WHUFC.com
West Ham United U18s were beaten 2-1 by Estonia U19s in their second Tallinn
Cup fixture
24.07.2011
West Ham United Under-18s were narrowly beaten by the Estonian U19 national
team in the second of their three fixtures at the Tallinn Cup. Having beaten
Dutch side PSV Eindhoven 1-0 in their opening match on Friday, the Hammers
went down to a 2-1 defeat on Sunday afternoon, dropping them to second in
the four-team table.
However, with PSV and Dinamo Moscow drawing 1-1 in Sunday's other game, West
Ham know a victory over the Russians in their final match on Tuesday could
be enough to see them lift the trophy. Concentrating on Sunday's match, a
minute of silence was held in memory of the victims of the events in Oslo
before the Hammers went ahead through a goal from England U17 defender Leo
Chambers (pictured) after 26 minutes. However, things would turn sour in the
second half as Kieran Sadlier was sent-off with 16 minutes remaining.
Moments later, Hannes Annier equalised and Martin Kase put the hosts in
front before Chambers and Estonia substitute Trevor Ehli were both shown the
red card with five minutes to go. A crowd of 725 fans were on hand to watch
the action.
West Ham will take on Dinamo Moscow and PSV will tackle the Estonians at the
A.Le Coq Arena on Tuesday. Full details from Tallinn will appear on
whufc.com
West Ham United U18: Wootton, Siafa (Potts 64), Shaw (Young 64), Hunt,
K.Lee, Chambers, Sadlier, Miles (Hurley 71), E.Lee (Labonne 78), Turgott
(Powell 57), Vose (Fanimo 57)
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Allardyce hails Taylor arrival
Hammers boss delighted with capture of former Bolton man
Last Updated: July 24, 2011 4:44pm
SSN
Sam Allardyce believes West Ham's acquisition of Matt Taylor is another
statement of their intent. The Hammers are in the process of piecing
together a squad they hope will be good enough to secure an immediate return
to the Premier League. Kevin Nolan's arrival earlier in the summer from
Newcastle suggested the capital club mean business, with the midfielder able
to boast considerable top-flight experience. Abdoulaye Faye has also taken a
step down into the Championship after previously turning out for Bolton,
Newcastle and Stoke. Allardyce has now drafted in another proven performer
at Premier League level in the shape of the versatile Taylor.
Desire
He worked with the left-sided operator at Bolton and believes the
29-year-old will be a useful addition to the Upton Park ranks. "I have known
Matt for a long time in the Premier League," said Allardyce. "It shows our
desire to get a group of players together that want to get us back to the
Premier League as quickly as possible.
"It is about the club being big enough for them to come down and want to
play football and try to get us back into the Premier League."
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What is Needed in the Summer Transfer Window?
July 25th, 2011 - 12:41 am by S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die
All Hammers fans will have their own views on the positions that Sam
Allardyce needs to prioritise in the remainder of the summer transfer
window. And this is my appraisal. The strongest area of the squad is
undoubtedly midfield. We have quality and strength-in depth there, even if
Scott Parker departs. We also have width and pace, with the likes of Sears,
Barrera, Stanislas, Montano, Taylor and Tombides. At a push, we could
possibly do with a defensive midfielder who can anchor the midfield and
break up opposition attacks. Obviously, Parker would probably adopt that
role, with Nolan playing further forward. But if Parker leaves we may need a
midfield addition.
Hence, perhaps, Allardyce's reported interest in Owen Hargreaves? There is
no doubt that Hargreaves is a fine holding midfielder and but for his
serious knee injury, he would probably still but a Manchester Utd player.
However is he worth the gamble, given the long standing nature of his knee
problem? We could try to sign him on a 'pay as you play' deal, that would
safeguard the club against unnecessary expenditure on the player's wages, if
he subsequently broke down. But do we really need to sign another player
with such a poor injury record? Or does his class make the risk worthwhile?
That's if we can even persuade him to drop down in to the second tier in the
first place?
In terms of the goalkeeper position, we currently have Green, Boffin and
Stech. If Green stays, then we do not need any additions. But if he is
sold, then Allardyce has to decide if either Stech or Boffin are ready to be
our new No. 1 or whether another keeper needs to be recruited. At
full-back, it looks like I might have been right about Allardyce seeking to
bring Herita Illunga 'in from the cold.' With Illunga, Brown and Matt
Taylor all able to cover the position, we should be fine there. But we
definitely need additional cover at right-back. Jordan Spence will probably
start there, but it makes sense to bring in a good quality addition.
Surely, we are not going to go into the new season with Faubert as cover?
At Centre back, we currently have Tomkins, Faye, Reid, Spence and Fry. Will
that be sufficient? Possibly, if Spence or Fry are ready, for instance, to
partner Tomkins if Faye and Reid are injured or suspended. Personally, I
would bring in another experienced centre-half as extra insurance. What is
certain is that we need to quickly forge a solid and durable new defensive
unit. We cannot afford a repeat of the defensive shambles that we witnessed
last season.
However, it is the balance of the current strikeforce that worries me most
at the moment. Yes, we will be well provided with target men, if we retain
Cole, Piquionne and Nouble. Yet, the problem is that neither Cole nor
Piquionne are particularly prolific goal scorers, at least not at PL level
(whether that changes in the Championship remains to be seen). Nouble came
to West Ham with a big reputation as a goal scoring prospect at youth level,
but he has yet to build upon that. Personally, I feel that the three
strikers are all a bit too similiar. What we need is an out-and-out
finisher that can play off of them.
As I have stated before, my preference would be to sign shaun Long from
Reading. He would not be cheap, at c£7m, but he is the type of technically
impressive finisher that we need. He scored 20 plus goals in last season's
Chamnpionship and he would fit in well at West Ham. The acquisition of a 20
goal a season striker could be the difference between automatic promotion
and the play-offs. So, a c.£7m outlay, to help secure a £40m a year return
to the PL, makes perfect sense. Sometimes you just need to bit the bullet
and do the deal! WBA are also after him, so the lure of PL football may
prove too strong. But if we do not go for Long, we do need to get someone
else in to play off the target men.
All things being equal, I would go for one new striker and push young Robert
Hall in to first team contention. Hall has done very well in pre-season and
is probably ready to step up within the squad. Indeed, I have high hopes
that Lee, Montano, Tombides and Hall will all play roles in the forthcoming
campaign, in what should be a crucial season in their longer-term
development. We definitely needed to bring in the experience of the likes
of Nolan and Taylor, but hopefully the youngsters will also make their mark
this season. That includes the more experienced younger players, like
Stanislas and Sears. Nothing would please me more than to see those two
finally fulfilling their potential.
Particularly Sears, who has done very well on the right-flank, but the
quality of that finish against FC Copenhagen reminds us that he could yet
mature into a pacy central striker.
There is also the option of exploiting the loan market. Sam Allardyce has
indicated that he will probably use loanees to add extra depth to the squad,
if it proves necessary. There is no doubt that skillful use of the loan
market can be a key strategy, it is just a matter of identifying the players
who are available and who can add something different to our existing squad.
It is ok signing the right youngsters on loan, from the likes of Man Utd and
Arsenal, as long as it is not to the detriment of our own Academy prospects.
But, if we go down this road, I would much prefer to see one or two Freddie
Kanoute or Micheal Hughes type loan deals (if they are possible in the
Championship?) for more experienced players, perhaps with a future option to
buy.
Finally, it is good to hear Hammers players talking about the new aura of
positivity at the club. Sam Allardyce is a very good mativator and there is
no doubt that togetherness and a strong team spirit can pay real dividends
in terms of results. Hopefully, we will see a very different West Ham Utd
FC take the field next season. Organised, disciplined, fit and committed;
as well as skillful. Allardyce has once again stressed the difficulty of
putting together a new squad and getting the team to gel immediately.
Hopefully, we will get some positive early results and that will give us the
breathing space and confidence to further build the coherence and
effectiveness of the team unit.
Let's cut Sam Allardyce some slack in recognition of the scale of the job
that he has taken on and the fact that there may well be an initial period
of adjustment. We should not turn against him if we do not get off to an
absolute flyer on 7 August, after all, even in the brilliant 1981 promotion
year, we lost the opening home match against Luton Town! But that was only
a wobble and we went on the assert our class and never really looked back,
thereafter.
SJ. Chandos.
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Time running out for Parker deal, West Ham boss Allardyce tells Spurs
By SPORTSMAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 11:45 PM on 24th July 2011
Daily Mail
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce has warned Tottenham that if they want to sign
Scott Parker they should make a move soon. 'It is a worry that Spurs might
wait until the last minute,' said Allardyce. 'So if Harry (Redknapp) is
listening, or anyone at Tottenham, watch out, don't be waiting that long
because you won't be able to do it.'
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Allardyce warns Spurs to act quickly over West Ham star Parker
London24
Dave Evans, West Ham correspondent
Sunday, July 24, 2011
1:30 PM
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce has issued a warning to Harry Redknapp and
Tottenham Hotspur – if you want Scott Parker, then you better bid for him
quickly.
The Hammers boss confirmed that there were no bids for the current
footballer of the year, who played 75 minutes in Saturday's 0-0 pre-season
friendly with Wycombe Wanderers. But he is only too aware of the tendency of
Tottenham manager Redknapp to swoop for players at the last minute in the
transfer window and he says that this time it would be a mistake. "It is a
worry that Spurs might wait until the last minute because it would be the
wrong time to do it," said Allardyce.
"If they want to come and do it then, I will be telling the chairmen it is
the most expensive time and not the cheapest. "So if Harry is listening, or
anyone at Tottenham, watch out, don't be waiting that long because you won't
be able to do it."
The West Ham fans at Wycombe constantly chanted the name of Parker as gave
him a rousing reception when he was substituted, perhaps in hope that the
England international will still be in claret and blue when the transfer
window shuts. Allardyce though is philosophical. "There are no bids for
Scott at the moment so we continue to improve him as if he is going to start
the season in our team, until such time as somebody bids the right money
that would be acceptable to the club," he said. "It's like that for every
player at ever club. There is speculation and that will continue right
through to the 31st of August unfortunately, but that is the way it is.
"We need to deal with it, it is very, very difficult indeed, but there is
not a lot we can do about it."
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