WHUFC.com
Paolo Di Canio has urged West Ham United fans to get behind the team in the
coming weeks
10.11.2009
Paolo Di Canio has instructed the fans who adore him to get 100 per cent
behind West Ham United in their upcoming Barclays Premier League fixtures.
In an exclusive interview with WHUTV, the Hammers legend has called for all
the supporters' energies to be focused on helping their team prevail in the
key matches with Hull CIty and Burnley. The 41-year-old, speaking during a
recent visit to London, believes the claret and blue army can act as a 12th
man as Gianfranco Zola's side aim to move up the Barclays Premier League
table. "For me I still have great memories," said Di Canio. "The skin would
burn every time I stepped out at Upton Park. The relationship with West Ham
fans is something special. It is difficult to explain because it is
something you feel inside in your heart. "I am the kind of person who thinks
that what I did, what I gave to the people, is nothing to compare with what
they give to you. For this I could not expect this kind of reception from
them. They are fantastic fans and they are so special and they deserve only
satisfaction. "It is not a time to think about an ex-footballer like Paolo
Di Canio because my spirit, heart and soul are still at Upton Park. I know
that they love me and I love them. Now is the moment to stay close to the
team, try to help them and let them play the best they can to get out of the
situation."
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Parker still positive
WHUFC.com
Scott Parker is already looking forward to putting things right in the Hull
City match
10.11.2009
Scott Parker was back in training on Tuesday at Chadwell Heath determined to
play his part in getting the points West Ham United deserve for a run of
bright performances.
With neutrals everywhere incredulous as to how the Hammers came away with a
2-1 defeat from Sunday's match against Everton, the all-action midfielder
wished the club had the chance to bounce back sooner than Saturday week's
trip to Hull City. "I don't think it's a good time to have a break," Parker
said. "We're playing some good stuff and in the position we're in we want to
kick on.
"We obviously need to get on the training field and work on what we need to
do and get a result at Hull. It's a massive game for us but I think every
game this year is going to be massive. It's not happening for us at times -
we're playing well but not picking up results. We're going to have to bounce
back at Hull now."
With top-flight newcomers Birmingham City holding Liverpool to a 2-2 home
draw on Monday night and surprise results happening every week, Parker
summed up the competitiveness of the division. "The league is tight this
year. Everyone seems to be able to beat everyone. [Sunday] was not the best
of results for us by any means and we did not deserve it, but there are lots
of positives we can take from it. "We had a good win in the week over Aston
Villa and we wanted to build on that," added the reigning Hammer of the Year
who has been in similar form this season. "This happened to us last year
when the manager came in and we had a run of results which we did not really
deserve. We can get out of it. We have got too much quality in this squad."
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Reserves off
WHUFC.com
The reserves' match with Arsenal on Tuesday night has been postponed until
January
10.11.2009
West Ham United's Barclays Premier Reserve League South fixture against
Arsenal, originally scheduled for Tuesday evening, has been moved to Tuesday
12 January. The postponement means the reserves will have a further two-week
break until their next home game with Stoke City. Alex Dyer's side will be
looking to build on an encouraging 1-1 draw with Fulham last time out
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Irish call for Sadlier
WHUFC.com
Another of Tony Carr's youngsters has been called up for international duty
10.11.2009
West Ham United attacking midfielder Kieran Sadlier has been called into the
Republic of Ireland U16 squad for an international friendly double-header
with Czech Republic later this month. Sadlier has been named in an 18-man
party for the matches, which will be contested at Rock Celtic FC, Blackrock,
County Louth, on 24 November, and Kingspan Century Park, Monaghan, on 26
November. The call-up represents the youngster's first involvement at U16
level for his country, with Sadlier being one of four English-based players
in manager John Morling's squad. Ireland will be eager to bounce back after
back-to-back friendly defeats by Denmark away from home last month.
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Ashton's playing career in doubt
By Frank Keogh
BBC.co.uk
Fears are growing that West Ham's injured former England striker Dean Ashton
could be forced to retire from the game at the age of 25. Ashton broke his
left ankle while training with England in August 2006, ahead of a friendly
with Greece. An announcement about his future is likely to be made later
this month, BBC Sport understands. He joined West Ham from Norwich for
£7.25m in January 2006, having started his career at Crewe. No-one from
West Ham was prepared to comment, although privately club officials have
accepted he is unlikely to play again. Sources close to Ashton said they
did not expect any news on "his situation" to be announced for "another week
to two weeks". Manager Gianfranco Zola chose his words carefully when
speaking about Ashton's injury after training on Saturday ahead of Sunday's
home game against Everton, which the visitors won 2-1. Responding to a
question about the striker he said there would be an update "soon" on his
situation. Ashton - who had surgery in the spring of 2009 - had been unable
to take part in training, he said, as he worked on his personal fitness
"while next steps were assessed". Zola added: "When something like this
happens, it is very much personal. Me as a manager I am here to make sure I
can give him all the support he needs. I understand that it is quite a
difficult time for him." A day later, after the Everton match, Zola
insisted nothing definite had been decided. "Until someone tells me he is
not going to make it, I am still confident he is going to come back," said
the Italian.
"For the boy and for us we hope he will make it. I can't say more than that.
"Dean is working his way back on his own and with his own physio. I don't
know when I will hear anything."
After arriving in east London at the start of 2006, Ashton helped West Ham
to the FA Cup final four months later against Liverpool and scored in the
3-3 draw at the Millennium Stadium before his side lost on penalties.
ASHTON'S CLUB CAREER
Season, club, apps, goals
2000-05 Crewe 159 (61)
2005-06 Norwich 44 (17)
2006- West Ham 46 (15)
His performances that season earned him an England call-up for the friendly
with Greece in August 2006, but he broke his ankle in training for that game
and missed the whole of the 2006-07 season. He came back to make 35
appearances, scoring 11 goals in the 2007-08 campaign. In June 2008, Ashton
signed a new five-year contract at Upton Park, when Alan Curbishley was
manager, and earned an England cap under Fabio Capello, playing against
Trinidad & Tobago. A favourite with the Hammers fans, they were chanting his
nickname 'Deano' again after he scored both goals in a 2-1 win over Wigan on
the opening day of the 2008-09 season. But in September 2008, in Zola's
first training session after taking over from Curbishley, Ashton sprained
his ankle and has not played since. His injury situation has been another
headache for Zola, whose team are third from bottom in the Premier League
with 10 points from 12 games, in which they have scored a total of 16 goals.
The Italian is also without England striker Carlton Cole, who has a
hamstring injury, leaving the club with no established Premier League
forwards available for selection. Against Everton, Zola partnered
20-year-old Zavon Hines with close-season recruit Guillermo Franco.
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West Ham United takeover bid is for real, insist Intermarket
A London-based financial company claims it has shown it is a serious bidder
for West Ham by proving it has the funds for a takeover.
Telegraph.co.uk
By Jason Burt
Published: 7:15AM GMT 11 Nov 2009
David Byrne, Intermarket's company secretary, and one of its two founding
directors claimed on Tuesday that it had signed a non-disclosure agreement
with Rothschilds. Byrne said: "Some people were dismissing us as not being
serious bidders but we are. We have satisfied them [Rothschilds] that we
have proof of funds." When Intermarket went public with its interest in West
Ham several weeks ago, the claim was met with scepticism by sources at CB
Holdings, the company that controls the club. They questioned Intermarket's
intentions and made it clear that West Ham will not be sold cheaply. Sport
on television It is understood that Intermarket value the club at £100
million – claiming that includes taking on debts that they estimate at £48
million and also the costs of the Carlos Tévez affair. It means that the
group of creditors who own West Ham would receive just over £30 million,
which is far less than they are hoping to recoup and would be unacceptable.
Byrne said that the investors he represents will have the financial backing
to improve the club's prospects in the transfer market and improve the
squad, backing manager Gianfranco Zola. "We have definitely got the
interested parties with the money needed to do what we need to do and get in
some funding to stop West Ham having to sell players and make sure they can
strengthen to be able to avoid relegation," he said. There has also been
annoyance that Intermarket have not made public where their proposed funding
is coming from but Byrne claimed on Tuesday that the information had now
been passed on to Rothschilds. He added that he represented "a group of
investors from institutional level down to high net-worth individuals".
Byrne said: "We are West Ham supporters and are deadly serious and we
believe we have satisfied Rothschilds that we are serious. This has been
portrayed as an American bid (because of the involvement of a US financier
Jim Bowe) but that's not the case. The Intermarket Group is London based."
Signing an NDA does not mean that Intermarket have been granted permission
to start due diligence and does not mean that the company has to prove it
has funding. There are also, according to sources, other potential bidders
and investors who have been appointed along with Standard Bank, and who are
trying to access the club's books. Byrne claimed that he expected to see
"official figures" next week which will lay out West Ham's finances and
added that Intermarket were keen to try and finalise a deal before a
creditors meeting on Dec 11.
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Player denies assault on sister
BBC.co.uk
West Ham United footballer Calum Davenport has pleaded not guilty to
attacking his sister. Mr Davenport, 26, of Greenfield, Flitton,
Bedfordshire, is accused of assaulting Cara Davenport, occasioning actual
bodily harm, on 22 August. Bedford magistrates granted him bail on the
condition he has no contact with 28-year-old Ms Davenport. He is due back
before the court in January, when the case is expected to be committed to
crown court for trial. The assault is alleged to have taken place at an
address in Kempston, near Bedford. Ms Davenport's boyfriend Worrell
Whitehurst, 25, of Finsley Walk, Derby, has already appeared in court
charged with attacking the central defender as well as his mother,
49-year-old Kim Stupple, in the driveway of her home in Springfield Avenue,
later that day. Crown Court committal was provisionally set for 12 January.
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Calum Davenport pleads not guilty to sister's assault
West Ham star's case sent to Crown Court after attack in which he was
stabbed in both legs
By Bill Mann
FIRST POSTED NOVEMBER 11, 2009
The First Post
West Ham defender Calum Davenport appeared in court yesterday accused of
headbutting his pregnant sister during a row that ended up with the Premier
League star being stabbed in both legs. The 26-year-old footballer pleaded
not guilty to the charge of attacking Cara Davenport, 28, in an incident
that occurred at the Bedford house of the pair's mother, Kim Stupple, in
August 2009.
The case was sent to Crown Court for trial, and the West Ham star was
reminded by magistrate Colin Osbourne to abide by the conditions of his
bail, which ban him from making contact with his sister. His case has now
been adjourned until January 12 when he will return to Bedford Crown Court
for committal hearings.
Davenport remains injured from the attack on him, which took place at 5am on
the morning of August 22. The former England under-21 international had to
undergo emergency surgery having lost more than half of the blood in his
body, and initial reports suggested that his legs could have been amputated
such was the severity of the injuries. Many felt that his playing career had
been ended prematurely, but he has since started light training with the
Hammers.
Worrell Whitehurst, Cara's 25-year-old boyfriend, was charged soon after the
incident with grevious bodily harm. But police suggested at the time that
there was more to the attack than the headlines - 'Footballer stabbed' -
were letting on. They vowed to "work backwards" to discover what had
actually happened on the morning of August 22, when Whitehurst was also
alleged to have assaulted Stupple, 49.
Davenport was subsequently charged by police late last month. The footballer
responded with a statement in which he declared himself "deeply shocked and
disappointed at the decision that has been made to charge me with assault. I
deny any wrongdoing and will plead not guilty. For legal reasons, I am
unable to discuss the matter further at this time."
Davenport joined West Ham in 2007 from Spurs for £3m, but was loaned out to
Sunderland last season. He remains on the books at Upton Park, although the
club is yet to ascertain when he will be able to start training in earnest
again.
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Intent on Doing it the Hard Way?
West Ham Till I Die
There is no denying that the Everton defeat was undeserved and clearly a
missed opportunity. I previously argued that the Everton match could be
both pivotal and defining for the rest of our season. Certainly, if we had
managed to grab the points against Everton, we could have reinforced our
position above the relegation zone. That would have then set us up very
nicely for two winnable matches against Hull City away and Burnley at home.
But that would be doing it the easy way and the Hammers invariably have
other, more painful, ways of going about things! Everton was not a 'must
win' match, but a victory could have been instrumental in changing our focus
from relegation struggle to more positive and ambitious aspirations.
However, it does not now necessarily mean that the dye is cast for a season
of struggle.
I am looking for us to scramble up to mid-table, consolidate there prior to
Christmas and then position ourselves in the hope that a further push up the
league table is possible in the New Year. That still remains the objective,
in my view, as we now prepare for the Hull City and Burnley games. It is
just that now we have put needless pressure on ourselves going in to those
key games!
What went wrong? Well, we just set our stall out wrong from the start. I
got to the ground late and I was absolutely amazed when I saw that Jimenez
had replaced Noble. Surely if you rest Mark Noble, the obvious replacement
is Diamanti?
The team did not play badly in the first half, but the incisive play in the
final third, apparent against Arsenal and Villa, was missing. We
over-elaborated, had little width and unsuccessfully tried to pass through
the centre of the Everton defence.
After a lot of unproductive 'huff and puff,' we suffered two
self-inflicted goals of the worst kind. For the first, our players clearly
failed to close down Saha and he had an absolute age to get his strike off,
0-1. For the second, we did not clear our lines properly, even though we
had the opportunity to do so, 0-2. Everton must have thought Christmas had
come early for them at Upton Park.
However, the introduction of Stanislas and Diamanti transformed us. The
substitutes ran with the ball, initiated greater movement and gave us
width. We looked a different team and pushed Everton on to the back foot.
Diamanti played like a 'force of nature' and frightened Everton to death
with his skill, vision and passing. The way in which he expertly picked out
Stanislas' forward run for our goal was just sublime!
Diamanti is a class player, can anyone still doubt that? Moreover, its
clear that his presence lifts the team and brings direction and variety to
our forward play. Yes, sometimes Diamanti is over-ambitious with his long
range efforts, but you should not discourage a player like him from
attempting the outrageous. It's an integral part of his make-up. He will
start hitting the back of the net soon, it's just a matter of time.
Diamanti must start against Hull City! I reiterate my long standing view
that he is best deployed at the point of the midfield diamond, just behind
the two strikers. He needs to be given a free role to dictate play and
closely support the strikers in advanced offensive positions. And I feel
that this is an important point. If he is so accurate and dangerous
shooting from 30 yards, imagine how deadly he could he be in and around the
edge of the opposition box? In that respect, Diamanti could potentially
play the same type of goal scoring role for us that Lampard does for
Chelski!
With Diamanti on the pitch, pulling the strings, we carved out enough
chances to win three matches! On leaving the ground I overheard the 'fair
weather' tendency criticising Hines for missing his opportunities. No doubt
the very same people, on Wednesday, were praising him to the heavens for
grabbing the winner!
Yes, Hines missed two or three good chances. On a couple of those it was
probably inexperience that was his undoing, snatching at shots that he
should have placed more carefully. The fact remains that he is a real
prospect, but he is not the finished product! As good as he currently is,
we must not lose sight of that. Hines is on a steep learning curve and it
is vital that he learns from his mistakes in this match and comes back all
the wiser.
The key thing for me is that Hines has the natural instincts of a goal
scorer. He instinctively gets in to dangerous goal scoring positions. He
may have snatched his shots, but he had to be in the right position to get
the goal scoring opportunities in the first place. You can sharpen your
finishing, but it is far harder task to try and teach a striker that type of
instinctive play.
We played some magical football in the second half. At times we tore the
Everton rear guard apart. Hines is dangerous and Franco is starting to show
what a neat player he is. Parker runs himself in to the ground for the
cause and we have quality and variation in Berhami, Collison, Noble and
Stanislas. The rearguard looks to have improved, but there are still lapses
at the back that need work.
We need to be more professional in our approach. We need to defend higher
up the pitch as a team, stop making silly mistakes at the back and convert
our chances when we have the opposition under the cosh. And Zola needs to
rethink using Diamanti as a so-called 'impact sub' and play him from the
start. Even if he runs out of steam at the hour mark, hopefully by then he
will have steered us in to a winning position. At the moment he is being
brought on to try to rescue matches and that is counter-productive! When we
start getting these things right then the results and points will follow.
I am actually very encouraged by the way that we played in the second half
against Everton. I do not see any reason why this team cannot get it right
and climb in to mid-table before the New Year.
Hopefully, they will not do it the hard way, but I think it is safe to say
that 'do it,' they most certainly will!
SJ Chandos.
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West Ham's Valon Behrami rages as he's called up for country despite injury
Published 23:00 10/11/09
By Mirror Football
The Mirror
West Ham star Valon Behrami has been caught up in a club versus country row
ahead of Switzerland's international clash with Norway on Saturday. The
all-action midfielder, who has recently returned from a knee injury
following six months on the sidelines, is fuming with the Swiss FA after
being called up for the friendly. Behrami has been forced to play through
the pain barrier in recent weeks and hoped to make a full recovery during
the international break. And the 24-year-old says he would much rather
remain in east London as he looks to regain full fitness ahead of the
relegation six-pointer against Hull on November 21. "I'm going to play for
Switzerland for the first time in a while and for me it's not really the
best time to go," said Behrami. "I still need to work on my problem and I'm
not really too happy to have got the call. "I am getting better every game
but I am not 100 per cent. I need to strengthen my injured leg and that will
come with games. "It's a difficult moment and I think about these things. I
really like to give all I have to West Ham to be honest. "We need that and
we need to do better than this."
Behrami is set to open talks on a new contract with the club in the next
couple of weeks and the former Lazio man says he is more than happy to
extend his stay at Upton Park.
He added: "I want to stay here and, like I said before, everyday I want to
stay here. "I enjoy everything at this club and team and I want to stay here
100 per cent."
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Liverpool join Carlton Cole's suitors: West Ham braced for January Kop raid
By Sportsmail Reporter
Last updated at 11:07 PM on 10th November 2009
Daily Mail
Liverpool are among the clubs planning a raid on West Ham to sign Carlton
Cole in January. With Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard struggling through
injuries, manager Rafa Benitez has been forced to rely on back-up strikers
David Ngog and Andriy Voronin. Barcelona's interest in Javier Mascherano
could finance a move because Liverpool want £32 million. That fee would also
fund a replacement for the Argentina midfielder. Cole's outstanding form has
generated interest from home and abroad, particularly in view of the
financial problems at Upton Park. West Ham fought off bids for their top
players in the summer but are braced for more pressure when the transfer
window re-opens. Cole, who is 26 tomorrow, has scored six in 11 Premier
League games this season, including one against Liverpool in September.
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LEAGUE OF INJUSTICE - ARTICLE ELEVEN: WEST HAM v EVERTON
Jeff Winter, 10 Nov 2009
Sportingpreview.com
West Ham v Everton
The Hammers threw the kitchen sink at Everton in the closing minutes and
should have been rewarded when Franco put the ball into the visitors' goal.
He was flagged offside but after several slow motion replays, it looked like
he was level with the last defender. This highlights just how difficult, if
not nigh-on impossible, it is at times for the assistant referee. We are
talking a millisecond here, less time than it takes to blink. I don't know
what the answer is but benefit of the doubt should be given to the attacker.
In reality though, a bad goal is remembered a lot longer than a bad offside
decision and assistants understandably err on the side of caution. In a
perfect world though, goal to West Ham and a 2-2 draw rather than a 2-1
victory to Everton.
Verdict: 2-2 instead of 2-1 to Everton
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Liverpool aim to solve scoring problems with West Ham's Cole
11.11.09 | tribalfootball.com
Liverpool are eyeing West Ham United striker Carlton Cole. The Daily Mail
says with Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard struggling through injuries,
manager Rafa Benitez has been forced to rely on back-up strikers David Ngog
and Andriy Voronin. Cole's outstanding form has generated interest from
home and abroad, particularly in view of the financial problems at Upton
Park. West Ham fought off bids for their top players in the summer but are
braced for more pressure when the transfer window re-opens. Cole, who is 26
tomorrow, has scored six in 11 Premier League games this season, including
one against Liverpool in September.
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Palace boss Warnock: West Ham cannot recall Sears
11.11.09 | tribalfootball.com
Crystal Palace boss Neil Warnock has ruled out an early recall to West Ham
United for striker Freddie Sears. There were rumours the Hammers would look
at recalling 19-year-old Sears, who is on a season-long loan at Selhurst
Park, but Warnock confirmed they would have to wait another two months. He
said: "They can recall him but not until January."
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