Daily WHUFC News - 10th August 2012

Hammers primed for Portuguese test
WHUFC.com
West Ham United are ready for their final pre-season match at UEFA Champions
League hopefuls SC Braga
09.08.2012

West Ham United will complete their pre-season schedule with a
glamorous-looking visit to Portuguese side SC Braga on Friday evening.
However, glamour will be the furthest thing from the minds of the Hammers'
players, who only have eyes on putting on a performance against the UEFA
Champions League qualifiers. Assistant manager Neil McDonald said the squad
had been working hard since arriving in north west Portugal on Tuesday
evening and were relishing the test that awaits them at the unique and
stunning Estadio Municipal. With a squad boasting current Portugal
internationals Custodio and Hugo Viana and a host of talented Portuguese and
Brazilian players, Braga will be a force to be reckoned with. West Ham
arrived in Braga on Tuesday evening and have trained for the past two
mornings at the host club's old Primeiro de Maio home - a large open stadium
still used by Braga's junior teams. On Thursday afternoon, the players
enjoyed a core strength exercise session on the hotel lawn before taking a
dip in the swimming pool. Away from the pitch, the squad have also held a
series of meetings to plan for the Barclays Premier League campaign ahead -
starting with the visit of Aston Villa on Saturday 18 August. "Portugal has
been very good," said Macca. "We've been really well looked after again, as
we were in Austria and Germany earlier in pre-season. It's a fantastic hotel
and we're only five minutes away from our training ground at Braga's old
stadium, so there is plenty of history around. "We've done some really good
team and individual work and we'll finish it off with a game on Friday
against a team that is in the Champions League. We're also looking forward
to playing at one of the wonderful new stadia built for the European
Championship finals when they were in Portugal back in 2004. "It will be the
last game to try to sharpen everything up before we move into the final week
of pre-season."

West Ham's most-recent pre-season match saw the Hammers defeated 3-1 at
Ipswich Town - a result and performance that the assistant manager admitted
had not been good enough. Now, with just 90 minutes to put things right in a
match situation ahead of the Barclays Premier League campaign, Macca said
the players have upped their game on the training pitch ahead of Friday's
fixture.

"We've seen a response. They've trained really, really well and they've
taken the constructive criticism on board. We know we have over a week to go
and a lot of the work we have done since the Ipswich game has been a lot
sharper. "We're looking a lot brighter so we'll see how it goes on Friday.
We're looking for a better performance from each and every one of the
individuals involved on Friday, even though the result doesn't really
matter. I'm sure we'll get it."

Big Sam and Macca are known for their meticulous approach to every match and
the season opener is no different, meaning the squad will train at the
Boleyn Ground twice next week to get used to playing at their home stadium
again. Likewise, for new boys Jussi Jaaskelainen, Mohamed Diame, Modibo
Maiga and Raphael Spiegel, the sessions will give them a first feel of what
it is like to be in the home dressing room at the Academy of Football.
"We're going to go to the ground for a couple of days to reacquaint
ourselves with the stadium surroundings and being on the grass. We'll have a
couple of sharp training sessions there and then everybody will be itching
to get the game out of the way because it seems like ages since the fixture
list came out. "The gaffer said today that we're into single figures now -
we've only got nine days to go and we can't wait to get started."

*Assistant manager Neil McDonald will run the second of his new
ProSoccerSessions - coaching sessions for coaches - at the club's Chadwell
Heath training ground on Thursday 16 August. After a successful launch
earlier this month, McDonald who himself holds a UEFA Pro License, will be
hosting the scheme which is aimed at part-time football managers and
coaches. The session will again be run at West Ham's Chadwell Heath training
ground from 6.30pm to 9pm. The only qualification for attending the course
is that you currently manage or coach a recognised football team at any
level or you are a player aspiring to be a coach. McDonald said: "The first
session went really well. I tried to keep it to low numbers and everyone on
the first course has booked in for the next one, so they want to come back
and continue what we have started to work on which is good. We can go over
sessions again and there is a lot of new stuff to look at, but if anyone
else wants to join us on this one, they can. I am really looking forward to
meeting some more new coaches, as the last one was such a success."

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Tonks raring to go
WHUFC.com
James Tomkins is aiming for a good start to the 2012/13 season after
competing at the Olympics
09.08.2012

James Tomkins has spoken about the pride he felt at representing Team GB at
the Olympics as his focus switches back to West Ham United and the Barclays
Premier League. Tomkins featured in two of Team GB's fixtures - a friendly
against Brazil and a group stage win against UAE - and he feels the
experience will benefit him when the new season kicks-off in just over a
week. Speaking from Portugal ahead of West Ham United's final pre-season
match against Braga on Friday night, the Basildon-born central defender
explained that he is now glad to back training with his club team-mates. "It
is great to be back with the lads," said Tomkins. "It is very nice out here,
we arrived on Tuesday and have already had a couple of good training
sessions. "The weather is also great which helps and it's obviously good to
see everyone again."

Tomkins also insisted that despite spending the majority of pre-season away
from the side he is ready to knuckle down ahead of the Premier League
curtain raiser against Aston Villa on 18 August. "We will have a lot more
training leading up to our final pre-season game with Braga and then the
beginning of the season. We are really looking forward to the match on
Friday. Playing it abroad always adds a nice touch and it will be nice to
see our fans out here in what will no doubt be a large crowd."

Tomkins and Team GB were knocked out at the quarter-final stage at the
Olympics after topping Group A with some impressive results. Now, after
sharing the stage with the likes of Ryan Giggs, Neymar and Luis Suarez, the
23-year-old is only focused on getting off to a flying start with the
Hammers. "I enjoyed being involved with Team GB and the experience of
playing at the Olympics experience was really good. It is a shame we didn't
get further and it finished the way it did, but overall it was very
enjoyable. "For me, I am focusing on the new season ahead with the first
game only round the corner and we're all really looking forward to playing
at home in the Premier League. "We want to make a good start and will be
working hard in training over the next week or so to make sure we ready for
the challenge ahead."

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Chambers signs new contract
WHUFC.com
17-year-old defender Leo Chambers has signed his first professional contract
with the club
09.08.2012

West Ham United are delighted to announce that England Under-16
international Leo Chambers has signed his first professional contract with
the club. The 17-year-old central defender continued to impress in Tony
Carr's Under-18 side last season and saw success at international level when
he captained his country as they lifted the Victory Shield. The Brixton-born
youngster has made the step up to Ian Hendon's Development Squad in recent
weeks and could be involved when they kick-off their Barclays Under-21
Premier League campaign against Reading on Friday 17 August. "I'm extremely
delighted to sign my first professional contract with West Ham United,"
Chambers said. "I've been working very hard but I believe this is only a
beginning. "I will continue to work hard with the youth team and hopefully
force my way into the Development Squad and the first team."

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Hammers strike Diarra deal
Midfielder close to completing Upton Park switch
Last Updated: August 9, 2012 11:18am
SSN

Sky Sports understands that West Ham United have agreed a deal with
Marseille for France international midfielder Alou Diarra. The former
Liverpool enforcer arrived in England on Thursday morning to undergo a
medical and put the finishing touches to a move. It is believed that the
31-year-old will pen a two-year contract with the Hammers. Diarra was
expected to be on the move this summer after struggling to settle at
Marseille.

Future

He only joined the club in 2011, but failed to produce his best at Stade
Velodrome. He did make France's Euro 2012 squad, and started their first
game against England, but much of his focus has been on the future. Diarra
will be hoping that a return to England will help to bring the best out of
him and allow him to prove to those at Anfield that they were wrong to let
him go without making a senior appearance. His career took off after leaving
Anfield, with spells at Lens, Lyon and Bordeaux seeing him pick up two
French titles and two Coupe de la Ligue successes.

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Moussa Konate - Destination West Ham?
By S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die

Kumb have reported that Senegalese media sources are stating that Olympic
striking sensation, Moussa Konate, is currently in London negotiating a move
to a PL club. The 19-year-old striker impressed in the Olympic football
competition, scoring five times in his four appearances for Senegal,
including his opener in the 1-1 draw with Great Britain.

The Maccabi Tel Aviv striker recently revealed his interest in a move to
West Ham. He was quoted as stating that: 'There is talk of interest from
West Ham and that would make me very happy' he said, adding 'I hope I can
move to the Premier League.' Certainly, West ham were the first PL club
alerted to Konate's ability and expressed an early interest in signing him.
However, there has since been interest from other clubs.

Consequently, it is as yet not clear just who Konate is currently
negotiating with? West Ham would look to be favourites, but it could be that
QPR or Spurs are involved? So, is Moussa's destination West Ham? I certainly
hope so, as he is exactly the type of young, talented striker that we should
be targeting. He is physically strong, leads the line well and scores goals.
And unlike the likes of Andy Carroll he appears to want to play for the
club; oh, and an added bonus is that he will not cost the club an absolute
fortune!

Some would probably see the signing as a bit of a gamble, but personally I
think he could be an absolute sensation in the PL.

SJ. Chandos.

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Cash back: West Ham top spenders as Football League clubs shell out £22m on
agent fees
The Mirror

West Ham spent more than £4million on agent fees last season - almost a
fifth of the total spend of £21.7million for the Football League clubs. The
figure is up on the previous season (£16,658,976), although clubs engaged in
more player transactions between the period July 1, 2011 and June 30, 2012
were down - 3,144 compared to 2,910 the year before. Championship clubs
accounted for £18.7million of this total, with League One and League Two
clubs spending £1.8million and £0.9million respectively. Clubs committed to
pay agents in 702 (22%) of the 3,144 player transactions that took place. In
the previous year it was 570 (20%) of 2,910 transactions. Five clubs
(Hartlepool, Accrington, AFC Wimbledon, Barnet and Crewe) did not spend any
money on agents' fees during 2011/12 while a further 22 clubs spent less
than £25,000.

In announcing the figures Football League chairman Greg Clarke said: "While
£21million is a lot of money leaving the game, it should also be noted that
a considerable amount of this total has been spent by a small number of
clubs. "In fact, almost a fifth of the overall figure was spent by one club
alone. "Where such spending forms part of a sustainable business plan it
shouldn't be of great concern and supporters should be encouraged to see our
clubs committing themselves to the new Financial Fair Play regulations that
will take effect across all three divisions in the new season. "In time,
these rules will require clubs to be more circumspect with regard to their
spending and may help reduce the costs incurred in this area."

Of the £18,704,976 spent on agents' fees by Championship clubs, West Ham
(£4,314,270) accounted for more than a quarter of the spending as they made
a successful return to the Premier League at the first attempt. Championship
title winners Reading (£1,662,163), Leicester (£1,812,371) and Crystal
Palace (£1,170,950) were the only other clubs to spend seven-figure sums on
fees. Those four clubs accounted for almost half (£8,959,754) of the total
spend in the division.
Champions Charlton (£265,170) and runners-up Sheffield Wednesday (£332,620)
were the biggest spenders on agents' fees in League One. Huddersfield
(£213,343), who were also promoted via the play-offs, had the fourth highest
total in the division. Hartlepool did not commit any money in agents' fees
and for the second year running were the only club in League One to do so.
League Two champions Swindon spent £448,506, accounting for 43% of the
£1,036,198 spent on agents' fees for that division. The only other club in
League Two to break into six-figures for fees was Crawley (£136,800), who
were promoted along with the Robins. Crewe managed to go up via the
play-offs without committing any money in agents' fees, while Accrington,
AFC Wimbledon and Barnet joined the Alex in not spending a penny on fees.

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