West Ham striker Dean Ashton admitted he feared for his future during his year out with a broken ankle. Ashton had his first taste of action since his injury in England training last August as West Ham beat Dagenham and Redbridge 2-0 in a friendly. The 23-year-old said: "There were times when I thought I might not get back, so I'm really going to enjoy this season. "It was an absolute joy to be out there playing, it has been a long, tough year and I'm glad to be back." A year on the touchlines was frustrating for the striker and he confessed to being helpless as he watched West Ham's successful battle to avoid relegation. Ashton joined West Ham in January 2006 for £7.25m from Norwich but made only nine starts for the Hammers before his injury. He added: "I don't think there will be a hungrier player in the Premier League this season than me. "I want to show people how well I have come back from this injury.
"It was hard watching last season, you don't want to see your team struggling at the bottom of the league. "I was delighted to see how the season ended. From a selfish point of view I wanted to play in the Premiership."
Ashton was pleased with his work-out, even after being on the receiving end of a stiff challenge in the opening minutes of the game. He said: "That tackle probably did me a favour. I need that sort of thing to get my confidence back. "The fact I got the tackle so early in the game did me good. It's part and parcel of the game and I need to get used to it."
Ashton suffered his injury during his first call-up to the England squad and is keen to catch coach Steve McClaren's eye. He commented: "At the moment, all I want to do is enjoy being back and enjoy my football but if that call comes along I will be over the moon."
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What does the Tevez affair teach us? -Mihir Bose - BBC sports editor
14 Jul 07, 07:12 AM
The Carlos Tevez affair should form more than a footnote in English football history. It may well prove that his move becomes the modern form of transfers, if so we better learn how such deals work and what they mean. What is important to realise is that back in August when Argentine Tevez and his compatriot Javier Mascherano suddenly arrived at Upton Park this was not just an unusual transfer, it was extraordinary. The really important thing was that behind the transfer was a wider power play, the bid to take over West Ham. Indeed one City expert described it to me as a poison-pill strategy on behalf of Kia Joorabchian who runs MSI, the company that owns the economic rights to the two players. In other words, bringing the two players was only the first step. The next step was that Joorabchian's allies would try to buy West Ham, with the presence of the players acting as a poison pill preventing any other takeover.
But for various reasons that strategy did not work. It was not Joorabchian's Israeli ally who succeeded in buying West Ham but a consortium from Iceland. And the presence of the two players did not act as a deterrent.
Indeed the two players often did not get into the team and in the early months of the season the most notable incident concerning them was the scene at White Hart Lane of Jermain Defoe trying to bite Mascherano's arm after a tussle between the two in a Tottenham versus West Ham match. That may well have remained the most memorable moment had not West Ham's new manager Alan Curbishley decided that he did not want Mascherano and Liverpool moved in to loan him from MSI. The initial problem was whether a loan player could play for a third club in one season (Mascherano having also previously played in South America).
While that was resolved with the help of Maurice Watkins, the Manchester United director who is also a great legal expert, the third party agreement that West Ham had made with MSI and which, under legal advice, the previous board had not disclosed to the Premier League, emerged. Liverpool were allowed to sign Mascherano. The Premier League had no problems with that because they said he was a free agent as West Ham had given up his registration. They were happy the agreement Liverpool made with MSI did not violate any League rules. The cynics might say the real reason was that Liverpool paid MSI rather more than West Ham - around £1.5m a year as opposed to £300,00 - to loan the player. It was the Premier League's next step, its decision to charge West Ham under Rule U 18, that has created the saga that threatens to run well into next season.
Most football experts I have spoken to tell me it is an obscure rule. When it was initially designed by the former chief executive of the Premier League Peter Leaver, it was not even meant to cover player transfers. It had come in to deal with companies like Enic owning more than one club and the problems this would cause should the clubs meet in the same competition. Of course, historically Liverpool and Everton were both owned by the Moores of Littlewoods fame but those were different times when, so we are told by our elders, gentleman ruled the game, money and lawyers had not moved into football and nobody felt the Moores would do anything that was not proper and gentlemanly.
Indeed, Rule 18 is so obscure that you have to search the Premier League rule book to find it. It comes in the section where there is also rule specifying that an advertisement for the Football Foundation must be in a club's matchday programme. The legal advice of many was that West Ham should be able to drive a coach and horses through Rule U 18 - but when it came to the hearing they pleaded guilty. It has never been disclosed why they decided not to challenge this obscure rule, but then they probably got the result they wanted: a fine, a huge one but no deduction in points. Also, by saying that the third party agreement with MSI was probably legally unenforceable and insisting they had torn it up the Hammers made sure Tevez was allowed to play and help them escape relegation. Instead Sheffield United went down.
All this would not have mattered had it happened before the mid-1990s, a time when clubs would moan but not head for the nearest lawyers. Sheffield United, part of a plc that chairman Kevin McCabe insists has to protect itself, felt it had to explore every legal loophole. Nobody can blame them for that. That is the modern game and how diligently they have done so, ending with Friday's defeat at the High Court. Even now, although McCabe concedes that he has little chance of getting back into the Premiership, he has not given up the fight. He is considering various options and still hopes to be proved right and get compensation. This Sheffield persistence has meant that what the Premier League hoped for has not happened.
The Premier League thought that once the season had ended the whole thing would blow over. Two months after the last game, and that amazing West Ham victory over Manchester United via a Tevez goal, the dispute lingers on. Had Sheffield not persisted I suspect the transfer of Tevez to Manchester United would have taken place by now. It might have raised a few eyebrows but everyone would have recognised that since West Ham did not pay for the player but merely loaned him, he now had the right to depart for whatever fee his handlers were getting and whatever salary United were prepared to pay him. Indeed as one source told me, "It is like hiring a lawn mower. You use it to cut the grass and then refuse to return it.".
Indeed, after the end of the season this must have been clear to West Ham, who offered Tevez better terms which he rejected. He has since followed this up by telling the Premier League that he no longer wants to be a West Ham player. The Premier League is a regulatory body but with Sheffield throwing lawyers at the situation the Premier League has assumed a new role of deciding what a transfer fee is and who gets it. They made it clear to West Ham that if they did not assert their rights to the player they could face another disciplinary hearing, which could reopen the horrible prospect of points deduction. How will this resolve itself? I suspect Tevez will fly from South America to Manchester and soon become a United player. West Ham might get some money, although I doubt it will be much. Sheffield will wait to see how the Tevez situation unfolds and then try to get financial compensation. Meanwhile, I doubt a proper rule which looks at player ownership and properly defines third-party ownership, now so common in South America and on the continent, will come into being.
And without such a rule more such Tevez affairs are likely.
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Deano: business is resumed - KUMB
Filed: Sunday, 15th July 2007
By: Matthew O'Greel
Dean Ashton has admitted that he can't wait to start scoring goals once again. The 23-year-old striker - who spoke to SkySports after yesterday's 2-0 pre-season win at Dagenham - missed the whole of last season with a broken ankle. But having made his return to the fold yesterday - albeit for the second-half only - he is looking forward to returning to Premier League action next month. "I want to enjoy my football now because at one stage I never thought I'd be back," he said. "It has been a long, tough year for me and it is just nice to be back doing what I like most. "My touch and timing will take time, but the main thing is I went out there and it felt good - as good as I have ever felt. Now it is just a case of getting the football right."
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Hammers looking for Tevez resolution - KUMB
Filed: Sunday, 15th July 2007
By: Matthew O'Greel
Carlos Tevez could be a Manchester United player within the week - if all parties involved can reach a satisfactory resolution. With the Hammers having agreed to allow the 23-year-old striker to join the reigning Premier League champions - after Tevez made it clear that he wanted to leave - all that stands between a move are the terms of the deal. A medical has apparently been planned for later this week. The Premier League have insisted that the Hammers get the bulk of any transfer fee - whilst Kia Joorabchian insists that any funds generated from the transfer go to the MSI Group due to their ownership of Tevez's 'economic rights'.
Meanwhile the waters have been muddied further by the news of warrants being issued for the arrest of Joorabchian and fellow MSI investors following allegations of money laundering and match-fixing in Brazil. The Premier League confirmed their stance last night when an un-named spokesman said: "We would have no objection to Tevez agreeing a contract and having a medical at Manchester United so long as it has been agreed by West Ham. "But if that doesn't happen, Tevez won't be going anywhere."
United Chairman Eggert Magnusson confirmed that Tevez was almost certainly on his yesterday; when quizzed by supporters following the 2-0 pre-season friendly win at Dagenham he replied 'Tevez doesn't want to play for West Ham any more'.
And United PR boss Mike Lee added that both parties were keen to conclude the deal: "There is a desire now to find a solution," he said. "But for this to happen in the near future it has to involve a formal agreement between Manchester United and West Ham which is approved by the Premier League."
Elsewhere today Alan Curbishley has criticised Man Utd boss Alex Ferguson for claiming Tevez kept the Hammers up single-handedly last season. "I was a bit disappointed about Alex's comments because there were ten other players out there - and a lot of them were big performers for us," he said. "There was a lot more going on than just Carlos Tevez; I have kept my own council and got on with it. But I was disappointed to hear Alex say that."
Curbishley also confirmed that he expects the Argentinian to leave the club soon; when asked about Tevez's possible return, he said: "I expect that we are going to Austria and he is not going to be with us. There is nothing I can do about it. "We have got to move on."
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Dagenham & Redbridge 0 West Ham Utd 2 - KUMB
Filed: Saturday, 14th July 2007
By: Matthew O'Greel
West Ham United's pre-season campaign kicked-off with a 2-0 win at the Glyn Hopkin Stadium this afternoon. The Daggers - who have reached the Football League for the first time in their history after being promoted from the Conference last season - went down to a Mark Noble free-kick and a quite splendid own goal from defender Ross Smith in a testimonial for Tony Roberts. However the Hammers - who featured new signings Parker, Faubert and Wright but not Craig Bellamy - were made to wait until the 83rd minute before making the breakthrough which arrived via the right boot of substitute Noble, who drilled home a 25 yard free-kick into the the top-right corner. United's victory was confirmed two minutes later when Luis Boa Morte's corner was expertly diverted into his own net by the unfortunate Smith, who appeared intent on giving Iain Dowie a run for his money in the 'Best Ever Own Goal' stakes. More importantly for Alan Curbishley was the return to action for both Dean Ashton and Matthew Upson who both played a full second-half. Ashton, looking fitter and leaner than perhaps ever before survived a couple of 'industrial' tackles with no problems, whilst Upson looked assured at the back having finally beaten a series of niggling injuries that prevented him from playing more than 45 minutes since arriving from Birmingham in January. So just 61 days since last season ended in triumph at Old Trafford and the Hammers are up and running once again; next up is the week-long trip to Austria where United are scheduled to play SK Sigma and Lazio.
West Ham United: Green (Wright 45); Pantsil (Ferdinand 82), Collins (Davenport 45), Gabbidon (Upson 45), McCartney (Spector 45); Reid (Collison 45), Mullins (Parker 45), Bowyer (Faubert 45), Etherington (Boa Morte 45); Hines (Ashton 45), Cole (Noble 67).
Goals: Noble (83), Smith og (85).
Attendance: 5,657
Referee: J.Singh
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Ashton happy with return - Sky
By Peter ORourke - Created on 15 Jul 2007
Dean Ashton made a successful return to action on Saturday after 11 months on the sidelines. The 23-year-old made a welcome return as a second half substitute in Saturday's pre-season friendly with Dagenham & Redbridge. Ashton missed the whole of last season after breaking his ankle on international duty. The former Crewe and Norwich ace was happy with his return after admitted he feared for his career at one point. "I want to now enjoy my football because at one stage I never thought I would get back," admitted Ashton. "It has been a long old year and a tough year for me - it is just nice to be back doing what I like most. "It was nice to get 45 minutes under the belt. My touch and timing will take time - but the main thing is I went out there and it felt good. "I feel as good as I have ever felt. Now it is just a case of the football to get right."
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Curbs hits back at Fergie - Sky
By Peter ORourke - Created on 15 Jul 2007
Alan Curbishley has hit out at Sir Alex Ferguson over his comments about Carlos Tevez. West Ham and Manchester United have found themselves at loggerheads over the controversial transfer of Tevez. United are confident of wrapping up a deal for Tevez when he returns from the Copa America even though the wrangle over his ownership continues. Ferguson expects the move to be tied up soon and he has upset Curbishley with his comments that Tevez single-handedly kept West Ham up last season. Curbishley, who has admitted Tevez is unlikely to link-up with his side for the tour of Austria, has slammed Ferguson's comments as being disrespectful to the rest of the team. "I was a bit disappointed with Alex's comments about Tevez keeping us up," Curbishley told the Sunday Express. "There were ten other players out there and a lot of them were big performers for us. "There was a lot more going on that just Carlos Tevez. Every day has been a Tevez day for the last two months. "I have kept my own counsel and got on with it. But I was disappointed to hear Alex say that. "I expect we are going to Austria and he is not going to be with us. "But please don't keep talking to me about Tevez because there is nothing I can do about it."
Curbishley also hit out at Yossi Benayoun after the Israeli left Upton Park for Liverpool earlier this week. The Hammers chief believes Benayoun was happy to stay at the club until he heard of Liverpool's interest. "I was disappointed with Yossi because he had signed a new contract and it turns out he hadn't," added Curbishley. "When Liverpool came in for him it changed everything. "I didn't want Yossi to go and we didn't need the business."
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Harewood in Wigan talks - Sky
By Andy Clarke - Created on 14 Jul 2007
Marlon Harewood is set to become Wigan manager Chris Hutchings' seventh summer signing, according to Sky Sports News. The West Ham striker is believed to be in Greater Manchester discussing a potential £4million move to The Latics. Harewood has already been linked with moves to Manchester City and Birmingham City this summer, but now appears to be on his way to Wigan. Hutchings, who took over from Paul Jewell in May, has spent £5.3million on West Brom midfielder Jason Koumas and has brought in Newcastle pair Antoine Sibierski and Titus Bramble on free transfers. Goalkeeper Carlo Nash has also arrived from neighbours Preston, together with former Chelsea defender Mario Melchiot and Helsingborgs defender Andreas Granqvist.
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Match Preview - West Ham United v Sigma Olmutz - WHO
Match Reporter - Sun Jul 15 2007
West Ham United v Sigma Olmutz
Tuesday 17th July
Bad Radkersburg
Kick Off 18:30
West Ham fresh from their 2-0 victory over Dagenham and Redbridge continue their build up to the new season when they play their first game of their pre-season trip to Austria. The Hammers host Czech side Sigma Olmutz at their training camp in Bad Radkersburg.
Formed in 1919 and hailing from the City of Olomouc on the river Morava in the East of the country, Sigma play their football in the quite impressive Andruv Stadium which holds just over 12,000 fans.
Sigma have a recent history that can be matched closely with our own over the past couple of season. They finished the season in 14th place in the top tier of Czech football, narrowly avoiding relegation. They registered just 6 wins in their 30 games, all their wins coming at home and the season before finished 9th.
That followed on from a more successful period where they finished 3rd in 2004 and 4th in 2005. Sigma have also been no stranger to European football in recent history making their European debut in 1986 with a 5-1 aggregate defeat to IFK Gothenburg.
1990/91 brought the greatest success of a European campaign. Finishing just 2 points behind Sparta Prague the season before in the league, they dispatched Bangor, Torpedo Moscow and Hamburg before narrowly losing their quarter final to the mighty Real Madrid 2-1, drawing the home leg 1-1 before going down 1-0 in the Santiago Bernabeu.
A year later they made the 3rd round of the competion, bowing out in a heavy 7-1 aggregate defeat at the hands of Juventus.
A gap followed until the 1998/99 season when the knocked out Scottish side Kilmarnock in the qualifying round before losing in the first round 6-2 on aggregate to Olympic Marseille.
In more recent times they made the final of the Intertoto cup in 2005/6 losing out on a place in the UEFA cup by way of a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Hamburg after knocking out Borussia Dortmund. The season before saw a 1st round exit at the hands of Real Zaragoza in the UEFA cup.
West Ham have no injury concerns and Craig Bellamy could be inline for his debut. Carlos Tevez and Marlon Harewood both won't be joining the Hammers in Austria with their proposed moves likely to completed in the coming days and Lucas Neill is away on International duty with Australia.
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Wigan in for Marlon Harewood - Telegraph
By John Ley
Last Updated: 1:10am BST 16/07/2007
Marlon Harewood is set to continue the exodus from West Ham after holding talks with Wigan over the weekend and moving closer to a £4 million move to the JJB Stadium. West Ham have already sold Nigel Reo-Coker, Yossi Benayoun, Tyrone Mears and Paul Konchesky for nearly £18m, while Teddy Sheringham and Roy Carroll have also left Upton Park on free transfers. Carlos Tevez's exit, to Manchester United, could be completed later this week. The transfer had been delayed as the Premier League sought assurances that the player's current club, West Ham, who were fined £5.5m for breaching League rules over Tevez and fellow Argentine Javier Mascherano's signings last summer, would receive the majority of any transfer fee. Harewood is also expected to leave. Wigan chairman Dave Whelan spoke out against West Ham during the Tevez affair, and there was the likelihood that tensions between the two clubs could affect the move. Reports from the Midlands last week claimed a deal had been done to take Harewood to St Andrew's.
Birmingham manager Steve Bruce denied a transfer had taken place and Harewood's discussions with Wigan suggest that a deal will be concluded. Wigan flew to Holland yesterday for a five-day training camp and games against FC Zwolle and Den Bosch. Manager Chris Hutchings is hoping Harewood can feature.
Meanwhile, former team-mate Dean Ashton returned to action as West Ham beat League newcomers Dagenham & Redbridge 2-0 on Saturday. Ashton, who had been out of action since fracturing his ankle while training with England 11 months ago, featured in the second half. West Ham also gave debuts to Scott Parker, Julien Faubert and Richard
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Man Utd book docs for Tevez - The Sun
By PHIL THOMAS
July 16, 2007
MANCHESTER UNITED are so confident of landing Carlos Tevez they have booked him in for a medical on Wednesday. United made arrangements for the Argentina striker, 23, to fly to Manchester after last night's Copa America final against Brazil. That is ample proof United boss Alex Ferguson believes the row over who owns the player is coming to a close and the Premier League champs can end the summer's most drawn-out transfer saga by sealing a £20million deal. Tevez is desperate to move to Old Trafford, having turned down the chance of a switch to Serie A champions Inter Milan as soon as the transfer window opened. United are understood to have agreed to pay a loan fee of £6m over the next two years with the option of buying Tevez outright for a total of £20m at the end of that agreement. The deal is currently being held up by the argument over who controls the player — West Ham or Media Sports Investment and Tevez's part-owner Kia Joorabchian. The Premier League insist any payment should be made to the Hammers, rather than MSI or other third parties. Joorabchian claims MSI own the Argentine's 'economic rights', yet West Ham still hold the player's registration and insist they ended their agreement with MSI on April 27.
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Curbs gives OK to bash Ash - The Sun
By PAUL JIGGINS
July 16, 2007
Dagenham 0 West Ham 2
ALAN CURBISHLEY has thanked Dagenham's Jon Boardman for kicking lumps out of Dean Ashton. The West Ham striker came on as a sub at the start of the second half having missed last season with a broken ankle. And within five minutes, £7.25million Ashton was rolling around in agony following a crude challenge by Boardman in this testimonial for Daggers keeper Tony Roberts. Hammers boss Curbs joked: "I wasn't worried when I saw Deano go down because I think he milked it a bit! "In fairness, it probably did him good because not many people want to kick you like that in training and he has to get used to that again." Mark Noble's free-kick and an own goal from Ross Smith gave Hammers victory.
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Ashton thrives on his crunch test of nerve - This Is London
16.07.07
West Ham hearts were in mouths when, just five minutes into his long-awaited comeback, Dean Ashton crumpled under the agricultural swipe of his legs from behind by one Jon Boardman. The striker, long regarded as a Hammers saviour but out for a year with a broken ankle suffered during an England training session, lay in an undignified heap. But he was just kidding us on, according to West Ham boss Alan Curbishley, hiding his relief that the big man got up, dusted himself down and carried on. "Was that a scare?" queried Curbishley. "No, because I think he milked it a little bit! You could see he was OK." Ashton, looking trim, did enough in his 45-minute, second-half spell to suggest that he is well on the road to full recovery and will be able to start the new Premiership season. He is off with the squad to Austria today and claimed that he almost enjoyed that early clattering from the Dagenham and Redbridge defender. "That tackle probably did me a favour," said Ashton, sporting a blond look to his receding locks. "The first tackle was obviously going to be a bit of a tense moment; he came through the back of me and that's what I needed. It felt OK. "It was just nice to get in 45 minutes, I felt good and I should be spot-on for the start of the season. I feel fitter than ever. I've lost weight and trimmed down the fat. I've never run so much as in these past few months."
But it was the physical reaction he needed from a game, even if it was the gentlest of run-outs against the Hammers' neighbours, who along with Morecambe will be new faces in League Two this coming season. And Curbishley promised more tackles from where the Boardman crunch came as Ashton builds confidence that his ankle can stand up to everyday pressure. The manager said: "I don't think many people would have kicked him like that in training but I've got a few people who like a tackle in Scott Parker and Julian Faubert. I'm just pleased Dean got through it."
While Ashton looks forward to forging a potent frontline strikeforce with Craig Bellamy, Curbishley shrugged off fears that the Wales firebrand, a £7.5m buy from Liverpool, is trouble with a capital T. Indeed, Curbishley rounded on the Bellamy bashers, especially the ones who bring into question some off-field activities, saying firmly: "I've got no problem with Craig Bellamy. I've just said to him: 'Now you've got to start being remembered for your football'.""Now he's the captain of Wales and with a third child on the way, this is a great opportunity for him. "I know what West Ham fans want and if they see him in full flight, then that's how he will be remembered and I've got no doubt he will be a crowd favourite. He has only been training for three or four days and I didn't want to risk him here but he'll be going with us to Austria on Monday." A Mark Noble free-kick and an own goal by Ross Smith gave the Hammers a win, Ashton hitting the bar with a header.
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West Ham confident law is on their side over Tevez
Matt Scott and Les Roopanarine
Monday July 16, 2007
The Guardian
West Ham United believe that the clause in Carlos Tevez's original contract that ascribed his "economic rights" to his agents, Media Sports Investment and Just Sports Inc, are unenforceable in law. This explains their tenacity on insisting on a fee for the player, whom Manchester United would like to sign, and their preparedness to fight a court case on the matter. The Hammers' counsel, Jim Sturman QC, argued to the independent disciplinary panel that fined the club £5.5m in April that elements of those contracts are "clearly invalid as being a restraint of trade". According to Sturman the "predetermined damages" in the third-party agreements - fixed amounts payable upon breach of contract by the club or player - are "penalty clauses" that are also "unenforceable in law".
While the panel, led by the QC Simon Bourne-Arton, refused to accept this as a defence against charges of two breaches of Premier League rules he found that the arguments carried "considerable force".
It is understood that, after the judgment on April 27, the league offered to cancel Tevez's registration and to organise a loan similar to that of Javier Mascherano to Liverpool in time for him to play against Wigan Athletic in an important relegation battle the following day. But, so emboldened were West Ham by Bourne-Arton's reaction to Sturman's argument that they chose instead to rip up the "unenforceable" third-party agreements.
The club consider their argument would carry even more weight in defence of the threatened court challenge from MSI-JSI. There is a private feeling at West Ham that recent developments in Brazil, where an arrest warrant has been issued against the offshore companies' representative, Kia Joorabchian, also cloud the issue for Tevez's handlers.
West Ham had hoped to avoid being involved in yet more legal action. After making undertakings in May that they would treat the Argentina forward as their own asset, they are being forced by the Premier League to stand by that registration document. The Hammers will not now sanction Tevez's transfer to Old Trafford until formal negotiations are conducted and they receive the transfer fee. Although it was Joorabchian who stated last Thursday that Tevez's transfer would be effected this week, it appears that if that happens his companies will be cut out of the deal. Talks between the clubs are expected to open today, since United have given up hope on an arrangement involving MSI-JSI being endorsed by West Ham and the Premier League.
The alleged errors in the third-party contracts were originally uncovered by Scott Duxbury, the deputy chief executive who before Magnusson's arrival was the executive in charge of legal affairs.
West Ham's striker Dean Ashton marked his return from long-term injury by calling for a swift resolution of the issue. "Tevez is a very good player and I think everyone at the club would like him to be here," said Ashton. "But if he's going to go, then I think we need to get on with it so that we can all forget about it and carry on."
The club's growing weariness over the Tevez issue was also detectable in the remarks of Alan Curbishley, who said after his side's 2-0 pre-season friendly win over Dagenham and Redbridge - a game in which Ashton was a prominent second-half performer - that he was "disappointed" by Sir Alex Ferguson's recent suggestion that Tevez was the decisive factor in the Hammers' Premiership survival. Curbishley is not expecting Tevez to join the squad for this week's pre-season trip to Austria, but was enthusiastic about Ashton's return. "Everyone's very pleased that Deano's back and no one more than me. I've not even seen him train before this pre-season, so I'm delighted."
The 23-year-old said he was just happy to be playing again after recovering from an injury that twice required surgery. "I got to a point where I couldn't go any further. My ankle wasn't right, I had to have the second operation and there were times when I thought 'Am I ever going to get back from this?' But I've got 45 minutes under my belt and it's all in the past now."
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Ashton to fill Tevez gap - The Times
Paul Jiggins
WHO NEEDS CARLOS TÉVEZ WHEN YOU have Dean Ashton? Robert Green, the West Ham United goalkeeper, believes that Ashton's return from injury after 11 months out with a broken ankle will more than compensate for the imminent departure of Tévez, who is expected to complete his complicated transfer to Manchester United this week.
While Tévez, the skilful Argentina forward, was on international duty preparing for his country's Copa America final against Brazil in Venezuela last night, Ashton was making his comeback for West Ham as a half-time substitute in Saturday's 2-0 victory away to Dagenham & Redbridge in a testimonial match for Tony Roberts, the home team's goalkeeper.
Green, who, like Ashton, will be aiming to get back into the England squad this season, said: "Carlos is a great player and if he's here then great; if he's not, then there are other great players, like Deano, who is a huge asset to the club. Hopefully, he can get through preseason, battle through any aches and pains, stay fit and play the whole season.
"I've not played in the same West Ham team with him, but when we were at Norwich he was the focal point of the attack, the player others would bounce off, and he would bring a lot of attributes to the side. Carlos is very different. He's a spark, he's a livewire and he gives you something else. The two players play in the same position but very differently and just as effectively."
Yet West Ham fans among the capacity 5,657 crowd who crammed into the Victoria Road ground on Saturday feared the worst after Ashton was left rolling around on the turf in agony only five minutes into his comeback after a crude challenge by Jon Boardman, the uncompromising Dagenham defender with little regard for reputation or safety.
"I wasn't worried when I saw Deano go down because I think he milked it a bit," Alan Curbishley, the West Ham manager, joked. "In fairness, it probably did him good because not many people want to kick you like that in training and he has to get used to that again."
Ashton, who had not kicked a ball since breaking an ankle while training with England last August, responded by heading Luis Boa Morte's cross against the bar in the 64th minute before Mark Noble, the England Under21 mid-field player, broke the deadlock with a 20-yard free kick in the 83rd minute. Ross Smith, Dagenham's recent recruit from Ebbsfleet United, gave the scoreline some respectability for the visitors when he headed Boa Morte's corner into his own net three minutes later.
Curbishley fielded virtually a different lineup in each half. Craig Bellamy, the club's record £7.5 million signing from Liverpool, was absent as he continues to build up his fitness, although he will travel with the squad on their preseason tour to Austria.
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Appiah ready to go on strike - Clubcall
20070715 12:00
Stephen Appiah is reportedly ready to go on strike at Fenerbahce in order to complete his dream move to West Ham. Alan Curbishley is keen on wrapping up a deal for the Ghana international but his Turkish club are digging their heals in and have no interest in letting him move on. Fenerbahce's stance has angered the 26-year-old who is now reportedly ready to take drastic action to get a move away. Stephen will not join them on their pre-season tour of Austria if they do not let him speak to West Ham," a source close to the player has been quoted as saying. He feels he was loyal when the chance arose to leave. Now the favour should be repaid."
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West Ham's Curbs raps Benayoun over Liverpool move
tribalfooball.com - July 15, 2007
West Ham United boss Alan Curbishley has rapped Yossi Benayoun over his move to Liverpool. Curbs told the Sunday Express: "I was disappointed with Yossi because I thought he had signed a contract like we all did and it turns out that he hadn't. "When Liverpool came in for him it changed everything and we had to get what we thought was the right price for him. "I didn't want Yossi to go and we didn't need to do the business, but his head was turned."
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West Ham talks for Barcelona's Gudjohnson
tribalfooball.com - July 15, 2007
Barcelona striker Eidur Gudjohnsen is a step closer to sealing a move to West Ham United. AS says Eidur's Dad and agent, Arnor, has held talks with Hammers chairman Eggert Magnusson and the former Chelsea forward is excited by the prospect of moving to Upton Park.
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Besiktas move for West Ham striker Cole
tribalfooball.com - July 15, 2007
West Ham United striker Carlton Cole is a target for Turkey's Besiktas. The News of the World says Besiktas have made a £3 million offer for the former Chelsea forward.
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West Ham's Ashton: I'm hungry
tribalfooball.com - July 15, 2007
West Ham United striker Dean Ashton has admitted he doubted whether he would ever return to action from the broken ankle that ruined his 2006-07 campaign. The 23-year-old said after playing in the pre-season win against Dagenham & Redbridge: "There were times when I thought I might not get back, so I'm really going to enjoy this season. "It was an absolute joy to be out there playing, it's been a long, tough year and I'm glad to be back. "I don't think there will be a hungrier player in the Premier League this season than me. "I want to show people how well I have come back from this injury. "It was hard watching last season, you don't want to see your team struggling at the bottom of the league. "I was delighted to see how the season ended. From a selfish point of view I wanted to play in the Premiership."
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West Ham boss Curbishley rounds on Bellamy critics
tribalfooball.com - July 15, 2007
West Ham boss Alan Curbishley has shrugged off fears that Craig Bellamy, a £7.5m buy from Liverpool, is trouble with a capital T. Indeed, Curbishley rounded on the Bellamy bashers, especially the ones who bring into question some off-field activities, saying firmly: "I've got no problem with Craig Bellamy. I've just said to him: 'Now you've got to start being remembered for your football'." "Now he's the captain of Wales and with a third child on the way, this is a great opportunity for him. "I know what West Ham fans want and if they see him in full flight, then that's how he will be remembered and I've got no doubt he will be a crowd favourite. He has only been training for three or four days and I didn't want to risk him here but he'll be going with us to Austria on Monday."
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Man Utd roll out welcome mat for Tevez
tribalfooball.com - July 15, 2007
Manchester United have booked Carlos Tevez's medical - so confident are they of a deal for the West Ham striker being rubberstamped. The Sun says United made arrangements for the Argentina striker, 23, to fly to Manchester after last night's Copa America final against Brazil for a Wednesday medical. United boss Alex Ferguson believes the row over who owns the player is coming to a close and the Premier League champs can end the summer's most drawn-out transfer saga by sealing a �20million deal. Tevez is desperate to move to Old Trafford, having turned down the chance of a switch to Serie A champions Inter Milan as soon as the transfer window opened. United are understood to have agreed to pay a loan fee of £6m over the next two years with the option of buying Tevez outright for a total of £20m at the end of that agreement.
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West Ham keeper Green backs Ashton to cover Tevez exit
tribalfooball.com - July 15, 2007
West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green believes the return of Dean Ashton will cover the loss of Manchester United-bound Carlos Tevez. He said: "Carlos is a great player and if he's here then great; if he's not, then there are other great players, like Deano, who is a huge asset to the club. Hopefully, he can get through preseason, battle through any aches and pains, stay fit and play the whole season. "I've not played in the same West Ham team with him, but when we were at Norwich he was the focal point of the attack, the player others would bounce off, and he would bring a lot of attributes to the side. Carlos is very different. He's a spark, he's a livewire and he gives you something else. The two players play in the same position but very differently and just as effectively."
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