WHUFC.com
He has been putting in the extra work at Chadwell Heath in the hope of it paying off where it matters most
30.04.2011
Victor Obinna is the latest Hammers favourite to speak exclusively to West Ham TV. The Nigeria forward was captured on camera during and after an intensive shooting session that followed training on Friday afternoon. The 24-year-old stayed out on the Chadwell Heath pitches on his own for the extra work, firing in ball after ball from just outside the area into the net from a host of different angles. "I believe in working hard," he told West Ham TV, seconds after the last one crashed against the crossbar and down across the line. "And once you work hard it is going to pay off. When you practice, it pays off. I have good shooting ability but I need to keep practising so I can perfect it in the game."
With a wry smile, Obinna acknowledged that he had particularly been lively in shooting for goal in the first part of the season but had not always found the end product. "Obviously I have been shooting so much at the beginning of the season and [many] were going wide. The most important thing now is to keep hitting the target."
When Obinna gets it right, it can make a difference - remember the crucial goal against Wigan Athletic last November, the double away to Blackpool or his hat-trick in the FA Cup against Nottingham Forest. In between, he made all four goals in the Carling Cup rout of Manchester United. He knows he needs to add more goals to his game and is determined to try and register this Sunday at Manchester City, the first of a quartet of huge fixtures that will determine the outcome of the Hammers' season. "These games are absolutely massive for us. We need to win almost all of them to stay up. We really played well against Chelsea [last week]. Unfortunately we conceded three goals but let's look at the positive aspect and make sure we continue working hard and striving to do our best."
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Hammers enjoy Royals rout
WHUFC.com
Promising young midfielder Dominic Vose scored twice in an impressive U18s away win
30.04.2011
Reading U18s 1-5 West Ham United U18s
Dominic Vose started and ended the scoring as a rampant Hammers side turned in one of their best performances of the season on Saturday. The 17-year-old midfielder was part of an impressive visitors' display that delighted Academy Director Tony Carr. "We played very well," he told whufc.com. "It was an excellent performance by the team. "I thought our football at times tore Reading apart. We dominated 90 per cent of the game. The decisive goal was when Jack Powell scored from a direct free-kick early in the second half. That came just after they had pulled one back and it was a crucial moment in the game. After that we went on and added two more goals."
Vose and Elliott Lee had put the Hammers in a commanding position at the interval before that "sloppy" Royals strike soon after the break. Powell made no mistake with his free-kick and then Rob Hall swiftly followed suit with an equally well-taken set-piece. Vose rounded out the scoring on a match that saw Carr's opposite number Eamon Dolan - the former Academy product - full of praise. "It was good to see him," added Carr. "He just said 'Well done' and that 'you are the best team we have played this year'. Like all of us, he is finding it tough but enjoyable trying to unearth the next talents. It is hard and competitive. "Reading are always good at this level and it was a great result for us. They had a physical approach but we stood up to them. We had to mix it, in terms of nice football and defending aggressively. The goal was a downside but it was good to see us cope with that pressure."Earlier in the season, we might have let them back into it at that point as it gave them a massive lift but we were able to regain control and win the match well. "
Carr's team will round out their season next Saturday when they go to Chelsea. He will make sure that his youngsters do not get carried away by their Royals success. "We want to keep going and win the last game. It was one of our most complete performances of the season. "We haven't always had that maturity or defended when we have needed to but we put that right. One game doesn't make a season but I am pleased with what they showed in this performance."
West Ham United: Wooton, Hurley, Potts (Hunt 75), Chambers, Sanchez, Powell, Hall, Wearen, E Lee, Lletget, Vose
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Karma's a bitch
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 30th April 2011
By: Staff Writer
Sheffield United owner Kevin McCabe has been forced to issue a grovelling apology to his club's supporters after the Blades were relegated to League One this afternoon. McCabe, the genuis behind the extortion of some £25million from West Ham United in 2009 was one of three senior figures at the club to put their names to the statement, released immediately after today's 2-2 draw with Barnsley - a result that condemns Sheffield to the third tier of English football for the first time since the late 1980s.
The lengthy statement, posted on the club's website tonight began with an apology before New Labour's finest spindoctors were given a run for their money with talk of how relegation to England's third tier would 'be a journey for the fans, staff and players alike' and that relegation was just 'the beginning of that exciting journey' back to the Premier League - a division in which they have only featured for five seasons in the last 35 years.
The Blades' relegation was heartily cheered by supporters of today's opposition, whose Oakwell ground lies just 23 miles from Bramall Lane, home of their historically more successful neighbours. Tensions between supporters of the two clubs hit new heights following the brutal assault by Blades captain Chris Morgan on Barnsley's Iain Hume during a league game in 2008 that left the Tykes' striker hospitalised and scarred for life.
In 2009 West Ham agreed to hand over the astonishing sum of £25million (Sheffield had sought £45million) in an out-of-court settlement after a fourth hearing, which followed three that had failed to find in the Blades' favour decided that the contribution of Carlos Tevez - who had failed to score in his first 20 outings - was somehow responsible for Sheffield United's relegation from the Premier League in 2006/07.
"We think it more likely than not on the evidence that we heard, that even over the final two games of the season, West Ham would have achieved at least three points less overall without Mr Tevez."
Lord Griffiths: September 2008
Blades fans - led by actor Sean Bean - had previously marched on London in 2007 in a 'Campaign For Fairness' after West Ham were 'only' fined (a world-record sum of) £5.5million for failing to provide sufficient documentation relating to the transfers of Carlos Tevez and compatriate Javier Mascherano. Many West Ham supporters - not to mention football followers in general equally shocked by the decision of the 2008 Lord Griffiths-led panel - will feel that fairness has finally been delivered tonight.
Bramall Shame: fairness in football?
June 2007: Premier League investigate claims that the Blades broke rule U18 relating to third-party influence in the transfer of Steve Kabba to Watford.
September 2008: Sheffield United win millions in damages from West Ham United at the fourth attempt in the Carlos Tevez case.
November 2008: Sheffield Utd defender Chris Morgan leaves Barnsley striker Iain Hume fighting for life after a vicious on-field assault.
January 2009: Blades accused of third-party influence in the transfer of Matthew Spring from Luton to Charlton.
March 2009: Sunderland, Preston, West Bromwich Albion and Leeds United announce plans for legal action against the Blades for failing to comply with 'certain contractual conditions'.
April 2009: Barnsley FC reveal intentions to sue United for the loss of Iain Hume.
June 2009: Former Sheffield Utd boss Neil Warnock's Crystal Palace fined £20,000 and deducted one point for fielding an ineligible player.
July 2009: Blades 'keeper Paddy Kenny - who played in all three Championship play-off ties - fails a drugs test. He receives a nine-month ban, ruling him out for the season.
March 2011: Neil Warnock's latest club - QPR - are found guilty of breaking league rules regarding third-party influence: rules introduced in the wake of the Carlos Tevez case.
April 2011: Sheffield United are relegated to League One - just five seasons after being promoted to the Premier League.
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Down but not quite out
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 30th April 2011
By: Staff Writer
West Ham's chances of avoiding relegation suffered another blow this afternoon - but it could have been much worse. The Hammers went into the weekend bottom of the Premier League table but, most importantly, just two points from the safety of 17th spot. However at 4:30pm this afternoon that gap had increased to five points due to Wigan's 1-0 lead over Everton - a score which, given West Ham's precarious positions, would surely had meant curtains for Avram Grant's side. That was until former Wigan full-back Leighton Baines saved a point from the penalty spot for Everton (who had previously missed a spot kick) - meaning that West Ham travel to the City of Manchester Stadium tomorrow three points from safety, with a game in hand on all clubs in and around the relgation zone bar Wolves and Birmingham, who meet at St Andrews tomorrow lunchtime. Elsewhere today Blackpool failed to see off Stoke at Bloomfield Road whilst Blackburn grabbed a priceless 1-0 win against near-neighbours Bolton. The current Premier League table stands thusly:
15 Blackburn 35 38 -22
16 Birmingham 34 38 -17
17 Blackpool 35 35 -22
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18 Wigan Ath 35 35 -23
19 Wolves 34 33 -23
20 West Ham Utd 34 32 -22
The remaining games
Blackburn
West Ham Utd (a); Man Utd (h); Wolves (a).
Birmingham
Wolves (h); Newcastle (a); Fulham (h); Tottenham (a).
Blackpool
Tottenham (a); Bolton (h); Man Utd (a).
Wigan Ath
Aston Villa (a); West Ham Utd (h); Stoke (a).
Wolves
Birmingham (a); West Brom (h); Sunderland (a); Blackburn (h).
West Ham Utd
Man City (a); Blackburn (h); Wigan Ath (a); Sunderland (h).
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The Silence is Broken, Now Will the Players Respond in the Right Way?
April 30th, 2011 - 3:51 pm by S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die
Many Hammers fans have wondered why the co-owners had been so quiet this season. No grand pronouncements, no controversial statements. Compare this newly discovered restraint with the post-Christmas outpouring of last season, under Zola's management. The cynics amongst us may conclude that it is due to the fact that, this season, they had full control over the management appointment and the club's transfer strategy. As such, it is their mess, rather than one that they have inherited.
Yet, David Sullivan has now finally broken the silence. He has given an interview to the Telegraph, in which he sets out hs views on the club's current predicament. On the plus side, he accepts full responsibility for the season long relegation struggle and admits that he feels that he has let the Hammers supporters down. I am sure that there are not too many supporters who would disagree with that admission! The co-owners have all the power, they take the big decisions concerning the club that we love. If success follows they rightly take the credit, but in the case of failure they must also take the ultimate responsibility. Sullivan has done that publicly, so we cannot reproach him too much on that score.
Sullivan reassures the fans that, although players will leave, if we are relegated in the summer, the co-owners will rebuild a squad that can bounce back at the first time of asking. He states that it will mean buying players tried and tested in the Championship and blooding eager youngsters with the fire in their bellies to excel over a tough 46 match programme. Sullivan is undoubtedly an old hand at gaining promotion at the first time of asking, as evidenced by the yo-yo record of Birmingham City during the period of his joint ownership with the Gold brothers. The record book confirms that on both occasions Brum were relegated from the PL, they bounced back the very next season. However, they may well know what it takes to oversee the construction of a promotion side, but will it be strong enough the following season to survive in the PL?
The key to achieving the latter outcome is undoubtedly bound up with the restructuring of a relegated squad. The the West Ham's board's response to the relegation of 2002-03 was the almost perfect example of how not to do it. It is no way forward to decimate the squad, lose all of our real quality and replace it with journeymen players. To give us the best chance of bouncing back after relegation, and surviving the following season, we need to follow the example of Newcastle Utd. Last season, Newcastle Utd retained most of their better players and promising youngsters like Taylor and Carroll. If it proves necessary, we must do something very similar.
Sullivan and Gold must financially underwrite a determined push for promotion in one season. That means pursuing a four prong strategy of (1) holding on to our young first team players like Tomkins, Spence, Noble, Collison, Sears, Edgar, Stanislas and Nouble; (2) convincing some of our experienced, quality players, such as Parker, Cole or Ba, to stay; (3) buying the best Championship players such Shaun Long at Reading; and (4) bringing through our highly promising youngsters like Hall, Moncur and Lee. This combination will hopefully compensate for the almost inevitable loss of the likes of Green, Bridge, Upson, Hitzlsperger, Piquionne and Keane; as well as ensuring promotion in 2011-12 and PL survival in 2012-13.
Sullivan also questions whether certain current players are fully committed to the Hammers cause. He asks whether players due Bosman moves in the summer will give 100% as we enter the 'endgame' part of the season. Is it one of Sullivan's psychological gee ups or a calculated attempt at one, anyway? Perhaps, but the point that he raises does actually strike a certain cord of concern with us supporters! After all, who has not questioned the commitment and application of the current squad in the course of this disappointing season? Sullivan also asks how do you motivate millionaire players? Well, the answer to that one is straightforward, with investment in the squad, European football and the challenge for major honours, not an annual relegation struggle! He does, however, make an interesting point that, perhaps, the most successful managers instill a bit of fear in their players. Within the context of Avram Grant's management, one could see how, perhaps, players might not give their best in an ineffectual or too easy going a regime!
However, the '25-30% chance of PL survival' comment, was ill judged. Sullivan should have known that the media would jump on that comment as evidence of a lack of belief by the owner? The inevitable question being, does that comment mean the co-owners feel that West Ham are now 75% certain of being relegated? Anyway, I would personally put our chances of survival at this stage at more like 50%. The bookies may put it at 28%, but they are often wrong. I have earned a nice few quid from them on bets placed on West Ham. Two prime examples being the 10-1 odds on West Ham beating Man Utd at Old Trafford, in the FA Cup, and the equally generous odds on us staying up in 2006/07.
I may have engaged in a bit of 'post-relegation' discussion here, but the reality is that we are not actually down yet. Indeed, it is still all to play for and we need to get 100% behind whatever XI ( plus substitutes) that we field in the final four matches. West Ham can avoid relegation if the players give 100% and show some old fashioned grit and commitment. That will provide a platform upon which the quality in this current squad can assert itself. Lets hope that Sullivan's comments do not deflate player confidence, but rather annoys and motivates them to show that they are professionals who care about the club's PL survival enough to put in top class performances in the final four matches of the season!
I am sure that David Sullivan is banking on soliciting that reaction as well. Indeed, it could very well be the exact reason why he has made those comments at this crucial juncture, to gee up the players to deliver. Ironically, one of the key factors in our survival last season was player affection and respect for GF Zola, set against a background of board room criticism. Lets see if Sullivan and Gold's appointee, Avram Grant, can get the same positive reaction from the current squad, this time around, in the face of a similar critique?
If the players are so insulted by Sullivan's comments surely the best response is to publicly disprove them by turning up at the City of Manchester Stadium and getting a result. Do they have the bottle and the back bone to do it? Or will they merely confirm the legitimacy of his criticism through another abject away performance? We shall see tomorrow? COYI!
SJ. Chandos.
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Grant eyes tough run-in
Hammers boss says City tie not the be all and end all this term
Last Updated: April 30, 2011 6:13pm
SSN
West Ham manager Avram Grant claims Sunday's clash with Manchester City may not be the toughest game left this season. The Hammers are currently rock bottom of the Premier League with four matches to play this term and face a City outfit at Eastlands gunning for a place in the top four. West Ham still have to play Blackburn, Wigan and Sunderland but Roberto Mancini's men are expected to give them their sternest test. However, Israeli coach Grant is just taking one game at a time as he looks to drag the East Londoners clear of trouble. "What is the toughest game? Always the next one," he said. "I cannot say [that City is the hardest].
"I think we can take points from all of these. Of course Manchester City away on paper is the toughest one but I think all the other teams will give everything to win the game against us. "But we could take seven or nine points, I am sure about this."
Asked whether he would be focusing on the other matches rather than the task of collecting three points in Manchester, he added: "We don't have any intention to give up before any game even if it is Manchester City away. "We will try to take points even there. Of course the final three games will be the most important games and we believe we can take seven points from these games."
On his side's current slump in form, Grant remarked: "If you look at our defeats in the last games - except Bolton where we played very, very poorly - against Manchester United was a very good performance. "Even in the last game was a good performance. "The difference was small between taking points and then I think in the last three games most of the players would be fit, which will be good for us."
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West Ham could lose as many TEN first team stars this summer
Published 22:59 30/04/11 By MirrorFootball
The Mirror
West Ham are braced for a summer exodus as up to 10 stars head for the Upton Park exit door. Scott Parker, Carlton Cole, Aston Villa target Robert Green and Thomas Hitzlsperger are all set for crunch talks over their futures. Matthew Upson and Danny Gabbidon are both out of contract and will also speak to the board about their next step, while Kieron Dyer will leave on a free transfer. To complete West Ham's misery, Victor Obinna, Robbie Keane and Wayne Bridge will all rejoin their parent clubs rather than make their loan moves permanent.
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EXCLUSIVE Spurs and Man City to slug it out over £10m Parker
Published 23:01 30/04/11 By Paul Smith
The M irror
Tottenham and Manchester City will lead the battle to sign Scott Parker this summer. Parker will reluctantly quit Upton Park if West Ham are relegated from the Premier League and the clubs are prepared to meet the Hammers £10 million valuation. Although the 30-year-old midfielder has no get-out clause inserted into the four-year contract he signed last September a verbal agreement was reached that would allow him to leave the club if they failed to retain their top-flight status.
Spurs have failed with two previous bids to sign Parker and although they remain quietly confident they can secure his signature, City's interest has weakened their position. Spurs are unlikely to offer Parker any greater financial incentive to move to White Hart Lane while City are prepared to treble his current £60,000 a week salary and look the more likely side to offer him Champions League football next season. However, the potential stumbling block is Parker's reluctance to leave his mother in London following the recent untimely death of his father.
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QPR set to offer Robbie Keane a London lifeline
Published 22:58 30/04/11 By MirrorFootball
The Mirror
QPR are looking into a summer move to sign Robbie Keane from Tottenham. The striker – who would cost around £6million – is on loan at West Ham but will seek a permanent switch from White Hart Lane at the end of the season.
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Obinna puts friendship with 'crazy' Balotelli on hold for Eastlands clash
Published 22:30 30/04/11 By Steve Stammers
The Mirror
A close bond forged between Victor Obinna and Mario Balotelli has been put on hold –just for this week. For Obinna, points are crucial to West Ham in their fight to stay among the elite, while for Balotelli, his City side are gunning for fourth. However, the two strikers are great pals from their days growing up at Inter Milan.
Obinna said: "We haven't spoken in the last week. Maybe before the game we will and afterwards. He is a talented player and we have to be at him." Obinna said: "Sometimes he does some crazy things and, yes, I have to tell him off all the time. What does he say? 'I know, I know, I know brother!'. But that is the way he is."
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Avram Grant fast running out of time as his team take on Manchester City in crunch game
By Wally Downes 8:43PM BST 30 Apr 2011
Telegraph.co.uk
With the Premier League's nouveau riche, Manchester City, Sunday's eager hosts, there is no time to debate whether it is the crippling weight of expectation from ever-loyal fans or a definitive lack of quality that ties West Ham United to the bottom of the table, three points from safety with just four games remaining.
Football writers' footballer of the year Scott Parker and fellow midfield enforcer Mark Noble are injured, along with January signing Gary O'Neil, and Wayne Bridge, on loan from Eastlands, is ineligible to face his parent club so unwavering optimism is the only thing that keeps most chins up at the bottom three club. Although it seems finally to be abandoning the manager with the permanent hang-dog expression. "I will be honest with you," Grant said. "If we played Manchester City 10 times we would not win seven but we would not lose all of them — this is how we need to think about football. "City have big players and they have spent so much money to build the level of team they want so it will be difficult to compete with them. "City have no players that are much better than the others. If you look at the squad last week they had players not even in the squad that could get into any Premier League team."
Grant's collection of loanees, youth-team products and relative unknowns have long been labelled the side 'too good to go down' but injuries have ravaged his side once again and even consulting with his players has not helped their plight. Misfiring forwards, contract rebels and the unsettling rumours regarding the 56 year-old's job security that emanate from far too close to home, could have left the former-Portsmouth manager laying the blame with those whose opinions he so honestly respects. But he said: "For me it is very interesting to hear different opinions from my staff and my players. "I believe the relationship today cannot be what it was 20 years ago when nobody spoke to anyone. "But there is only one man that can make the decision and there is only one man that you come to the pressroom and blame but that is fine by me."
Grant's open invitation to level all vitriol at him may be admirable, but should form stay true — and the team bottom at Christmas drops out of the top-flight — there might not be many players left around to share the burden anyway. Captain Matthew Upson is out of contract in the summer and, with the silence surrounding a possible extension to his stay deafening, he will surely escape the backlash when an alternative club seeks out his services. The handful of players that have been drafted in on loan will also depart but one may leave with a parting gift. Victor Obinna has been lent to the relegation threatened side from the dizzying heights of Serie A and the Champions League courtesy of Inter Milan and it is those links to the San Siro that add a touch of personal incentive today. Roberto Mancini managed Obinna and City firebrand Mario Balotelli before the trio decamped to England and the unruly temperament of the £25 million striker could be one of the few weaknesses in the FA Cup finalists' squad. "Mario is a very good friend of mine," 24-year-old Obinna said. "When I was at Inter we would stay together. He is a very interesting lad and he does some funny things but I think he is a good kid. "He should be given a little bit of time to adapt, yes sometimes he does some crazy things but he is spontaneous. When he does things he doesn't think sometimes. I used to tell him off all the time. He used to say 'I know brother, I know'."
But despite providing a calming and authoritative figure to Balotelli in their early years, the Nigerian, who is reluctant to discuss his future at the club, plans to agitate his friend for the sake of his current team-mates. "I won't give Balotelli a chance, he knows that," Obinna added. "He's knows I'm going to unsettle him. Before the game we will talk and after the game we will talk."
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Manchester City v West Ham United: Roberto Mancini prepares to face the real world
By Duncan White 10:30PM BST 30 Apr 2011
Follow Duncan White on Twitter
For Roberto Mancini the 18 months of hard work are about to bring their reward. With victory against West Ham on Sunday Manchester City would edge closer to qualification for the Champions League and another significant landmark in the evolution of the club. "We have worked very hard for this target in the last year and now we are near the finish line," Mancini said. "I think it is impossible that the players are not [mentally] strong enough for this." Getting over that line is essential to City, more so even than winning the FA Cup. If they qualify for Europe's elite competition, then Mancini will be able to put the finishing touches to the team he has been building. This summer transfer window will be different to the previous windows since Sheikh Mansour's takeover but no less busy. There will be recruitment but it must come hand-in-hand with deals to get surplus players out of the club. "I have started planning for next season We started work on this two or three months ago," Mancini said.
"We have many players on loan at this moment so we can do many things. It is difficult to say at the moment. If we play in the Champions League we will need to be stronger. "It is very hard if you play in the Champions League, the Premier League and the FA Cup. We would need more players, strong players. "We had a problem this year between February and March when we were playing in three competitions and had injuries."
Mancini has been meeting with Mike Rigg, the club's chief scout, to finalise targets, which are then put to the chief executive, Garry Cook, and Brian Marwood, the football administration officer. That team then put their recommendations forward to chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak for final approval. This summer, City will have to play by different rules with Uefa's financial fair play regulations coming into effect. They have to start narrowing the gap between their revenue and their expenditure.
The club made a loss of £121 million in the financial year of 2009-10 and with Uefa's rules only permitting a loss of £40 million over three years (2011-14) they obviously need to make serious inroads into that figure or risk losing their license to play in European competition in 2014. That's why Mancini and his players have to close out this season and get into the Champions League — the timing of the introduction of the FFP make it imperative. Not only is there the increased revenue from television and prize money — at least £30 million if City qualify from the group stages — but the increased profile of the club would bring in better commercial deals.
There has been a huge upsurge in the commercial partnerships at City in the past two years and Cook is expected to secure many more this summer with Champions League football as bait. One key development could be the selling of naming rights to the stadium, which the club is free to do after reaching an agreement with the council in January. They have also purchased land, which could be used to develop a state-of-the-art training ground — and investment that would not count against the club under FFP. On the football side of things, the wage bill is the most pressing issue to address. In the last figures it was £133 million and when you take into account that the club's revenue was £125 million you can see the problem — and those figures do not take into account the salaries of Yaya Touré, Mario Balotelli, David Silva, James Milner, Jérôme Boateng and Aleksandar Kolarov (mitigated, of course, by any players leaving last summer). City tried to jump-start themselves into the Champions League by giving out big contracts to players they felt would accelerate their development. If they qualify, they will no longer need to rely quite as much on the financial incentive to persuade players to join. Negotiations can become relatively normalised as Champions League football is as much an incentive as anything. The intensity of City's recruitment over the past six windows (some £375 million in fees alone) means there are plenty of players who Mancini deems superfluous to his squad.
This will be City's strategy in the summer — to sell as many of these players as possible and use the cash recouped to invest in a small number of high quality signings. Alexis Sanchez, the skilful Udinese winger at the centre of a tug-of-war between City and Manchester United, is a perfect example. If buyers can be found, City will sell Jo, Roque Santa Cruz, Craig Bellamy, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Nedum Onuoha, Shay Given, Wayne Bride, Felipe Caicedo and Vladimir Weiss. Real Madrid have a £15 million option on Emmanuel Adebayor and, then, of course, there is the £40 million City would expect for Tévez. Not only would that generate transfer income in the region of £80 million but would significantly streamline the wage bill. The problem, of course, is finding clubs that will take on the inflated wages City have been paying. It will not be easy. Of those players, only the sale of Tévez would seem to be run counter to the club's ambition. If the FFP rules were not coming in, you could see City playing hardball with Tévez and his representative, Kia Joorabchian. After all, the club's owners don't need the money and he is under contract until 2014. The new rules, though, mean you cannot afford to have an unhappy or demotivated player taking up a significant chunk of your wage bill while his transfer value decreases. At his press briefing on Friday, Mancini conceded that in the current environment it is "difficult to keep a player in a club if they don't want to stay".
City appear to be taking the pragmatic stance when it comes to Tévez.
So with the combination of Champions League revenue (and its commercial offshoots) and a systematic sale process of players that are not part of Mancini's plans, City will be able to strengthen their team while also ensuring they move towards coming into line with FFP.
At this stage they cannot afford to lose momentum.
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If West Ham go down, the Rolls-Royce Gold parked by the gate will be replaced by a taxi for Mr Grant
By PATRICK COLLINS Last updated at 12:19 AM on 1st May 2011
Daily Mail
Close by the front gate of the West Ham training ground stands a plum Rolls-Royce. The personalised numberplate declares it the property of David Gold, the club's co-owner. Gold is spotted through an office window, waving his arms and making a point. His website describes him as being 'blessed with a friendly, welcoming nature'. Current events may be testing that benevolence. David Sullivan is Gold's co-owner, and a fellow lion of the adult entertainment industry. He has just given an interview in which he rates the team's chances of surviving in the Premier League at a mere '25 per cent'. He also takes a few swipes at footballers, some of whom he describes as 'spoilt'.
He wonders about their commitment. 'How do you motivate millionaires?' demands the multi-millionaire. Self-awareness is not his strongest suit, but no matter. Like Gold, his patience is being tested. In another part of the training establishment sits the manager. At a glance, Avram Grant seems oppressed by the pressures of agitated owners, non-performing players and the fact that his team are sitting snugly at the foot of the Premier League. Then you realise that his expression would be equally lugubrious if West Ham were top of the table with a Champions League final in prospect. He always looks like that. On Sunday afternoon, they play Manchester City at Eastlands. Form, reason and Sullivan's powers of prediction suggest that they might be in for a thumping. Grant's task is to appear optimistic. It is an emotion which does not come naturally to him.
He starts to assess the opposition: 'City have big players, they've spent so much money, it will be difficult to compete with them. Last week they had players who were not on the bench, or even in the squad, who could play in most other teams in the Premier League. 'If we played Manchester City 10 times, we would not win seven. But we would not lose all the games either. This is how we need to think.' As clarion calls go, it has a less than convincing ring. Clearly he needs to find some motivational words for the millionaires in his dressing room. And, by a remarkable coincidence, David Sullivan is working along the same lines. He has been considering addressing the squad to alert them to the urgency of their situation. 'I've been thinking about it, but I think the players might think it's a joke,' he said. 'I could go in there and give them a Churchill speech, but whether it's going to do any good, I don't know.'
It seems an inspired notion: David Sullivan as Winston Churchill. A piece of type-casting if ever I saw it. I ask Grant if he thinks it might be helpful. 'Helpful?' he says. 'Yes, why not? Every speech by Churchill is welcome. I love Churchill's speeches.' Indeed, but does he think Sullivan is in the Churchillian mould? 'I like Mr Sullivan,' he insists. 'He is full of life, always. You can speak with him about everything.'
Grant is anxious to stress the tranquillity which prevails in the upper reaches of Upton Park. Do the owners have a great knowledge of football? Do they give him advice? He nods, thoughtfully. 'They told me to play 4-4-3 last game,' he says. A smile breaks out. He is joking, I'm almost sure of it. But jokes do not come easily to him, and the pressure is genuine. He believes that West Ham need nine points for survival. Seven might be sufficient, but probably nine. If they are beaten in Manchester today, then they will need to win their remaining matches against Blackburn (at home), Wigan (away) and Sunderland (home). The task is not impossible, but it is less than likely. At such times, his is a desperately lonely job. How widely does he consult? Does he discuss tactics with his players? 'Of course,' he says. 'I believe the relationship with players cannot be like it was 20 years ago, when nobody spoke with anybody.
'For me it's very interesting to hear different opinions. But, at the end of the day, there is one man who has to take the decision, and there is one man you will come after and blame.' The fact he is patently correct does not make his situation any easier. He talks about patience, about the West Ham 'project', about the conflict between needing immediate results and building for the future. 'The club wants to win, but also it has a vision,' he says. 'It's best to buy an umbrella in the summer, not after you are wet.' Time and again he pleads for patience. 'Manchester City bought a lot of players, and they need patience. Chelsea bought a lot of players and haven't won the Champions League yet. I'm sure it will happen, but you need to do it step by step. You can't just push a button ... OK, we don't have money to spend and our squad could be better. But we have a squad that deserves to stay in the league.'
He sounds like a man who is talking sense, but does not expect to be believed by those who control his destiny. When he managed Chelsea, his imminent demise was constantly predicted. In his present post, the predictions have been even stronger. At one stage, earlier in the season, even he seemed to accept that his time was running out. The uncertainty is always there. How does Grant live with it? He gives a rambling, confusing, yet curiously touching answer. 'This is my job,' he says. 'When you are a journalist, you know what you are facing. When you are an actress, like my wife, you know what you are facing. In every job as a manager, you must know that you will be facing a lot of rumours. But I have a commitment to the job, and not only because they pay me ... I really, really believe in it ... I figure that if we take the right steps, this will be a good club and people will enjoy watching it. I believe that.' Not quite Churchillian, perhaps, but he sounded sincere. Yet he knows that sincerity alone will not be sufficient, that those nine points are crucial to his continued employment, and that the Rolls-Royce by the front gate would be swiftly replaced by a taxi for Mr Grant. 'It's not a normal business, football,' he murmured. And he never spoke a truer word.
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