Hammers report strong results
WHUFC.com
West Ham United have published their accounts for year ending 31 May 2014
29.12.2014
West Ham United are pleased to announce a record group profit before tax of
£10.3m following a successful 2013/14 for the Club both on and off the
pitch. This is a significant improvement on last year's loss before tax of
£3.5m. As the team overcame a difficult start to the season to finish 13th
in the Barclays Premier League, the Club increased revenues to an all-time
high. Turnover was up to £114.8m compared to £89.8m the previous year,
helped by the new Broadcast deal and an increase in most other income
sources. The wage/turnover ratio also decreased to 55.6% against 62.6% last
year, the lowest ratio since this was first calculated 15 years ago. It all
added up to a fine year for the Club, who finish 2014 in sixth position
following their best-ever Premier League start. August 2015 will bring the
beginning of the Club's final season at the Boleyn Ground ahead of the move
to a stunning new home in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in 2016 and the
commercial opportunities that will create.
Joint-Chairman David Sullivan said: "My Board and I are satisfied with the
achievements we have made in the 2013/14 season, the highlights for us being
retaining our Premier League status and reaching the semi-final of the
Capital One Cup, signing an agreement to sell the Boleyn Ground in
preparation for our move to the Olympic Stadium for the 2016/17 season, and
our fantastic support despite our many injuries and therefore subsequent
challenging performances on the pitch. "We continue to believe we will
deliver both on and off the pitch by investing in the team, the brand and
managing the business well."
Vice-Chairman Karren Brady added: "Through the hard work of a fantastic,
dedicated, loyal and determined team both on and off the pitch the club has
grown in size, revenue and in stature this season. The management team off
the pitch were able to capitalise and maximise on all the opportunities the
manager and the team delivered on the pitch."
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O'Brien - 'West Brom is massive'
WHUFC.com
Joey O'Brien has labelled the visit of West Brom as the biggest game of the
season so far
29.12.2014
Joey O'Brien believes West Ham United's New Year's Day showdown with West
Bromwich Albion is the Hammers' biggest game of the Barclays Premier League
campaign to date. Following Christmas defeats by Chelsea and then Arsenal,
Sam Allardyce's side will bid to get back on track against the struggling
Baggies on Thursday, a game which O'Brien believes will really test the
Club's top-six credentials. The Republic of Ireland full-back started his
first game on Sunday since August and despite the 2-1 reverse was
understandably thrilled to be back in the thick of things, particularly
against the Gunners. "It was great to get back out and play," he told West
Ham TV. "I probably haven't started in about four months and it's great to
play. "Throughout my career I've had some of my finer moments playing
against the Arsenal. When I first broke into the team at Bolton, it was
against Arsenal at Highbury. "It's been frustrating for me personally but
the lads have been great and obviously we've been sitting fourth and fifth
in the league, it's hard to get a game when the lads are winning all the
time."
With so little football in recent weeks to call upon, Sunday's encounter was
something of a baptism of fire. But far from being fearful of the challenge
presented by Arsenal's rapid and technically gifted front three, O'Brien
positively relished it. He continued: "That's what you want, that's one of
the reasons why it's nice to play against them. Their front line is real,
real quality, Alexis Sanchez, Danny Welbeck and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. I
thought we coped with it really well, up until the last part of the game,
when we were pushing for the equaliser. "Then obviously the game's getting
stretched, we're going for the equaliser and they're obviously going to be
able to hit you on the break with the pace and the quality they've got. We
could've nicked something at the end I suppose."
O'Brien felt the penalty award against Winston Reid was a real body blow,
what with the decisive second following in such quick succession. But for
that momentary loss of focus, the full-back reckons it would have been a
completely different affair. He explained: "We started off really well in
the game and we were the better team up until the penalty. I think the
penalty was a penalty, but maybe throughout the whole team it affected us.
"We probably just lost concentration for that last five minutes and had we
got in at 1-0 and settled back down the way we were doing, it could have
been a different game. But with them 2-0 up, it was just that little bit too
big a lead to get back. "But we came out and had a right good go here. I
think the fans appreciated that, you could hear that at the end of the
game."
With precious little time to lick wounds, O'Brien says it is all systems go
again for the visit of West Brom on Thursday. If West Ham are to harbour
European ambitions, then this, insists the 28-year-old, is the sort of game
that they absolutely have to win at home. "The next game against West Brom
is a massive game in my eyes, probably the biggest game of the season so far
us. If we have aspirations of being in the top, top part of the league,
these are the games you need to bounce back on to get us back to winning
ways. "Looking at where we are in the league, we've had a couple of defeats,
but we're still up and around there. With a couple of the lads going to the
Africa Cup of Nations, it's their last game, so they'll want to put in a big
performance before they go. Hopefully we can get the win."
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Tomkins backs Hammers to recover
WHUFC.com
James Tomkins says West Ham United will emerge from the festive period
stronger despite two defeats
28.12.2014
James Tomkins was mystified as to how West Ham United's seven-game unbeaten
home run came to an end against Arsenal on Sunday. The Hammers were giving
just as good as they got in the first half until two goals in three minutes
gave Arsenal a position of strength just before the interval. West Ham
rallied and Tomkins set up a goal for Cheikhou Kouyate on 54 minutes, and
although they ended the game strongly, winning a number of dangerous set
pieces around the box they could not quite take advantage. It meant Arsenal
leapfrogged the Hammers into the top five of the table, but Tomkins will not
get too downhearted ahead of the second half of the campaign. The No5
explained: "I couldn't believe we couldn't get that final goal to get a draw
out of this game. We battered them in the first half, but then they got two
goals against the run of play. "Once you concede one, to concede two against
a team like Arsenal is always going to give you a mountain to climb. It
wasn't quite to be. "I'm not sure I've been involved in a game as end-to-end
as that and it must have been entertaining for the neutral. "We threw
everything at them and sometimes you need a bit of luck and we didn't get it
today where in other games we may have. "We're bitterly disappointed today
but we'll be back stronger knowing we can play like that against a team like
Arsenal. "We played really well and I don't think we should feel too down.
The kitchen sink got thrown at them."
West Ham started the game at pace and thought they had taken the lead when
Alex Song lashed home a volley from 25 yards only for an offside flag
against Cheikhou Kouyate in Wojciech Szczesny's eyeline. Tomkins felt if
that had been allowed to stand the end result could have been very
different. He added: "If we had scored the first goal maybe the outcome
would have been different. I had a chance, and I think Stewie had one too,
and sometimes you need that bit of good fortune."
Tomkins' appearance was his 200th in a claret and blue shirt and he has his
eyes on many more milestones with the Hammers. He said: "I'm very proud to
reach the landmark of 200 games for West Ham. I can look back at it and be
proud, but hopefully there's many ore to come.
"It would have been nice to reach 200 with a win - that would have made it
better, but it's a proud moment."
Thursday sees West Ham return to action with the visit of West Bromwich
Albion and although Tomkins is banned after collecting his fifth yellow card
of the season, he believes the team can bounce back. "The lads have put a
big shift in these last few days, with two games against great opposition,"
he concluded. "I'm suspended for Thursday now, but the lads will be firing
and ready to go and as a team we need to beat West Brom. "We've done it once
already this season and let's see if we can do it again."
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2013/14 Accounts: TV deal leads to record turnover
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 29th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
West Ham United FC's revenue rose by some £25million in 2013/14 - thanks
largely to the extra income generated by the new TV sponsorship deal.
The Club generated a record £114.9million turnover last season, with the
bulk of the extra income as a result of the new TV deal which generated
£75.4million in 2013/14 - up from £51.8million the previous year.
That resulted in the Club reporting a profit of £10.3million - a rise of
just under £7million on 2012/13.
Also up were match day ticket sales, which rose from £18million to
£19.5million - whilst the wages to turnover ratio dropped from 62.6 per cent
to 55.6 per cent (a figure lower than 70 per cent is generally considered
healthy).
On the negative side, West Ham United's overall level of debt remains above
the £100m mark, with more than half of that figure owed to co-Chairmen David
Gold and David Sullivan who have taken responsibility for much of the
external debt.
A further injection of £3.5million was required by he owners - who now own
86.2 per cent of the club between them - during the 2013/14 season, whilst
the average gate at the Boleyn Ground in 2013/14 was down fractionally from
34,720 to 34,007.
David Sullivan, speaking in his statement said that he was "satisfied with
the achievements we have made this season", but added that the current
campaign was proving to be even better.
"A lot has been made about 'the West Ham way' and exactly what it is," he
said. "Personally I think what we are witnessing right now at the club is
exactly how I would sum it up.
"We are playing attacking football with everybody giving 100 per cent, and
we are getting results at the same time."
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Wenger on... West Ham Utd
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 29th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
Arsene Wenger did see the penalty and he felt it was the right decision.
More from the Arsenal manger in his post-match press conference...
Arsene: A tough game, you must be pleased with the win?
Yes; it was a solid, combative and united performance from the first to the
last minute. Looking at the goal chances,we deserved to win the game. It was
a typically direct game where we needed to be solid in the air, take our
chances on the breaks. When it cam back to 2-1 we had five or six chances on
counter-attacks that we couldn't take but overall everybody did their job
very well, from the 'keeper to up front.
Koscielny made a big difference today?
Look, we know that. We need to be stable defensively and when you miss
importnt players at the back it's always difficult to be stable.
What does that do for the belief that you can finish in the top four, when
you come to places like this and win?
I always have belief but it's far from done. We just want to win the next
game and be consistent in our performances. Today we've wn away from hom, if
you look at our recent results we look to be more stable.
We have a big game in front of us now at Southampton and nobody else coming
back, so the players who were out there today have given a lot but they have
to recover and prepare well for the Southampton game.
Was there any doubt about the penalty for you?
Look, everybody who has played football has missed a penalty. Anybody can
miss.
I was talking about the award - was there any doubt about it being a
penalty?
There's always a doubt.
But you thought it was a foul?
I thought it was a penalty, yes.
How about Coquelain today?
I felt he played very well, especially in the first half he was very
influential. In the second half he fatigued a bit in the last 20 minutes but
he had a very good performance - not only defensively but also with the
ball. His passing was quick, sharp, through the lines and overall it was a
convincing performance.
You could say it was a bit of a gamble, but you didn't have any second
thoughts about playing him?
It was a gamble, yes, but I felt that we needed to protect [the area] in
front of the defence with two players, with Carroll on the long ball which
needed protection. But, he was the right choice.
In terms of creativity, do you see any progress in your team in the last
three or four months?
With the ball I think we had a very difficult game today but always looked
dangerous. We couldn't the game off which was down to the quality of their
goalkeeper. Sometimes, we missed our chances and sometimes maybe there was a
player in a better position but overall we created chances. Look at the
other results today, there's not too many goals. 48 hours everybody played
and that of course has an impact.
Was there a lack of finesse in the final third?
It was more of a fight than a creative game today but you need to have that
in England as well, especially when you have played two days before with ten
men for 40 minutes. When I looked at how much we gave physically I was
worriesd for today. We knew before the game that we had to dig deep to win
the game, but we did that.
How important is it for you now to re-establish yourselves in the top four
now?
It is vital for us.
Do you feel you're able to do that now?
We have done it for 17 years now, so at least we're entitled to believe we
can do it! It's all to do, when you look at the league everybody fights very
hard for it. You have Southampton, Tottenham, Man United - so many teams who
can fight for these positions.
Was Rosicky injured or was two days in three games just beyond him?
I just gave him a complete recovery today. When I took him off with ten
minutes to go against QPR he had cramp in the calf and hamstring so I didn't
want to take a gamble.
Is there anything to report on Podolski?
Podolski?
Italian papers are reporting that Inter Milan are interested?
No, there's nothing concrete there.
Are you adamant that he won't go in January?
At the moment, nobody goes out. He's coming back soon and there's a lot of
competition up front.
Thank you.
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Zarate and Reid on the move?
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 29th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
According to this morning's Mail, Arsenal are poised to launch a £4million
bid for West Ham's Winston Reid. The 26-year-old Kiwi is out of contract at
West Ham this summer and although chairman David Sullivan stated last week
that no first team players would be sold in January, a deal involving on
loan right-back Carl Jenkinson could persuade him otherwise. Meanwhile Mauro
Zarate continues to be linked with moves both domestically and in Europe.
Last week the Argentine striker, who has barely featured for West Ham since
moving to east London in the summer was linked with a return to Italy on
loan (Torino). Rather closer to home, Newcastle, Queens Park Rangers,
Sunderland AND Southampton are reported by various sources to be keen on the
former Velez goalscorer. In other transfer news, Vedran Corluka - formerly
of Tottenham - is one of several defenders tipped to replace Winston Reid.
Currently playing for Lokomotiv Moscow, the 28-year-old is rated around the
£5million mark and is said to have been monitored by both West Ham and
Everton (Mirror).
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West Ham announce record profit
Last Updated: 29/12/14 4:03pm
SSN
West Ham United have announced a record group profit before tax of £10.3m -
a marked improvement on last year's loss before tax of £3.5m.
Turnover was up to £114.8m compared to £89.8m the previous year, while the
wage/turnover ratio also decreased to 55.6% from 62.6% last year, the lowest
ratio since this was first calculated 15 years ago. The club finished last
season in 13th place in the Premier League while they will end 2014 in sixth
position following their best-ever Premier League start. The 2015-16 season
will be their final season at the Boleyn Ground ahead of a move to the
Olympic Stadium in 2016. Joint-chairman David Sullivan said: "My board and
I are satisfied with the achievements we have made in the 2013/14 season.
"The highlights for us were retaining our Premier League status and reaching
the semi-final of the Capital One Cup, signing an agreement to sell the
Boleyn Ground in preparation for our move to the Olympic Stadium for the
2016/17 season, and our fantastic support despite our many injuries and
therefore subsequent challenging performances on the pitch. "We continue to
believe we will deliver both on and off the pitch by investing in the team,
the brand and managing the business well."
Vice-chairman Karren Brady added: "Through the hard work of a fantastic,
dedicated, loyal and determined team both on and off the pitch the club has
grown in size, revenue and in stature this season. "The management team off
the pitch were able to capitalise and maximise on all the opportunities the
manager and the team delivered on the pitch." At the weekend, Sullivan
revealed he and his co-owner David Gold had put a 20 per cent stake in the
club up for sale. He said they are looking to raise £80m to help reduce
debts which currently stand at £110m, of which £55m is owed to Gold and
Sullivan.
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THE WINSTON REID SAGA CONTINUES
By Iain Dale 29 Dec 2014 at 10:33
West Ham till I Die
There's more speculation about Winston Reid's future this morning in the
Daily Mail. They suggest that Arsenal will be making a £4 million bid after
watching him in every game since November.
Claret & Hugh have an anonymous quote from a club spokeman pouring cold
water on the story…
"The story isn't true . We have had no contact whatsoever from Arsenal.
Nothing can be ruled out but there has never been any contact and we would
have expected it by now. He collected his eighth yellow card of the season
yesterday and had a very poor game which obviously wouldn't have helped his
chances of a move if Arsenal are remotely interested!"
Ouch.
I can't say I thought Reid performed poorly yesterday. It was Tomkins who
was at fault for Arsenal's second goal, not Reid. But as I said a week ago,
this saga will soon become very debstabilising for the whole team if it
continues much longer. I hope Sam has already identified a replacement. We
don't need to spend money in other areas of the team but we do need an extra
central defender anyway, even if Reid doesn't go.
Who would be on your shortlist?
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CandH Exclusive: Redknapp – "I want Zarate"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on December 29, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Queens Park Rangers boss Harry Redknapp has tonight confirmed he is keen to
take Mauro Zarate to Loftus Road on loan next month. 'Arry spoke exclusively
to ClaretandHugh after we had broken the story earlier today making it clear
his interest was "real." The former Hammers boss is developing a track
record for taking Irons players to south west London having given Modibo
Maiga, Ravel Morrison and Gary O'Neill a temporary home at Loftus Road since
he took over as manager. And tonight when we caught up with him he said:
"Yes, it's true I am interested in Mauro. We are talking about the
possibility of doing a loan deal. "He's a player I like and if West Ham want
to do business then hopefully we can thrash something out over the next few
days." He added: "The interest is real but it's in West Ham's court. We
would be ready to get something sorted out." However, he made it clear he
was not interested in Ravel Morrison returning to Loftus Road saying: "No
that one is not likely to happen."
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Zarate QPR move may cause Sam a big problem
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on December 29, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Harry Redknapp's interest in Mauro Zarate is now an open secret – a
development which has the potential to prove Sam Allardyc e's judgement of
the player correct or leave him with a red face. ClaretandHugh broke the
story exclusively earlier today and The Telegraph has now followed up
declaring: "Queens Park Rangers are ready to end striker Mauro Zarate's West
Ham United's misery by taking him on loan for the rest of the season.
"Newcastle United have also expressed an interested in Zarate, but it is
thought the 27-year-old believes he has a better chance of playing regular
first-team football at Loftus Road."
The "Zarate problem" has been exercising the minds of club insiders and fans
alike over the last few months with the general view being that Sam has
some problem with the player – as yet unexplained. ClaretandHugh has known
for several weeks that much interest has been expressed in the striker from
Italy, Spain and even Mexico. However, it's Mr Redknapp's interest which
will possibly prove a very awkward development for Sam who really wouldn't
want the lad clearing off to Loftus Road and becoming a massive hit. His
judgement of course could be proved correct although based on what we've
seen so far that seems unlikely. Sam might find it preferable to send the
Argentinian off to Serie A, La Liga or the Mexican League working perhaps on
the "out of sight out of mind " basis. I could see how that might make
sense. However, the big problem is that Zarate wants to show that he is
indeed a Premier League player and thus we have an intriguing political
drama on our hands. It really will fascinating to see where the boy finishes
up and what happens over the rest of the season when he gets there! Let's
hope we fans find out whether he is a Premier League player or not. My view?
Most definitely a YES to that.
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Irons battle Senegal FA over Sakho and Kouyate
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on December 29, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are in a battle with the Senegal Football Association over sending
club medics to look after Diafra Sakho and Cheik Kouyate at the African
Nation Cup Finals. ClaretandHugh has learned that despite the Irons being
ready to foot the bill for a medical team to attend the event, the national
association may insist that the letter of their rule book is followed. And
that will mean the duo will be in the care of the physios and doctors
appointed by the national team. Sakho was in their hands when suffering a
mild back problem which was worsened under treatment and led the club to
make a decision to send their own people with the two players after he
missed games on his return. We were told by a well placed source: "The plan
all along since the Sakho incident has been to send our own people with the
players. "However, it appears that's not straightforward and we are being
forced to argue it out with their football association."
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DG sees Hammers Gold…en era
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on December 29, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
David Gold insists there will be no slowdown in team investment next summer.
The co chairman could not be more delighted with the team's progress but he
wants this to be the start of a new Hammers 'golden era.' He told
ClaretandHugh: "Our aim is to get stronger and stronger with every
successive year. We have had am amazing year – every single signing has paid
off. it's been brilliant but see it as a starting point."
Gold is a massive admirer of Alex Song and made it clear the club had made
him a major target saying: We will do everything possible to bring him here.
"We cannot stand still. We have arrived at a level and we have to move on as
we look towards entering our new home at the Olympic Stadium. "We are
committed to building a great team for a great stadium. We've had a taste of
life at the top this season and we like it so we will be strengthening
again."
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Monday, December 29
Daily WHUFC News - 29th December 2014
Hammers suffer Arsenal defeat
WHUFC.com
West Ham United were edged out by the odd goal in three against Arsenal at
the Boleyn Ground
28.12.2014
Barclays Premier League
West Ham United 1-2 Arsenal
West Ham United were caught cold by two Arsenal goals in the space of four
first-half minutes, as the Hammers succumbed to a 2-1 Barclays Premier
League defeat in a thrilling contest at the Boleyn Ground. Having been
felled by Winston Reid, Santi Cazorla slotted home from the spot in the 41st
minute, before Danny Welbeck converted Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's centre to
hand the Gunners a two-goal cushion at the break. Cheikhou Kouyate headed
his first Hammers goal to give the home side hope with 54 gone, culminating
in a breathless last half hour. It was chances galore at both ends, but,
somehow, 2-1 it would remain, with the Gunners leapfrogging West Ham into
fifth. As expected, Sam Allardyce rang the changes following Friday's Boxing
Day defeat at Stamford Bridge. The fit-again James Tomkins came in for James
Collins, while Joey O'Brien made his first start since August, in place of
the ineligible Carl Jenkinson. Elsewhere, Alex Song and Morgan Amalfitano
got the nod in midfield, as did Diafra Sakho up front.
Song was always likely to be centre of attention against his former
employers and so it proved. Skipper for the day, the No30 thought he had
opened the scoring in spectacular fashion after just six minutes. When a
corner from the left fell to him 25 yards from goal, the stylish midfielder
lashed a volley into the bottom left corner of Wojciech Szczesny's goal.
Kouyate and Sakho, however, both had to take evasive action in front of the
Arsenal stopper and so the linesman's flag cut short West Ham celebrations.
At the other end, Arsenal were zipping the ball around menacingly, with
Alexis Sanchez tormentor in chief. Oxlade-Chamberlain sped down the right
and as Welbeck pleaded for it, O'Brien came to the rescue with a supremely
timed challenge. After 20 minutes, Amalfitano's cross from the right
isolated Mathieu Debuchy at the far post, allowing Andy Carroll to outmuscle
the full-back. But the No9's strike was wayward and cleared away. Santi
Cazorla's eyes then lit up as he was presented with acres of space on the
right-edge of the Hammers box. Thankfully, Aaron Cresswell was out quickly
to block the Spaniard's drive.
The chances continued to come and go, with Tomkins this time the guilty
party. Stewart Downing's delivery found the No5 unmarked at the back stick
and though the Basildon boy probably had time to take it down, he opted to
volley first time and sent it over.
But the contest was to turn on a penalty decision in the 41st minute.
Cazorla burst into the box and once Reid's attempted clearance had cannoned
straight back into the Spaniard, he was felled by the leg of a then grounded
Reid. Neil Swarbrick obliged in pointing to the spot and Cazorla did the
rest, slotting into the left corner and sending Adrian the wrong way. Just
three minutes later it was two, courtesy of the two Englishmen in the
Gunners' line-up. Oxlade-Chamberlain made his way into the box and his
cut-back went through the legs of Reid at the near post and there was
Welbeck to prod home. West Ham might have halved the deficit before the
interval, but Downing screwed wide from 18 yards. They would only have to
wait eight second-half minutes to get their goal, one that began with
Sakho's industry down the right, with his hanging cross forcing Per
Mertesacker into a last-ditch header at the far post. From the resulting
corner, Tomkins skipped past his man and then dinked a delightful centre
towards Kouyate, whose header ricocheted off Debuchy and past a flat-footed
Szczesny.
Back came Arsenal, through the familiar combination of Oxlade-Chamberlain
and Cazorla. The winger teed up the Spaniard on the edge of the box and his
strike forced Adrian into an excellent one-handed stop. West Ham's custodian
should have been busy again moments later, but
Debuchy wastefully nodded the resulting corner over the top.
With the hour approaching, Kouyate's cute cross had Sakho scampering at the
far post and despite his best efforts, the ball squirmed
behind for a goal-kick. For all West Ham's endeavour in the Arsenal half,
Adrian twice came to the hosts' aid in a matter of minutes, repelling
Oxlade-Chamberlain's point-blank header, before saving with his feet from
Sanchez. With time running out, West Ham became somewhat ragged at the back,
as Downing presented Welbeck with a gilt-edged chance to make it three. He
blazed over and Cazorla did likewise from the edge of the box soon after.
West Ham threw caution to the wind in the dying minutes and substitute Kevin
Nolan's low drive had Szczesny worried, though he managed to cling on. Even
Adrian marched forward for several a late set-piece as West Ham laid siege
to the Arsenal goal. Enner Valencia had the best of the late chances, but
could only head into the side-netting with Szczesny stranded, as Arsenal
consigned the Hammers to a first home defeat since August.
West Ham United: Adrian, Reid, Cresswell, Tomkins, Kouyate (Nolan 78),
Carroll, Downing, Sakho (Valencia 62), O'Brien (Demel 78), Amalfitano, Song
Subs: Jaaskelainen, Noble, Collins, Cole
Goal: Kouyate 54
Booked: Carroll, Tomkins, Reid
Arsenal: Szczesny, Debuchy, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Oxlade-Chamberlain
(Chambers 89), Sanchez, Monreal, Cazorla, Flamini, Welbeck (Gibbs 84),
Coquelin
Subs: Ospina, Podolski, Walcott, Chambers, Campbell, Akpom
Goals: Cazorla 41, Welbeck 44
Booked: Sanchez, Debuchy, Coquelin
Referee: Neil Swarbrick
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Big Sam disputes disallowed goal
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce felt Alex Song's early strike should have stood in Sunday's
2-1 defeat by Arsenal
28.12.2014
Sam Allardyce pointed to Alex Song's controversially disallowed goal and
missed chances when asked for his defining moments in West Ham United's 2-1
home defeat by Arsenal. Song thought he had volleyed the Hammers ahead
against his old club after just five minutes on Sunday. However, referee
Neil Swarbrick ruled the spectacular strike out because Cheikhou Kouyate was
in an offside position when the ball passed through his legs on its way into
the bottom corner. Big Sam claimed the Senagalese midfielder was not in
goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny's line of vision, but the flag went up and
Swarbrick agreed with his assistant. The hosts were on top for the majority
of the first half, only for their frustration to be compounded by two goals
in four minutes at the end of it. First, Winston Reid was penalised for
tripping Santi Cazorla, and the Spaniard converted from the penalty spot,
then Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain got to the byline before crossing for Danny
Welbeck to slide home.
West Ham responded well in the second half, with Kouyate nodding in James
Tomkins' cross on 56 to give them hope, before both sides traded missed
chances for the remainder of the game - the last of which saw substitute
Enner Valencia head narrowly over in the sixth minute of added time. "The
biggest shock of the lot was that we were 2-0 down at half-time from our
point of view and we have ourselves to blame for that," said the manager.
"We just got the stuffing knocked out of us by the penalty and we didn't
recover from that.
"Arsenal nicked another and there really had been nothing in the game up to
then, except from us. We hadn't scored in that period when we were on top
for two reasons - one was the chances we missed and the second was a really
unbelievable decision to rule out Alex Song's goal, which was bewildering me
that it was disallowed. "When these things go against you at the wrong time
in a game, it can contribute to a massive part of the result, and that has
not allowed us to go 1-0 up when we should have done. We could have built
from there and we might easily have won the game. "We could also have lost,
but we would have lost through two teams playing against each other without
a big mistake and a big contribution from the officials."
The manager disputed that Kouyate's presence played any part in the 'goal'
being ruled out. "They said he was the line of sight, but when you see it
back, he clearly isn't. How can the assistant referee put his flag up and
judge from that position whether he is in front of the goalkeeper or not?
"There were several bodies in front of the referee Neil Swarbrick, so he
cannot see for definite. When you look at it, he is miles off the goalie!
"One of these decisions has never been given like that. Cheik has not
touched the ball, he is coming out away from goal and has let it through his
legs. He is nowhere near Szczesny or in his eye-line. If he wasn't there, he
wouldn't have saved it and that's the bottom line, but sadly we can't do
anything about that now."
While Big Sam was not happy with Song's strike being ruled out, he admitted
Reid's foul on Cazorla for West Ham's opener was a fair decision. "Having
seen it, Reidy sticks his leg up and while it's a bit soft, I can see why he
has given it, because if Reidy keeps his leg down there is no penalty.
Because he lifted his leg, he has dived over it. "Then again, Morgan
Amalfitano has rolled Nacho Monreal in the box later on and Monreal has both
arms around him, but because Morgan has tried to stay on his feet and get
the equaliser the referee has chosen not to give us what was a blatant
penalty. "They moan about players diving, but what do you say to your
player? You have to tell them to go down because the referee won't give it
to you if you stay on your feet. "It was a frustrating afternoon, and then
we missed our chances to boot. What we were in control of was our clinical
finishing, but we didn't do it. Even the one at the end, I did expect Enner
to score, but he probably headed it too well and it went over the bar. "It
was a tremendous effort and brilliant end-to-end entertainment, but sadly we
were on the wrong end of the result."
West Ham complete 2014 having collected 56 points from their 38 league games
in the calendar year, with 31 coming in 19 this season so far. "Fifty-six
points in one year is a pretty good record and that would probably finish us
in the top eight at least. "We just need to carry that on and make sure we
get 56 this season, or more, because if we can do it one year, let's try and
do it in one season and see where it gets us."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Hammers duo in Senegal squad
WHUFC.com
Diafra Sakho and Cheikhou Kouyate have been named in Senegal's provisional
Africa Cup of Nations squad
28.12.2014
West Ham United pair Diafra Sakho and Cheikhou Kouyate have been named in
Senegal's provisional squad for the Africa Cup of Nations.
The duo have been in outstanding form for the Hammers since joining from
Metz and Anderlecht respectively in the summer and have been rewarded with
their call-up to the 28-man squad, which will later be cut to 23. Kouyate
has long been established with the Teranga Lions, having won 14 caps since
his 2012 debut. Sakho is more of a newcomer on the international scene,
following his stunning rise from the lower divisions of French football to
the top flight in recent seasons. The 25-year-old debuted earlier this year
and has three caps to his name. Senegal will start their training camp for
the tournament in Dakar on 2 January, before departing for Morocco on 7
January - the same day coach Alain Giresse is expected to name his final
squad. The tournament in Equatorial Guinea gets underway on 17 January.
Cameroon's Alex Song was not named in his country's squad.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham 1 Arsenal 2
28 December 2014
Last updated at 20:19
By Andy Cryer
BBC Sport
Arsenal moved above West Ham in to the Premier League top five after
inflicting a first home defeat on the Hammers since August. Alex Song had a
20-yard volley ruled out for offside for the hosts. Santi Cazorla put the
visitors ahead from the penalty spot, following a foul by Winston Reid,
before Danny Welbeck put Arsenal further in front. Cheikhou Kouyate's header
gave the hosts hope but West Ham were unable to avoid a second successive
defeat. It was Arsenal's ninth win in a row in all competitions against West
Ham as they moved level on points with fourth-placed Southampton and just
three points behind Manchester United in third. West Ham boss Sam Allardyce,
who opted to rest key players Song and Diafra Sakho for the 2-0 defeat at
Chelsea on Boxing Day, disagreed strongly with the decision to disallow
Song's goal, claiming Sakho was not in the eyeline of the goalkeeper when he
was adjudged to be offside. The Hammers had won six of their last seven
league home games but, despite heavy late second-half pressure, lacked the
quality needed for the leveller. Former Arsenal man Song, on loan from
Barcelona, almost made an instant impact with a low volley into the bottom
corner of the net from 20 yards early on. Sakho was penalised for standing
in an offside position in front of goal, though, despite not touching the
ball.
While Allardyce's men have exceeded expectations this season, Arsenal have
had a mixed start to the campaign and they were very much on the back foot
in the opening stages. But the Gunners had failed to score in only one of
their last 11 away matches in the Premier League and they were at it again
before the break. Cazorla punished Reid's high leg in the box to roll home
the resulting penalty for the opener. The lead was doubled minutes later as
Welbeck was on hand to slide the ball in to the net from close range after
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's low cross from the right. Stunned by the deficit,
West Ham restored hope soon after the break with Kouyate bundling Sakho's
cross from the right in to the net via Mathieu Debuchy. But it was Arsenal
who had the better chances, with Hammers keeper Adrian brilliantly denying
Alexis Sanchez and Oxlade-Chamberlain, before the visitors survived a late
aerial bombardment.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger: "We had a committed and united performance.
The keeper made some good saves. We knew we needed to be good in the air
today. "I didn't know why Alex Song's goal didn't stand, I thought it would.
We scored a good second goal and had many opportunities to score another. It
didn't come and at 2-1 I thought the last 30 minutes would be difficult. "We
did dig deep. It is down to consistency and we are slowly getting there."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham: Sam Allardyce angry with "nonsense" decision
BBC.co.uk
A "baffled" West Ham boss Sam Allardyce says the decision to disallow an
early Alex Song goal was "complete nonsense" as his side lost a second
straight Premier League match. The Barcelona loanee had a volley ruled out,
after Diafra Sakho was flagged for offside, before the Hammers went on to
lose to Arsenal 2-1. "The officials clearly got it horribly wrong," said
Allardyce. "Frustrated is an understatement. Baffled is more the feeling."
Song's 20-yard volley flew through the legs of Sakho and in to the net early
on, only for the Hammers striker to be penalised for offside, before Arsenal
went ahead on 41 minutes through a penalty from Santi Cazorla. Danny Welbeck
doubled the visitors' lead and, despite Cheikhou Kouyate pulling a goal back
after the break, Allardyce was furious at referee Neil Swarbrick's early
decision."They said the attacker was in the eyeline of the goalkeeper," said
Allardyce. "Complete nonsense. It is impossible for the assistant referee to
say that. They are wrong, Sakho is not in the eyeline of the goalkeeper.
"Neil Swarbrick could only guess he might be in front of the goalkeeper.
Sakho is running away from goal and lets the ball through his legs - 99 out
of 100 are given as a goal this year. I am totally and utterly confused. "If
we'd been allowed that goal we wouldn't have lost. We would have kicked on
and Arsenal would have found life very difficult from then on."
Allardyce also disputed the first-half penalty that enabled Cazorla to open
the scoring, after Swarbrick ruled that the Spaniard had been tripped in the
box by Winston Reid. When asked if he thought it was a spot-kick, Allardyce
said: "No. Reid stuck his leg up and he's gone over on it. I just wish
Morgan Amalfitano had done something similar when he got tugged by Nacho
Monreal in the last minute. "He stayed on his feet. He was being fouled but
didn't go down. There's another scenario for you - simulation is not nice,
but when you don't get free-kicks for staying on your feet, you're in a
difficult situation."
The West Ham boss added: "I've not spoken to the ref because I don't see any
point in confronting him when you know you're 100 per cent right and he
hasn't had the visuals. You can't get anything out of telling him how wrong
he's been." Allardyce's comments came hours after Jose Mourinho's
suggestions that the West Ham boss has played a part in a campaign to
influence referees' decisions against his Chelsea side. Speaking after the
Blues' 1-1 draw with Southampton, during which Mourinho felt his side were
denied a clear penalty, the Portuguese made reference to the meeting between
his side and West Ham on Boxing Day, after which Allardyce accused Branislav
Ivanovic of going down "looking for a penalty".
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Allardyce on... Arsenal
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 28th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce was a frustrated man having witnessed his team denied an early
lead by a dubious call - one of many - by referee Neil Swarbrick in today's
Premier League clash with Arsenal...
Sam: You must be wondering, after such a good opening 40 minutes in the
first half, how you go in 2-0 down?
Hmm! It was a real blow for the way we started the game, the way we
approached it and the style we wanted to attack Arsenal with. A combination
of a couple of bad misses and a very poor decision to disallow the goal was
a key element to how we ended up behind, falling asleep in the last couple
of minutes.
After the first, conceding the second was a bit of a blow. It was a great
recovery in the second half but we couldn't recover enough to get anything
out of the game. The way we're going at home, if we'd been allowed that goal
- as we should have been - I don't think we would have lost to Arsenal
today.
Having won six and drawn one in the last seven here, with the confidence we
have, going one-nil up that early would have kicked the lads on and I think
Arsenal would have found it very difficult from thereon. It wasn't to be and
sadly we've ended up losing a game which was probably a great spectacle.
I thought we'd captured it in the end in the last minute, which would have
been nice. There's nothing better than something happening in the last
minute for you to give you the result, but Enner headed the one over the bar
and it wasn't to be today.
There's no doubt in your mind that the goal should have stood? Did you speak
to the ref?
Not really, because I don't see any point in confronting a referee after a
game when you know you're 100 per cent right and he's only got the visuals
of when it actually happened. You get nowhere by telling him how wrong he's
been in terms of the decision he's given.
For me, it's more what we're told at the start of the season - more what
we're shown, what is and what isn't offside. You base your opinion on your
experience and your life as a manager. You base your opinion on what they
tell you and from what they told us, he [Swarbrick] has got it horribly
wrong.
He wasn't in the eye-line of the goalkeeper; he didn't touch the ball; yes,
he was in an offside position but we've seen so many of those been allowed
as goals and I've never seen one that's actually not been given.
If you cast your minds back to Everton away, Lukaku was stood offside
although the ball ricocheted off our player to him and that was onside. So
can you tell me what is offside and what isn't, because now I'm totally and
utterly confused and bewildered.
How frustrating are those inconsistencies?
I think there's far too many of them. The responsibility for me as a manager
like the PGMO itself is a responsibility to get the referees better and
better. I think some of the major decisions that seem to keep appearing more
often than ever before, sadly.
There might have been more than one player offside, which one were you
referring to?
It's gone through Sakho's legs, who's two or three yards to the right of
Szczesny so he's not in his eye-line. He's not obstructing his eye-line. If
you talk about obstructing his eye-line then there's six players obstructing
him. The shot has come through six players, it's come through everybody!
Clearly Neil Swarbrick cannot have a clear view of whether Diafra Sakho is
directly in Szczesny's eye-line.
Like I said, I haven't seen one of these chalked off this season. If I
revert back to Everton away then you can see why I'm so angry and
frustrated. Winston Reid blocked a shot, it goes to Lukaku who's offside.
Lukaku puts it in and the referee says 'that's a goal'. So I'm totally and
utterly bemused by that.
That said, we missed too many chances in the first half as well. We went for
broke in the second and our goalkeeper did some brilliant work again,
fantastic goalie that he is and we nearly got a result, a draw, in the end -
which I think we probably deserved.
Was it a penalty?
No, no. Reidy stuck his leg up and he's gone over on it. You know, he's done
well. I just wish Morgan had done similar when he got tugged in the last
minute by Monreal, who put both arms around him - but Morgan stayed on his
feet and tried to get us an equaliser.
He'd been fouled but didn't go down - there's another scenario for you, with
everybody moaning about simulation. It's alright talking about not doing it,
it's not nice, but what do you do when you don't get free kicks when you're
being honest and stay on your feet? Then you're in a difficult position
again.
That said, I thought it was a great game really, considering we both had to
play twice in 48 hours. End to end stuff but unfortunately for us, the wrong
result.
Did Adrian go up with five minutes left with your blessing?
Yes! Throw caution to the wind and try and get an equaliser. That pressure
nearly paid off in the end with the final free kick from Alex Song where
Szczesny actually came and missed that one. Aaron Cresswell headed it back
in and Enner just had to nod it in the net, which would have made a
fantastic few days for him because his girlfriend has just given birth to
his daughter in the last couple of days. So that would have been very nice
for him and for us.
Southampton have just proved that if you lose a few games...
We've only lost two, not five. We want to bounce back as quickly as we can
against West Brom. I'm pleased with the performance of the players, really
pleased with their application, commitment and attitude but sad for them
that they haven't got a result today.
Are you happy with your team's pace on counter attacks? Are they fast
enough?
We're relatively okay as a counter-attacking side. There are some teams who
are a little bit quicker than us on the counter, Arsenal being one of them.
They're pretty good at it. We're not too bad.
You've got to be quick and accurate with your passing but we didn't have to
rely too much on counter-attacking today. It was more about us trying to
break Arsenal down and them counter-attacking, rather than us
counter-attacking Arsenal.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Arsenal withstand second-half fightback to beat West Ham
By James Walker-Roberts. Last Updated: 28/12/14 6:24pm
SSN
Arsenal moved above West Ham in the Premier League after withstanding a
strong second-half fightback to win 2-1 at Upton Park. The hosts enjoyed the
better of the opening 45 minutes but fell behind shortly before the break
when Winston Reid fouled Santi Cazorla in the box and the Spaniard
dispatched the subsequent penalty. Danny Welbeck doubled Arsenal's advantage
a couple of minutes later as he tapped in Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's cross
from a few yards out. Sam Allardyce was angered with the match officials
following Alex Song's early disallowed goal. The Hammers halved the deficit
early in the second half as Cheikhou Kouyate headed in his first goal for
the club. But despite piling on the pressure they could not grab an
equaliser as Enner Valencia headed over the bar in injury time and the
Gunners held on for all three points. The win is the perfect end to the year
for Arsenal, who largely coped well with the Hammers' physical presence and
also looked threatening throughout on the break during an entertaining
encounter. Both sides made a number of changes from their Boxing Day outings
48 hours earlier, with Sam Allardyce preferring Diafra Sakho ahead of
Valencia and Arsenal replacing the suspended Olivier Giroud with
Oxlade-Chamberlain and handing a first start since January 2013 to Francis
Coquelin. Former Gunner Alex Song thought he had broken the deadlock early
on when he drove in a brilliant volley from 25 yards, only for it to be
ruled out for offside.
It looked to be a harsh decision as no West Ham player touched the ball on
its way through a crowd, but the linesman ruled the players in an offside
position in front of Wojciech Szczesny were interfering with play. The
Hammers were also aggrieved a few minutes later as Sakho went down in the
box under a challenge from Mathieu Debuchy and the penalty appeals were
waved away. At the other end, a crucial block from Joey O'Brien prevented
Alexis Sanchez closing in on goal before the Chilean miscued a header from
Cazorla's free-kick.
Andy Carroll served warning of his threat as he easily outmuscled Debuchy as
they competed for a high ball, only to then drag his volley well off target.
Dangerous
The Hammers continued to look dangerous from set pieces and spurned a decent
chance to take the lead when James Tomkins wastefully volleyed over the bar
from an excellent position. The miss would prove costly as the Gunners then
stunned the home side with two goals in as many minutes just before
half-time. There was a hint of fortune about the first as the ball
ricocheted through kindly for Cazorla, but he was then clearly fouled by
Reid inside the box and made no mistake from the penalty spot. That was
Arsenal's first shot on target and they made it 2-0 with their second as
Oxlade-Chamberlain combined well with Debuchy down the right and then
crossed for Welbeck to tap in.
Stewart Downing went close to halving the deficit as he dragged a shot wide
from just inside the box before Sanchez saw an effort deflected just wide at
the other end. While the home side would have been disappointed to be 2-0
down at the break, it didn't take them long to get on the scoresheet in the
second half. After Per Mertesacker did well to beat Carroll to a header, the
ball was lofted back into the box by Tomkins and Kouyate easily rose above
Debuchy to head home. The goal was just what the Hammers needed and Sakho
was inches away from turning in Kouyate's cross to equalise moments later.
With the Arsenal box under regular bombardment, the visitors' best moments
came on the break, with Adrian pulling off excellent saves to deny both
Oxlade-Chamberlain and Sanchez. Welbeck, though, should have put the game to
bed when a misplaced pass from Downing gave the England striker a clear run
at goal, but he shot over the bar.The Hammers piled on the pressure in the
closing stages, with Adrian even going forward for a few set pieces, but
Valencia headed their last chance over the bar in the dying stages.
Phil Thompson says Arsenal just about deserved to win a thrilling London
derby against West Ham. "For the neutral this was absolutely stunning, it
was a magnificent game. It was a second game in three days, with both sides
giving everything. I didn't want the game to end, it was that good. Szczesny
deserves great compliments because he has made a big decision that anything
in the air he is going to come and get and control the air in the penalty
area. He had to be precise."
Player ratings
West Ham: Adrian (7), O'Brien (5), Reid (5), Tomkins (5), Amalfitano (6),
Downing (5),Kouyate (7), Song (5), Carroll (6), Sakho (6).
Subs: Demel (5), Nolan (5), Valencia (6).
Arsenal: Szczesny (7), Debuchy (5), Mertesacker (6), Koscielny (6), Monreal
(5), Coquelin (6), Flamini (6), Cazorla (7), Oxlade-Chamberlain (7), Welbeck
(7), Sanchez (7).
Subs: Chambers (5), Gibbs (5).
Man of the match: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sam Allardyce accuses referee of guessing wrongly over disallowed Alex Song
goal
Last Updated: 28/12/14 7:02pm
SSN
West Ham manager Sam Allarydce said referee Neil Swarbrick 'guessed wrongly'
when he disallowed Alex Song's early goal for offside in the 2-1 defeat to
Arsenal. The former Gunner thought he had given West Ham the lead when he
drove in a brilliant volley from outside the box through a crowd of players.
But the effort was ruled out for offside as Hammers players were deemed to
be interfering with play and in the eyeline of keeper Wojciech Szczesny.
Allarydce, though, said the decision proved extremely costly and accused the
referee of guessing that players were blocking Szczesny's view. "I asked the
fourth official why he disallowed it and he said our player was in front of
the keeper, so I then said how can you judge that from where the assistant
is," he told Sky Sports. "It had to be the referee who judged that was the
case, so having looked at it at half-time both of them are wrong and sadly
we have not the goal we deserved.
"If the referee has given it for being in front of his eyeline then he has
guessed and guessed wrongly sadly. We would have been 1-0 up and on the
basis of our form at home I would have banked on us not losing. "But because
that was taken away from us we couldn't gain that advantage and then fell
asleep for five minutes at the end of the first half and ended up bizarrely
2-0 down."
After falling behind, the Hammers did stage a spirited second-half fightback
and halved the deficit shortly after the break through Cheikhou Kouyate. But
they could not grab an equaliser and Allardyce was also disappointed they
weren't awarded a penalty. "I think we should have had a penalty when Morgan
Amalfitano was wrestled to the ground by (Nacho) Monreal," he said. "It was
a disappointing day but a great effort. "To finish with nothing and a
defeat, the way we have had to accept it, is very disappointing indeed. "We
have had two of the hardest games in 48 hours, Chelsea away and Arsenal
home. We didn't deserve anything at Chelsea but we did today and we have to
take it on the chin, not let it affect our confidence and hope we get back
to winning ways and better decisions against West Brom."
Despite his disappointments, Allardyce admitted he was delighted with how
his side have progressed in 2014. "In one year 56 points is pretty good
going," he said. "To try and get 56 or more in a season would be one hell of
a season. It's been a terrific 2014, it's been a fantastic recovery from
where we were at the end of the January, particularly from the players."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham's owners put 20 per cent stake in the club up for sale
Last Updated: 28/12/14 1:24pm
SSN
West Ham's owners have put a 20 per cent stake in the club up for sale in a
bid to reduce debts of £110m. David Sullivan insists there was no danger of
Sam Allardyce being sacked in the summer and says he played a part in
bringing Diafra Sakho to the club. Hammers co-owner David Sullivan told the
Sunday Telegraph that he and fellow owner David Gold are seeking to raise
£80m to help reduce debts which currently stand at £110m, of which £55m is
owed to Gold and Sullivan. Sullivan claims that West Ham's upcoming move to
the Olympic Stadium at the end of next season means the club is worth £400m
- almost four times its value when he and Gold bought the Hammers in January
2010. "We've no desire to give up the whole club," Sullivan said. "But we're
still £110m in debt - albeit now £55m of that is to ourselves. So the
third-party debt has been halved, but only because we've put the money in.
Market value
"We lost £30m when we went down (to the Championship in 2011) and we made
£10m on paper last year. What's on paper is not cash-flow and we have to pay
down the debt all the time and we have to be clear of bank debt when we move
to the Olympic Stadium. "I'd love someone to come in and buy 20 per cent and
the money would not go to us, it would go to the club. But we won't be
giving it away and we'd want market value for it. "Going to the Olympic
Stadium we are a £400m club and that would pay down most of the debt. But if
it doesn't happen we'll dig deep in our pockets and keep the club afloat."
Sullivan also revealed that he does know if manager Sam Allardyce, who has
led West Ham to fifth place in the Premier League, will sign a new contract
with the club. "I must say if come April we are where we are now, which is
extremely unlikely but is possible, we'd probably sit down a month early and
say, 'Look Sam, do you want to stay or do you want to go?' Sam may decide he
wants to go out a winner," Sullivan said.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Leroy: "Oh Winston and with Wenger watching!"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on December 28, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
I have no complaints about the team's performance against Arsenal nor should
any other fan because we gave it absolutely everything against a very good
side and on any other day would have come out with something. But my
overwhelming impression was of Winston Reid who showing again that he's
simply not a top four club player and if he was trying to impress Arsene
Wenger he failed miserably. He could have no complaints about the penalty
yet there he was jumping up and down pleading the case. Sorry mate, you
brought him down plain and simple and for much of the game looked pretty
average. Everybody who was inside the ground or watching on a stream could
feel nothing but sympathy for the Irons but I'm afraid I can't agree with
Sam and the others who believe the early strike by Alex Song should have
stood. Diafra was offside plain and simple and I don't believe the official
had any other decision to make than to raise his flag.
Arsenal were strong and showed great movement at times but no better than us
and all in all it was a great game which we weren't allowed to enjoy
properly because of the final result. However, the supporters will have left
a lot happier than they did at Chelsea where the team showed nothing. You
can't con Irons supporters. If you put in the shift and given it your best
they will stay with you. Obviously Adrian was outstanding and as Hugh wrote
yesterday the Spanish national team should be beckonng very soon. Morgan
Amalfitano was a revelation. He has real skill and invention and a terrific
work ethic. But for Adrian he would have been my man of the match.
I think we can take terrific encouragement and confidence from the Arsenal
game and get right back on track against West Brom.And as we head towards
the end of the year I'd like to thank and congratulate everybody at the club
for a terrific first half. You've all done a great job. Let's kick on –
we're a top six or better club!
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Things we learned in defeat by Gunners
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on December 28, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Match verdict
They tell me today's game was a thriller and hugely enjoyable. Well I
watched it and didn't enjoy it at all because we lost and didn't manage to
take a single point from the Christmas matches. Nor is the prelude to a Sam
Allardyce blast because I didn't hear too many complaints about his team
selection before the match. However, the defeats by Chelsea and Arsenal has
shown us one or two things quite clearly:
O that we are now in a position seemingly where our strike force will be
Andy Carroll and one other;
O that Mauro Zarate is on his way;
O that Morgan Amalfitano may be a better option anyway
O that Winston Reid may not be a top four club player after all
O and that Adrian needs to be watched by the Spanish national coach.
Alex Song scored a great goal and the official who wouldn't take his flag
down deserved a 'slap.' That was a goal plain and simple.
It may or may not have been a different game after that but when that was
ruled out and James Tomkins blasted over the top when he had time to spare
in front of goal, an ominous feeling started to form in the pit of my
stomach. You just knew didn't you….! We gave it everything and it wasn't
enough and now we look to West Brom in order to get back on the straight and
narrow. We will do but there's one thing which continues to worry me more
than any other – that Andy Carroll now gets played regardless of team and
conditions.
No question this was a game for him against a dodgy Per Mertesacker but
Chelsea with John Terry winning everything against him in the air was not.
Other players it seems – Song, Sakho for example – need rests after injury.
The same rule clearly doesn't apply to AC.
It's obvious we played our best football earlier in the season when Sakho
and Valencia caused mayhem. Will we ever see them together again? I think
it's very very doubtful and that is a terrible shame. Having said all that
and although I was desperately unhappy with the attitude and tactics at
Chelsea, nobody can moan at the effort and no little skill at Upton Park
today. It just didn't go for us ….BUT onwards and upwards!
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Special clause in Nolan's contract? – The ExWHUemployee Column
By ExWHUemployee on December 28, 2014 in ExWHUemployee column
Ironsview.com
Well I am extremely disappointed writing this after the Arsenal game; a game
that we didn't deserve to lose. Although I haven't seen a replay, I really
do not think Alex Song's goal should have been disallowed. In the vast
amount of cases you would not see a side penalised in this kind of offside
situation so I was left shocked when the assistant ref raised his flag. We
seem to have been the victim of a number of dodgy offside calls with Nolan's
goal at Old Trafford and Lukaku at Everton being examples of this. There
were other decisions that seemed to go against us too. I think there was a
foul on Amalfitano leading up to the penalty as well. I was disappointed in
the refereeing display to say the least.
We really should be looking to beat WBA especially if they still have Irvine
as manager. I would personally put Andy Carroll on the bench for this one
and go back to the proven partnership of Sakho and Valencia. When these two
are up front it encourages us to play on the floor rather than using Carroll
as the target man. Once their pace has got at WBA, depending on the impact
of that, Andy could come on when the defence is tiring. He may need a rest
anyway with the amount of games he has played after a serious injury.
I thought Adrian was our man of the match again and he really has been
turning in some high quality displays in recent months. If he could learn to
dominate his area from set plays I think he would develop into one of the
best 'keepers in the league. I also thought Amalfitano deserved his place in
the team after his impressive performance against Chelsea and he was our
best outfield player against Arsenal. I thought Winston Reid and Alex Song
were quite poor against Arsenal but this may have done us an indirect favour
and hopefully put Arsenal off signing either one of them.
I have touched on this in my column before but I really do not agree with
booing players and again Kevin Nolan was booed by some when he came on. I
understand people's frustrations and I personally do not think he should
been playing as much is he is either but booing does not help anyone. All
players, no matter how good they are, would be negatively impacted by their
own fans booing them. His first pass was awful but other than that I thought
he did alright after coming on. I have been asked in someone's rage whether
it is in Kevin Nolan's contract to always have to feature at some point on
the pitch even if he is named as a substitute. I checked the record books
and it does appear that every single time Nolan has been named as a sub he
has come on in a league game since he has been with us, even if it is just
for a minute. He has been an unused sub in Capital One cup games but in
league matches he has always featured at some point. I am happy to be proven
wrong by someone if they can find the evidence, however. I do not think this
is written in his contract but I thought it was an interesting statistic.
I do sometimes think, however, that our fans are very harsh and quick to
turn on certain players. I was shocked in the week to read such negative
comments about Mark Noble – a player who plays his heart out for the club
and has for many years. He was Hammer of the Year last year and played
really well this season – most wanted him in the England squad at the start
of the year. He had a poor game against Chelsea but he was recovering from
an injury and probably rushed himself back too quickly. I have seen similar
comments about Collins and Carroll – two players who have played key roles
this season. I totally stand by the fact that we all have opinions and we
all have preferences over who should play and who shouldn't; it is what
makes the game interesting, but I do think we can be too harsh at times and
we should do more "supporting".
One player I would have liked to have featured more is Zarate. It does
appear that he is on his way out of the club – probably on a season loan –
and this would explain why he hasn't made the bench for the last few games.
It has been reported that he has secured a loan deal to QPR but I have not
heard that myself. It does appear that the club are about to take the
option of taking 40k a week of the wages which could be spent elsewhere. I
think this is a real shame as he does seem to have a lot of flair and
something different to what we already have.
Anyway I think we were very unlucky against Arsenal and must put this behind
us and go on and beat WBA to get our season back on track. This is the last
column of the year so I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! COYI
ExWHUemployee
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WHUFC.com
West Ham United were edged out by the odd goal in three against Arsenal at
the Boleyn Ground
28.12.2014
Barclays Premier League
West Ham United 1-2 Arsenal
West Ham United were caught cold by two Arsenal goals in the space of four
first-half minutes, as the Hammers succumbed to a 2-1 Barclays Premier
League defeat in a thrilling contest at the Boleyn Ground. Having been
felled by Winston Reid, Santi Cazorla slotted home from the spot in the 41st
minute, before Danny Welbeck converted Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's centre to
hand the Gunners a two-goal cushion at the break. Cheikhou Kouyate headed
his first Hammers goal to give the home side hope with 54 gone, culminating
in a breathless last half hour. It was chances galore at both ends, but,
somehow, 2-1 it would remain, with the Gunners leapfrogging West Ham into
fifth. As expected, Sam Allardyce rang the changes following Friday's Boxing
Day defeat at Stamford Bridge. The fit-again James Tomkins came in for James
Collins, while Joey O'Brien made his first start since August, in place of
the ineligible Carl Jenkinson. Elsewhere, Alex Song and Morgan Amalfitano
got the nod in midfield, as did Diafra Sakho up front.
Song was always likely to be centre of attention against his former
employers and so it proved. Skipper for the day, the No30 thought he had
opened the scoring in spectacular fashion after just six minutes. When a
corner from the left fell to him 25 yards from goal, the stylish midfielder
lashed a volley into the bottom left corner of Wojciech Szczesny's goal.
Kouyate and Sakho, however, both had to take evasive action in front of the
Arsenal stopper and so the linesman's flag cut short West Ham celebrations.
At the other end, Arsenal were zipping the ball around menacingly, with
Alexis Sanchez tormentor in chief. Oxlade-Chamberlain sped down the right
and as Welbeck pleaded for it, O'Brien came to the rescue with a supremely
timed challenge. After 20 minutes, Amalfitano's cross from the right
isolated Mathieu Debuchy at the far post, allowing Andy Carroll to outmuscle
the full-back. But the No9's strike was wayward and cleared away. Santi
Cazorla's eyes then lit up as he was presented with acres of space on the
right-edge of the Hammers box. Thankfully, Aaron Cresswell was out quickly
to block the Spaniard's drive.
The chances continued to come and go, with Tomkins this time the guilty
party. Stewart Downing's delivery found the No5 unmarked at the back stick
and though the Basildon boy probably had time to take it down, he opted to
volley first time and sent it over.
But the contest was to turn on a penalty decision in the 41st minute.
Cazorla burst into the box and once Reid's attempted clearance had cannoned
straight back into the Spaniard, he was felled by the leg of a then grounded
Reid. Neil Swarbrick obliged in pointing to the spot and Cazorla did the
rest, slotting into the left corner and sending Adrian the wrong way. Just
three minutes later it was two, courtesy of the two Englishmen in the
Gunners' line-up. Oxlade-Chamberlain made his way into the box and his
cut-back went through the legs of Reid at the near post and there was
Welbeck to prod home. West Ham might have halved the deficit before the
interval, but Downing screwed wide from 18 yards. They would only have to
wait eight second-half minutes to get their goal, one that began with
Sakho's industry down the right, with his hanging cross forcing Per
Mertesacker into a last-ditch header at the far post. From the resulting
corner, Tomkins skipped past his man and then dinked a delightful centre
towards Kouyate, whose header ricocheted off Debuchy and past a flat-footed
Szczesny.
Back came Arsenal, through the familiar combination of Oxlade-Chamberlain
and Cazorla. The winger teed up the Spaniard on the edge of the box and his
strike forced Adrian into an excellent one-handed stop. West Ham's custodian
should have been busy again moments later, but
Debuchy wastefully nodded the resulting corner over the top.
With the hour approaching, Kouyate's cute cross had Sakho scampering at the
far post and despite his best efforts, the ball squirmed
behind for a goal-kick. For all West Ham's endeavour in the Arsenal half,
Adrian twice came to the hosts' aid in a matter of minutes, repelling
Oxlade-Chamberlain's point-blank header, before saving with his feet from
Sanchez. With time running out, West Ham became somewhat ragged at the back,
as Downing presented Welbeck with a gilt-edged chance to make it three. He
blazed over and Cazorla did likewise from the edge of the box soon after.
West Ham threw caution to the wind in the dying minutes and substitute Kevin
Nolan's low drive had Szczesny worried, though he managed to cling on. Even
Adrian marched forward for several a late set-piece as West Ham laid siege
to the Arsenal goal. Enner Valencia had the best of the late chances, but
could only head into the side-netting with Szczesny stranded, as Arsenal
consigned the Hammers to a first home defeat since August.
West Ham United: Adrian, Reid, Cresswell, Tomkins, Kouyate (Nolan 78),
Carroll, Downing, Sakho (Valencia 62), O'Brien (Demel 78), Amalfitano, Song
Subs: Jaaskelainen, Noble, Collins, Cole
Goal: Kouyate 54
Booked: Carroll, Tomkins, Reid
Arsenal: Szczesny, Debuchy, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Oxlade-Chamberlain
(Chambers 89), Sanchez, Monreal, Cazorla, Flamini, Welbeck (Gibbs 84),
Coquelin
Subs: Ospina, Podolski, Walcott, Chambers, Campbell, Akpom
Goals: Cazorla 41, Welbeck 44
Booked: Sanchez, Debuchy, Coquelin
Referee: Neil Swarbrick
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Big Sam disputes disallowed goal
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce felt Alex Song's early strike should have stood in Sunday's
2-1 defeat by Arsenal
28.12.2014
Sam Allardyce pointed to Alex Song's controversially disallowed goal and
missed chances when asked for his defining moments in West Ham United's 2-1
home defeat by Arsenal. Song thought he had volleyed the Hammers ahead
against his old club after just five minutes on Sunday. However, referee
Neil Swarbrick ruled the spectacular strike out because Cheikhou Kouyate was
in an offside position when the ball passed through his legs on its way into
the bottom corner. Big Sam claimed the Senagalese midfielder was not in
goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny's line of vision, but the flag went up and
Swarbrick agreed with his assistant. The hosts were on top for the majority
of the first half, only for their frustration to be compounded by two goals
in four minutes at the end of it. First, Winston Reid was penalised for
tripping Santi Cazorla, and the Spaniard converted from the penalty spot,
then Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain got to the byline before crossing for Danny
Welbeck to slide home.
West Ham responded well in the second half, with Kouyate nodding in James
Tomkins' cross on 56 to give them hope, before both sides traded missed
chances for the remainder of the game - the last of which saw substitute
Enner Valencia head narrowly over in the sixth minute of added time. "The
biggest shock of the lot was that we were 2-0 down at half-time from our
point of view and we have ourselves to blame for that," said the manager.
"We just got the stuffing knocked out of us by the penalty and we didn't
recover from that.
"Arsenal nicked another and there really had been nothing in the game up to
then, except from us. We hadn't scored in that period when we were on top
for two reasons - one was the chances we missed and the second was a really
unbelievable decision to rule out Alex Song's goal, which was bewildering me
that it was disallowed. "When these things go against you at the wrong time
in a game, it can contribute to a massive part of the result, and that has
not allowed us to go 1-0 up when we should have done. We could have built
from there and we might easily have won the game. "We could also have lost,
but we would have lost through two teams playing against each other without
a big mistake and a big contribution from the officials."
The manager disputed that Kouyate's presence played any part in the 'goal'
being ruled out. "They said he was the line of sight, but when you see it
back, he clearly isn't. How can the assistant referee put his flag up and
judge from that position whether he is in front of the goalkeeper or not?
"There were several bodies in front of the referee Neil Swarbrick, so he
cannot see for definite. When you look at it, he is miles off the goalie!
"One of these decisions has never been given like that. Cheik has not
touched the ball, he is coming out away from goal and has let it through his
legs. He is nowhere near Szczesny or in his eye-line. If he wasn't there, he
wouldn't have saved it and that's the bottom line, but sadly we can't do
anything about that now."
While Big Sam was not happy with Song's strike being ruled out, he admitted
Reid's foul on Cazorla for West Ham's opener was a fair decision. "Having
seen it, Reidy sticks his leg up and while it's a bit soft, I can see why he
has given it, because if Reidy keeps his leg down there is no penalty.
Because he lifted his leg, he has dived over it. "Then again, Morgan
Amalfitano has rolled Nacho Monreal in the box later on and Monreal has both
arms around him, but because Morgan has tried to stay on his feet and get
the equaliser the referee has chosen not to give us what was a blatant
penalty. "They moan about players diving, but what do you say to your
player? You have to tell them to go down because the referee won't give it
to you if you stay on your feet. "It was a frustrating afternoon, and then
we missed our chances to boot. What we were in control of was our clinical
finishing, but we didn't do it. Even the one at the end, I did expect Enner
to score, but he probably headed it too well and it went over the bar. "It
was a tremendous effort and brilliant end-to-end entertainment, but sadly we
were on the wrong end of the result."
West Ham complete 2014 having collected 56 points from their 38 league games
in the calendar year, with 31 coming in 19 this season so far. "Fifty-six
points in one year is a pretty good record and that would probably finish us
in the top eight at least. "We just need to carry that on and make sure we
get 56 this season, or more, because if we can do it one year, let's try and
do it in one season and see where it gets us."
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Hammers duo in Senegal squad
WHUFC.com
Diafra Sakho and Cheikhou Kouyate have been named in Senegal's provisional
Africa Cup of Nations squad
28.12.2014
West Ham United pair Diafra Sakho and Cheikhou Kouyate have been named in
Senegal's provisional squad for the Africa Cup of Nations.
The duo have been in outstanding form for the Hammers since joining from
Metz and Anderlecht respectively in the summer and have been rewarded with
their call-up to the 28-man squad, which will later be cut to 23. Kouyate
has long been established with the Teranga Lions, having won 14 caps since
his 2012 debut. Sakho is more of a newcomer on the international scene,
following his stunning rise from the lower divisions of French football to
the top flight in recent seasons. The 25-year-old debuted earlier this year
and has three caps to his name. Senegal will start their training camp for
the tournament in Dakar on 2 January, before departing for Morocco on 7
January - the same day coach Alain Giresse is expected to name his final
squad. The tournament in Equatorial Guinea gets underway on 17 January.
Cameroon's Alex Song was not named in his country's squad.
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West Ham 1 Arsenal 2
28 December 2014
Last updated at 20:19
By Andy Cryer
BBC Sport
Arsenal moved above West Ham in to the Premier League top five after
inflicting a first home defeat on the Hammers since August. Alex Song had a
20-yard volley ruled out for offside for the hosts. Santi Cazorla put the
visitors ahead from the penalty spot, following a foul by Winston Reid,
before Danny Welbeck put Arsenal further in front. Cheikhou Kouyate's header
gave the hosts hope but West Ham were unable to avoid a second successive
defeat. It was Arsenal's ninth win in a row in all competitions against West
Ham as they moved level on points with fourth-placed Southampton and just
three points behind Manchester United in third. West Ham boss Sam Allardyce,
who opted to rest key players Song and Diafra Sakho for the 2-0 defeat at
Chelsea on Boxing Day, disagreed strongly with the decision to disallow
Song's goal, claiming Sakho was not in the eyeline of the goalkeeper when he
was adjudged to be offside. The Hammers had won six of their last seven
league home games but, despite heavy late second-half pressure, lacked the
quality needed for the leveller. Former Arsenal man Song, on loan from
Barcelona, almost made an instant impact with a low volley into the bottom
corner of the net from 20 yards early on. Sakho was penalised for standing
in an offside position in front of goal, though, despite not touching the
ball.
While Allardyce's men have exceeded expectations this season, Arsenal have
had a mixed start to the campaign and they were very much on the back foot
in the opening stages. But the Gunners had failed to score in only one of
their last 11 away matches in the Premier League and they were at it again
before the break. Cazorla punished Reid's high leg in the box to roll home
the resulting penalty for the opener. The lead was doubled minutes later as
Welbeck was on hand to slide the ball in to the net from close range after
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's low cross from the right. Stunned by the deficit,
West Ham restored hope soon after the break with Kouyate bundling Sakho's
cross from the right in to the net via Mathieu Debuchy. But it was Arsenal
who had the better chances, with Hammers keeper Adrian brilliantly denying
Alexis Sanchez and Oxlade-Chamberlain, before the visitors survived a late
aerial bombardment.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger: "We had a committed and united performance.
The keeper made some good saves. We knew we needed to be good in the air
today. "I didn't know why Alex Song's goal didn't stand, I thought it would.
We scored a good second goal and had many opportunities to score another. It
didn't come and at 2-1 I thought the last 30 minutes would be difficult. "We
did dig deep. It is down to consistency and we are slowly getting there."
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West Ham: Sam Allardyce angry with "nonsense" decision
BBC.co.uk
A "baffled" West Ham boss Sam Allardyce says the decision to disallow an
early Alex Song goal was "complete nonsense" as his side lost a second
straight Premier League match. The Barcelona loanee had a volley ruled out,
after Diafra Sakho was flagged for offside, before the Hammers went on to
lose to Arsenal 2-1. "The officials clearly got it horribly wrong," said
Allardyce. "Frustrated is an understatement. Baffled is more the feeling."
Song's 20-yard volley flew through the legs of Sakho and in to the net early
on, only for the Hammers striker to be penalised for offside, before Arsenal
went ahead on 41 minutes through a penalty from Santi Cazorla. Danny Welbeck
doubled the visitors' lead and, despite Cheikhou Kouyate pulling a goal back
after the break, Allardyce was furious at referee Neil Swarbrick's early
decision."They said the attacker was in the eyeline of the goalkeeper," said
Allardyce. "Complete nonsense. It is impossible for the assistant referee to
say that. They are wrong, Sakho is not in the eyeline of the goalkeeper.
"Neil Swarbrick could only guess he might be in front of the goalkeeper.
Sakho is running away from goal and lets the ball through his legs - 99 out
of 100 are given as a goal this year. I am totally and utterly confused. "If
we'd been allowed that goal we wouldn't have lost. We would have kicked on
and Arsenal would have found life very difficult from then on."
Allardyce also disputed the first-half penalty that enabled Cazorla to open
the scoring, after Swarbrick ruled that the Spaniard had been tripped in the
box by Winston Reid. When asked if he thought it was a spot-kick, Allardyce
said: "No. Reid stuck his leg up and he's gone over on it. I just wish
Morgan Amalfitano had done something similar when he got tugged by Nacho
Monreal in the last minute. "He stayed on his feet. He was being fouled but
didn't go down. There's another scenario for you - simulation is not nice,
but when you don't get free-kicks for staying on your feet, you're in a
difficult situation."
The West Ham boss added: "I've not spoken to the ref because I don't see any
point in confronting him when you know you're 100 per cent right and he
hasn't had the visuals. You can't get anything out of telling him how wrong
he's been." Allardyce's comments came hours after Jose Mourinho's
suggestions that the West Ham boss has played a part in a campaign to
influence referees' decisions against his Chelsea side. Speaking after the
Blues' 1-1 draw with Southampton, during which Mourinho felt his side were
denied a clear penalty, the Portuguese made reference to the meeting between
his side and West Ham on Boxing Day, after which Allardyce accused Branislav
Ivanovic of going down "looking for a penalty".
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Allardyce on... Arsenal
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 28th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce was a frustrated man having witnessed his team denied an early
lead by a dubious call - one of many - by referee Neil Swarbrick in today's
Premier League clash with Arsenal...
Sam: You must be wondering, after such a good opening 40 minutes in the
first half, how you go in 2-0 down?
Hmm! It was a real blow for the way we started the game, the way we
approached it and the style we wanted to attack Arsenal with. A combination
of a couple of bad misses and a very poor decision to disallow the goal was
a key element to how we ended up behind, falling asleep in the last couple
of minutes.
After the first, conceding the second was a bit of a blow. It was a great
recovery in the second half but we couldn't recover enough to get anything
out of the game. The way we're going at home, if we'd been allowed that goal
- as we should have been - I don't think we would have lost to Arsenal
today.
Having won six and drawn one in the last seven here, with the confidence we
have, going one-nil up that early would have kicked the lads on and I think
Arsenal would have found it very difficult from thereon. It wasn't to be and
sadly we've ended up losing a game which was probably a great spectacle.
I thought we'd captured it in the end in the last minute, which would have
been nice. There's nothing better than something happening in the last
minute for you to give you the result, but Enner headed the one over the bar
and it wasn't to be today.
There's no doubt in your mind that the goal should have stood? Did you speak
to the ref?
Not really, because I don't see any point in confronting a referee after a
game when you know you're 100 per cent right and he's only got the visuals
of when it actually happened. You get nowhere by telling him how wrong he's
been in terms of the decision he's given.
For me, it's more what we're told at the start of the season - more what
we're shown, what is and what isn't offside. You base your opinion on your
experience and your life as a manager. You base your opinion on what they
tell you and from what they told us, he [Swarbrick] has got it horribly
wrong.
He wasn't in the eye-line of the goalkeeper; he didn't touch the ball; yes,
he was in an offside position but we've seen so many of those been allowed
as goals and I've never seen one that's actually not been given.
If you cast your minds back to Everton away, Lukaku was stood offside
although the ball ricocheted off our player to him and that was onside. So
can you tell me what is offside and what isn't, because now I'm totally and
utterly confused and bewildered.
How frustrating are those inconsistencies?
I think there's far too many of them. The responsibility for me as a manager
like the PGMO itself is a responsibility to get the referees better and
better. I think some of the major decisions that seem to keep appearing more
often than ever before, sadly.
There might have been more than one player offside, which one were you
referring to?
It's gone through Sakho's legs, who's two or three yards to the right of
Szczesny so he's not in his eye-line. He's not obstructing his eye-line. If
you talk about obstructing his eye-line then there's six players obstructing
him. The shot has come through six players, it's come through everybody!
Clearly Neil Swarbrick cannot have a clear view of whether Diafra Sakho is
directly in Szczesny's eye-line.
Like I said, I haven't seen one of these chalked off this season. If I
revert back to Everton away then you can see why I'm so angry and
frustrated. Winston Reid blocked a shot, it goes to Lukaku who's offside.
Lukaku puts it in and the referee says 'that's a goal'. So I'm totally and
utterly bemused by that.
That said, we missed too many chances in the first half as well. We went for
broke in the second and our goalkeeper did some brilliant work again,
fantastic goalie that he is and we nearly got a result, a draw, in the end -
which I think we probably deserved.
Was it a penalty?
No, no. Reidy stuck his leg up and he's gone over on it. You know, he's done
well. I just wish Morgan had done similar when he got tugged in the last
minute by Monreal, who put both arms around him - but Morgan stayed on his
feet and tried to get us an equaliser.
He'd been fouled but didn't go down - there's another scenario for you, with
everybody moaning about simulation. It's alright talking about not doing it,
it's not nice, but what do you do when you don't get free kicks when you're
being honest and stay on your feet? Then you're in a difficult position
again.
That said, I thought it was a great game really, considering we both had to
play twice in 48 hours. End to end stuff but unfortunately for us, the wrong
result.
Did Adrian go up with five minutes left with your blessing?
Yes! Throw caution to the wind and try and get an equaliser. That pressure
nearly paid off in the end with the final free kick from Alex Song where
Szczesny actually came and missed that one. Aaron Cresswell headed it back
in and Enner just had to nod it in the net, which would have made a
fantastic few days for him because his girlfriend has just given birth to
his daughter in the last couple of days. So that would have been very nice
for him and for us.
Southampton have just proved that if you lose a few games...
We've only lost two, not five. We want to bounce back as quickly as we can
against West Brom. I'm pleased with the performance of the players, really
pleased with their application, commitment and attitude but sad for them
that they haven't got a result today.
Are you happy with your team's pace on counter attacks? Are they fast
enough?
We're relatively okay as a counter-attacking side. There are some teams who
are a little bit quicker than us on the counter, Arsenal being one of them.
They're pretty good at it. We're not too bad.
You've got to be quick and accurate with your passing but we didn't have to
rely too much on counter-attacking today. It was more about us trying to
break Arsenal down and them counter-attacking, rather than us
counter-attacking Arsenal.
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Arsenal withstand second-half fightback to beat West Ham
By James Walker-Roberts. Last Updated: 28/12/14 6:24pm
SSN
Arsenal moved above West Ham in the Premier League after withstanding a
strong second-half fightback to win 2-1 at Upton Park. The hosts enjoyed the
better of the opening 45 minutes but fell behind shortly before the break
when Winston Reid fouled Santi Cazorla in the box and the Spaniard
dispatched the subsequent penalty. Danny Welbeck doubled Arsenal's advantage
a couple of minutes later as he tapped in Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's cross
from a few yards out. Sam Allardyce was angered with the match officials
following Alex Song's early disallowed goal. The Hammers halved the deficit
early in the second half as Cheikhou Kouyate headed in his first goal for
the club. But despite piling on the pressure they could not grab an
equaliser as Enner Valencia headed over the bar in injury time and the
Gunners held on for all three points. The win is the perfect end to the year
for Arsenal, who largely coped well with the Hammers' physical presence and
also looked threatening throughout on the break during an entertaining
encounter. Both sides made a number of changes from their Boxing Day outings
48 hours earlier, with Sam Allardyce preferring Diafra Sakho ahead of
Valencia and Arsenal replacing the suspended Olivier Giroud with
Oxlade-Chamberlain and handing a first start since January 2013 to Francis
Coquelin. Former Gunner Alex Song thought he had broken the deadlock early
on when he drove in a brilliant volley from 25 yards, only for it to be
ruled out for offside.
It looked to be a harsh decision as no West Ham player touched the ball on
its way through a crowd, but the linesman ruled the players in an offside
position in front of Wojciech Szczesny were interfering with play. The
Hammers were also aggrieved a few minutes later as Sakho went down in the
box under a challenge from Mathieu Debuchy and the penalty appeals were
waved away. At the other end, a crucial block from Joey O'Brien prevented
Alexis Sanchez closing in on goal before the Chilean miscued a header from
Cazorla's free-kick.
Andy Carroll served warning of his threat as he easily outmuscled Debuchy as
they competed for a high ball, only to then drag his volley well off target.
Dangerous
The Hammers continued to look dangerous from set pieces and spurned a decent
chance to take the lead when James Tomkins wastefully volleyed over the bar
from an excellent position. The miss would prove costly as the Gunners then
stunned the home side with two goals in as many minutes just before
half-time. There was a hint of fortune about the first as the ball
ricocheted through kindly for Cazorla, but he was then clearly fouled by
Reid inside the box and made no mistake from the penalty spot. That was
Arsenal's first shot on target and they made it 2-0 with their second as
Oxlade-Chamberlain combined well with Debuchy down the right and then
crossed for Welbeck to tap in.
Stewart Downing went close to halving the deficit as he dragged a shot wide
from just inside the box before Sanchez saw an effort deflected just wide at
the other end. While the home side would have been disappointed to be 2-0
down at the break, it didn't take them long to get on the scoresheet in the
second half. After Per Mertesacker did well to beat Carroll to a header, the
ball was lofted back into the box by Tomkins and Kouyate easily rose above
Debuchy to head home. The goal was just what the Hammers needed and Sakho
was inches away from turning in Kouyate's cross to equalise moments later.
With the Arsenal box under regular bombardment, the visitors' best moments
came on the break, with Adrian pulling off excellent saves to deny both
Oxlade-Chamberlain and Sanchez. Welbeck, though, should have put the game to
bed when a misplaced pass from Downing gave the England striker a clear run
at goal, but he shot over the bar.The Hammers piled on the pressure in the
closing stages, with Adrian even going forward for a few set pieces, but
Valencia headed their last chance over the bar in the dying stages.
Phil Thompson says Arsenal just about deserved to win a thrilling London
derby against West Ham. "For the neutral this was absolutely stunning, it
was a magnificent game. It was a second game in three days, with both sides
giving everything. I didn't want the game to end, it was that good. Szczesny
deserves great compliments because he has made a big decision that anything
in the air he is going to come and get and control the air in the penalty
area. He had to be precise."
Player ratings
West Ham: Adrian (7), O'Brien (5), Reid (5), Tomkins (5), Amalfitano (6),
Downing (5),Kouyate (7), Song (5), Carroll (6), Sakho (6).
Subs: Demel (5), Nolan (5), Valencia (6).
Arsenal: Szczesny (7), Debuchy (5), Mertesacker (6), Koscielny (6), Monreal
(5), Coquelin (6), Flamini (6), Cazorla (7), Oxlade-Chamberlain (7), Welbeck
(7), Sanchez (7).
Subs: Chambers (5), Gibbs (5).
Man of the match: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
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Sam Allardyce accuses referee of guessing wrongly over disallowed Alex Song
goal
Last Updated: 28/12/14 7:02pm
SSN
West Ham manager Sam Allarydce said referee Neil Swarbrick 'guessed wrongly'
when he disallowed Alex Song's early goal for offside in the 2-1 defeat to
Arsenal. The former Gunner thought he had given West Ham the lead when he
drove in a brilliant volley from outside the box through a crowd of players.
But the effort was ruled out for offside as Hammers players were deemed to
be interfering with play and in the eyeline of keeper Wojciech Szczesny.
Allarydce, though, said the decision proved extremely costly and accused the
referee of guessing that players were blocking Szczesny's view. "I asked the
fourth official why he disallowed it and he said our player was in front of
the keeper, so I then said how can you judge that from where the assistant
is," he told Sky Sports. "It had to be the referee who judged that was the
case, so having looked at it at half-time both of them are wrong and sadly
we have not the goal we deserved.
"If the referee has given it for being in front of his eyeline then he has
guessed and guessed wrongly sadly. We would have been 1-0 up and on the
basis of our form at home I would have banked on us not losing. "But because
that was taken away from us we couldn't gain that advantage and then fell
asleep for five minutes at the end of the first half and ended up bizarrely
2-0 down."
After falling behind, the Hammers did stage a spirited second-half fightback
and halved the deficit shortly after the break through Cheikhou Kouyate. But
they could not grab an equaliser and Allardyce was also disappointed they
weren't awarded a penalty. "I think we should have had a penalty when Morgan
Amalfitano was wrestled to the ground by (Nacho) Monreal," he said. "It was
a disappointing day but a great effort. "To finish with nothing and a
defeat, the way we have had to accept it, is very disappointing indeed. "We
have had two of the hardest games in 48 hours, Chelsea away and Arsenal
home. We didn't deserve anything at Chelsea but we did today and we have to
take it on the chin, not let it affect our confidence and hope we get back
to winning ways and better decisions against West Brom."
Despite his disappointments, Allardyce admitted he was delighted with how
his side have progressed in 2014. "In one year 56 points is pretty good
going," he said. "To try and get 56 or more in a season would be one hell of
a season. It's been a terrific 2014, it's been a fantastic recovery from
where we were at the end of the January, particularly from the players."
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West Ham's owners put 20 per cent stake in the club up for sale
Last Updated: 28/12/14 1:24pm
SSN
West Ham's owners have put a 20 per cent stake in the club up for sale in a
bid to reduce debts of £110m. David Sullivan insists there was no danger of
Sam Allardyce being sacked in the summer and says he played a part in
bringing Diafra Sakho to the club. Hammers co-owner David Sullivan told the
Sunday Telegraph that he and fellow owner David Gold are seeking to raise
£80m to help reduce debts which currently stand at £110m, of which £55m is
owed to Gold and Sullivan. Sullivan claims that West Ham's upcoming move to
the Olympic Stadium at the end of next season means the club is worth £400m
- almost four times its value when he and Gold bought the Hammers in January
2010. "We've no desire to give up the whole club," Sullivan said. "But we're
still £110m in debt - albeit now £55m of that is to ourselves. So the
third-party debt has been halved, but only because we've put the money in.
Market value
"We lost £30m when we went down (to the Championship in 2011) and we made
£10m on paper last year. What's on paper is not cash-flow and we have to pay
down the debt all the time and we have to be clear of bank debt when we move
to the Olympic Stadium. "I'd love someone to come in and buy 20 per cent and
the money would not go to us, it would go to the club. But we won't be
giving it away and we'd want market value for it. "Going to the Olympic
Stadium we are a £400m club and that would pay down most of the debt. But if
it doesn't happen we'll dig deep in our pockets and keep the club afloat."
Sullivan also revealed that he does know if manager Sam Allardyce, who has
led West Ham to fifth place in the Premier League, will sign a new contract
with the club. "I must say if come April we are where we are now, which is
extremely unlikely but is possible, we'd probably sit down a month early and
say, 'Look Sam, do you want to stay or do you want to go?' Sam may decide he
wants to go out a winner," Sullivan said.
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Leroy: "Oh Winston and with Wenger watching!"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on December 28, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
I have no complaints about the team's performance against Arsenal nor should
any other fan because we gave it absolutely everything against a very good
side and on any other day would have come out with something. But my
overwhelming impression was of Winston Reid who showing again that he's
simply not a top four club player and if he was trying to impress Arsene
Wenger he failed miserably. He could have no complaints about the penalty
yet there he was jumping up and down pleading the case. Sorry mate, you
brought him down plain and simple and for much of the game looked pretty
average. Everybody who was inside the ground or watching on a stream could
feel nothing but sympathy for the Irons but I'm afraid I can't agree with
Sam and the others who believe the early strike by Alex Song should have
stood. Diafra was offside plain and simple and I don't believe the official
had any other decision to make than to raise his flag.
Arsenal were strong and showed great movement at times but no better than us
and all in all it was a great game which we weren't allowed to enjoy
properly because of the final result. However, the supporters will have left
a lot happier than they did at Chelsea where the team showed nothing. You
can't con Irons supporters. If you put in the shift and given it your best
they will stay with you. Obviously Adrian was outstanding and as Hugh wrote
yesterday the Spanish national team should be beckonng very soon. Morgan
Amalfitano was a revelation. He has real skill and invention and a terrific
work ethic. But for Adrian he would have been my man of the match.
I think we can take terrific encouragement and confidence from the Arsenal
game and get right back on track against West Brom.And as we head towards
the end of the year I'd like to thank and congratulate everybody at the club
for a terrific first half. You've all done a great job. Let's kick on –
we're a top six or better club!
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Things we learned in defeat by Gunners
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on December 28, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Match verdict
They tell me today's game was a thriller and hugely enjoyable. Well I
watched it and didn't enjoy it at all because we lost and didn't manage to
take a single point from the Christmas matches. Nor is the prelude to a Sam
Allardyce blast because I didn't hear too many complaints about his team
selection before the match. However, the defeats by Chelsea and Arsenal has
shown us one or two things quite clearly:
O that we are now in a position seemingly where our strike force will be
Andy Carroll and one other;
O that Mauro Zarate is on his way;
O that Morgan Amalfitano may be a better option anyway
O that Winston Reid may not be a top four club player after all
O and that Adrian needs to be watched by the Spanish national coach.
Alex Song scored a great goal and the official who wouldn't take his flag
down deserved a 'slap.' That was a goal plain and simple.
It may or may not have been a different game after that but when that was
ruled out and James Tomkins blasted over the top when he had time to spare
in front of goal, an ominous feeling started to form in the pit of my
stomach. You just knew didn't you….! We gave it everything and it wasn't
enough and now we look to West Brom in order to get back on the straight and
narrow. We will do but there's one thing which continues to worry me more
than any other – that Andy Carroll now gets played regardless of team and
conditions.
No question this was a game for him against a dodgy Per Mertesacker but
Chelsea with John Terry winning everything against him in the air was not.
Other players it seems – Song, Sakho for example – need rests after injury.
The same rule clearly doesn't apply to AC.
It's obvious we played our best football earlier in the season when Sakho
and Valencia caused mayhem. Will we ever see them together again? I think
it's very very doubtful and that is a terrible shame. Having said all that
and although I was desperately unhappy with the attitude and tactics at
Chelsea, nobody can moan at the effort and no little skill at Upton Park
today. It just didn't go for us ….BUT onwards and upwards!
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Special clause in Nolan's contract? – The ExWHUemployee Column
By ExWHUemployee on December 28, 2014 in ExWHUemployee column
Ironsview.com
Well I am extremely disappointed writing this after the Arsenal game; a game
that we didn't deserve to lose. Although I haven't seen a replay, I really
do not think Alex Song's goal should have been disallowed. In the vast
amount of cases you would not see a side penalised in this kind of offside
situation so I was left shocked when the assistant ref raised his flag. We
seem to have been the victim of a number of dodgy offside calls with Nolan's
goal at Old Trafford and Lukaku at Everton being examples of this. There
were other decisions that seemed to go against us too. I think there was a
foul on Amalfitano leading up to the penalty as well. I was disappointed in
the refereeing display to say the least.
We really should be looking to beat WBA especially if they still have Irvine
as manager. I would personally put Andy Carroll on the bench for this one
and go back to the proven partnership of Sakho and Valencia. When these two
are up front it encourages us to play on the floor rather than using Carroll
as the target man. Once their pace has got at WBA, depending on the impact
of that, Andy could come on when the defence is tiring. He may need a rest
anyway with the amount of games he has played after a serious injury.
I thought Adrian was our man of the match again and he really has been
turning in some high quality displays in recent months. If he could learn to
dominate his area from set plays I think he would develop into one of the
best 'keepers in the league. I also thought Amalfitano deserved his place in
the team after his impressive performance against Chelsea and he was our
best outfield player against Arsenal. I thought Winston Reid and Alex Song
were quite poor against Arsenal but this may have done us an indirect favour
and hopefully put Arsenal off signing either one of them.
I have touched on this in my column before but I really do not agree with
booing players and again Kevin Nolan was booed by some when he came on. I
understand people's frustrations and I personally do not think he should
been playing as much is he is either but booing does not help anyone. All
players, no matter how good they are, would be negatively impacted by their
own fans booing them. His first pass was awful but other than that I thought
he did alright after coming on. I have been asked in someone's rage whether
it is in Kevin Nolan's contract to always have to feature at some point on
the pitch even if he is named as a substitute. I checked the record books
and it does appear that every single time Nolan has been named as a sub he
has come on in a league game since he has been with us, even if it is just
for a minute. He has been an unused sub in Capital One cup games but in
league matches he has always featured at some point. I am happy to be proven
wrong by someone if they can find the evidence, however. I do not think this
is written in his contract but I thought it was an interesting statistic.
I do sometimes think, however, that our fans are very harsh and quick to
turn on certain players. I was shocked in the week to read such negative
comments about Mark Noble – a player who plays his heart out for the club
and has for many years. He was Hammer of the Year last year and played
really well this season – most wanted him in the England squad at the start
of the year. He had a poor game against Chelsea but he was recovering from
an injury and probably rushed himself back too quickly. I have seen similar
comments about Collins and Carroll – two players who have played key roles
this season. I totally stand by the fact that we all have opinions and we
all have preferences over who should play and who shouldn't; it is what
makes the game interesting, but I do think we can be too harsh at times and
we should do more "supporting".
One player I would have liked to have featured more is Zarate. It does
appear that he is on his way out of the club – probably on a season loan –
and this would explain why he hasn't made the bench for the last few games.
It has been reported that he has secured a loan deal to QPR but I have not
heard that myself. It does appear that the club are about to take the
option of taking 40k a week of the wages which could be spent elsewhere. I
think this is a real shame as he does seem to have a lot of flair and
something different to what we already have.
Anyway I think we were very unlucky against Arsenal and must put this behind
us and go on and beat WBA to get our season back on track. This is the last
column of the year so I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! COYI
ExWHUemployee
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Sunday, December 28
Daily WHUFC News - 28th December 2014
Preview - Arsenal
WHUFC.com
All the essential information ahead of Sunday's game against Arsenal
27.12.2014
WEST HAM UNITED v ARSENAL
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
BOLEYN GROUND
SUNDAY 28 DECEMBER 2014
KICK-OFF: 3PM
REFEREE: NEIL SWARBRICK
In brief
West Ham United host Arsenal on Sunday with the rare feeling of needing to bounce back from a defeat. Chelsea inflicted just a second loss in 12 outings on Boxing Day, when John Terry and Diego Costa netted to see off the Hammers' challenge and knock them down a place to fifth in the table. Sam Allardyce's men will be looking to keep Arsenal below them in the Barclays Premier League, after the Gunners moved to within a point of their London rivals with a 2-1 win over Queens Park Rangers. The Hammers currently have 31 points from their 18 games and will need to overcome recent history to add to that tally on Sunday, with Arsenal having won all of the last eight meetings between the teams.
Who are they?
Founded as Dial Square in 1886, Arsenal's early days were played out south of the River Thames in Woolwich. They were the first team from the south of England to join the Football League and in 1913 moved across London to Highbury. Their success has been particularly consistent, accumulating the second most points in the history of the English top flight and holding the ongoing record for the longest uninterrupted period in the top division. They have won the league title 13 times, the FA Cup on 11 occasions and two European trophies - the Cup Winners' Cup in 1994 and the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1970,
Team news
West Ham United
West Ham were without James Tomkins at Chelsea with a hamstring injury and Big Sam will assess his fitness ahead of Sunday's clash.
Alex Song and Diafra Sakho were used from the bench at Stamford Bridge and could return to the starting line-up against Arsenal, but Carl Jenkinson cannot play as he is on loan from the Gunners.
Arsenal
Olivier Giroud was sent off in Friday's victory over QPR for violent conduct and will serve the first game of his suspension against the Hammers. Meanwhile, Aaron Ramsey (hamstring), Mikel Arteta (calf), Jack Wilshere (foot) and Mesut Ozil (knee) will all miss out with injury.
Referee
Sunday's referee is Neil Swarbrick.
Swarbrick began refereeing at the age of 29 and within six years he had been promoted to the National List of assistant referees.
Now 49, Swarbrick made his way up the leagues via the Football Conference and the npower Football League before receiving his first Barclays Premier League appointment on 11 December 2010. He was officially promoted to the Select Group of top-flight referees in June 2011.
The official last took charge of the Hammers in January, when they held out for a superb 0-0 draw at Chelsea..
This season he has dished out 64 yellow cards and two reds in 15 games.
One to watch
West Ham United
Alex Song returns to take on the team where he made his name, two-and-a-half years after leaving Emirates Stadium for Barcelona.
The central midfielder joined West Ham on loan from the Spanish giants in the summer and immediately set about showing off his talents in the Barclays Premier League again. He has become an integral part of the Hammers team and is sure to be an influential figure on Sunday.
Arsenal
Alexis Sanchez has truly hit the ground running at Arsenal after also making the move to England from Barcelona in the close season.
The Chile forward enjoyed an outstanding World Cup and has carried that form into his first season in English football.
He recovered from missing a penalty to notch Arsenal's opener in the 2-1 win over QPR on Boxing Day and already has ten league goals to his name.
Tickets
All tickets have sold out for this fixture.
Travel
The eastern end of the District and Hammersmith & City lines will be open on Sunday, with trains serving Upton Park.
Please note that London Overground services into Barking from South Tottenham are suspended due to engineering work.
Click here for the latest from Transport for London and here for National Rail.
Weather
A bright start to the day is expected, with cloud arriving later on. Temperature at kick-off is predicted to be 5C (41F).
Last meeting
Arsenal 3-1 West Ham United
Barclays Premier League
15 April 2014
The Hammers last took on Arsenal at Emirates Stadium in April. Matt Jarvis gave the visitors the lead in the first half, but that was as good as it got for Big Sam's men as the Gunners came roaring back.
Lukas Podolski levelled on the stroke of half-time, before Olivier Giroud made it 2-1 ten minutes after the break.
Podolski finished the contest off with his second 12 minutes from the end to boost his team's challenge for fourth spot.
Arsenal: Szczesny, Sagna, Mertesacker, Vermaelen, Koscielny, Rosicky (Ramsey 72), Arteta, Cazorla (Jenkinson 88), Kallstrom, Podolski, Giroud
Subs: Fabianski, Bellerin, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Sanogo, Akpom
West Ham United: Adrian, Reid, Tomkins, Armero, Demel, Jarvis (J.Cole 78), Noble, Diame, Downing (Vaz Te 78), Nocerino, Carroll (C.Cole 84)
Subs: Jaaskelainen, McCartney, Johnson, Taylor
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'Let's go out there and beat Arsenal'
WHUFc.com
Big Sam has backed his Hammers to hit back when they host Arsenal on Sunday
27.12.2014
Sam Allardyce has backed his West Ham United team to bounce back against Arsenal following their Boxing Day defeat at Chelsea. The Hammers lost out 2-0 at Stamford Bridge, but return to the friendlier confines of the Boleyn Ground on Sunday, where they are unbeaten since August. The manager could recall Alex Song and Diafra Sakho to his starting XI after leaving them on the bench at Chelsea, while James Tomkins may return from a hamstring injury and Morgan Amalfitano's impressive showing in west London could see him included.
"Hopefully I'll have a near-full squad at my disposal, as there didn't appear to be any injuries on Boxing Day, but there may be some knocks and bruises or fatigue that we have to assess on Saturday when all the players are in," Big Sam explained. "They will all try to recover as quickly as possible for Sunday's game and we'll try to pick the strongest team possible to start the game, then the subs will play their part as the game goes on, with two games in a short period of time. "I want us to play like we did against Leicester and all the other teams we've faced at home, or more like we played against Manchester City and Liverpool when they came to our place. It is one of the big boys who are visiting us and we should all look forward to the game based on how well we've played at home in the last seven games. "Let's go out there and try and beat an Arsenal and make sure we don't lose two games on the trot, which is something we haven't done this season."
While Song and Sakho could start, one player who will not feature is right-back Carl Jenkinson, who is on loan from the Gunners and therefore ruled out of Sunday's game. Big Sam, though, is not overly concerned and has backed his replacement to slot into the side without any drama. "We've got Joey O'Brien and Guy Demel to choose from in that position, so that's something we'll make sure we do.
"Overall, for me, we look at the contribution everyone made on Boxing Day, their fatigue levels and who is available and we try to pick the best team to go out there and beat Arsenal."
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Collins hails Chelsea strength
WHUFC.com
James Collins tipped Chelsea for the Barclays Premier League title after the Hammers were defeated on Boxing Day
27.12.2014
James Collins believes his West Ham United team were beaten by the performance of champions at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day. Chelsea maintained their three-point gap over Manchester City by seeing off the Hammers by a 2-0 scoreline and Collins was impressed with their play. With no obvious weak link, it was always going to be tough for the Hammers in this London derby and Collins says they will put this loss behind them swiftly. "I'd say we were probably beaten by the champions on Boxing Day," he explained. "It will certainly take a strong team to beat them. "We went there full of confidence, the best we've been playing for a long time and they've beaten us 2-0.
"Credit to them, they are a strong team all over the pitch and with the subs they made they've got strength in depth. "At half time and only 1-0 down, we knew we were in the game, and if we could have got one [even at 2-0] it would have made it tight again. "Unfortunately it never came and they killed it off. It's all about recovery now and looking forward to Arsenal on Sunday."
Collins held his hands up over Chelsea's first goal, which saw John Terry lose the attentions of the No19 to convert from Diego Costa's header. "It was sloppy from me really," he admitted. "I've gone to try and win the first header and having not won it left John to tap it in. "There were probably a few lads there who could have tapped it in so it's sloppy all over really. It's disappointing that my man scored, but they are a strong team."
West Ham have a quick opportunity to put that defeat right when Arsenal visit the Boleyn Ground on Sunday and that is a derby the Welshman is relishing. He added: "We've got to try and put this behind us as quickly as we can and look forward to Arsenal. Our home form is great, the boys are playing well, so it's one to look forward to. "I'm sure we can give anyone a game and everyone's enjoying it at the moment. Let's have a go and see what happens."
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West Ham v Arsenal
KO 15:00
27 December 2014
Last updated at 13:14
By John Motson
BBC Match of the Day commentator
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
Venue: Upton Park Date: Sunday, 28 December
TEAM NEWS
West Ham duo Alex Song and Diafra Sakho were rotated out of the starting line-up at Chelsea but are set to return against Arsenal.
James Tomkins is again likely to miss out with a hamstring problem, so James Collins will continue to deputise.
Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud begins a three-game ban which could mean Danny Welbeck is restored to a central role. The Gunners will assess centre-back Laurent Koscielny, who is nearing a return from a hamstring problem.
MATCH PREVIEW
Sam Allardyce's team selection against Chelsea has been the focus of some debate, particularly the decision to bench key players Alex Song and Diafra Sakho. Although recent injury problems played a role in those decisions, I can reveal the West Ham manager made the decision to mix and match several weeks ago. "This is another tough game for West Ham on the back of their defeat by Chelsea, although I think Hammers boss Sam Allardyce was quite clever in resting Alex Song and Diafra Sakho until the last half hour at Stamford Bridge."
Predictions: Lawro v Unbroken star Jack O'Connell And on current form you can see why he would target this game, rather the Boxing Day trip to the league leaders, as the more winnable fixture. That said, the Hammers will be keen to avoid losing any momentum over the festive period, where a few poor results can see your league position come down as quickly as the Christmas decorations. Only a superb display from Hammers goalkeeper Adrian kept the score down against Chelsea, but they should be a different proposition on Sunday. Aside from the injured James Tomkins, West Ham should be fairly close to the team which began against Leicester in their last home game. That would mean Andy Carroll starting a second game in three days, but he only played 59 minutes at Stamford Bridge, and will sure ly fancy his chances against an Arsenal rearguard which has creaked at times this season. A bit like Manchester United, Arsenal have barely had their first-choice defence available, and Arsene Wenger will be particularly keen to get fit-again Laurent Koscielny back alongside Per Mertesacker at centre-back. The Gunners have an excellent record against West Ham, winning their last eight in all competitions, but to keep that streak going they may need more heroics from Alexis Sanchez. The Chilean has scored or assisted half of their 32 Premier League goals and has 15 goals in all competitions. Who knows where they would be without him - probably significantly lower than sixth in the table. This should be a cracking London derby played at what is sure to be packed and noisy Upton Park. The teams appear evenly matched and I'm expecting plenty of goals - it's just the kind of match you want to be watching over Christmas.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Arsenal have won their last eight league and cup games against West Ham in all competitions.
The Gunners have scored at least three times in each of their last five matches against the Hammers.
West Ham have not beaten Arsenal since winning both meetings 1-0 in the 2006-07 season, triumphing at the Emirates Stadium in April 2007 and at Upton Park in November 2006.
West Ham
The Hammers have won six of their last seven Premier League home games.
They have kept four clean sheets and conceded just three goals in that run.
They are unbeaten at Upton Park since August, when they lost their opening two Premier League home matches.
Arsenal
Arsenal have failed to score in only one of their last 11 away matches in the Premier League - their 2-0 loss to Chelsea on 5 October.
The Gunners have conceded five times in their last two away league games - with all but one of those arriving before half-time.
With 10 goals and six assists, Alexis Sanchez has scored or assisted half of Arsenal's 32 Premier League goals this season.
Ian Wright (14) is the only player to reach 10 Premier League goals in fewer games for Arsenal than Sanchez (17).
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Sakho inclusion leaves Ba fuming
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 27th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
Former Hammer Demba Ba took to Twitter to express his disappointment after he was replaced in Senegal's provisional squad for the African Cup of Nations by West Ham United's Diafra Sakho. Ba - who spent five months at the Boleyn Ground in 2011 before jumping ship once West Ham's relegation was confirmed - was left fuming after being omitted from the squad for the tournament, which begins on 17 January.
Shortly after the squad was announced earlier this afternoon, Ba - who spent time at Newcastle and Chelsea after leaving West Ham before joining current club Besiktas - hit out at head coach Alain Giresse for leaving him out of the travelling party. Sakho is one of two Hammers named in Giresse's provisional party, with Cheik Kouyate also selected. Senegal arrive at their training camp in Dakar on 2 January although both Hammers are hoping to receive special dispensation allowing them to feature in the FA Cup tie at Everton. The other English-based players included in the squad are Mame Birame Diouf (Stoke), Sadio Mane (Southampton) and Papiss Cisse (Newcastle).
Senegal's Provisional AFCON Squad
Goalkeepers: Bouna Coundoul (Ethnikos Achnas FC, Cyprus), Lys Gomis (Trappani, Italy), Pape Demba Camara (Sochaux, France), Ousmane Mane (Diambars)
Defenders: Zargo Toure (Le Havre, France), Lamine Gassama (Lorient, France), Lamine Sane (Bordeaux, France), Kara Mbodj (Genk, Belgium), Pape Ndiaye Souare (Lille, France), Papy Djilobodji (Nantes, France), Boukary Drame (Atalanta, Italy), Ibrahima Mbaye (Inter Milan, Italy), Cheikh Mbengue (Rennes, France)
Midfielders: Cheikhou Kouyate (West Ham, England), Pape Kouli Diop (Levante, Spain), Idrissa Gana Gueye (Lille, France), Stephane Badji (Brann, Norway), Salif Sane (Hanover, Germany), Pape Alioune Ndiaye (Bodo Glimt, Norway), Alfred Ndiaye (Real Betis, Spain).
Forwards: Moussa Konate (SC Sion, Switzerland), Diafra Sakho (West Ham, England), Mame Birame Diouf (Stoke City, England), Sadio Mane (Southampton, England), Moussa Sow (Fenerbahce, Turkey), Papiss Demba Cisse (Newcastle, England), Henri Saivet (Bordeaux, France), Dame Ndoye (Lokomotiv Moscow, Russia).
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Mensis horribilis
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 27th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
Chairman David Sullivan says that the January transfer window cannot pass quickly enough. The club's co-owner, speaking to Jason Burt for The Telegraph confirmed that he had a particular dislike for the season's second and final opportunity to sell and purchase players - whilst admitting that he had come unstuck on many occasions during the winter transfer window. "It is the most horrible, horrible month and the last day is just horrendous," he said. "You have got players in the middle of nowhere and you are being told 'you've got to sign him'! Thank God this time we don't have to sign anyone desperately. "It's very hard to castigate certain players but under Avram we signed a player who was on £90,000-a-week and we paid his full wages and a big fee to an agent. Did that player help us a lot? I don't think so. But you are desperate. "[Three years ago] we signed Robbie Keane on loan. The classic example. Avram said 'get me Robbie Keane and he will keep you up'. Well, we got Robbie and when he was available he was a decent player - but he was injured most of the time."
Surprisingly perhaps, Sullivan also cited a much-maligned loan signing as his best last season. "Roger Johnson ended up costing us about £15,000-a-week and he did a wonderful job," he said. "He started in four games and we won three of those games. We were without a centre-half. Without one of those every club would struggle. "He took a salary drop because he wanted to play in the Premier League. But we won at Cardiff because he was in the team and that was the game that turned our season."
Sullivan also intimated that he would be looking at adding one or two younger faces to the squad - one of whom, Canadian Daniel Henry is expected to join the club imminently. He also reiterated his intention to retain the services of contract rebel Winston Reid. "He might go in the summer," admitted Sullivan, "but I don't think anyone will pay us enough money to sell him in January because we've only got two other centre-halves at the club."
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Former Gunner set for Hammers recall
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 27th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
Guy Demel is set to return to the first team tomorrow - where he will line up against his only other English club. The Ivorian full back is poised to make his first appearance for the Hammers since September should he be selected to replace on-loan Carl Jenkinson, who is unable to play against his parent club. Demel, 33, has made just five appearances for Sam Allardyce's first team so far this season - four in the Premier League and once in the Capital One Cup - but is yet to complete a full 90 minutes. He spent one season at Arsenal back in 2000/01, but failed to make a single first team appearance under Arsene Wenger before being transferred to Borussia Dortmund.
22-year-old Jenkinson, on loan at the Boleyn for the season has been a virtual ever-present since making his West Ham debut against Hull in September but is unavailable on Sunday due to the terms of his loan agreement, which prevent him from playing against the Gunners. Meanwhile Arsenal, who will be seeking to repeat their win at the Boleyn last season will also be far from full strength having lost striker Olivier Giroud, who misses the match as a result of his red card against Queens Park Rangers yesterday. And whilst Laurent Koscielny is close the recovering from a hamstring injury and could therefore feature, Aaron Ramsey (hamstring), Mikel Arteta (calf), Mesut Ozil (knee), Abou Diaby (calf), Jack Wilshere (ankle) and Serge Gnabry (knee) have all been ruled out.
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Digging deep
KUMb.com
Filed: Saturday, 27th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
West Ham United Ladies' junior section will be holding a bucket collection on 1 January at Upton Park. Ahead of the West Brom game on New Years Day, more than 80 volunteers - a mix of players and approcimately 40 parents - will be collecting on behalf of the junior teams.
Dave Maslen, who coordinates the junior teams told KUMB: "We'll be asking supporters to dig deep to help with a small donation to the ladies side. It will make a great difference and help keep the club on a firm financial footing for next season. "The junior and senior section have also been raising money with raffles and match day sponsors, and the club would like to thank all in advance for their support." The club are also actively seeking a new chairman; ideally this would be someone who is a passionate West Ham United supporter with a strong business background and willing become involved on a voluntary basis.
West Ham United Ladies would like to invite all interested parties to contact the club, including their CV with details of any previous experience and their reasons for wanting to take on the role. For further details, please contact club secretary Bill Robinson at bill.robinson@sky.com. The club would like to wish all its supporters a very happy New Year.
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Wenger heaps praise on Song
Last Updated: 27/12/14 9:56pm
SSN
Arsene Wenger has praised Alex Song ahead of Arsenal's clash with West Ham on Sunday. The former Gunners midfielder has impressed in his loan spell at the Hammers, who lie fifth in the table. Wenger helped mould Song after signing him from French outfit Bastia and is not surprised the 27-year-old has gone onto play for Barcelona. He said: "I brought him here at the age of 17 and kept him despite all the opinions against him. "He developed into a very good player, so you don't need to convince me he is a good player. "I think he was a very good player when he was here and he didn't play a lot when he was in Spain - you see players like Santi Cazorla who always looks stronger (when they play regularly)."
Arsenal can leapfrog West Ham with victory and are just two points behind fourth-placed Southampton, but ahead of Tottenham only on goal difference. With so little between the sides around the Champions League places, Wenger wants his players to concentrate on continuing their fine form which has seen them lose just once in their last eight games. I don't give importance to the table at the moment," Wenger added."There are 20 games to go. It is very tight and it is down to consistency now. "We know every game now is down to consistency and reproducing the performances. "We need to prepare quickly, focus quickly and that is an ability we want to show at West Ham."
Defender Laurent Koscielny could be available for the game at Upton Park following a calf injury, while midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain faces a fitness test. With Olivier Giroud suspended for three matches after his red card against Queens Park Rangers, Theo Walcott is expected to return to the attack.
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Arsenal face top-four rivals West Ham at Upton Park
Last Updated: 27/12/14 7:53pm
SSN
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce will be hoping to end a seven game losing streak against Arsenal. West Ham will finish 2014 above Arsenal if they can avoid defeat in Sunday afternoon's London derby at Upton Park. Sam Allardyce's side are currently fifth in the Premier League, one point and one position ahead of their opponents, and will be looking to bounce back from their 2-0 Boxing Day defeat to Chelsea. Arsene Wenger knows three points will take Arsenal above West Ham in the race for a Champions League spot and is looking for a second London derby win in three days after the 2-1 success at home to QPR on Friday evening.
Team news
Alex Song (knee) and Diafra Sakho (back) are expected to return to West Ham's starting line-up. The duo were rotated out of the starting XI for the loss at Chelsea, with Mark Noble and Enner Valencia replacing them. Sam Allardyce says West Ham did not play as well as they can during their 2-0 defeat to Chelsea but will take positives from his side not giving up and cre James Tomkins (hamstring) is likely to miss out again, with James Collins continuing in central defence.
Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud begins a three-match suspension after being sent off for head-butting in the 2-1 victory over QPR, but Laurent Koscielny could be back from a hamstring problem.Aaron Ramsey (hamstring), Mikel Arteta (calf), Mesut Ozil (knee), Abou Diaby (calf), Jack Wilshere (ankle) and Serge Gnabry (knee) are sidelined.
Opta facts
West Ham have won none of the last 12 Barclays Premier League games against Arsenal (W0 D2 L10), losing the last seven in a row.
Theo Walcott has scored five goals in his last four Premier League games against the Hammers.
Arsenal Wenger accepted Olivier Giroud's dismissal for violent conduct in their 2-1 win against QPR.
Lukas Podolski has scored four goals in four Premier League games against West Ham.
Arsenal have won away at West Ham more often than any other team in Premier League history (10).
After a run of seven Premier League home games without defeat as a coach against Wenger (W4 D3), Allardyce has lost his last three home games against the Frenchman.
Paul Merson's prediction
"West Ham set up a bit differently at Chelsea and it didn't really come off for them against the league leaders. I expect this to be a different game though and it's a tough one for both sides. It's a hard game for Arsenal, especially without Olivier Giroud. That's another big player out of the team and he would have been vital at set-plays. I was tempted to side with West Ham in this one, but in the end I've edged towards the draw."
PAUL PREDICTS: 1-1
Betting
Arsenal are Sky Bet's 11/10 favourites for this London derby, with West Ham 21/10 for the win and 12/5 to hold Wenger's men to a draw.
Despite their close proximity in the table, the Hammers are considered 18/1 chances for a top-four finish compared to the Gunners' odds of just 2/5.
Alexis Sanchez heads the first goalscorer betting at 5/1 and is 15/2 to be the Premier League's top goalscorer, while Andy Carroll and Sakho are considered the hosts' main threats at 6/1 apiece to net first.
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100 YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF WEST HAM PALS
By Sean Whetstone 27 Dec 2014 at 20:14
West Ham till I Die
Guest Post by Elliot Taylor, author of 'Up the hammers' about the West Ham Battalion
On December 29th it will be exactly 100 years since the birth of the West Ham Battalion. On a bitterly cold evening, the Mayor of West Ham, Henry Dyer, cleared his throat and read out a letter from the War Office detailing their requirements: just over a thousand local men aged between 19 and 35 who were prepared to enlist in the Army for a minimum of three years "or for the duration of the War".
When the call went out the response was immediate. By January 1915, 300 hundred men had volunteered and by March, the unit was complete. They undertook their training locally, marching along Green Street during the week when riots broke out around Upton Park and east London targeting foreign named businesses in response to the German sinking of the passenger ship Lusitania.
The youngest Private was 15 years old and one of many underage while the oldest Private was 47. Their battle cry was "Up The Hammers!" although some former employees of the Thames Ironworks preferred to shout "Up The Irons!" as they practised bayonet attacks. They got fit playing football in West Ham Park and relaxed with invitations as a whole Battalion to the cinema to see the latest movies. They really were the 'Pride of West Ham'.
They sailed to France together in November 1915 on the Steamship Princess Victoria and from that moment on they were seldom 'out the Line'. They served their whole War alongside The Footballers, a battalion made up of volunteers from the world of professional football. On the Hammers first
Christmas in the trenches they were cheered up when they heard that West Ham Utd had caned Arsenal 8-2 in the Southern Combination League match on Christmas Day here at the Boleyn. Sid Puddefoot scored five and it took nearly a century before Arsenal were beaten by that many goals again.
1916 saw them suffer incredible punishment on The Somme where so many of the original volunteer Officers and Men were killed, often with 'No Known Grave'.
By 1917, they were still in the thick of it and suffered even more losses during a failed attack on the village of Oppy at the end of April, on the very same day that West Ham Utd were crowned Champions of the Southern Combination League. 1917 ended with their epic 'Last Stand' at Moeuvres during the Battle of Cambrai, an event so heroic it made the front pages back home in England.
Finally, in February 1918, like so many Kitchener Battalions they were disbanded during Army reshuffles. The West Ham lads were sent to other units and sadly many of them were killed before the Armistice.
We should always, of course, Remember their sacrifices and since the end of the Great War we have a special day in our calendar set aside for such commemoration.
But today is not, for me, a day of commemoration but rather a day of celebration. A celebration of these brave adventurous local men, West Ham United's first generation of supporters, who willingly gave up all that they held close to defend against German aggression. I think what they did is worthy of more than three cheers!
Note from Sean: Elliot has suggested applause on the 13th minute at the Arsenal home game, in celebration of the formation of the13th Battalion (West Ham Pals) as a fitting reminder of those West Ham fans who signed up so we might enjoy freedom.
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HOW WE CAN PLAY VALENCIA, SAKHO & CARROLL IN THE SAME TEAM
By Iain Dale 27 Dec 2014 at 15:00
West Ham till I Die
Guest Post by Casper Wallensteiner
Stewart Downing is a play-maker. Nobody can argue with that. his skill-set is put to best use when he can create chances, as we have seen at the tip of the diamond.
Over the course of this season I have been confronted with two primary attacking mindsets: the pace of the Sakho-Valencia duo, consisting of a perfect combination of the speed they have been able to get off the mark and making countless runs to create chances off a through-ball , and the power of a lone Carroll, with his strength, aerial threat, and ability to read the game.
How do we accommodate these two styles without making compromises? I have created a formation which I think will work extremely well for us. Behold… The 4-2-1-2-1.
/—————————-Carroll————————-\————————
-————————-/————————————————————————\———————-
-——————Sakho———————————|————————Valencia—————
-—————————————————————-|———————————————————
-———————————————————-Downing———————————————-
-——————————————————-/———————\———————————————
-———————————————Kouyate————Song—————————————
-—————————————————————————————————————————-
Cresswell—————————Tomkins———-Reid———————-Jenkinson
-—————————————————————————————————————————-
-——————————————————Adrian——————————————————-
…………………………………[________________]……………………………..
This position works similar to the 4-4-2 that we have been using to great effect in the past, but has much more of a counter-attacking emphasis. When we win the ball back, it can go straight to CAM Downing, who can feed either LF Sakho or RF Valencia who will use sheer pace to get on the through-ball and beat any slow centre-backs. They can elect to either shoot or square it to a running ST Carroll who will have just caught up, being not as fast as the duo himself.
In this way Carroll can also play as the pure striker he is with an aerial threat, allowing us to capitalise on balls from LB Cresswell and RB Jenkinson off the break (being a narrow formation, Cresswell and Jenkinson are crucial in giving the width to our game). Carroll's job, however, isn't quite that straight forward. While Sakho and Valencia stay up at an opposition corner ready to use their pace to get to a through ball off a counter, Carroll comes back to defend the corner with his dominance in the air. When the counter is on he runs up as the second wave to the attack, giving an option for Sakho or Valencia to divert their run with the ball towards a wider position in the box approaching the corners then square a short air-ball, and by the time the ball reaches the prime heading position, there will come Christmas Carroll from the second wave to head it home. Poetry in motion.
RDM Song isn't just a great play-maker, he is a brilliant ball-winner because of his outstanding work-rate and I believe that he and LDM Kouyate could be a brilliant partnership. The great thing about this formation is that when we have possession in the middle of the park, Downing can drop back and form a triangle with Kouyate and Song, allowing us to use a Barcelona-style passing game in open play. Gradually as we inch our way patiently into the opponent's half WW1-trench-warfare-style – and we have proven that we can play this way with the quality we have in midfield – Song and Kouyate are able to stay back in anticipation of a Chelsea counter-attack, allowing Cresswell and Jenkinson to push up on the wings. Song and Kouyate also, in my opinion, both have not only the pace and ball-winning skills to thwart a counter-attack, but also the passing ability to launch a counter-counter. They are perfect for the role.
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West Ham striker Mauro Zarate available for loan as Hammers look to free up funds for new players
Dec 27, 2014 22:30 By Neil Moxley
The Argentinian forward has struggled to hold on to a first-team place this season, as the Hammers look to make room for new arrivals
The Mirror
West Ham will listen to loan offers for striker Mauro Zarate, reports Neil Moxley in the Sunday People. The Argentinian has been touted around the Premier League with Sunderland and Newcastle alerted to his availability. Zarate, 27, began life at Upton Park with a bang, scoring for the Hammers in their win away at Crystal Palace. But he has since found goals – and a place in the Irons' line-up – hard to come by. Zarate, who can count Lazio and Inter Milan among his former clubs, signed a three-year deal at West Ham in the summer. But the Hammers want to make room in their budget to improve boss Sam Allardyce's squad. And Zarate has been offered on loan in a bid to get his wages covered until the end of the season.
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Former Spurs defender Vedran Corluka eyeing Premier League return with Everton and West Ham interested
Dec 27, 2014 22:30 By Steve Stammers
The Lokomotiv Moscow man wants to return to England and also has Southampton and Hull on his case
The Mirro
Vedran Corluka is on the verge of returning to the Premier League. The former Spurs and Manchester City defender is currently at Lokomotiv Moscow – and the Russian club value him at around £4.8million. He was signed from Tottenham for £5.5m in June 2012 but would now welcome a move back to England – alerting the likes of West Ham, Southampton, Hull and Everton. "Vedran is excited at the possibility of coming back to England," said the Croatian's advisor Chris Nathaniel. West Ham will be monitoring the situation as they wait for a decision from New Zealand defender Winston Reid about his future. Reid will be out of contract next June and is yet to accept a new four-year deal that is on offer. Hull manager Steve Bruce will also be interested as he attempts to climb away from the relegation zone after an alarming dip in form. And Saints boss Ronald Koeman – with Champions League ambitions like West Ham – is keen to reinforce his squad.
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Arsene Wenger's business acumen praised by West Ham boss Sam Allardyce
Dec 27, 2014 22:30 By Tom Hopkinson
The West Ham boss has singing the praises of his Gunners counterpart ahead of their clash at Upton Park
The Mirror
Sam Allardyce has hailed Arsene Wenger's incredible ability to mix football management and business acumen to build three different teams at Arsenal. Wenger has an enviable record of leading the Gunners into the Champions League for 17 consecutive seasons. And what has impressed Allardyce the most is that the Frenchman kept that run going while contending with the move from Highbury to the Emirates.
Big Sam, whose side take on Arsenal at home today, is hoping to oversee West Ham's switch from Upton Park to the Olympic Stadium in 2016, but he insists the only parallel between the two situations is the move itself after his owners got their new home on the cheap.
He said: "Arsene has been manager, accountant and financial director, there is no doubt about that. "The man set out a fantastic team before they decided to move and then built a couple of brilliant young teams based on the fact that the same amount of finance didn't appear to be available to him. Now he has almost got the Emirates paid off, hasn't he? "That's his achievement and it is a massive factor considering it was a massive investment for them."The one thing we have to our advantage is that we don't have to pay £450million for our new stadium, which is the best bit of business ever done in football by a set of owners. "So what you have to do is use the money that has been saved on that development in strengthening the team and, when the club gets to the new stadium, be in a position where hopefully it is not concerned with its Premier League status."
While West Ham's start to the season has seen fan opinion turn dramatically in Allardyce's favour, Wenger's popularity at Arsenal has plummeted and there are suggestions that he is surviving on credit. But Allardyce added: "I don't think he lives on that. I think Wenger believes he can win every trophy he plays in. He can win the league with the team he has got." He hopes to put another dent in Arsenal's hopes of doing that by bouncing back from a 2-0 defeat at leaders Chelsea on Boxing Day as the Hammers continue their own pursuit of a top-four finish.
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Arsene Wenger: I always knew Alex Song would be a great player - even when everyone said I was wrong
Dec 27, 2014 17:13 By Paul Gorst
"I brought him here at the age of 17 and kept him despite all the opinions against him," says the Gunners boss
The Mirror
Arsene Wenger has hailed Alex Song ahead of Arsenal's trip to West Ham United on Sunday. Wenger brought the Cameroon star on loan to England when the midfielder was teenager back in 2005 before eventually signing him outright a year later for around £1m. The combative Song left for Barcelona in 2012 but failed to nail down a regular spot in the La Liga side's engine room. West Ham took Song on loan back in the summer, and Wenger has said that he has not been surprised to see his former player thrive with the Hammers. Wenger said: "I brought him here at the age of 17 and kept him despite all the opinions against him. "He developed into a very good player, so you don't need to convince me he is a good player. "I think he was a very good player when he was here and he didn't play a lot when he was in Spain - you see players like Santi Cazorla who always looks stronger [when they play regularly]." A win for Wenger's side would see them leapfrog the high-flying Hammers into fifth, and three points could also be enough to move into the top four depending on Southampton's result at home to leaders Chelsea.However, Wenger is unconcerned with such permutations, and the Frenchman claimed that he is not keeping tabs on the Premier League table just yet. "I don't give importance to the table at the moment," he added. "There are 20 games to go. It is very tight and it is down to consistency now. "We know every game now is down to consistency and reproducing the performances. We need to prepare quickly, focus quickly and that is an ability we want to show at West Ham." "We want to stay in the game, to sleep well and then (go) again. [The Christmas period of games is] very quick and interesting as well."
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Canvey Island complete loan signing of West Ham United starlet Taylor Tombides
by Luke Lambert
BasildonRecorder.co.uk
CANVEY Island have added West Ham United youngster Taylor Tombides to their ranks as they bid to get over their mid-season slump.
The 18-year-old Australian is primarily a midfielder but can also play up front, and he becomes the third young Hammer at the Prospects Stadium, with Tim Brown and Ben Marlow impressing since they joined the club at the start of the season. Tombides is an under-16 Australian international and is a member of West Ham's Development Squad. He is the younger brother of Dylan Tombides, also a West Ham player, but he died earlier this year after he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He is expected to make his bow for the Gulls on New Year's Day against Bury Town. Their island rivals have also been strengthening their squad, with Concord Rangers bringing in attacker Evans Kouassi. 25-year-old Kouassi signed last week having been released by Conference South rivals Chelmsford City. The former Billericay Town striker made his debut in Saturday's 4-1 defeat to Bromley, where he came on as a second-half substitute.
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West Ham owners to sell 20% stake in team, worried about losing Allardyce
Kyle Lynch Dec 27, 2014, 3:10 PM EST
http://prosoccertalk.nbcsports.com/
West Ham United's owners have put a 20% stake of the club up for sale in an effort to raise nearly $125 million to clear debts. David Sullivan and David Gold bought a 50% share of West Ham in January of 2010, with the club already in upwards of $175 million of debt.
Today, Sullivan owns 55% of the club and Gold 30%, and the club is still over $150 million in debt. With the Hammers set to move to the Olympic Stadium in 2016-17, Sullivan said he values the club at around $620 million and is looking to find new investors. Because the club is in so much debt, Sullivan is worried they may not be able to keep Sam Allardyce as manager. I must say if come April we are where we are now (in the Premier League table) which is extremely unlikely but is possible we'd probably sit down a month early and say 'look Sam, do you want to stay or do you want to go?'. Sam may decide he wants to go out a winner. He may decide, after four years, it's a very stressful job, he may decide he wants £10million-a-year which we can't afford."
As West Ham currently sit fifth on the table, it is not too reassuring when the owner is saying it is "extremely unlikely" that they can keep up the pace. When asked if the Hammers could finish in the top-four, Sullivan replied, "I wake up in the middle of the night dreaming of it. But I'm a realist."
If the Hammers could pull off a miraculous second half and qualify for competition in Europe, the club would receive a great boost financially through prize money and other deals. But similar to their owner David Sullivan, I don't see that happening.
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Arsenal's defence is suspect and my West Ham team will exploit it, claims Sam Allardyce
West Ham manager says his side can "get at" Arsene Wenger's ailing back four when sides meet at Upton Park
By Jason Burt, Sunday Telegraph Football Correspondent
11:00PM GMT 27 Dec 2014
Sam Allardyce has pledged that West Ham United will "get at" Arsenal's "suspect" defence when the two sides meet at Upton Park today. The West Ham manager is determined to bounce back from a disappointing performance in losing 2-0 away against Chelsea on Boxing Day.
Despite Arsenal hoping to include Laurent Koscielny, who had a fitness test yesterday after sustaining a hamstring injury, Allardyce said that they can be vulnerable in defence. "You've got to get at them though," he said. "Get at them and play in the right way against Arsenal to make sure you can try and get sometimes at the defence that at times can be suspect. But you've got to be good enough on the ball to get into those areas. If you can do that maybe you can catch them out. "We have to try and bounce back. I am relying on the home form we have shown over the last seven games [six wins and a draw] to be there in abundance on Sunday. We are turning it [Upton Park] into a real fortress again."
Despite Koscielny's hoped-for return Arsenal remain short of defensive strength with manager Arsene Wenger having already admitted he hopes to sign a centre-half once the January transfer window opens. Arsenal are expected to sign Ipswich Town's Tyrone Mings, who is primarily a left-back. Recently Wenger has drafted in the right-back Mathieu Debuchy into the centre of his defence and the French international has suggested he sees his future in that position even though he is just 5ft 10in. "It would be no problem for me to play there again," Debuchy said after the 2-1 Boxing Day victory against Queens Park Rangers which closed the gap to West Ham. With his contract running out at the end of this season, and probably no talks over a new deal before then, Allardyce also brushed aside concerns over his future. "It's not a problem with me, never has been," he said. "If and when the owners decide they are ready for me – it's not about me trying to push them one way or another – it's not about me. They'll do what they want to do, I'll be ready to talk to them and we'll see where we go from there."
Allardyce knows that victory over Arsenal will not only widen that gap between the two sides, with West Ham in fifth, a point ahead of Wenger's team, but fuel the belief that they can qualify for European football. "I just want to stay fourth as long as we can and see where we go from there," Allardyce said. "It looks like we have a few players going to the Africa [Cup of] Nations although it doesn't look like Alex [Song] is going. If we carry on with those players away and when they come back, we have achieved some good results at the end of January we'll re-calculate where we think we might finish."
Allardyce will lose top-scorer Diafra Sakho and midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate to the Africa Cup, to be held in Equatorial Guinea from Jan 17 to Feb 8, although Song has been omitted by Cameroon after a bust‑up during the last World Cup. The midfielder, 27, on loan from Barcelona with West Ham hoping to sign him permanently at the end of the season, will face his former club having been brought to England by Wenger when he was 17. Song started on the bench, playing the final half-hour, after Allardyce decided to use him and Sakho sparingly on Boxing Day. "I expect him to be man of the match," the manager said of the game today. "He's been superb – a lot of composure on the ball, a real talent in possession, it obviously gives us lots of forward options."
Wenger said that he was well aware of the threat posed by Song who he sold in 2012 for £15million. "He didn't play today, he is certainly resting for us," Wenger said after the QPR match. "He's a good player. I brought him here at the age of 17 and kept him despite all the opinions who were against him, and he developed into a very good player. You don't need to convince me that he's a good player. I took him at very young age and gave him a chance." Arsenal will be without Olivier Giroud as the French striker starts a three-match ban having been red-carded for violent conduct against QPR.
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West Ham owner David Sullivan says club can qualify for Champions League
Interview: Sullivan claims top four finish is achievable and reveals relief at not needing to make "desperate" January signings
West Ham co-owner David Sullivan says the club can break into English football's elite top four group
David Sullivan (right), with his West Ham co-owner David Gold and Baroness Brady, the club's vice-chairman Photo: PA
By Jason Burt, Sunday Telegraph Football Correspondent
3:24PM GMT 27 Dec 2014
"If one of us can break it," David Sullivan says, "it would give dreams and hopes to every supporter." The "it" the West Ham United chairman refers to is finishing in the top four and qualifying for the Champions League. The "us" Sullivan mentions is his own club, Swansea City and Southampton, the trio who are fighting the big guns within the Premier League's top eight. "We all said wouldn't it be wonderful – whether it's us or Swansea or Southampton – for a lesser team to get into the top four. It's been the same teams for so long," Sullivan says. "I don't think you can keep Chelsea, Man City and probably Man United out of it this season. It's whether you can beat Arsenal for that fourth spot. And that's a hell of an ask."
West Ham, in fifth, a point behind fourth-placed Southampton, host Arsenal, in sixth, at Upton Park on Sunday having lost to Chelsea on Boxing Day. Finishing ahead of Arsenal is indeed a big ask but Sullivan admits: "I wake up in the middle of the night dreaming of it. But I'm a realist."
And a happy one at that. It is 21 years since Sullivan bought into football, acquiring Birmingham City with the Gold brothers – David, his co-chairman now at West Ham, and Ralph – and this is the best situation he has ever been in. "Yes, forever," Sullivan says. "It's the best team, the best position.
Oh, it's wonderful. For the first year since we have been at West Ham it's not absolutely a crisis situation. When we were in the Championship we were at the top end but there was pressure every game to get automatic promotion and we failed to get it." Since then, he admits, it has been a fretful struggle. A solid first season return to the Premier League, via the play-offs, after suffering relegation the year after buying West Ham in 2010, was followed by a campaign riddled by injury and with the club flirting with relegation and with the, at times, attritional football under manager Sam Allardyce called into question – by the board as well as the supporters. It led to discussions as to whether Allardyce should leave with West Ham eventually issuing an unusual statement confirming he would stay – but demanding "more entertainment". "I think most people agreed with us," Sullivan says of that statement, adding that he feels vindicated. "I do," he says. "We all sat down at the end of last season and we all accepted that things weren't right. We all agreed that we were not scoring enough goals. So therefore we appointed a strikers' coach (Teddy Sheringham) and brought in new strikers and we now have four or five strikers at the club. Last year we had one or two.
"Unfortunately last year we just messed up. We were assured Andy Carroll would be back (from injury) September 1 and he was back February 1 and we put all our eggs in one basket which we should never have done. We bought Stewart Downing when maybe we should have bought another striker but he's come good this year in a big, big way and he's a different player to last year in the position he is now being played in. Last year he was a winger and did ok. This year he is a candidate for player of the season and he makes the team tick, he makes us play football."
West Ham have certainly done that. They brought in nine players last summer – including Alex Song, Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho – and moved on more than a dozen, mainly released for free at the end of their deals. "I worked the hardest I ever worked in my life," Sullivan says. "For every deal you see done there were five not done. We were working on 50 deals. If you could see the fees and details you would know that every deal we did do was a good deal. Every one made sense. It doesn't mean they will all pay off, although most of them already have, but they were worthwhile gambles."
So far not one has looked like a gamble and with the January transfer window opening Sullivan freely admits that has not always been the case for him. "It is usually the desperate who are buying and I've been desperate for many, many years in January," Sullivan says. "I've done a lot of business from Birmingham to West Ham and in the main the signings you make are not good.
"It is the most horrible, horrible month. And the last day, the last day is just horrendous. You have got players in the middle of nowhere and you are being told 'you've got to sign him!' But you can't even do a medical. It's a gamble. And they say 'it's for nothing – it's 40-grand a week and half a million loan fee'. Over six months – plus a couple of hundred thousand for the agent as well – it's £2million! People talk about it like it's nothing. They have lost the plot most of these people and it does your head in really. Thank God this time we don't have to sign anyone desperately."
Financial Fair Play will, Sullivan says, help - not least because clubs cannot be tempted to spend beyond their means. "It is stopping you doing silly things," he explains. "Our wage cap this year is £56million. We can't breach it. Net of national insurance that's £49,122,000. That's what we can spend on wages on all players and it includes agents' fees."
How many January deals has he regretted?
"Most of them," Sullivan says. "It's very hard to castigate certain players but under (previous manager) Avram (Grant) we signed a player who was on £90,000-a-week and we paid his full wages and a big fee to an agent. Did that player help us a lot? I don't think so. But you are desperate. We signed Robbie Keane on loan. The classic example. I said to Avram 'who do you need to score goals?' He said 'get me Robbie Keane and he will keep you up'. Well we got Robbie and he was injured, unfortunately. It was a fortune – a big loan fee, wages, if we stayed up we had to sign him permanently. When he was available he was a decent player. But he was injured most of the time.
"The alternative – Avram's second-choice – was (Daniel) Sturridge who went to Bolton. It was a two-bob loan. No wages. No loan fee. And he got a pile of goals for Bolton. If we had signed the second-choice we'd have got lucky and while there is an element of luck with all signings in January it is even more so. It is the most stressful time and what happens in the last two days – when you have not got any of your first-choice players and you are just desperate.
"We spent £4-5m on loans and wages on players last January in the hope they make a contribution to help keep you up. We were in a real bad way. At one stage in January we were bottom of the table. "The best loan signing we made last season was Roger Johnson. No (loan) money. He took a wage drop to come. "He started in four games and we won three of those games. Without him we were playing George McCartney and Joey O'Brien at centre-half. People said to me 'sack the manager' and I said 'who do you want: Houdini?' We were without a centre-half. Without one of those every club would struggle. I said to Sam 'we have to sign a centre-half, even if the others will be back in a month, we can't wait because we will be relegated in a month unless we do it'. "Roger Johnson ended up costing us about £15,000-a-week and he did a wonderful job. He took a salary drop because he wanted to play in the Premier League. But we won at Cardiff because he was in the team and that was the game that turned our season."
West Ham have come a long way since then. There might be two January signings – "two for the future" – who are loaned back. And no sales. "If there are any bids for our players, I could not conceive of us accepting one in January," Sullivan adds, insisting West Ham will not sell Winston Reid even though the central defender is in the final year of his contract and yet to sign a new deal. "He might go in the summer but I don't think anyone will pay us enough money to sell him in January because we've only got two other centre-halves at the club. If we had five…"
So back to what he wants to achieve. "People said to me at the start of this season 'what's your ambition?' and I said 'it's not to finish 17th, I can tell you'. You can't finish 17th and say West Ham have had a successful year," Sullivan says. "You might say we've not have a disastrous year but our aim has to be Europe. It's not to say we will achieve our aim but it is our aim. If we want to be ambitious then our aim is the Champions League – albeit it looks virtually impossible. That's what I said at the start of the season. But it has to be our aim and it is achievable if everything goes our way. And I've always believed it is."
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WHUFC.com
All the essential information ahead of Sunday's game against Arsenal
27.12.2014
WEST HAM UNITED v ARSENAL
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
BOLEYN GROUND
SUNDAY 28 DECEMBER 2014
KICK-OFF: 3PM
REFEREE: NEIL SWARBRICK
In brief
West Ham United host Arsenal on Sunday with the rare feeling of needing to bounce back from a defeat. Chelsea inflicted just a second loss in 12 outings on Boxing Day, when John Terry and Diego Costa netted to see off the Hammers' challenge and knock them down a place to fifth in the table. Sam Allardyce's men will be looking to keep Arsenal below them in the Barclays Premier League, after the Gunners moved to within a point of their London rivals with a 2-1 win over Queens Park Rangers. The Hammers currently have 31 points from their 18 games and will need to overcome recent history to add to that tally on Sunday, with Arsenal having won all of the last eight meetings between the teams.
Who are they?
Founded as Dial Square in 1886, Arsenal's early days were played out south of the River Thames in Woolwich. They were the first team from the south of England to join the Football League and in 1913 moved across London to Highbury. Their success has been particularly consistent, accumulating the second most points in the history of the English top flight and holding the ongoing record for the longest uninterrupted period in the top division. They have won the league title 13 times, the FA Cup on 11 occasions and two European trophies - the Cup Winners' Cup in 1994 and the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1970,
Team news
West Ham United
West Ham were without James Tomkins at Chelsea with a hamstring injury and Big Sam will assess his fitness ahead of Sunday's clash.
Alex Song and Diafra Sakho were used from the bench at Stamford Bridge and could return to the starting line-up against Arsenal, but Carl Jenkinson cannot play as he is on loan from the Gunners.
Arsenal
Olivier Giroud was sent off in Friday's victory over QPR for violent conduct and will serve the first game of his suspension against the Hammers. Meanwhile, Aaron Ramsey (hamstring), Mikel Arteta (calf), Jack Wilshere (foot) and Mesut Ozil (knee) will all miss out with injury.
Referee
Sunday's referee is Neil Swarbrick.
Swarbrick began refereeing at the age of 29 and within six years he had been promoted to the National List of assistant referees.
Now 49, Swarbrick made his way up the leagues via the Football Conference and the npower Football League before receiving his first Barclays Premier League appointment on 11 December 2010. He was officially promoted to the Select Group of top-flight referees in June 2011.
The official last took charge of the Hammers in January, when they held out for a superb 0-0 draw at Chelsea..
This season he has dished out 64 yellow cards and two reds in 15 games.
One to watch
West Ham United
Alex Song returns to take on the team where he made his name, two-and-a-half years after leaving Emirates Stadium for Barcelona.
The central midfielder joined West Ham on loan from the Spanish giants in the summer and immediately set about showing off his talents in the Barclays Premier League again. He has become an integral part of the Hammers team and is sure to be an influential figure on Sunday.
Arsenal
Alexis Sanchez has truly hit the ground running at Arsenal after also making the move to England from Barcelona in the close season.
The Chile forward enjoyed an outstanding World Cup and has carried that form into his first season in English football.
He recovered from missing a penalty to notch Arsenal's opener in the 2-1 win over QPR on Boxing Day and already has ten league goals to his name.
Tickets
All tickets have sold out for this fixture.
Travel
The eastern end of the District and Hammersmith & City lines will be open on Sunday, with trains serving Upton Park.
Please note that London Overground services into Barking from South Tottenham are suspended due to engineering work.
Click here for the latest from Transport for London and here for National Rail.
Weather
A bright start to the day is expected, with cloud arriving later on. Temperature at kick-off is predicted to be 5C (41F).
Last meeting
Arsenal 3-1 West Ham United
Barclays Premier League
15 April 2014
The Hammers last took on Arsenal at Emirates Stadium in April. Matt Jarvis gave the visitors the lead in the first half, but that was as good as it got for Big Sam's men as the Gunners came roaring back.
Lukas Podolski levelled on the stroke of half-time, before Olivier Giroud made it 2-1 ten minutes after the break.
Podolski finished the contest off with his second 12 minutes from the end to boost his team's challenge for fourth spot.
Arsenal: Szczesny, Sagna, Mertesacker, Vermaelen, Koscielny, Rosicky (Ramsey 72), Arteta, Cazorla (Jenkinson 88), Kallstrom, Podolski, Giroud
Subs: Fabianski, Bellerin, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Sanogo, Akpom
West Ham United: Adrian, Reid, Tomkins, Armero, Demel, Jarvis (J.Cole 78), Noble, Diame, Downing (Vaz Te 78), Nocerino, Carroll (C.Cole 84)
Subs: Jaaskelainen, McCartney, Johnson, Taylor
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'Let's go out there and beat Arsenal'
WHUFc.com
Big Sam has backed his Hammers to hit back when they host Arsenal on Sunday
27.12.2014
Sam Allardyce has backed his West Ham United team to bounce back against Arsenal following their Boxing Day defeat at Chelsea. The Hammers lost out 2-0 at Stamford Bridge, but return to the friendlier confines of the Boleyn Ground on Sunday, where they are unbeaten since August. The manager could recall Alex Song and Diafra Sakho to his starting XI after leaving them on the bench at Chelsea, while James Tomkins may return from a hamstring injury and Morgan Amalfitano's impressive showing in west London could see him included.
"Hopefully I'll have a near-full squad at my disposal, as there didn't appear to be any injuries on Boxing Day, but there may be some knocks and bruises or fatigue that we have to assess on Saturday when all the players are in," Big Sam explained. "They will all try to recover as quickly as possible for Sunday's game and we'll try to pick the strongest team possible to start the game, then the subs will play their part as the game goes on, with two games in a short period of time. "I want us to play like we did against Leicester and all the other teams we've faced at home, or more like we played against Manchester City and Liverpool when they came to our place. It is one of the big boys who are visiting us and we should all look forward to the game based on how well we've played at home in the last seven games. "Let's go out there and try and beat an Arsenal and make sure we don't lose two games on the trot, which is something we haven't done this season."
While Song and Sakho could start, one player who will not feature is right-back Carl Jenkinson, who is on loan from the Gunners and therefore ruled out of Sunday's game. Big Sam, though, is not overly concerned and has backed his replacement to slot into the side without any drama. "We've got Joey O'Brien and Guy Demel to choose from in that position, so that's something we'll make sure we do.
"Overall, for me, we look at the contribution everyone made on Boxing Day, their fatigue levels and who is available and we try to pick the best team to go out there and beat Arsenal."
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Collins hails Chelsea strength
WHUFC.com
James Collins tipped Chelsea for the Barclays Premier League title after the Hammers were defeated on Boxing Day
27.12.2014
James Collins believes his West Ham United team were beaten by the performance of champions at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day. Chelsea maintained their three-point gap over Manchester City by seeing off the Hammers by a 2-0 scoreline and Collins was impressed with their play. With no obvious weak link, it was always going to be tough for the Hammers in this London derby and Collins says they will put this loss behind them swiftly. "I'd say we were probably beaten by the champions on Boxing Day," he explained. "It will certainly take a strong team to beat them. "We went there full of confidence, the best we've been playing for a long time and they've beaten us 2-0.
"Credit to them, they are a strong team all over the pitch and with the subs they made they've got strength in depth. "At half time and only 1-0 down, we knew we were in the game, and if we could have got one [even at 2-0] it would have made it tight again. "Unfortunately it never came and they killed it off. It's all about recovery now and looking forward to Arsenal on Sunday."
Collins held his hands up over Chelsea's first goal, which saw John Terry lose the attentions of the No19 to convert from Diego Costa's header. "It was sloppy from me really," he admitted. "I've gone to try and win the first header and having not won it left John to tap it in. "There were probably a few lads there who could have tapped it in so it's sloppy all over really. It's disappointing that my man scored, but they are a strong team."
West Ham have a quick opportunity to put that defeat right when Arsenal visit the Boleyn Ground on Sunday and that is a derby the Welshman is relishing. He added: "We've got to try and put this behind us as quickly as we can and look forward to Arsenal. Our home form is great, the boys are playing well, so it's one to look forward to. "I'm sure we can give anyone a game and everyone's enjoying it at the moment. Let's have a go and see what happens."
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West Ham v Arsenal
KO 15:00
27 December 2014
Last updated at 13:14
By John Motson
BBC Match of the Day commentator
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
Venue: Upton Park Date: Sunday, 28 December
TEAM NEWS
West Ham duo Alex Song and Diafra Sakho were rotated out of the starting line-up at Chelsea but are set to return against Arsenal.
James Tomkins is again likely to miss out with a hamstring problem, so James Collins will continue to deputise.
Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud begins a three-game ban which could mean Danny Welbeck is restored to a central role. The Gunners will assess centre-back Laurent Koscielny, who is nearing a return from a hamstring problem.
MATCH PREVIEW
Sam Allardyce's team selection against Chelsea has been the focus of some debate, particularly the decision to bench key players Alex Song and Diafra Sakho. Although recent injury problems played a role in those decisions, I can reveal the West Ham manager made the decision to mix and match several weeks ago. "This is another tough game for West Ham on the back of their defeat by Chelsea, although I think Hammers boss Sam Allardyce was quite clever in resting Alex Song and Diafra Sakho until the last half hour at Stamford Bridge."
Predictions: Lawro v Unbroken star Jack O'Connell And on current form you can see why he would target this game, rather the Boxing Day trip to the league leaders, as the more winnable fixture. That said, the Hammers will be keen to avoid losing any momentum over the festive period, where a few poor results can see your league position come down as quickly as the Christmas decorations. Only a superb display from Hammers goalkeeper Adrian kept the score down against Chelsea, but they should be a different proposition on Sunday. Aside from the injured James Tomkins, West Ham should be fairly close to the team which began against Leicester in their last home game. That would mean Andy Carroll starting a second game in three days, but he only played 59 minutes at Stamford Bridge, and will sure ly fancy his chances against an Arsenal rearguard which has creaked at times this season. A bit like Manchester United, Arsenal have barely had their first-choice defence available, and Arsene Wenger will be particularly keen to get fit-again Laurent Koscielny back alongside Per Mertesacker at centre-back. The Gunners have an excellent record against West Ham, winning their last eight in all competitions, but to keep that streak going they may need more heroics from Alexis Sanchez. The Chilean has scored or assisted half of their 32 Premier League goals and has 15 goals in all competitions. Who knows where they would be without him - probably significantly lower than sixth in the table. This should be a cracking London derby played at what is sure to be packed and noisy Upton Park. The teams appear evenly matched and I'm expecting plenty of goals - it's just the kind of match you want to be watching over Christmas.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Arsenal have won their last eight league and cup games against West Ham in all competitions.
The Gunners have scored at least three times in each of their last five matches against the Hammers.
West Ham have not beaten Arsenal since winning both meetings 1-0 in the 2006-07 season, triumphing at the Emirates Stadium in April 2007 and at Upton Park in November 2006.
West Ham
The Hammers have won six of their last seven Premier League home games.
They have kept four clean sheets and conceded just three goals in that run.
They are unbeaten at Upton Park since August, when they lost their opening two Premier League home matches.
Arsenal
Arsenal have failed to score in only one of their last 11 away matches in the Premier League - their 2-0 loss to Chelsea on 5 October.
The Gunners have conceded five times in their last two away league games - with all but one of those arriving before half-time.
With 10 goals and six assists, Alexis Sanchez has scored or assisted half of Arsenal's 32 Premier League goals this season.
Ian Wright (14) is the only player to reach 10 Premier League goals in fewer games for Arsenal than Sanchez (17).
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Sakho inclusion leaves Ba fuming
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 27th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
Former Hammer Demba Ba took to Twitter to express his disappointment after he was replaced in Senegal's provisional squad for the African Cup of Nations by West Ham United's Diafra Sakho. Ba - who spent five months at the Boleyn Ground in 2011 before jumping ship once West Ham's relegation was confirmed - was left fuming after being omitted from the squad for the tournament, which begins on 17 January.
Shortly after the squad was announced earlier this afternoon, Ba - who spent time at Newcastle and Chelsea after leaving West Ham before joining current club Besiktas - hit out at head coach Alain Giresse for leaving him out of the travelling party. Sakho is one of two Hammers named in Giresse's provisional party, with Cheik Kouyate also selected. Senegal arrive at their training camp in Dakar on 2 January although both Hammers are hoping to receive special dispensation allowing them to feature in the FA Cup tie at Everton. The other English-based players included in the squad are Mame Birame Diouf (Stoke), Sadio Mane (Southampton) and Papiss Cisse (Newcastle).
Senegal's Provisional AFCON Squad
Goalkeepers: Bouna Coundoul (Ethnikos Achnas FC, Cyprus), Lys Gomis (Trappani, Italy), Pape Demba Camara (Sochaux, France), Ousmane Mane (Diambars)
Defenders: Zargo Toure (Le Havre, France), Lamine Gassama (Lorient, France), Lamine Sane (Bordeaux, France), Kara Mbodj (Genk, Belgium), Pape Ndiaye Souare (Lille, France), Papy Djilobodji (Nantes, France), Boukary Drame (Atalanta, Italy), Ibrahima Mbaye (Inter Milan, Italy), Cheikh Mbengue (Rennes, France)
Midfielders: Cheikhou Kouyate (West Ham, England), Pape Kouli Diop (Levante, Spain), Idrissa Gana Gueye (Lille, France), Stephane Badji (Brann, Norway), Salif Sane (Hanover, Germany), Pape Alioune Ndiaye (Bodo Glimt, Norway), Alfred Ndiaye (Real Betis, Spain).
Forwards: Moussa Konate (SC Sion, Switzerland), Diafra Sakho (West Ham, England), Mame Birame Diouf (Stoke City, England), Sadio Mane (Southampton, England), Moussa Sow (Fenerbahce, Turkey), Papiss Demba Cisse (Newcastle, England), Henri Saivet (Bordeaux, France), Dame Ndoye (Lokomotiv Moscow, Russia).
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Mensis horribilis
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 27th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
Chairman David Sullivan says that the January transfer window cannot pass quickly enough. The club's co-owner, speaking to Jason Burt for The Telegraph confirmed that he had a particular dislike for the season's second and final opportunity to sell and purchase players - whilst admitting that he had come unstuck on many occasions during the winter transfer window. "It is the most horrible, horrible month and the last day is just horrendous," he said. "You have got players in the middle of nowhere and you are being told 'you've got to sign him'! Thank God this time we don't have to sign anyone desperately. "It's very hard to castigate certain players but under Avram we signed a player who was on £90,000-a-week and we paid his full wages and a big fee to an agent. Did that player help us a lot? I don't think so. But you are desperate. "[Three years ago] we signed Robbie Keane on loan. The classic example. Avram said 'get me Robbie Keane and he will keep you up'. Well, we got Robbie and when he was available he was a decent player - but he was injured most of the time."
Surprisingly perhaps, Sullivan also cited a much-maligned loan signing as his best last season. "Roger Johnson ended up costing us about £15,000-a-week and he did a wonderful job," he said. "He started in four games and we won three of those games. We were without a centre-half. Without one of those every club would struggle. "He took a salary drop because he wanted to play in the Premier League. But we won at Cardiff because he was in the team and that was the game that turned our season."
Sullivan also intimated that he would be looking at adding one or two younger faces to the squad - one of whom, Canadian Daniel Henry is expected to join the club imminently. He also reiterated his intention to retain the services of contract rebel Winston Reid. "He might go in the summer," admitted Sullivan, "but I don't think anyone will pay us enough money to sell him in January because we've only got two other centre-halves at the club."
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Former Gunner set for Hammers recall
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 27th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
Guy Demel is set to return to the first team tomorrow - where he will line up against his only other English club. The Ivorian full back is poised to make his first appearance for the Hammers since September should he be selected to replace on-loan Carl Jenkinson, who is unable to play against his parent club. Demel, 33, has made just five appearances for Sam Allardyce's first team so far this season - four in the Premier League and once in the Capital One Cup - but is yet to complete a full 90 minutes. He spent one season at Arsenal back in 2000/01, but failed to make a single first team appearance under Arsene Wenger before being transferred to Borussia Dortmund.
22-year-old Jenkinson, on loan at the Boleyn for the season has been a virtual ever-present since making his West Ham debut against Hull in September but is unavailable on Sunday due to the terms of his loan agreement, which prevent him from playing against the Gunners. Meanwhile Arsenal, who will be seeking to repeat their win at the Boleyn last season will also be far from full strength having lost striker Olivier Giroud, who misses the match as a result of his red card against Queens Park Rangers yesterday. And whilst Laurent Koscielny is close the recovering from a hamstring injury and could therefore feature, Aaron Ramsey (hamstring), Mikel Arteta (calf), Mesut Ozil (knee), Abou Diaby (calf), Jack Wilshere (ankle) and Serge Gnabry (knee) have all been ruled out.
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Digging deep
KUMb.com
Filed: Saturday, 27th December 2014
By: Staff Writer
West Ham United Ladies' junior section will be holding a bucket collection on 1 January at Upton Park. Ahead of the West Brom game on New Years Day, more than 80 volunteers - a mix of players and approcimately 40 parents - will be collecting on behalf of the junior teams.
Dave Maslen, who coordinates the junior teams told KUMB: "We'll be asking supporters to dig deep to help with a small donation to the ladies side. It will make a great difference and help keep the club on a firm financial footing for next season. "The junior and senior section have also been raising money with raffles and match day sponsors, and the club would like to thank all in advance for their support." The club are also actively seeking a new chairman; ideally this would be someone who is a passionate West Ham United supporter with a strong business background and willing become involved on a voluntary basis.
West Ham United Ladies would like to invite all interested parties to contact the club, including their CV with details of any previous experience and their reasons for wanting to take on the role. For further details, please contact club secretary Bill Robinson at bill.robinson@sky.com. The club would like to wish all its supporters a very happy New Year.
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Wenger heaps praise on Song
Last Updated: 27/12/14 9:56pm
SSN
Arsene Wenger has praised Alex Song ahead of Arsenal's clash with West Ham on Sunday. The former Gunners midfielder has impressed in his loan spell at the Hammers, who lie fifth in the table. Wenger helped mould Song after signing him from French outfit Bastia and is not surprised the 27-year-old has gone onto play for Barcelona. He said: "I brought him here at the age of 17 and kept him despite all the opinions against him. "He developed into a very good player, so you don't need to convince me he is a good player. "I think he was a very good player when he was here and he didn't play a lot when he was in Spain - you see players like Santi Cazorla who always looks stronger (when they play regularly)."
Arsenal can leapfrog West Ham with victory and are just two points behind fourth-placed Southampton, but ahead of Tottenham only on goal difference. With so little between the sides around the Champions League places, Wenger wants his players to concentrate on continuing their fine form which has seen them lose just once in their last eight games. I don't give importance to the table at the moment," Wenger added."There are 20 games to go. It is very tight and it is down to consistency now. "We know every game now is down to consistency and reproducing the performances. "We need to prepare quickly, focus quickly and that is an ability we want to show at West Ham."
Defender Laurent Koscielny could be available for the game at Upton Park following a calf injury, while midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain faces a fitness test. With Olivier Giroud suspended for three matches after his red card against Queens Park Rangers, Theo Walcott is expected to return to the attack.
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Arsenal face top-four rivals West Ham at Upton Park
Last Updated: 27/12/14 7:53pm
SSN
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce will be hoping to end a seven game losing streak against Arsenal. West Ham will finish 2014 above Arsenal if they can avoid defeat in Sunday afternoon's London derby at Upton Park. Sam Allardyce's side are currently fifth in the Premier League, one point and one position ahead of their opponents, and will be looking to bounce back from their 2-0 Boxing Day defeat to Chelsea. Arsene Wenger knows three points will take Arsenal above West Ham in the race for a Champions League spot and is looking for a second London derby win in three days after the 2-1 success at home to QPR on Friday evening.
Team news
Alex Song (knee) and Diafra Sakho (back) are expected to return to West Ham's starting line-up. The duo were rotated out of the starting XI for the loss at Chelsea, with Mark Noble and Enner Valencia replacing them. Sam Allardyce says West Ham did not play as well as they can during their 2-0 defeat to Chelsea but will take positives from his side not giving up and cre James Tomkins (hamstring) is likely to miss out again, with James Collins continuing in central defence.
Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud begins a three-match suspension after being sent off for head-butting in the 2-1 victory over QPR, but Laurent Koscielny could be back from a hamstring problem.Aaron Ramsey (hamstring), Mikel Arteta (calf), Mesut Ozil (knee), Abou Diaby (calf), Jack Wilshere (ankle) and Serge Gnabry (knee) are sidelined.
Opta facts
West Ham have won none of the last 12 Barclays Premier League games against Arsenal (W0 D2 L10), losing the last seven in a row.
Theo Walcott has scored five goals in his last four Premier League games against the Hammers.
Arsenal Wenger accepted Olivier Giroud's dismissal for violent conduct in their 2-1 win against QPR.
Lukas Podolski has scored four goals in four Premier League games against West Ham.
Arsenal have won away at West Ham more often than any other team in Premier League history (10).
After a run of seven Premier League home games without defeat as a coach against Wenger (W4 D3), Allardyce has lost his last three home games against the Frenchman.
Paul Merson's prediction
"West Ham set up a bit differently at Chelsea and it didn't really come off for them against the league leaders. I expect this to be a different game though and it's a tough one for both sides. It's a hard game for Arsenal, especially without Olivier Giroud. That's another big player out of the team and he would have been vital at set-plays. I was tempted to side with West Ham in this one, but in the end I've edged towards the draw."
PAUL PREDICTS: 1-1
Betting
Arsenal are Sky Bet's 11/10 favourites for this London derby, with West Ham 21/10 for the win and 12/5 to hold Wenger's men to a draw.
Despite their close proximity in the table, the Hammers are considered 18/1 chances for a top-four finish compared to the Gunners' odds of just 2/5.
Alexis Sanchez heads the first goalscorer betting at 5/1 and is 15/2 to be the Premier League's top goalscorer, while Andy Carroll and Sakho are considered the hosts' main threats at 6/1 apiece to net first.
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100 YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF WEST HAM PALS
By Sean Whetstone 27 Dec 2014 at 20:14
West Ham till I Die
Guest Post by Elliot Taylor, author of 'Up the hammers' about the West Ham Battalion
On December 29th it will be exactly 100 years since the birth of the West Ham Battalion. On a bitterly cold evening, the Mayor of West Ham, Henry Dyer, cleared his throat and read out a letter from the War Office detailing their requirements: just over a thousand local men aged between 19 and 35 who were prepared to enlist in the Army for a minimum of three years "or for the duration of the War".
When the call went out the response was immediate. By January 1915, 300 hundred men had volunteered and by March, the unit was complete. They undertook their training locally, marching along Green Street during the week when riots broke out around Upton Park and east London targeting foreign named businesses in response to the German sinking of the passenger ship Lusitania.
The youngest Private was 15 years old and one of many underage while the oldest Private was 47. Their battle cry was "Up The Hammers!" although some former employees of the Thames Ironworks preferred to shout "Up The Irons!" as they practised bayonet attacks. They got fit playing football in West Ham Park and relaxed with invitations as a whole Battalion to the cinema to see the latest movies. They really were the 'Pride of West Ham'.
They sailed to France together in November 1915 on the Steamship Princess Victoria and from that moment on they were seldom 'out the Line'. They served their whole War alongside The Footballers, a battalion made up of volunteers from the world of professional football. On the Hammers first
Christmas in the trenches they were cheered up when they heard that West Ham Utd had caned Arsenal 8-2 in the Southern Combination League match on Christmas Day here at the Boleyn. Sid Puddefoot scored five and it took nearly a century before Arsenal were beaten by that many goals again.
1916 saw them suffer incredible punishment on The Somme where so many of the original volunteer Officers and Men were killed, often with 'No Known Grave'.
By 1917, they were still in the thick of it and suffered even more losses during a failed attack on the village of Oppy at the end of April, on the very same day that West Ham Utd were crowned Champions of the Southern Combination League. 1917 ended with their epic 'Last Stand' at Moeuvres during the Battle of Cambrai, an event so heroic it made the front pages back home in England.
Finally, in February 1918, like so many Kitchener Battalions they were disbanded during Army reshuffles. The West Ham lads were sent to other units and sadly many of them were killed before the Armistice.
We should always, of course, Remember their sacrifices and since the end of the Great War we have a special day in our calendar set aside for such commemoration.
But today is not, for me, a day of commemoration but rather a day of celebration. A celebration of these brave adventurous local men, West Ham United's first generation of supporters, who willingly gave up all that they held close to defend against German aggression. I think what they did is worthy of more than three cheers!
Note from Sean: Elliot has suggested applause on the 13th minute at the Arsenal home game, in celebration of the formation of the13th Battalion (West Ham Pals) as a fitting reminder of those West Ham fans who signed up so we might enjoy freedom.
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HOW WE CAN PLAY VALENCIA, SAKHO & CARROLL IN THE SAME TEAM
By Iain Dale 27 Dec 2014 at 15:00
West Ham till I Die
Guest Post by Casper Wallensteiner
Stewart Downing is a play-maker. Nobody can argue with that. his skill-set is put to best use when he can create chances, as we have seen at the tip of the diamond.
Over the course of this season I have been confronted with two primary attacking mindsets: the pace of the Sakho-Valencia duo, consisting of a perfect combination of the speed they have been able to get off the mark and making countless runs to create chances off a through-ball , and the power of a lone Carroll, with his strength, aerial threat, and ability to read the game.
How do we accommodate these two styles without making compromises? I have created a formation which I think will work extremely well for us. Behold… The 4-2-1-2-1.
/—————————-Carroll————————-\————————
-————————-/————————————————————————\———————-
-——————Sakho———————————|————————Valencia—————
-—————————————————————-|———————————————————
-———————————————————-Downing———————————————-
-——————————————————-/———————\———————————————
-———————————————Kouyate————Song—————————————
-—————————————————————————————————————————-
Cresswell—————————Tomkins———-Reid———————-Jenkinson
-—————————————————————————————————————————-
-——————————————————Adrian——————————————————-
…………………………………[________________]……………………………..
This position works similar to the 4-4-2 that we have been using to great effect in the past, but has much more of a counter-attacking emphasis. When we win the ball back, it can go straight to CAM Downing, who can feed either LF Sakho or RF Valencia who will use sheer pace to get on the through-ball and beat any slow centre-backs. They can elect to either shoot or square it to a running ST Carroll who will have just caught up, being not as fast as the duo himself.
In this way Carroll can also play as the pure striker he is with an aerial threat, allowing us to capitalise on balls from LB Cresswell and RB Jenkinson off the break (being a narrow formation, Cresswell and Jenkinson are crucial in giving the width to our game). Carroll's job, however, isn't quite that straight forward. While Sakho and Valencia stay up at an opposition corner ready to use their pace to get to a through ball off a counter, Carroll comes back to defend the corner with his dominance in the air. When the counter is on he runs up as the second wave to the attack, giving an option for Sakho or Valencia to divert their run with the ball towards a wider position in the box approaching the corners then square a short air-ball, and by the time the ball reaches the prime heading position, there will come Christmas Carroll from the second wave to head it home. Poetry in motion.
RDM Song isn't just a great play-maker, he is a brilliant ball-winner because of his outstanding work-rate and I believe that he and LDM Kouyate could be a brilliant partnership. The great thing about this formation is that when we have possession in the middle of the park, Downing can drop back and form a triangle with Kouyate and Song, allowing us to use a Barcelona-style passing game in open play. Gradually as we inch our way patiently into the opponent's half WW1-trench-warfare-style – and we have proven that we can play this way with the quality we have in midfield – Song and Kouyate are able to stay back in anticipation of a Chelsea counter-attack, allowing Cresswell and Jenkinson to push up on the wings. Song and Kouyate also, in my opinion, both have not only the pace and ball-winning skills to thwart a counter-attack, but also the passing ability to launch a counter-counter. They are perfect for the role.
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West Ham striker Mauro Zarate available for loan as Hammers look to free up funds for new players
Dec 27, 2014 22:30 By Neil Moxley
The Argentinian forward has struggled to hold on to a first-team place this season, as the Hammers look to make room for new arrivals
The Mirror
West Ham will listen to loan offers for striker Mauro Zarate, reports Neil Moxley in the Sunday People. The Argentinian has been touted around the Premier League with Sunderland and Newcastle alerted to his availability. Zarate, 27, began life at Upton Park with a bang, scoring for the Hammers in their win away at Crystal Palace. But he has since found goals – and a place in the Irons' line-up – hard to come by. Zarate, who can count Lazio and Inter Milan among his former clubs, signed a three-year deal at West Ham in the summer. But the Hammers want to make room in their budget to improve boss Sam Allardyce's squad. And Zarate has been offered on loan in a bid to get his wages covered until the end of the season.
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Former Spurs defender Vedran Corluka eyeing Premier League return with Everton and West Ham interested
Dec 27, 2014 22:30 By Steve Stammers
The Lokomotiv Moscow man wants to return to England and also has Southampton and Hull on his case
The Mirro
Vedran Corluka is on the verge of returning to the Premier League. The former Spurs and Manchester City defender is currently at Lokomotiv Moscow – and the Russian club value him at around £4.8million. He was signed from Tottenham for £5.5m in June 2012 but would now welcome a move back to England – alerting the likes of West Ham, Southampton, Hull and Everton. "Vedran is excited at the possibility of coming back to England," said the Croatian's advisor Chris Nathaniel. West Ham will be monitoring the situation as they wait for a decision from New Zealand defender Winston Reid about his future. Reid will be out of contract next June and is yet to accept a new four-year deal that is on offer. Hull manager Steve Bruce will also be interested as he attempts to climb away from the relegation zone after an alarming dip in form. And Saints boss Ronald Koeman – with Champions League ambitions like West Ham – is keen to reinforce his squad.
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Arsene Wenger's business acumen praised by West Ham boss Sam Allardyce
Dec 27, 2014 22:30 By Tom Hopkinson
The West Ham boss has singing the praises of his Gunners counterpart ahead of their clash at Upton Park
The Mirror
Sam Allardyce has hailed Arsene Wenger's incredible ability to mix football management and business acumen to build three different teams at Arsenal. Wenger has an enviable record of leading the Gunners into the Champions League for 17 consecutive seasons. And what has impressed Allardyce the most is that the Frenchman kept that run going while contending with the move from Highbury to the Emirates.
Big Sam, whose side take on Arsenal at home today, is hoping to oversee West Ham's switch from Upton Park to the Olympic Stadium in 2016, but he insists the only parallel between the two situations is the move itself after his owners got their new home on the cheap.
He said: "Arsene has been manager, accountant and financial director, there is no doubt about that. "The man set out a fantastic team before they decided to move and then built a couple of brilliant young teams based on the fact that the same amount of finance didn't appear to be available to him. Now he has almost got the Emirates paid off, hasn't he? "That's his achievement and it is a massive factor considering it was a massive investment for them."The one thing we have to our advantage is that we don't have to pay £450million for our new stadium, which is the best bit of business ever done in football by a set of owners. "So what you have to do is use the money that has been saved on that development in strengthening the team and, when the club gets to the new stadium, be in a position where hopefully it is not concerned with its Premier League status."
While West Ham's start to the season has seen fan opinion turn dramatically in Allardyce's favour, Wenger's popularity at Arsenal has plummeted and there are suggestions that he is surviving on credit. But Allardyce added: "I don't think he lives on that. I think Wenger believes he can win every trophy he plays in. He can win the league with the team he has got." He hopes to put another dent in Arsenal's hopes of doing that by bouncing back from a 2-0 defeat at leaders Chelsea on Boxing Day as the Hammers continue their own pursuit of a top-four finish.
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Arsene Wenger: I always knew Alex Song would be a great player - even when everyone said I was wrong
Dec 27, 2014 17:13 By Paul Gorst
"I brought him here at the age of 17 and kept him despite all the opinions against him," says the Gunners boss
The Mirror
Arsene Wenger has hailed Alex Song ahead of Arsenal's trip to West Ham United on Sunday. Wenger brought the Cameroon star on loan to England when the midfielder was teenager back in 2005 before eventually signing him outright a year later for around £1m. The combative Song left for Barcelona in 2012 but failed to nail down a regular spot in the La Liga side's engine room. West Ham took Song on loan back in the summer, and Wenger has said that he has not been surprised to see his former player thrive with the Hammers. Wenger said: "I brought him here at the age of 17 and kept him despite all the opinions against him. "He developed into a very good player, so you don't need to convince me he is a good player. "I think he was a very good player when he was here and he didn't play a lot when he was in Spain - you see players like Santi Cazorla who always looks stronger [when they play regularly]." A win for Wenger's side would see them leapfrog the high-flying Hammers into fifth, and three points could also be enough to move into the top four depending on Southampton's result at home to leaders Chelsea.However, Wenger is unconcerned with such permutations, and the Frenchman claimed that he is not keeping tabs on the Premier League table just yet. "I don't give importance to the table at the moment," he added. "There are 20 games to go. It is very tight and it is down to consistency now. "We know every game now is down to consistency and reproducing the performances. We need to prepare quickly, focus quickly and that is an ability we want to show at West Ham." "We want to stay in the game, to sleep well and then (go) again. [The Christmas period of games is] very quick and interesting as well."
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Canvey Island complete loan signing of West Ham United starlet Taylor Tombides
by Luke Lambert
BasildonRecorder.co.uk
CANVEY Island have added West Ham United youngster Taylor Tombides to their ranks as they bid to get over their mid-season slump.
The 18-year-old Australian is primarily a midfielder but can also play up front, and he becomes the third young Hammer at the Prospects Stadium, with Tim Brown and Ben Marlow impressing since they joined the club at the start of the season. Tombides is an under-16 Australian international and is a member of West Ham's Development Squad. He is the younger brother of Dylan Tombides, also a West Ham player, but he died earlier this year after he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He is expected to make his bow for the Gulls on New Year's Day against Bury Town. Their island rivals have also been strengthening their squad, with Concord Rangers bringing in attacker Evans Kouassi. 25-year-old Kouassi signed last week having been released by Conference South rivals Chelmsford City. The former Billericay Town striker made his debut in Saturday's 4-1 defeat to Bromley, where he came on as a second-half substitute.
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West Ham owners to sell 20% stake in team, worried about losing Allardyce
Kyle Lynch Dec 27, 2014, 3:10 PM EST
http://prosoccertalk.nbcsports.com/
West Ham United's owners have put a 20% stake of the club up for sale in an effort to raise nearly $125 million to clear debts. David Sullivan and David Gold bought a 50% share of West Ham in January of 2010, with the club already in upwards of $175 million of debt.
Today, Sullivan owns 55% of the club and Gold 30%, and the club is still over $150 million in debt. With the Hammers set to move to the Olympic Stadium in 2016-17, Sullivan said he values the club at around $620 million and is looking to find new investors. Because the club is in so much debt, Sullivan is worried they may not be able to keep Sam Allardyce as manager. I must say if come April we are where we are now (in the Premier League table) which is extremely unlikely but is possible we'd probably sit down a month early and say 'look Sam, do you want to stay or do you want to go?'. Sam may decide he wants to go out a winner. He may decide, after four years, it's a very stressful job, he may decide he wants £10million-a-year which we can't afford."
As West Ham currently sit fifth on the table, it is not too reassuring when the owner is saying it is "extremely unlikely" that they can keep up the pace. When asked if the Hammers could finish in the top-four, Sullivan replied, "I wake up in the middle of the night dreaming of it. But I'm a realist."
If the Hammers could pull off a miraculous second half and qualify for competition in Europe, the club would receive a great boost financially through prize money and other deals. But similar to their owner David Sullivan, I don't see that happening.
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Arsenal's defence is suspect and my West Ham team will exploit it, claims Sam Allardyce
West Ham manager says his side can "get at" Arsene Wenger's ailing back four when sides meet at Upton Park
By Jason Burt, Sunday Telegraph Football Correspondent
11:00PM GMT 27 Dec 2014
Sam Allardyce has pledged that West Ham United will "get at" Arsenal's "suspect" defence when the two sides meet at Upton Park today. The West Ham manager is determined to bounce back from a disappointing performance in losing 2-0 away against Chelsea on Boxing Day.
Despite Arsenal hoping to include Laurent Koscielny, who had a fitness test yesterday after sustaining a hamstring injury, Allardyce said that they can be vulnerable in defence. "You've got to get at them though," he said. "Get at them and play in the right way against Arsenal to make sure you can try and get sometimes at the defence that at times can be suspect. But you've got to be good enough on the ball to get into those areas. If you can do that maybe you can catch them out. "We have to try and bounce back. I am relying on the home form we have shown over the last seven games [six wins and a draw] to be there in abundance on Sunday. We are turning it [Upton Park] into a real fortress again."
Despite Koscielny's hoped-for return Arsenal remain short of defensive strength with manager Arsene Wenger having already admitted he hopes to sign a centre-half once the January transfer window opens. Arsenal are expected to sign Ipswich Town's Tyrone Mings, who is primarily a left-back. Recently Wenger has drafted in the right-back Mathieu Debuchy into the centre of his defence and the French international has suggested he sees his future in that position even though he is just 5ft 10in. "It would be no problem for me to play there again," Debuchy said after the 2-1 Boxing Day victory against Queens Park Rangers which closed the gap to West Ham. With his contract running out at the end of this season, and probably no talks over a new deal before then, Allardyce also brushed aside concerns over his future. "It's not a problem with me, never has been," he said. "If and when the owners decide they are ready for me – it's not about me trying to push them one way or another – it's not about me. They'll do what they want to do, I'll be ready to talk to them and we'll see where we go from there."
Allardyce knows that victory over Arsenal will not only widen that gap between the two sides, with West Ham in fifth, a point ahead of Wenger's team, but fuel the belief that they can qualify for European football. "I just want to stay fourth as long as we can and see where we go from there," Allardyce said. "It looks like we have a few players going to the Africa [Cup of] Nations although it doesn't look like Alex [Song] is going. If we carry on with those players away and when they come back, we have achieved some good results at the end of January we'll re-calculate where we think we might finish."
Allardyce will lose top-scorer Diafra Sakho and midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate to the Africa Cup, to be held in Equatorial Guinea from Jan 17 to Feb 8, although Song has been omitted by Cameroon after a bust‑up during the last World Cup. The midfielder, 27, on loan from Barcelona with West Ham hoping to sign him permanently at the end of the season, will face his former club having been brought to England by Wenger when he was 17. Song started on the bench, playing the final half-hour, after Allardyce decided to use him and Sakho sparingly on Boxing Day. "I expect him to be man of the match," the manager said of the game today. "He's been superb – a lot of composure on the ball, a real talent in possession, it obviously gives us lots of forward options."
Wenger said that he was well aware of the threat posed by Song who he sold in 2012 for £15million. "He didn't play today, he is certainly resting for us," Wenger said after the QPR match. "He's a good player. I brought him here at the age of 17 and kept him despite all the opinions who were against him, and he developed into a very good player. You don't need to convince me that he's a good player. I took him at very young age and gave him a chance." Arsenal will be without Olivier Giroud as the French striker starts a three-match ban having been red-carded for violent conduct against QPR.
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West Ham owner David Sullivan says club can qualify for Champions League
Interview: Sullivan claims top four finish is achievable and reveals relief at not needing to make "desperate" January signings
West Ham co-owner David Sullivan says the club can break into English football's elite top four group
David Sullivan (right), with his West Ham co-owner David Gold and Baroness Brady, the club's vice-chairman Photo: PA
By Jason Burt, Sunday Telegraph Football Correspondent
3:24PM GMT 27 Dec 2014
"If one of us can break it," David Sullivan says, "it would give dreams and hopes to every supporter." The "it" the West Ham United chairman refers to is finishing in the top four and qualifying for the Champions League. The "us" Sullivan mentions is his own club, Swansea City and Southampton, the trio who are fighting the big guns within the Premier League's top eight. "We all said wouldn't it be wonderful – whether it's us or Swansea or Southampton – for a lesser team to get into the top four. It's been the same teams for so long," Sullivan says. "I don't think you can keep Chelsea, Man City and probably Man United out of it this season. It's whether you can beat Arsenal for that fourth spot. And that's a hell of an ask."
West Ham, in fifth, a point behind fourth-placed Southampton, host Arsenal, in sixth, at Upton Park on Sunday having lost to Chelsea on Boxing Day. Finishing ahead of Arsenal is indeed a big ask but Sullivan admits: "I wake up in the middle of the night dreaming of it. But I'm a realist."
And a happy one at that. It is 21 years since Sullivan bought into football, acquiring Birmingham City with the Gold brothers – David, his co-chairman now at West Ham, and Ralph – and this is the best situation he has ever been in. "Yes, forever," Sullivan says. "It's the best team, the best position.
Oh, it's wonderful. For the first year since we have been at West Ham it's not absolutely a crisis situation. When we were in the Championship we were at the top end but there was pressure every game to get automatic promotion and we failed to get it." Since then, he admits, it has been a fretful struggle. A solid first season return to the Premier League, via the play-offs, after suffering relegation the year after buying West Ham in 2010, was followed by a campaign riddled by injury and with the club flirting with relegation and with the, at times, attritional football under manager Sam Allardyce called into question – by the board as well as the supporters. It led to discussions as to whether Allardyce should leave with West Ham eventually issuing an unusual statement confirming he would stay – but demanding "more entertainment". "I think most people agreed with us," Sullivan says of that statement, adding that he feels vindicated. "I do," he says. "We all sat down at the end of last season and we all accepted that things weren't right. We all agreed that we were not scoring enough goals. So therefore we appointed a strikers' coach (Teddy Sheringham) and brought in new strikers and we now have four or five strikers at the club. Last year we had one or two.
"Unfortunately last year we just messed up. We were assured Andy Carroll would be back (from injury) September 1 and he was back February 1 and we put all our eggs in one basket which we should never have done. We bought Stewart Downing when maybe we should have bought another striker but he's come good this year in a big, big way and he's a different player to last year in the position he is now being played in. Last year he was a winger and did ok. This year he is a candidate for player of the season and he makes the team tick, he makes us play football."
West Ham have certainly done that. They brought in nine players last summer – including Alex Song, Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho – and moved on more than a dozen, mainly released for free at the end of their deals. "I worked the hardest I ever worked in my life," Sullivan says. "For every deal you see done there were five not done. We were working on 50 deals. If you could see the fees and details you would know that every deal we did do was a good deal. Every one made sense. It doesn't mean they will all pay off, although most of them already have, but they were worthwhile gambles."
So far not one has looked like a gamble and with the January transfer window opening Sullivan freely admits that has not always been the case for him. "It is usually the desperate who are buying and I've been desperate for many, many years in January," Sullivan says. "I've done a lot of business from Birmingham to West Ham and in the main the signings you make are not good.
"It is the most horrible, horrible month. And the last day, the last day is just horrendous. You have got players in the middle of nowhere and you are being told 'you've got to sign him!' But you can't even do a medical. It's a gamble. And they say 'it's for nothing – it's 40-grand a week and half a million loan fee'. Over six months – plus a couple of hundred thousand for the agent as well – it's £2million! People talk about it like it's nothing. They have lost the plot most of these people and it does your head in really. Thank God this time we don't have to sign anyone desperately."
Financial Fair Play will, Sullivan says, help - not least because clubs cannot be tempted to spend beyond their means. "It is stopping you doing silly things," he explains. "Our wage cap this year is £56million. We can't breach it. Net of national insurance that's £49,122,000. That's what we can spend on wages on all players and it includes agents' fees."
How many January deals has he regretted?
"Most of them," Sullivan says. "It's very hard to castigate certain players but under (previous manager) Avram (Grant) we signed a player who was on £90,000-a-week and we paid his full wages and a big fee to an agent. Did that player help us a lot? I don't think so. But you are desperate. We signed Robbie Keane on loan. The classic example. I said to Avram 'who do you need to score goals?' He said 'get me Robbie Keane and he will keep you up'. Well we got Robbie and he was injured, unfortunately. It was a fortune – a big loan fee, wages, if we stayed up we had to sign him permanently. When he was available he was a decent player. But he was injured most of the time.
"The alternative – Avram's second-choice – was (Daniel) Sturridge who went to Bolton. It was a two-bob loan. No wages. No loan fee. And he got a pile of goals for Bolton. If we had signed the second-choice we'd have got lucky and while there is an element of luck with all signings in January it is even more so. It is the most stressful time and what happens in the last two days – when you have not got any of your first-choice players and you are just desperate.
"We spent £4-5m on loans and wages on players last January in the hope they make a contribution to help keep you up. We were in a real bad way. At one stage in January we were bottom of the table. "The best loan signing we made last season was Roger Johnson. No (loan) money. He took a wage drop to come. "He started in four games and we won three of those games. Without him we were playing George McCartney and Joey O'Brien at centre-half. People said to me 'sack the manager' and I said 'who do you want: Houdini?' We were without a centre-half. Without one of those every club would struggle. I said to Sam 'we have to sign a centre-half, even if the others will be back in a month, we can't wait because we will be relegated in a month unless we do it'. "Roger Johnson ended up costing us about £15,000-a-week and he did a wonderful job. He took a salary drop because he wanted to play in the Premier League. But we won at Cardiff because he was in the team and that was the game that turned our season."
West Ham have come a long way since then. There might be two January signings – "two for the future" – who are loaned back. And no sales. "If there are any bids for our players, I could not conceive of us accepting one in January," Sullivan adds, insisting West Ham will not sell Winston Reid even though the central defender is in the final year of his contract and yet to sign a new deal. "He might go in the summer but I don't think anyone will pay us enough money to sell him in January because we've only got two other centre-halves at the club. If we had five…"
So back to what he wants to achieve. "People said to me at the start of this season 'what's your ambition?' and I said 'it's not to finish 17th, I can tell you'. You can't finish 17th and say West Ham have had a successful year," Sullivan says. "You might say we've not have a disastrous year but our aim has to be Europe. It's not to say we will achieve our aim but it is our aim. If we want to be ambitious then our aim is the Champions League – albeit it looks virtually impossible. That's what I said at the start of the season. But it has to be our aim and it is achievable if everything goes our way. And I've always believed it is."
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