WHUFC.com
Scott Parker is one of three West Ham United players in the 30-man England
squad
11.05.2010
Robert Green, Matthew Upson and Scott Parker have been named in Fabio
Capello's provisional 30-man squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The trio
were all named on Tuesday afternoon, with striker Carlton Cole among the
most notable absentees. Green and Upson were widely thought to be
certainties for the squad, but Parker was a surprise but deserved inclusion
after his terrific season for the club. The players will all be part of a
pre-finals training camp in Austria. England face Mexico on 24 May at
Wembley in their final home friendly before taking on Japan on 30 May in
Graz. Their opening World Cup fixture, once Capello has whittled his squad
down to 23 names, will be against the United States on Saturday 12 June.
England squad
Goalkeepers
Joe Hart, David James, Robert Green
Defenders
Leighton Baines, Jamie Carragher, Ashley Cole, Michael Dawson, Rio
Ferdinand, Glen Johnson, Ledley King, John Terry, Matthew Upson, Stephen
Warnock
Midfielders
Gareth Barry, Michael Carrick, Joe Cole, Steven Gerrard, Tom Huddlestone,
Adam Johnson, Frank Lampard, Aaron Lennon, James Milner, Scott Parker, Theo
Walcott, Shaun
Wright-Phillips
Forwards
Darren Bent, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe, Emile Heskey, Wayne Rooney
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Hammers off to Hong Kong
WHUFC.com
Alex Dyer will lead a young ten-strong squad to the HKFC IP Global
International Soccer Sevens
11.05.2010
A ten-man West Ham United squad were flying to the Far East for the HKFC IP
Global International Soccer Sevens in Hong Kong on Tuesday. The Hammers
finished as runners-up in the Shield competition at the same seven-a-side
tournament last May, and lost in the quarter-finals of the tournament-proper
in 2008. Led by reserve-team manager Alex Dyer, West Ham's youngsters have
been paired in Group C with Glasgow Rangers, HKFC Captain's Select and Hong
Kong-based Tuen Mun. The Hammers will kick-off their challenge with three
group-stage fixtures on 15 May, starting against Tuen Men at 3.31pm local
time, followed by HKFC Captain's Select at 5.13pm and Glasgow Rangers at
7.12pm. Depending on where they finish in the standings, Dyer's team will
then move forward to either the Cup or Plate competitions the following day.
Dyer's squad consists of three professionals - Jordan Spence, Olly Lee and
Anthony Edgar - and seven second-year scholars. Sam Cowler is the only
goalkeeper, with defenders Jordan Brown and Callum McNaughton, midfielders
Eoin Wearen and Nicky Barrett and forwards Ahmed Abdulla and Cristian
Montano also travelling. Academy Director Tony Carr, who has led the Hammers
to Hong Kong in recent years, said the trip was a worthwhile end-of-season
exercise. "Alex Dyer has taken over my role of taking the squad to Hong
Kong. I took two trips and this is Alex's second year. It's a good
well-organised tournament. It's a long, long way, but as an end-of-season
tournament, it's a good one to have and I hope the boys do themselves
justice and have a good time." West Ham are one of five English clubs taking
part alongside Aston Villa, Birmingham City, Sunderland and non-league pair
Sheffield FC and Eastleigh. Celtic, Rangers and Ajax are also involved,
along with a host of Asian club sides.
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Parker named in England squad
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 11th May 2010
By: Staff Writer
Scott Parker has been included in the provisional 30-man England World Cup
squad. Parker's excellent form over the past 18 months has finally been
recognised by England manager Fabio Capello, who includes the combatative
midfielder in his selction for the first time this year. Parker is joined in
the 30-man squad by goalkeeper Robert Green and ceentre half Matthew Upson -
although Carlton Cole, who has featured in virtually every England squad for
the last year has been omitted in favour of Sunderland's Darren Bent.
The 30-man squad travels to Austria in six days time to begin preparation
for the forthcoming tournament.
Full provisional England World Cup squad
Joe Hart, David James, Robert Green; Leighton Baines, Jamie Carragher,
Ashley Cole, Michael Dawson, Rio Ferdinand, Glen Johnson, Ledley King, John
Terry, Matthew Upson, Stephen Warnock; Gareth Barry, Michael Carrick, Joe
Cole, Steven Gerrard, Tom Huddlestone, Adam Johnson, Frank Lampard, Aaron
Lennon, James Milner, Scott Parker, Theo Walcott, Shaun Wright-Phillips;
Darren Bent, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe, Emile Heskey, Wayne Rooney.
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Arrivederci Zola
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 11th May 2010
By: Gordon Thrower
The club has parted company with manager Gianfranco Zola after two years in
charge. In a brief statement that appeared on the official website this
morning, the club announced: West Ham United confirm that they have
terminated the contract of Gianfranco Zola. The Board of Directors would
like to thank him for his contribution and wish him well for the future. The
Club will now be focusing its efforts on seeking a replacement. The Club
will be making no further comment on this matter.
Avram Grant has been installed as the bookies' favourite to replace the
popular Italian, whilst Slaven Bilic and Mark Hughes have also been
mentioned as possible replacements.
One manager who won't be coming is Steve McClaren who celebrated FC Twente's
first Dutch title in 45 years by accepting the top job at Wolfsburg. We'll
have lots more on Zola's departure and his potential successor later....
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Zola factfile
Skysports.com looks back at the popular Sardinian's career to date after
news broke that he had been sacked by West Ham United
Last updated: 11th May 2010
SSN
West Ham United have parted company with Gianfranco Zola after a season of
much upheaval at Upton Park. New owners David Sullivan and David Gold have
wasted little time in stamping their mark on the East London outfit. Here,
skysports.com looks back at the popular Sardinian's career to date.
1966: Born in Oliena, Sardinia on July 5.
1984: Signs first professional contract with Nuorese, for whom he scores 10
goals in 31 appearances.
1987: Remains in Sardinia and signs for Serie C outfit Sassari Torres and
nets 21 times in 88 games.
1989: Joins Serie A side Napoli, where he serves as an understudy to Diego
Maradona.
1990: April - Part of the Napoli side which wins the Scudetto for only the
second time in their history.
August - Helps Napoli win the Italian Super Cup with a 5-1 win over
Juventus.
1991: November - Called up to the full Italy squad and makes his debut in a
friendly against Norway.
1993: Joins Parma after Napoli finish a disappointing 11th in Serie A.
1994: June - Part of Italy's squad for the World Cup in the USA. Italy reach
the final but Zola only features in the 2-1 extra-time victory over Nigeria
in the last 16.
1995: Plays in both legs of Parma's 2-1 win over Juventus in the UEFA Cup
final.
1996: New Parma coach Carlo Ancelotti decides Zola will not fit into his
system and he is signed by Chelsea boss Ruud Gullit for £4.5million.
1997: February - Scores the only goal of the game with a superb strike from
a narrow angle past Ian Walker to give Italy a 1-0 win over England in a
World Cup qualifier at Wembley.
May - Named Football Writers' Association player of the year.
October - Wins the last of his 35 caps against England in a World Cup
qualifier in Rome.
1998: Left out of Italy's squad for France '98.
2000: May 20 - Helps Chelsea land the FA Cup with a 1-0 win over Aston Villa
at Wembley.
2003: January - Overwhelmingly voted Chelsea's best player ever in a fans'
poll, ahead of Peter Osgood, Dennis Wise and Jimmy Greaves.
July - Swaps Chelsea for Serie B side Cagliari despite an 11th-hour bid from
new Blues owner Roman Abramovich to keep him at the club.
2004: Achieves promotion to Serie A with the Sardinian club.
2005: June - Retires at the age of 38.
2006: Accepts role as assistant to Italy Under-21 boss Pierluigi Casiraghi.
2008: March - Admits he would be interested in managing in the Premier
League, preferably with old club Chelsea.
September 10 - Agrees a three-year deal to become West Ham manager.
2009: April 25 - Signs new contract to keep him at Upton Park until 2013.
May - Leads Hammers to ninth-place finish in Premier League.
2010: March 25 - West Ham co-owner David Sullivan slammed the club's
performance in their 3-1 home defeat to Wolves as "shambolic" and
"pathetic".
March 27 - Zola says he will consider his future after the home loss to
Stoke - a sixth defeat in succession.
March 29 - Zola tells the club's website he is "determined to carry on" as
West Ham manager.
April 24 - West Ham beat Wigan 3-2 to all but confirm their safety, easing
the pressure on Zola.
April 30 - Zola admits he had not been consulted about the club's £4million
bid for West Brom's Graham Dorrans, or Sullivan's announcement the entire
squad was for sale except Scott Parker.
May 3 - West Ham's safety is confirmed as Hull fail to beat Wigan.
May 9 - Season ends with 1-1 draw against Manchester City.
May 11 - Has contracted terminated by West Ham.
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West Ham sack Zola
Italian leaves Upton Park after poor end to season
Last updated: 11th May 2010
SSN
West Ham United have, as expected, parted company with manager Gianfranco
Zola. The Hammers have confirmed that they have sacked the Italian,
following a meeting on Tuesday. It comes as little surprise, as he has been
at loggerheads with new owners David Sullivan and David Gold almost since
the day they took charge at Upton Park in January. Zola was popular both
with the players and fans at West Ham, but despite guiding them to Premier
League safety his tenure has ended less than 12-months after he took charge
at the club. The club confirmed Zola's exit in a statement, saying: "West
Ham United confirm that they have terminated the contract of Gianfranco
Zola. "The Board of Directors would like to thank him for his contribution
and wish him well for the future. The club will now be focusing its efforts
on seeking a replacement. "The club will be making no further comment on
this matter."
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Grant to be named new West Ham boss
Published 09:30 11/05/10 By MirrorFootball
The Mirror
West Ham want to name Avram Grant as successor to Gianfranco Zola today. The
former Chelsea manager has impressed Hammers owners David Gold and David
Sullivan with the job he has done at crisis club Portsmouth this season, who
he has led to the FA Cup Final despite massive financial problems at Fratton
Park. Current Hammers boss Zola will leave after a poor season in which the
club flirted with relegation, struggled with financial difficulties and was
the subject of a takeover by outspoken new owners Gold and Sullivan. The
Italian has had a troubled relationship with the pair since they took over
at Upton Park in January and his departure will come as no surprise. Grant
is expected to take charge next season.
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10 Reasons why Gianfranco Zola had to go
By Dan Silver in Mirror Football Blog
Published 12:12 11/05/10
The Mirror
West Ham owners David Gold and David Sullivan finally got rid of their man
today, sacking boss Gianfranco Zola after a dismal season in which the
Hammers finished just one place above the relegation zone.
Although inevitable, the decision will be roundly criticised in certain
quarters of the media as the Italian's numerous and vocal supporters close
ranks around their man (the chief argument for the defence being that Zola
is a 'nice man' or 'one of the good guys' - as if this has any bearing at
all on his ability to manage a football club).
Nonsense, argues MirrorFootball's Dan Silver. Zola had to go - and here's 10
reasons why:
1) His disastrous first full season in charge
West Ham retained their Premier League status by default, staying up purely
because the three teams below them were, unbelievably, even more woeful. The
stats speak for themselves - eight wins, 19 defeats, 35 points - but, to add
some context, compare with those of the Hammers' last relegation season in
2002-03: 10 wins, 16 defeats and 42 points.
2) His overall career stats
Zola was praised for steering the side he took over from Alan Curbishley to
a creditable ninth place finish in 2009, but that season was also blighted
by a disastrous run of form that left West Ham flirting with the relegation
zone for a large chunk of the season. The proof of this particular pudding
can be found in the Italian's overall league record as West Ham boss: played
80, won 23, drawn 21, lost 36, providing a win percentage of just 28.75.
This is by far the lowest of any of the Hammers' Premier League managers -
even the much maligned Glenn Roeder managed 31.39% (from a comparable 86
games).
3) His choice of formation
Zola is an outspoken advocate of the beautiful game played the beautiful way
- for which read Chelsea's potent and fluid 4-3-3/4-5-1 formation - and
while his determination to introduce such a style of football at Upton Park
chimed with West Ham's own rich history, the Italian's failure to recognise
that he lacked the personnel to pull it off almost ended in disaster.
Whether borne out of naivety or arrogance, Zola's refusal to put substance
before style was one of his major undoings.
4) His motivational abilities
Much was made of Zola's relationship with his playing staff - something
their over-zealous public displays of affection when celebrating goals has
proved - but the lethargy with which they set about their supposed
relegation battle told another story. And, let's be honest here: if you had
a boss who was one of the lads and potentially let you get away with murder
at the workplace, you'd be quite vocal with your support as well should
somebody higher up threaten to replace him with a more disciplined
appointment.
5) His inconsistent team selections
Yes, Zola's reign was bedevilled by injury, but some of the decisions he
made with the personnel that was available to him were baffling:
persistently playing Mark Noble, Jack Collison and Alessandro Diamanti on
the wings when none of them were suited to the role; or continually
punishing mistakes by central defenders Danny Gabbidon, James Tomkins and
Manuel Da Costa with a subsequent benching when a settled back four was
needed.
6) His blind allegiance to Jonathan Spector
By far Zola's biggest blind spot involved the Hammers' left-back berth,
though. Despite impressive showings by the 19 year-old Swiss international
Fabio Daprela on the rare occasions he was allowed out of the stiffs, Zola
insisted on picking Jonathan Spector, a competent-at-best reserve right-back
whose calamitous errors on his unfavoured side cost the Hammers hatfuls of
points.
7) His injury record
At what point does base bad luck verge on something rather less palatable
instead? Zola's appointment of fellow Italian Antonio Pintus as fitness
coach was heralded as a chance to confine Curbishley's walking wounded era
to history. In the event, little changed, and West Ham's season was blighted
by a series of - arguably preventable - soft tissue injuries sustained
during early stages of games to key players.
8) His transfer record
Given the obfuscation over how much influence Zola actually had on the
comings and goings of personnel during both regimes that he served under,
it's hard to say how much he was to blame to for the exodus on talent and
influx of flops at Upton Park over the past 18 months. However, the manager
did go on record after the arrival of Inter Milan loanee Luis Jimenez,
stating that he was the type of player he wanted to build a team around.
After just 11 disappointing league starts, the Chilean was shipped back to
Italy.
9) His affiliation with Chelsea
Of course top-level football appointments should overcome petty rivalries,
but the fact that Zola was one of hated London rivals Chelsea's all-time
legends rankled from the start. When results were going their way, the
critics in the Chicken Run were happy to let this slide; when they weren't
it became another stick with which to stir their simmering cauldron of
resentment. Zola himself didn't help matters any by publicly expressing his
admiration for East End hate figure Frank Lampard and also choosing to go to
Stamford Bridge for Chelsea's crunch game with Arsenal in February instead
of scouting upcoming West Ham opponents Birmingham and Wolves who were
playing at St Andrews that same Sunday afternoon.
10) His relationship with Gold and Sullivan
No matter what your thoughts on West Ham's new owners and they way they go
about their business ( and you can read mine here ), it's imperative that
the man in the dugout maintains a decent working relationship with them.
Zola's appeared to get off on the wrong foot - and then went quickly
downhill from there. From the moment David Sullivan - quite rightly -
lambasted Zola's side for their woeful performance in the 3-1 home defeat to
fellow strugglers Wolves, it was clear that the Italian's days were
numbered.
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