Daily WHUFC News - 28th October 2012

Big Sam pulls no punches
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce admitted his side's performance was simply not good enough at
Wigan Athletic
27.10.2012

Sam Allardyce admitted his West Ham United team had not performed well
enough in their 2-1 Barclays Premier League defeat at Wigan Athletic. A slow
start at the DW Stadium saw West Ham fall a goal behind in the eighth
minute, although Big Sam felt Ivan Ramis had impeded Winston Reid before
lashing Jean Beausejour's corner into the net with an unstoppable volley. At
half-time, the manager demanded an improvement from his side, only for Wigan
to double their lead within two minutes of the re-start. Jussi
Jaaskelainen's clearance fell to a Latics player and when Shaun Maloney laid
the ball into the path of James McArthur, the midfielder had the freedom of
the penalty area to lash past the Finn. To the Hammers' credit, they did
rally late on, with James Tomkins seeing his volley deflect off home skipper
Gary Caldwell and onto the face of the crossbar. The No5 then found the net
when he headed in George McCartney's left-wing cross, but by then the clock
had already ticked into the 93rd-minute and there was next to no time left
for the visitors to fashion an equaliser. "I would say that in terms of
performance levels, there just wasn't one," said the manager with typical
honesty. "The terribly disappointing thing is that we came with a lot of
anticipation and were building up ready for another big game after a great
victory and second-half performance last week, then went out and basically
gifted the game to a team that had not won at home all season. "We didn't
really put any opposition up against them and the disappointing thing is
that our level of performance was such a surprise to me - not just one or
two players, which can happen in a game of football, but most of our
outfield players just didn't perform, particularly in possession, to the
level we know they can play at. "Because of that, we never got any momentum
going forward and, because we kept giving the ball away, the game was always
a struggle from start to finish."

While he admitted his team had not reached the standards he demands, the
manager felt the Hammers could still have got something out of the game if
they had scored a few minutes earlier. "We scored at the end but by then it
was too late. We needed a goal a little sooner and that might have got us
back in it because it would have got Wigan's nerve-ends twitching because
they had not won a game at home, but we never did that. "We had a couple of
chances and didn't score and finally when we did it was far too late."

Concentrating on Wigan's goals, the manager said there was a case for
disallowing Ramis's opener for a foul on Reid by the Spaniard. "You could
look at the first one and say that it's a foul because Ramis pushes Reidy
away. It is a hell of a volley, but there is a foul committed on Reidy and
had he not pushed him away he might have got a bit closer. The volley was so
good, though, that he might not have stopped it. "The second goal was the
worst one for me. We had just had the players in at half-time and told them
'We need to get the ball forward with some quality into our front three'
which we had decided to play with in the second half. "If you look at it, we
look at playing the ball forward then turn and give it to the centre-half.
He then looks to play the ball forward and turns around and plays it to the
goalie. The goalie miskicks it and it comes into our box. It bobbles around
and we probably should have cleared it, then it goes to McArthur and he puts
it in the net. "What were the players thinking about? What was the problem?
Hopefully it is a one-off, but it was really disappointing - not just the
result but the way we performed."

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Wigan 2 West Ham 1
27 October 2012
By Kevin Darling
BBC Sport

Wigan notched a first home win of the season with a typically slick passing
display against a sloppy West Ham. Ivan Ramis gave the Latics an early lead
with a magnificent volley straight from Jean Beausejour's corner. James
McArthur grabbed the hosts' deserved second with a 15-yard strike after
Jussi Jaaskelainen's poor kick. West Ham could have gone fourth with a win,
but they failed to trouble Wigan keeper Ali Al-Habsi until James Tomkins
headed a late consolation. The Hammers began the day 10 places above their
hosts in the table, but the outcome rarely looked in doubt after Ramis's
brilliant eighth-minute strike.

Roberto Martinez's Wigan side, without a league win since August, grew in
confidence after the goal and their rhythm was rarely interrupted by the
visitors.
The Hammers repeatedly gifted possession to the home side as their promising
early-season form deserted them. This had been billed as a match of
contrasting styles - Martinez's elegant passing game versus Sam Allardyce's
percentage football - so Wigan seemed to be going against type when they
scored their opener from a set piece. It was, however, the most spectacular
of set pieces. Beausejour sent in a corner and Ramis was allowed to drift
unmarked to a position 14 yards out, from where he unleashed an unstoppable
left-footed strike past Jaaskelainen.

The Spanish defender, who had agreed terms with West Ham before opting to
join Wigan from Mallorca in the summer, also hit a wonder strike against the
Hammers in a 4-1 League Cup win last month. The game then settled into its
predicted pattern: the Latics knocked the ball around sweetly while the
visitors pumped it forward in search of Andy Carroll's head. The home side's
tactic looked more effective, with James McCarthy, Shaun Maloney and
Beausejour all going close. Carroll got a first sight of goal just before
half-time when he headed Tomkins' cross wide, but the Hammers' hopes of
mounting a second-half fightback were snuffed out within two minutes of the
restart. A woeful clearance from Jaaskelainen gifted Wigan possession and
they took full advantage. Maloney helped Beausejour's pass on to McArthur,
who slammed home from the edge of the box to double the lead. The Latics
were happy to soak up West Ham pressure for the remainder of the match, but
the Hammers toiled without reward and Carroll cut a frustrated figure.

When his opportunity finally arrived from an accurate Matt Jarvis cross
midway through the second half, the England striker's control let him down.
In fact, Allardyce's side failed to muster a clear attempt on goal until the
final minutes when Tomkins's close-range volley hit the bar. The young
defender did get on the scoresheet moments later with a simple header from
George McCartney's cross, but there was little time to push for what would
have been a scarcely deserved leveller. There was a sense of relief in the
Wigan ranks at the final whistle as the Latics celebrated a belated return
to the form they showed at the tail-end of last season.

A win would have sent West Ham into a Champions League position, but with
games against Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham and Chelsea in
the coming weeks, this defeat could provide a reality check on their
ambitions.

Wigan manager Roberto Martinez: "We don't get too many goals from set plays,
but it was a tremendous finish from Ivan Ramis. "That early goal set the
tone of the game and allowed us to control it. "I really enjoyed the
performance. We have been showing flashes of our ability but today we were
really good. "Our philosophy and way of playing will never change."

West Ham manager Sam Allardyce: "It was a bit of a push on Winston Reid for
their first goal, but it was a brilliant volley. And they deserved to win.
"We didn't play any football today, we didn't get past half-decent. I'm
disappointed our performance has reduced to such a level. "It wasn't about
Wigan today, it was about us not using the ability we've got. We can't keep
giving the ball back to them." "We were not good enough, in any shape or
form. Our problems were all over the pitch."

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Sam Allardyce admitted West Ham 'never got going' in defeat to Wigan
Last Updated: October 27, 2012 9:26pm
SSN

Sam Allardyce was critical of his West Ham side after they slumped to a 2-1
away defeat by Wigan at the DW Stadium. Wigan were the better side and fully
deserved their victory, but Allardyce instead chose to focus on his own
players, who he said failed to take care of the ball properly. The West Ham
boss also felt that Wigan's first goal, a superb volley from defender Ivan
Ramis, should not have stood. "We never got going today, " Allardyce said.
"We never got to our level, never passed the ball properly and never stopped
Wigan playing. "The first goal was a great volley, I do think that there was
push on Reidy (Winston Reid) for the first goal, but the referee didn't see
it. "It wasn't about Wigan for me today. It was about a lack of our ability
to produce what we have got. It makes it difficult for us, because if you
keep giving the ball back to them they use it well. "Therefore the object of
the exercise is to take care of it and don't give it back to them, and we
didn't do it."

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Wigan 2 West Ham 1
The Sun
By DAVID FACEY
Published: 27th October 2012

SAM ALLARDYCE must be sick of the sight of Ivan Ramis. The Spaniard snubbed
a move to West Ham before joining countryman Roberto Martinez at Wigan — and
the defender has quickly become a thorn in Big Sam's side. Ramis scored his
first goal for the Latics as they humiliated West Ham 4-1 in the Capital One
Cup at Upton Park last month. And his screamer of a volley after eight
minutes yesterday sent the Hammers sliding towards just their second loss in
14 away games. James McArthur sealed Wigan's first home win of the season
with a well-taken second on 47 minutes.

If the dominant home team had been more clinical in front of goal they could
easily have bettered their Upton Park tally. After that cup defeat,
Allardyce complained that his team "could not defend a fish supper". Another
roasting was on the menu for his back four after this display — but it was
starvation rations all over the park for his desperately disappointing
outfit. Big Sam said: "We never got going. It wasn't just the defence, we
did not function anywhere near our best in any department. "As a promoted
team you must give your very best to have any chance of winning on the road.

"Wigan were looking for a first home win and we needed to put pressure on
them to make them more nervous. "The technique Ramis showed for that first
goal was terrific — any striker would have been proud of it. If Robin van
Persie had scored it people would never stop going on about it. "We did try
to get him but Roberto's Spanish tipped it Wigan's way! "It was a
disappointment to see us perform that badly. We need to pick ourselves up
quickly because we've got some very tough games coming up."

Martinez was in a much better mood and said: "Maybe Ivan needs to play them
more often — both his goals against them were brilliant strikes. "I thought
we were in control throughout the game and created enough chances to have
scored another goal or two." Even when James Tomkins headed home an
injury-time consolation, the Hammers were left to rue what might have been.
Two minutes earlier he had seen another goalbound effort deflected on to the
bar off Gary Caldwell's leg. But it would have been a travesty if West Ham
had nicked a point at the end. Their normally snappy approach was lacking as
Wigan knocked the ball around at will, leaving the visitors chasing shadows.

Wigan strikers Arouna Kone and Franco Di Santo caused West Ham trouble and
it needed a superb block from George McCartney to deny Di Santo just before
half-time. Jussi Jaaskelainen also saved well from Shaun Maloney but was
powerless to prevent his team falling further behind. The Finn's defenders
were guilty of ball watching as Di Santo's cross was knocked back into
McArthur's path for a cool finish. That second goal gave Wigan the
confidence to produce some exhibition stuff. But Andy Carroll could have
made them pay for their extravagance as he was picked out by the
hard-working McCartney. The ball fell nicely for the £35million striker but
his first touch was woeful and the ball ran out of play, much to the delight
of the home fans.

Wigan: Al Habsi, Ramis, Caldwell, Figueroa, Boyce, McCarthy, McArthur,
Beausejour, Kone, Di Santo (Watson 78), Maloney. Subs not used: Pollitt,
Jones, Gomez, McManaman, Boselli, Stam. Booked: Ramis,Di Santo,McArthur.
Goals: Ramis 8, McArthur 47.

West Ham: Jaaskelainen, Tomkins, Collins, Reid, McCartney, Jarvis, Noble
(Cole 64), Nolan, Diame (O'Neil 73), Benayoun (Maiga 46), Carroll. Subs not
used: Spiegel, O'Brien, Chambers, Hall. Booked: Noble, Maiga, Reid, O'Neil.
Goals: Tomkins 90.

Att: 19,090
Ref: Jon Moss (W Yorkshire).

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Brum deal: Ravel Morrison will return a changed man, claims Allardyce
The Mirror
27 Oct 2012 22:30

Sam Allardyce reckons West Ham starlet Ravel Morrison will return a new man
after finally getting his career on track at Birmingham. Read Sunday Mirror
match report - Wigan Athletic 2-1 West Ham United: Ramis and McArthur fire
Latics to first win in six The 19-year-old, who was turfed out of Manchester
United last season following a number of off-field problems, has started to
show glimpses of his ­potential after a loan move to St Andrews. Morrison's
future with the Midlanders looked bleak until manager Lee Clark held
showdown talks with the midfielder a ­fortnight ago. But Allardyce, who
signed the youngster after Sir Alex Ferguson reached the end of his tether
with him, ­believes Morrison's recent form has shown he's ­making strides.
"It's nice to see he has overcome those early ­problems he suffered by not
playing," said ­Allardyce. "We bought him for ­development. So first-team
football now until the end of the season hopefully will give him enough
­experience. "So he can learn to put that ability into the game on a regular
basis. A player is always much better when he is in the team as well.
"Hopefully he will have the determination to continue playing in the side."

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