Noble: Winning is all that matters tonight
WHUFC.com
Olympic Games founder Pierre de Coubertin insisted that 'the most important thing is not winning but taking part'. Respectfully, West Ham United captain Mark Noble disagrees. With his side sitting bottom of the Premier League after three away defeats, the Hammers return to London Stadium – ironically home of the 2012 edition of De Coubertin's event – to face Huddersfield Town on Monday evening, and skipper Noble says winning is all that matters. "We've spoken about those three games, and we have worked hard to put things right on the training pitch," Noble wrote in his column for tonight's Official Matchday Programme. "Our season starts again tonight, really. "If I am being honest, all that matters to us at the minute is winning football games. I've said it many times before and I'm not going to stop saying it! "It doesn't matter if we play like Barcelona or Real Madrid, because if we lose then how we played is not important when you consider the position we find ourselves in. "If we were safely in mid-table, in top form or coming to the end of the season, then maybe we could say 'performances are just as important as results', but at present our results are the be-all and end-all."
If West Ham are to record the win Noble craves, then the captain knows just how big a role the 54,000-strong Claret and Blue Army can play in helping their team achieve it. "It's going to be great to lead the team out in front of more than 50,000 of our fantastic fans tonight," wrote the Club's all-time Premier League appearance leader, who could play his 293rd top flight game for West Ham on Monday. "Before I talk more about tonight's game, I want to say thank you to our amazing away fans, who have travelled more than a thousand miles already this season, spent a lot of money and obviously not watched us play great football.
"[I'd say to our fans] 'Please give it your all and get behind the lads tonight. We want to make this place a fortress this season and you can play a massive part in helping us do just that'."
*West Ham United's Premier League fixture with Huddersfield Town will be shown live in the UK by Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Main Event, and across the world by the Premier League's international broadcast partners.
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Chicharito is a brilliant lunatic - Dean Ashton
WHUFC.com
Former West Ham United striker Dean Ashton has hailed the impact made by summer signing Chicharito, describing the Mexican as "brilliant' and "a lunatic". Despite the Hammers disappointing start to the season Chicharito has impressed for Slaven Bilic's side, scoring two Premier League goals for the club since his transfer from Bayer Leverkusen. The 29-year-old is likely to lead the line once again for West Ham on Monday evening against Huddersfield Town and Ashton has liked what he's seen so far from the club's new No17. "I think Chicharito has been brilliant," Ashton told whufc.com: "It's always difficult to come into a new side and get off to a good start. What he does, which the fans love, is he gives absolutely everything. "He runs around like a lunatic. He puts himself about. He gets in the box. He's not afraid to get a shot away when he gets the chance, and the main thing is he knows where the net is. "Against Southampton we saw when he gets a sniff of a chance he puts the ball in the net. So far he's done really well."
Andy Carroll has also returned to full first-team training and could feature for the Irons in Monday's contest. The No9's availability already has supporters excited about the potential link between Carroll and Chicharito. Ashton is one of those fans eager to see what damage the two forwards can do together. Previously Carroll had a devastating partnership with former captain Kevin Nolan and Ashton reckons a similar understanding could develop between the two current West Ham strikers. Ashton added: "I want to see Chicharito and Carroll link up. They have to work on it in training but there's not many strikers who really enjoy playing on their own. There's a real chance to make a pairing work there. "People often say 'big man and little man' but in Andy Carroll you've got a striker who is arguably the best in Europe, or even the world, in the air and then you've got somebody in Chicharito who has the hunger to get onto those second balls. "For Carroll it could be like when Kevin Nolan was in the team. The two linked really well and hopefully we will see that again with Chicharito."
Ashton has also offered his thoughts on Monday's big contest with Huddersfield, which can be found here.
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West Ham United and Hantec Markets agree new partnership
WHUFC.com
West Ham United are delighted to announce an agreement with Hantec Markets as the Club's new official FX partner.
Hantec Markets has been a market leader in Forex trading services for over two decades, connecting clients to the world's largest financial markets through their bespoke trading platforms.
Hantec Markets join West Ham United at an exciting time, as the east London club embark on their second season at the iconic London Stadium. Both brands continue to operate at the forefront of their industries, whilst maintaining heritage values that benefit both customers and fans.
The company has signed a three-year partnership at London Stadium and will, among other things, take ownership of the Club's Fantasy Football content, where there is a clear synergy between Hantec Markets' trading heritage and football trades.
As a major Premier League power in Asia and the Gulf, West Ham United FC are the perfect platform for Hantec Markets to develop key relationships in important international markets. With offices in London, Sydney, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Auckland, Dubai and Mauritius, Hantec Markets continue to expand their geographical reach. By uniting forces with West Ham United, the emphasis is to gain stronger brand recognition in both the UK and abroad.
West Ham United Vice-Chairman Karren Brady said: "I am thrilled to welcome Hantec Markets to the West Ham United family. Hantec Markets' brand values and 'trust through transparency' slogan fit perfectly with West Ham United's approach and we are very excited about the benefits that the partnership can bring as we continue to grow and develop our corporate identity on a global scale."
Hantec Markets Chief Operating Officer, Hayel Abu-Hamdan: "We are delighted to have the opportunity to partner West Ham at this exciting time of growth and development for both Hantec Markets and the Club. We are one of the longest established FX brands in the global markets, and we believe West Ham's traditions, the famous loyalty of their supporters and their bright future, mirror our own as a company.
"As we launch a new website providing an even better service for our new and existing clients, we see ourselves taking a firm foothold in the premier league of brokers. With ever increasing interest in both the financial markets and the Premier League, we view our respective London bases as a perfect cohesive line-up. We very much look forward to working with the team at West Ham United.
"We wish West Ham United FC the best in its current and upcoming seasons. Come on you Irons!"
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Ladies mustn't feel sorry for themselves after Basildon defeat – De Carnys
WHUFC.com
Greg De Carnys believes the West Ham United Ladies must use the disappointment of defeat against C&K Basildon to fire them up for the next contest, rather than just feeling sorry about the result.
The Ladies suffered a second consecutive loss as Basildon bested the West Ham side 3-0 on Sunday afternoon, with all three finishes coming in the second period.
The result leaves the team with one win and three points from their opening three league matches this season.
De Carnys expressed his disappointment at the result but feels this loss can be used as a learning curve, particularly defensively.
And the West Ham Ladies first team manager has called on his players to take the pain of the loss and use it as motivation for turning the recent form around.
"It's a disappointing result and there's lots to learn," De Carnys told whufc.com: "We want to grow as a team from all of our experiences, both good and bad. It is hard to take, especially because at half time with the score at 0-0 there wasn't much in the game and we've lost to three very similar goals which we should deal with better.
"The goal at the start of the second half in particular is a sucker punch. We know we have to be better defensively, individually and collectively we have to be better organised and harder to beat.
"When in possession we weren't really able to solve the problems on the pitch. It's something we pride ourselves on and something we work hard on in training so now we have to solve why we haven't been able to do that in these last two games since we beat Cardiff at Rush Green. Ultimately, we can't feel sorry for ourselves, we all have to take the last two weeks and use them to fuel our determination to turn it around."
Sunday's match did boast a couple of positives as Amber Stobbs and Dayna Chong returned to the field after their respective set-backs. Both were brought on in the second half against C&K Basildon.
De Carnys is delighted to have both available for action again.
He added: "Our Physio Cavell Francis-King has done a great job to get Amber and Dayna back on the pitch after their respective injuries. They both showed why they have been really missed in recent weeks."
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Sylvestre: The U23s are stronger than ever
WHUFC.com
Noha Sylvestre believes West Ham United's U23 team is currently harder to break into than ever before. The midfielder, whose side faces Leicester City at the King Power Stadium in Premier League 2 on Monday night, has been limited to just one start this season for Terry Westley's men. The 19-year-old, who played a key part last campaign as the team won promotion to the top division, thinks the quality of every player in the Academy of Football is the reason for that. But Sylvestre is determined to establish himself in the starting XI and is hoping to impress if he gets the opportunity in Leicester this week. He said: "It's getting more difficult to get into that U23 team and stay in as well. There are so many good players in our Academy and it makes things very competitive in every session. "You want to prove that you are better than the player who plays your position, that's why our team has got better and will get better. "For myself, I have to be the best player and I know that I can be. I will keep working hard, I feel great physically and mentally. "Everyone has been training well this week, the intensity in the training sessions are really high, and that's how we will get better. "We are looking forward to going to Leicester and playing to our maximum to get the three points. It's going to be a great game of football in a great stadium."
The U23s suffered an unexpected 7-2 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League International Cup last time out, though a young side was fielded in the competition which the Hammers are new to. After a short break due to international fixtures, Sylvestre believes the squad – who are yet to lose in the league – have re-grouped and are ready to bounce back. "We had a young team out there [at Spurs] and everybody knows that we should done better," he continued. "We have to keep at it every game and learn of our mistakes. "We showed in the previous games that we can be the worst enemy for every team in our league. "That's the big objective now, keep winning the matches, we have done really well so far with a draw and two wins against three good teams [in Premier League 2]. Everyone is concentrated and ready to play with a real hunger to win. "It's a magnificent stadium as well and it's great that we have that opportunity to play in Premier League stadiums which make it really exciting. "It's away from home, we are all looking forward to it and it's always better to travel back down with the three points in our pocket so we will do our best to do that."
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Former Hammer Green relishing Hart reunion
WHUFC.com
Two members of a very select group of goalkeepers will come face-to-face at London Stadium on Monday evening. Joe Hart and Robert Green are two of just four West Ham United stoppers to have represented England. To save you googling, 1923 FA Cup finalist Ted Hufton and early 2000s stopper David James were the other two. Green and Hart were in the England squads for the 2010 FIFA World Cup – where they were joined by James – and UEFA Euro 2012, and the recently-signed Huddersfield Town 'keeper is a big fan of his former Three Lions squad-mate. "Joe's character is a big one," Green observed, speaking to the Official Matchday Programme for Monday's Premier League showdown. "He's a good lad. He's a bubbly character and one that will always have a positive outlook, will always be a lively one in the dressing room and is good throughout the season. "As a goalkeeper, he's the best goalkeeper England have had for a number of years now and he's been a fantastic stalwart wherever he's been. "He's a Premier League winner and has 70-odd caps for England, and everything he has done he has been a success in, so I'm sure he's looking at this season and wants to have another successful one to add to his career."
Green, who made 241 appearances in Claret and Blue between 2006-12, is also looking forward to being reacquainted with the Claret and Blue Army, as well as the staff and players he worked alongside during a tumultuous period in Hammers history. "It was a fantastic time and one I look back at fondly and I always look to see how their results are going and take an interest," Green confirmed. "It's a fantastic club and it will always be a part of my life and my family's lives."
*West Ham United's Premier League fixture with Huddersfield Town will be shown live in the UK by Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Main Event, and across the world by the Premier League's international broadcast partners. Kick-off is at 8pm BST.
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Slaven Bilic column: I believe in my players to get the result we need tonight
WHUFC.com
The West Ham United manager shares his thoughts exclusively in his weekly column for whufc.com ahead of this evening's opening home Premier League match of the season against Huddersfield Town…
Tonight's game is a big one. There is no getting away from it. And I am facing up to that in the way I have always done throughout my career when in a difficult spell. Not by hiding, not by losing faith, and not pretending everything is fine.
We have spent the last few days working as hard as possible to be ready for this game. I know it is an old cliché but it is true. It is about finding that zone that enables you to perform to the best of your ability, to progress and to improve your position.
Perhaps the hardest aspect of the Newcastle defeat was that we have had to wait for more than two weeks for the chance to put things right. It is understandable when you hear pundits say that managers are desperate to avoid a defeat in the game before an international break.
Normally, you are back together in training as a group a couple of days after the match and you work accordingly. If you have won everybody is happy and if you have lost then everybody is a bit down – but the key is that you are together, and you share the mood as a team. When there is an international break, some of the players obviously go away and, if you have lost, you have to live with that for two weeks.
Of course, it can be positive – some of them, like Joe Hart and Aaron Cresswell, came back in a great mood and with confidence because they gained six points with England and are a step closer to the World Cup.
And on the plus side, the game being pushed back to this evening means that we have had those extra days with the squad together as a group, giving us time to prepare properly.
We welcome Huddersfield Town of course. They deserve congratulations for reaching the Premier League and for the start they have made, but it is our job to burst their bubble tonight.
It is not going to be easy, we know that, but we also know that we are capable of winning the game, if we show the right quality and the right character.
I believe in my players. West Ham United has a good squad, there is no doubt about that. But we have to show it on the pitch and start winning straight away. And fair enough, it is my job to find that reaction. To prepare the team, to lead the team, and give them everything they need to perform, not only tactically but also mentally.
But once they cross that white line tonight, it is up to the players to create the atmosphere. We know the supporters will be behind us during the game as they always are, but it is up to us to give them that feeling of pride and victory.
Nobody at this Club wants to be where we are at the moment. Not the fans, not the board, not the staff and certainly not me and my team. But I also know that talking about it can feel irrelevant after a while. Actions speak louder than words and it is action that we need tonight.
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First-team coach Terzic targets victory over old pal Wagner
WHUFC.com
Edin Terzic has urged the Claret and Blue Army to inspire West Ham United to victory over Huddersfield Town – upsetting his old friend David Wagner in the process. Terzic and Wagner were colleagues at Borussia Dortmund between 2011-13, when the Hammers first-team coach worked with the German giants' U17s and the Terriers boss managed the reserves. Fast forward a few years and both are working in the Premier League, as is the man who employed both of them at Dortmund's Hohenbuschei training complex, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp. But friendships will go out of the window when West Ham welcome Huddersfield to London Stadium on Monday evening, when Terzic is hopeful the Hammers can record a belated first win of the 2017/18 Premier League season. "This is our first home game, but you are only as good as your most recent result," said the German, who has been part of Slaven Bilic's backroom staff for the past four years. "If you want, you can always kind find excuses. "Last year it was Europe or the new stadium but the reality is that we are not happy with the way we are performing and there is a lot of work to do. "We are West Ham UNITED, though – not just West Ham – and we need to stay together. If you saw the atmosphere that the Newcastle fans created the other weekend, then we need something like this, more than ever on Monday night. "I would just ask the fans to be patient, to help the players. It is not about the gaffer or us, we need to have the best support for the players to help them get back on track. If that happens, we will all be happy.
"The key is discipline – and the extra yard. If we stay positive, if we stay disciplined and if we run that extra yard, then we will be very happy."
While Terzic, Bilic and the coaching staff have a recipe for success on Monday, the 34-year-old is aware that his former colleague Wagner will also have his newly-promoted team organised and motivated for the challenge facing them in east London. "You can see a clear philosophy," Terzic observed. "He brought in players who are very hungry, with a good mentality and energy. "They usually play a 4-2-3-1 system. They are very compact in defence and great pace up front. "He's had a great start and they have taken the energy from last May and that play-off win into this season. The whole stadium at Huddersfield, the city, have been waiting for Premier League football for so long and they are really enjoying it."
If things go to plan for Terzic, however, his old pal Wagner will not enjoy his visit to London Stadium one bit.
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Antonio: We all believe in our abilities
WHUFC.com
Michail Antonio says West Ham United go into Monday's Premier League home opener with Huddersfield Town confident of recording their first win of the season.
The Hammers have lost their opening three top-flight fixtures, all away from home, and sit bottom of the table ahead of the visit of the Terriers to London Stadium. But Antonio, who is aiming to score the first league goal of the season at West Ham's home for the second straight season, believes things will turn around quickly for the men in Claret and Blue. "It's just one of those things where we've had a bad start and made a couple of mistakes," said Antonio. "We need to pick ourselves up and just keep moving forward. "It's important to win because we have got to get some points on the table, especially with Burnley and Newcastle winning again. We need to put our heads to it and keep going."
Antonio is set to start his third Premier League game of the season after successfully overcoming a hamstring injury he suffered in April. The No30 is set to be joined in the matchday squad by Andy Carroll and Winston Reid, who have recovered from hip and hamstring problems and trained fully at London Stadium over the weekend Meanwhile, Cheikhou Kouyate could make his first start of 2017/18 after appearing as a substitute at Newcastle United a fortnight ago. With a strong squad available to tackle David Wagner's newly-promoted Huddersfield, Antonio is confident the Hammers have the qualities required to collect a much-needed victory. "We are all professional and we all believe in our abilities," said the Hammer of the Year. "We know we have the squad to bring us up the table and we will bring ourselves up the table."
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Bobby Moore to be honoured at London Stadium throughout 2017/18 season
WHUFC.com
February 24, 2018 marks the 25th anniversary of the tragic passing of our greatest-ever Hammer, Bobby Moore. The legendary West Ham United defender, who led England to World Cup glory at Wembley in 1966, lost his brave battle against bowel cancer at the age of just 51, a tragedy that was mourned around the globe by millions. The Club will be commemorating the date with a number of planned tributes and events, of which further details will be announced in due course.
However, in order to ensure that Bobby's memory is appropriately honoured thoughout the season in which the 25th anniversary occurs, we are pleased to announce that a memorial tribute will be unveiled at Monday's opening home match against Huddersfield Town at London Stadium, and remain in place for the entire 2017/18 campaign. The artwork, which will appear along the mid-tier of the West Stand, features Bobby's iconic image along with a reminder of the three major honours that represent his golden days of the mid-60s – the FA Cup, European Cup Winners' Cup and World Cup.
Bobby's daughter Roberta, who is founder of the Club's principal charity The Moore Family Foundation, said: "It is wonderful to know that West Ham United will be commemorating this anniversary throughout the entire season. "It gives me great comfort to know that, almost 25 years after his passing, Dad is still so loved and fondly remembered by football fans all around the world. "He is still so greatly missed by his family and everyone who knew him, and this tribute is a fitting way to honour his memory."
West Ham United Joint-Chairman David Gold added: "I am delighted that a tribute to Bobby will be in place at London Stadium throughout the 2017/18 season.
"As someone who was lucky enough to witness Bobby's career from the very beginning – his debut as a 17-year-old against Manchester United in September 1958 – I, like all Hammers fans, feel privileged that one of the greatest footballers the world has ever seen was a local boy who spent the vast majority of his career at West Ham. "David Sullivan and I were even more fortunate to get to know Bobby personally when he became a colleague in our newspaper business in the 1980s, and he was as great a man as he was a player. And yet he was so humble in his greatness. "Since his tragic death in 1993, his legend has only grown stronger and, as we approach the 25th anniversary, we continue to honour his memory. "I'm sure all West Ham United fans will be genuinely thrilled to know that Bobby's image is going to be with us permanently in the stadium at matches this season."
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'Hart is England's No1' says returning Hammer Green
WHUFC.com
Two members of a very select group of goalkeepers will come face-to-face at London Stadium on Monday evening.
Joe Hart and Robert Green are two of just four West Ham United stoppers to have represented England. To save you googling, 1923 FA Cup finalist Ted Hufton and early 2000s stopper David James were the other two.
Green and Hart were in the England squads for the 2010 FIFA World Cup – where they were joined by James – and UEFA Euro 2012, and the recently-signed Huddersfield Town 'keeper is a big fan of his former Three Lions squad-mate.
"Joe's character is a big one," Green observed, speaking to the Official Matchday Programme for Monday's Premier League showdown. "He's a good lad. He's a bubbly character and one that will always have a positive outlook, will always be a lively one in the dressing room and is good throughout the season.
"As a goalkeeper, he's the best goalkeeper England have had for a number of years now and he's been a fantastic stalwart wherever he's been.
"He's a Premier League winner and has 70-odd caps for England, and everything he has done he has been a success in, so I'm sure he's looking at this season and wants to have another successful one to add to his career."
Green, who made 241 appearances in Claret and Blue between 2006-12, is also looking forward to being reacquainted with the Claret and Blue Army, as well as the staff and players he worked alongside during a tumultuous period in Hammers history.
"It was a fantastic time and one I look back at fondly and I always look to see how their results are going and take an interest," Green confirmed. "It's a fantastic club and it will always be a part of my life and my family's lives."
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MY VIEW ON THE OWNERS – BY DAVE WALKER (SEX, DRUGS & CARLTON COLE)
AUTHOR: EXWHUEMPLOYEE. PUBLISHED: 10 SEPTEMBER 2017 AT 9:03PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Written by Dave Walker @S_D_C_C
Recently on the wonderful world of Twitter, I made the controversial and seemingly unforgivable decision to give my support to the owners of our football club. I got a lot of stick for this but I`m a big boy and one that isn`t afraid of voicing an opinion that represents a minority. One follower said that they would have more respect for me if I just wrote a column about my views, Ex jumped on the back of that tweet and asked me to do the same, so here it is.
If there is one thing I want you to take away from this article, it`s that I am not a "board lover", I am a supporter of the board and there is a big difference between the two. You have to understand that I agree with 90% of the frustration showed towards them by the fans. The way they conduct themselves on a professional level is embarrassing at times and their decision making from a PR perspective can be baffling. Are they perfect? No and I`m sure they would be the first to tell you that but what gets overlooked time after time is just how much they have done for this football club and how much they continue to do for us. Anyone who thinks Gold and Sullivan don`t have a genuine love for West Ham and don't want the best for the club is wrong.
I have met David Sullivan on several occasions and I believe these meetings have given me a chance to learn more about him as a man and a businessman. When you are in his company ALL he wants to talk about is West Ham and he does so with such excitement and overwhelming enthusiasm. These conversations have taken place in a house that is draped in West Ham memorabilia and fond memories from his time in charge. He survives on just three hours sleep with 90% of his waking hour being dedicated to the running of this Football club. Even after suffering a heart attack, he was pictured on the phone from his hospital bed talking to agents in relation to potential signings and take it from me, this wasn`t a staged PR stunt, it was genuine. Something else that is genuine about David is his ambition for West Ham.
When we were made available to buy after the Icelandic's disastrous reign, it was between David Sullivan & Tony Fernandez, both of which are West Ham fans and in David's words you had to be a West Ham fan to buy the club because financially we were in such a state that no one else would touch us! We cannot underappreciate the fact that during their tenure, the owners have taken us from the point of administration to the 13th most valuable club in world football. For this I will be eternally grateful, especially when you look at what happened to the likes of Wimbledon, Leeds and Portsmouth.
Now let`s cut to the chase for a minute. Did Gold & Sullivan decide to buy West Ham out of the kindness of their heart and spend the next however many years losing money fulfilling their ambitions? Of course not, they also spotted an opportunity to make money which is something they do very well and they have certainly maximised that opportunity since taking over because they are unquestionably wealthier now than they were before they owned the club. Why? Because like every owner of every other football club they are businessmen. Let me ask you a question, is it such a bad thing if whilst taking West Ham to "the next level" they are making money along the way? Every other chairmen does? Let`s not forget they are a business, not a charity. Clearly if they were making money and the club were going backwards then I would have a massive problem with that but I firmly believe this is not the case.
Whilst we`re on the subject of finances, one of the most common statements about the chairmen is that "They are only in this for the money". What you have to remember is that the clubs value is massively determined on its success. For example, if we qualify for the Champions league then the club gets a load of cash and guess what, so do the Chairmen. At the same time if we get relegated then our value plummets in comparison and we lose money. Guess what, so do the chairmen. So they have to speculate to accumulate which is why to their credit, they consistently brake club records with transfer fees and wages. Look at Tottenham. They have a 100k p/w wage cap on their players, we don't? If they were that obsessed with making and saving money why haven't they enforced the same structure? Tottenham wouldn't have signed a top player like Hernandez because his wages are close to £150k p/w but we did? Does that not show ambition to you? If they are so obsessed with making and saving money, why do we have the 2nd lowest ticket prices in the Premier league? They don't have to charge those prices, they could easily get away with charging more. They promised the fans affordable football and they delivered against that promise.
Let`s talk about the latest shit storm in the form of the transfer window. Along with Slaven Bilic I hold the board responsible for the diabolical signings that were made last season. The word shocking doesn't do it justice. However, having learned from the previous season the Manager and the owners mutually agreed that this year they would target quality over quantity and focus on more proven players at this level as opposed to taking more "gambles". With this agreement in place, Slaven identified 4 targets. The board then signed all four of them which included Premier league winners, a world class striker and England's first choice keeper. Then there was William Carvalho who (and you might not know this) was an afterthought from Slav, not a top target identified early on but an afterthought. We know what happened from there and what was going through Sullivan`s mind when he made that email public I will never know. Fans have called it embarrassing and I make them right. It was. People have also vented their anger at the amount that Sullivan bid for this "world class player" with comments like "That`s the price, just pay the f*****g money!". Now unlike most people, I actually see this deal very differently. Whilst every man and his dog were screaming at DS to sign this player (a player who half the fans hadn`t even heard of before, myself included) I actually had a couple of concerns and maybe, just maybe DS was the same. 1. He is unproven in the premier league which contradicts this seasons transfer strategy and 2. If he really is that good, why doesn`t anyone else want him? Yes he`s a Portuguese international but so is Jose Fonte! Enner Valencia was a world beater for his Country when we signed him and look at how that worked out? So for DS to approach Sporting over a deal on Slavs request and potentially smash the clubs transfer record (again) for a player who now comes under the category of a "gamble" is a big ask. However, he did make an offer but it was one that, all things considered he was financially comfortable with and that offer was rejected.
People are understandably frustrated by the lack of spend in the transfer window but are people frustrated by the net spend or the fact that we haven`t increased the size of the squad? The obvious answer would be both wouldn`t it? but I don`t think that`s the case because spending £30m on WC would only increase our squad by one player? Does the squad suddenly become that much stronger with one signing? Yet I genuinely believe that if we would`ve signed WC I wouldn`t be writing this article now because our net spend would then be 45m and everyone would be happy! In fact, I also believe that if we were currently sitting on three points I wouldn't be writing this article either! But then if my brother was a bird he would be my sister wouldn`t he!
Another obvious answer to my original question would be "Well let`s sign WC and two or three others then" now this opens up what I think is a very interesting question because we, like every other club are governed by FFP (Financial fair play) which limits our spend to a certain amount. I don't know what our budget is but what I will say is that during our last meeting with Karren Brady I asked her where we sit in the Premier league table in terms of FFP allowance to which her response was "about halfway". She then refused to disclose what the budget would be for this season which for all I knew could`ve been 100m. It clearly isn`t that though so lets use a more realistic example of £50m. Why is it that after selling the Boleyn Ground, being owned by a Billionaire and being ranked the 13th most valuable club in the world do we only sit 10th in the Premier League with a £50million pound budget whilst other clubs are spending that on one player? The fact that I`m asking this question is proof that I share a lot of the same frustrations you do and I will be asking this question at the next meeting with KB because I think it`s an important one. That doesn`t mean to say that a logical answer will not be provided though.
Another thing that I think people are over looking is that we might be currently sitting at £15m net spend but that doesn`t mean we can`t spend another 30m/40m in January? Hopefully, it will be a different manager that spends it too.
The most common message I see from fans though is that the board are "Liars". The owners are full of lies, lies and more lies. I think this statement is centred around two things, the stadium and the transfers. I have an opinion on both.
In terms of the stadium, there is no denying that when we moved into the LS it was a shambles. Fans were still grieving over the Boleyn Ground when they were experiencing these issues and who were they blaming for this? The owners. Were they right to blame the owners? 100%. The transition into the new stadium was solely their responsibility and in hindsight they unquestionably failed on so many counts. We were a laughing stock and a playground for the toxic national press. The fans were understandably feeling like they had been sold down the river.
So what did the board do about that? Many chairmen from many different clubs would`ve taken the attitude of "That`s life", "They will get over it" or "I don`t have to answer to them". But DS addressed these concerns and insisted that one of many meetings should be created between Karren Brady and the top West Ham related social media accounts to discuss and more importantly resolve the most pressing issues that impact the fans match day experience. I couldn`t make the first meeting but by all accounts, it was very heated, very passionate and very productive. KB left the meeting with some notes and assured the guests that actions would be taken. Then there was the second meeting which I did attend and thought it was very relaxed, respectful and enjoyable. One of the reasons why this was the case is because KB summarised points from the previous meeting with respective confirmation that such points had been actioned. I think it`s fair to say that everyone in that room was satisfied and if they wasn`t then they certainly didn`t show it, Ex is my witness to that.
Is the Stadium perfect? No it`s not and my biggest problem is the distance between the fans and the pitch which will probably never change. Everything else I can live with. Especially as the main problems now seem to be resolved. On reflection, I think there were a lot of teething problems and that`s what they were, teething problems. There are still are number of fans that are unhappy with the new stadium, some of which still refuse to go and I respect that but fans from an older generation will tell you that people were unhappy when we left the Stratford memorial ground for Upton Park! No one likes change but we have to give that place time. Look at the win against Tottenham last season, the atmosphere was electric. You`re telling me you left the game that night thinking "This isn`t a football stadium"? If we do our bit as fans we can make that place a fortress, without a doubt. Again, is it perfect? No. But it is an iconic stadium that massively contributes towards a plan to take this club to "the next level". I honestly believe that.
Many people are also convinced that the board lied to the fans on various aspects of the stadium before we moved there. What I will say is, would the chairmen deliberately lie to the fans before the move knowing full well that they would face the wrath of those fans when those lies became evident? I just don`t buy that, are they really THAT stupid? That`s for you to decide. My opinion is that they got carried away with excitement, tried too hard to sell the benefits of the move, handled the entire process poorly and in doing so failed to communicate the actual and eventual facts. For example, If I buy a new house that I`m excited about and the plans to build that house include a swimming poorl and a snooker room, then I`m going to tell my friends and family all about it to share my excitement. Then, two months later I get told that the swimming pool and snooker room hasn't been granted planning permission so can`t be built. Well I wasn`t lying to my family about the swimming pool and the snooker room it's just that unforeseen circumstances now mean that I can`t have these things and that is to a large degree what I believe happened with various aspects of the Stadium. The frustrating thing with that of course is that the board were wrong to make promises they couldn`t keep which ultimately failed to manage the fans expectations and portrayed them as liars. Again, they have to take responsibility for this but in my opinion they didn`t deliberately lie, they just didn`t get their facts straight which don`t get me wrong, isn`t good enough and no excuses can be made on their behalf for that
In relation to "lying" about transfers and managing those expectations, historically the board haven`t held themselves in the greatest light as every piece of business they potentially do always seems to be made public. However, I do have a theory on this. It`s common knowledge that every club goes to market during a window and through agents and direct approaches, carpet bomb potential targets and end up with 40/50 names, from which a club might sign two or three of them. The trouble with West Ham is that we are in quite a unique situation in that we probably have more ITKs than any other club, my good friend ExWHUEmployee sits at the top of that tree so what this means is that our transfer targets get more level of exposure than any other club. For example you won`t necessarily hear a signing for Huddersfield until it`s done but unlike West Ham they wont have an Ex equivalent breaking news on every transfer target they have. So of course if there is a player that the fans are hoping to sign but then it doesn't happen then they are left disappointed or "lied to". The board are not blameless here by the way, in the past they have revealed such targets themselves which was a big mistake but I`m sure you have noticed that in recent times they have stopped doing this so that have learned from this mistake.
So to summarise, the people that we have in charge of this football club are not perfect. They do let themselves down sometimes and the way they conduct themselves publicly can cause some embarrassment. However, they have also brought a lot of positives to West Ham and in my opinion continue to take this club in the right direction. Amidst the Twitter storm this week I was asked to name just 5 things they have done to benefit this football club. I`m not going to give you 5, I`m going to give you 8:
They saved us from bankruptcy and turned us into the 13th most valuable club in the world
They showed ambition and intent by moving to the London Stadium
They invested in better training facilities
They delivered on their promise of making football affordable for Families
They stopped us from being a selling club
They have secured long term contracts with our best players
They consistently break the clubs transfer and wage records
The squad now is 10x better than it was when they first took over.
Everything that I have said in this article is my genuine opinion. I am not an "arse kisser", I am not being positive about the owners because of my "connections to the board", I am not backing their corner because they "fund my business ventures" or any other ridiculous reason that I had thrown at me this week. I am my own person and anyone that knows me will tell you that I don't get influenced by ANYONE. I have also been negative about the board in this column because I agree with a lot of what the fans are saying and share the very same frustrations! But ultimately, the point that I am making is, yes they have their faults, yes they have made mistakes and no doubt they will make more but we could do a hell of a lot worse than G&S, you only have to look at every other board we have had at West Ham to scare you into believing that! I feel they have the clubs best interests at heart and want to achieve great things with West Ham. For this reason, I am backing them for the short to mid-term future at least.
Finally, I want to say that I think the fans are pointing their anger in the wrong direction. Whilst the board haven`t helped themselves recently, as I have been telling you for nearly 12 months now it`s the manager that is the problem. Not the owners.
Thanks for reading x
Dave Walker
(Sex, Drugs & Carlton Cole)
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Slaven Bilic under pressure: What's gone wrong at West Ham?
Last Updated: 08/09/17 10:36am
SSN
Slaven Bilic is under growing pressure at West Ham ahead of their Monday Night Football clash with Huddersfield Town at the London Stadium, but what's gone wrong for him?
West Ham have lost their first three games of the season and conceded 10 goals in the process, leaving them bottom of the Premier League table. Their disappointing form is a continuation of last year and it leaves Bilic with plenty of problems to address. Here, we examine the key issues.
Lack of plan?
West Ham were praised for their swashbuckling attacking style when they finished seventh with their highest ever Premier League points total in Bilic's first season in charge. They were direct and dangerous on the break and lethal from set pieces, scoring the same number of goals as runners-up Arsenal. Bilic found a way of playing to their strengths and it paid off. Since then, however, one of the most common criticisms levelled at Bilic is that his team appears to lack a plan, an identity, or even a discernible playing style. The free-flowing attacking football of 2015/16 is no more. It's an issue the departed Dimitri Payet touched on last season. "The defensive system that we put in place did not give me any pleasure," he told L'Equipe. "With a 5-4-1 in front of our box, I could have had all the freedom in the world, so it's difficult to explain. I worked hard in every game without taking any pleasure. You could say I was bored, yes."
Experiments with three at the back yielded some positive results last season, but that system appears to have been abandoned now too. The chopping and changing has been damaging, and Robert Snodgrass' recent comments only added to the suspicion that Bilic might be making it up as he goes along. "I was coming on against City and he said: 'Where do you want to play, on the left or right?'" said Snodgrass. "I thought 'You have just signed me and I have played on the right or behind the striker at Hull City all season'. That was my debut and alarm bells were ringing right away."
Defensive difficulties
If Bilic's tactical changes were an attempt to shore up his defence, it is safe to say they have backfired. West Ham went from conceding 51 goals in 2015/16 to 64 in 2016/17, and the trend has continued this season. Manchester United, Southampton and Newcastle have all exposed their defensive frailties with ease. West Ham have now conceded three or more goals on 14 occasions since the start of last season - the joint-most in the Premier League along with Swansea and relegated Hull City. Suffering big defeats to Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City is one thing, but Bilic's side have also been thrashed by the likes of West Brom and Watford. Their issues at the back are compounded by the fact that Bilic does not appear to know his best defence. Line-up changes were frequent and unpredictable last season, and he has already fielded three different backlines in the new campaign.
Discipline and focus
The stats highlight a lack of discipline and focus among Bilic's players. West Ham received the joint-most red cards in the Premier League with five in 2016/17, and they have already been reduced to 10 men once this season, with Marko Arnautovic seeing red in the 3-2 defeat to Southampton. Costly defensive mistakes have become common place over the last year, too. According to Opta, Bilic's side made 12 individual errors leading to goals last season. It was two more than any other Premier League side, and the cheap goals they have given away in the new campaign suggest concentration and organisation are still issues. West Ham's big defeats highlight their tendency to capitulate, and they also lack the steel to see out results. Last season, in fact, they lost more points from winning positions (22) than any other side in the Premier League. The numbers are damning. Do they point to a lack of leadership from above?
No place like home?
Moving home was supposed to signal a new dawn for West Ham but the adjustment has been far from straight-forward. Having only lost three Premier League games in their final campaign at Upton Park, Bilic's side were beaten eight times in their first season at the London Stadium. The vast arena could hardly be more different to the tight terraces of the Boleyn Ground, and this season has brought new issues. With the World Athletics Championships running until the middle of August, West Ham were forced to start their season with three tricky away trips. Their upcoming home games against Huddersfield, Tottenham and Swansea will be a test of whether they are finally starting to settle in the London Stadium. For Bilic, they could be decisive.
Transfer troubles
Bilic has not been helped by some of West Ham's recent transfer business. The club spent close to £20m on Jose Fonte and Snodgrass midway through last season but neither player had the desired impact, and there are already question marks over some of their summer recruits. Joe Hart has had a difficult start in goal, and it's been a similar story for Pablo Zabaleta, whose aging legs were exposed against Manchester United on the opening day. Javier Hernandez has fared better, scoring twice in the defeat to Southampton, but Arnautovic's most notable contribution so far is that red card against Southampton. Hart, Zabaleta and Arnautovic could yet come good, of course, but their early struggles raise further questions about West Ham's transfer policy in general. Would they be better off targeting young, hungry players with a point to prove rather than established names who are past their best?
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Slaven Bilic lays down gauntlet to West Ham striker Diafra Sakho
By PA Sport
Last Updated: 10/09/17 11:44pm
SSN
Diafra Sakho will be handed the chance to resurrect his West Ham career - and maybe ride to Slaven Bilic's rescue. Amid the chaos and fall-out of West Ham's Deadline Day dealings came the saga of Sakho, who flew himself to French club Rennes and underwent a medical. Upon finding out West Ham had not agreed to sell him, the Senegal striker travelled back to England for showdown talks with the Hammers hierarchy - but only after a trip to Chelmsford racecourse where his agent's horse won the 3.20 race. Having failed to get his desired move, Sakho has resumed training and is in contention for Monday night's visit of Huddersfield, live on Sky Sports Premier League, a crucial match for Bilic whose future as boss will be in serious jeopardy if West Ham suffer a fourth straight defeat.
Beleaguered Bilic, who has also had to deal with his club's dispute with Sporting Lisbon over their failed bid to sign William Carvalho, as well as a public disagreement with his own chairman David Sulllivan, admitted: "There are so many issues, so I have to pull up the Diafra Sakho file now. "Yeah, Diafra wanted to go. But also, that issue is not quite black and white. Did he have permission, permission on paper or just a form or an SMS? I don't know. "The fact is he wanted to go there. He did a medical, but the club decided not to sell him and he's back. "So I told him 'Diafra, you are fit? I know what you can do. Sit there, hopefully now you are going to get fit and I am going to help you get focused here'. "He's been training. He came back - he flew to Rennes last week, a couple of days before the end of the transfer window - but he's been training since. "He looks good in training. Hopefully he is going to stay like that for a long time. Because he will know that until January he is a West Ham player. "That's the way he's going to get a new contract, or play again for Senegal, or get a move: if he plays good."
Striker Andy Carroll is also in the squad for the first time this season, but midfielder Manuel Lanzini is ruled out with a knee injury.
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West Ham's Michail Antonio upbeat despite poor start to season
By Matthew Treadwell
Last Updated: 11/09/17 8:48am
SSN
West Ham midfielder Michael Antonio is refusing to panic, despite the club's poor start to the season. Slaven Bilic's side have lost their opening three matches of the Premier League campaign and will be desperate to put some points on the board at home to Huddersfield on Monday Night Football, live on Sky Sports.
The Hammers have not been helped by having to play their opening matches of the season away from home, with work needing to be done to make the London Stadium football-ready after the World Athletics Championships were staged there over the summer. England international Antonio insists the players still believe in themselves, despite the fact they are propping up the table going into the Huddersfield game. "It's just one of those things where we've had a bad start and made a couple of mistakes," Antonio told Sky Sports News. "We need to pick ourselves up and just keep moving forward. "It's important to win because we have got to get some points [to climb the table], especially with Burnley and Newcastle winning again. "We need to put our heads to it and keep going. We are all professional and we all believe in our abilities. "We know we have the squad to bring us up the table and we will bring ourselves up the table."
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West Ham's terrible start is hurting Mark Noble more than most, but he's confident they will turn it around
EXCLUSIVE
KEN DYER
ES Sport
Mark Noble has played in more than a few must-win matches in his 12 years as a first-team player at West Ham. The latest crisis might have come a little early this season - after just three Premier League games to be precise - but that's modern football for you. Win three and you're a magician - lose three and you're a mug.
The captain knows the truth lies somewhere in between but it hasn't stopped him hurting inside since the 3-0 defeat at Newcastle two weeks ago. Tonight, after three Premier League defeats on the road, Noble and his team-mates are back for the first time this season at the London Stadium. The temporary seating is back in place, the West Ham branding is restored, and the World Athletics Championships are a fading memory. Now, all that is needed - badly needed - for beleaguered manager Slaven Bilic on his 49th birthday, is a win over buoyant Premier League newcomers Huddersfield. "It's another 'must-win game' as some people see it," admits 30-year-old Noble with just the hint of a sigh. "And to be honest, up until now, we've managed to get through the others okay - Spurs last season, Swansea, Burnley and Hull at home, Crystal Palace away. "It's been a long time since that Newcastle game. "I've played more than 400 games for this club and, yes, it means more to me than most people. "Sometimes that goes against you though. I've not played and done my best because I'm a home-grown player, we've had lots of those over the years. I've played all those games because I've been picked by a succession of managers. I've started every season over the past 10 years. "That's one of the proudest things for me but because I'm so attached to this club, I go home every day and I'm thinking, 'I just want us to do well, I just want everyone to be happy. "A lot of players here and at every other Premier League club, have no real affiliation with where they are. "They lose a game, they go home and it's still sweet because they know if something bad happens, their agents will find them another club. "That's not what I want. I want West Ham to do well and that's just the way it is. "The last place we want to be is going into tonight's game with the pressure already firmly on - it's not ideal but we do need to get a result. "We need to be on our game right from the start because Huddersfield haven't conceded a goal yet in three games. "That sort of start comes from hard work and adrenalin following their promotion and they will come to our stadium tonight and think - 'this is amazing, what a place in which to play football' - so we need to be prepared."
Noble understands how it works and knows that the focus will be sharpest tonight on his manager Bilic, in the final year of his contract at West Ham. "It was as low as I've seen the manager after the Newcastle match. We were all pretty low and it was a feeling that we had not only let ourselves down but him also," says Noble. "It would be nice to have a season where we don't have these crises - where we can go out and enjoy our football. "The season before last was like that and if you look back it all seems great, finishing seventh in the last season at Upton Park. "There were times, around Christmas I remember, though, when even then the manager was being questioned, we had lost away to Newcastle and people were saying we were in a massive slump. "That's modern football, though, and you have to take it on the chin. "Yes, managers are well paid these days but they're still human beings and just because you have a good salary, that doesn't mean there is a wall built around you which deflects all the criticism. "Sometimes you take it to heart and it hurts. The manager here is in the last year of his contract and there is a bit of uncertainty. "For him it's not ideal but it is the decision of the chairmen. "As far as we're concerned all we can do as players is try and do better for the manager. "He can't be out there with us. He gives us his ideas and it's up to us to put them into practice. "We're not too negative, though. We know we have some good players here and I believe we'll get out of this. "We're going to need the crowd though, for sure. "I'd much rather they used all their energy to back us rather than being negative towards whoever."
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West Ham team news: Under-pressure Slaven Bilic will make late decision on Andy Carroll
KEN DYER
ES Sport
Slaven Bilic will leave it until the last minute before deciding whether to go for broke and play Andy Carroll from the start against Huddersfield tonight or use the big striker as an impact player. The injury-plagued Carroll has been back in full training for two weeks following a thigh problem and is keen to start his first match since April. However, Bilic may prefer to start with Diafra Sakho, who wanted to join Rennes on transfer deadline day. The Hammers manager is under pressure with his team bottom of the Premier League following three successive defeats and has spent the past two weeks with his staff contemplating changes to his team and system. Bilic is again without Marko Arnautovic, who completes his three-match ban plus the injured Manuel Lanzini and Edimilson Fernandes but centre-half Winston Reid returns. The Croatian, meanwhile, says his relationship with co-owner David Sullivan remains "polite and decent" despite speculation the board are already looking at possible replacements should West Ham lose tonight. "If I don't like something I tell him straight," said Bilic. Referring to the club's failed attempt to sign midfielder William Carvalho from Sporting Lisbon, the manager said: "You can't get everything. It was a money issue but I really wanted the player. That was the reason we off-loaded players - to get the budget."
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Slaven Bilic cannot win the battle with West Ham's owners, writes Tony Evans
TONY EVANS
ES Sport
London Stadium could witness another titanic clash tonight. No, not West Ham versus Huddersfield. Although the match has much to recommend it, what happens on the pitch is a sideshow. The real action is going on elsewhere. On the offensive are David Gold and David Sullivan. The twin strike force of West Ham co-chairmen are a real handful. In defence, Slaven Bilic is battling manfully. The manager knows it is a fight he cannot win but the Croat can handle himself. The 49-year-old has the sympathy of most of the fans. That rapport will be tested tonight if West Ham put in another abject performance. The relationship between Bilic and the owners has been rocky for some time. It has deteriorated markedly after an incoherent transfer window. It looked in July that the club had done well in the market. Javier Hernandez and Marko Arnautovic bolstered the forward line, Pablo Zabaleta brought experience to the defence and bringing Joe Hart on loan upgraded the goalkeeping position. It was not enough.
It became apparent as soon as the campaign kicked off that the squad needed more recruits if West Ham were to avoid a season of struggle. The most obvious area of need was in midfield. The collapse of a move for Sporting Lisbon's William Carvalho has been the catalyst for what could be the final showdown between Gold and Sullivan and their manager. Gold upped the ante while the transfer window was still open. Before the game against Newcastle, the co-chairman tweeted: "Slaven is taking a very strong squad to Newcastle."
Even allowing for Twitter's 140 character oversimplification, "very strong" seemed a bizarre assessment. They had conceded seven goals in their first two League games and scored two. "Dangerously fragile" might have been a more realistic verdict. Yet the implication was clear. The squad was good enough, now it was down to management. The Hammers lost 3-0. When the window shut, Sullivan weighed in. "Overall, Slaven is happy with the business we have done," he declared on the club's website. Then came the bombshell. "Grzegorz Krychowiak and Renato Sanches were both offered to the manager… but he told us he was happy with the squad."
The blame game was well and truly on and Sullivan was effectively saying to the supporters: "Don't blame us." Bilic has been equally ready to apportion responsibility. He disputes the co-chairman's version of the rejection of Krychowiak and Sanches and intimated the failure to secure Carvalho - his main target - was down to a reluctance to spend money. It is clear that there is a disconnect between manager and board. Bilic was far from the club's top choice when he took the job in 2015 and, even in his first, uplifting season, there was a sense that he was not quite the big name Gold and Sullivan wanted. Last December, after the 5-1 defeat by Arsenal, West Ham were one point above the relegation zone. Had the team not beaten Burnley and Hull in the next two home games then Bilic would have been gone by Christmas. West Ham emissaries were in contact with potential replacements. There is only one winner in this struggle. Bilic has probably never had the respect he deserves from his employers. Even if his team are victorious tonight, time appears to be running out. To claw themselves out of it, West Ham need the manager and the board to work together. Something has to change and it won't be Gold and Sullivan.
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Slav: actions speak louder than words
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 11th September 2017
By: Staff Writer
Slaven Bilic has backed his players to record their first Premier League win of the season tonight - as rumours persist that he is on the verge of being replaced as manager of West Ham. In charge since the start of the 2015/16 season, Bilic retains a growndswell of support on the terraces despite West Ham's poor start to the season - even if that feeling isn't entirely shared in the Boardroom. However the Croat has refused to let the uncertainly from above affect his preparation for tonight's home clash against Huddersfield Town - a game he says his team is "capable of winning, if we show the right quality and the right character".
"Tonight's game is a big one," he said. "There is no getting away from it. And I am facing up to that in the way I have always done throughout my career when in a difficult spell. Not by hiding, not by losing faith, and not pretending everything is fine. "It is not going to be easy, we know that, but we also know that we are capable of winning the game if we show the right quality and the right character. "I believe in my players. We have a good squad, there is no doubt about that. But we have to show it on the pitch and start winning straight away. "It is my job to find that reaction. To prepare the team, to lead the team, and give them everything they need to perform, not only tactically but also mentally. But once they cross that white line tonight, it is up to the players to create the atmosphere. We know the supporters will be behind us during the game as they always are, but it is up to us to give them that feeling of pride and victory."
Bilic has thus far overseen three consecutive league defeats - at Manchester United, Southampton and Newcastle. However he insists that the team remains in good spirits having returned from international duty in recent days. "Normally, you are back together in training as a group a couple of days after the match and you work accordingly," he said. "If you have won everybody is happy and if you have lost, then everybody is a bit down. "The key is that you are together, and you share the mood as a team. When there is an international break, some of the players obviously go away and, if you have lost, you have to live with that for two weeks. "But it can be positive – some of them, like Joe Hart and Aaron Cresswell, came back in a great mood and with confidence because they gained six points with England and are a step closer to the World Cup. "And on the plus side, the game being pushed back to this evening means that we have had those extra days with the squad together as a group, giving us time to prepare properly."
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We're on Team Bilic, says Collins
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 11th September 2017
By: Staff Writer
Veteran defender James Collins has spoken out in support of manager Slaven Bilic, following yet further rumours that the manager is set to be replaced. The Welsh international said it was "crazy" that Bilic should be feeling the heat even before his team had played a single match at home this season - and admitted that the players "owe the gaffer a performance" against Huddersfield in Stratford tonight. "Everyone at the club would like to get the boss three points," said the 33-year-old defender, who is entering the final year of his contract at West Ham. "He's been under tremendous pressure. "It's crazy in football that the managers get put under so much pressure when sometimes the players really need to look at themselves. We know we haven't performed and the manager has done the best he can. "On Monday we're going to go out with our hearts on our sleeves and hopefully get three points for him. He takes it all on his shoulders, but the players need to look at ourselves and really put in a performance for him."
And Collins, who has privately expressed his own frustration at the team's dreadful start to the campaign believes that a positive start is paramount to achieving a successful outcome this evening. "Maybe confidence is down, but a good first ten minutes on Monday night and you'll see a different West Ham," he predicted. "All I can say is all the lads here at West Ham are completely behind the boss. "We know we've got to perform better than we have done. If you go into games cowering then you're not going to perform. I wouldn't say there is tension. "I've been in this position before, I've been at the club a long time, and we've got to perform. We're all good players who are here for a reason. You don't turn into a bad player in three games. We know the quality is there."
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The Hammers Loan Report: Burke And Cullen Continue Bolton Misery As Snodgrass Makes Villa Debut
The Loan Report West Ham
POSTED BY: LUKE GLANVILLE 11/09/2017
It's now time to check in with how our loanee Hammers are doing at their various Clubs, as Reece Burke and Josh Cullen continued to ride the wave of Bolton woes, Robert Snodgrass made his Villa Park bow and Reece Oxford witnessed his Gladbach side slump to a defeat in The Bundesliga.
Reece Burke and Josh Cullen (Bolton Wanderers)
The Exciting young Academy duo of Burke and Cullen were yet again left disappointed in a Trotters shirt at the weekend, with a 0-3 home thrashing from Garry Monk's Middlesbrough. For the first time in their loan spell under Phil Parkinson, they were both left out of the starting Xl altogether, as the home side went for experimentation after their dreadful start to the Championship campaign. However, just like all but two of their six League games so far, the changes resulted in defeat as a Britt Assombalonga double and a late Marvin Johnson strike was enough for Boro to take all three points. Reece Burke was introduced at half-time for The Wanderers and Josh Cullen in the second period, with both players facing former teammates Darren Randolph and Ashley Fletcher. Parkinson's men have now conceded seven goals in two games and sit bottom of The Championship, and are embarking on worrying times. Many Hammers fans are now suggesting that getting thrashed each week in a lower League is only hindering the development of Burke and Cullen, who should be in Slaven Bilic's squad at The London Stadium. Nevertheless, the duo remains up North and will be hoping to pick up a first League victory of the season, when they face off with Chris Wilder's Sheffield United at The Macron Stadium tomorrow night.
Reece Oxford (Borussia Monchengladbach)
The frustration continued for 18-year-old defensive prodigy Reece Oxford at the weekend, as he watched on from the sidelines yet again as his Borussia Monchengladbach side were narrowly beaten at home by Eintracht Frankfurt. Die Fohlen have now endured a surprisingly underwhelming start to their Bundesliga campaign, as they sit in ninth place after a win, a loss and a draw. Furthermore, Oxford is still yet to feature in a Competitive match for the Club, as he was an unused substitute in Saturday's defeat, which came courtesy of a goal from veteran Kevin-Prince Boateng. Having scored in pre-season against Malaga, the former Reading loanee will be hoping to impress Manager Dieter Hecking enough this week in Training for a debut against RB Leipzig on Saturday evening.
Robert Snodgrass (Aston Villa)
Having made the loan move to Villa Park at the back end of August, the Scottish winger finally made his Villans debut on Saturday afternoon against The Bees.
Snodgrass appeared as a 60th-minute substitute for Keinan Davis but could do very little to prevent his side from drawing 0-0 with Dean Smith's men in a dull affair. However, the former Hull City man will he hoping to make his first start under Steve Bruce tomorrow night, when Villa host Boro, before a Sky Live Saturday night visit to Oakwell.
So, with what was mostly a dismal weekend for our loan prospects now finally over, what will the next seven days bring? as Domestic Football fully swings back into action.
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Carroll's return, tactical changes & Zabaleta's form - West Ham talking points ahead of Huddersfield visit
It's only four games in to the season but it's already a massive game for West Ham
Football london
BYSAM INKERSOLE
15:01, 11 SEP 2017
After what feels like an eternity since Liverpool rocked up to E20 and thrashed West Ham 4-0, the Londoners are finally back on home turf. We all know what has happened in the three away games so far and there is no point treading over old ground (we need to be positive!) but now, the Hammers need to make the London Stadium their home. It was painful more often than not in Stratford last season and that was reflected in just five wins all season long - barely a fortress.
Now, not just to get confidence in the players themselves but also to get the fans back on side in a positive frame of mind West Ham need to win at their new home tonight. If they don't, the question marks over the move from east London will STILL be asked. Whether he starts tonight - which he could - or if it's from the bench, Andy Carroll should feature at some point for the Hammers tonight and lord knows they have missed him. On his day, Carroll is unplayable. No-one else in the Premier League possess his aerial strength, his technique on the ball and the ability to finish (scissor kick against Crystal Palace, in case you needed reminding). He just hasn't been fit enough throughout his entire West Ham career. Huddersfield won't have come up against anything like Carroll and will surely struggle against him - as most teams do - and it'll also do wonders for Javier Hernandez to have a partner to feed off On paper, a Carroll/Chicharito partnership is tasty, let's see how it goes.
Hitting teams on the counter-attack - as has been the West Ham Way recently - needs to stop tonight. West Ham need to go offensive and on the front foot early, Bilic knows it and he is likely to make some adjustments to do that. Two strikers is one way, but also playing wing backs with three centre halves will help as well, while the return of Cheikhou Kouyate will allow only one midfielder to have to sit, not two like we have seen with Mark Noble and Declan Rice. In truth, it should be Pedro Obiang that does that role - he's the best in the team at it. Expect a 3-5-2 formation against Huddersfield as Bilic goes on the attack and to knock the stuffing out of the Terriers early.
Zabaleta's form
The Argentine has not been as impressive as hoped at the start of the season - no-one has, really - but is he really an upgrade on Sam Byram? No. The Hammers official website conducted an interview with Byram ahead of the game and sorry for casting aspersions, but what does that mean? If Bilic does switch to wingbacks then Byram absolutely is the better option. Zabaleta is still expected to get the nod tonight but he certainly needs to step up his game because Byram is breathing down his neck.
Bilic's birthday!
The Hammers boss turns 49 today and what better way to celebrate it than with an important three points. Bili won't care less about his birthday so long as the pressure is slightly relieved on him with a first victory of the season but it won't be a happy evening if the Hammers lose tonight. With Crystal Palace binning Frank de Boer earlier, the knives are out already. There's no way the club could sack Bilic on his birthday, surely...?
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Slaven Bilic challenges Diafra Sakho to earn new West Ham United deal or move on
Guardian Series
Diafra Sakho will be handed the chance to resurrect his West Ham career - and maybe ride to Slaven Bilic's rescue. Amid the chaos and fall-out of West Ham's deadline-day dealings came the saga of Sakho, who flew himself to French club Rennes and underwent a medical. Upon finding out West Ham had not agreed to sell him, the Senegal striker travelled back to England for showdown talks with the Hammers hierarchy - but only after a trip to Chelmsford racecourse where his agent's horse won the 3.20. Having failed to get the move he wanted, Sakho is now back in training and in contention for tonight's visit of Huddersfield, a crucial match for Bilic whose future as boss will be in serious jeopardy if West Ham suffer a fourth straight defeat. Beleaguered Bilic, who has also had to deal with West Ham's dispute with Sporting Lisbon over their unsuccessful bid to sign William Carvalho, not to mention a public disagreement with his own chairman David Sulllivan, admitted: "There are so many issues, so I have to pull up the Diafra Sakho file now. "Yeah, Diafra wanted to go. But also, that issue is not quite black and white. Did he have permission, permission on paper or just a form or an SMS? I don't know. "The fact is he wanted to go there. He did a medical, but the club decided not to sell him and he's back. "So I told him 'Diafra, you are fit? I know what you can do. Sit there, hopefully now you are going to get fit and I am going to help you get focused here'. "He's been training. He came back - he flew to Rennes last week, a couple of days before the end of the transfer window - but he's been training since. "He looks good in training. Hopefully he is going to stay like that for a long time. Because he will know that until January he is a West Ham player. "That's the way he's going to get a new contract, or play again for Senegal, or get a move: if he plays good." Striker Andy Carroll is also in the squad for the first time this season, but midfielder Manuel Lanzini is ruled out with a knee injury.
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West Ham determined to give Slaven Bilic a much-needed birthday win against Huddersfield
TOM DUTTON
ES Sport
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic will no doubt spend much of his birthday nervously anticipating Monday's must-win game against Huddersfield at the London Stadium. The Hammers sit bottom of the Premier League after failing to pick up a point from their opening three matches, but return home for the first time this season after being kept away by the World Athletics Championships. The match is set against the backdrop of a spat between the club's board and Sporting Lisbon following West Ham's failed attempt to sign William Carvalho, while Bilic will be keen to show he is the right man to clean up the on-field mess.
In his Standard Sport column on Friday, Bilic hit back at suggestions he had already "thrown in the towel" and wrote about his determination to "put this right".
And West Ham defender James Collins says the players owe Bilic the birthday present of an improved display. "Birthday or not everyone at the club would like to get the boss three points," said Collins. "He's been under tremendous pressure. It's crazy in football that the managers get put under so much pressure when sometimes really the players need to look at themselves. "We know we haven't performed and the manager has done the best he can. I feel like we owe the gaffer a performance and hopefully we can do that on Monday."
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'He's a nervous man' - Dimitri Payet opens up on relationship with Hammers boss Slaven Bilic
The former Hammers midfielder has been speaking about his former manager
Football London
BYALASDAIR GOLD
08:53, 11 SEP 2017
Dimitri Payet has been talking about his relationship with his former manager at West Ham United - Slaven Bilic - and explained why he had to return to France.
The 30-year-old France international left the London Stadium under a cloud after agitating for and then getting a £25m move to Marseille in January this year.
However, he still has fond memories of Bilic, currently under fire because of the Hammers' struggling start to the new Premier League season. When asked about how the Croatian was with him, he told So Foot magazine: "Like a father. We talked to each other every day. He quickly understood how I functioned. "That was seen in my adaptation [to life in the Premier League], which was very fast. He's a nervous man. He's a Croatian. He can scream. But he manages the players well."
Payet explained that he felt he had to leave London as he was worried he may end up losing his place in the France squad during the qualifying for the upcoming World Cup. "There were several reasons, but the first one was sporting: West Ham's objectives were no longer the same from the season before, and I felt danger for my football and my place in the France national team," he said. "There was a choice to make. On my return, I find a Marseille changed at all levels. I feel like it's not the same club. It's not the same management. Obviously, there is a new owner, but there are other aspects that resemble more a bigger club."
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Mark Lawrenson predicts West Ham v Huddersfield, claims Bilic has big decision to make on Mark Noble
HITC
Olly Dawes
West Ham United take on Huddersfield Town in the Premier League this evening. Pundit Mark Lawrenson has told BBC Sport that he thinks West Ham United will beat Huddersfield Town 2-1 in the Premier League this evening. The Hammers have endured a dismal start to the new Premier League season, losing 4-0 at Manchester United, 3-2 at Southampton and 3-0 at Newcastle United to heap the pressure on manager Slaven Bilic. Having been backed with new signings over the summer, Bilic needs to find results quickly in order to stand any chance of keeping his job, with the Croatian under increasing scrutiny. Tonight, the Hammers are in action at the London Stadium for the first time this season, and they play host to a buoyant Huddersfield Town side, who have made an impressive start to the campaign.
The Terriers, who won promotion to the Premier League last season, have opened their season with two wins and a draw, with David Wagner impressing in the top flight so far. Huddersfield now travel to London for the second time this season, and having beaten Crystal Palace 3-0 at Selhurst Park on the opening weekend of the campaign, they head to the capital with confidence. Ahead of tonight's game, pundit Mark Lawrenson has told BBC Sport that he is actually backing West Ham to claim all three points in a 2-1 win, despite the huge difference in results for the two clubs so far this season. Lawrenson did though add that West Ham boss Bilic faces a 'big decision' about midfielder Mark Noble, claiming that he doesn't warrant a place in the team right now, despite his service to the club throughout his career. "Huddersfield have made a super start to the season, in total contrast to West Ham, who have really struggled," said Lawrenson. "Terriers fans will be confident they can keep that good start going, but I don't see it being as easy as that. "This is West Ham's first home game of the season, and I am expecting a big improvement from them. I think Hammers boss Slaven Bilic has to make a big decision about midfielder Mark Noble, however. He is a top professional and has been a brilliant player for them, but does he still warrant a place in their side? Based on recent performances, I would have to say no," he added.
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Stan Collymore outlines what he finds fascinating about West Ham owners
HITC
Subhankar Mondal
West Ham United have made a disappointing start to the Premier League season. Former Liverpool and Nottingham Forest striker Stan Collymore has outlined in The Mirror what he finds fascinating about West Ham United co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold. Collymore has claimed that there is no middle ground for Sullivan and Gold. "What's fascinating about Sullivan and Gold, is that there doesn't ever seem to be any middle ground," Collymore wrote in The Mirror. "At times they are very professional. At other times West Ham is a comedy club. There's no in-between."
Gold and Sullivan have been good for West Ham over the past few years, and they genuinely want to enhance the reputation and pedigree of the club. There can be no doubt that the West Ham co-owners want to take the club to the next level, and that they have the Hammers' best interest at heart. The problem is that West Ham's recruitment in recent years have not been great. Signings such as Enner Valencia, Marouane Chamakh (loan) and Alvaro Arbeloa have not worked.
The Hammers have made a disappointing start to the 2017-18 Premier League campaign and have lost all three of league games so far. Slaven Bilic's side will return to action on Monday evening when they take on Huddersfield Town at the London Stadium in the Premier League.
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David Sullivan's salvo bursts Slaven Bilic's fragile bubble at West Ham
The bizarre recriminations following the failure to sign William Carvalho ramp up the pressure on the manager after West Ham's poor start to the season
Jacob Steinberg
@JacobSteinberg
Monday 11 September 2017 08.00 BST
The Guardian
David Sullivan, to quote an increasingly demob happy Slaven Bilic, likes to talk. West Ham's co-owner wants to have his say, regardless of what his manager thinks. He makes headlines by not holding back in interviews. Just this past week, with the dust still settling on the non-signing of William Carvalho, Sullivan released a statement on the club's website detailing how close West Ham had been to a swoop for the Sporting Lisbon midfielder on deadline day. He also revealed that Bilic, under fire after an awful start to the season, had turned down deals for Grzegorz Krychowiak and Renato Sanches, who joined West Bromwich Albion and Swansea City respectively.
Plenty has happened since that statement, much of it bizarre even by football's standards. Sporting responded by denying receipt of any offer for Carvalho, prompting West Ham to hit back at accusations of dishonesty by announcing, in a tweet from one of Sullivan's sons, a lawsuit against their Portuguese sparring partners. The sorry episode reached a farcical peak when Bruno de Carvalho, Sporting's president, livened up the international break by calling West Ham's owners "offended virgins" and "the Dildo Brothers".
"It's funny," Bilic said on Friday. "It made me laugh." Speaking in an atmosphere reminiscent of an unruly classroom, Bilic did not exactly rush to defend the honour of his bosses when Carvalho's disparaging comments about Sullivan and David Gold came up. If loyalty is a two-way street, what was he supposed to make of Sullivan's comments about Krychowiak and Sanches? The suggestion that he rejected midfielders from Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich hardly spoke volumes for his judgment. Unless there were shades of grey. "That is not exactly what happened with those two you mention," Bilic said. "I wanted Carvalho."
Bilic went on to question why Sullivan could not have spoken to him in private and already there is a sense of the PR war beginning, of hands being washed of blame and battle lines being drawn. It is not hard to see which way the wind is blowing. There is little prospect of Bilic's contract being extended beyond this season and he knows that losing to Huddersfield Town at the London Stadium on Monday night could be the end. He had fears of being sacked at the end of last season and West Ham's links with Rafael Benítez refuse to disappear.
What cannot be lost in this debate is how poor Bilic's side have been in their first three league matches, even though they have all been away. The bottom side have conceded 10 goals in defeats by Manchester United, Southampton and Newcastle, and after more than two years in charge it remains difficult to work out what Bilic wants from his players. What is their style of football? Are they solid and physical? Are they a counterattacking team? Do they favour possession? One thing is indisputable: they cannot defend. There are concerns about a lack of tactical planning and intensity in training.
Bilic finished seventh in his first season but inspiration often arrived from Dimitri Payet, a mercurial talent motivated by the challenge of making the France squad for Euro 2016. West Ham have floundered since Payet returned to Marseille for £25m in January, winning six out of 21 league games.
At the same time, there is a sense that Bilic is being made a scapegoat to deflect attention from the questionable recruitment strategy that has held the club back since the move to the London Stadium. Payet's replacement, the £10m Robert Snodgrass, joined Aston Villa on loan last month. José Fonte, an £8m 33-year-old centre-back, has struggled. The search for a top striker in the summer of 2016 brought links with Carlos Bacca, Michy Batshuayi and Alexandre Lacazette. All proved unattainable. Jonathan Calleri, Ashley Fletcher and Simone Zaza arrived instead but none of that trio wear claret and blue any more.
West Ham's business was initially encouraging this summer. They recruited Joe Hart on loan from Manchester City and bought Javier Hernández for £16m, while Marko Arnautovic is their record signing at £24m. But Bilic had spoken about needing more pace and power. They were short-term buys, while the 32-year-old Pablo Zabaleta has yet to impress after signing on a free from City. An ageing defence has looked cumbersome against fast attacks.
What Bilic wanted most was a top defensive midfielder. Carvalho was expensive – Sporting wanted £37.5m – but Bilic let go of squad players in order to make room in the budget for the Portugal international. Come deadline day, West Ham had signed four senior players and sold nine. Their squad looked short of depth, but they signed no one. Carvalho stayed in Lisbon.
Sullivan has assumed the role of director of football, which means he shares culpability with Bilic for the mess. Bilic is on borrowed time. It is no secret that West Ham hope to prise Benítez away from Newcastle, where the Spaniard has grown tired with working for Mike Ashley. Yet their treatment of Bilic, who is experiencing what Sam Allardyce and Gianfranco Zola went through, runs the risk of putting off prospective hires.
Sometimes the quietest person in the room is the smartest. For all the noise coming out of east London, how much of it is worth listening to?
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MATCH PREVIEW: WEST HAM V HUDDERSFIELD
By Dan Coker 11 Sep 2017 at 08:00
WTID
Blast from the past
4th March 1972 – Chicory Tip were number one with 'Son of My Father' (an important theme for this match preview!), the seven-week miners' strike had just ended and Dirty Harry had just been released in UK cinemas as West Ham United completed a 3-0 win over Huddersfield.
Just a week earlier, Town had beaten the Hammers 4-2 to knock them out of the FA Cup at Leeds Road. The Londoners sought revenge and got it at Upton Park as Clyde Best (pictured below) bagged a brace and 'Pop' Robson the other in front of 18,521, Ron Greenwood's Hammers easing to victory in our last league meeting with the Terriers.
The Hammers went on to finish the 1971/72 season in 14th place, while Ian Greaves' Huddersfield ended up bottom and were relegated. Best was the Irons' top goalscorer with 23 goals from 56 appearances, while Trevor Brooking was voted Hammer of the Year for the first time with Bobby Ferguson runner-up. Derby won the First Division title and Leeds won the FA Cup.
West Ham United: Bobby Ferguson, John McDowell, Tommy Taylor, Bobby Moore, Frank Lampard, Harry Redknapp, Billy Bonds, Trevor Brooking, Geoff Hurst, 'Pop' Robson, Clyde Best.
Club Connections
A small number of players have worn the shirts of both West Ham United and Huddersfield Town. 2008 Hammer of the Year Robert Green has recently joined the Terriers. Others who have represented both clubs include:
Defenders: Dickie Pudan, Archie Taylor, Simon Webster, Elliott Ward, Steve Walford, David Unsworth.
Midfielders: Peter Butler, Diego Poyet, Mark Ward.
Strikers: Dave Mangnall, Jack Foster, George Crowther.
Lou Macari managed both clubs, while Chris Powell played for West Ham and managed Huddersfield. Sam Allardyce played for the Terriers and managed the Hammers.
Today's focus though is on a full-back who played for West Ham in the 1990s and had a loan spell with Huddersfield. Kenny Brown was born on 11th July 1967 in Barking – his father Ken made 474 appearances for the Hammers between 1953 and 1967, winning the FA Cup in 1964 and the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1965. Kenny began his career with Norwich under his father's management in 1986 before moving to Plymouth in 1988. He made over 100 appearances for the Pilgrims before moving to First Division West Ham United in August 1991, initially on loan. The Browns would be the third father-and-son pairing to play for West Ham after Jim Barrett Senior and Junior, and Bill Lansdowne and Billy Lansdowne. They have since been joined by Frank Lampard Senior and Junior, Steve and Dan Potts, John and George Moncur, and Rob and Elliot Lee.
The 24-year-old Kenny made his debut in a 0-0 opening day draw with Luton at Upton Park on 17th August 1991 and scored his first goal for the club in his fourth appearance in a 3-1 win over Aston Villa at Upton Park 11 days later. His move was made permanent for what would become an eventual fee of £235,000. His second goal for Billy Bonds' men was the first West Ham goal I ever saw, in a 2-1 home defeat to Manchester City on 21st September 1991. Kenny had to wait seven months for his next goal but it was one that went down in Hammers folklore – the winner in a 1-0 triumph over Manchester United which helped deny the Red Devils the title and handed it on a plate to Leeds. The Irons' relegation would be confirmed just three days later. Kenny made 33 appearances in all competitions in 1991/92.
Predominantly a right-back but happy to fill in at left-back or in midfield, Kenny made 19 appearances the following season and scored two crucial goals in the promotion run-in. His late long-range strike at Birmingham on 3rd April 1993 sparked a dramatic comeback from 1-0 down to an eventual 2-1 win and he bagged the third in a 3-1 win at Swindon on 2nd May on the penultimate weekend of the season – the Hammers were promoted by virtue of scoring one more goal than nearest rivals Portsmouth.
Kenny found game time hard to come by in the following two seasons, making 12 appearances in each of the 1993/94 and 1994/95 campaigns. Harry Redknapp had taken over from Bonds by the time Kenny scored his last goal in claret and blue, in a 2-0 FA Cup third round win at Wycombe on 7th January 1995 (he is pictured above, celebrating with Alvin Martin). A flurry of loan spells followed – Kenny made five appearances for this evening's opponents Huddersfield in 1995 and also spent time at Reading, Southend, Crystal Palace, Reading again and Birmingham before signing permanently for the Blues in a £75,000 move in January 1997. Kenny's final appearance for West Ham had been in a 1-0 home win over Nottingham Forest on 3rd February 1996. He had made 79 appearances for the Hammers in all competitions, scoring six goals. My video below is a compilation of Kenny's six strikes in claret and blue.
The 29-year-old Kenny quickly realised he had made a mistake in moving to St Andrew's, the club then being owned by David Sullivan and David Gold – he teamed up again with Bonds at Millwall just four months later. His last action in the Football League came at Gillingham, where he spent the final months of the 1998/99 season. Kenny signed for non-league Kingstonian before moving to Ireland with Portadown, then on to Wales with Barry Town. Kenny became player-coach and later manager at Barry, winning the Welsh League and Cup double in consecutive seasons. He resigned after a turbulent change of ownership which saw the club unable to pay its players. Kenny returned to England, signing for Tilbury, and ended his playing days in Spain with Torrevieja, an hour south of Benidorm.
In May 2006, Kenny was appointed Director of Football at Javea, near Alicante, and ran a summer school there with Julian Dicks. Kenny was appointed Dicks' assistant at Grays in September 2009 and was named assistant manager at Concord Rangers in June 2012. Just a month later though, he was appointed Lead Development Coach at Barnet. After a season with the Bees, Kenny moved to Chelmsford to be assistant manager to Dean Holdsworth but departed before Christmas 2013 when Holdsworth left the club. Kenny joined Dagenham and Redbridge as Academy Manager in the summer of 2014, working with the Under-12s to Under-16s. Now aged 50, he is currently Academy Head of Coaching at Millwall.
Referee
Monday's referee is Kevin Friend. The Leicester-based official has been involved in top-flight matches since 2009 and took charge of the Hammers in our historic 3-0 victory at Liverpool in August 2015. He sent off Liverpool's Philippe Coutinho and West Ham's Mark Noble in that match at Anfield, with the latter's dismissal rescinded on appeal.
Friend last took charge of the Hammers in April for our 1-0 home win over Swansea. He is also remembered for the soft penalty he gifted Hull in our 1-0 defeat at the KC Stadium in September 2013 when Joey O'Brien was adjudged to have shoved Robbie Brady. Friend compounded the error by later denying the Irons a clear penalty when Jake Livermore handled in the area. Don't expect much from Friend in the way of handball decisions – he also denied the Hammers a penalty in a match at Everton when Aaron Cresswell's cross was handled by Seamus Coleman.
Possible line-ups
Super Slaven Bilic will be hoping to celebrate his 49th birthday today with three points from this fixture (Happy Birthday Slav). The manager should have Winston Reid, Andre Ayew and Andy Carroll available but Edimilson Fernandes and Manuel Lanzini are injured, while Marko Arnautovic completes his three-match suspension. England's Number One Joe Hart has failed to keep a clean sheet in his last 22 league appearances – a run stretching back to 8th January.
David Wagner could hand debuts to two new signings – right-back Florent Hadergjonaj and attacking midfielder Abdelhamid Sabiri – but forward Collin Quaner has a knee problem and will be assessed. Centre-half Martin Cranie and central midfielder Jonathan Hogg are both likely to miss out through injury. Centre-half Jon Stankovic is a long-term absentee but left winger Rajiv van La Parra should be available.
Possible West Ham United XI: Hart; Zabaleta, Reid, Ogbonna, Cresswell; Kouyate, Obiang, Noble; Antonio, Chicharito, Ayew.
Possible Huddersfield XI: Lossl; Smith, Zanka, Schindler, Lowe; Mooy, Billing; Kachunga, Ince, van La Parra; Mounie.
Enjoy the game – Up The Hammers!
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West Ham vs Huddersfield: Slaven Bilic admits home form is key... and vows 'the quality will come'
West Ham host Huddersffield at the London Stadium on Monday night
Slaven Bilic has highlighted the importance of a home win after a poor start
David Wagner says he has prepared his side for two different playing styles
By Kieran Gill and Mike Whalley For The Daily Mail
PUBLISHED: 22:30, 10 September 2017 | UPDATED: 23:42, 10 September 2017
West Ham host Huddersfield on Monday night looking to pick up their first points of the Premier League season. Slaven Bilic is under increasing pressure following three straight defeats, albeit all away from the London Stadium. Here, Bilic and David Wagner preview the action to come between two sides in contrasting form.
Slaven Bilic in his own words
How can you improve home form from last season?
Home form is the key. You need to get points at home. That's a must. The fans come, and you want to feel at home. This isolated game is doubly important because we have zero points from three away games. So we need the points.
Time to capitalise with three of next four at home?
When we were talking in the beginning about the three away games, we said, "It will get even by the end of September". After seven games, you will come into a normal routine. Home, away, home, away.
Does the London Stadium feel like home?
Last season we didn't start well. Was that because of the stadium? A bit, yes. Every club have difficulties in moving stadiums, especially when moving to big, big arenas. But it wasn't only the stadium. We had 10 injuries. I spoke with the players and the feedback is we want to play at home. We accept the new stadium as a home for us now.
Will Diafra Sakho return after trying to leave?
Diafra wanted to go. That issue is not black and white. Did he have permission on paper or just a form or an SMS? I don't know. The fact is he wanted to go [to Rennes]. He did a medical, but the club decided not to sell him and he's back. I told him, 'Diafra, you are fit, I know what you can do'. 'He looks good in training. He will know that until January he is a West Ham player. That's the way he's going to get a new contract or play again for Senegal or get a move – if he plays good.
So he's in the squad on Monday night?
Probably. He's been training. He flew to Rennes last week, but he's been training since.
Have your players been distracted over the break?
All of our experienced players were here, like (Andy) Carroll, (Mark) Noble, (Winston) Reid. The players who were here, and I contacted the others — we have to go back to basics.
Together, character, chin up, close them down. It is about that and through that the quality will come.
David Wagner in his own words
Did you get a breather during the break?
We did our business before deadline day so I was relaxed. I was in Holland at the beach, but near Amsterdam airport so I [could] fly if something happened.
Will you change your plans to face West Ham?
We only change if the game plan of the opponent changes. Andy Carroll is a different character to Chicharito as a No 9. It only makes sense to prepare your team for two different ideas if the opponent can change his game plan.
Can frustrated West Ham fans work in your favour?
What usually happens at home is more stones on your shoulders from the stands. It doesn't help if you are aware about this but don't make use of it.
How has your life changed in the Premier League?
I have more work to do, especially in the club. We have rebuilt this facility and I am involved in a lot of the decisions. My private life has changed because more people ask for autographs or selfies. This is nothing that I need but it's part of the job and you accept it.
When do you stop being 'little' Huddersfield?
We are a Premier League club, like West Ham. But they work with different numbers. They have a 60,000-capacity stadium, we have a capacity of 25,000. This does not mean we are not ambitious. We have our target on Monday.
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Slaven Bilic hoping for home comforts against Huddersfield as West Ham coach feels the heat
Under pressure, Slaven Bilic knows he cannot afford to see West Ham lose at home to Huddersfield CREDIT: SCOTT HEPPELL /REUTERS
Jason Burt, chief football correspondent
10 SEPTEMBER 2017 • 10:30PM
Telegraph.co.uk
Slaven Bilic has targeted at least six points from West Ham United's forthcoming three Premier League home matches as he attempts to shore up his position as manager.
West Ham face Huddersfield Town at the London Stadium on Monday, their first home match of the season, after three away defeats – and 10 goals conceded – have left them in bottom-place in the Premier League.
Following the crushing defeat away to Newcastle United before the international break, serious consideration was given by the West Ham hierarchy to sacking Bilic who is the final year of his contract at the club and knows he is again under mounting pressure.
At that time, and following talks, it was decided that Bilic would be given four more league matches, until the next international break, to turn things around but if West Ham were to lose to Huddersfield, the Croat – who celebrated his 49th birthday on Sunday - would be in danger of losing his job before then. Ironically, both Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez and Huddersfield's David Wagner are among the managers believed to be admired by the West Ham hierarchy.
"When we were talking in the beginning about three away games, we said, 'It will get even by the end of September'," Bilic said. "After seven games, you will come into a normal routine. Home, away, home, away. We are not targeting like that, like minimum four or seven (points) from the next four games.
"We are looking for a win on Monday night. We are looking. From the next four games we have three home games, and we are looking to win at least two of them. Then we would have a chance in the third one and then we would have a chance in our away game, but that would be good."
Bilic said that West Ham's home form would be the "key" to their prospects. "You need to get the points at home. That's a must," he said. "This isolated game is doubly important because we have zero points from three away games. So we need the points, whether we play home or away now. Home form is the key."
After Huddersfield – who are yet to concede a goal in the top-flight and have made an impressive start to the campaign – West Ham are away to West Bromwich Albion and then at home to Tottenham Hotspur and Swansea City with, also, an EFL Cup tie at home to Bolton Wanderers.
Bilic is aware how precarious his position is with the club's owners having expressed their concerns, also voiced last season, over tactics and training methods. Crucially, though, Bilic retains the full support of the players and has proven in the past that he has the ability to produce results under pressure. He managed to keep West Ham in the Premier League last season, with an 11th place finish, despite the tricky move to their new stadium.
Matters have become more strained following the failure to sign midfielder William Carvalho during the summer transfer window, with West Ham becoming involved in an unseemly row with the Portuguese international's current club, Sporting. That has also put the spotlight back on West Ham's owners and the mood inside the London Stadium on Monday could also have a bearing on Bilic's future.
"I am expecting for us to build from where we stopped last year. I feel, and I spoke with the players, and the feedback is that we want to play on Monday night at home," Bilic said. "We want to play at home. We accept the new stadium as a home for us now. We have to cope with it and mentally we are definitely in a better shape mentally and a win will get us back."
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Last-chance saloon for broken Slaven Bilic... lose against Huddersfield and his West Ham reign could be over
West Ham have not been helped by starting all three matches away from home
But Slaven Bilic must now find a way of beating Huddersfield in do-or-die match
Bilic cannot afford another abject display from his under-performing players
Striker Javier Hernandez needs chances to be created for him on Monday night
By Chris Sutton for the Daily Mail
PUBLISHED: 22:30, 10 September 2017 | UPDATED: 22:30, 10 September 2017
This game is pivotal for Slaven Bilic. The West Ham manager looked a broken man after Newcastle wiped the floor with his team two weeks ago. Bilic wears his heart on his sleeve and you could see the dejection written all over his face. He cannot afford another limp performance on Monday night. Starting with three away games has not been ideal. West Ham were well beaten by a resurgent Manchester United and they showed fight to overturn a two-goal deficit at Southampton, even if they lost. But what concerned me was their indiscipline at St Mary's. Marko Arnautovic was sent off for an elbow and Mark Noble should have been dismissed for a reckless lunge. The record signing and captain are players Bilic should be able to rely upon. There are problems on and off the field. Recruitment has been muddled and there seems to be a disconnect between Bilic and the owners. On the pitch, West Ham look as if they will concede at every attack. It is little wonder they have let in 10 goals, more than any Premier League team so far. There is no doubt that there are goals in Javier Hernandez but he needs chances to be created for him. That will be difficult without the injured Manuel Lanzini on Monday night but the fans will not stand for another abject showing. The performance, as much as the result, could determine Bilic's fate.
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A shot in time: 'The West Ham way' was born in a car park... Harry Redknapp recalls his time as a West Ham apprentice during Hammers glory years
West Ham won two major trophies during the 1960s including an FA Cup and a UEFA Cup winners' Cup
Harry Redknapp recalls his time as a football apprentice playing in the car park of Chadwell Heath
Redknapp says apprentices were responsible for chores such as kit cleaning as well as playing football
He describes the period as the 'beginning of what would be an outstanding West Ham team'
The 1963 FA Cup third round took 65 days to complete due to weather issues, with the final delayed till June
By Michael Walker For The Daily Mail
PUBLISHED: 22:31, 10 September 2017 | UPDATED: 23:43, 10 September 2017
The wet, glistening concrete of a car park on Upton Park forecourt is not one of the places associated with England's World Cup triumph or West Ham United's successful cup runs in the 1960s, but that was where young lads such as Harry Redknapp watched and played with Bobby Moore and learned something they came to understand as 'the West Ham way'. The Hammers won the FA Youth Cup in 1963, the FA Cup in 1964, the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1965 — beating 1860 Munich at Wembley in front of 97,000 — and then in 1966 lost the League Cup final to West Bromwich Albion. They also reached the semi-final of the Cup Winners' Cup in 1966, and some of the preparation for those cup adventures came from the club car park. It made for an unlikely ad hoc training ground but Ron Greenwood, West Ham's coach and a future England manager, was one football man who could see the benefits. 'As apprentice professionals we had to do the chores,' Redknapp has said. 'We trained in the morning and then returned to Upton Park to get the first-team kit ready for the next day. 'The laundry would stink with sweat or be caked in dry mud, but you had to make sure it was washed, dried and rolled up ready for use. After that, we were free, but we were all young and football mad and would often go on to the forecourt for a kickabout. 'That was the beginning of what would be an outstanding West Ham youth team, although Ernie Gregory, the first-team coach, saw us as more of a nuisance. He came out one day and moved us on, told us he had to get home, and we should go home, too. 'When Ron found out he gave Ernie the most frightful bollocking. 'As long as they want to stay out there, as long as they are doing something useful, as long as they are playing football, we'll stay here with them as long as they want,' he said. 'He loved the fact that all his apprentices just wanted to play. We weren't going off down the snooker hall or into the bookmakers, so what was wrong with that? He was a proper football man, Ron.'
Redknapp was a 16-year-old winger in 1964, a member of the youth team which beat Liverpool (including Tommy Smith) a year earlier in a final delayed by extreme weather. The winter of 1963 was so cold the sea froze off the Kent coast, the FA Cup third round took 65 days to complete, the Birmingham City-Bury tie was postponed 14 times and it was close to June when the final was eventually played. It was an unwelcome winter break and West Ham's Chadwell Heath training ground was snowbound. Redknapp wrote in his book, A Man Walked On To A Pitch: 'I remember the terrible winter in 1963, clearing the snow off the forecourt at Upton Park with the rest of the players so we could train. 'Job done, we would play on it for two hours in silly little plimsolls, sliding everywhere.
'These days, the medical staff would have conniptions about the damage you could do to your calf muscles — but nobody knew, or cared about that side of the game then. Even Bobby Moore trained on the forecourt at Upton Park. 'I remember as a junior we had to wait for the main group to finish, sitting inside looking through the steamed up windows because all the training pitches were under snow.'
If those 1963 sessions came through necessity, others came through choice and West Ham were not alone in car park training. At The Cliff in Salford, Manchester United players would regularly end training on the grass with an impromptu kickabout on the gravel. As Eamon Dunphy has written of George Best in the early 1960s: 'Now he wasn't waltzing past clumsy kids on the street, but international footballers in a crowded car park.'
When English football laments its absence of the street footballers of old and the wiry skills they possessed, it can reflect that some of these were learned in car parks with surfaces that burned the skin when players fell. Inevitably, Redknapp can contrast this past with today's Academies. 'These days, if a training pitch isn't like Wembley, the players complain,' he said. 'Modern players moan about everything. They'll walk into a room with £200,000 of equipment and find some fault to pick at — no bananas in the fruit bowl or the temperature isn't right.' Whether a cold, wet car park in 1964 is superior to the manicured West Ham Academy of today is open to debate. The former certainly provided a different form of football education. It served West Ham well.
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Andre Ayew's starting slot under threat ahead of Huddersfield's visit to the London Stadium
Published on: 11 September 2017
GhanaSoccer.net
Andre Ayew could be relegated to the bench for the first time this season with boss Slaven Bilic going all out for three points. The Ghanaian is one of three changes that are likely to be made as Slaven Bilic looks for his first three points of the season. The game will be the first one for the Hammers who have lost all their first three games of the season though it worth mentioning that all have been played away from home. English forward long often injured Andy Carroll has recovered in time and is likely to be tossed in at the expense of the Ghanaian who travelled to Africa for the World Cup qualifiers. Argentine diminutive yet effective midfielder Manuel Lanzine is also likely to start his first game of the season along side hard working Senegalese midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate. The former Swansea forward is in a difficult period but is still expected to be a key part of West Ham United's season. There are reports that Bilic could be fired if he fails to get all the three points on the day.
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WEST HAM MANAGER SLAVEN BILIC PREVIEWS HUDDERSFIELD CLASH
The Mirror
Slaven Bilic wants his troubled West Ham side to get "back to basics" on their return to the London Stadium tonight. The Hammers boss, who turns 49 on Monday, needs the birthday present of a first win of the season against unbeaten Huddersfield to buy more time at the east London club. His out-spoken press conference on Friday – where he contradicted and mocked the co-owners – only increased the pressure on his team to get off off the bottom of the Premier League. West Ham played and lost their first three games away from home because of the World Athletics Championships before a farcical end to the transfer window. Now it is the player's turn to take centre stage and prove they still want the Croat at the club – even if it is not the West Ham way. "It's good to play at home again - the home form is the key," said Bilic. "The players know we have to begin physically, to go back to basics, dig in. Go back to those things like being together, character, chin up, close them down. "It is about that and through that the quality will come. That's what they know, 100 per cent, and that is the most important thing – much more important than the other things. "If you remember in the first season, we had big games for different reasons. The whole of last season was like that, so I'm used to it. We've been there before and we showed that we can cope with it. "We showed in difficult moments we have the quality and the character – as individuals and as a team – to get out of that situation. It means we can do it again this season."
The Huddersfield game is the first of three home games out of four in September which will re-balance the fixture schedule. "We are looking to win at least two of them," Bilic said. Manuel Lanzini is out injured but Diafra Sakho is back in the squad after his aborted move to Rennes "Diafra wanted to go," Bilic said. "Also, that issue is not quite black and white. Did he have permission, permission on paper or just a form or an SMS? I don't know. "The fact is he wanted to go there. Hopefully he is going to stay like for a long time. Because he will know that until January he is a West Ham player. That's the way he's going to get a new contract or play again for Senegal or get a move, if he plays well."
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HUDDERSFIELD FORMATION FUN - THE FORMULA FOR SUCCESS?
By JackSparrow86 10 Sep 2017 at 17:00
WTID
With our first home game of the season approaching, I want to look ahead to what lies beyond the current gloom and start discussing the areas I believe can change our fortunes. The contributors on here have done an excellent job of dissecting our on and off-field issues and these articles have raised a number of poignant discussion topics. Credit to all of the writers for exploring the positives, as well as the negatives, in what has been a turbulent time for everyone involved with West Ham. Hopefully, this article continues that trend and looks ahead to what we can do, rather than behind at what has passed.
So, with that in mind, throw on your manager hats and prepare to critique!
Catalysing change
In my opinion, something radical needs to happen to kick start our season. Against Huddersfield, the manager will have a similar squad to last season (although a lot thinner – sorry, I couldn't help myself) but with two quality first team additions, Hernandez and Zabaleta.
The reason for drawing attention to this is to highlight the lack of freshness in the ranks. Sometimes, the addition of new recruits can inject new life and vigour into a team, but sadly this hasn't been the case for us so far. A big part of this is down to the new players not having long to gel and also not being available at the same time – since Arnautovic's suspension.
While Hernandez has been a breath of fresh air and probably our best player – along with young Declan Rice – his efforts haven't been matched by the majority of the team and they have failed to inject the positivity they deserve.
With the transfer window firmly shut until January, we can all agree that there is no catalyst for change here.
Another area that can bring change is in management. Again, this is an area that has been discussed in great detail but it isn't one I wish to explore in this article. This article is looking at what we can do with what we've got, not what might happen in a speculative and highly unpredictable future.
So, with another area of potential change put aside, where does that leave us?
Tactics and formation
As I stated at the beginning of the article, something radical needs to happen in order to break us out of our current form. In my opinion, the best way to achieve this is to freshen up the formation and tactics.
There are numerous potential benefits to this and in our current form, I can see little downside. After the 3-0 at Newcastle the bar is low and we should take advantage of that.
Of the potential benefits, the following two make the strongest case for change.
1. Change of focus
The players have obviously been working on a 4-2-3-1 formation over the summer and it appears that Bilic is trying to implement a more possession based passing game. For whatever reasons, this hasn't worked (yet) and the players must be losing confidence. Heads drop as soon as we concede and one has to wonder how demoralising this is for the players. Yes, they get paid a lot of money etc but they are human, young and under incredible pressure. We shouldn't underestimate the effect this has and something needs to switch the player's focus away from this and refocus it elsewhere. Learning, implementing and operating in a new system could be a welcome distraction and focus minds on their tasks, rather than the plethora of negative thoughts available at request.
2. Getting the best from the players available
One criticism that I have of Bilic is his tactics, or more specifically his lack of tactical flexibility. Strangely, this is in stark contrast to his first season when he was open to changing formation and tact on a regular basis.
Bilic has become a manager that try's to fit the players to the tactic, rather than creating a tactic that gets the best out of the available players. This became clear with his persistence of the 4-2-3-1, a formation that is heavily reliant on the double pivot shielding the back four. One of these players has to be able to receive the ball under pressure and buy time for the team to transition, with the other player capable of breaking up attacks and sniffing out the danger. One, or ideally both, should have an excellent passing range in order to start counter attacks or sustain pressure when building from the back. With Obiang and Noble's lack of form, moving away from this formation could have helped the team significantly. With full backs playing high up the pitch there is no surprise that we've come under severe defensive pressure and have subsequently conceded so many goals.
Formations
Below I'm going to put a selection of formations and give some reasons as to why they could work. These have all been suggested based on the suitability of the players available for Huddersfield.
4-3-3
This formation keeps Zabaleta in the team and his importance as a leader, along with his experience, could be crucial. This is the only formation of the three that involves him and this is purely based on what I believe to best for the team and formation.
This formation allows us to defend in numbers when needed – dropping into a 4-5-1 – which could be key against a well drilled and organised team. There are also less significant changes in the formation which should ease the transition from the 4-2-3-1 and make the players feel more comfortable. This might not be the radical move we want, but it could be a conservative middle ground.
The risk is that Hernandez gets isolated and the wide men get pinned back. However, Hernandez is remarkably good with his back to goal, considering his height, and with powerful, fast and skilful support on the wings, he shouldn't be isolated for long.
Holland has been brought in to add pace and a fresh mentality. He'll be dying to impress and work his socks off for the team. This can be infectious and the players could gain a lot from this young man, who has been pulling up trees in PL2 team. He also brings some much-needed pace to the side, as well as unpredictability and skill.
3-4-3
This and the following formation are based on playing with three centre backs and two wing-backs. This is why Zabaleta missed out, unfortunately, although I did consider bringing him into centre midfield, which Guardiola did numerous times last season. However, the "square pegs in round holes" argument would be a valid one and maybe it's one risk too many. Also, I can already feel the searing comments of certain patrons on here so I'll leave this one… for now ;)
With the personnel available to us, I believe this to be our best solution. We utilise three centre-backs, allowing us to draft in the experience of Collins or the raw talent of Rice – I've opted for the latter due to his passing range and mobility. It allows our forward-thinking full backs the licence to play higher up the pitch with less risk of them getting caught out of the game. It gives us support for Hernandez upfront and allows us to shield the defence even further at our core with two central midfielders. This also addresses our main weakness this season, conceding opportunities through the centre of the pitch. We force our opposition to play wider and also have enough presence up front to make them think twice about committing too many bodies forward.
The negative aspect of this formation is losing Zabaleta and only being able to play two of Rice, Kouyate, Obiang and Noble in the centre.
3-5-2
This is the riskiest of tactic. The reason for the risk is the potential reward but it does involve a contentious decision – to play Antonio as a wing back – and also relies on the fitness of Andy Carroll. I personally think Antonio plays the wing-back role well when the team hold their shape and discipline. However, I accept it's a risk/reward call. If available, Sakho could also be paired with Hernandez but due to the uncertainty surrounding him, I've opted to leave him out of these examples.
The key in this, for me, is playing our game where our strengths lie. This is on the flanks and not in the centre, where we've been attempting to play. Aside from Hernandez, our best and most threatening attacking talent exists out wide in Antonio. His pace, power and unpredictability can terrorise the opposition and getting him on the ball deeper in our own half gives him more opportunity to get up the pitch quickly and cause problems. Yes, I know he may get caught out once or twice, or more, but the team can be setup to cover this. Obiang, our most defensive minded midfielder, can shadow his side of the pitch and drop in for him as soon as he bolts forward.
Cresswell on the opposite flank offers another outlet and is arguably more comfortable going forward than defending. These players offer us a direct attacking threat, as well as a vital outlet when we're under pressure.
The main negative to this tactic is the risk around Antonio but this is mitigated by the tactical setup of the team and ensuring everyone is on the same page strategically. I think it's a risk worth taking at a time when we need something to happen for us. It also relies on a fit Andy Carroll, which may prevent us starting with it. However, we could if we used Sakho in his place and we could also change to it in the latter stages of the match if Carroll comes on from the bench.
Onwards and upwards
In a testing period for our club on and off the pitch it's time to look forward and find positivity where we can. We are West Ham and that will never change. Fortune may be forever hidden but that will never stop our pursuit of it or our passionate support from the terraces and beyond. In a time of turmoil, positivity can be the catalyst to take us to calmer waters, and that all starts with us, the fans.
Please criticise, discuss and dissect the formations and article to your heart's content as nothing makes me happier than seeing constructive discussions going on about the team, rather than the antics of our board and current situation, that are all sadly beyond our control.
Onwards and upwards – forget he protests and focus that energy on the team, giving all the positivity we've got!
COYI
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