WHUFC.com
Gianfranco Zola and his squad have headed to the Chinese capital for the
Barclays Asia Trophy
26.07.2009
West Ham United have departed in good spirits for the Barclays Asia Trophy
in China with the travelling party on a high after a successful pre-season
training camp.
The club is sending a 23-man squad to Beijing, although the players will
wear numbers 1-24 because there is no No6 after it was retired in honour of
Bobby Moore. The players met up at the Boleyn Ground after a couple of days
with their families following their return from Austria. Although he made
good progress during the last two weeks, Valon Behrami will stay behind to
work on his individual fitness programme along with Dean Ashton and Terry
Dixon.
Luis Jimenez - known as Jimmy to his new team-mates - will be on the plane
as will Jonathan Spector, James Tomkins and Mark Noble who are a week or so
behind the rest of the squad in terms of fitness after returning later.
Scott Parker is another who has only just returned to match action in recent
days. Jordan Spence and Bondz N'Gala are the only two travelling without
first-team experience for the club.
West Ham will train for the first time in Monday, and again on Tuesday
before the match against Tottenham Hotspur at the Beijing Workers Stadium on
Wednesday (kick-off: 11am London time). The winners of that fixture will
play the victors of the meeting of Hull City and Beijng Guoan on Friday. In
between, there will be a community day with the club playing a key role in
the Premier League initiatives with local youngsters.
Luis Boa Morte summed up the positive mood in the camp before the
high-profile trip. He said: "I am looking forward to China, it will be a
good experience. I have never been before. It is something new and a
different country. I like Chinese food a lot so it should be good!
"It will be good to meet a Premier League team like Tottenham this early.
You like to play against strong opponents to improve as a player. Tottenham
will be a derby and we know them well but this time it will be a few miles
away from the UK. It will still be a game that will be pretty hard though.
They won't want to get beat and we won't want to get beat."
The squad will wear the 2009/10 home shirt for the first time with the strip
available in the club shops and the online Megastore from Thursday. Fans
travelling should take note of the following advice available from the
Premier League. For a travel guide, click here and for information about the
Workers Stadium, click here
West Ham United squad
Goalkeepers: Green, Kurucz, Stech
Defenders: Spector, Faubert, Ilunga, Spence, N'Gala, Upson, Collins,
Gabbidon, Tomkins
Midfielders: Stanislas, Noble, Parker, Dyer, Jimenez, Collison, Payne, Boa
Morte
Forwards: Cole, Hines, Savio
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Hilton proud of schoolboys
WHUFC.com
Paul Hilton believes the club's U16s will taken plenty of positives from the
weekend friendly at Spurs
27.07.2009
Paul Hilton believes his young players will have learned a lot during the
3-2 pre-season friendly defeat at Tottenham Hotspur. Assistant Academy
Director Hilton took a very young team to Spurs Lodge for what was
effectively an Under-17 fixture on Saturday. A number of U16 schoolboys were
also involved, with goalkeeper Jake Larkins, midfielders Blair Turgot and
Dominic Vose and winger Mathias Fanimo all impressing on Saturday alongside
George Moncur and Eoin Wearen - fresh from a goal for the reserves at
Thurrock on Friday night.
Spanish defender Sergio Sanchez, 16, captained the side, while up front
first-year scholars Daniel Purdy and Daniel Subuola impressed with their
ability and persistence.Purdy and Turgot were both on target for the
Hammers, who were slightly unfortunate to take nothing from an entertaining
game. With so many youngsters involved, and many of Hilton's squad involved
in a pre-season game at Tiptree United on Wednesday, the two clubs agreed to
allow rolling substitutions on a hot morning in Chigwell.
As such, Hilton replaced Callum Driver, Jack Lampe, Vose and Subuola after
just 21 minutes, with Jordan Brown, Paco Craig, Jack Werndly and Wearen
coming in to the action. In all, the Hammers made ten changes over the
course of the 90 minutes. The substitutions had an undoubted effect on the
fluency of the team's passing.
"I think it was a great test for the lads," said Hilton. "I said to them
before that I intended to make lots of changes anyway because the game came
on top of the game on Wednesday. So, some of them had a 20-minute blast
physically and then came off and had a rest, got some fluid inside them and
did a bit of stretching while I put somebody else on.
"Sometimes you can get bitty performances by making so many changes but,
having said that, I thought Tottenham passed the ball better than us,
especially in the second half.
"I thought we did really well in the first 20 minutes. We got the goal and
could have got a couple more. After that we didn't really find the
consistency we were looking for. We gave the ball away a little bit too
much, especially early in the second half, which was a bit disappointing.
"Fair play to Tottenham, because they passed the ball well and worked very
hard. They gave us a good test. Even though we got back in the game at 3-2
and had a couple of chances to rescue the game result-wise, I think a lot of
the lads came out of the game with credit."
Hilton believes his young players will have taken a great deal from
Saturday's match and has urged them to use that experience when the FA
Premier Academy League season kicks of at the end of August.
"This game was an illustration to the younger ones of how quick and physical
the game can be at Under-18 level," he said. "It was a good workout for them
so, from that point of view, we were quite pleased with how the game went."
"In the second half we had a midfield with three schoolboys in there. Those
boys are learning the game and it was a great experience for them coming
into this environment at this level of football. From that point of view, it
is great and we have to take that into consideration when you look at the
overall result.
"We feel they're capable of playing at that level or else we wouldn't be
playing them. They've got lots to think about and lots to work on and this
was another step up for them."
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China trip excites Collison
WHUFC.com
With the squad safely arrived in Beijing, thoughts for Jack Collison have
turned to the task in hand
27.07.2009
Jack Collison is eager for West Ham United's pre-season to move to another
level with the arrival in China for the Barclays Asia Trophy. The
20-year-old midfielder was part of a 23-man strong squad that touched down
in a humid Beijing on Monday morning. The Hammers were given a good
reception at the airport with a number of photographers and camera crews
there to record the occasion. Arriving before Tottenham Hotspur - their
opponents on Wednesday - and Hull City, West Ham were soon on their way to
the city centre hotel that would be their base for the next week.
After a light meal and a few hours rest to recover from the flight, the
squad were scheduled to have an evening training session before a more
rigorous work-out on Tuesday. Collison said he could not wait to get
started, having already noticed the benefit of the previous two weeks at an
Austrian training camp.
"All of the boys are really looking forward to this week in China. Things
are slowly starting to come together for the new season. The past two weeks
[in Austria] has been all about trying to get our fitness up and trying to
get a bit more match fitness. We will really look to enjoy it in China.
"[Austria] was hard work but it's been enjoyable. Instead of having us
running all of the time, the manager has had us doing a lot of work with the
ball. It is just as hard but enjoyable. It has been hard work but we are
fully fit and in a really good frame of mind."
The midweek derby date with Tottenham at the Beijing Workers Stadium - live
on Sky Sports in the UK - was firmly in sight. "Every time you play Spurs it
is always going to have that added incentive as you always want to get one
over them. That is not just for yourself but it is massive for the fans as
well so we going to look to really enjoy that game. We definitely want to do
well and win the competition."
Collison is not worried about the weather, which as warm as the welcome when
they arrived but has the potential for a downpour or two. "If it's raining I
don't think it would be a bad thing. Pre-season is all about your match
sharpness and getting to know the new players. Jimmy [Luis Jimenez] has come
in and already looks like part of the team.
"Spending 12 days together, every day and every night, is great for team
spirit and we're going to look to have a real good trip to China and then
start the season well."
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Redknapp denies Upson link
Tottenham boss rubbishes suggestions of raid for Hammers centre-back
Last updated: 26th July 2009
SSN
Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp has denied speculation linking him to West Ham
centre-back Matthew Upson. Redknapp has major worries at the heart of his
defence as Ledley King, Jonathan Woodgate and Michael Dawson are sidelined,
leaving no recognised centre-back at his disposal. But the Spurs boss -
whose side's defensive frailties were exposed in Sunday's 2-0 defeat to
Celtic in the Wembley Cup - insists he is not looking to sign England
defender Upson from former club West Ham. Redknapp told Sky Sports News:
"I've never mentioned Matthew Upson - listen, don't believe all the rubbish
you read in the Sunday newspapers, where they get these stories from God
only knows. "I've never, ever mentioned Matthew Upson - he's a terrific
player - never mentioned the boy's name, he belongs to West Ham and please
God for West Ham he stays there."
As regards the possible switch of Peter Crouch from Portsmouth to Spurs,
Redknapp said the deal was not yet done. "He doesn't belong to us until we
agree a fee for him with Portsmouth. Portsmouth want to sell him, we have to
agree a fee that is a fee that is acceptable to Portsmouth - if we don't do
that we can't get him so we will have to wait and see you know."
Spurs have been linked with both Crouch and Patrick Vieira and asked how
much money Redknapp had to spend, he replied: "It's not massive money - I
think we've got to do some business in the transfer market, one or two will
have to go out as well to balance the books before you can do anything."
Redknapp was also not too despondent after watching his side lose to Celtic.
"Last pre-season Tottenham beat Roma 5-0 on the Saturday before the season
started and then went eight games without winning a game," he said. "I had a
team a few years ago that lost six pre-season games and then won the
Championship so it's what you do, you take lessons, you learn from what you
get out of these pre-season games but it all counts on the opening day, that
is all that really matters - that is where it starts." When Crouch's signing
is finalised Darren Bent will all but certainly leave the club as Redknapp
added: "Darren is looking to go but it's up to people to make the offer that
we want. "Nobody misses chances deliberately. He tucked some great chances
away in pre-season and he will always score goals. He's a good player but I
just want some balance and Crouchy would give us something different."
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Gudjohnsen not set on England
Barca striker unsure what the future will hold
By Chris Burton Last updated: 26th July 2009
SSN
Eidur Gudjohnsen has revealed that there is no guarantee he will be heading
to England this summer. The Iceland international is widely expected to be
offloaded by Barcelona during the transfer window, with the European
champions already well stocked in the attacking department. The former
Bolton and Chelsea frontman has been strongly linked with a return to the
Premier League, with West Ham reported to be keen to strike a deal.
Gudjohnsen, though, insists he is yet to decide what his future may hold,
and claims he has not set his heart on a second spell in the English top
flight. "Everybody just seems to think if I don't continue at Barcelona then
I'll be coming back to England," he said. "But England's not the only
country that plays football. There are so many options. "Quite honestly, I
don't know where my future lies."
Gudjohnsen did feature for a young Barcelona side against Tottenham on
Friday in their opening game of the Wembley Cup, but he accepts
opportunities with the Catalan giants may be limited this season. As a
result, the 30-year-old knows he may be forced to move on in order to find
the regular football he craves. "I said it a couple of days ago that my
future is at Barcelona, unless anything changes," he added. "There's not
much I can say, because I don't know myself. "I need to play, simple as
that. I'm a footballer and I love the game of football. I want to play as
much as I can. "But I enjoyed myself against Spurs and I thought I played
some good stuff. "I'm just concentrating on getting myself fit. If I get too
involved in speculation then there's a risk I'll lose focus on keeping fit
for a new season."
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Scott Parker Looking Forward To West Ham's Trip To China
The Hammers midfielder is back in action after last season's injury and he
is concentrating on the future...
26 Jul 2009 19:19:02
West Ham United fly to China to participate in the Asia Trophy this week and
will face London rivals Tottenham Hotspur amongst other teams and Scott
Parker, now back in action after a groin injury curtailed his campaign last
season, is looking forward to the trip. Parker played 45 minutes of a
friendly in Slovenia last week, and is relishing the chance to be back and
building his fitness ahead of a new campaign, which promises much for the
Hammers. "Pre-season has been quite difficult for me, as I still had the
problem I had last year and only got over it two weeks before I came back,"
the 28-year-old told the Irons' official website. "I've been working hard
through the summer and realistically this was the best time for me to play.
"As a professional athlete, I'm not sure you're ever 100 per cent fit but
that's the way it is. I feel fine and as good as I can be, I just hope to
get fit now and push on. "China should be good and we've got some good
games out there. It will be difficult with the heat and the time difference
but we look forward to it and hopefully we can put in some good displays. We
want to do well out there."
As for his first action in a Hammers shirt since March in last Thurday's
friendly against ND Mura 05, a 0-0 draw, Parker found it tough going but was
pleased to be able to look forward to getting back to full fitness again. "I
found it OK. I've not played for the best part of four months so it was
quite difficult but I got through it and that was the main thing," he added.
"I look forwards and upwards now really."
Zack Wilson, Goal.com
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Sunday Transfer Roundup
West Ham Till I Die
* The Sunday Mirror reports that West Ham may sign Bristol City's Brazilian
goalkeeper Adriano Basso, 34, after he failed to agree a new contract.
* Several papers speculate on a £15 million bid for Matthew Upson from
Manchester City (if they fail to land John Terry) or Tottenham.
* News of the World is linking Julian Faubert with Bayer Leverkusen and
Schalke.
* Eidur Gudjohnsen is playing hard to get according to Eat Sleep Sport.
* Several papers/sites report that Dean Ashton will sign for Stoke this week
for £5 million.
No exactly an exciting day for West Ham transfer gossip, I readily admit!
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Gudjohnsen plays down West Ham link
Sport.co.uk
Author: Andrew Allen
Posted on: 26 July 2009 - 1:25 PM
Barcelona forward Eidur Gudjohnsen has rejected the idea that he is
definitely heading back to the Premier League this summer. The 30-year-old
Iceland international has previously played in England with Bolton Wanderers
and Chelsea and has been linked with a return after finding first-team
opportunities limited at the Camp Nou. However, Gudjohnson told reporters:
"Everybody just seems to think if I don't continue at Barcelona, then I'll
be coming back to England. "But England's not the only country that plays
football, there are so many options. Quite honestly, I don't know where my
future lies. "I said it a couple of days ago that my future is at Barcelona,
unless anything changes. There's not much I can say, because I don't know
myself. "I need to play, simple as that. I'm a footballer and I love the
game of football. I want to play as much as I can. "I'm just concentrating
on getting myself fit. If I get too involved in speculation then there's a
risk I'll lose focus on keeping fit for a new season."
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West Ham's Parker still hampered by injury
26.07.09 | tribalfootball.com
West Ham United midfielder Scott Parker admits he's struggling with injury.
"Pre-season has been quite difficult for me as I still had the problem I had
last year and only got over it two weeks before I came back," the
28-year-old England midfielder told whufc.com. "I've been working hard
through the summer and realistically this was the best time for me to play.
"As a professional athlete I'm not sure you're ever 100 per cent fit but
that's the way it is. I feel fine and as good as I can be I just hope to get
fit now and push on."
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Hertha Berlin striker Huke in West Ham trials
26.07.09 | tribalfootball.com
Germany youth international Sebastian Huke is trialling with West Ham
United. The striker featured in West Ham's victory over Thurrock on Friday
night in a game which also featured another Hammers trialist, Roma
midfielder Simone Bezzicherri. Huke is contracted to Hertha Berlin.
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Trio Chase West Ham United Striker Dean Ashton - Report
A newspaper report claims the injury-prone Hammer may have his pick of
clubs, should he choose to leave Upton Park...
26 Jul 2009 11:33:44
No less than three Premier League clubs are being linked with a move for
West Ham United striker Dean Ashton, according to the Sunday Express. The
newspaper claims that long-term suitors Stoke City have been joined by Hull
City and Fulham in the chase for the injury-prone forward, who looks set to
leave the Hammers this summer.
Ashton signed a new five-year contract at Upton Park in 2008 but has
suffered terribly with injuries since and managed only four Premier League
starts last season. Recent reports have also claimed that he has been left
out of the club's pre-season preparations, as an exit looms. Whilst he may
be surplus to requirements in East London, the Sunday Express claims that
the three clubs are set to bid up to £5 million to capture the 25-year-old.
Stoke manager Tony Pulis has previously admitted he has enquired about the
striker's availability, whilst Fulham are also known to be interested in
strengthening their squad, after qualifying for next season's Europa
League.Hull may also come into contention and, having already missed out on
several transfer targets including Frazier Campbell and Bobby Zamora, they
will be keen not to let another player slip through their fingers.
Gill Clark, Goal.com
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Bayer Leverkusen in for West Ham's Faubert
27.07.09 | tribalfootball.com
Bayer Leverkusen hope to snap up West Ham United midfielder Julien Faubert.
The Daily Star says Faubert is a target for German side Bayer Leverkusen.
The French midfielder, 25, spent part of last season on loan at Real Madrid.
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Stoke set to close deal for West Ham striker Ashton
27.07.09 | tribalfootball.com
Stoke City are closing in on a £5 million deal for West Ham United striker
Dean Ashton. The Daily Star Sunday says Hammers boss Gianfranco Zola has
decided to sell his injury-prone hitman, 25, after not getting the chance to
see him in first-team action last season. A succession of niggling injuries
halted Ashton's long-term recovery from major knee surgery a year earlier.
But Stoke, who have been chasing the former Crewe forward all summer, are
willing to give him the platform to revive his career.
Negotiations over the fee – which includes a sell-on clause – have been
completed and Ashton is due at the Britannia Stadium in the next 48 hours to
have a medical and discuss personal terms. As long as that proves trouble
free, Ashton will then be unveiled alongside Pulis' first close-season
signing – £3m Sunderland midfielder Dean Whitehead.
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West Ham target Gudjohnsen can't guarantee England return
27.07.09 | tribalfootball.com
Barcelona striker Eidur Gudjohnsen says a move to England is no certainty.
"Everybody just seems to think if I don't continue at Barcelona then I'll be
coming back to England," he said. "But England's not the only country that
plays football. There are so many options. "Quite honestly, I don't know
where my future lies." West Ham are favourites for the Icelander.
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