The Mirror
By Football Spy 24/10/2008
West Ham are blocking Wales centre-back James Collins's return to former
club Cardiff as he is needed as cover at Upton Park.
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West Ham players need two years to learn Zola's tactics, says Mark Noble
The Mirror
By Neil Mcleman 24/10/2008
Mark Noble has warned that West Ham's players could take two years to get
used to Gianfranco Zola's new tactics. After former boss Alan Curbishley's
cautious approach, the Italian wants his side to play 4-3-3, with the wide
men tucking in when opponents have the ball. But after a second defeat in a
row at Hull last weekend, the England Under-21 midfielder claimed the Irons
needed a lot more time to master the formation. And they certainly will not
be ready for Sunday's visit of Arsenal.
"The formation is a good one," said the 21-year-old. "Obviously it's going
to be a slow process, though. "It's not going to work over months, it's
going to be a couple of years before he finally gets it going. "I'm really
enjoying the role I've been given, but then again it's only enjoyable if
you're winning."
The Hammers sit in a respectable eighth place with 12 points after eight
games. But after recent losses to Hull and Bolton, Noble admitted the club
should be flying higher. "It's not enough," he said. "We thought we should
have won last week against Hull. "But it just hasn't happened and now we
have Arsenal and Manchester United in the next two games. We will have a big
job to get some points out of them."
Hayden Mullins says he will consider his future in the transfer window if he
fails to win a regular first-team place. "If I get my chance I have to take
it," he said. "And if I don't then we'll have to see where that leaves us."
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Gallas and Toure available for West Ham trip
Arsenal.com
By Richard Clarke
William Gallas and Kolo Toure are back for the trip to West Ham on Sunday.
The Ivorian injured his shoulder against Everton last Saturday and missed
the game at Fenerbahce in midweek while the Frenchman was absent for both
because of a hamstring problem. However the pair are set to return for the
game at Upton Park.
In addition, Bacary Sagna (knee) is in line to make his comeback against
Tottenham next week. "It looks like Kolo Toure and William Gallas will be
available while Sagna could be available for Wednesday," Wenger told Arsenal
TV Online. The Arsenal manager also clarified his comments over the return
of Eduardo. At the AGM on Thursday, Wenger said the Croatian striker is
"three weeks away from playing competitive football".
Speaking to the Club's official website later on, he said: "What I mean by
competitive football is joining in completely with a normal training
session. After that he has to come back to match-fitness. But he is ahead of
where we expected him to be and that is fantastic news."
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Influential Parker retains his England ambitions
E24.com
23 October 2008
By JONATHAN CLEGG
SCOTT PARKER is hoping that his consistent performances for West Ham can
earn him an England recall after admitting he has not given up hope of
forcing his way into Fabio Capello's Three Lions squad. The Hammers
midfielder has not featured for the national team since being handed a
starting role for the infamous defeat in Croatia two years ago during Steve
McClaren's ill-fated attempt to lead England to Euro 2008. But Parker has
finally overcome the injury problems that have hindered his international
ambitions and believes he is close to regaining the form that earned him a
£10m move to Chelsea in 2004. Now the 28-year-old is hoping to catch the eye
of England coach Capello, who has already elevated Hammers team-mates
Matthew Upson and Robert Green to the national team set-up. Upson deputised
for the injured John Terry in this month's World Cup qualifiers against
Kazakhstan and Belarus while goalkeeper Green watched from the bench. Parker
was one of the few first-team regulars forced to remain at Chadwell Heath
during the international break and the time at the training ground has
focused his mind on winning an England recall. He said: "I haven't been
thinking 'if only' about England. It's such a fine line. All I can do is
play well for West Ham and that's my priority. I have to stay fit as well
and if I can do that then hopefully it will happen for me. "It's been a bit
of a stop-start season with the international breaks but it's been good for
us having the new manager and he has been hands-on with the players that are
here. "There were about 10 or 12 of us left over so we got some fitness work
in as well."
The extra sessions with Gianfranco Zola have given Parker an extended look
at the new Hammers boss in action on the training field and he is impressed
by the Italian's style of coaching. Zola has emphasised the importance of
helping individual players improve and Parker is optimistic that the
Italian's tutelage will also help him develop into a regular member of the
England squad. "He was a fantastic player and that has helped massively,"
Parker said. "We've got a young squad and to have a manager who was such a
great player not that long ago helps, especially as so many people remember
him or even played against him. "He was always going to command respect as a
manager, whether or not he was a great player, but because he was, he has
got that respect. "From the ideas I've seen and the training, you can tell
he is definitely going to improve players.
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Zola needs time to build team - Noble
E24
23 October 2008
By JONATHAN CLEGG
MARK NOBLE has asked West Ham fans to remain patient with new boss
Gianfranco Zola after admitting that the Italian's Upton Park revolution
could take years to yield positive results. The Hammers slumped to a second
successive league defeat at Hull City last weekend and memories of the
team's positive start under Zola are rapidly fading. The West Ham manager
has promised to deliver an entertaining brand of attacking football to Upton
Park. But despite dominating possession at the KC Stadium, the Hammers
failed to create enough clear-cut chances as Michael Turner's 50th-minute
header lifted Hull to third in the Premier League table. With back-to-back
matches against Arsenal and Manchester United up next, the club's supporters
have started to question whether Zola's new-look 4-3-3 formation offers the
best hope of getting results. But Hammers midfielder Noble insists the club
must keep faith in Zola's methods, despite conceding that the fans could be
in for a long wait before the manager realises his vision of a winning West
Ham team playing stylish football. He said: "The new system is working but
obviously it's going to be a slow process. "It's not going to work over a
few months, it's going to be a couple of years before he finally gets it
going. "You've just got to keep doing what you're doing, working hard and
hopefully that time will come. "We felt we should have won at Hull. In the
first half, especially, the way we played and kept the ball, the way we
passed it - we should have won the game and had it wrapped up with the
chances we had. But we didn't and we got punished."
England Under-21 star Noble has had to adapt his own role in the team since
Zola replaced Alan Curbishley last month and now operates as part of a
three-man midfield alongside Scott Parker and Valon Behrami. The 21-year-old
admits he enjoys the greater freedom to get forward in support of the team's
attacking players, but he warned that greater discipline will be required in
the upcoming games against two of the Premier League's Big Four. "I'm really
enjoying my role in the new system," Noble said. "Then again, it's only
enjoyable if you're winning. We haven't in the last two games so you can't
laugh and smile about it. "We've got 12 points from our opening eight
matches and it's not enough. We thought we should have won last week
[against Bolton] as well, and again at Hull we felt we should have taken the
three points. "But it hasn't happened and now we've got Arsenal and Man
United in the next two games so we've got a big job to try and do our best
to get some points out of them.
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Bellamy can give the cutting edge
E24
23 October 2008
By JONATHAN CLEGG
GIANFRANCO ZOLA has backed striker Craig Bellamy to help his shot-shy West
Ham side overcome their goal drought against Arsenal on Sunday. The Hammers
slumped to a second straight Premier League defeat at Hull City last weekend
as Zola's misfiring forwards wasted a host of opportunities at the KC
Stadium. The Italian has promised to bring free-flowing, attacking football
to Upton Park but his team have now scored just three goals in their past
four games. The Hammers boss admitted that his side must become more
clinical if they are to end their barren run. He said: "I'm disappointed
that we didn't finish the chances that we created.
"Probably right now, that is the missing part with this team. We need to
improve on the finishing because we are creating a lot but we are not
finishing. "Obviously the finishing part is the most difficult thing.
Managers can improve a lot of things, but it is down to the players to
improve. "I totally trust the ability of my players and I am sure we're
going to get it right soon."
Zola believes that Bellamy could help the Hammers get back on track against
Arsenal after coming through his first 90 minutes of the season at Hull. The
Wales striker seems to have made a full recovery from a series of injuries
that have derailed his career since joining West Ham in July last year.
Bellamy was guilty of wasting chances in his first start since February but
West Ham manager Zola is convinced the 29-year-old will give his side an
extra cutting edge as he regains his best form.
"Craig has done well but I know he can play much better," Zola said. "You
can't ask too much from him after such a long time out but we really rely on
him a lot because he is an important player for us. "I was pleased with him,
especially in the first half. I didn't expect him to be at his best but I am
confident he will be back soon with his best performances for us.
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Zola to ditch Bowyer but holds onto Mullins By Harry Amber-Mitchell
Uptonsparks.com
Posted on Thursday 23 Oct 2008 11:25:00
West Ham's exodus of players looks set to start with a broom in the face of
the fring players, with Lee Bowyer set to be the fiest to fall in the
clear-out. The Echo is reporting that while Hayden Mullins has apparently
been told he has a future at the club, the likes of Boywer, Calum Davenport
and James Collins are all heading for the exit. They would be the first of
up to eight, with a large amount of first-teamers also in the picture to be
departing as well. Mullins has said he's happy at the club, despite not
getting his chance in the first team recently, and believes Zola just needs
time to learn about his game. "I haven't spoke to him personally as yet
because he's got to get his feet under the table first and get to know
everyone," he said. "I don't really want to go and knock on his door and ask
why I'm not playing. It's just a case of waiting for my chance." Who knows
when that chance might be? If the entire midfield is sold in January, the
Hammers might have to rely on him after all...
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