio Conte. And the dodgy knees that are the legacy of Slaven Bilic's playing ensured there would be no provocative antics in the coaches' zone when West Ham scored.
It might just emerge as the result and performance West Ham needed to convince sceptical fans the move to Stratford might just work.
And as a footnote to missile-throwing in the Chelsea match: on August 5 2012, the Olympic 100 metres final was held up briefly.
Why? Someone in the crowd threw a plastic beer bottle at the competitors.
Can't blame West Ham for that one. They were still at Upton Park.
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West Ham crowd trouble "hurts" admits Slaven Bilic: "The club don't deserve it"
11:22, 28 OCT 2016 UPDATED 11:22, 28 OCT 2016
BY JOE MEWIS , BEN BURROWS , JAMES WHALING
The club confirmed in a statement on Wednesday that they are currently in the process of identifying 200 individuals who will be given banning orders
The Mirror
Slaven Bilic admits he and West Ham are hurt by the damaging scenes of crowd trouble earlier this week.
Fans clashed inside the London Stadium with more questions being posed surrounding the policing and security measures at the Hammers' new home.
The club confirmed in a statement on Wednesday that they are currently in the process of identifying 200 individuals who will be given banning orders for their part in the violence.
And when asked whether the latest outbreak of trouble hurt him Bilic admitted: "It does, of course it does.
"The club didn't deserve it, the players don't deserve it definitely, the fans didn't deserve it.
"The majority of them of course. Big majority. Vast majority."
Bilic condemned the scenes after the game but spoke glowingly on Friday about the support the team got from the majority of supporters on Wednesday night.
"We really felt the crowd behind us in the game against Chelsea," he added. "It was loud, they were really behind us.
"It was great support apart from that thing of course."
Club vice-chairman Karren Brady has laid the blame for the unrest on a minority of "mindless individuals
"A disappointment to all who have worked so hard to put on such an exciting fixture in the face of a small minority of mindless individuals hell-bent on causing trouble," she wrote in the Sun.
"While the line of segregation between both sets of supporters was never actually broken — and supporters never made contact with one another — the baying behaviour that we witnessed is completely unacceptable to everyone at West Ham United and Chelsea Football Club and we will be taking the most severe action possible against individuals involved."
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Arsene Wenger fears West Ham crowd violence will make safe standing return difficult
10:17, 28 OCT 2016 UPDATED 10:17, 28 OCT 2016
BY NEIL MCLEMAN
Wenger insisted he has no fears about Arsenal fans visiting the London Stadium but is worried the trouble could effect the reintroduction of standing
The Mirror
Arsene Wenger has claimed the crowd violence at the London Stadium this week will make the re-introduction of safe standing more difficult in England football.
West Ham are seeking to ban 200 fans after riot police needed to be deployed in their new stadium during the EFL Cup clash with Chelsea.
Wenger insisted he has no fears about Arsenal fans visiting the London Stadium in the next scheduled London derby on December 3.
"I am surprised more than disappointed because West Ham usually has a strong fan base who are very motivated," said the Frenchman. "We are not usually facing this kind of problem anymore.
"I am in favour of the reintroduction of standing. The closer you are to the position of the player, the more passionate you are. As well it allows you to have lower prices and maybe more passion inside the stadium.
"That is not a good advertisement for standing. I am surprised and hopefully West Ham will get rid of the problem very quickly.
"I don't believe there is a problem with hooliganism in England. You can't say with one minor incident – 200 hundred people or so – that there is a problem in the country."
Theo Walcott faces a late fitness test on a "minor hamstring" injury before tomorrow's trip to Sunderland while Aaron Ramsey and Olivier Giroud are back in the squad.
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Karren Brady blames West Ham versus Chelsea fan violence on 'mindless individuals'
09:43, 28 OCT 2016 UPDATED 09:45, 28 OCT 2016
BY JOE MEWIS , JAMES WHALING
The Hammers' vice-chairman says the club are fully focused on identifying the troublemakers following the 'unacceptable' behaviour
The Mirror
West Ham vice-chairman Karren Brady has laid the blame for Wednesday's crowd trouble at the EFL Cup clash against Chelsea a minority of "mindless individuals".
Fans clashed inside the London Stadium with more questions being posed surrounding the policing and security measures at the Hammers' new home.
The club confirmed in a statement on Wednesday that they are currently in the process of identifying 200 individuals who will be given banning orders for their part in the violence.
And Brady insists the Hammers will be taking 'the most severe action possible' against those involved, while insisting the club did all they could prior to the match to try and ensure it passed off without trouble.
West Ham legend Tony Cottee fears dark days of hooliganism could return if Irons don't address issues
"A disappointment to all who have worked so hard to put on such an exciting fixture in the face of a small minority of mindless individuals hell-bent on causing trouble," she wrote in the Sun.
"While the line of segregation between both sets of supporters was never actually broken — and supporters never made contact with one another — the baying behaviour that we witnessed is completely unacceptable to everyone at West Ham United and Chelsea Football Club and we will be taking the most severe action possible against individuals involved."
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West Ham legend Tony Cottee fears dark days of hooliganism could return if Irons don't address issues
22:30, 27 OCT 2016
BY ADRIAN KAJUMBA
"If we don't deal with the situation and things are just left alone to fester there is potential for things to escalate," he said
The Mirror
Tony Cottee fears the dark days of hooliganism could return if West Ham don't resolve their Olympic Stadium security problems.
Cottee recalled playing in a 1984 game at Birmingham that was disrupted by three pitch invasions and being among the West Ham fans who were showered with missiles including a petrol bomb during one trip to Newcastle when he was just 14.
The Hammers legend said: "They are proper terrible things I saw that will live with me forever.
"This was nowhere near that scale but if we don't deal with the situation and things are just left alone to fester there is potential for things to escalate and all of a sudden we could be talking about something as bad, particularly when we play Spurs later in the season.
"If there are problems against Watford and Bournemouth – who with the greatest respect have never had problems with hooliganism – you know full well that when Chelsea, Man United and Spurs come to town something has to be done to make sure the stadium is safe."
Cottee slammed the minority of "idiots" ruining the London Stadium experience for the majority and whose behaviour has sparked calls for the ground to be closed.
Police are reluctant to enter the stadium because a suitable radio system won't be in place until February and only do when trouble flares.
Cottee added: "Everyone knew West Ham would be going to the Olympic Stadium three, four years ago so why has that been allowed to happen?
"The main reason there is trouble is there are no police inside the stadium.
"Whether it's the government, council, stadium, West Ham stadium operators, the police, get your heads together, stop blaming everyone and put some police in the stadium.
"We are all done with the talking now. It is time for action.
"This is West Ham's opportunity to push on and become a club that can compete at the highest level and it's being overshadowed by people not doing their jobs."
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Violence at West Ham: who is to blame and what must be done?
Six areas of contention emerged from events at the London Stadium, ranging from how rival fans could be so close together to how the FA will respond
The Guardian
@DaveHytner
Thursday 27 October 2016 20.47 BST Last modified on Friday 28 October 2016 00.30 BST
1 The stadium layout
The headline flashpoint during the EFL Cup tie between West Ham United and Chelsea on Wednesday night kicked off in stoppage time, when some of the visiting supporters made for the exit at the back of the lower tier of the Sir Trevor Brooking stand. A number of West Ham fans from the adjacent space rushed over towards them and it raised the uncomfortable question as to how they were able to do so. The stewards held their line bravely and the response of the police was swift – in under 60 seconds they had officers in riot gear on the scene. The rival fans were kept from coming to blows – but they were still too close to each other for comfort and many missiles were thrown, including ripped-up seats. For the stadium's first major match, with 5,182 Chelsea supporters in attendance, it felt as though there was an issue with the layout. Before kick-off the away fans had been asked to file in through a narrow entrance – only eight turnstiles – and there were delays and frayed tempers. Some of the Chelsea support feared a crush could develop. Furthermore it continues to be difficult to police the long, open walk back to Stratford rail station. Segregation is a headache.
2 The stewards
One of the niggling teething problems has related to the tone of the stewarding – overseen by the stadium operators, London Stadium 185 – and which some Chelsea fans complained about on Wednesday. The club have spoken about how "several key changes have been made to the stewarding since the beginning of the season", which betrayed an admission that there was a problem and, perhaps, the attempts to resolve it were ongoing. In the early matches, when West Ham supporters stood up, there were clashes with the stewards, who have been accused of lacking the experience to manage a football crowd. Some of the old Upton Park stewards have now been deployed to different areas of the stadium and the club are trying to build a rapport between all of the team, which was more than 900-strong against Chelsea, and the zones they oversee. Some of the new stewards, who have been necessary because of the rise in stadium capacity, are learning the ropes.
3 The police presence
There have been calls for a visible police presence inside the stadium and on Wednesday there were officers stationed in the concourses. In addition, there were units waiting outside to be called on in the event of trouble. When the call came, they rushed in. There has been much made of how the police's required radio system, Airwave, has not been permanently installed at the ground and it will not be done until February – which has felt like an oversight. But the club say a temporary solution has been found. Vans were parked outside the ground on Wednesday to provide the Airwave coverage, which allowed officers to communicate with each other.
4 Has the Football Association been strong enough?
The FA has opened an investigation into Wednesday's crowd trouble, essentially positioning itself as overseer, and so has the English Football League, as the cup tie fell under its auspices. The FA has an open channel of communication with West Ham as it is conscious of the number of incidents that have taken place at the club's home matches already this season. But can the FA do more? The thing to note from the governing body's side is that its rules apply only to the game's participants – in other words, the players, managers and so on; and not the fans. Those are the responsibility of the police. The clubs, however, are deemed by the FA as participants and, as the clubs have certain responsibilities for their supporters, the FA can get to them that way. The FA prefers not to punish the clubs for their fans' behaviour and, instead, seeks to educate and proactively raise awareness of various issues. To sanction the clubs for the actions of some supporters, they would have to prove they had been negligent with regard to security, which is difficult, given how clear the clubs usually are with the messages they send out. The FA is empowered to take extreme measures, such as the partial or total closure of stadiums, but that is a long way away in this case.
5 What have West Ham done?
It has been far from smooth sailing for the club at their new home and they admit the learning curve has been steep. In reactive terms – before Wednesday – they had scrutinised CCTV footage to identify and ban 23 fans for various offences and they now have their sights on 200 more. Those who threw missiles will be banned for life but others who, for example, made throat-slitting gestures or rushed over to confront the Chelsea fans, will be suspended from the stadium for the remainder of the season. The club are determined to stamp on those who are undermining their name. More proactively, they carried out a series of measures on Wednesday that they hoped would limit the potential for trouble. There were restrictions on who could buy tickets and also the sale of alcohol at the ground; there were so-called 'seat kill' zones to aid the segregation and a fence was put up outside to stop the rival fans from coming together afterwards. Chelsea recognised the work that West Ham had done before the fixture. They are committed to doing more.
6 The fans' behaviour
All of the preceding points would be rendered null and void if grown men could attend a football match and not do things such as tear a seat from its bracket and hurl it at another person. It is remarkable how so little of the discussion is given over to the basic requirement for adults to behave in a socially acceptable manner. At the end of last season, when the Manchester United team bus became stuck in gridlock en route to Upton Park and some West Ham fans responded by showering it with bottles, there was talk about how various logistical problems had led to the situation. But the fans did not have to throw the bottles. Passion among supporters is fundamental but criminality is another thing altogether. The Metropolitan police commander, BJ Harrington, said of Wednesday's crowd: "There were a minority of people who attended the match that were clearly intent on being involved in confrontation and violence." This minority is the most serious problem.
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Andre Ayew thanks West Ham fans for providing 'motivation' during thigh injury
SAM LONG 6 hours ago0 comments
Evening Standard
Andre Ayew has thanked West Ham's fans for their support during his recovery from a serious thigh injury.
Ayew joined the Hammers from Swansea in the summer but picked up an injury just 34 minutes into his debut in August.
The 26-year-old's problem has kept Ayew on the sidelines for over two months but he finally made his return as a late substitute in Wednesday's EFL Cup victory over Chelsea.
Ayew's fitness represents a huge boost for Slaven Bilic's side, who are still languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League table, and the Ghana international has thanked supporters for keeping him motivated during a difficult spell.
"I'm so grateful for all the support I received and it definitely kept me driven to recover faster," Ayew wrote on his official Instagram page.
"I can't thank the medical staff of West Ham enough for the big role they played in getting me back into shape.
"Most importantly I want to thank my West Ham fans for standing by me and motivating me when I was down."
West Ham travel to Everton this weekend and Ayew is expected to receive more game time off the bench as the Hammers go in search of their fourth to-flight victory of the season.
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West Ham count cost after naming-rights deal for London Stadium collapses
Telegraph.co.uk
Ben Rumsby, sports news correspondent
27 OCTOBER 2016 • 9:57PM
The toxic start to West Ham United's anchor tenancy of the London Stadium was compounded on Thursday night after it emerged that negotiations with a multinational conglomerate for the naming rights to their new home had collapsed.
One of the country's leading sponsorship experts also warned that the hooliganism which marred the club's EFL Cup win over Chelsea would make it even harder to sell those rights, stopping the taxpayer clawing back millions of pounds of public money spent on converting the London 2012 centrepiece into a Premier League ground.
Indian technology company and carmaker the Mahindra Group had been in advanced talks with the venue's owners, before West Ham moved in, over a deal, more than £4 million-a-year of which would have gone back to the E20 Stadium Partnership.
Mahindra had a period of exclusivity which expired in August and although there was optimism in the weeks afterwards that an agreement could still be struck, Telegraph Sport can reveal that is no longer the case after it failed to meet the asking price. E20 Stadium declined to comment but a spokesman said: "We are actively in the market for a stadium naming rights partner. We want to ensure we have the right deal and will make an announcement once we have that in place." Mahindra did not respond to requests for comment.
The chief executive of sports and entertainment marketing agency Synergy, Tim Crow, told Telegraph Sport there was no chance of a naming-rights partner being secured any time soon following the latest calamity at the stadium.
"I'm sure that anybody who was looking at it – and I doubt if there are many brands looking at it at all – would have been fairly dismayed by what they saw," he said, warning it could be a year before a major company even considered attaching its name to the venue.
"Ordinarily, it would be at least one year before they looked at it again, because they've got to get on with their business. They'd look at it again when their financial and their budgeting cycles permitted."
Crow claimed that, even then, it would be a hard sell.
"If you look at the stadiums that have staged Olympics in the last 50 years, lasting – or, indeed, any – naming-rights sponsorship is like a unicorn," he said.
"The Olympic Stadium, you wouldn't say it's been chock-full of content since the Games, so that makes a key difference."
Crow said firms could also be put off by being unable to brand the venue during next year's athletics World Championships, which will be held in a "clean stadium".
He added: "Effectively, you're just becoming a sponsor of West Ham."
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After the trouble at West Ham against Chelsea... don't blame the stadium, blame the hooligan fans
Notion events at West Ham can be blamed on the stadium is preposterous
People who fight, people who destroy, people who taunt are the problem
They are thugs besmirching a great chance of progress for West Ham
People acting that way are scaring off the next generation of supporters
The Olympic stadium is not ideal but the alternative would be even worse
By MARTIN SAMUEL - SPORT FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: 22:30, 27 October 2016 | UPDATED: 09:34, 28 October 2016
Stadiums do not riot. Stadiums do not smash seats. Stadiums do not throw bottles and coins. Stadiums do not shout abuse or punch you on the nose. Stadiums just stand there, unseeing, unfeeling. So let us turn from the preposterous notion that recent events at West Ham are the work of an unsatisfactory new arena.
People. That is the problem here. People who fight, people who destroy, people who taunt and abuse; uncivilised, violent, horrible people. That is what West Ham must be rid of, not the new stadium.
There will always be teething problems when a football club leaves home. Unfamiliar surrounds feel alien. Routes and haunts are altered, maybe the company too. Those lads you always used to have laugh with in the row behind might be in another part of the ground now. The new lot are all right but it's not the same.
Maybe you liked the old view, the old atmosphere, all supporters have the tendency to wallow in nostalgia, even at reborn clubs like Manchester City. Sport loves its traditions and rituals after all. None of this, however, explains or justifies what happened at the London Stadium on Wednesday night. This was nothing to do with the approval rating for West Ham's new home. These were the actions of opportunist thugs.
There is, it must be said, a right load of old twaddle talked about West Ham. The club that puts tradition, passion and trying to play the beautiful game ahead of success. The club that has lost touch with its fanbase by trying to build, rebrand and improve. Rubbish.
No team draws 54,000 to a Europa League second-round qualifier against NK Domzale of Slovenia if the punters don't care what the score is or where the club is going. Nobody thought West Ham would fill this new ground. They did because last season was a good one. People were optimistic about the future. They had Dimitri Payet. Kept him, too. Maybe all this talk of being a force in Europe wasn't just fantasy after all.
My brother's got five season tickets over at the new place. They're not cheap. So dead right he wants to see this team win something. He is not one to fantasise airily about the good old days of losing 2-1 at home to Bristol City (February 11 1978, we were there) or mythologise the past as if there was some great cultural experience in eating monkey nuts on the North Bank, or hearing monkey chants from the Chicken Run, before someone used your trouser leg as his personal water closet.
The London Stadium is not ideal, because compromises with an athletics legacy had to be made, but most fans know why the club took the leap. The alternative was not to remain the old West Ham, but to end up the new Fulham, or Queens Park Rangers. The poor relations, the never-will-bes. One look at the huge structure rising on Tottenham High Road, the ambitious plans for Stamford Bridge or the money machine that is the Emirates Stadium, told of West Ham's future. They took this opportunity or they signed up for life in the shadows.
West Ham are not even Sunderland or Newcastle. They do not have a city to themselves. Once Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea had their 60,000 capacity cathedrals in place, what would be left for West Ham? Oh, that's right — the tradition, the history, the passion, the myth, the pie and eels. Except that wasn't West Ham at all, some poxy little also-ran. West Ham had a go. West Ham got to Wembley. At least they used to.
In 1964, the year I was born. Then in 1975, when I was 10. And in 1980, beating Arsenal. And in 1981, losing to Liverpool. In 1976 there was an appearance in the European Cup-winners' Cup final, a competition the club had won 11 years earlier. So that's the team I grew up following, not some bunch of Cockney caricatures happy to have a sing-song, a plate of mash and liquor and their arses handed to them by Chelsea.
Here's another myth. Sam Allardyce didn't lose the West Ham public simply because he played dull football. He lost them because he lacked ambition. Everyone remembers that Allardyce was booed despite beating Hull at home. But that was on March 26, 2014. On January 5, 2014, almost three months earlier, Allardyce put a reserve team out in the FA Cup against second-tier Nottingham Forest and lost 5-0. That was when the rot set in. So this is not a club whose supporters are mystified by aspiration. There is still a wonderful football culture among the majority at the London Stadium, involving turning up and cheering the team.
The mistake is to paint the Neanderthals causing havoc near the Chelsea end — and there were plenty in the away section, too, but that's not the point, because it is happening at West Ham almost weekly now — as representative of some noble tradition, fighting for a dying, disenfranchised football culture. No, they are thugs besmirching one of the greatest chances for advancement a football club has had.
They are scaring off the next generation and risk dragging their fellow supporters down, limiting West Ham's ambition, and undermining their best efforts. And the biggest lie is that it was all somehow inevitable. Because stadiums don't kill football; hooligans do.
A TIMELINE OF THE TROUBLES AT LONDON STADIUM
AUGUST 4
Restricted-view seating provides a problem and some fans cannot find their allocated seats at the first competitive game at the London Stadium between West Ham and NK Domzale.
AUGUST 21
Some fans have to sit on bare concrete as 56 season-ticket holders are left without seats in the West Stand.
AUGUST 25
A man is arrested on suspicion of ABH after West Ham fans fight among themselves at the 1-0 defeat by Astra Giurgiu in a Europa League qualifier.
SEPTEMBER 10
The club warns life bans will be given to supporters involved in crowd trouble. Ten are ejected from the stadium after clashes with Watford fans. Stewards struggle to keep them segregated as the Hammers lose 4-2.
SEPTEMBER 13
Metropolitan Police say additional policing measures cannot yet be implemented inside the ground because of the lack of the Airwave radio system, which is used by the emergency services, at the £700million venue.
OCTOBER 1
Four people are arrested after yet more crowd disturbance, when West Ham draw 1-1 with Middlesbrough.
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