WHUFC.com
Friday marks the start of the sale of Carling Cup semi-final tickets to
season ticket holders
03.12.2010
Season ticket holders can start to snap up their seats from today for the
Carling Cup semi-final first leg against Birmingham City at the Boleyn
Ground.
The exclusive selling period for season ticket holders will run until Monday
13 December, with prices slashed by the club to reward this loyal group of
supporters. As usual, fans can buy online, over the phone or in person from
the ticket office.
Any season ticket seats not sold by Monday 13 December, will be made
available to members at that point, with general sale - should it be needed
- beginning on Saturday 18 December.
The match will be played in the week commencing 10 January 2011, with the
second leg at St Andrew's following in the week commencing 24 January 2011.
Were the Hammers to win through, the final will be played at Wembley on
Sunday 27 February.
West Ham have reached the League Cup final twice in their history, losing
out on both occasions. West Brom ran out 5-3 aggregate winners in 1965/66,
while Liverpool earned a 2-1 replay victory at Villa Park in 1980/81 after
the initial game at finished 1-1 at Wembley. Birmingham won the 1963 final
with a 3-1 aggregate success against Aston Villa. and were beaten 5-4 on
penalties by Liverpool in the 2001 final after a 1-1 draw.
Click here for all the latest ticket prices with great savings for season
ticket holders. Seling dates are as follows:
* Season ticket holders - Friday 3 to Monday 13 December
* Club members - Tuesday 14 to Friday 17 December
* General sale - Saturday 18 December onwards
Supporters that attended the previous Carling Cup home fixtures and wish to
receive priority for the semi-final first leg v Birmingham are instructed to
submit a postal application - enclosing either match tickets or booking
reference number - to be received no later than Tuesday 14 December 2010.
Applications should be addressed to Ticket Sales, PO Box 6731, London E13
9RA. Any received will be processed on close Friday 17 December.
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Prices slashed for Barnsley
WHUFC.com
The FA Cup third-round tie with Barnsley will be held on Saturday 8 January
at the Boleyn Ground
01.12.2010
West Ham United are delighted to confirm that ticket prices have been
slashed for the FA Cup third-round fixture with Barnsley on Saturday 8
January at the Boleyn Ground.
Season ticket holders will once again be able to make a great saving on
their usual seat, with the Board reducing prices to just £10 for adults and
£5 for Under-16s. All other supporters will pay only a fiver more with
general adult tickets costing £15 and Under-16s £10.
The selling dates for the 3pm fixture will be as follows:
* Season ticket holders - Tuesday 30 November to Wednesday 8 December
* Club members - Thursday 9 to Friday 10 December
* General sale - Saturday 11 December onwards
The club have continued to offer great ticket savings for the cup
competitions this season, with some of the lowest prices seen at the Boleyn
Ground in more than a decade. Including Manchester United's visit in the
Carling Cup, the last two home games have been sold out to home fans as fans
flock to support the team.
As such, demand is expected to be high for the start of this season's FA Cup
adventure so move fast to avoid disappointment.
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Happy Hines
WHUFC.com
Zavon Hines was all smiles after making his first-team return in Tuesday's
Carling Cup victory
02.12.2010
What a difference a year makes. Before Tuesday's epic Carling Cup
quarter-final, the last time Zavon Hines had pulled on a West Ham United
first-team shirt was in the 4-0 home league defeat by Manchester United on 5
December 2009. Six days short of a year later, Hines made his comeback as a
second-half substitute in the Hammers' unforgettable slaying of the holders
at the Boleyn Ground. The final score? 4-0.
For Hines, the statistical irony of his return was eclipsed by his double
delight at being back in action and helping his side through to the
semi-finals for the first time in 21 years "It was good to be back and I'm
just glad that we won," Hines told WHUTV. "We don't want to take our foot
off the pedal. We're having a good moment at this time - we won on Saturday
[against Wigan Athletic] and we won on Tuesday, so we want to continue and
beat Sunderland on Sunday. These are good times right now."
Hines had played twice for the reserves before his first-team return,
scoring in last week's 2-1 defeat by Chelsea, but he still has work to do
before he reaches full match-fitness. "I'm not 100 per cent fit just yet,
but I'm getting there. It has been a long time but it's just part of
football, so just deal with it.
"I just want to ease my way back into the squad and then hopefully get into
the starting XI when my fitness is up. We'll just have to see how it goes."
Throughout his spell on the sidelines, the England Under-21 forward received
words of support from his club-mates, most notably fellow long-term
absentees Kieron Dyer and Danny Gabbidon and close friend Junior Stanislas.
"The lads have supported me. Obviously Kieron and Gabbs have been through it
and they spoke to me and told me what to do, so right now I'm just happy to
be back and supporting the team."
Hines is now keen to give his own support to his colleagues and was
delighted to see Carlton Cole bang in two goals to cement West Ham's midweek
victory over the Red Devils. "It's obviously good for him because he hasn't
scored that often and has had a hard time of late. It was good for him to
get those two goals and hopefully he can push on."
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United v City
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 2nd December 2010
By: Staff Writer
West Ham United will face Birmingham City in the semi finals of the Carling
Cup. City - who beat local rivals Aston Villa 2-1 in a fiery encounter at St
Andrews last night - will travel to the Boleyn Ground for the first leg. The
ties are due to take place in the week commencing 10th January 2011, with
the return legs taking place a fortnight later. The draw means David
Sullivan and David Gold will return to the club they sold a year ago -
assuming David Gold is allowed into St Andrews, unlike the recent league
match for which Gold was banned due to comments made regarding Blues
chairman Peter Pannu.
The other semi final pitches bookies favourites Arsenal against Championship
outfit Ipswich Town, who beat Premier League West Brom 1-0 at Portman Road
last night.
How they got there: Birmingham City
Second Round: Rochdale (h) 3-2
Third Round: MK Dons (h) 3-1
Fourth Round: 1 Brentford (h) 1-1 aet (City win 4-3 on pens)
Quarter Final: Aston Villa (h) 2-1
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Downes 'making a difference'
New defensive coach praised by Spector and Cole
Last updated: 2nd December 2010
SSN
Wally Downes has explained how he has managed to help transform West Ham's
fortunes in just a week. Downes was appointed defensive coach following the
departure of Avram Grant'sassistant Zeljko Petrovic and the Hammers have
gone on to beat Wigan and Manchester Unitedin their last two matches. They
looked more solid at the back in seeing off the Latics 3-1 and then kept a
clean sheet in Tuesday's shock 4-0 Carling Cup quarter-final victory over
Manchester United. Downes had identified some problems whilst watching the
limp 3-0 defeat to Liverpoolbefore his role had even been confirmed and
admits he was able to implement some key changes quite quickly. "Initially,
Avram asked me to have a look at a few of the goals that have gone in
recently and where it could have been different," he said in the Daily
Mirror.
Clean slate
"Basically, it is easier to tighten up a defence than it is to instil
attacking philosophies into the players. You can make a short, sharp
difference with some structural stuff with defenders - give them a bit of
attitude and aggression. "I went up to Liverpool and although it was a bad
performance, it in no way reflected the way the team has been playing. "The
amount of games where the team has been in front and could have won, there
is obviously a disappointment that builds up and that culminated in the
Liverpool performance, but that has come and gone now. "It was a great time
to wipe the slate clean - it's about aggression and a will to win, it's
about the players and making sure they are on the front foot."
Unit
Jonathan Spector and Carlton Cole, who both scored twice in the shock win
against Manchester United, have also paid tribute to the impact of Downes.
Spector said: "Wally has made a big difference. Although I've been switched
to midfield and haven't been a beneficiary of all the work he's been doing
with our defence, all the players seem to like him and they are responding
to him." Cole added: "Wally is an excellent coach - defensively he's got us
playing as a unit, and we needed that. "This could definitely be a turning
point for us. Everyone was saying the Wigan game was a 'save-our-season'
match, and now we have beaten Manchester United three days later. We've got
to build on this and make progress."
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Nothing for Granted
Hammers are back in it but a long way from blowing bubbles
SSN
Jamie Redknapp Posted 2nd December 2010
It's been a great week for West Ham, it really has. Of course one week
doesn't make a season, but those wins over Manchester United and Wigan will
go a long way to giving them the one thing that has been missing -
confidence. What Avram Grant would really love this weekend is another home
game, not to have to go to Sunderland. West Ham don't have a bad record
there but it's one of those places it's difficult to get a result.
In fact looking at the weather in the north east right now, I bet Avram
wouldn't be that bothered if the game at the Stadium of Light was called
off!
Asamoah Gyan, Darren Bent and now Danny Welbeck are full of goals and West
Ham's problem has been keeping clean sheets. Ok, they managed it against
United in midweek, but let's be honest, it was not the strongest United
side. Scott Parker is the one player they need, the one player that will
keep them up. He must be worth 10 points to them this season and when you
think they only have 12 to their name that tells you everything. There's
been more than one occasion this season when I have seen them shoot
themselves in the foot at the back. Mistakes have cost them badly and that
is never going to help.
But that defence puzzles me. If you look at it, they have a goalkeeper who,
whatever happened, was deemed good enough to start for England at the World
Cup and an England centre-half in Matthew Upson. I do think selling James
Collins left a massive hole and they have chopped and changed the other
centre-back, but they shouldn't be making howlers like that. In fact, if you
look at the spine of that side, Green, Upson, Scott Parker and Carlton Cole,
there are a lot worse out there. Parker is the one player they need, the one
player that will keep them up. He must be worth 10 points to them this
season and when you think they only have 12 to their name that tells you
everything.
If he were to get injured, or if they were forced to sell him in January,
then I really wouldn't hold much hope for them this season. They also need
Cole scoring goals and playing with confidence because scoring goals has
been as much of a problem as keeping them out. Those goals against United
will do him the world of good and I like the look of Victor Obinna and
Frederic Piquionne, who when he is good, is very good and gets big goals in
big games.
Aggressive
The players aside, I think it's been a great move getting Wally Downes is as
number two. I know Avram Grant and my dad speaks highly of him. Contrary to
what you might see from him on TV, he is a really passionate guy. All
managers are different though and he might not be one of those in-your-face,
aggressive managers, which is why Wally is a good appointment. I am sure he
is a chirpy character, lively around the training ground and when you are
struggling for results, it makes such a difference having someone come in on
a Monday morning to put on a session that lifts the gloom. That said, I
don't see much wrong with with the mood among the players. I am not talking
about team spirit because if a team is losing, I just don't understand when
they say the spirit is still good because how can it be? You are getting
beaten week after week.
But if I look at the body language of the West Ham players they don't look
an unhappy lot. I know the crowd have been singing for Paolo di Canio but I
think the players are behind Grant, I really do. If they weren't rooting for
him, they wouldn't have picked up those last two results. What would have
happened is David Gold and David Sullivan would've started getting
phonecalls from agents telling them their player isn't happy with the
manager. That happens all the time if things are that bad. But I just don't
see it with West Ham, I really don't. Anarchy is hardly the backdrop for
back-to-back wins, is it?
They need to get some sort of result at Sunderland or all this week's work
will count for nothing. The Premier League is so tight this season - at
either end - that two wins in a row can shoot you right up the table, give
you real impetus. Six or seven weeks ago we had all given the title to
Chelsea, but look at it now - and it's exactly the same down the bottom. I
still think there is a lot of work to be done at West Ham - and they do need
another centre-back and possibly one or two others in January - but the game
that might well save their season is at the Stadium of Light this weekend.
If they lose that, then they will be even worse off than they were this time
last week.
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Grant: a stay of execution?
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 2nd December 2010
By: Paul Walker
Two wins in four days and how the mood has changed, particularily with that
stunning victory over Manchester United. And ok, that Carling Cup triumph
ruined my theory that West Ham are these days unable to offer a proper
challenge any more to the top four clubs. Frankly, I'd have rather had three
points, but just the sight of Fergie's face and hearing his complaints about
our boys being too physical just made it all the better. Someone should
remind Ferguson that he was never too bothered about the over-physical
approach of the likes of Roy Keane, Mark Hughes, Steve Bruce, Bryan Robson,
Gary Pallister, Paul Ince...while Evra, Vidic and our own Rio are no angels.
Have I made my point?
But the question now is, does the glow of success take the pressure from
Avram Grant's shoulders? He was for the chop a few days ago, so does two
wins change everything? You would expect there has been a stay of execution,
at least until the Carling Cup semi-finals next month. But Grant will need
to turn the form of the last two games into the Premier League, and quickly.
But all the talk of managerial change will not go away. The media has been
rife with rumours, and you can bet those theories have come from briefings
from within Upton Park.
And there has even been suggestions that Wally Downes would be a more than
capable caretaker manager should Grant fail to keep the momentum going. And
even after the victory over Wigan, there was been much chatter from the
media that Cardiff's Dave Jones or QPR's Neil Warnock are in the frame. I
certainly hope not. Warnock would never be accepted by Irons fans, the man
who has done nothing but bad-mouth West Ham - and threaten legal action -
since the Tevez saga. Warnock would be lucky to get inside the ground, let
alone the dug-out. Surely our great leaders the two Davids would not be
crazy enough to even consider such a mood. Then there's Jones. He was
seemingly in for the job before Grant was appointed, with Leeds owner Ken
Bates even openingly suggesting that Jones was trying to work his ticket
from Cardiff.
The media in Cardiff would be glad to see the back of Jones. He has been
engaged in a lengthy fall-out with the three major titles in Wales - owned
by Trinty Mirror - with reporters being banned from press conferences, and
even asked to leave the after- match press conference at Wembley last season
which was not under Cardiff's juristiction.
Jones seems unable to handle any sort of criticism, and the war with the
local media has dragged on and on. The former Wolves boss may well be able
to get away with that sort of behaviour in Cardiff, but the London media is
a completely different matter.
If Jones cannot handle criticism in Cardiff, what will be be like when
London's finest get stuck into him?
And then there's the feeling in Cardiff that Jones cannot cope well with
major matches. Losing to Swansea this season and Blackpool at Wembley last
term in the play-off final seems to give that feeling some substance.
West Ham fans, anyway, would want better than Warnock and Jones. And if Gold
and Sullivan can come up with another support coach in the Downes mould,
Grant could survive.
Downes seems to have changed our defensive system in a matter of days,
although it's a little worrying that international defenders like ours need
to be told what the basics are.
Downes' appointment was probably as much to do with Gold and Sullivan's
solid working relationship with agent Barry Silkman than anything Grant
suggested.
But Grant will know that league points are more important than cup finals,
so the recent progress must be maintained. But that's for the future, for
now lets just bask on the memory of a remarkable victory over Manchester
United and hope the confidence from that great cup success leads us out of
this relegation mess.
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West Ham eyeing move for Villa midfielder in January
By talkSPORT
Thursday, December 2
West Ham could bolster their newly revitalised squad with the signing of
Steve Sidwell in January. Avram Grant has won his last two games in charge
at Upton Park and could be rewarded with the funds to recruit the player he
managed for a season at Chelsea. Sidwell has failed to settle at Villa Park,
hindered by injuries, and a chance to relocate to London could suit the
Arsenal academy graduate. The biggest stumbling block could be the
midfielder's wages as he earns around £45,000-a-week under Gerard Houllier
and West Ham are unlikely to match that figure. But the Hammers may hope the
chance to play more regularly could make up for any financial loss. Jose
Mourinho took Sidwell to Chelsea in 2007 after he impressed in a Reading
side that was at the time coached by the Hammer's new coach Wally Downes.
Scott Parker has been in superb form so far this season and Grant has
praised his 'English mentality' and if Sidwell joins the club that will add
further English grit that will be invaluable in the relegation scrap the
club find themselves in. Mark Noble is a fans' favourite in central midfield
but has been ruled out with a hip injury until the New Year and had his
appendix removed in November. Sidwell's contract at Villa ends in the summer
and he is free to talk to clubs about a possible move in January.
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Aston Villa target West Ham striker Frederic Piquionne and Spurs forward
Robbie Keane
By SPORTSMAIL REPORTER Last updated at 8:08 AM on 3rd December 2010
Daily Mail
Aston Villa are keen on West Ham striker Frederic Piquionne and want to team
him with Tottenham's Robbie Keane in a new look attack. Norwegian John Carew
has fallen out of favour at Villa Park and manager Gerard Houllier has
concerns about the long-term fitness of Emile Heskey. The Frenchman wants
experience alongside the young talents of Gabriel Agbonlahor and Ashley
Young but also wants better movement and more flexibility in his options.
Houllier knows Piquionne well from the 31-year-old's time with Lyon and
Monaco and has been impressed by how he has adapted to English football with
Portsmouth and now at West Ham. The London club are short of cash and would
prefer to offload Carlton Cole if someone can match their £10million
valuation but that is unlikely and a £4.5million offer for Piquionne may be
their quickest source of income.
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Wally Downes takes West Ham back to basics with strong case for the defence
By SPORTSMAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 3:08 AM on 3rd December 2010
Daily Mail
New West Ham defence coach Wally Downes today lifted the lid on his
safety-first approach, which appears to have kick-started the club's
mini-revival.
The Hammers have won both their games emphatically since the arrival of
Downes, whose appointment came in the wake of the sacking of controversial
assistant manager Zeljko Petrovic just over a week ago. Rock-bottom West Ham
scored seven goals and conceded just one over the course of Saturday's
Barclays Premier League victory over Wigan and Tuesday night's shock Carling
Cup thrashing of Manchester United. Downes has been credited by defender
Jonathan Spector with being the inspiration behind such a dramatic
improvement but the former Reading coach insists there is nothing magical
about his contribution. 'If the ball is there, you have to get rid of it,'
said Downes. 'There's no value to overcomplicating things in your own final
third. I like to play football in the opposition's half. That's where the
damage is caused, so the more you can keep it away from your goalkeeper the
better.' Downes revealed how he arrived at Upton Park to find a squad
desperate to right the wrongs of their 3-0 defeat at Liverpool days earlier.
The lads have all pulled together and wanted to get that Liverpool result
out of their systems,' he said. They have responded to everything we have
said to them since and when you put your all in in training and in the
games, you get results. There is a determination within them to show they
can play football. They let one another down and let the fans down at
Liverpool and have gone about th e last two games to show that they are
passionate about what they are doing.'He added: 'You could see the
confidence in the dressing room after Tuesday's performance. Saturday was a
win-at-all-costs game and it didn't matter how we played as long as we got
the win.' West Ham, who are still three points adrift of safety at the foot
of the Premier League, will look to record a third straight win for the
first time in almost two years when they travel to Sunderland on Sunday.
Downes said: 'We have got to keep going right the way through to May. Every
time they pull the shirt on and every time they cross the line, they have
got to be up for it.'
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2018 England World Cup Bid a No Go!
West Ham Till I Die
So, England have the best bid (technically and financially), but we not only
lose out in the vote, but are eliminated in the first round! Independent
observers have confirmed that this country's bid was the strongest, but that
it just did not translate in to votes in the FIFA Executive Committee.
Why was the Russian bid preferred? Perhaps it was the legacy issue, the
attraction of taking the World Cup tournament in to Eastern Europe for the
first time? But surely this could not have superseded the inherent, broad
based strength of England's bid. Perhaps it was because we held the
tournament in 1966? Well, that argument did not apply to Germany who staged
it in 1974 and 2006 or Mexico in 1970 and 1986 (although I believe that in
1986 they stepped in when the original host country could not deliver).
Was it the BBC TV programme alleging corruption within FIFA? Well it
probably contributed, but the actual content of the show confirmed that
concern about FIFA extends way beyond the UK, with German journalists also
raising awkward questions in the programme. And if FIFA chose to punish the
England bid for allegations in the UK based media what does that say about
them? Those allegations are serious and FIFA would be better off taking the
time to confront and disprove them.
Or is the vote merely a reflection of England's current unpopularity on the
international stage. Certainly in football terms, we know that the
leadership of FIFA and EUFA are not exactly Anglophiles! One media
commentator likened the fate of our bid to that of recent UK contestants in
Eurovision, no one votes for us regardless of the quality of the song and
performance! A good analogy. Apparently we only received two votes and one
of those was the English FA representative. To think that in the 1966
selection process, our only competitor, Spain stepped down as a mark of
respect and affection for the nation that invented the game!
Is it just a case of FIFA valuing the legacy issue over all others? If so,
why not weigh the selection criteria accordingly? Then more established
football nations would know that there is a formal policy of placing the
tournament with developing football nations/regions, and not waste their
time and money bidding. Or is this decision a product of anti-English
sentiment, reinforced by the recent the BBC allegations and the high profile
controversies like Lord Triesman's faux pas? Or something altogether
different?
Certainly, FIFA are known to be pretty ruthless in maximising the profits
arising from the World Cup tournaments. South Africa was not a great
success in financial or footballing terms and Russia could also be seen as a
gamble. Indeed, the FIFA consultants were clear that the biggest risk on
profit generation and infrastructure (including airport capacity and
transport links) lay with Russia's bid. The most profitable and complete bid
would undoubtedly have been England's, yet this carried no weight in the
vote. Is it not strange that FIFA did not support the bid that was likely
to make the most profit for the organisation?
Whatever, one cannot escape the conclusion that there is something unjust
about this decision. Not because there is a belief that England have a
divine right to stage the WC (as some anti-English critics might claim), but
because ours was the best quality bid, by some considerable distance. We
might have accepted it, more readily, if England had lost out in a close
final vote, but to exit at the first stage is just madness. The FA should
now formally push FIFA to justify their decision under their own selection
criteria. I do not believe that FIFA will be able to do that very easily or
convincingly.
One thing is certain, investigative journalists are likely to dig further.
In that sense, FIFA have probably not done themselves any favours in the
long run. It will now focus even more attention upon FIFA's lack of
openness, transparency and accountability. No doubt more information will
surface in due course.
Oh yes, and FIFA, in their wisdom, have also awarded the 2022 WC tournament
to Qatar!
SJ. Chandos.
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Diamanti sparkles again
Telegraph.co.,uk
Alessandro Diamanti was drummed out of West Ham during the summer, having,
in the eyes of the club's new owners, failed to justify his £6 million price
tag after his move from Livorno. Fair enough. Except West Ham supporters —
who voted Diamanti as runner-up in the player-of-the-season awards behind
Scott Parker — must be wondering if it was a hasty decision.
Diamanti, now at Brescia, is setting Serie A alight and recently made his
international debut for Italy in their friendly against Romania. His new
club, who signed him for £1.8 million, have already received an unofficial
bid of £10 million for him, from Steve McClaren's Wolfsburg.
Some players do not settle in foreign leagues, but there must be a sense
that Diamanti was a rough diamond who should have been given more time.
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Hammers weigh up Spector offer
ESPN
December 2, 2010
ESPNsoccernet understands West Ham are now considering offering Jonathan
Spector a new deal after his impressive performance in central midfield
against Manchester United. West Ham had originally planned to allow Spector,
24, to move on during the January window, with Bundesliga side Cologne
having shown interest in his services. The USA international is in the final
year of his contract. However, an injury crisis saw Avram Grant utilise the
defender in midfield against Manchester United in their Carling Cup
quarter-final on Tuesday, and Spector scored twice in a 4-0 win. Grant is
now set to give the player a run in his new position and the chance to show
his worth. Asked if Spector was leaving, a Hammers insider told
ESPNsoccernet: "Not now he's not. Maybe he's been in the wrong position all
his life at full back." With West Ham still close to £90 million in debt,
the owners are taking a prudent approach to new deals and only rewarding
those whose performances warrant extensions.
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