07/08/2007 14:33
The likes of Richard Wright, Carlton Cole and John Pantsil will be in action
as a West Ham United reserve team takes on local non-league side Thurrock FC
this evening. Reserve team coach Kevin Keen will be taking a mainly young
side to Ship Lane in Grays, Essex, with promising youngsters Jack Collison,
Kyel Reid and Hogan Ephraim also involved.
The match kicks-off at 7.45pm and admission is £8.00 for adults. Children
under-15 can gain FREE entrance in attendance with an adult. However, this
offer is restricted to one child per adult, with all other under-15s charged
£1.00 for admission. For example, an adult with two children would pay for
just one child.
Concessions tickets are priced at £5.00 (Senior Citizens, disabled and
students with ID card).
For information on getting to Thurrock FC, click here
Squad: Wright, Stech, Reid, Cole, Pantsil, Hines, Blackwell, Jeffrey,
Miller, Hales, N'gala, Stanislas, Ephraim, O'Neil, Stokes, Sears, Collison.
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Love hurts - KUMB
Filed: Tuesday, 7th August 2007
By: Matthew O'Greel
Eggert Magnusson has admitted that he has been 'hurt' by the way West Ham
have been portrayed in the media since the row over Carlos Tevez erupted.
Magnusson, talking to the Guardian today admitted that he had been upset by
the poisonous media campaign spearheaded in recent months by the likes of
the Daily Mail. "It does hurt me because the club has been dragged into
this in a negative way," he said. "West Ham has been dragged down and I
don't think this is correct. "I was never concerned that the ruling would go
against us. In this affair it has often been forgotten that the player was
always registered with West Ham. There was so much said that was never
correct. "This hurts me most, because what a few people decide should not be
a burden to the whole club."
Yet despite the very public problems faced by the club last season,
Magnusson - who is set to release a full statement regarding the Tevez
situation later this week - admitted that he was still enjoying his time in
East London. "I like to be busy," he added. "This is why I am always so
upbeat at West Ham. Every morning I wake up there is a tough new challenge.
"Even these last few months, where there has been so much pain with the
Tevez saga, there have been moments of joy. It has been a great time."
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Eggy on Dyer - KUMB
Filed: Tuesday, 7th August 2007
By: Matthew O'Greel
Eggert Magnusson has revealed that he was extremely disappointed to miss out
on signing Kieron Dyer. The Newcastle midfielder was set to join the Hammers
last week after the two clubs agreed a deal worth £6m - until Newcastle
bizarrely called the deal off unless the Hammers were willing to stump up an
additonal £2m. Talking to the Guardian today, Magnusson explained: "It was
very unexpected," he said. "He'd [Dyer] had a medical and we thought we had
agreed everything. But we then just got a message from the owner that he
wanted a higher price. "This is something I have never experienced before
in football, because they had already given us permission to speak to the
player. So of course I was very disappointed."
Newcastle are understood to have reopened negotiations with regard to Dyer,
amid speculation that should the Hammers pay £6m cash they would be land
their target. However one player who definitely won't be seen in a claret
and blue shirt this season is Carlos Tevez, whose drawn-out transfer to Man
U should be confirmed later today. Magnusson - who reiterated all summer
that he was doing his utmost to keep the crowd favourite at the club -
finally admitted defeat earlier this month when it became clear that the
23-year-old striker had his heart set on a move to Old Trafford. "The sad
thing is that Tevez got caught in the middle," he said. "He's a great lad,
so enthusiastic about football and success, and I would have loved to have
seen him in a West Ham shirt [next season]. "I really tried to make that
possible but, as a great player, he had ambitions to play in the Champions
League."
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McClaren eyes Deano - KUMB
Filed: Tuesday, 7th August 2007
By: Matthew O'Greel
England manager Steve McClaren has revealed that his first port of call this
season will be The Boleyn Ground. McClaren - who is busy making preparations
ahead of England's forthcoming European Championship qualifiers - is due to
attend United's season opener against Manchester City next weekend, where he
is hoping to see Dean Ashton in action. Ashton was due to make his
international debut this time last year but a freak accident left him with a
broken ankle and a season on the sidelines. But McClaren has revelaed that
the 23-year-old striker - who played for 45 minutes against Roma last
weekend - is still very much in his plans. "He's been out for a long time
and I need to see how he's progressing before I make an assessment," said
McClaren. "But he's a talent and one that I've got to keep an eye on. That's
why I called him into the squad in the first place." Ashton is expected to
start Saturday's season opener on the bench, with Alan Curbishley likely to
go with Bobby Zamora and Craig Bellamy up front.
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Tevez move held up - SSN
By Amanda Cornforth Last updated: 7th August 2007
Carlos Tevez will not complete his move to Manchester United on Tuesday and
may not be registered for the start of the new season, Sky Sports
understands.
The Argentina international had been expected to join The Red Devils last
month, but a dispute over pay between West Ham and Tevez's agent Kia
Joorabchian has held up the switch. The transfer has been dragging on all
summer and it first seemed unlikely any move would be completed before the
start of the season after Fifa refused to arbitrate on Tevez's contractual
situation, which led to Joorabchian's Media Sports Investments group issuing
a High Court writ against The Hammers in order to push through the deal.
Joorabchian had hinted an out-of-court settlement would be reached last
week, but the affair is still dragging on and at the moment doubts hang over
whether or not Tevez will be able to begin the new campaign with his new
club.
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Gudjohnsen move edges closer - WestHamOnline
North Bank - Tue Aug 7 2007
Reports are circulating this morning that Eidur Gudjohnsen is close to
wearing the Claret and Blue. A fee of £7.1 million has been agreed with
Barcelona and the player is due to have talks with West Ham.
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Reborn Ashton handed Macca lifeline - Daily Mail
Last updated at 11:09am on 7th August 2007
Steve McClaren placed Dean Ashton back on international alert today as he
confirmed that the first Premier League match he will watch this season will
be West Ham's opening game against Manchester City. The England coach will
fly back from a lightning visit to talk to David Beckham in America on
Thursday to take in the clash at Upton Park 48 hours later. McClaren is
planning to check up on the recovery of the West Ham striker, who is close
to a first-team return having missed all of last season because of injury.
Ashton, a £7million signing from Norwich in January 2006, broke an ankle
while training with England in preparation for McClaren's first game as
manager, against Greece at Old Trafford, 12 months ago.
A surprise call up, Ashton would almost certainly have made his England
debut in the 4-0 win over the Greeks. The striker is pushing for inclusion
in Saturday's starting line-up and the fact that McClaren will be at Upton
Park for West Ham's opening game suggests that he's keen to include the 6ft
2in former Under-21 international in his first squad for the friendly
against Germany at Wembley on August 22. Although back in full training,
Ashton hasn't played a competitive first-team fixture since West Ham's
penalty shoot-out defeat to Liverpool in the FA Cup Final at Cardiff 15
months ago. "He's been out for a long time," McClaren said today in an
exclusive interview. "I need to see how he's progressing before I make an
assessment. He's a talent and one that I've got to keep an eye on. That's
why I called him into the squad in the first place."
With Wayne Rooney a guaranteed starter up front, McClaren still needs to
find a partner for the Manchester United striker. Newcastle's Michael Owen
is now back to full fitness after sustaining a knee injury in last summer's
World Cup while Anfield man Peter Crouch will also expect to figure. Now
that it is clear he will be given the opportunity, it is down Ashton to rise
above the competition and stake his claim for a spot in the team. With a
place in the European Championship finals at stake in the next few months,
McClaren has set himself a daunting early-season pace. He returns from
America on Friday to watch matches at West Ham, Manchester United, Tottenham
and Portsmouth over five days. Although Beckham seems unlikely to play for
LA Galaxy in Washington on Thursday, McClaren still wants to talk to the
former Real Madrid player, who threw the first pitch in last night's Major
League Baseball match between the Toronto Bluejays and the New York Yankees,
and his coach Frank Yallop.
The England boss is keen to watch the game to update himself on the standard
of football in the MLS. "Hopefully he'll be involved in Washington but, that
apart, I need to talk to him and see the standard for myself before making
any judgements," said McClaren. The England coach names his first squad of
the season on Friday week, by which time he should have spoken with
Liverpool's Jamie Carragher about his recent international retirement. "He's
an important member of the squad and there's no way I want to lose him,"
insisted the England coach. "Keeping him in the squad is my main aim."
Doubts about Carragher, plus injuries to John Terry, Ledley King and
Jonathan Woodgate have prompted McClaren to consider a recall for
32-year-old Portsmouth centre-back Sol Campbell, who hasn't featured for
England since last summer's World Cup. McClaren will watch the former
Arsenal defender next week along with goalkeeper David James - another
currently in international exile. "You can't close the door on anyone in
this job," said McClaren. "Sol had a good season with Portsmouth and I'd be
foolish to dismiss players like him or David James."
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Spurs and West Ham fight over Cassano and Hammers want Dyer - Sportigo
Tue, Aug 7, 07 11:55
Mark Apostolou
Antonio Cassano, the Real Madrid striker, has been linked with West Ham,
Spurs and Bolton (The Times), interesting news indeed. The 25-year-old hit
man was a hot property a year ago when his performances for Roma secured him
a big money move to La Liga.
However he had a tough time of it last season, faltering on the pitch and
floundering off it. His attitude has been called into question and club
president Roman Calderon is frustrated enough to issue a "come and get him"
call. So what are you waiting for? It would be an expensive gamble to take
in my view. He has the talent but has fallen out of the spotlight and may
be keen to let his boots, rather than his mouth, do the talking.
On the subject of awkward talent that may be too risky to touch, West Ham
are furiously trying to revive their interest in Newcastle's Kieron Dyer by
offering £6m up front (Daily Star) which, given United's supposed money
worries (which seems to run paradoxically to the huge amounts of money they
keep spending on players, Jose Enrique being the latest), could seal the
deal.
However The Sun sees it differently. They are saying that Alan Curbishley
and the Iceman have told Newcastle they will not be held to ransom over
Dyer. Of the two stories I would opt for the latter, simply because
following the long running Carlos Tevez contract saga, surely the last thing
Upton Park needs so close to a new season is another transfer headache.
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Curbishley eyes swoop for Cassano - Daily Mail
Last updated at 13:08pm on 7th August 2007
Antonio Cassano has emerged as the latest transfer target for big-spending
Hammers' boss Alan Curbishley. The Real Madrid forward is set to leave the
Bernebeu and West Ham have been in touch with the Spanish giants — and
current La Liga champions — to talk about a possible deal.
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Hammers chief in Tevez fear - metro.co.uk
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
West Ham chairman Eggert Magnusson worries that the club's reputation has
been unfairly damaged by the Carlos Tevez transfer saga. The club escaped
with a £5.5million fine from the Premier League in April for breaching rules
on third-party ownership in relation to Tevez and fellow Argentinian Javier
Mascherano, and Tevez then scored the goals which helped keep the Hammers in
the top flight at Sheffield United's expense. Magnusson and his club have
since managed to negotiate a settlement with Tevez's representative Kia
Joorabchian to release the player's registration to enable him to sign for
Manchester United, avoiding the prospect of a lengthy court battle.
Many observers felt the Hammers had been lucky to escape with a fine rather
than a points deduction over their signing of Tevez, and Magnusson accepts
that rightly or wrongly there is bad feeling towards his club. He said: 'It
does hurt me because the club has been dragged into this in a negative way
by some of my colleagues. West Ham has been dragged down and I don't think
this is correct. 'This hurts me most, because what a few people decide
should not be a burden to the whole club.'
Magnusson also regrets the impact the whole affair has had on Tevez himself.
The other sad thing is that Tevez got caught in the middle. He's a great
lad, so enthusiastic about football and success, and I would have loved to
have seen him (again) in a West Ham shirt. I really tried to make that
possible but, as a great player, he had ambitions to play in the Champions
League.'
Meanwhile, England manager Steve McClaren has hailed Tevez's impact on the
English game since joining the Hammers in a shock deal on August 31 last
year. 'I like Tevez. I have always admired him. I remember coming across him
in Geneva (where England played Argentina in a friendly in November 2005).
He impressed me then. He has adapted to English football very well because
he is an English type of player. He was certainly a big part in them staying
up.
'There are a lot of players who could have a big say in the title. Only time
will tell with regard to Tevez moving to Manchester United.'
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West Ham fighting fit says new boy Freddie - Daily Mail
By MATT BARLOW - More by this author »
Last updated at 08:56am on 7th August 2007
Freddie Ljungberg insists West Ham will embrace their new Fight Club image
if it helps them become more ruthless and tougher to beat. The addition of
fiery trio Craig Bellamy, Scott Parker and Ljungberg and a failed bid to
sign Kieron Dyer suggested manager Alan Curbishley was gambling with
disciplinary meltdown. But the Sweden midfielder claims all successful
Premiership teams play with passion and aggression. Ljungberg, 30, said: "If
we control it well, it can be great. When we played with Arsenal a couple of
years ago, we had a lot of players who weren't afraid to get their foot in.
"Sometimes Patrick Vieira would get too many red cards and get a bit of
abuse but he was still a great player. If we can get that on the right level
and everyone is fighting for each other we will be a hard team to beat."
Ljungberg's reputation as a fighter has its roots in a training ground scrap
with Sweden team-mate Olof Mellberg before the 2002 World Cup. "He kicked me
loads in training and I said he had to stop," said Ljungberg. "That was the
only way I could handle it because I'd tried it verbally a couple of times
and he didn't listen."
Ljungberg urged West Ham fans to go easy on former England boss Sven Goran
Eriksson when Manchester City visit Upton Park on Saturday. Ljungberg said:
"I hope he gets a good reception. I know he hasn't won anything in the big
championships for England but I think he did quite well."
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MAGNUSSON 'HURT' BY TEVEZ SAGA - Sporting Life
West Ham chairman Eggert Magnusson worries that the club's reputation has
been unfairly damaged by the Carlos Tevez transfer saga. The club escaped
with a £5.5million fine from the Premier League in April for breaching rules
on third-party ownership in relation to Tevez and fellow Argentinian Javier
Mascherano, and Tevez then scored the goals which helped keep the Hammers in
the top flight at Sheffield United's expense. Magnusson and his club have
since managed to negotiate a settlement with Tevez's representative Kia
Joorabchian to release the player's registration to enable him to sign for
Manchester United, avoiding the prospect of a lengthy court battle. Many
observers felt the Hammers had been lucky to escape with a fine rather than
a points deduction over their signing of Tevez, and Magnusson accepts that
rightly or wrongly there is bad feeling towards his club. He told The
Guardian: "It does hurt me because the club has been dragged into this in a
negative way by some of my colleagues. West Ham has been dragged down and I
don't think this is correct. "This hurts me most, because what a few people
decide should not be a burden to the whole club."
Magnusson also regrets the impact the whole affair has had on Tevez himself.
"The other sad thing is that Tevez got caught in the middle. He's a great
lad, so enthusiastic about football and success, and I would have loved to
have seen him (again) in a West Ham shirt. I really tried to make that
possible but, as a great player, he had ambitions to play in the Champions
League."
Meanwhile, England manager Steve McClaren has hailed Tevez's impact on the
English game since joining the Hammers in a shock deal on August 31 last
year. "I like Tevez. I have always admired him. I remember coming across him
in Geneva (where England played Argentina in a friendly in November 2005).
He impressed me then. He has adapted to English football very well because
he is an English type of player. He was certainly a big part in them staying
up.
"There are a lot of players who could have a big say in the title. Only time
will tell with regard to Tevez moving to Manchester United."
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