Chicharito: "It was a great goal, but we can not repeat the same mistakes"
WHUFC.com
Javier Hernández did not come out with the best face after the game against Brighton. The defeat of 3-1 embittered the Mexican's gesture despite the fact that, in the first half of the game, he had scored one of the best goals of his career. Despite this, our Chicharito talked with us about the duel at Amex Stadium and many other things. Here your statements.
On the result and the circumstances of the game
"A bittersweet feeling, we can talk about the goal and it was very nice and that a forward gives him a lot of confidence. At that time it was a very important goal because we were down on the scoreboard very quickly and I had that opportunity and thank God I could convert. " "Unfortunately, in the second half the crucial move was their second goal. I think it's one of the best goals of the season. Sometimes, no matter how hard you work, whatever you do, it's impossible to predict those things. Sometimes the quality of the players or some play like that totally changes the game. They knew that it was a goal of those who do not leave every weekend. "
The bad weather and the conditions of the court
"It can affect but it is not an excuse because they could also have been affected. They scored 3 goals, we 1. They defended better, they controlled the match better and we did not. We already know that this is the Premier League, we already know that this is the way it is, with good courts, sometimes the weather does not help, sometimes it helps other rivals but I think that has nothing to do with today's result ".
His situation with the team after the speculation about his departure ...
"As I mentioned, despite what was said, I always try to be a professional and now my head is here 100%, I will dedicate myself to 100 as in all institutions I've been, to save ourselves from the descent, which is the goal we all have, from the coach, the players and all the staff that works in the club. We want to save ourselves and we will do everything possible to do it. Now we have to prepare this week for the game against Watford a very complicated opponent, who changed coach and we will see how it goes. "
How to face a fight against the descent that seems very similar?
As we have faced it up to now. I do not remember if last week or two weeks ago we got to be in the 10th place, in the middle of the table practically. So, this is so, you can have two bad results and you are down, you can have two very good results and you are up. This is how it will be. We obviously want to be more consistent, which is obviously the key to saving us as soon as possible and not reaching the last days suffering.
Coach David Moyes said the team had not generated enough opportunities for you , do you think the same?
I do not like to talk about myself. Obviously, I do not think West Ham has anything else to play for a striker, for me or anyone. The reality is that many things were missing, one of them, obviously, that we practically did not have any arrival in the second time, but I think that nothing else was that, it was a set of circumstances that we have to pay attention to next week to work them well and not repeat them against Watford.
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Talented goalkeeper Matrevics aiming to stand tall for the Academy
WHUFC.com
Rihards Matrevics is a difficult person to miss. Although he is just 18-years-old, the goalkeeper towers over, well, just about everyone else at West Ham United.
He has been with the Hammers since 2015, but Matrevics' height is still cause for team bonding. "I'm 6'7" which, I think, makes me the tallest person at West Ham!" he laughs. "To be honest, I thought the lads would be used to it by now but they still give me banter about it every now and then."
The Latvian is softly spoken, despite his imposing frame, but there is excitement in his voice when asked about his debut for the Hammers' U23s earlier this campaign. Matrevics was given the nod to play against Leicester City in Premier League 2 Division 1 in September – an experience the shot-stopper will never forget. "To get the nod in that game was incredible. What made it especially great was that the match was played at the King Power Stadium – the ground where Leicester had arguably the best-ever Premier League season. "To be able to stand there and play in a place with so much history – I'll never forget it. Of course, the result, losing 3-1, was disappointing but it was an amazing experience. I want more of those memories."
Standing in Matrevics' path to regular U23 football is England U20 goalkeeper Nathan Trott, who has made the place in Terry Westley's team his own in recent months. Matrevics knows he has a fight on his hands to prise the starting spot from Trott, but recognises that he and his colleague can improve through the competition between the two of them. "Nath is a really good guy and a very talented goalkeeper. He's great to train with as well. The standard is always high in our sessions and we help each other focus. "Obviously, we know we're both fighting to play for the U23s and to progress through the Academy, but it's a healthy competition and we make each other better because of it."
An international player himself for Latvia U19s, Matrevics has featured between the sticks since the age of ten, and names the legendary Italian Gianluigi Buffon – who was a part of the Juventus side that played in the official opening of London Stadium in 2016 – as his all-time hero. "I look up to Buffon, mainly because of the way he bravely attacks crosses. But he also has a sense of calm about him that I would love to bring into my game. Maybe it's his experience, but he's been one of the best for so long."
Emulating Buffon is some way off, though, and Matrevics' more immediate aim is to help the Hammers climb off the bottom of the U18 Premier League South table. "I want to help get the U18s higher up the table and break the spell of bad results. I'm hopeful some good performances might get me another chance in the U23s as well. "The Club has helped me improve a lot over the last three years. This season has been a test for our character but I'm hopeful we can finish the year strong."
Should he do that, Matrevics may soon be gaining the attention his giant frame deserves.
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MONDAY'S NEWS ROUND UP: OBIANG OUT FOR THE SEASON, CRESS URGES SQUAD TO STICK TOGETHER, HERNANDEZ UP FOR THE FIGHT
AUTHOR: DAN CHAPMAN. PUBLISHED: 5 FEBRUARY 2018 AT 4:42PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Hello everyone. Here is what has been in the news regarding the Hammers today:
Pedro Obiang is set to miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery on a knee injury sustained in last month's defeat to Wigan. (Evening Standard)
This goes to show just how badly we needed to sign another midfielder in the January transfer window. We knew that Obiang was potentially out for the season, but yet again the board have left us in a bad position.
Michail Antonio has told the West Ham squad to ignore the unrest around the club. (Evening Standard)
I do find it quite ironic that Antonio is the one to say this, but he still has a point. The players need to remain focused on the pitch, and I am sure that they will be.
Aaron Cresswell has urged the West Ham players to stick together after the 3-1 loss to Brighton at the weekend. (Sky Sports)
I agree with Cress. The boys need to stay together and get us out of trouble, because that is the most important thing for us this season. I am sure the boys will stick together, and I believe that they and David Moyes will guide us away from trouble.
David Sullivan says that West Ham had a £25million bid rejected for Stoke midfielder Joe Allen on transfer deadline day last week. (90 min)
West Ham are interested in signing Porto duo Yacine Brahimi and Vicente Aboubakar in the summer. (The Sun)
I am refusing to believe any transfer rumours from now on, purely because we just know that we will only be left disappointed. The board simply do not care about us progressing as a club, as they will not spend the money to sign any top players.
Javier Hernandez insists he is ready for a relegation battle, and will give his everything for the cause. (90 min)
Javier has picked up a bit of form recently, and we need him to keep it up. We have Arnie and Lanzini coming back soon to give us more attacking threat, and hopefully they will give us some fight and fire us to safety.
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WHO THE F*** IS VALON BEHRAMI?
AUTHOR: EXWHUEMPLOYEE. PUBLISHED: 5 FEBRUARY 2018 AT 8:30PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Written by @farehamhammer
"I hope Hugill crashes his car on the way to his medical "was probably the worst of the negative crap spouted about Jordon Hugill. There were loads of the sneering "next level" and "Sullivan special" jibes as well. Without even having seen him play, many are writing the former barman off. This, is the same Jordon Hugill who Roy Hodgson, a shrewd judge of a footballer, tried to sign for Crystal Palace. The same Jordon Hugill, who Harry Redknapp said, was a handful and had the makings to do well at West Ham. It is a myth that Hugill is a "Sullivan special". David Moyes has deep rooted connections at Preston North End, he no doubt took soundings about the player, as well as scouted him personally, liked what he saw and signed him. We have got to trust our manager! Not good enough? Seen him play? Of course, the doubters haven't! The real reason for the negative attitude towards the player is, because he is British and plying his trade in The Championship.
A few years ago, I went to watch our pre-season friendly against Southampton at St Marys, we had just signed Valon Behrami from Lazio for 5.5 million. Believe you me I follow a lot of football, but I freely admit, I'm not someone like @RockyWhu who is a virtual footballing encyclopaedia. I'm sitting in my seat before kick off when the lad next to me shouts: "We have signed Valon Behrami!" I turned to him and said: "Who the f*** is Valon Behrami?" It was like a boxer being caught cold! He, didn't have a bloody clue! If, you look on twitter you would think that nearly everyone is a 'expert' on foreign players! No, they are not. A leak will suddenly appear about a player been linked to a Club. Sometimes a player has no intention of leaving his Club, but just looking for a better deal. The players agent will then use another Club's alleged interest to secure that deal.
The next thing you know social media is on fire, with everyone claiming that this or that player is class, just what we need to take us to the next 'level'. Reality being that few people have seen enough of a player to have a sound opinion of a player. More than half hop on to YouTube have a look at a player's best highlights and think, WOW this or that player is MUSTARD we MUST sign him! I, hold my hands up, I did it with Julian Faubert. Sadly, YouTube does not show anyone the worst of a player. There have been many wonderful talents from foreign shores, who have graced the beautiful game in this country. Players, better technically and far better skill wise than our own, players who have played the game the way Ron Greenwood always envisaged it should be played, with beauty and intelligence.
But in latter years a lot of players have arrived on these shores with great reputations and costing big money. Players who have not settled or have simply not been good enough. Players costing between £25-£30m. Six months later they are either loaned out or sold to someone else if lucky. Otherwise they are kept on your wage bill earning 60,000 per week for doing nothing, crippling clubs financially. Then people wonder why the transfer window was so quiet this month- it's not just a West Ham thing! There is an ever-decreasing pool of talent worldwide, for a variety of reasons: Smaller families, kids have a whole variety of attractions. Children everywhere are far likely to be found on Facebook than kicking a ball around. You CAN still pick up a bargain in Europe and elsewhere, but it is much harder to do so.
Obviously, the transfer window was not a great success. BUT there were aspects that pleased me. First, off Moyes gave the kids a chance and most were found wanting. Football is a brutal game as Toni Martinez found out, now back in Spain and highly unlikely to be back. The, big plus about this window has been this: As long as David Moyes is manager of West Ham United we will not see Sullivan 'specials'. Cheap South American imports from the likes of Barry Silkman or Mark Mackay specials. A striker signed from Brazil's third division, who has scored 63 goals in 80 matches. The days of bum of the month is over believe you me. You heard what Moyes said: "No lucky dips" If Sullivan and the rest doubted him, they will have got the message by now. We have a strong and principled manager, who is more than capable of standing up to The Board.
I would have liked to have seen us get a couple more quality players in this transfer window. But at the same time, I am glad we did not sign absolute dross. Indeed, it is a mouth-watering prospect thinking of João Mário, Lanzini and Arnautovic on the same pitch. I am equally happy to trust our managers judgement, on the young and bustling Jordon Hugill. A player who was so happy to sign for us, on the pitch more than capable of keeping opposition defences busy, allowing the likes of Hernandez to feed off the scraps. Stay, away from West Ham? G&S killed our Club? No and No, we support and back the team! Not the Owners! Neither, can they kill The Club. WE ARE THE CLUB! It's in the blood! No one can kill that! As our song would have it: Just like our dreams they fade and die. Many a time our dreams have indeed died. But that has not stopped us coming back for more. And it never will.
We are more than a football Club, we're are a way of life!!
COYI!!
Farehamhammer!!
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Moyes to depart at end of season
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 5th February 2018
By: Staff Writer
David Moyes will almost certainly leave West Ham at the end of the season whether the club remain in the Premier League or not. According to an article by Matt Law in the Telegraph, West Ham will almost certainly seek a new manager at the end of the season regardless of how the remainder of the current campaign pans out. And Rafa Benitez, who has been on David Sullivan's hit list for the last three or four seasons is considered hot favourite to be offered the position - although former Hull and Watford boss Marco Silva, who is currently out of work, is also a candidate.
Moyes, who has improved the team's fortunes to a certain degree since succeeding the Slaven Bilic last November has steadfastly refused to talk about his future since joining West Ham. Having failed to impress at Manchester United and Real Sociedad, both of whom fired him with 12 months of taking the job, Moyes was widely considered to be drinking at the last chance saloon when he joined Sunderland - from whom he resigned after failing to keep them in the Premier League last season. His position at West Ham was therefore widely considered to be his last opportunity to impress as a top-flight manager.
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I made £25m deadline day bid, claims Sullivan
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 5th February 2018
By: Staff Writer
Under fire David Sullivan claimed this morning that he made a transfer deadline day bid for Stoke midfielder Joe Allen. The co-chairman, who is facing a supporter revolt with fans set to march in their thousands against the Board next month told Sky Sports and Talksport presenter Jim White that he made the huge bid for the Welsh international - an offer that was rejected by his club. White, who met Sullivan at Brighton on Saturday also revealed that the 68-year-old had appealed to the fanbase for unity - though as several fans pointed out in reply, the fans appear more united presently than they have been for some considerable time due to their collective opposition to the current regime. The Talksport and Sky presenter was widely criticised by West Ham supporters last week for suggesting Sullivan and his co-chairman David Gold has been "jostled" by supporters following the FA Cup defeat at League One Wigan.
The fans are unified - we want him and @davidgold and @karren_brady gone. No doubt you asked him about the lies ; the failures in the transfer windows ; where the money has gone ; the undermining of our own players ; why we moved to an athletics stadium. You being a journalist??
— Simon Brown (@si_brow) February 5, 2018
White's comments were followed by another slur on West Ham's travelling supporters by fellow Sky anchor Kaveh Solhekol, who claimed that it was "unacceptable for owners to be treated this way", adding that Sullivan and Gold were "doing all they can" to arrest West Ham's disintegration.
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Sullivan: unity is the key to our success
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 5th February 2018
By: Staff Writer
Co-chairman David Sullivan has called for fans to 'unite' behind the team for the remainder of the campaign. The under-pressure co-owner appealed to supporters today just a matter of hours after it was revealed that a supporters' action group had raised almost £25,000 for an anti-Board march next month. Speaking in a statement read out by Board-friendly Sky Sports and Talksport presenter Jim White on his radio show this morning, Sullivan implored fans to get behind the team instead of continuing with anti-Board chanting - as was heard loud and clear at Brighton on Saturday. "Chants of 'sack the board' and opposition to myself and co-owner David Gold will achieve nothing," said a belligerent Sullivan in the statement. "I ask the supporters, every one of them: get behind the team. "Through unity we can turn it all around. We don't want to find that a disappointing season has turned into a disastrous one."
Sullivan's request did appear however to largely fall on deaf ears - with callers to White's radio show united in their condemnation of Sullivan and his fellow Board members.
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The Sound and the fury
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 5th February 2018
By: HeadHammerShark
"What happened to ya?
We were one of a kind"
- Ian Brown, "What Happened to Ya? Pt 1"
This article started life as a match report of the game between West Ham and Crystal Palace. That was in January when life was simple and we were a top half team. Then circumstance took over and it has morphed somewhat. Of course, things were different back then. West Ham wasn't a racist club. People at the club seemed aware that we needed new players. Han Solo was Harrison Ford.
But so much has gone under the bridge that as I tried to write this piece I felt like a man using an umbrella to try and catch a fish; wholly unsuited to the task and unable to keep up. I've been abroad with no access to this account so I couldn't post up this piece, and yet with every passing hour it mattered less because the content was rendered obsolete by further developments. I honestly didn't think a club could dissemble this quickly without Mike Ashley being involved.
And now all we hear is sound, and every where we turn is fury. All of which leads inexorably to one simple question:
What has happened to my club?
What. Has. Happened. To. My. Club?
Perhaps it has always been this way. Maybe when other fans were telling us that we were their second team, they weren't simply saying it because of our helpful tendency to play nice football and at the same time roll over for them. I'm now wondering if that faint praise and those half smiles merely disguised a sense of being thankful that it wasn't them. Not for them the constant threat of humiliation and embarrassment. That was our sole preserve.
It is the lot of football club owners that fans will generally always hate them. Supporters place no limit on our ambition, and demand that owners follow our lead. But they are bound by such inanities as money and overdrafts and cashflows and rules and the realities of trying to keep such febrile businesses afloat. I don't doubt that running a football club properly is a job that demands high levels of skill and competence, perhaps outstripping a regular business because those enterprises do not come under such high levels of public scrutiny over every single decision they take.
Next Level
But is anyone still labouring under the misapprehension that West Ham is a well-run football club? Surely even those who refuse to see anything wrong with our leadership so long as they make the crossed Hammers can't call me a Quisling for suggesting that they could be doing their basic tasks a little better than they currently are?
It is February and with the team bereft of fit players due to our annual injury crisis, the Board have allowed five players to leave the squad and brought just two in. They have made our squad smaller at a time when our Premier League place is not remotely secure and when our medical staff appears to be unable to stem the constant flow of injured players. And yet all of that garden variety incompetence doesn't even make the top three things they fucked up most on deadline day.
No, instead we have other crises to manage, namely the insinuation from our (newly minted) Head of Transfers, Tony Henry, that we no longer wished to purchase African players and then the revelation that Leicester will simply not do business with us due to some inane public comments from Karren Brady in her Sun column.
The beauty of this is that at the same time Henry was allegedly emailing out this "club policy" about African players to agents, the deal that was scuppered with Leicester was for the Algerian forward, Islam Slimani. We apparently can't even be racist properly.
And so it came to pass that West Ham fans must once again ponder why our club should always be so different. All fans love to feel they are hard done by, but telling people you support West Ham nowadays invokes an involuntary sense of sympathy from fellow supporters. They might not know the intimate details - the failure to qualify for the League Cup semi final because we forgot a player was cup tied, the requirement to pay Sheffield United £30m+ for the Tevez saga despite their being no legal grounds for it, the record signings who get injured on debut, the homesick player from Oxford, the preternatural gift for identifying soon to be bankrupt sponsors - but in a way, that doesn't matter. In the style of the Trump White House, it has ceased to be relevant what the drama is so long as there is some drama to distract fans.
We have been overwhelmed by a cavalcade of uselessness.
***
"We got to pump the stuff to make us tough,
From the heart"
- Public Enemy, "Fight the Power"
Before all of this happened we actually took a break from causing incredulity and played a game of football. That seems like a quaint nod to a bygone era now, like MTV playing a music clip or Government ministers being competent, and yet it does actually remain the primary activity of West Ham United.
Crystal Palace were in town and they arrived with a fair wind behind them. Since Roy Hodgson took over, they have been surging, with their results finally catching up to the underlying analytics which have suggested all season that they were a good team underperforming.
With the squad decimated, Moyes was forced to improvise and so we saw Pablo Zabaleta deployed into midfield and new signing Joao Mario given licence to roam widely in support of the lone striker, Chicharito, and both did all we could have asked of them. Historically the Mexican has been incapable of performing that role but here he battled and worked and generally did everything that he could to hold back the tide. Behind him Mark Noble and Cheikhou Kouyate stepped manfully into the breach and combined with Zabaleta to take the fight to the visitors, and if we were somewhat fortunate to be on level terms at half time, that engine room drove us forward to a surprisingly progressive second half display.
Legend
I have latched on to Noble somewhat on recent weeks, as a kind of emotional life raft in the roiling sea of being a West Ham supporter. Because the owners are so rarely incapable of projecting a positive image of our club, we are forced to look elsewhere for things to be proud about and Noble couldn't be making me prouder right now.
Forget the longevity and the fact he is a Hammers fan, because those things are nice but they aren't all that relevant. Instead focus on the way he cares. Focus on how he carries himself. Focus on how he represents our club on and off the pitch. As a footballer Noble is having his own resurgence as his experience and ever excellent technical ability allows him to continue controlling games from the middle of the park. But off the pitch he is also everything that this club is supposed to be. He is devoted to his community and an exemplar of how to treat others and give something back to the people who make up West Ham United, whether it's through his soccer schools or his housing project or just the simple ability to talk about football fans with a scintilla of empathy.
At a moment when those who lead our club off the pitch routinely make me ashamed, Noble and his footballing brothers have found a way to restore my faith in the badge by what they do between the lines (you're probably correctly guessing here that this bit was written pre-Brighton). Here they were, battered and tired and with their numbers depleted by boardroom incompetence and yet they more than matched a tough opponent. It hasn't always been the case, but when you take a step back and view this match as dispassionately as possible, our players did us proud.
Supporting Noble was Kouyate, who suffered a nasty head injury early on and returned as the second coming of Ian Bishop. He suddenly found a passing range, and began dominating the game in a way I haven't seen him do before. His astute pass found Chicharito just before half time, from which he and Mario fashioned a chance which was only interrupted by a James Tomkins foul.
Penalty. Noble. You knew he wouldn't let us down.
In the context of what was to later be revealed, it was stirring to see the return of Kouyate to his best form. We need his rangy athleticism and ability to, well, cause mayhem from central midfield in the absence of our more artisanal forwards. How ironic that our best ever African player should be so instrumental in leading the team to this crucial point.
Mario looked lost to start but grew into a physical and frenetic game that saw possession routinely coughed up by both sides with startling frequency. The Portuguese conjured a lovely pass to free Chicharito for the penalty and generally looked the kind of quick-witted, intelligent footballer who will link beautifully with Manuel Lanzini and Marko Arnautovic if they are ever all fit at the same time. I also enjoyed that his first touch involved him dribbling straight out of play while Moyes looked on, bemused. Levity amid the gloom.
But the true calling card of Moyesian football seems to be the ability to construct a rock solid defence from the softest of materials. Here he was shorn of yet more bodies and he merely shrugged and rearranged the deckchairs to keep the Titanic afloat. So Aaron Cresswell went back out wide and reminded us all that he crosses with the consistency of a chicken on a High Street, and in came eighteen year old Declan Rice to the middle of the back three and nobody really batted an eyelid. Palace helped us out there somewhat, by channelling almost all their attacking play through the electric Wilfried Zaha. The Ivorian is one of those players who makes you inch forward involuntarily when he gets the ball, even as you're encouraging Sam Byram to kick him. And to be fair, Byram did, repeatedly.
But generally we swarmed Zaha when he got the ball and on the one occasion that Palace didn't go through him, Andros Townsend surged to the byeline and crossed for Christian Benteke to head the opening goal. Had they done this a little more often we might have had a tougher evening, but as it was the visitors were indebted to Wayne Hennessey for a terrific save from a second half Chicharito header to keep things level. A point was, all things considered, a pretty fair result.
And then we went to Brighton, and I didn't see that game because I was overseas and sometimes you just have to be grateful that the Universe has been kind to you.
***
"You thought I was cheap, you were the sale of the century,
Creased ourselves up on the way down"
- Sleeper, "Sale of the Century"
And so as we all drifted away through the thin sheen of rain that covered the stadium like mist, the talk turned to the transfer deadline. They've got to do something, we thought. Kudos to Moyes and the boys for that performance, we all thought, but now they need help.
Of course, I should say that such thoughts go against the grain for me. I don't like David Sullivan buying anyone because he doesn't understand football, but I particularly don't like him buying anybody in January because he doesn't seem to understand footballing economics either. So, after a history that includes Mido, Benni McCarthy, Robert Snodgrass and Nene, and public commentary from both Sullivan and Brady that they considered these transfers as failures, it felt natural that we should want the club to sit this window out. After all, they couldn't make any stupid decisions if they didn't make any decisions.
But the other hallmark of the club in recent years has been the chronic failure to keep our playing staff fit. Whatever the club is doing in this regard is not working and it tends to have an overwhelmingly negative impact on the handwritten scrawl on the back of a lottery ticket that our owners laughably call our business plan.
Not only do we drop points due to the weakened sides we constantly have to field, but it has caused the Board to act rashly in trying to plug the gaps. Hence they spent £10m of this summer's budget on Snodgrass when they really only needed him for a few games to cover a player shortage last January, and now they can't even recall him from Aston Villa to do the same this year.
A poor signing, treated poorly
But what was different last year was the context of our league position and the fact that we were just about to emerge from our injury crisis. We enjoyed a brief revival to lift us up the table and by the time that Fonte and Snodgrass arrived it was already pretty evident that we were not going to be relegated. Thank God for Sunderland.
But this year is different, with a whole glut of similar teams all scrabbling around for the same few points, and our playing resources likely to be paper thin for a while yet. As it happens, I think Moyes gives us an advantage over those other teams, but our injuries have reduced his options to the point that we couldn't name a full substitutes bench at Huddersfield. This was not a window in which to suddenly decide to keep our powder dry, and such inertia could prove fatal. Sullivan has taken a huge risk.
And so it was that we came limping into the deadline having failed to do anything beyond add Joao Mario on a loan and Jordan Hugill from Preston North End. I have no issue with the purchase of Hugill, particularly as he has come from Preston and will have been properly scouted by Moyes and Alan Irvine as a result. In a time when English clubs are awash with money, and previously unheralded overseas leagues are churning out good players at higher rates than ever, it is entirely possible that divisions like the Championship and the Scottish Premier League are once again the best place to get value for money. And lest we forget, Cresswell, Michail Antonio and Dele Alli all came from somewhere.
Hugill is perhaps a little older than we might like, at twenty five, but he should know his own game and has already demonstrated a considerable amount of fortitude in rising from the Glen Hoddle Academy to the Premier League. In a team with our problems, I see no issue with adding a player prepared to run himself into the ground, and if he fails, then he is young enough to be resold in a year or two for some sort of return. He is, in that sense, the very antithesis of Benni McCarthy.
Tattoo sleeve, beaming smile. You'll do, son, welcome aboard
The problem with the signing is not with the player but the context. With Diafra Sakho finally gone, and scoring against PSG immediately, we were already light up front. Thus the sale of Andre Ayew for £18m was baffling on a number of levels.
Ayew is, by my estimation, the only footballer under thirty whose value has dropped in the last two years. At a time when Moussa Sissoko costs £30m and £20m is an opening offer for pretty much every Premier League player, we are once more selling our players into a totally different market then we buy from. This is the problem when we feel the need to offer such astronomical wages to attract players to West Ham in the first place. While the owners might think that having the thirteenth largest wage bill in Europe is a sign of ambition, most others see it as a sign of chronic inefficiency and it makes players very hard to shift without reducing their transfer fees drastically. We have fallen into the age old trap of paying players for what they have done elsewhere rather than what they will do for us. Say what you will about Hugill, he will earn his money through his performances in claret and blue. Ask yourself if that could really be said about Joe Hart.
So off went Ayew, Sakho, and Toni Martinez and if anything happens to Chicharito on Saturday then we go to Liverpool with our line being led by Preston's striker. It's a curious time to be alive, no?
***
"How could it ever come to pass? She'll be the first, she'll be the last
To describe the way I feel"
- The Stone Roses, "She Bangs The Drums"
All of which is skirting around the main issue, which can be simply laid out in the question I asked above, namely "What the hell is happening to my club?"
Rumours have swirled around for days now about why we are losing players when we need to add them and why we would be apparently offering ludicrously low amounts to try and pry players away. Those rumours range from the owners asset stripping in preparation for a sale to both HMRC and criminal investigations into our transfers, via a massive cashflow issue to straight up incompetence - the latter still being my best guess.
I understand that transfers are complex and hard to get done, but so are brain surgeries and you don't get to have a go at them because you bought a private hospital. Fans are furious, and while that might not always have a basis in rational thought, I happen to agree that if nothing else, we deserve better than we are currently getting. We shouldn't kid ourselves that our reputation was glittering when they took over, but we were promised that with Karren Brady and her ultra professional stewardship we could look forward to a rehabilitation of our public image.
Instead, they have stumbled from crisis to crisis, stopped off to get into a slanging match with Sporting Lisbon, fallen out with their own players, while slating some we haven't even bought and topped all that by alienating the entire taxpaying population of the country. It might wind us all up, but Jack Sullivan's Twitter account is pretty small beer.
Goodbye
On 10 March the Real West Ham Fans Group are planning to march on the Club, and while I don't really agree with the action I understand it wholly. The burning sense of frustration that is searing through the West Ham support has been grossly underestimated by those in the boardroom. "Wait until the next transfer window" might suffice for the apparently tepid self examinations that pass for Board meetings but that is no comfort to fans driving back from Wigan into a howling gale and wondering why they just surrendered their Saturday for a club that can't help but give off the signal that it despises them.
And now.
Now somehow we have plumbed new depths. Tony Henry's comments made his position untenable. He may have been stitched up by the Mail, the last bastion of anti-racism, but his apparent confusion about why his comments were a problem didn't show that he wasn't being racist, but instead showed that he didn't understand how he was being racist. That's not the same thing. Our club, the first English top flight team to have three black players, does not need such people in it's employ.
And what it all highlights is the total shambles that is our corporate governance. Henry doesn't want African players but we still try and loan Slimani on deadline day. He doesn't think Russian players settle very well in England and still we try to get Fyodor Smolov until the player calls it off because he thinks his club are being lowballed.
Best of all is Henry's concern about how well Italian players adapt when our player of the season so far is literally an Italian of African descent. When Cheikhou Kouyate posts an Instagram picture with the caption "African and Proud" then the club must surely understand that this is beyond their agency to stage manage. You don't get to tell people how they feel. Henry is gone, but significant questions remain.
Ade Coker (and Clyde Best and Clive Charles). Heroes - let's learn our own history
And as an aside, perhaps if the club properly celebrated men like Clyde Best, Ade Coker and Clive Charles a little more obviously, instead of constantly regaling us with tales of a team who finished third, then their employees and fans might be a little more attuned to the relevance of racism in our history. And yes, I realise being black is not the same as being African, but I think we're in the same territory here.
Overriding all of that is the concern about who else knew about Henry's "policy" and why he was talking to the press without apparent supervision. As the lads at Hammers Chat pointed out, Sullivan has been keen to play up links to Henry in the past:
That's vague enough to allow Sullivan to say he was unaware, but if he was then it really doesn't reflect well on a structure that can allow such activity from a senior employee to go unnoticed. This, of course, is the problem with an owner who only wants association with successful transfers. There is a huge hole where a proper, functioning Sporting Director or Director of Football would sit. And you all know where I'm going with that.
As for Karren Brady and her inane column in The Sun, I remain confused as to why this is even a thing. Sullivan's assertion that he would have to pay her more if he didn't let her go off and write for Murdoch, shill for Alan Sugar, help out Philip Green and sit in the House of Lord's doesn't really hold up to scrutiny when she's getting £900,000 a year from us.
Either way, our Karren sure can pick her business associates.
I wonder what Brady's own position would be if a West Ham employee cost the club a transfer due to an artless thought posted online or in a newspaper. I suspect they'd be gone before they could yell "what about slapping women?" through the window.
I've defended Brady many times because I think she is criticised primarily by a lot of West Ham because she is a woman, and for no other reason. In this case, she cannot be defended. Her desire for fame seems to outstrip her desire to do a good job for us. That's a problem.
Which brings us back to that march by the Real West Ham Fans group. As I mentioned, I don't particularly agree with this initial course of action, because it feels like dropping a nuclear bomb as your opening gambit, but that's up to them. I also can't help but concede that they are probably right to think this is the best way to motivate change. But it's a specific problem for the board now. They are toxic and their constant failures are magnified by the media storm they insist on creating around the club. The problem when you're so desperate for attention is that you don't get to duck out when that attention is negative. Where we once went for the Cearns Family and Terry Brown, now it is the current owners, and once that particular rock starts rolling it will be nearly impossible to stop.
I don't want to reach the position where the owners and their families are being abused at games, but it's also possible to see why fans don't feel they have any choice but forceful protest. All of the purported fan engagement ideas of the last few months have led nowhere meaningful. The club is still run disastrously, and we are regressing at an alarming rate. A change has to come. It has to.
I would call once again for the owners to step back and disappear from the spotlight. Hire a Director of Football and give that person carte blanche to modernise the Club. Send the Sullivan boys to German clubs where they can learn their trade at the cutting edge, and not by serving coffee in our club cafe, if it truly is the intention that they are going to one day run this club.
Have Karren Brady reduce her extra curricular efforts and focus her energies on West Ham as a community enterprise. Let's see her turn those formidable talents that we hear so much about and see so little of, to endeavours that matter to fans - Isla's Fight would be an easy cause to pick up and gain ground with fans, so too the long term funding for the Supporters Club, or engaging with WHUISA on all sorts of fan matters. She might argue that she does that already and I might argue that I wouldn't know because I only ever hear about her doing things that are nothing to do with my club.
And that, after all, is what this is all about. This club will endure because it always has, but I find it hard to grasp how badly our owners are currently letting us down. When a player can walk over to the travelling support after a defeat at a promoted club and ask where the money has gone, you know things are bad. The manager deserves scrutiny too, of course, especially as we seem incapable of defending against weaker sides, but the backdrop to all of this seems to be a boardroom culture of incompetence that is suffocating all else inside the club.
So, back to my question, because we are running out of time to get a satisfactory answer.
What is happening to my club?
Please note that the opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, nor should be attributed to, KUMB.com.
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Action group appeal smashes target
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 5th February 2018
By: Staff Writer
The Real West Ham Fans Action Group justgiving fundraiser has reached its £20,000 target - just four days after going live. The strength of depth of anti-Board feeling amongst West Ham supporters has been demonstrated by response to the appeal fund, which smashed through its target figure at the weekend - just four days after the campaign began. And at time of writing, the appeal had topped £24,000 - with almost 1,500 supporters having contributed financially to the group's appeal for donations.
RWHFAG have since announced that they are planning to protest against the Board on 10 March. The short walk from Stratford to the Olympic Stadium is expected to be supported by several thousand West Ham supporters of all ages. The peaceful march is being organised in conjunction with the Metropolitan Police, with the safety of those expected to attend paramount. In addition to a Police presence, Boleyn Ground stewards - many of whom lost their jobs when the club moved from Upton Park - are being asked to marshall the event.
It has also been confirmed that any funds remaining after the march has taken place will be redirected towards Isla's Fund.
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Pedro Obiang set to miss rest of West Ham's season after undergoing knee surgery
Last Updated: 05/02/18 12:16pm
SSN
West Ham midfielder Pedro Obiang is set to miss the rest of the season after undergoing knee surgery, according to Sky sources. The 25-year-old suffered medial ligament damage following a tackle from Wigan midfielder Max Power in the Hammers' 2-0 FA Cup fourth-round defeat at the DW Stadium last month. Obiang underwent surgery on the injury at the weekend and is now set for a lengthy period of time on the sidelines. In the immediate aftermath of the match on January 27, David Moyes said: "Pedro looks as if he's got a medial knee ligament, we will have him sent for a scan to tell us exactly what's wrong."
Prior to the injury, Obiang had featured 26 times for West Ham this season, scoring twice, including a spectacular long-range strike against Tottenham at Wembley.
West Ham are without a win in their last four games in all competitions and suffered a 3-1 defeat to Brighton on Saturday to leave themselves three points above the relegation zone.
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Karren Brady confirms West Ham are not affected by latest London Stadium athletics event
The Hammers vice chairman was asked about the latest event to take place in E20
Football London
BySam Inkersole
West Ham Correspondent
18:00, 5 FEB 2018
West Ham vice-chairman Karren Brady has said the World Cup of Athletics will not mean the Hammers will be unable to use their home ground for the first few weeks of next season. The new athletics event was announced to be held on July 14 and 15, a little less than a month before the start of the 2018/19 Premier League season, which is due to kick off on the weekend of August 11/12. A week after the world cup event, the London Stadium will also play host to the IAAF Diamond League meeting in the capital, which means some of the seating will need to be taken out of the arena so the running track can be exposed. Brady was asked on Twitter if the club will be playing their first few games of next season away from E20 once again as a result of the new event coming in and the vice-chairman responded, as you can see below.
Lady Karren Brady
✔
@karren_brady
Thanks for the tweet I can confirm that the entire stadium will be back in full football mode by 1st August &WHU fixtures take priority. For the IAAF - the contract to host that tournament was signed before we signed our agreement, so that was the only exception to priority rule https://twitter.com/themadduck/status/960515151488339970 …
3:31 PM - Feb 5, 2018
113 113 Replies 17 17 Retweets 53 53 likes
In her tweet, Brady said: "I can confirm that the entire stadium will be back in full football mode by 1st August and WHU fixtures take priority. For the IAAF - the contract to host that tournament was signed before we signed our agreement, so that was the only exception to priority rule." At the start of this current campaign, the Hammers were forced to play their first three games of the season away from home - they lost all three - after the World Athletics Championships were held in the former Olympic Stadium last summer. The retractable seating takes at least a fortnight to put back in place, transforming the stadium from athletics mode to football mode and costs around £4m every time to do it as well. For the world championships this past summer, only the seats in front of the east stand were removed to try and speed up the process, which is expected to happen again ahead of the new football season coming around. The event in July will see eight nations - Great Britain, the USA, South Africa, Poland, France, China, Germany and Jamaica will battle it out over a £1.42m prize pot over the two-day event in E20. One male and one female from each nation will compete in each event. The stadium is also hosting the Anniversary Games on July 9 and the Diamond League meeting the weekend after the World Cup event, with the London meeting scheduled for July 21 and 22.
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Exclusive: David Moyes unlikely to remain at West Ham beyond end of season - even if club avoid relegation
Matt Law, football news correspondent
5 FEBRUARY 2018 • 4:03PM
The Telegraph
David Moyes is unlikely to extend his stay at West Ham United past the end of the season – whether or not the club stay in the Premier League. West Ham's 3-1 defeat to Brighton put them back in relegation danger and meant the club have not won any of their last three Premier League games. During their poor run, the Hammers were also dumped out of the FA Cup by League One Wigan Athletic. Despite the fact Moyes dragged West Ham away from the bottom three after succeeding Slaven Bilic on a six-month contract, the club are already expected to be searching for a new permanent manager in the summer. Rafa Benitez remains a possible target with his Newcastle United future seemingly dependent on whether or not Amanda Staveley's takeover bid is successful, while Huddersfield Town's David Wagner is well liked. The fact Marco Silva is now out of work and would not cost anything in compensation to appoint would be interesting to the Hammers.
West Ham sacked director of player recruitment Tony Henry last week following accusations of racial discrimination, although his departure will have no bearing on the future of Moyes.
There have been tensions behind the scenes regarding West Ham's transfer policy with Moyes failing to land a number of targets in January. Although West Ham signed Jordan Hugill from Preston North End, they missed out of Islam Slimani and Ibrahim Amadou at the end of the transfer window and Moyes now looks short of players after being hit by injuries. West Ham also made a failed bid for Anderlecht's Leander Dendoncker and could move again for him in the summer, even though Belgian sources claim Moyes is not particularly keen on the player. Moyes has already made it clear that he will assess his options at the end of the season and is not planning talks about his or the club's long-term plans before then. Should he keep West Ham in the Premier League, then Moyes may well have options elsewhere and if he does not then he is fully aware there is little chance of West Ham keeping him on. Other than having to face questions over Henry's departure last week, Moyes has also seen co-owner David Sullivan give an interview in which he revealed his son had told him not to sign Jose Fonte and Karren Brady criticise the signing of Robert Snodgrass in her Sun column.
It later transpired that Moyes had been interested in recalling Snodgrass from his Aston Villa loan. West Ham fans have turned their anger on Sullivan, co-owner David Gold and vice-chairman Brady, singing 'sack the board' and unveiling banners calling for them to leave. A number of supporters' groups are planning to march together, under the banner of West Ham Groups United, before the home game against Burnley on March 10th and have discussed hiring 20 hearses to signify the 'death' of the club and its tradition. Sullivan, though, has claimed any protests against him will achieve "nothing" and insisted the Hammers need unity.
"I ask the supporters, every one of them: get behind the team," Sullivan told TalkSport. "Through unity we can turn it all around. We don't want to find that a disappointing season has turned into a disastrous one."
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Tuesday, February 6
Monday, February 5
Daily WHUFC News - 5th February 2018
Moyes: Everyone being together gives us the best chance of success
WHUFC.com
David Moyes says West Ham United need to stick together to ensure they do
not drop back into the Premier League relegation zone. The Hammers lost for
just the second time in ten top-flight matches at Brighton & Hove Albion on
Saturday, where Chicharito's fine goal was not enough to stave off a 3-1
defeat. Moyes admitted his team had not played well enough at the Amex,
particularly in the second half, and will need to perform much better when
they face Watford at home next weekend. "I think, for us, it was a poor
game," said the Scot. "We didn't play with any real quality. We had periods
in the first half when it looked as if we were going to get back into the
game but, in the end, the second half was a disappointing period for us. "We
move on. We've won a lot of games, we've drawn a few games, we got ourselves
out of an initially difficult situation and we need to make sure we don't go
back into it."
Moyes has been welcomed warmly by the Claret and Blue Army and asked the
Hammers fans to stick behind him and his players over the final 12 games of
a challenging season "I'm not an expert on West Ham, as I haven't been here
long enough, but I know that everyone being together gives us the best
chance of making sure we're a Premier League team, and we're going to need
that. "The support here is tremendous, in as much as the numbers they travel
in and we'd like to have given them another performance like we did at
Huddersfield or Stoke City, but we didn't, and we'll go away and try and
correct and fix that. "They've been great at London Stadium and I'm going to
ask them to stick with the team and the players, and we'll do everything we
possibly can to get us results."
One player who will be vital to West Ham's chances of staying clear of the
bottom three will be Chicharito, who scored his sixth goal of the season
with a fine run and finish at Brighton. With Marko Arnautovic, Manuel
Lanzini and Andy Carroll on the sidelines, the Mexican's role will be vital
over the closing weeks and months of the campaign. "His goals will give him
confidence and make him feel much better. His goal was typical of him. He
was in the box, showed quick feet to get a yard and got a shot away. It was
a really good finish in the end."
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Chicharito: We want to be more consistent
WHUFC.com
Chicharito says West Ham United need to find a greater level of consistency
in their play if they are to secure Premier League safety as soon as
possible. The Hammers beat champions Chelsea and held Arsenal in December
and also scored impressive away victories at Stoke City and Huddersfield
Town either side of Christmas, but have also allowed newly-promoted
Newcastle United and Brighton & Hove Albion to complete 'doubles' over them
in recent weeks. On Saturday, despite a fantastic strike from the Mexico
international, the Hammers went down to a disappointing 3-1 defeat at
Brighton, and Chicharito says he and his teammates need to find a steadier
level of form if they are to beat the drop.
"We got to be at our best to stave off relegation," said the No17. "Two
weeks ago we were in tenth place, in the middle of the table practically.
"Then, you can have two bad results and you are down, or you can have two
very good results and you are up. This is how it will be. We obviously want
to be more consistent, which is obviously the key to saving us as soon as
possible and not suffering going into the last days [of the season]."
Results elsewhere meant the Hammers remained in 12th place, despite the
defeat at the Amex, and David Moyes' side could even rise to eleventh if
Watford are beaten heavily by Chelsea on Monday evening. But, while he was
happy to score his sixth goal of the season, Chicharito does not want West
Ham to have to depend on others to secure their Premier League status.
"[Saturday was] a bittersweet feeling. We can talk about the goal, that it
was very nice, that it is a big confidence boost to a striker and at the
time it was very important because we were down on the scoreboard very early
and [the goal meant] we equalised. "However, in the second half they scored
their second [through Jose Izquierdo's 25-yard shot], one of the best goals
of the season, and it all changed. "You saw with how they celebrated the
goal, how important it was, and they knew that it was a goal that is not
scored every weekend. We then tried to fight until the end, but
unfortunately we couldn't get the result."
West Ham will aim to bounce back when they host Watford at London Stadium
next Saturday afternoon, when victory could see them rise above the Hornets
and into the top half of the table. If selected, Chicharito has vowed to
give his all for the Claret and Blue cause, with the ultimate aim of
securing Premier League safety well in advance of the final game of the
season at home to Everton on 13 May. "I always try to be a professional and
now my head is here 100%. I will dedicate myself 100% to this team as I had
done in all the clubs I have been in, to save us from relegation, which is
the goal that we all have, from the coach, the players, all the staff who
work at the club, and then also the fans – we will do everything possible to
do it. "Now we have to prepare this week for our next match is against
Watford, a very complicated opponent, who changed their coach and will be
hard to beat."
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Zoepfl: Ladies can be proud of 'good result' in Palace draw
WHUFC.com
Ellie Zoepfl believes one point represents a good effort from West Ham
United Ladies after the Hammers claimed a 0-0 draw away to Crystal Palace. A
high-energy encounter on Sunday saw both sides have big chances to take all
three points, but solid defending meant the Irons and the Eagles shared the
honours. Zoepfl bemoans the fact that West Ham didn't find the net, pointing
to a big chance she herself missed in the first half, but ultimately reckons
a share of the spoils is a good reward for her team's efforts. "It's a good
result for us today," the 24-year-old told whufc.com. "It was a tough game
but we worked really hard. I'm proud of all the girls for how they
performed. I think we went into the match with a good game plan, so overall
it was a good day. "Of course, I'm disappointed we didn't get the win. We
had opportunities to score. We had a few chances to get a goal, including
me, and I should have put mine away. But one point is still good for us
here, against a really good Palace side."
Karen Ray's side lined up with a slightly new formation, with the Hammers
utilising a 4-1-4-1 set-up, which saw Zoepfl on the left-flank while Rosie
Kmita attacked through the middle. Zoepfl explained: "We wanted to block
their passing lanes and then be more attacking with the ball. We played with
a higher line and looked to move play forwards with more speed and tempo. I
think it worked for us." Both teams on Sunday saw goals disallowed for
offside, with West Ham's coming in the final minute of the game. Zoepfl
played a clever pass to Molly Peters, who tucked home, but the linesman
ruled the striker to have gone too early. "I thought we had won it right at
the end," she admitted. "I'm not sure Molly was offside. It was a good
finish, but a shame that the flag was raised. "They almost had a goal at the
end as well though, and my heart dropped when I thought they were going to
score. It was a very back and forth game."
The draw with Palace spells an end to a very positive week for West Ham
Ladies, who bested Cardiff City 6-2 away from home last Sunday before
securing a place in the Isthmian League Cup final with a 4-0 win over
Margate. Zoepfl has hailed the work done by interim head coach Ray, and her
team in preparing the side for a tough encounter at the end of a busy week.
"Karen and all the coaches and physios have done an amazing job of getting
us ready for this match. We all felt pretty good but we could still feel
that we had already played twice this week. It's a good end to a busy week.
"Finally, we have a full week of rest before we go again next Sunday."
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Afolayan set for Hammers debut in U23 fixture
WHUFC.com
Deadline day signing Oladapo Afolayan could make his debut in Claret and
Blue on Monday as West Ham United's U23s take on Sunderland in Premier
League 2.
The forward, who joined from National League outfit Solihull Moors, is
expected to be part of Terry Westley's squad for the clash at Dagenham and
Redbridge's Chigwell Construction Stadium. And the Hammers will be hoping
the 20-year-old can bring his goalscoring form to east London, having bagged
eleven goals for the Midlands outfit in the league this campaign. The U23s
will be looking to bounce back on Monday having lost to Swansea City 3-0
last week in south Wales. Prior to that fixture, the side were unbeaten in
2018, however. Academy Director Westley is excited about Afolayan's
prospects and what he can bring to the Club's Premier League 2 squad this
season. He said: "Oladapo is an interesting player on many levels and we are
delighted that he has chosen to continue his footballing education with us.
He has hunger to make it at the highest level. "He is aggressive, has great
pace and the knack of scoring goals, which he has done regularly in his
first season in senior football. "For now, Oladapo is one for the future and
I would like to thank my head of recruitment Dave Hunt and his team for
identifying him as an exciting prospect and completing the deal. "With a
number of other clubs interested in signing Oladapo, we felt we could not
wait until the summer to make our move and that bringing him to West Ham now
was too good an opportunity to miss."
West Ham were 2-1 winners against the Black Cats earlier this season thanks
to goals from Toni Martinez and Martin Samuelsen. Both talents are now
aiming to impress on loan, though, with Martinez at Real Valladolid in Spain
and Norwegian winger Samuelsen in the Championship with Burton Albion. U23s
skipper Moses Makasi also made a deadline day loan switch – to League One
outfit Plymouth Argyle – and the gaps in the squad will now give the likes
of Afolayan and others the opportunity to impress. And the striker is
certainly keen to do just that. Upon signing, he said: "It's a dream come
true. I've worked hard to get here and I'm grateful for the opportunity. "I
started out with Chelsea and was there until I was 15, then my family moved
to Canada and I was part of the Academy at Toronto FC. Then, when we moved
back, I studied civil engineering at Loughborough University before the
opportunity arose to join Solihull and play in the National League and it
was something I couldn't turn down. "Now, the opportunity has come to join a
Premier League club and West Ham is one which has always given youngsters
opportunities to come through, as we have seen this season, so I've come
here to get into the first team and make a name for myself."
West Ham United Season Ticket Holders and Claret Members can watch the
Hammers' Premier League 2 fixture against Sunderland on Monday 5 February
for free.
Kick-off is at 7pm at the Chgiwell Construction Stadium, while entry is
priced at £5 and £3 for adults and concessions respectively.
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Hammers claim well-earned point in Palace draw
WHUFC.com
A frantic and pulsating contest between West Ham United Ladies and Crystal
Palace Ladies ended 0-0, with both sides having goals ruled out for offside.
The Hammers created a number of excellent chances in the fixture, with Ellie
Zoepfl going close in the first period while Amber Stobbs tested the Palace
goalkeeper in the second. Palace thought they had scored in the second half
but their effort was ruled to be offside, while substitute Molly Peters
looked to have won the game for West Ham in the final minute, only for her
goal to be disallowed for the same reason. It means a share of the points
for Karen Ray's side, with her team unbeaten in their three matches over the
last seven days. The Irons lined up with a 4-1-4-1 formation, with the pacey
Rosie Kmita through the middle, and almost immediately the strategy showed
merit as the No7's pace almost put her in.
Palace tested Grace Staunton with a low effort before West Ham saw two
penalty appeals waved away in quick succession – the first for a tackle on
Kmita and the second on Zoepfl. The two attackers then combined excellently
for the best chance of the half. Kmita played in Zoepfl, who shrugged off
the defender, but the striker could only send her effort over the bar from
around 12 yards. A feisty first 45 minutes also saw Palace send a free-kick
just wide of the near post while the Hammers relied on some last ditch
defending from Hannah Wheeler, Jasmine Auguste and Chenise Austin to keep
the score level at the break. Amber Stobbs saw a free-kick saved on the hour
mark, and the No10 came very close to scoring from the resulting corner. Her
effort on goal was incredibly well saved. Defender Austin then made a
sensational late tackle to deny Palace a finish, but the home side then put
the ball into the net, only for it to be ruled out for offside. Stobbs
continued to be the main threat in the second period, seeing a number of
shots well blocked or dealt with, with Andria Georgiou threading the ball
through to the midfielder for an excellent opportunity towards the end of
the contest. There was a huge let off for the Irons on 88 minutes. The ball
fell to Palace's Rowlands in a one-on-one situation, but somehow the home
side failed to score, with the ball trickling wide. With just a minute left
on the clock, the Hammers thought they went ahead. Peters – on for Kmita –
was released into the area and her cool finish found the net. However, the
linesman adjudged the through ball from Zoepfl to have come to Peters in an
offside position.
West Ham United Ladies: Staunton; Mackie, Wheeler, Austin, Auguste; Cooper
(c), Chong, Georgiou; Stobbs, R Kmita (Peters 75'), Zoepfl
Subs not used: Burr, Mabey, Wealthall, M Kmita
Crystal Palace Ladies: Lynch; Jones, Bailes, Paye, Holdaway (c), Sherwood
(Chandler 64'), Maple, Rowlands, Whinnett (Foreman 22'), Stenning (Bryan
62'), Davenport
Subs not used: Green, Collins
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Sunday Supplement discuss ailing West Ham
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 4th February 2018
By: Staff Writer
Tony Henry's dismissal and the ongoing unrest at West Ham United was one of
today's topics of discussion on Sky Sports' Sunday Supplement team.
Journalists Neil Ashton, John Cross, Jonathan Liew and Sam Wallace
(Telegraph) were all unanimous in their criticism of the club's Board
regarding their governance of the club, which is set to be challenged by
supporters planning a march next month. "It's not ridiculous to claim that
West Ham are the worst-run club in the Premier League" said football writer
Jonathan Liew. "There's an old saying in politics - voters will forgive a
Government that makes unpopular decisions but they won't forgive
incompetence. "I think West Ham fans are at that point - they don't believe
their owners are the least bit competent and once you've brtoken that thread
of trust, it's very hard to get it back."
Meanwhile Wallace added: "The fans have been moved to a new stadium and they
don't like it. They don't like the team and they're in another relegation
battle.
"When a club makes mistake after mistake, it ceases to become a coincidence.
And I don't think the transfer policy that Henry oversaw was particularly
effective either." To watch the discussion in full, watch the video below.
https://youtu.be/SxIthZFU-Y4
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Aaron Cresswell urges West Ham to stick together after Brighton loss
By PA Sport
Last Updated: 04/02/18 2:19pm
SSN
Aaron Cresswell has urged West Ham to "stick together" after they were
dragged back into the relegation mire. A turbulent week at the east London
club came to a miserable end with a 3-1 defeat at Brighton which left them
three points above the drop zone. The Hammers sacked their head of
recruitment Tony Henry on Friday after claims he told agents they did not
want to sign any more African players. That scandal, as well as an
underwhelming transfer window, has left the divide between the supporters
and West Ham's board wider than ever. Regarding issues on the pitch,
Cresswell said: "It's really tight down there in the Premier League - there
are only a few points separating the bottom from the top 10. "You win one
and lose the next week, and you're right back in it. We have got to keep
looking forward to the next game, though, and try to get the points in that.
"We need to stick together and pull in one direction now and go into every
game and try to get maximum points. We need to keep pushing up. "All season
has been up and down and when you lose you think you're out of it. But we
have to focus on each game as it comes and try to push up for the rest of
the season."
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
David Moyes says West Ham United need to stick together to ensure they do
not drop back into the Premier League relegation zone. The Hammers lost for
just the second time in ten top-flight matches at Brighton & Hove Albion on
Saturday, where Chicharito's fine goal was not enough to stave off a 3-1
defeat. Moyes admitted his team had not played well enough at the Amex,
particularly in the second half, and will need to perform much better when
they face Watford at home next weekend. "I think, for us, it was a poor
game," said the Scot. "We didn't play with any real quality. We had periods
in the first half when it looked as if we were going to get back into the
game but, in the end, the second half was a disappointing period for us. "We
move on. We've won a lot of games, we've drawn a few games, we got ourselves
out of an initially difficult situation and we need to make sure we don't go
back into it."
Moyes has been welcomed warmly by the Claret and Blue Army and asked the
Hammers fans to stick behind him and his players over the final 12 games of
a challenging season "I'm not an expert on West Ham, as I haven't been here
long enough, but I know that everyone being together gives us the best
chance of making sure we're a Premier League team, and we're going to need
that. "The support here is tremendous, in as much as the numbers they travel
in and we'd like to have given them another performance like we did at
Huddersfield or Stoke City, but we didn't, and we'll go away and try and
correct and fix that. "They've been great at London Stadium and I'm going to
ask them to stick with the team and the players, and we'll do everything we
possibly can to get us results."
One player who will be vital to West Ham's chances of staying clear of the
bottom three will be Chicharito, who scored his sixth goal of the season
with a fine run and finish at Brighton. With Marko Arnautovic, Manuel
Lanzini and Andy Carroll on the sidelines, the Mexican's role will be vital
over the closing weeks and months of the campaign. "His goals will give him
confidence and make him feel much better. His goal was typical of him. He
was in the box, showed quick feet to get a yard and got a shot away. It was
a really good finish in the end."
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Chicharito: We want to be more consistent
WHUFC.com
Chicharito says West Ham United need to find a greater level of consistency
in their play if they are to secure Premier League safety as soon as
possible. The Hammers beat champions Chelsea and held Arsenal in December
and also scored impressive away victories at Stoke City and Huddersfield
Town either side of Christmas, but have also allowed newly-promoted
Newcastle United and Brighton & Hove Albion to complete 'doubles' over them
in recent weeks. On Saturday, despite a fantastic strike from the Mexico
international, the Hammers went down to a disappointing 3-1 defeat at
Brighton, and Chicharito says he and his teammates need to find a steadier
level of form if they are to beat the drop.
"We got to be at our best to stave off relegation," said the No17. "Two
weeks ago we were in tenth place, in the middle of the table practically.
"Then, you can have two bad results and you are down, or you can have two
very good results and you are up. This is how it will be. We obviously want
to be more consistent, which is obviously the key to saving us as soon as
possible and not suffering going into the last days [of the season]."
Results elsewhere meant the Hammers remained in 12th place, despite the
defeat at the Amex, and David Moyes' side could even rise to eleventh if
Watford are beaten heavily by Chelsea on Monday evening. But, while he was
happy to score his sixth goal of the season, Chicharito does not want West
Ham to have to depend on others to secure their Premier League status.
"[Saturday was] a bittersweet feeling. We can talk about the goal, that it
was very nice, that it is a big confidence boost to a striker and at the
time it was very important because we were down on the scoreboard very early
and [the goal meant] we equalised. "However, in the second half they scored
their second [through Jose Izquierdo's 25-yard shot], one of the best goals
of the season, and it all changed. "You saw with how they celebrated the
goal, how important it was, and they knew that it was a goal that is not
scored every weekend. We then tried to fight until the end, but
unfortunately we couldn't get the result."
West Ham will aim to bounce back when they host Watford at London Stadium
next Saturday afternoon, when victory could see them rise above the Hornets
and into the top half of the table. If selected, Chicharito has vowed to
give his all for the Claret and Blue cause, with the ultimate aim of
securing Premier League safety well in advance of the final game of the
season at home to Everton on 13 May. "I always try to be a professional and
now my head is here 100%. I will dedicate myself 100% to this team as I had
done in all the clubs I have been in, to save us from relegation, which is
the goal that we all have, from the coach, the players, all the staff who
work at the club, and then also the fans – we will do everything possible to
do it. "Now we have to prepare this week for our next match is against
Watford, a very complicated opponent, who changed their coach and will be
hard to beat."
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Zoepfl: Ladies can be proud of 'good result' in Palace draw
WHUFC.com
Ellie Zoepfl believes one point represents a good effort from West Ham
United Ladies after the Hammers claimed a 0-0 draw away to Crystal Palace. A
high-energy encounter on Sunday saw both sides have big chances to take all
three points, but solid defending meant the Irons and the Eagles shared the
honours. Zoepfl bemoans the fact that West Ham didn't find the net, pointing
to a big chance she herself missed in the first half, but ultimately reckons
a share of the spoils is a good reward for her team's efforts. "It's a good
result for us today," the 24-year-old told whufc.com. "It was a tough game
but we worked really hard. I'm proud of all the girls for how they
performed. I think we went into the match with a good game plan, so overall
it was a good day. "Of course, I'm disappointed we didn't get the win. We
had opportunities to score. We had a few chances to get a goal, including
me, and I should have put mine away. But one point is still good for us
here, against a really good Palace side."
Karen Ray's side lined up with a slightly new formation, with the Hammers
utilising a 4-1-4-1 set-up, which saw Zoepfl on the left-flank while Rosie
Kmita attacked through the middle. Zoepfl explained: "We wanted to block
their passing lanes and then be more attacking with the ball. We played with
a higher line and looked to move play forwards with more speed and tempo. I
think it worked for us." Both teams on Sunday saw goals disallowed for
offside, with West Ham's coming in the final minute of the game. Zoepfl
played a clever pass to Molly Peters, who tucked home, but the linesman
ruled the striker to have gone too early. "I thought we had won it right at
the end," she admitted. "I'm not sure Molly was offside. It was a good
finish, but a shame that the flag was raised. "They almost had a goal at the
end as well though, and my heart dropped when I thought they were going to
score. It was a very back and forth game."
The draw with Palace spells an end to a very positive week for West Ham
Ladies, who bested Cardiff City 6-2 away from home last Sunday before
securing a place in the Isthmian League Cup final with a 4-0 win over
Margate. Zoepfl has hailed the work done by interim head coach Ray, and her
team in preparing the side for a tough encounter at the end of a busy week.
"Karen and all the coaches and physios have done an amazing job of getting
us ready for this match. We all felt pretty good but we could still feel
that we had already played twice this week. It's a good end to a busy week.
"Finally, we have a full week of rest before we go again next Sunday."
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Afolayan set for Hammers debut in U23 fixture
WHUFC.com
Deadline day signing Oladapo Afolayan could make his debut in Claret and
Blue on Monday as West Ham United's U23s take on Sunderland in Premier
League 2.
The forward, who joined from National League outfit Solihull Moors, is
expected to be part of Terry Westley's squad for the clash at Dagenham and
Redbridge's Chigwell Construction Stadium. And the Hammers will be hoping
the 20-year-old can bring his goalscoring form to east London, having bagged
eleven goals for the Midlands outfit in the league this campaign. The U23s
will be looking to bounce back on Monday having lost to Swansea City 3-0
last week in south Wales. Prior to that fixture, the side were unbeaten in
2018, however. Academy Director Westley is excited about Afolayan's
prospects and what he can bring to the Club's Premier League 2 squad this
season. He said: "Oladapo is an interesting player on many levels and we are
delighted that he has chosen to continue his footballing education with us.
He has hunger to make it at the highest level. "He is aggressive, has great
pace and the knack of scoring goals, which he has done regularly in his
first season in senior football. "For now, Oladapo is one for the future and
I would like to thank my head of recruitment Dave Hunt and his team for
identifying him as an exciting prospect and completing the deal. "With a
number of other clubs interested in signing Oladapo, we felt we could not
wait until the summer to make our move and that bringing him to West Ham now
was too good an opportunity to miss."
West Ham were 2-1 winners against the Black Cats earlier this season thanks
to goals from Toni Martinez and Martin Samuelsen. Both talents are now
aiming to impress on loan, though, with Martinez at Real Valladolid in Spain
and Norwegian winger Samuelsen in the Championship with Burton Albion. U23s
skipper Moses Makasi also made a deadline day loan switch – to League One
outfit Plymouth Argyle – and the gaps in the squad will now give the likes
of Afolayan and others the opportunity to impress. And the striker is
certainly keen to do just that. Upon signing, he said: "It's a dream come
true. I've worked hard to get here and I'm grateful for the opportunity. "I
started out with Chelsea and was there until I was 15, then my family moved
to Canada and I was part of the Academy at Toronto FC. Then, when we moved
back, I studied civil engineering at Loughborough University before the
opportunity arose to join Solihull and play in the National League and it
was something I couldn't turn down. "Now, the opportunity has come to join a
Premier League club and West Ham is one which has always given youngsters
opportunities to come through, as we have seen this season, so I've come
here to get into the first team and make a name for myself."
West Ham United Season Ticket Holders and Claret Members can watch the
Hammers' Premier League 2 fixture against Sunderland on Monday 5 February
for free.
Kick-off is at 7pm at the Chgiwell Construction Stadium, while entry is
priced at £5 and £3 for adults and concessions respectively.
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Hammers claim well-earned point in Palace draw
WHUFC.com
A frantic and pulsating contest between West Ham United Ladies and Crystal
Palace Ladies ended 0-0, with both sides having goals ruled out for offside.
The Hammers created a number of excellent chances in the fixture, with Ellie
Zoepfl going close in the first period while Amber Stobbs tested the Palace
goalkeeper in the second. Palace thought they had scored in the second half
but their effort was ruled to be offside, while substitute Molly Peters
looked to have won the game for West Ham in the final minute, only for her
goal to be disallowed for the same reason. It means a share of the points
for Karen Ray's side, with her team unbeaten in their three matches over the
last seven days. The Irons lined up with a 4-1-4-1 formation, with the pacey
Rosie Kmita through the middle, and almost immediately the strategy showed
merit as the No7's pace almost put her in.
Palace tested Grace Staunton with a low effort before West Ham saw two
penalty appeals waved away in quick succession – the first for a tackle on
Kmita and the second on Zoepfl. The two attackers then combined excellently
for the best chance of the half. Kmita played in Zoepfl, who shrugged off
the defender, but the striker could only send her effort over the bar from
around 12 yards. A feisty first 45 minutes also saw Palace send a free-kick
just wide of the near post while the Hammers relied on some last ditch
defending from Hannah Wheeler, Jasmine Auguste and Chenise Austin to keep
the score level at the break. Amber Stobbs saw a free-kick saved on the hour
mark, and the No10 came very close to scoring from the resulting corner. Her
effort on goal was incredibly well saved. Defender Austin then made a
sensational late tackle to deny Palace a finish, but the home side then put
the ball into the net, only for it to be ruled out for offside. Stobbs
continued to be the main threat in the second period, seeing a number of
shots well blocked or dealt with, with Andria Georgiou threading the ball
through to the midfielder for an excellent opportunity towards the end of
the contest. There was a huge let off for the Irons on 88 minutes. The ball
fell to Palace's Rowlands in a one-on-one situation, but somehow the home
side failed to score, with the ball trickling wide. With just a minute left
on the clock, the Hammers thought they went ahead. Peters – on for Kmita –
was released into the area and her cool finish found the net. However, the
linesman adjudged the through ball from Zoepfl to have come to Peters in an
offside position.
West Ham United Ladies: Staunton; Mackie, Wheeler, Austin, Auguste; Cooper
(c), Chong, Georgiou; Stobbs, R Kmita (Peters 75'), Zoepfl
Subs not used: Burr, Mabey, Wealthall, M Kmita
Crystal Palace Ladies: Lynch; Jones, Bailes, Paye, Holdaway (c), Sherwood
(Chandler 64'), Maple, Rowlands, Whinnett (Foreman 22'), Stenning (Bryan
62'), Davenport
Subs not used: Green, Collins
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Sunday Supplement discuss ailing West Ham
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 4th February 2018
By: Staff Writer
Tony Henry's dismissal and the ongoing unrest at West Ham United was one of
today's topics of discussion on Sky Sports' Sunday Supplement team.
Journalists Neil Ashton, John Cross, Jonathan Liew and Sam Wallace
(Telegraph) were all unanimous in their criticism of the club's Board
regarding their governance of the club, which is set to be challenged by
supporters planning a march next month. "It's not ridiculous to claim that
West Ham are the worst-run club in the Premier League" said football writer
Jonathan Liew. "There's an old saying in politics - voters will forgive a
Government that makes unpopular decisions but they won't forgive
incompetence. "I think West Ham fans are at that point - they don't believe
their owners are the least bit competent and once you've brtoken that thread
of trust, it's very hard to get it back."
Meanwhile Wallace added: "The fans have been moved to a new stadium and they
don't like it. They don't like the team and they're in another relegation
battle.
"When a club makes mistake after mistake, it ceases to become a coincidence.
And I don't think the transfer policy that Henry oversaw was particularly
effective either." To watch the discussion in full, watch the video below.
https://youtu.be/SxIthZFU-Y4
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Aaron Cresswell urges West Ham to stick together after Brighton loss
By PA Sport
Last Updated: 04/02/18 2:19pm
SSN
Aaron Cresswell has urged West Ham to "stick together" after they were
dragged back into the relegation mire. A turbulent week at the east London
club came to a miserable end with a 3-1 defeat at Brighton which left them
three points above the drop zone. The Hammers sacked their head of
recruitment Tony Henry on Friday after claims he told agents they did not
want to sign any more African players. That scandal, as well as an
underwhelming transfer window, has left the divide between the supporters
and West Ham's board wider than ever. Regarding issues on the pitch,
Cresswell said: "It's really tight down there in the Premier League - there
are only a few points separating the bottom from the top 10. "You win one
and lose the next week, and you're right back in it. We have got to keep
looking forward to the next game, though, and try to get the points in that.
"We need to stick together and pull in one direction now and go into every
game and try to get maximum points. We need to keep pushing up. "All season
has been up and down and when you lose you think you're out of it. But we
have to focus on each game as it comes and try to push up for the rest of
the season."
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Sunday, February 4
Daily WHUFC News - 4th February 2018
West Ham United fall to defeat in Brighton
WHUFC.com
West Ham United fell to a first league defeat of 2018 as Brighton and Hove
Albion bested the Irons 3-1. Glenn Murray put Brighton ahead after just
seven minutes but the game was level at half-time, thanks to a wonderful
goal from Mexican forward Chicharito - his sixth of the season for the
Hammers. However, two strikes from distance in the second half from Jose
Izquierdo and Pascal Gross respectively put the home team in control. West
Ham searched for a way back into the game with the introductions of Michail
Antonio and Jordan Hugill, but the away team fell for the first time in the
Premier League since before Christmas. The first meaningful chance of the
game wielded the first goal. A through-ball by Pascal Gross caught the
Hammers out, and Murray calmly put Brighton into the lead.
The striker had another chance, which Sam Byram blocked, before the West Ham
defender then saw a headed effort on goal blocked on the line by Brighton's
Shane Duffy.
West Ham were level on half an hour thanks to a terrific team move.
Chicharito started it, linking with Mark Noble and Joao Mario, before biding
his time in the box and striking a powerful finish into the roof of the net.
The leveller, and Chicharito's sixth league goal of the campaign, sparked
David Moyes's side into life, and Aaron Cresswell then saw two precise
crosses almost lead to goals for the Irons. Mario latched onto the first,
but his volley skewed wide, while Byram got too much on his header for the
second. Both sides had chances to take the lead in the closing moments of
the opening period, with Murray almost scoring again for Albion from close
range. A cagey opening to the second half was interrupted on 59 minutes when
Brighton restored their leaf. Izquierdo collected the ball after the Hammers
cleared a corner, and there was nothing that could be done about a curling
effort into the top corner from distance. The Irons struggled to get through
a resolute home team, with Cresswell testing the goalkeeper from out wide,
but the introduction of Michail Antonio - back from injury - and Jordan
Hugill for his West Ham debut showed intent of a fight-back. However,
Brighton went 3-1 ahead on 75 minutes as Gross received the ball in the
centre and sent a shot past Adrian and into the net from 20 yards.
West Ham United: Adrian; Byram (Hugill 80'), Collins, Rice (Antonio 66'),
Ogbonna, Zabaleta, Cresswell, Noble (c), Kouyate, Joao Mario, Chicharito
Subs not used: Hart, Reid, Fonte, Cullen, Haksabanovic
Goals scored: Chicharito 30'
Brighton & Hove Albion: Ryan; Schelotto, Duffy, Dunk (c), Bong; Knockaert
(March 77;), Stephens, Propper, Izquierdo, Gross (Kayal 83'), Murray (Ulloa
72')
Subs not used: Krul, Goldson, Bruno, Baldock
Goals scored: Murray 7', Izquierdo 59', Gross 75'
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Moyes: Our performance didn't merit a result
WHUFC.com
West Ham United's showing in the 3-1 defeat by Brighton and Hove Albion
didn't warrant winning any points, according to manager David Moyes. Despite
a sixth Premier League goal of the season from Chicharito the Hammers were
bettered by Albion in Saturday's match, as finishes from Glenn Murray, Jose
Izquierdo and Pascal Gross handed the Irons a first league defeat in 2018.
Although two of the goals from Brighton were of real quality, Moyes didn't
look to shy away from what he felt was a disappointing showing from his
players. "Today wasn't very good," Moyes honestly said. "Our performance
didn't merit a result. Brighton were the better team in the end. At
half-time we had fought our way back into the game but they scored a worldy
to make it 2-1, which made it very difficult. I think prior to that we
hadn't done enough anyway. "I'm disappointed with the defeat. We've been on
a really good run recently and we've picked up points and we've stuck at
games. But we were never really in the game today. Right from the start, I
never felt it. We gave the first one away, we gave the third one away and,
actually, I think we should have dealt with the ball from the corner before
the second goal."
The Hammers named the same starting XI from the side that drew 1-1 with
Crystal Palace in the week, and Moyes admits having to use the same players
in such a short space of time could have had an impact on his team's
performance. But the manager refused to lay any blame on the injuries his
squad is currently experiencing, saying there can't be any excuses for the
loss. "Maybe to have to play the same team again, could have been the case,"
Moyes said when asked if his selection had a role in the defeat. "We put out
a team on Tuesday and got a result, albeit it wasn't three points, but we
got a result from the game. It was always going to be tough today to do that
and I think it showed in the players today. "But Brighton played in midweek
as well, so there's no excuse from it, and we're not going to look for
excuses because we've got injured players. Every club has got injured
players and the quicker we get them back, it will help us."
Moyes believes the defeat on Saturday was ultimately down to his own side's
mistakes, and is now looking to the coming fixtures for the opportunity to
put things right and collect more points. "I've said for a while that any
given team on any day could beat each other in the bottom half of the
league, but on another day, there will be draws and points taken off of each
other. It's going to be tight. "We're all working hard together. We're in a
difficult position and we've got to make sure we stay away from the bottom
end."
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Antonio's mixed emotions on first-team return
WHUFC.com
Michail Antonio had mixed emotions as he returned to first-team duty in West
Ham United's 3-1 Premier League defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion. The No30
made his first appearance since 23 December after recovering from a groin
injury and missing Tuesday's draw with Crystal Palace for disciplinary
reasons, but was unable to prevent the Hammers slipping to defeat at the
Amex. But rather than being too downhearted, Antonio says he and his
teammates need to put the disappointment of Saturday's defeat aside and
regroup positively for next weekend's visit of Watford to London Stadium. "I
am buzzing to be back but disappointed about the result," he confirmed. "We
just need to move on from this, we were unbeaten in six, so we just need to
go on another run."
West Ham looked to be back in the game when Chicharito equalised Glenn
Murray's opener on the half-hour mark, but a below-par second half
performance, both before and after Antonio's introduction as a substitute at
2-1 down. "It was just one of those things where the second goal killed us.
Things were looking all right and we were dealing with things. "We had quite
a few opportunities in the first half, but in the second half, nothing much
really happened until their second goal and that picked up their confidence
and they managed to get another one. "We need to be professionals, forget
this and move onto the next one."
Antonio feels fit and ready to make his mark after nearly six weeks out of
action, but knows it will take a little more Premier League pitch-time
before he is at his peak. That said, the forward says he will be 100 per
cent ready to tackle the Hornets at London Stadium next weekend. "I've been
working hard on the training pitch and doing plenty of running, but
match-fitness is different and hopefully I can pick it up quite quickly and
go. "I think I did all right when I came on, but I didn't feel like I had
enough of the ball to make a difference to the final result. Hopefully I can
continue to progress."
Manager David Moyes has employed a 3-4-2-1 formation in recent weeks and
Antonio feels a position wide on one of the flanks is where he could be most
dangerous. "On the right or the left, I think, and I'd prefer to be on the
left, but it's just one of those things where I will come on, do what I can
and build up my confidence as I go and move on from there."
Antonio says the players are 100 per cent focused on their football at the
end of a week where off-pitch issues have made headlines, praising Moyes and
his staff for the high levels of coaching, preparation, treatment and
expertise on hand at Rush Green. "Those things are just part and parcel of
the game and we can't let that affect us. We just need to move on and keep
performing professionally. "Everything at the training ground is on point.
We have everything we possibly need so we've got to go out, play out
football and get results. "Every game is one we need to win and our next one
against Watford is no different. We'll go out there, give our all and
hopefully get the three points."
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Cresswell: We didn't react well after going behind
image:
http://www.whufc.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/AaronCresswellBrighto
n726.jpg
WHUFC.com
Aaron Cresswell bemoaned the reaction of his West Ham United side when they
fell behind for the second time at Brighton and Hove Albion in Saturday's
3-1 defeat. Glenn Murray gave the Seagulls the lead early on at the Amex
Stadium but the Hammers bounced back when Chicharito scored a superb solo
effort, firing into the top corner after a clever run and dummy. But Chris
Hughton's men were back in front through Jose Izquierdo's stunner in the
second half and David Moyes' team failed to respond, instead conceding a
third which was cleverly arrowed into the bottom corner by Pascal Gross. And
it was the reaction to falling behind once again that left full-back
Cresswell so disappointed. He said: "We came here hoping to get something
and I don't think we were good over the whole 90 minutes. We had a couple of
spells in the game in the first half where we could have got something. "But
the lad [Izquierdo] put one in the top corner in the second half and to be
fair to him, it's a great finish, but we didn't react well to that. We
didn't look like scoring in the second half. "We had a bad start but we had
spells in the first half where we did well and had a few chances. We didn't
get the rub of the green though and second half we didn't react to the
set-backs we suffered."
The result leaves the Hammers three points above the drop-zone on Saturday
night - twelfth in the Premier League. Cresswell admitted, given the nature
of the bottom half of the division this season, every side is left looking
over their shoulder after a defeat. "It's really tight down there in the
Premier League - there are only a few points separating the bottom from the
top ten," he continued. "You win one and lose the next week, and you're
right back in it. We have got to keep looking forward to the next game,
though, and try to get the points in that. "We need to stick together and
pull in one direction now and go into every game and try to get maximum
points. We need to keep pushing up. "All season has been up and down and
when you lose, you think you're out of it. But we have to focus on each
games as it comes and try to push up for the rest of the season."
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
West Ham United fell to a first league defeat of 2018 as Brighton and Hove
Albion bested the Irons 3-1. Glenn Murray put Brighton ahead after just
seven minutes but the game was level at half-time, thanks to a wonderful
goal from Mexican forward Chicharito - his sixth of the season for the
Hammers. However, two strikes from distance in the second half from Jose
Izquierdo and Pascal Gross respectively put the home team in control. West
Ham searched for a way back into the game with the introductions of Michail
Antonio and Jordan Hugill, but the away team fell for the first time in the
Premier League since before Christmas. The first meaningful chance of the
game wielded the first goal. A through-ball by Pascal Gross caught the
Hammers out, and Murray calmly put Brighton into the lead.
The striker had another chance, which Sam Byram blocked, before the West Ham
defender then saw a headed effort on goal blocked on the line by Brighton's
Shane Duffy.
West Ham were level on half an hour thanks to a terrific team move.
Chicharito started it, linking with Mark Noble and Joao Mario, before biding
his time in the box and striking a powerful finish into the roof of the net.
The leveller, and Chicharito's sixth league goal of the campaign, sparked
David Moyes's side into life, and Aaron Cresswell then saw two precise
crosses almost lead to goals for the Irons. Mario latched onto the first,
but his volley skewed wide, while Byram got too much on his header for the
second. Both sides had chances to take the lead in the closing moments of
the opening period, with Murray almost scoring again for Albion from close
range. A cagey opening to the second half was interrupted on 59 minutes when
Brighton restored their leaf. Izquierdo collected the ball after the Hammers
cleared a corner, and there was nothing that could be done about a curling
effort into the top corner from distance. The Irons struggled to get through
a resolute home team, with Cresswell testing the goalkeeper from out wide,
but the introduction of Michail Antonio - back from injury - and Jordan
Hugill for his West Ham debut showed intent of a fight-back. However,
Brighton went 3-1 ahead on 75 minutes as Gross received the ball in the
centre and sent a shot past Adrian and into the net from 20 yards.
West Ham United: Adrian; Byram (Hugill 80'), Collins, Rice (Antonio 66'),
Ogbonna, Zabaleta, Cresswell, Noble (c), Kouyate, Joao Mario, Chicharito
Subs not used: Hart, Reid, Fonte, Cullen, Haksabanovic
Goals scored: Chicharito 30'
Brighton & Hove Albion: Ryan; Schelotto, Duffy, Dunk (c), Bong; Knockaert
(March 77;), Stephens, Propper, Izquierdo, Gross (Kayal 83'), Murray (Ulloa
72')
Subs not used: Krul, Goldson, Bruno, Baldock
Goals scored: Murray 7', Izquierdo 59', Gross 75'
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Moyes: Our performance didn't merit a result
WHUFC.com
West Ham United's showing in the 3-1 defeat by Brighton and Hove Albion
didn't warrant winning any points, according to manager David Moyes. Despite
a sixth Premier League goal of the season from Chicharito the Hammers were
bettered by Albion in Saturday's match, as finishes from Glenn Murray, Jose
Izquierdo and Pascal Gross handed the Irons a first league defeat in 2018.
Although two of the goals from Brighton were of real quality, Moyes didn't
look to shy away from what he felt was a disappointing showing from his
players. "Today wasn't very good," Moyes honestly said. "Our performance
didn't merit a result. Brighton were the better team in the end. At
half-time we had fought our way back into the game but they scored a worldy
to make it 2-1, which made it very difficult. I think prior to that we
hadn't done enough anyway. "I'm disappointed with the defeat. We've been on
a really good run recently and we've picked up points and we've stuck at
games. But we were never really in the game today. Right from the start, I
never felt it. We gave the first one away, we gave the third one away and,
actually, I think we should have dealt with the ball from the corner before
the second goal."
The Hammers named the same starting XI from the side that drew 1-1 with
Crystal Palace in the week, and Moyes admits having to use the same players
in such a short space of time could have had an impact on his team's
performance. But the manager refused to lay any blame on the injuries his
squad is currently experiencing, saying there can't be any excuses for the
loss. "Maybe to have to play the same team again, could have been the case,"
Moyes said when asked if his selection had a role in the defeat. "We put out
a team on Tuesday and got a result, albeit it wasn't three points, but we
got a result from the game. It was always going to be tough today to do that
and I think it showed in the players today. "But Brighton played in midweek
as well, so there's no excuse from it, and we're not going to look for
excuses because we've got injured players. Every club has got injured
players and the quicker we get them back, it will help us."
Moyes believes the defeat on Saturday was ultimately down to his own side's
mistakes, and is now looking to the coming fixtures for the opportunity to
put things right and collect more points. "I've said for a while that any
given team on any day could beat each other in the bottom half of the
league, but on another day, there will be draws and points taken off of each
other. It's going to be tight. "We're all working hard together. We're in a
difficult position and we've got to make sure we stay away from the bottom
end."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Antonio's mixed emotions on first-team return
WHUFC.com
Michail Antonio had mixed emotions as he returned to first-team duty in West
Ham United's 3-1 Premier League defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion. The No30
made his first appearance since 23 December after recovering from a groin
injury and missing Tuesday's draw with Crystal Palace for disciplinary
reasons, but was unable to prevent the Hammers slipping to defeat at the
Amex. But rather than being too downhearted, Antonio says he and his
teammates need to put the disappointment of Saturday's defeat aside and
regroup positively for next weekend's visit of Watford to London Stadium. "I
am buzzing to be back but disappointed about the result," he confirmed. "We
just need to move on from this, we were unbeaten in six, so we just need to
go on another run."
West Ham looked to be back in the game when Chicharito equalised Glenn
Murray's opener on the half-hour mark, but a below-par second half
performance, both before and after Antonio's introduction as a substitute at
2-1 down. "It was just one of those things where the second goal killed us.
Things were looking all right and we were dealing with things. "We had quite
a few opportunities in the first half, but in the second half, nothing much
really happened until their second goal and that picked up their confidence
and they managed to get another one. "We need to be professionals, forget
this and move onto the next one."
Antonio feels fit and ready to make his mark after nearly six weeks out of
action, but knows it will take a little more Premier League pitch-time
before he is at his peak. That said, the forward says he will be 100 per
cent ready to tackle the Hornets at London Stadium next weekend. "I've been
working hard on the training pitch and doing plenty of running, but
match-fitness is different and hopefully I can pick it up quite quickly and
go. "I think I did all right when I came on, but I didn't feel like I had
enough of the ball to make a difference to the final result. Hopefully I can
continue to progress."
Manager David Moyes has employed a 3-4-2-1 formation in recent weeks and
Antonio feels a position wide on one of the flanks is where he could be most
dangerous. "On the right or the left, I think, and I'd prefer to be on the
left, but it's just one of those things where I will come on, do what I can
and build up my confidence as I go and move on from there."
Antonio says the players are 100 per cent focused on their football at the
end of a week where off-pitch issues have made headlines, praising Moyes and
his staff for the high levels of coaching, preparation, treatment and
expertise on hand at Rush Green. "Those things are just part and parcel of
the game and we can't let that affect us. We just need to move on and keep
performing professionally. "Everything at the training ground is on point.
We have everything we possibly need so we've got to go out, play out
football and get results. "Every game is one we need to win and our next one
against Watford is no different. We'll go out there, give our all and
hopefully get the three points."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Cresswell: We didn't react well after going behind
image:
http://www.whufc.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/AaronCresswellBrighto
n726.jpg
WHUFC.com
Aaron Cresswell bemoaned the reaction of his West Ham United side when they
fell behind for the second time at Brighton and Hove Albion in Saturday's
3-1 defeat. Glenn Murray gave the Seagulls the lead early on at the Amex
Stadium but the Hammers bounced back when Chicharito scored a superb solo
effort, firing into the top corner after a clever run and dummy. But Chris
Hughton's men were back in front through Jose Izquierdo's stunner in the
second half and David Moyes' team failed to respond, instead conceding a
third which was cleverly arrowed into the bottom corner by Pascal Gross. And
it was the reaction to falling behind once again that left full-back
Cresswell so disappointed. He said: "We came here hoping to get something
and I don't think we were good over the whole 90 minutes. We had a couple of
spells in the game in the first half where we could have got something. "But
the lad [Izquierdo] put one in the top corner in the second half and to be
fair to him, it's a great finish, but we didn't react well to that. We
didn't look like scoring in the second half. "We had a bad start but we had
spells in the first half where we did well and had a few chances. We didn't
get the rub of the green though and second half we didn't react to the
set-backs we suffered."
The result leaves the Hammers three points above the drop-zone on Saturday
night - twelfth in the Premier League. Cresswell admitted, given the nature
of the bottom half of the division this season, every side is left looking
over their shoulder after a defeat. "It's really tight down there in the
Premier League - there are only a few points separating the bottom from the
top ten," he continued. "You win one and lose the next week, and you're
right back in it. We have got to keep looking forward to the next game,
though, and try to get the points in that. "We need to stick together and
pull in one direction now and go into every game and try to get maximum
points. We need to keep pushing up. "All season has been up and down and
when you lose, you think you're out of it. But we have to focus on each
games as it comes and try to push up for the rest of the season."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Saturday, February 3
Daily WHUFC News - 3rd February 2018
Club Statement
WHUFC.com
West Ham United have today terminated the contract of Director of Player
Recruitment, Tony Henry, with immediate effect following his unacceptable
comments that were widely reported in the press. Our action follows a full
and thorough investigation. West Ham United will not tolerate any type of
discrimination. The West Ham United family is an inclusive one where,
regardless of gender, age, ability, race, religion or sexual orientation,
everybody feels welcome and included.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Brighton & Hove Albion v West Ham United: All you need to know
WHUFC.com
West Ham United take on Brighton & Hove Albion this week in the first
Premier League contest of February.
Read on for all the information you need to know ahead of this fixture.
Where and when?
West Ham and Brighton & Hove Albion will meet at the Amex Stadium on
Saturday 3rd February 2018.
The contest is scheduled to kick-off at 3pm.
How to follow:
Unfortunately, due to being a Saturday 3pm kick-off, this match is not
available for viewing in the UK. For worldwide broadcast schedules, click
here.
Live match updates will be provided through the official West Ham Twitter
account.
You can also follow the game live via our Matchday Blog on whufc.com.
You can also follow the match on our official Instagram, Facebook and
Snapchat channels.
Team news:
Manager David Moyes will issue an update on his available team for
Saturday's match with Brighton during his press conference on Friday.
The meeting with the media is scheduled to begin at 13:30.
Match Officials:
Referee: Roger East
Assistant Referees: Matthew Wilkes & Andy Garratt
Fourth Official: Kevin Friend
How to get there:
There are regular trains from Victoria, London Bridge and Blackfriars to
Brighton, with the journey varying from just under an hour to 90 minutes.
By Train
Take Junction 7 off the M25 and follow the M23 and A23 to the A27. Follow
the A27 and the Stadium is on the right.
By Car
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Team news: Antonio, Fonte, Reid and Hugill all in squad
WHUFC.com
Michail Antonio, Winston Reid, Jose Fonte and new signing Jordan Hugill
could all feature for West Ham United in Saturday's Premier League fixture
at Brighton & Hove Albion.
The quartet will bolster a Hammers squad missing a number of senior players
through injuries and suspension, with forward trio Marko Arnautovic, Manuel
Lanzini and Andy Carroll and wing-back Arthur Masuaku among those
unavailable for the trip to the Amex.
Attacker Antonio returns after missing the midweek draw with Crystal Palace
due to a disciplinary issue, while defenders Reid and Fonte are ready to
return after recovering from groin and ankle problems respectively.
You need a good squad in the Premier League because you need all your
players throughout the course of the season
David Moyes
"We hope Michail Antonio will have a chance of being available. Winston Reid
coming on a bit, and they would probably be the main ones [coming back],"
said the manager.
"With Jose Fonte, we had to bring him back last week because of the numbers
and he could probably do with a couple of reserve team games as he's been
out for a while, but he's training so we need all the numbers we have got."
Centre forward Hugill will likely have to make do with a place on the
substitutes' bench, but Moyes is confident the deadline day capture from
Preston North End will be ready if and when he is called upon.
The 25-year-old scored for Preston in a 2-2 Championship draw at Brighton
last season and his new manager is hopeful Hugill can replicate that form on
his Hammers debut.
"Because we've lost a couple of attacking players and a couple more are
injured at this time, we will need to find a way to blend together
Chicharito, Jordan Hugill and Joao Mario, who is slightly different and not
an out and out attacking player.
"I'm looking forward to getting Marko Arnautovic back because then we will
have not only a potent strike force, but we'll also have creators and people
on the bench who we can use as well.
"You need a good squad in the Premier League because you need all your
players throughout the course of the season."
The manager and his staff have also done plenty of homework on their
opponents, who go into Saturday's game on a six-match Premier League winless
run and with just one victory to their credit in their last 14 top-flight
matches.
Regardless of that recent record, Moyes had words of praise for opposite
number Chris Hughton, who guided the Seagulls to promotion from the
Championship last season.
"I think Chris has done a brilliant job overall, with the way he has brought
Brighton through and the way he has built the club over the last couple of
years, as well. I think he's done a really good job.
"With teams that come up, they come up with a real spirit, but the Premier
League is a long season and it's hard, but Chris really experienced and
knows what he is doing, so I think Brighton have done great."
While Brighton might have 'done great' so far this season, Moyes will have
no sentimental feelings towards the Sussex side on Saturday, as a victory
could take his Hammers back into the top ten and, perhaps more importantly,
put six points between the two clubs.
"At this time of the season, every win becomes more important, especially
when you are playing one of the teams around you.
"We've got to go there and try to get the three points but, at the same
time, we've got to make sure we don't lose as well. It's really important to
keep picking up points.
"I'd like to look up and challenge one or two teams who aren't too far above
us but, while there is a trapdoor not too far away, you're always looking at
it."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Chicharito: I want to deliver for the fans
WHUFC.com
Chicharito is determined to deliver a strong close to the 2017/18 season as
West Ham United aim to continue their push up the Premier League table. The
Hammers are yet to taste defeat in the league since the turn of the year,
with Mexico striker Chicharito helping to preserve that record with the
equaliser in a 1-1 home draw with AFC Bournemouth. That poacher's finish was
his fifth of the campaign and with a potential appearance at a third FIFA
World Cup finals four months away, the 29-year-old has his sights set on
adding to that tally over the final 13 games of the campaign. "I feel good
with the fans," he explained. "I think they are happy with me. They have
treated me very well since the beginning. But I want to be better. I want to
deliver for them. "What I see in the dressing room, what I feel, is that we
want to be better. We all try to work very hard. "We all want more points,
more good results, to be higher in the table. We want to make the fans
happier and we are trying. We are working hard and the season is not over
yet."
Chicharito could feature alongside a Hammers new boy in Saturday's trip to
Brighton & Hove Albion, after David Moyes added Preston North End striker
Jordan Hugill to the squad on transfer deadline day. Hugill trained with his
new teammates for the first time at the end of the week and Chicharito has
already been impressed with him. "He is a very good football player." he
added. "He played in the Championship, he is confident and I understand his
feelings. "He has come to a Premier League club, so he is ambitious. He is
very happy. He is transmitted that and hopefully he can have a good career."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Joao Mario: I'm feeling right at home as a Hammer
WHUFC.com
Joao Mario is already feeling right at home at West Ham United – literally!
The Portugal star used his day off on Wednesday to move into his new
apartment in London, before taking time out to learn a few more lines of the
Club's anthem I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles. The No18 has also settled quickly
into the Hammers' squad, as illustrated by his impressive showing in
Tuesday's Premier League draw with Crystal Palace; a performance he would
like to replicate at Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday. I used my day off
on Wednesday to move into my new apartment, so I am happy that I have
already found the place where I'll live for the next few months!" said the
25-year-old, who revealed he had spoken to Cristiano Ronaldo before deciding
to move to England. "I am happy to be here and I must enjoy this opportunity
and I want to play well and go to the World Cup. I am here to help West Ham
and also to grow into the Premier League. "I am trying to keep listening to
know all the song Bubbles so hopefully I'll be able to learn the whole song
over the next few weeks! "My teammates are really helping me a lot to settle
in, especially Jose Fonte, because he's my teammate from the national team
and we can speak Portuguese. Many of them speak Spanish and Italian, too,
which makes it easier to talk, so I want to thank them."
Joao Mario's new teammates have clearly had a positive effect on the skilful
attacking midfielder, who played an influential role on his Premier League
debut, impressing the London Stadium faithful with his positive running,
accurate, incisive passing and ability to create space for himself and
others. The Euro 2016 winners' performance was all the more impressive when
you consider he only trained with the Hammers for the first time last Friday
morning. "Everything has happened fast," he confirmed. "I've not even been
here for one week, but I've already played twice for West Ham. I'm really
happy to be here. "I really enjoyed my first game at our amazing stadium.
Since I was a kid I appreciated the Premier League and now, being here and
playing was a dream come true. "English football has a different mentality
and different atmosphere and the passion you can feel on the pitch is
amazing."
Having made his Premier League debut, Joao Mario and his new colleagues will
travel to the Amex to take on Brighton in another fixture that will be vital
to West Ham's hopes of climbing further clear of the bottom three. With just
one defeat in their last ten top-flight matches, the Hammers can travel to
the south coast with confidence that they can avenge the Seagulls' 3-0
victory in the reverse fixture at London Stadium back in October. "This kind
of game, when teams are so close to one another, are the most important
games for us," Joao Mario observed. "We need to win this kind of game and I
hope the team can play well and win on Saturday against Brighton. "We are
trying to improve and get better and achieve the results to get as high as
possible in the table. "We have a great squad. We hope that the injured
players can come back soon and help the team and, together, we can do
something important and improve our position."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Pearce relishing role in West Ham's unique coaching set-up
WHUFC.com
A strong team is greater than the sum of its parts, so the old saying goes,
and certainly appears accurate with reference to David Moyes and his
experienced backroom staff. The Scot has surrounded himself with people who
have virtually seen it all, where football at the highest level is
concerned. Alan Irvine played in the top flight and domestic cup finals for
Everton before managing West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League; Chris
Woods kept goal for England, won the League Cup with Norwich City and four
Scottish Premier League titles with Rangers; Billy McKinlay played for
Scotland at the FIFA World Cup finals and unearthed a host of future stars
while coaching at Fulham. The fourth member of Moyes' all-star quartet of
assistants is arguably the most-experienced of them all.
Stuart Pearce played non-league football until the age of 21, before turning
out 709 times as a professional, scoring 102 goals, captained Nottingham
Forest to the Premier League, two League Cup triumphs and an FA Cup final,
won the Hammer of the Year award at the age of 39, was capped 78 times by
England, featuring at three major tournaments, and has managed Team GB,
England's U21s and Manchester City. A true legend of the game, Pearce
returned to the Club he played for between 1999 and 2001 three months ago,
and has since played his part, alongside Irvine, Woods and McKinlay, in
turning West Ham's season around. The man himself, now 55, puts the Hammers'
resurgence and new-found resilience to the faith put in him and his fellow
assistants by manager Moyes. "For me, it's been two-fold, really. First,
being back at a Club that I represented before, so it that gave me a bit of
a head start, if you like, and second, working as part of this coaching set
up has really been an education for me. "David has got a wealth of
experience, as have Irv, Billy and Chris. I'd never worked alongside them as
a coach before so every time I come in has been a learning for me. "The
thoroughness of the manager has been the one thing that has really stuck out
for me; the depth in which he studies the opposition. "What I like about him
as well is that he courts opinion and he is not afraid. He wants opinion and
he wants the people around him to give opinion and, for me, that is ideal
management and ideal leadership, if I'm being quite honest with you. "His
wealth of knowledge is there for all to see. I've sat in meetings and the
way he has analysed the opposition and set teams up to go to places like
Manchester City and face teams like Chelsea at home to try and get
performances and results have been very good. "We've got a lot of work to
do, there's no doubt about that, and it's not straightforward work, so I see
it as an education, as well as fulfilling a role at the football club."
West Ham's senior coaching setup is unusual, if not unique at the highest
level of English football. While most Premier League clubs employ a manager
who is assisted by one or two trusted lieutenants, David Moyes has
surrounded himself with four senior assistants, all of whom share the same
level of seniority under their boss. The democratic environment has bred a
healthy exchange of views and ideas in both the meeting rooms and training
pitches at Rush Green, as well as the dressing rooms and technical areas
where the Hammers have been in action since the new regime took charge in
November. For Pearce, who has been a manager for the vast majority of his
22-year coaching career, the experience has been a new and refreshing one.
"While I have managed for the majority of my coaching and managerial career,
to be fair, I'm quite happy working with and for David and working for the
Club. "I've not gone in with an ego, suggesting I should make all the
decisions, but the good thing is that the empowers his staff to make
decisions and he wants you to make decisions and he will back those
decisions. That's good leadership."
Moyes himself said in a recent interview that the value of his assistants is
in the different strengths they bring – an assessment Pearce agrees with.
"We're different characters in many ways. Whenever we analyse a performance
or a set of circumstances, we all, because of our different experiences
working at different clubs for different people, probably bring slightly
different slants towards certain situations and we see different things.
"Our personalities dovetail quite nicely with one another. I've got to say,
in the coaches' room our mentality is to deliver the best service to the
players and for the football club. However we do that, it doesn't matter.
"Coaching sessions are led by the manager, but he is quite happy to step
back and say 'You boys take it'. It took us a few weeks to find our feet and
work out who gives the debriefs and who gives the presentations leading into
games and all of those things. The longer we are in the job as a group of
coaches and the longer the players work with us a little bit more, the more
they will pick up and the more we will keep improving."
While the remit of Moyes and his assistants was to improve West Ham's
results and position in the Premier League as quickly as possible, Pearce is
also eager to work with longer-term goals in mind. As a former player who
rose from the part-time ranks to becoming the best left-back in England, he
knows the value of a player spending time working on his game on the
training pitch. For West Ham's young players, and those more senior who
still have improvements that can be made with a bit of fine-tuning, Pearce
is looking forward to spending more time working one-to-one as the fixture
list thins out in the spring. "We've not had a great deal of actual coaching
weeks, where we've had no game from Saturday to Saturday, where you can get
out there and work with young players, and the seniors as well, and keep
educating them. We've been a bit limited in that aspect, because of the way
the games have fallen. "To achieve the results and performances we have
already got, we have used a cross-section of the classroom both leading into
games and debriefing after games, to coaching sessions that hopefully give
the boys a good indicator and make for an excuseless environment when we go
into games. "I've got to say, credit has to be given to the players. They
have taken it on board, their work-rate is up substantially. The manager has
demanded that and they have delivered. "I think we've got to realise, as a
football team, that we've still got a long way to go. What we've got to do
is deliver consistent performances over a consistent period. "A short burst
of 15, 16, 17 games or whatever we've done is all well and dandy, but there
is a relegation scrap which is going to go to the wire and involve 13 teams,
make no mistake about that, and will involve injuries, suspensions and form,
so we've got to make sure we deliver consistent performances week-in,
week-out, then you keep your fingers crossed they'll achieve results."
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Alese named in England squad for Algarve Tournament
WHUFC.com
West Ham United's Ajibola Alese has been named in the England U17s squad for
this month's Algarve Tournament. The 17-year-old has been called up to Steve
Cooper's side for the competition in Portugal, with the squad heading out
for the tournament next week. England will play Portugal, Germany and
Netherlands at the annual competition, with Alese getting the chance to
impress at international level ahead of this summer's European
Championships. "It's an honour to be called up to the England squad," Alese
told whufc.com. "I've been capped at U15 and U16 level in the past so I know
some of the boys already, and it's an opportunity to I'm really looking
forward to."
The call-up comes after Alese made his West Ham U23s debut earlier this
season, featuring in the first game of the campaign against Everton. The
defender has played four times in the competition this season for Terry
Westley's side and his strong performances at the back have seen Alese
receive high praise. However the campaign was interrupted for Alese by a
lengthy injury, suffered at the beginning of the season, but now the
centre-back is back and ready to show what he can do for both West Ham and
England. "I've recently come back from a long injury and I feel like I've
done well in some very tough fixtures, so it's amazing to get international
recognition in the few games I've played. "Hopefully it will be a good
experience and I'll be able to push on when I return with West Ham. I want
to play as many games as possible, both for Club and country."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Moyes: Jordan Hugill is ready to make a big impact at West Ham
WHUFC.com
David Moyes believes new signing Jordan Hugill is ready for the challenge of
Premier League football after completing his deadline day transfer to West
Ham United. The centre forward was playing non-league football just five
years ago, before embarking on an inspirational journey up through the
Football League, culminating in his move to east London earlier this week.
Moyes has been impressed with the impact the 25-year-old has made in his
first training sessions as a Hammer, and is looking forward to seeing what
he can do in a Claret and Blue shirt after naming Hugill in his squad for
Saturday's Premier League fixture at Brighton & Hove Albion. "Jordan
Hugill will give us a bit of presence up front, which we need, and big
energy and honesty," said Moyes, before citing his previous success in
unearthing future top-flight stars during his tenure as Everton manager. "In
all Premier League clubs, you have to look in the lower leagues and I have
done it over the years, signing players like Leighton Baines, Joleon Lescott
and Tim Cahill, and all of them were a real success. "Here, if you look at
Aaron Cresswell coming from Ipswich and Michail Antonio coming from
Nottingham Forest, they've done well, so I'm hoping Jordan can have as big
an impact as those players have. "I think Jordan is ready. I think he could
play and he won't let us down in terms of his effort and commitment. I think
it will take him time to get used to his new surroundings, but hopefully he
can help us in a period when we're a bit short of strikers."
Alongside Portugal playmaker Joao Mario, Hugill was one of two senior
players to join West Ham during the January transfer window. Moyes revealed
they could have been joined in east London by one or two other new faces,
but that moves for Leicester City's Algeria striker Islam Slimani,
Anderlecht's Belgium midfielder Leander Dendonker and Lille's Cameroon
defender Ibrahim Amadou had ultimately not been completed for a variety of
reasons. "I think we'd have liked one more player if we could have got it,"
the manager explained. "We tried right up to the last minute. At the start
of the window two players would have been adequate, and we tried for quite a
few players, but we were happy with what we saw from Joao Mario and we've
now got in Jordan Hugill, who is a different sort of centre forward and will
give us cover up front. "We were in for Slimani, but he had another option
to go to Newcastle and he chose that one. We had an interest in Dendonker
and Amadou as well and we hoped to get one of those two players later on,
but for different reasons they didn't come off. "We're happy enough. If we'd
have got one more at the end, it would have made it right, but two was
enough. "I think we've got enough cover if we get the injured boys back. We
hope Marko Arnautovic won't be too far away and obviously we know Manu
Lanzini is out, but we're getting the players back little by little and the
games thin out a bit over the coming weeks, when the games go Saturday to
Saturday, so that should help us as well."
The manager was also asked for his reaction to the suspension of Director of
Player Recruitment Tony Henry by the Club earlier this week, pending a full
and thorough investigation into alleged comments about the Club's transfer
policy surrounding African players. His response was clear – West Ham try to
recruit the best possible players, regardless of their nationality. "Well,
the comments are wrong. We were signing two players from Africa on deadline
day so I can only say they're wrong. "Of course we have an open transfer
policy. You can see the players the Club have signed over the years. We sign
good, quality players, the best players we can get, and it doesn't matter
where they are from to me, at all. "Never, ever, in all my time in football
have I ever had [a prejudiced transfer policy], at all. "I spoke with one or
two of the African players and they seem fine. They've trained well over the
last couple of days and morale in the camp is good because we're on the back
of a pretty good run where the players are doing really well, so we want to
keep it going."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Arnautovic nominated for PFA Player of the Month award
WHUFC.com
Marko Arnautovic has been nominated for the PFA Bristol Street Motors Player
of the Month prize for January - with voting open here now, The Hammers
forward enjoyed another fruitful month, scoring in the victory at
Huddersfield and setting up three more goals as the Hammers went through
January unbeaten in the Premier League. Although he suffered an injury
towards the end of the month, his form earns him a nomination for the award,
alongside a host of top names. Manchester City duo Sergio Aguero and Leroy
Sane, Chelsea's Eden Hazard, Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel and
Tottenham's Son Heung-min are the other players nominated.
https://www.footballfancast.com/pfa-awards
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Ray hails 'winning mentality' ahead of Palace clash
WHUFC.com
Karen Ray has praised the 'winning mentality' of her West Ham United Ladies
with her side set for their third match this week, against Crystal Palace.
The Hammers return to action against the Eagles on Sunday having claimed a
place in the Isthmian League Cup final on Wednesday with a 4-0 win at
Whyteleafe, and also a 6-2 victory away to Cardiff City last weekend. It
means the Ladies will play their third match in seven days and, having won
the previous two, Ray has been delighted with the commitment she has seen
from her squad. "Three games in seven days is a really big ask, but the
staff have done a fantastic job in preparing the players both physically and
mentally," Ray told whufc.com. "Our focus now returns to the league where we
face a very strong Crystal Palace on Sunday.
"We have to concentrate on each game and prepare the players as best we can
for the upcoming challenges. The girls committed to five days this week and
I commend each and every one of them for showing a winning mentality and a
desire to make a purposeful contribution to the Club."
Palace will present a tough test for the Hammers with the Eagles sat second
in the Women's Premier League Southern Division. The Hammers have been
bested twice already by Sunday's opponents, in league and Cup competitions,
but a good run of form puts West Ham in a strong position heading into the
match. Ray believes Wednesday's Cup semi-final win came from a conscious
increase in effort from her players, and is eager to see that level of
commitment again this weekend. The interim head coach and General Manager
also took the chance to praise the girls for reaching the Isthmian Cup
final, adding: "The girls have shown an admirable push to this half of the
season, they have played a lot of games in a short amount of time but
haven't wavered in their effort. As a coach, you can't ask for much more
than that. "Making a final is always a special feeling, and everyone at the
club deserves it. At Christmas, I told the girls we needed to park the past
and create ownership, accountability and trust in order for us to start
seeing the results we deserve. Making a final is a proud moment."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Brighton & Hove Albion v West Ham United
SAT 03 FEB 2018PREMIER LEAGUE
15:00
Venue: Amex Stadium
BBC.co.uk
TEAM NEWS
Brighton captain Bruno has been passed fit after missing the last three
matches with a back issue. Loan signing Leonardo Ulloa could start for the
Seagulls but new signing Jurgen Locadia is not match fit after a hamstring
injury.
West Ham's Michail Antonio may return after being dropped for disciplinary
reasons in midweek. Arthur Masuaku is suspended but new signing Jordan
Hugill could make his Hammers' debut.
MOTD COMMENTATOR'S NOTES
Jonathan Pearce: "The return of Leo Ulloa to Brighton could prove one of the
best signings of the window. "Back on loan at the club where he scored 26
goals in 58 games and is hugely popular, he can cure their current scoring
blight. Just seven goals and one win in 14 league games is relegation form.
This is a must-win game. "West Ham can't afford to lose either. Injuries
have left their squad weak. But under David Moyes their resolve is strong.
"Given their problems, it's strange they sent three players out on loan and
sold Andre Ayew. It's also a big step up for Jordan Hugill. "Ulloa is the
key here."
WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY
Brighton & Hove Albion manager Chris Hughton: "At home would probably be the
disappointment that we haven't picked up more wins. "We have just seen
Swansea pick up two outstanding results at home [against Liverpool and
Arsenal) that most people probably wouldn't have expected. "Would they have
been able to do that away from home? It would have been a lot harder. Home
form will play the biggest part of this end of the season."
West Ham manager David Moyes on his squad's injury problems: "We're getting
the players back little by little and the games thin out a bit over the
coming weeks, when the games go Saturday to Saturday, so that should help us
as well."
LAWRO'S PREDICTION
It will be a while until we see David Moyes' side at full strength because
of the injury problems they have. That is one of the reasons I am going for
a Brighton win here. The Seagulls have been struggling when they play away,
and their home form is what is going to give them a chance of staying up, so
this game is very important. Prediction: 2-1
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Brighton are looking to do a league double over West Ham for the first time.
The Hammers won 1-0 on their last trip to Brighton, back in October 2011 in
a Championship game.
But the Seagulls have won both of their previous home top-flight matches
with West Ham, in the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons.
Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton are yet to win in the league in 2018 (D2, L2).
They could go winless in their opening five league matches of a calendar
year for the first time since 1998, when they failed to win any of their
first nine fourth-tier fixtures.
The Seagulls have won only one of their last 14 league fixtures (D6, L7).
They have lost only three of their 12 home league matches this season (W3,
D6). The only teams to beat them are Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea.
Brighton have scored just five goals in their last 13 Premier League games,
failing to find the net on nine occasions in that run.
West Ham United
West Ham are unbeaten in their last six Premier League matches (W4, D2).
The Hammers could remain unbeaten in their opening six top-flight matches of
the calendar year for the first time since 1974, when they did not lose any
of their first 10.
They have already lost three Premier League games against newly-promoted
sides this season: twice against Newcastle, once against Brighton.
West Ham have taken eight points from their last four away games, as many as
in their previous 15 combined.
Brighton will be the 40th different opponent David Moyes has faced in the
Premier League - the only club he has failed to beat are his former club
Everton.
SAM's verdict
Most probable score: 1-1 Probability of draw: 28%
Probability of home win: 44% Probability of away win: 29%
SAM (Sports Analytics Machine) is a super-computer created by @ProfIanMcHale
at the University of Liverpool that is used to predict the outcome of
football matches.
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West Ham manager David Moyes rejects African player claims
BBc.co.uk
West Ham manager David Moyes has said that claims the club would not sign
any more African players are wrong. Director of player recruitment Tony
Henry was suspended after the Daily Mail reported he said African players
"cause mayhem" when not in the team. Moyes said they tried to sign
African-born Islam Slimani and Ibrahim Amadou on transfer deadline day on
Wednesday. "We sign good, quality players and it doesn't matter where they
are from," said Moyes on Friday. He added that the mood in the Hammers'
squad, which has six players of African descent, had not been affected by
the controversy. "I've spoken to one or two of the African players and they
seem fine and they've trained well. Morale is good. We're on the back of a
pretty good run and we want to keep it going," said the Scot.
"I've never, ever witnessed any prejudicial transfer policy at any club I've
been at."
West Ham said on Thursday that Henry had been suspended pending "a full and
thorough investigation", while the Football Association says it will
formally investigate the matter. "The comments are wrong," added Moyes. "We
were trying to sign two African players on deadline day."
Leicester forward Slimani joined Newcastle on loan, while Amadou stayed with
French side Lille. "My first African player was Joseph Yobo. It was only
last year when I went to Nigeria to Joseph's testimonial and it was really
good," added former Everton, Manchester United and Sunderland manager Moyes.
"I have also signed Steven Pienaar three times. I don't think any Premier
League club has more African players than West Ham. "Over my time, we've had
good African players and bad African players just like we've had good
Scottish players and bad Scottish players as well, no difference."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Tony Henry: West Ham sack head of recruitment over African player comments
BBc.o.uk
West Ham have sacked director of player recruitment Tony Henry over claims
he said the club would not sign any more African players. The decision
follows a report by the Daily Mail which carried quotes from Henry stating
African players "cause mayhem" when they are not in the team. The club said
his comments were "unacceptable", adding they conducted a "full and thorough
investigation". It added: "West Ham United will not tolerate any type of
discrimination." Earlier on Friday, Hammers manager David Moyes said Henry
had recommended two players from the African continent during the January
transfer window. The Scot said the club were "very, very close" to signing
Leicester's Algeria forward Islam Slimani, who joined Newcastle on loan, and
Lille's Cameroon defender Ibrahim Amadou.
When asked about the comments made by the former recruitment chief, Moyes
said: "It's a massive shock, because you are well aware of the couple of
players we were trying to sign on deadline day, so that's why it's a big
surprise. "I've known Tony and he has to get on with his stuff but all I can
say is that it wasn't correct because we were trying to sign two players
like that on deadline day."
Asked if Henry had recommended Slimani and Amadou, he added: "Yes. They were
two players who were slightly available, albeit who came up late." The
Professional Footballers' Association had said it was "shocked" by the
reported comments. It added: "The PFA strongly condemns any such views and
there is no place for them in football."
West Ham have six first-team squad members of African descent: Cheikhou
Kouyate, Pedro Obiang, Joao Mario, Angelo Ogbonna, Arthur Masuaku and
Edimilson Fernandes. Senegal striker Diafra Sakho left the club in the
January transfer window to join Rennes, with Ghana international Andre Ayew
heading to Swansea.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Protest gathering momentum as fighting fund raises thousands
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 2nd February 2018
By: Staff Writer
The Real West Ham Fans Action Group have announced plans for a protest match
on Saturday, 10 March. The group, set up recently to take West Ham United's
Board to task over a string of broken promises following the move to
Stratford will be heading a peaceful march little over a month from now.
Organisers of the event, which is being planned with the cooperation of
Police and local authorities hope to attract in excess of 3,000 West Ham
supporters to the event, which is scheduled to take place on the day West
Ham host Burnley in the Premier League.
However having received the backing of the vast majority of independent West
Ham websites and Facebook groups, it is thought that actual numbers could
exceed the target audience by some considerable amount. "We feel that David
Sulivan is unfit to run our football club," RWHFAG committee member Micky
Morgan told KUMB. "He helped destroy Birmingham and he's destroying West
Ham, which is why we're here. The damage is done now. "Sullivan seems to
think that West Ham fans no longer have any clout. He doesn't realise what's
coming. "The march is going to start in Stratford and we're going to descend
on the ground from there. There'll be transport available for disabled
supporters and those who have trouble walking long distances. "Everything is
being arranged in conjunction with the Police so it'll be a perfectly legal
march. Everyone is welcome, including families and children; there'll be
nans and granddads present too. "This is about West Ham United, there'll be
no confrontation, we're just protesting against the Board who have
effectively just banked £20million from the transfer window."
The depth of support for the initiative can be illustrated by a casual
glance at the RWHFAG's justgiving appeal, set up to create a fighting fund
for march organisers. The fundraising effort, which started this week with
the aim of raising £20,000 has already raised an incredible £14,000 in just
48 hours, with hundreds of West Ham supporters having donated to the cause.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Cole praises inclusive West Ham
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 2nd February 2018
By: Staff Writer
Former West Ham United striker Carlton Cole has insisted that players of
African origin were welcomed at the club throughout his time as a Hammer,
after the club.
Cole, now 34, spent a total of nine years at West Ham in two spells from
2006 to 2015. And in reference to the 'African players' scandal, he says
that there were never any race issues at the club during the period in which
he was an employee. "Not many people have played for West Ham United longer
than me and African players have always been made most welcome by the fans
and club," said Cole in a statement to the Press Association. "I am of
African heritage and am indeed proud of that, I am also proud to have played
for my country. In my nine years at West Ham United it was fantastic, the
fans and club have always judged players on their football ability, work
ethic and loyalty. "West Ham United is a club that is proud of its diversity
and has not tolerated discrimination during the whole time I played there
and been associated with the club. "We all have to be completely against any
form of prejudice, racism and discrimination, football must be about
inclusion and equality. I am pleased to see that the club have acted so
swiftly to investigate any accusations of discrimination and I'm sure
they'll reach a satisfactory conclusion."
Meanwhile it has emerged that another unnamed senior official left West Ham
some three months ago following an investigation. Who and why has however
not been revealed, although the club confirm it was not related to the
current Tony Henry investigation.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
A catalogue of errors
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 2nd February 2018
By: Iron Mark
When the Olympic Stadium was being sold to the fans one of the questions, if
I remember correctly, was 'would be happy to move if it meant being able to
attract better players'?
Since moving from Upton Park to Stratford, those players have included:
Andre Ayew - back at Swansea
Robert Snodgrass - on loan, comments from the board suggest he won't want to
come back
Simone Zaza - loan ended early, now scoring goals for Valencia
Jonathan Calleri - loan
Gokhan Tore - loan
Alvaro Arbeloa - well that worked well...
Ashley Fletcher - sold
Sofiane Feghouli - sold so Bilic could sign a player he wanted, ultimately
sold for no reason
Havard Nordtveit - sold
During this period we have also sold Dimitri Payet, James Tomkins, Diafra
Sakho and Enner Valencia. All players who played key roles for us in
previous seasons.
Despite selling most of last season's signings and a few others, leaving a
small squad with the limited incomings, we appear to have either no money or
have reached our wage cap.
This is probably not helped when one striker on big wages is always injured,
the other is struggling (though not financially with wages like that) and
our substitute goalkeeper is one of the highest-paid players we have.
So we have an injury-ravaged squad, short of depth or quality in some
important positions and absolutely no transfer policy in sight. Of course we
have also loaned out a few of the youngsters who have been involved recently
as there's clearly no chance we may need them again soon...
I guess this means the big move wasn't worth the money as we clearly aren't
seeing it on the pitch.
Maybe the owners can lend a hand? Most other clubs get some help every now
and again. Except, ours will only loan (with interest of course). Does that
mean we would be better off without them giving us any money at all?
Does buying a scarf in the club shop give the club more money than the
people running it? Does giving nothing contribute more? At least it's not
taking money away. Not the sort of owners you want to run the club
financially, then.
At least they try to keep themselves and the club out of the headlines -
unless they want to pat themselves on the back for signing the best 'keeper
someone has worked with (who's not quite good enough to displace the old
number one). Or if they decide to publicly criticise another signing.
Did they forget Snodgrass and Fonte still played for us when they came out
with those gems?
I'm still struggling to work out what they are good at. Money isn't their
forte nor is keeping themselves out of the headlines. Maybe they run a tight
ship? Recent events involving Tony Henry shows it unlikely.
Their children have free reign to do what they like. Imagine the son of
another chairman not only becoming a twitter mouthpiece, but actively
slagging off a new signing. No one would be that stupid...
Relations with other clubs? Maybe they know the business and can work a good
deal with their contacts? Ha. The only clubs they probably haven't annoyed
are the ones who haven't heard of them.
Squad relations? We have already seen how quick they are to slag the players
off when it suits. With all the rumours of players wanting to leave, it
makes you wonder if there is anyone, anywhere who actually likes working
under this Board.
So basically they are good for nothing, have sold our home to move into a
rented athletics stadium with no financial benefits, consistently weaken the
squad, have kept us in the headlines for all the wrong reasons (though
nothing seems to stick to them, I wonder why?) and generally piss everybody
(West Ham related or not) off in the process.
Even if they all left tomorrow, it still wouldn't be quick enough.
Please note that the opinions expressed in this article are those of the
author and do not necessarily represent the views of, nor should be
attributed to, KUMB.com.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Brighton v West Ham preview: Leonardo Ulloa makes Amex return
Last Updated: 02/02/18 3:06pm
SSN
Leonardo Ulloa could start for Brighton when they host injury-hit West Ham
on Saturday. The striker has returned to the Seagulls on loan from
Leicester, having spent 18 months with the club in 2013/14. He came on as a
substitute in the midweek draw with Southampton and is looking forward to
returning to the Amex Stadium. "I can't wait because I always feel really
good when I play there - it feels like a home and it will be a special
feeling," he said. "It's amazing, and the fans were so good, and now I'm
expecting them to be the same as they were three years ago on Saturday
against West Ham. "They gave me a great reception at Southampton, they were
singing my name and they were amazing."
Brighton are 15th in the Premier League, one point above the relegation zone
and without a league win this year. West Ham have lost just once in their
last 10 Premier League matches but are without several first-team players.
Team news
Brighton captain Bruno has been passed fit after missing the last three
matches to rest a minor back problem. New signing Jurgen Locadia has begun
training after a hamstring injury but is not match fit, while Jiri Skalak
and Steve Sidwell (both ankle) are sidelined.
Michail Antonio could return for West Ham after missing the midweek draw
with Newcastle due to disciplinary reasons. Arthur Masuaku is suspended but
Jose Fonte and Winston Reid could return from injury. Marko Arnautovic,
Manuel Lanzini, Andy Carroll and Pedro Obiang are out.
Opta stats
Brighton won both previous home top-flight encounters against West Ham,
doing so in 1981/82 and 1982/83.
West Ham have already lost three Premier League games against newly-promoted
sides this season (twice against Newcastle, once against Brighton) - they
have only lost four in a season once before, doing so in 2006/07.
Brighton have scored just five goals in their last 13 Premier League games,
failing to find the net on nine occasions in that run.
Mark Noble has scored in three of his last six Premier League appearances (3
goals), after a run of 18 games without a goal. Indeed, Noble's penalty in
midweek, made him the 11th player in Premier League history to score 20 or
more from the spot.
Glenn Murray has scored four of Brighton's last six goals in all
competitions, including each of the last three.
Merson's prediction
Brighton started brilliantly against Southampton and while they ended up
with a draw, it was probably a good point in the end. I also watched them
against Chelsea and they were so unlucky to lose 4-0. Looking at West Ham,
they've got a few injury problems at the moment and it could be a bit of a
struggle for them at the Amex.
PAUL PREDICTS: 2-1 (17/2 with Sky Bet)
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
David Moyes expected Islam Slimani to join West Ham on loan
Last Updated: 02/02/18 10:38pm
SSN
David Moyes admits he thought Islam Slimani's proposed loan move to West Ham
was a done deal before the Algerian joined Newcastle. The Hammers were
hopeful of taking the Leicester striker on loan for the remainder of the
campaign before talks fell through, with Slimani instead heading to
Newcastle on the final day of the window. "Slimani was agreed on Tuesday
night and it didn't come off on Wednesday. I only woke up on Wednesday to be
told that it wasn't going to happen," said Moyes, who also revealed the
reasons behind the club's failed bid to land Lille midfielder Ibrahim
Amadou. "Then on Wednesday afternoon we hoped to do Amadou. We put in a loan
offer for him, which we hoped might have been good enough to get him. "We
didn't want to pay the asking price because we hadn't seen him often enough
to say it was worth putting out £16m for him but we made a really big loan
offer and couldn't get him in the end."
While the Hammers missed out on Slimani and Amadou, the club did manage to
sign Jordan Hugill on a four-and-a-half-year deal from Preston North End.
"He was always someone we had an eye on," said Moyes. "I've got a thing
about where do players come from, as in where do you bring them in if you're
buying new players. "It either has to come from your academy or the lower
leagues. Do we have it in the academy? No, well then the next place we
should look is in the UK. "We went looking and I thought Jordan would be
worth a go."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
David Moyes says West Ham have open transfer policy and alleged comments are
'wrong'
Last Updated: 02/02/18 3:08pm
SSN
David Moyes says West Ham have an open transfer policy and that alleged
comments made by director of player recruitment Tony Henry are "wrong".
Henry was suspended on Thursday while an investigation takes place into a
report in the Daily Mail about comments allegedly made by Henry to other
West Ham officials and agents in emails regarding the signing of African
players. "The comments are wrong, we were signing two players from Africa on
Deadline Day, so I can only say they are wrong," said Moyes. Asked whether
the club have an open transfer policy, Moyes replied: "Of course we have.
You can see the players we sign, you can see the players that the club has
signed over the years. "We always sign good quality players, the best
players we can get who are available to us, and it doesn't really matter
where they're from to me at all."
Asked whether he had ever experienced prejudice in regards to the transfer
policy at the club, he said: "Never ever at any club in football, I've never
had that. Never at all." West Ham midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate - who is of
African descent - posted a message on Instagram on Thursday, saying:
"African and proud".
Moyes says he does not think the alleged comments, which are being
investigated by the FA, have had an affect on team morale, ahead of their
game against Brighton on Saturday. "I spoke with one or two of the African
players and they seem fine," Moyes added. "They have trained well the last
couple of days and the morale in the camp is good because we are on the back
of a pretty good run. The players are doing really well so we want to try
and keep it going."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham wanted one more in the transfer window but I'm glad that is all
over
DAVID MOYES
ES Sport
I am sure I am not the only manager to be glad that the January transfer
window is over. This window changed for us a couple of weeks ago when we
lost influential players like Marko Arnautovic and Manuel Lanzini to
injuries. The position was made even more acute when we lost two more
players — Pedro Obiang with a medial knee ligament problem and Arthur
Masuaku, who sits out the second of his six-match ban against Brighton
tomorrow. Before those injuries, we had planned to bring in two players and
then, when the injuries occurred, we ideally wanted a third. That was our
intention right up until the 11th hour on Wednesday but, in the event, we
didn't quite manage it. We pushed hard to bring in midfielder Ibrahim Amadou
on loan from Lille late in the day but we could not get it over the line
before time ran out.
I have been consistent over the last month in wanting only to sign players
who would make us better and stronger. I believe the West Ham fans would
agree with me that, on the evidence of Joao Mario's full debut for us
against Crystal Palace on Tuesday, we have certainly added quality to our
squad. In Jordan Hugill, we know his capabilities because I've watched him
regularly. He has been wanted by a lot of clubs and I felt we need a
bigger, more robust striker to add to our squad, particularly with the
injury to Andy Carroll. Jordan has come a long way in a relatively short
time and, in that respect, he is not dissimilar to Aaron Cresswell, who came
to West Ham from Ipswich, and Michail Antonio, who arrived from Nottingham
Forest. We will give Jordan every opportunity to be a success here. It will
take him a little while to become used to the difference between the
Championship and the Premier League, but I can guarantee his attitude will
be first class. No-one will work harder and I am sure the supporters will
see someone who is really hungry to show what he can do.
Is he similar to Andy in his style of play? Not exactly. Jordan is a more
bustling centre-forward, a real team player who has good energy levels and
impressive physical statistics. He's a handful and if you are a central
defender, you wouldn't enjoy playing against him. I knew on the final day of
the window there was another Premier League club in for him, so it was
pleasing that we were able to win the race for his signature.
Reece Burke and Reece Oxford have gone back out on loan because we have some
cover in that position, but Josh Cullen has stayed. He has been on the road
for a year and he wanted to stay. We like him, he's a level-headed young
player and I would have no fear about putting him on. Antonio should be in
the squad for tomorrow's match. One of the things I said when I came to the
club was that I wanted good discipline. Michail has been injured but there
have been a couple of occasions recently when he's turned up late. I said
when I came in that this is how it's going to be and I'm not having it. If
you are going to be late regularly, then I will act, so he was left out
against Crystal Palace. He came to see me afterwards and said he was sorry.
I hold no grudges, so we quickly move on.
I'm unable to comment on the allegations surrounding the club's director of
player recruitment, Tony Henry, at the moment. I have read the claims and
heard what people have had to say. I hope people will understand that I am
unable to add anything at this time because of the club's and the Football
Association's investigations.
The fee for this column will be donated to the British Heart Foundation —
bhf.org.uk
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West Ham's Javier Hernandez admits asking for January transfer but vows to
give everything now he is staying
Mexican set for a key role on the run-in tells Darren Lewis a lack of match
action made him worry about his World Cup place
ByDarren Lewis
22:30, 2 FEB 2018UPDATED22:48, 2 FEB 2018
Straight-talking Javier Hernandez has no qualms about putting the record
straight. Yes, he did ask to leave West Ham last month. Yes, he did consider
offers from rival Premier League clubs. Stuck on the bench with a place in
Mexico's World Cup squad this summer at stake, the former Manchester United
striker feared he had little option. West Ham's no-nonsense fans — no
strangers to calling it as they see it — will surely appreciate his
disarming honesty. Yet how quickly things change.
Denied an exit because of injury to Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho's
departure to Rennes, Hernandez is determined to give his all for David
Moyes on the run-in to help keep the club away from the drop zone. "Yes, it
was the case that I wanted to go," said the 29-year-old, who only joined the
Hammers in the summer. "Not because I don't like West Ham, but because I
need to have minutes on the pitch. "The World Cup is just around the corner
and I want to play. But you can see that, even though my agent says I want
to go, I have been doing everything I can in a West Ham shirt to help the
team. "Against Bournemouth I scored a goal, I tried to play pretty well in
the Cup [going the full 90 minutes in their loss at Wigan last weekend] and,
in the last game, against Crystal Palace, I tried to do my best. "I am a
very professional guy and I want to do that. "Words can come and go. Your
acts are going to speak for themselves. Now that the window is closed I am
here and trying to achieve the main goals for the club, which is to be safe
from relegation. Then, in the summer, we will see."
"How can I not be?" he said, before Saturday's relegation six-pointer away
to Brighton. "Guadalajara, my home city, is one of the biggest in Mexico. I
have always been in big cities. "I feel good with the fans. I think they are
happy with me. They have treated me very well since the beginning. But I
want to be better. I want to deliver for them."
Were there offers from rival clubs in England?
"In the Premier League, yes."
Was he interested?
"I was interested, yes. In one."
The man nicknamed Chicharito – Little Pea – won't elaborate, and is more
focused on addressing the fears of worried Hammers fans. "Obviously, they
are concerned," he said. "But what I see in the dressing room, what I feel,
is that we want to be better. We all try to work very hard. We all want more
points, more good results, to be higher in the table. "We want to make the
fans happier and we are trying. We are working hard and the season is not
over yet."
Hernandez spoke after training with new £10million striker Jordan Hugill,
signed on Wednesday from Championship side Preston. "He is a very good
football player," he said. "He is confident and I understand his feelings.
He has come to a Premier League club, so he is ambitious. He is v ry happy.
He has transmitted that and, hopefully, can have a good career."
Though he left Old Trafford in summer 2014, initially on loan, Hernandez
continues to follow former club Man United's progress. "One of my best
friends in football is David De Gea," he said. "United was my first European
club. We won two titles and almost won the Champions League. We had good
moments I want them to have good times always. Same for Real Madrid and
Leverkusen. "I always want my old clubs to do well. But I have only one
love in my life in football — my home club Chivas, in Guadalajara. The other
clubs are my girlfriends. "I love them in the moment I love them, then we
say goodbye. "Are the other clubs just jobs? Not jobs. They are like
girlfriends. You like them, you love them. You give them your best, they
give you the best – but it doesn't depend on them or me. You just separate.
"West Ham? They are my girlfriend right now!"
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
West Ham United have today terminated the contract of Director of Player
Recruitment, Tony Henry, with immediate effect following his unacceptable
comments that were widely reported in the press. Our action follows a full
and thorough investigation. West Ham United will not tolerate any type of
discrimination. The West Ham United family is an inclusive one where,
regardless of gender, age, ability, race, religion or sexual orientation,
everybody feels welcome and included.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Brighton & Hove Albion v West Ham United: All you need to know
WHUFC.com
West Ham United take on Brighton & Hove Albion this week in the first
Premier League contest of February.
Read on for all the information you need to know ahead of this fixture.
Where and when?
West Ham and Brighton & Hove Albion will meet at the Amex Stadium on
Saturday 3rd February 2018.
The contest is scheduled to kick-off at 3pm.
How to follow:
Unfortunately, due to being a Saturday 3pm kick-off, this match is not
available for viewing in the UK. For worldwide broadcast schedules, click
here.
Live match updates will be provided through the official West Ham Twitter
account.
You can also follow the game live via our Matchday Blog on whufc.com.
You can also follow the match on our official Instagram, Facebook and
Snapchat channels.
Team news:
Manager David Moyes will issue an update on his available team for
Saturday's match with Brighton during his press conference on Friday.
The meeting with the media is scheduled to begin at 13:30.
Match Officials:
Referee: Roger East
Assistant Referees: Matthew Wilkes & Andy Garratt
Fourth Official: Kevin Friend
How to get there:
There are regular trains from Victoria, London Bridge and Blackfriars to
Brighton, with the journey varying from just under an hour to 90 minutes.
By Train
Take Junction 7 off the M25 and follow the M23 and A23 to the A27. Follow
the A27 and the Stadium is on the right.
By Car
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Team news: Antonio, Fonte, Reid and Hugill all in squad
WHUFC.com
Michail Antonio, Winston Reid, Jose Fonte and new signing Jordan Hugill
could all feature for West Ham United in Saturday's Premier League fixture
at Brighton & Hove Albion.
The quartet will bolster a Hammers squad missing a number of senior players
through injuries and suspension, with forward trio Marko Arnautovic, Manuel
Lanzini and Andy Carroll and wing-back Arthur Masuaku among those
unavailable for the trip to the Amex.
Attacker Antonio returns after missing the midweek draw with Crystal Palace
due to a disciplinary issue, while defenders Reid and Fonte are ready to
return after recovering from groin and ankle problems respectively.
You need a good squad in the Premier League because you need all your
players throughout the course of the season
David Moyes
"We hope Michail Antonio will have a chance of being available. Winston Reid
coming on a bit, and they would probably be the main ones [coming back],"
said the manager.
"With Jose Fonte, we had to bring him back last week because of the numbers
and he could probably do with a couple of reserve team games as he's been
out for a while, but he's training so we need all the numbers we have got."
Centre forward Hugill will likely have to make do with a place on the
substitutes' bench, but Moyes is confident the deadline day capture from
Preston North End will be ready if and when he is called upon.
The 25-year-old scored for Preston in a 2-2 Championship draw at Brighton
last season and his new manager is hopeful Hugill can replicate that form on
his Hammers debut.
"Because we've lost a couple of attacking players and a couple more are
injured at this time, we will need to find a way to blend together
Chicharito, Jordan Hugill and Joao Mario, who is slightly different and not
an out and out attacking player.
"I'm looking forward to getting Marko Arnautovic back because then we will
have not only a potent strike force, but we'll also have creators and people
on the bench who we can use as well.
"You need a good squad in the Premier League because you need all your
players throughout the course of the season."
The manager and his staff have also done plenty of homework on their
opponents, who go into Saturday's game on a six-match Premier League winless
run and with just one victory to their credit in their last 14 top-flight
matches.
Regardless of that recent record, Moyes had words of praise for opposite
number Chris Hughton, who guided the Seagulls to promotion from the
Championship last season.
"I think Chris has done a brilliant job overall, with the way he has brought
Brighton through and the way he has built the club over the last couple of
years, as well. I think he's done a really good job.
"With teams that come up, they come up with a real spirit, but the Premier
League is a long season and it's hard, but Chris really experienced and
knows what he is doing, so I think Brighton have done great."
While Brighton might have 'done great' so far this season, Moyes will have
no sentimental feelings towards the Sussex side on Saturday, as a victory
could take his Hammers back into the top ten and, perhaps more importantly,
put six points between the two clubs.
"At this time of the season, every win becomes more important, especially
when you are playing one of the teams around you.
"We've got to go there and try to get the three points but, at the same
time, we've got to make sure we don't lose as well. It's really important to
keep picking up points.
"I'd like to look up and challenge one or two teams who aren't too far above
us but, while there is a trapdoor not too far away, you're always looking at
it."
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Chicharito: I want to deliver for the fans
WHUFC.com
Chicharito is determined to deliver a strong close to the 2017/18 season as
West Ham United aim to continue their push up the Premier League table. The
Hammers are yet to taste defeat in the league since the turn of the year,
with Mexico striker Chicharito helping to preserve that record with the
equaliser in a 1-1 home draw with AFC Bournemouth. That poacher's finish was
his fifth of the campaign and with a potential appearance at a third FIFA
World Cup finals four months away, the 29-year-old has his sights set on
adding to that tally over the final 13 games of the campaign. "I feel good
with the fans," he explained. "I think they are happy with me. They have
treated me very well since the beginning. But I want to be better. I want to
deliver for them. "What I see in the dressing room, what I feel, is that we
want to be better. We all try to work very hard. "We all want more points,
more good results, to be higher in the table. We want to make the fans
happier and we are trying. We are working hard and the season is not over
yet."
Chicharito could feature alongside a Hammers new boy in Saturday's trip to
Brighton & Hove Albion, after David Moyes added Preston North End striker
Jordan Hugill to the squad on transfer deadline day. Hugill trained with his
new teammates for the first time at the end of the week and Chicharito has
already been impressed with him. "He is a very good football player." he
added. "He played in the Championship, he is confident and I understand his
feelings. "He has come to a Premier League club, so he is ambitious. He is
very happy. He is transmitted that and hopefully he can have a good career."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Joao Mario: I'm feeling right at home as a Hammer
WHUFC.com
Joao Mario is already feeling right at home at West Ham United – literally!
The Portugal star used his day off on Wednesday to move into his new
apartment in London, before taking time out to learn a few more lines of the
Club's anthem I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles. The No18 has also settled quickly
into the Hammers' squad, as illustrated by his impressive showing in
Tuesday's Premier League draw with Crystal Palace; a performance he would
like to replicate at Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday. I used my day off
on Wednesday to move into my new apartment, so I am happy that I have
already found the place where I'll live for the next few months!" said the
25-year-old, who revealed he had spoken to Cristiano Ronaldo before deciding
to move to England. "I am happy to be here and I must enjoy this opportunity
and I want to play well and go to the World Cup. I am here to help West Ham
and also to grow into the Premier League. "I am trying to keep listening to
know all the song Bubbles so hopefully I'll be able to learn the whole song
over the next few weeks! "My teammates are really helping me a lot to settle
in, especially Jose Fonte, because he's my teammate from the national team
and we can speak Portuguese. Many of them speak Spanish and Italian, too,
which makes it easier to talk, so I want to thank them."
Joao Mario's new teammates have clearly had a positive effect on the skilful
attacking midfielder, who played an influential role on his Premier League
debut, impressing the London Stadium faithful with his positive running,
accurate, incisive passing and ability to create space for himself and
others. The Euro 2016 winners' performance was all the more impressive when
you consider he only trained with the Hammers for the first time last Friday
morning. "Everything has happened fast," he confirmed. "I've not even been
here for one week, but I've already played twice for West Ham. I'm really
happy to be here. "I really enjoyed my first game at our amazing stadium.
Since I was a kid I appreciated the Premier League and now, being here and
playing was a dream come true. "English football has a different mentality
and different atmosphere and the passion you can feel on the pitch is
amazing."
Having made his Premier League debut, Joao Mario and his new colleagues will
travel to the Amex to take on Brighton in another fixture that will be vital
to West Ham's hopes of climbing further clear of the bottom three. With just
one defeat in their last ten top-flight matches, the Hammers can travel to
the south coast with confidence that they can avenge the Seagulls' 3-0
victory in the reverse fixture at London Stadium back in October. "This kind
of game, when teams are so close to one another, are the most important
games for us," Joao Mario observed. "We need to win this kind of game and I
hope the team can play well and win on Saturday against Brighton. "We are
trying to improve and get better and achieve the results to get as high as
possible in the table. "We have a great squad. We hope that the injured
players can come back soon and help the team and, together, we can do
something important and improve our position."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Pearce relishing role in West Ham's unique coaching set-up
WHUFC.com
A strong team is greater than the sum of its parts, so the old saying goes,
and certainly appears accurate with reference to David Moyes and his
experienced backroom staff. The Scot has surrounded himself with people who
have virtually seen it all, where football at the highest level is
concerned. Alan Irvine played in the top flight and domestic cup finals for
Everton before managing West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League; Chris
Woods kept goal for England, won the League Cup with Norwich City and four
Scottish Premier League titles with Rangers; Billy McKinlay played for
Scotland at the FIFA World Cup finals and unearthed a host of future stars
while coaching at Fulham. The fourth member of Moyes' all-star quartet of
assistants is arguably the most-experienced of them all.
Stuart Pearce played non-league football until the age of 21, before turning
out 709 times as a professional, scoring 102 goals, captained Nottingham
Forest to the Premier League, two League Cup triumphs and an FA Cup final,
won the Hammer of the Year award at the age of 39, was capped 78 times by
England, featuring at three major tournaments, and has managed Team GB,
England's U21s and Manchester City. A true legend of the game, Pearce
returned to the Club he played for between 1999 and 2001 three months ago,
and has since played his part, alongside Irvine, Woods and McKinlay, in
turning West Ham's season around. The man himself, now 55, puts the Hammers'
resurgence and new-found resilience to the faith put in him and his fellow
assistants by manager Moyes. "For me, it's been two-fold, really. First,
being back at a Club that I represented before, so it that gave me a bit of
a head start, if you like, and second, working as part of this coaching set
up has really been an education for me. "David has got a wealth of
experience, as have Irv, Billy and Chris. I'd never worked alongside them as
a coach before so every time I come in has been a learning for me. "The
thoroughness of the manager has been the one thing that has really stuck out
for me; the depth in which he studies the opposition. "What I like about him
as well is that he courts opinion and he is not afraid. He wants opinion and
he wants the people around him to give opinion and, for me, that is ideal
management and ideal leadership, if I'm being quite honest with you. "His
wealth of knowledge is there for all to see. I've sat in meetings and the
way he has analysed the opposition and set teams up to go to places like
Manchester City and face teams like Chelsea at home to try and get
performances and results have been very good. "We've got a lot of work to
do, there's no doubt about that, and it's not straightforward work, so I see
it as an education, as well as fulfilling a role at the football club."
West Ham's senior coaching setup is unusual, if not unique at the highest
level of English football. While most Premier League clubs employ a manager
who is assisted by one or two trusted lieutenants, David Moyes has
surrounded himself with four senior assistants, all of whom share the same
level of seniority under their boss. The democratic environment has bred a
healthy exchange of views and ideas in both the meeting rooms and training
pitches at Rush Green, as well as the dressing rooms and technical areas
where the Hammers have been in action since the new regime took charge in
November. For Pearce, who has been a manager for the vast majority of his
22-year coaching career, the experience has been a new and refreshing one.
"While I have managed for the majority of my coaching and managerial career,
to be fair, I'm quite happy working with and for David and working for the
Club. "I've not gone in with an ego, suggesting I should make all the
decisions, but the good thing is that the empowers his staff to make
decisions and he wants you to make decisions and he will back those
decisions. That's good leadership."
Moyes himself said in a recent interview that the value of his assistants is
in the different strengths they bring – an assessment Pearce agrees with.
"We're different characters in many ways. Whenever we analyse a performance
or a set of circumstances, we all, because of our different experiences
working at different clubs for different people, probably bring slightly
different slants towards certain situations and we see different things.
"Our personalities dovetail quite nicely with one another. I've got to say,
in the coaches' room our mentality is to deliver the best service to the
players and for the football club. However we do that, it doesn't matter.
"Coaching sessions are led by the manager, but he is quite happy to step
back and say 'You boys take it'. It took us a few weeks to find our feet and
work out who gives the debriefs and who gives the presentations leading into
games and all of those things. The longer we are in the job as a group of
coaches and the longer the players work with us a little bit more, the more
they will pick up and the more we will keep improving."
While the remit of Moyes and his assistants was to improve West Ham's
results and position in the Premier League as quickly as possible, Pearce is
also eager to work with longer-term goals in mind. As a former player who
rose from the part-time ranks to becoming the best left-back in England, he
knows the value of a player spending time working on his game on the
training pitch. For West Ham's young players, and those more senior who
still have improvements that can be made with a bit of fine-tuning, Pearce
is looking forward to spending more time working one-to-one as the fixture
list thins out in the spring. "We've not had a great deal of actual coaching
weeks, where we've had no game from Saturday to Saturday, where you can get
out there and work with young players, and the seniors as well, and keep
educating them. We've been a bit limited in that aspect, because of the way
the games have fallen. "To achieve the results and performances we have
already got, we have used a cross-section of the classroom both leading into
games and debriefing after games, to coaching sessions that hopefully give
the boys a good indicator and make for an excuseless environment when we go
into games. "I've got to say, credit has to be given to the players. They
have taken it on board, their work-rate is up substantially. The manager has
demanded that and they have delivered. "I think we've got to realise, as a
football team, that we've still got a long way to go. What we've got to do
is deliver consistent performances over a consistent period. "A short burst
of 15, 16, 17 games or whatever we've done is all well and dandy, but there
is a relegation scrap which is going to go to the wire and involve 13 teams,
make no mistake about that, and will involve injuries, suspensions and form,
so we've got to make sure we deliver consistent performances week-in,
week-out, then you keep your fingers crossed they'll achieve results."
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Alese named in England squad for Algarve Tournament
WHUFC.com
West Ham United's Ajibola Alese has been named in the England U17s squad for
this month's Algarve Tournament. The 17-year-old has been called up to Steve
Cooper's side for the competition in Portugal, with the squad heading out
for the tournament next week. England will play Portugal, Germany and
Netherlands at the annual competition, with Alese getting the chance to
impress at international level ahead of this summer's European
Championships. "It's an honour to be called up to the England squad," Alese
told whufc.com. "I've been capped at U15 and U16 level in the past so I know
some of the boys already, and it's an opportunity to I'm really looking
forward to."
The call-up comes after Alese made his West Ham U23s debut earlier this
season, featuring in the first game of the campaign against Everton. The
defender has played four times in the competition this season for Terry
Westley's side and his strong performances at the back have seen Alese
receive high praise. However the campaign was interrupted for Alese by a
lengthy injury, suffered at the beginning of the season, but now the
centre-back is back and ready to show what he can do for both West Ham and
England. "I've recently come back from a long injury and I feel like I've
done well in some very tough fixtures, so it's amazing to get international
recognition in the few games I've played. "Hopefully it will be a good
experience and I'll be able to push on when I return with West Ham. I want
to play as many games as possible, both for Club and country."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Moyes: Jordan Hugill is ready to make a big impact at West Ham
WHUFC.com
David Moyes believes new signing Jordan Hugill is ready for the challenge of
Premier League football after completing his deadline day transfer to West
Ham United. The centre forward was playing non-league football just five
years ago, before embarking on an inspirational journey up through the
Football League, culminating in his move to east London earlier this week.
Moyes has been impressed with the impact the 25-year-old has made in his
first training sessions as a Hammer, and is looking forward to seeing what
he can do in a Claret and Blue shirt after naming Hugill in his squad for
Saturday's Premier League fixture at Brighton & Hove Albion. "Jordan
Hugill will give us a bit of presence up front, which we need, and big
energy and honesty," said Moyes, before citing his previous success in
unearthing future top-flight stars during his tenure as Everton manager. "In
all Premier League clubs, you have to look in the lower leagues and I have
done it over the years, signing players like Leighton Baines, Joleon Lescott
and Tim Cahill, and all of them were a real success. "Here, if you look at
Aaron Cresswell coming from Ipswich and Michail Antonio coming from
Nottingham Forest, they've done well, so I'm hoping Jordan can have as big
an impact as those players have. "I think Jordan is ready. I think he could
play and he won't let us down in terms of his effort and commitment. I think
it will take him time to get used to his new surroundings, but hopefully he
can help us in a period when we're a bit short of strikers."
Alongside Portugal playmaker Joao Mario, Hugill was one of two senior
players to join West Ham during the January transfer window. Moyes revealed
they could have been joined in east London by one or two other new faces,
but that moves for Leicester City's Algeria striker Islam Slimani,
Anderlecht's Belgium midfielder Leander Dendonker and Lille's Cameroon
defender Ibrahim Amadou had ultimately not been completed for a variety of
reasons. "I think we'd have liked one more player if we could have got it,"
the manager explained. "We tried right up to the last minute. At the start
of the window two players would have been adequate, and we tried for quite a
few players, but we were happy with what we saw from Joao Mario and we've
now got in Jordan Hugill, who is a different sort of centre forward and will
give us cover up front. "We were in for Slimani, but he had another option
to go to Newcastle and he chose that one. We had an interest in Dendonker
and Amadou as well and we hoped to get one of those two players later on,
but for different reasons they didn't come off. "We're happy enough. If we'd
have got one more at the end, it would have made it right, but two was
enough. "I think we've got enough cover if we get the injured boys back. We
hope Marko Arnautovic won't be too far away and obviously we know Manu
Lanzini is out, but we're getting the players back little by little and the
games thin out a bit over the coming weeks, when the games go Saturday to
Saturday, so that should help us as well."
The manager was also asked for his reaction to the suspension of Director of
Player Recruitment Tony Henry by the Club earlier this week, pending a full
and thorough investigation into alleged comments about the Club's transfer
policy surrounding African players. His response was clear – West Ham try to
recruit the best possible players, regardless of their nationality. "Well,
the comments are wrong. We were signing two players from Africa on deadline
day so I can only say they're wrong. "Of course we have an open transfer
policy. You can see the players the Club have signed over the years. We sign
good, quality players, the best players we can get, and it doesn't matter
where they are from to me, at all. "Never, ever, in all my time in football
have I ever had [a prejudiced transfer policy], at all. "I spoke with one or
two of the African players and they seem fine. They've trained well over the
last couple of days and morale in the camp is good because we're on the back
of a pretty good run where the players are doing really well, so we want to
keep it going."
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Arnautovic nominated for PFA Player of the Month award
WHUFC.com
Marko Arnautovic has been nominated for the PFA Bristol Street Motors Player
of the Month prize for January - with voting open here now, The Hammers
forward enjoyed another fruitful month, scoring in the victory at
Huddersfield and setting up three more goals as the Hammers went through
January unbeaten in the Premier League. Although he suffered an injury
towards the end of the month, his form earns him a nomination for the award,
alongside a host of top names. Manchester City duo Sergio Aguero and Leroy
Sane, Chelsea's Eden Hazard, Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel and
Tottenham's Son Heung-min are the other players nominated.
https://www.footballfancast.com/pfa-awards
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Ray hails 'winning mentality' ahead of Palace clash
WHUFC.com
Karen Ray has praised the 'winning mentality' of her West Ham United Ladies
with her side set for their third match this week, against Crystal Palace.
The Hammers return to action against the Eagles on Sunday having claimed a
place in the Isthmian League Cup final on Wednesday with a 4-0 win at
Whyteleafe, and also a 6-2 victory away to Cardiff City last weekend. It
means the Ladies will play their third match in seven days and, having won
the previous two, Ray has been delighted with the commitment she has seen
from her squad. "Three games in seven days is a really big ask, but the
staff have done a fantastic job in preparing the players both physically and
mentally," Ray told whufc.com. "Our focus now returns to the league where we
face a very strong Crystal Palace on Sunday.
"We have to concentrate on each game and prepare the players as best we can
for the upcoming challenges. The girls committed to five days this week and
I commend each and every one of them for showing a winning mentality and a
desire to make a purposeful contribution to the Club."
Palace will present a tough test for the Hammers with the Eagles sat second
in the Women's Premier League Southern Division. The Hammers have been
bested twice already by Sunday's opponents, in league and Cup competitions,
but a good run of form puts West Ham in a strong position heading into the
match. Ray believes Wednesday's Cup semi-final win came from a conscious
increase in effort from her players, and is eager to see that level of
commitment again this weekend. The interim head coach and General Manager
also took the chance to praise the girls for reaching the Isthmian Cup
final, adding: "The girls have shown an admirable push to this half of the
season, they have played a lot of games in a short amount of time but
haven't wavered in their effort. As a coach, you can't ask for much more
than that. "Making a final is always a special feeling, and everyone at the
club deserves it. At Christmas, I told the girls we needed to park the past
and create ownership, accountability and trust in order for us to start
seeing the results we deserve. Making a final is a proud moment."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Brighton & Hove Albion v West Ham United
SAT 03 FEB 2018PREMIER LEAGUE
15:00
Venue: Amex Stadium
BBC.co.uk
TEAM NEWS
Brighton captain Bruno has been passed fit after missing the last three
matches with a back issue. Loan signing Leonardo Ulloa could start for the
Seagulls but new signing Jurgen Locadia is not match fit after a hamstring
injury.
West Ham's Michail Antonio may return after being dropped for disciplinary
reasons in midweek. Arthur Masuaku is suspended but new signing Jordan
Hugill could make his Hammers' debut.
MOTD COMMENTATOR'S NOTES
Jonathan Pearce: "The return of Leo Ulloa to Brighton could prove one of the
best signings of the window. "Back on loan at the club where he scored 26
goals in 58 games and is hugely popular, he can cure their current scoring
blight. Just seven goals and one win in 14 league games is relegation form.
This is a must-win game. "West Ham can't afford to lose either. Injuries
have left their squad weak. But under David Moyes their resolve is strong.
"Given their problems, it's strange they sent three players out on loan and
sold Andre Ayew. It's also a big step up for Jordan Hugill. "Ulloa is the
key here."
WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY
Brighton & Hove Albion manager Chris Hughton: "At home would probably be the
disappointment that we haven't picked up more wins. "We have just seen
Swansea pick up two outstanding results at home [against Liverpool and
Arsenal) that most people probably wouldn't have expected. "Would they have
been able to do that away from home? It would have been a lot harder. Home
form will play the biggest part of this end of the season."
West Ham manager David Moyes on his squad's injury problems: "We're getting
the players back little by little and the games thin out a bit over the
coming weeks, when the games go Saturday to Saturday, so that should help us
as well."
LAWRO'S PREDICTION
It will be a while until we see David Moyes' side at full strength because
of the injury problems they have. That is one of the reasons I am going for
a Brighton win here. The Seagulls have been struggling when they play away,
and their home form is what is going to give them a chance of staying up, so
this game is very important. Prediction: 2-1
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Brighton are looking to do a league double over West Ham for the first time.
The Hammers won 1-0 on their last trip to Brighton, back in October 2011 in
a Championship game.
But the Seagulls have won both of their previous home top-flight matches
with West Ham, in the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons.
Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton are yet to win in the league in 2018 (D2, L2).
They could go winless in their opening five league matches of a calendar
year for the first time since 1998, when they failed to win any of their
first nine fourth-tier fixtures.
The Seagulls have won only one of their last 14 league fixtures (D6, L7).
They have lost only three of their 12 home league matches this season (W3,
D6). The only teams to beat them are Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea.
Brighton have scored just five goals in their last 13 Premier League games,
failing to find the net on nine occasions in that run.
West Ham United
West Ham are unbeaten in their last six Premier League matches (W4, D2).
The Hammers could remain unbeaten in their opening six top-flight matches of
the calendar year for the first time since 1974, when they did not lose any
of their first 10.
They have already lost three Premier League games against newly-promoted
sides this season: twice against Newcastle, once against Brighton.
West Ham have taken eight points from their last four away games, as many as
in their previous 15 combined.
Brighton will be the 40th different opponent David Moyes has faced in the
Premier League - the only club he has failed to beat are his former club
Everton.
SAM's verdict
Most probable score: 1-1 Probability of draw: 28%
Probability of home win: 44% Probability of away win: 29%
SAM (Sports Analytics Machine) is a super-computer created by @ProfIanMcHale
at the University of Liverpool that is used to predict the outcome of
football matches.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham manager David Moyes rejects African player claims
BBc.co.uk
West Ham manager David Moyes has said that claims the club would not sign
any more African players are wrong. Director of player recruitment Tony
Henry was suspended after the Daily Mail reported he said African players
"cause mayhem" when not in the team. Moyes said they tried to sign
African-born Islam Slimani and Ibrahim Amadou on transfer deadline day on
Wednesday. "We sign good, quality players and it doesn't matter where they
are from," said Moyes on Friday. He added that the mood in the Hammers'
squad, which has six players of African descent, had not been affected by
the controversy. "I've spoken to one or two of the African players and they
seem fine and they've trained well. Morale is good. We're on the back of a
pretty good run and we want to keep it going," said the Scot.
"I've never, ever witnessed any prejudicial transfer policy at any club I've
been at."
West Ham said on Thursday that Henry had been suspended pending "a full and
thorough investigation", while the Football Association says it will
formally investigate the matter. "The comments are wrong," added Moyes. "We
were trying to sign two African players on deadline day."
Leicester forward Slimani joined Newcastle on loan, while Amadou stayed with
French side Lille. "My first African player was Joseph Yobo. It was only
last year when I went to Nigeria to Joseph's testimonial and it was really
good," added former Everton, Manchester United and Sunderland manager Moyes.
"I have also signed Steven Pienaar three times. I don't think any Premier
League club has more African players than West Ham. "Over my time, we've had
good African players and bad African players just like we've had good
Scottish players and bad Scottish players as well, no difference."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Tony Henry: West Ham sack head of recruitment over African player comments
BBc.o.uk
West Ham have sacked director of player recruitment Tony Henry over claims
he said the club would not sign any more African players. The decision
follows a report by the Daily Mail which carried quotes from Henry stating
African players "cause mayhem" when they are not in the team. The club said
his comments were "unacceptable", adding they conducted a "full and thorough
investigation". It added: "West Ham United will not tolerate any type of
discrimination." Earlier on Friday, Hammers manager David Moyes said Henry
had recommended two players from the African continent during the January
transfer window. The Scot said the club were "very, very close" to signing
Leicester's Algeria forward Islam Slimani, who joined Newcastle on loan, and
Lille's Cameroon defender Ibrahim Amadou.
When asked about the comments made by the former recruitment chief, Moyes
said: "It's a massive shock, because you are well aware of the couple of
players we were trying to sign on deadline day, so that's why it's a big
surprise. "I've known Tony and he has to get on with his stuff but all I can
say is that it wasn't correct because we were trying to sign two players
like that on deadline day."
Asked if Henry had recommended Slimani and Amadou, he added: "Yes. They were
two players who were slightly available, albeit who came up late." The
Professional Footballers' Association had said it was "shocked" by the
reported comments. It added: "The PFA strongly condemns any such views and
there is no place for them in football."
West Ham have six first-team squad members of African descent: Cheikhou
Kouyate, Pedro Obiang, Joao Mario, Angelo Ogbonna, Arthur Masuaku and
Edimilson Fernandes. Senegal striker Diafra Sakho left the club in the
January transfer window to join Rennes, with Ghana international Andre Ayew
heading to Swansea.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Protest gathering momentum as fighting fund raises thousands
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 2nd February 2018
By: Staff Writer
The Real West Ham Fans Action Group have announced plans for a protest match
on Saturday, 10 March. The group, set up recently to take West Ham United's
Board to task over a string of broken promises following the move to
Stratford will be heading a peaceful march little over a month from now.
Organisers of the event, which is being planned with the cooperation of
Police and local authorities hope to attract in excess of 3,000 West Ham
supporters to the event, which is scheduled to take place on the day West
Ham host Burnley in the Premier League.
However having received the backing of the vast majority of independent West
Ham websites and Facebook groups, it is thought that actual numbers could
exceed the target audience by some considerable amount. "We feel that David
Sulivan is unfit to run our football club," RWHFAG committee member Micky
Morgan told KUMB. "He helped destroy Birmingham and he's destroying West
Ham, which is why we're here. The damage is done now. "Sullivan seems to
think that West Ham fans no longer have any clout. He doesn't realise what's
coming. "The march is going to start in Stratford and we're going to descend
on the ground from there. There'll be transport available for disabled
supporters and those who have trouble walking long distances. "Everything is
being arranged in conjunction with the Police so it'll be a perfectly legal
march. Everyone is welcome, including families and children; there'll be
nans and granddads present too. "This is about West Ham United, there'll be
no confrontation, we're just protesting against the Board who have
effectively just banked £20million from the transfer window."
The depth of support for the initiative can be illustrated by a casual
glance at the RWHFAG's justgiving appeal, set up to create a fighting fund
for march organisers. The fundraising effort, which started this week with
the aim of raising £20,000 has already raised an incredible £14,000 in just
48 hours, with hundreds of West Ham supporters having donated to the cause.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Cole praises inclusive West Ham
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 2nd February 2018
By: Staff Writer
Former West Ham United striker Carlton Cole has insisted that players of
African origin were welcomed at the club throughout his time as a Hammer,
after the club.
Cole, now 34, spent a total of nine years at West Ham in two spells from
2006 to 2015. And in reference to the 'African players' scandal, he says
that there were never any race issues at the club during the period in which
he was an employee. "Not many people have played for West Ham United longer
than me and African players have always been made most welcome by the fans
and club," said Cole in a statement to the Press Association. "I am of
African heritage and am indeed proud of that, I am also proud to have played
for my country. In my nine years at West Ham United it was fantastic, the
fans and club have always judged players on their football ability, work
ethic and loyalty. "West Ham United is a club that is proud of its diversity
and has not tolerated discrimination during the whole time I played there
and been associated with the club. "We all have to be completely against any
form of prejudice, racism and discrimination, football must be about
inclusion and equality. I am pleased to see that the club have acted so
swiftly to investigate any accusations of discrimination and I'm sure
they'll reach a satisfactory conclusion."
Meanwhile it has emerged that another unnamed senior official left West Ham
some three months ago following an investigation. Who and why has however
not been revealed, although the club confirm it was not related to the
current Tony Henry investigation.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
A catalogue of errors
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 2nd February 2018
By: Iron Mark
When the Olympic Stadium was being sold to the fans one of the questions, if
I remember correctly, was 'would be happy to move if it meant being able to
attract better players'?
Since moving from Upton Park to Stratford, those players have included:
Andre Ayew - back at Swansea
Robert Snodgrass - on loan, comments from the board suggest he won't want to
come back
Simone Zaza - loan ended early, now scoring goals for Valencia
Jonathan Calleri - loan
Gokhan Tore - loan
Alvaro Arbeloa - well that worked well...
Ashley Fletcher - sold
Sofiane Feghouli - sold so Bilic could sign a player he wanted, ultimately
sold for no reason
Havard Nordtveit - sold
During this period we have also sold Dimitri Payet, James Tomkins, Diafra
Sakho and Enner Valencia. All players who played key roles for us in
previous seasons.
Despite selling most of last season's signings and a few others, leaving a
small squad with the limited incomings, we appear to have either no money or
have reached our wage cap.
This is probably not helped when one striker on big wages is always injured,
the other is struggling (though not financially with wages like that) and
our substitute goalkeeper is one of the highest-paid players we have.
So we have an injury-ravaged squad, short of depth or quality in some
important positions and absolutely no transfer policy in sight. Of course we
have also loaned out a few of the youngsters who have been involved recently
as there's clearly no chance we may need them again soon...
I guess this means the big move wasn't worth the money as we clearly aren't
seeing it on the pitch.
Maybe the owners can lend a hand? Most other clubs get some help every now
and again. Except, ours will only loan (with interest of course). Does that
mean we would be better off without them giving us any money at all?
Does buying a scarf in the club shop give the club more money than the
people running it? Does giving nothing contribute more? At least it's not
taking money away. Not the sort of owners you want to run the club
financially, then.
At least they try to keep themselves and the club out of the headlines -
unless they want to pat themselves on the back for signing the best 'keeper
someone has worked with (who's not quite good enough to displace the old
number one). Or if they decide to publicly criticise another signing.
Did they forget Snodgrass and Fonte still played for us when they came out
with those gems?
I'm still struggling to work out what they are good at. Money isn't their
forte nor is keeping themselves out of the headlines. Maybe they run a tight
ship? Recent events involving Tony Henry shows it unlikely.
Their children have free reign to do what they like. Imagine the son of
another chairman not only becoming a twitter mouthpiece, but actively
slagging off a new signing. No one would be that stupid...
Relations with other clubs? Maybe they know the business and can work a good
deal with their contacts? Ha. The only clubs they probably haven't annoyed
are the ones who haven't heard of them.
Squad relations? We have already seen how quick they are to slag the players
off when it suits. With all the rumours of players wanting to leave, it
makes you wonder if there is anyone, anywhere who actually likes working
under this Board.
So basically they are good for nothing, have sold our home to move into a
rented athletics stadium with no financial benefits, consistently weaken the
squad, have kept us in the headlines for all the wrong reasons (though
nothing seems to stick to them, I wonder why?) and generally piss everybody
(West Ham related or not) off in the process.
Even if they all left tomorrow, it still wouldn't be quick enough.
Please note that the opinions expressed in this article are those of the
author and do not necessarily represent the views of, nor should be
attributed to, KUMB.com.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Brighton v West Ham preview: Leonardo Ulloa makes Amex return
Last Updated: 02/02/18 3:06pm
SSN
Leonardo Ulloa could start for Brighton when they host injury-hit West Ham
on Saturday. The striker has returned to the Seagulls on loan from
Leicester, having spent 18 months with the club in 2013/14. He came on as a
substitute in the midweek draw with Southampton and is looking forward to
returning to the Amex Stadium. "I can't wait because I always feel really
good when I play there - it feels like a home and it will be a special
feeling," he said. "It's amazing, and the fans were so good, and now I'm
expecting them to be the same as they were three years ago on Saturday
against West Ham. "They gave me a great reception at Southampton, they were
singing my name and they were amazing."
Brighton are 15th in the Premier League, one point above the relegation zone
and without a league win this year. West Ham have lost just once in their
last 10 Premier League matches but are without several first-team players.
Team news
Brighton captain Bruno has been passed fit after missing the last three
matches to rest a minor back problem. New signing Jurgen Locadia has begun
training after a hamstring injury but is not match fit, while Jiri Skalak
and Steve Sidwell (both ankle) are sidelined.
Michail Antonio could return for West Ham after missing the midweek draw
with Newcastle due to disciplinary reasons. Arthur Masuaku is suspended but
Jose Fonte and Winston Reid could return from injury. Marko Arnautovic,
Manuel Lanzini, Andy Carroll and Pedro Obiang are out.
Opta stats
Brighton won both previous home top-flight encounters against West Ham,
doing so in 1981/82 and 1982/83.
West Ham have already lost three Premier League games against newly-promoted
sides this season (twice against Newcastle, once against Brighton) - they
have only lost four in a season once before, doing so in 2006/07.
Brighton have scored just five goals in their last 13 Premier League games,
failing to find the net on nine occasions in that run.
Mark Noble has scored in three of his last six Premier League appearances (3
goals), after a run of 18 games without a goal. Indeed, Noble's penalty in
midweek, made him the 11th player in Premier League history to score 20 or
more from the spot.
Glenn Murray has scored four of Brighton's last six goals in all
competitions, including each of the last three.
Merson's prediction
Brighton started brilliantly against Southampton and while they ended up
with a draw, it was probably a good point in the end. I also watched them
against Chelsea and they were so unlucky to lose 4-0. Looking at West Ham,
they've got a few injury problems at the moment and it could be a bit of a
struggle for them at the Amex.
PAUL PREDICTS: 2-1 (17/2 with Sky Bet)
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
David Moyes expected Islam Slimani to join West Ham on loan
Last Updated: 02/02/18 10:38pm
SSN
David Moyes admits he thought Islam Slimani's proposed loan move to West Ham
was a done deal before the Algerian joined Newcastle. The Hammers were
hopeful of taking the Leicester striker on loan for the remainder of the
campaign before talks fell through, with Slimani instead heading to
Newcastle on the final day of the window. "Slimani was agreed on Tuesday
night and it didn't come off on Wednesday. I only woke up on Wednesday to be
told that it wasn't going to happen," said Moyes, who also revealed the
reasons behind the club's failed bid to land Lille midfielder Ibrahim
Amadou. "Then on Wednesday afternoon we hoped to do Amadou. We put in a loan
offer for him, which we hoped might have been good enough to get him. "We
didn't want to pay the asking price because we hadn't seen him often enough
to say it was worth putting out £16m for him but we made a really big loan
offer and couldn't get him in the end."
While the Hammers missed out on Slimani and Amadou, the club did manage to
sign Jordan Hugill on a four-and-a-half-year deal from Preston North End.
"He was always someone we had an eye on," said Moyes. "I've got a thing
about where do players come from, as in where do you bring them in if you're
buying new players. "It either has to come from your academy or the lower
leagues. Do we have it in the academy? No, well then the next place we
should look is in the UK. "We went looking and I thought Jordan would be
worth a go."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
David Moyes says West Ham have open transfer policy and alleged comments are
'wrong'
Last Updated: 02/02/18 3:08pm
SSN
David Moyes says West Ham have an open transfer policy and that alleged
comments made by director of player recruitment Tony Henry are "wrong".
Henry was suspended on Thursday while an investigation takes place into a
report in the Daily Mail about comments allegedly made by Henry to other
West Ham officials and agents in emails regarding the signing of African
players. "The comments are wrong, we were signing two players from Africa on
Deadline Day, so I can only say they are wrong," said Moyes. Asked whether
the club have an open transfer policy, Moyes replied: "Of course we have.
You can see the players we sign, you can see the players that the club has
signed over the years. "We always sign good quality players, the best
players we can get who are available to us, and it doesn't really matter
where they're from to me at all."
Asked whether he had ever experienced prejudice in regards to the transfer
policy at the club, he said: "Never ever at any club in football, I've never
had that. Never at all." West Ham midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate - who is of
African descent - posted a message on Instagram on Thursday, saying:
"African and proud".
Moyes says he does not think the alleged comments, which are being
investigated by the FA, have had an affect on team morale, ahead of their
game against Brighton on Saturday. "I spoke with one or two of the African
players and they seem fine," Moyes added. "They have trained well the last
couple of days and the morale in the camp is good because we are on the back
of a pretty good run. The players are doing really well so we want to try
and keep it going."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham wanted one more in the transfer window but I'm glad that is all
over
DAVID MOYES
ES Sport
I am sure I am not the only manager to be glad that the January transfer
window is over. This window changed for us a couple of weeks ago when we
lost influential players like Marko Arnautovic and Manuel Lanzini to
injuries. The position was made even more acute when we lost two more
players — Pedro Obiang with a medial knee ligament problem and Arthur
Masuaku, who sits out the second of his six-match ban against Brighton
tomorrow. Before those injuries, we had planned to bring in two players and
then, when the injuries occurred, we ideally wanted a third. That was our
intention right up until the 11th hour on Wednesday but, in the event, we
didn't quite manage it. We pushed hard to bring in midfielder Ibrahim Amadou
on loan from Lille late in the day but we could not get it over the line
before time ran out.
I have been consistent over the last month in wanting only to sign players
who would make us better and stronger. I believe the West Ham fans would
agree with me that, on the evidence of Joao Mario's full debut for us
against Crystal Palace on Tuesday, we have certainly added quality to our
squad. In Jordan Hugill, we know his capabilities because I've watched him
regularly. He has been wanted by a lot of clubs and I felt we need a
bigger, more robust striker to add to our squad, particularly with the
injury to Andy Carroll. Jordan has come a long way in a relatively short
time and, in that respect, he is not dissimilar to Aaron Cresswell, who came
to West Ham from Ipswich, and Michail Antonio, who arrived from Nottingham
Forest. We will give Jordan every opportunity to be a success here. It will
take him a little while to become used to the difference between the
Championship and the Premier League, but I can guarantee his attitude will
be first class. No-one will work harder and I am sure the supporters will
see someone who is really hungry to show what he can do.
Is he similar to Andy in his style of play? Not exactly. Jordan is a more
bustling centre-forward, a real team player who has good energy levels and
impressive physical statistics. He's a handful and if you are a central
defender, you wouldn't enjoy playing against him. I knew on the final day of
the window there was another Premier League club in for him, so it was
pleasing that we were able to win the race for his signature.
Reece Burke and Reece Oxford have gone back out on loan because we have some
cover in that position, but Josh Cullen has stayed. He has been on the road
for a year and he wanted to stay. We like him, he's a level-headed young
player and I would have no fear about putting him on. Antonio should be in
the squad for tomorrow's match. One of the things I said when I came to the
club was that I wanted good discipline. Michail has been injured but there
have been a couple of occasions recently when he's turned up late. I said
when I came in that this is how it's going to be and I'm not having it. If
you are going to be late regularly, then I will act, so he was left out
against Crystal Palace. He came to see me afterwards and said he was sorry.
I hold no grudges, so we quickly move on.
I'm unable to comment on the allegations surrounding the club's director of
player recruitment, Tony Henry, at the moment. I have read the claims and
heard what people have had to say. I hope people will understand that I am
unable to add anything at this time because of the club's and the Football
Association's investigations.
The fee for this column will be donated to the British Heart Foundation —
bhf.org.uk
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham's Javier Hernandez admits asking for January transfer but vows to
give everything now he is staying
Mexican set for a key role on the run-in tells Darren Lewis a lack of match
action made him worry about his World Cup place
ByDarren Lewis
22:30, 2 FEB 2018UPDATED22:48, 2 FEB 2018
Straight-talking Javier Hernandez has no qualms about putting the record
straight. Yes, he did ask to leave West Ham last month. Yes, he did consider
offers from rival Premier League clubs. Stuck on the bench with a place in
Mexico's World Cup squad this summer at stake, the former Manchester United
striker feared he had little option. West Ham's no-nonsense fans — no
strangers to calling it as they see it — will surely appreciate his
disarming honesty. Yet how quickly things change.
Denied an exit because of injury to Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho's
departure to Rennes, Hernandez is determined to give his all for David
Moyes on the run-in to help keep the club away from the drop zone. "Yes, it
was the case that I wanted to go," said the 29-year-old, who only joined the
Hammers in the summer. "Not because I don't like West Ham, but because I
need to have minutes on the pitch. "The World Cup is just around the corner
and I want to play. But you can see that, even though my agent says I want
to go, I have been doing everything I can in a West Ham shirt to help the
team. "Against Bournemouth I scored a goal, I tried to play pretty well in
the Cup [going the full 90 minutes in their loss at Wigan last weekend] and,
in the last game, against Crystal Palace, I tried to do my best. "I am a
very professional guy and I want to do that. "Words can come and go. Your
acts are going to speak for themselves. Now that the window is closed I am
here and trying to achieve the main goals for the club, which is to be safe
from relegation. Then, in the summer, we will see."
"How can I not be?" he said, before Saturday's relegation six-pointer away
to Brighton. "Guadalajara, my home city, is one of the biggest in Mexico. I
have always been in big cities. "I feel good with the fans. I think they are
happy with me. They have treated me very well since the beginning. But I
want to be better. I want to deliver for them."
Were there offers from rival clubs in England?
"In the Premier League, yes."
Was he interested?
"I was interested, yes. In one."
The man nicknamed Chicharito – Little Pea – won't elaborate, and is more
focused on addressing the fears of worried Hammers fans. "Obviously, they
are concerned," he said. "But what I see in the dressing room, what I feel,
is that we want to be better. We all try to work very hard. We all want more
points, more good results, to be higher in the table. "We want to make the
fans happier and we are trying. We are working hard and the season is not
over yet."
Hernandez spoke after training with new £10million striker Jordan Hugill,
signed on Wednesday from Championship side Preston. "He is a very good
football player," he said. "He is confident and I understand his feelings.
He has come to a Premier League club, so he is ambitious. He is v ry happy.
He has transmitted that and, hopefully, can have a good career."
Though he left Old Trafford in summer 2014, initially on loan, Hernandez
continues to follow former club Man United's progress. "One of my best
friends in football is David De Gea," he said. "United was my first European
club. We won two titles and almost won the Champions League. We had good
moments I want them to have good times always. Same for Real Madrid and
Leverkusen. "I always want my old clubs to do well. But I have only one
love in my life in football — my home club Chivas, in Guadalajara. The other
clubs are my girlfriends. "I love them in the moment I love them, then we
say goodbye. "Are the other clubs just jobs? Not jobs. They are like
girlfriends. You like them, you love them. You give them your best, they
give you the best – but it doesn't depend on them or me. You just separate.
"West Ham? They are my girlfriend right now!"
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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