Daily WHUFC News - 17th December 2012

Big Sam proud despite FA Cup exit
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce admitted to feeling hard done by as West Ham United were
beaten 1-0 at Manchester United
16.01.2013

Sam Allardyce said a combination of missed opportunities and a decision not
to award his side a penalty had contributed to West Ham United's 1-0 FA Cup
with Budweiser third-round replay defeat at Manchester United. The Hammers
fell behind to a ninth-minute Wayne Rooney goal when the England striker
converted Chicarito's low cross. But, as they did in the initital tie and in
the Barclays Premier League fixture at Old Trafford in November, they
responded superbly to an early setback. Unfortunately, both before and after
half-time, the visitors were unable to give their 1,400 travelling fans
something to celebrate as a succession of shots flew off-target. To compound
West Ham's frustration, referee Phil Dowd ignored penalty claims for
handball against Rafael before awarding a spot-kick to the Red Devils when
Ryan Giggs' cross hit Jordan Spence's arm. Thankfully, Rooney blazed his
penalty over the crossbar. "First and foremost it was a bizarre goal that we
gave away. There was no reason or need to let Chicarito in so easily. We
should have been tracking him and there was no pressure on the ball from
Anderson. Instead of stepping up to play offside, which we couldn't do, it
became an easy and simple goal for them to take. "Before that and after that
our performance was very, very good and certainly for the 20 minutes or more
of the second half, we continued to press and test Manchester United's
resolve. Unfortunately, because of our incapactity to put a chance in the
back of the net at the moment, we couldn't find a goal. "At one stage in the
second half, Rafael clearly handled the ball - there is no doubt about that.
The referee was in the perfect position but he didn't give it. Because he
didn't give it, it didn't allow us to get back into the game at that
particularly time by scoring from the penalty spot. Who knows what might
have happened there? We could have easily have won the game and gone through
to the next round because we were the stronger side at the time. "Then, of
course, the disappointing thing happens up the other end. I know Wayne
Rooney missed the penalty and it kept us in the game, it was probably
justice in the end. Jordan Spence did handle the ball, but he didn't handle
it any worse or any more than Rafael handled it. If you are going to give
them a penalty, you have got to give us a penalty. "The referee has no
excuse for his position because I've looked on the laptop, but that's not
the reason why we have lost. It has contributed, but the reason we lost is
because we didn't score despite creating so many chances at Old Trafford."

The manager said there were positives to take from the defeat - notably the
return of Mohamed Diame from a hamstring injury and the players' ability to
perform in a new 3-5-2 formation. "We made tactical changes with a shortage
of defenders and Alou Diarra stepped into the back-three and was very, very
good. Apart from the goal we conceded, Alou, James Tomkins and Winston Reid
were very good defensively. We frustrated Manchester United and played with
wing-backs - young lads who kept Nani, Ryan Giggs and Valencia very quiet.
"That allowed our midfield to start playing. We had two up top and tried to
play off Vaz Te and Carlton Cole and it allowed us to create and get into
the final third and Manchester United's box, but we couldn't find the
opportunity to score. We had plenty of good chances to do that, but
unfortunately couldn't."

While it may be a cliche, the reality is now that West Ham can concentrate
all their efforts on the Barclays Premier League - starting with the visit
of Harry Redknapp's Queens Park Rangers on Saturday. "We need to keep our
performance at this level. We had this level at Upton Park and nearly beat
them there and we had a fantastic level of performance on Wednesday, but
what I cannot accept was the level of performance we produced against
Sunderland. We cannot have anything other than this on Saturday when we face
QPR."

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Man Utd 1 West Ham 0
16 January 2013
By Ben Smith
BBC Sport

Wayne Rooney scored and then missed a penalty on his return from injury as
Manchester United reached the FA Cup fourth round at West Ham's expense.
The England striker, making his first appearance since Christmas, slid home
from close in to put the hosts ahead. West Ham were denied a penalty when
the ball appeared to strike Rafael's arm in the penalty area. But on a night
of mixed fortunes, Rooney blasted a late penalty over to set up a tense
finish at Old Trafford. Wayne Rooney has now missed 10 penalties for
Manchester United. Matt Taylor went close for West Ham, but the home side
stood firm to set up a home tie with Fulham on 26 or 27 January. Having
helped keep United in the tie at Upton Park with a delightful half-volleyed
pass that set Robin van Persie on his way, Ryan Giggs once again stood out
from the rest. Sharper to the ball and swifter to use it, the Welshman
delivered a midfield master-class, allying energy that belied his years to
pace and purpose.

However, it was another night of frustration for Sam Allardyce's side. West
Ham had been the better side in the first game only for Van Persie's sublime
late goal to earn the Red Devils a reprieve. Once again, they had
opportunities at Old Trafford but the chances and the tie slipped away. Sir
Alex Ferguson is not known for handing out second chances and for much of
the first half his side dictated the tempo and toyed with their opponents.
But even with Rooney and Anderson back after injury, Old Trafford felt
subdued, perhaps expectant. There was a sense that having come within
minutes of a being knocked out of the FA Cup in the first leg, the Premier
League leaders would not make the same mistake twice. Ferguson's side made a
dream start, snatching the lead through Rooney inside ten minutes. The goal
was as simple as it was effective. Anderson, making his first start since
hobbling out of the 4-3 win over Reading on December 1, opened up the West
Ham defence with a through ball that skidded into Javier Hernandez's path.
The Mexican beat the offside trap, squared the ball to Rooney who slid the
ball into an empty net. Rooney pointed to the sky as he ran away to
celebrate in memory of his late sister-in-law. The Red Devils might have had
a second after 28 minutes, as Giggs combined with Antonio Valencia to tee
Nani up for a fizzing volley that was cleared off the line by the young West
Ham defender Dan Potts. It was too easy for Ferguson's side - the pace
dropped, along with the temperature, and passes went astray. The visitors
grew in confidence and in two spells either side of half time, West Ham
seized the initiative.

Taylor twice went close in the space of two minutes, misplacing his pass
when well-placed before firing over from 12 yards. Sensing an opportunity,
Allardyce threw Kevin Nolan and Jack Collison into the mix. The former
Bolton and Newcastle midfielder almost made an immediate impact, only to see
his shot blocked by Chris Smalling. As West Ham pushed for an equaliser,
United broke once more. Another surging run by Giggs ended with his clipped
cross striking the outstretched arm of Jordan Spence, prompting referee Phil
Dowd to award a penalty. Rooney, however, could only blast his spot-kick
high over Jussi Jaaskelainen's crossbar. Manchester United boss Sir Alex
Ferguson on his team's record of five penalties scored and four missed this
season: "I think we have to improve at that. "There have been several great
examples over the years -[(former Southampton midfielder] Matthew Le Tissier
scoring 47 out of 48.
"A penalty kick is your opportunity to take advantage of a foul or a
handball or whatever and score a goal."

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Man Utd home advantage led to penalty decisions - Sam Allardyce
BBC.co.uk

West Ham manager Sam Allardyce says the decision to deny his side at penalty
at Old Trafford but award Manchester United one, was down to home advantage.
Wayne Rooney scored the only goal of the game as West Ham lost 1-0 to crash
out of the FA Cup after a replay. Allardyce's side were denied a penalty
when the ball struck Rafael's arm, only for the hosts to be awarded one
later when Jordan Spence handled late on. "You see it time and time again at
Old Trafford," Allardyce said at full-time. "There's no doubt about the
difference between Rafael's handball and Jordan Spence's. "Spence plays for
West Ham and the away team, while Rafael plays for the home side at Old
Trafford."

Rooney went on to blast the penalty over, but Allardyce was nonetheless
furious at the decision. "With Rafael, the ball hits his hand but no penalty
is given. With Jordan Spence, the ball hits his hand and it's a penalty. The
incidents are the same. If you give one you've got to give both, simple as
that." Allardyce went on to suggest that referee Mike Dowd had been
perfectly-placed to give West Ham the decision, having seen the replays.
"The ref did not see Rafael's handball because of his position. But he was
in a worse position to see Jordan Spence's than Rafael's." Victory saw
Manchester United through to a fourth-round tie against Fulham and veteran
Ryan Giggs admitted he was relieved to get through. "I'm pleased," he said.
"It's the FA Cup and anything can happen. You saw that from some of the
results last night, so I'm pleased to get through. "When you've got players
coming back from injury it can be tough sometimes. And we have to give
credit to West Ham, they were tough to play against."

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Transfer latest
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 17th January 2013
By: Staff Writer

There has been a flurry of fresh transfer speculation - yet no actual
activity as of yet - regarding West Ham in the past 24 hours. Earlier this
afternoon lancashiretelegraph.co.uk claimed that the Irons had increased
their offer for Blackburn's Martin Olsson, having seen an initial bid of
around £2million rejected.
United's latest offer for the 24-year-old Swedish international is reported
to be in the region of £4million, still some way short of Rovers' (inflated)
£7million valuation of the player. Yet such an offer would almost certainly
be close to the Championship club's true evaluation of Olsson - even though
the Telegraph also suggest that owners Venky's are likely to reject West
Ham's latest bid.

Over to France now, and in the wake of Sam Allardyce's recent comments
regarding the need for additional defenders, the latest to be linked with a
move to east London is Bordeaux's Lamine Sane. Sane, 25, a French-born
Senegalese international team mate of West Ham's Mo Diame was reported by
maxifoot.fr to have travelled to England earlier this week to meet club
officials. However that possibility was soon dented by Bordeaux president
Jean-Louis Triaud who is reported to have stated he will resist any calls to
sell the player, who is contracted to Les Girondins until 2015.

Staying on the European mainland and tuttosport.com claim that West Ham have
failed in an attempt to land veteran Juventus striker Vincenzo Iaquinta. The
former Italian international, now 33, is out of contract at La Vecchia
Signora this summer but insists he wants to see out his contract before
deciding on his future. Sent out on loan to Serie B side Cesena for the
latter half of last season, Iaquinta returned to Juve last summer but is yet
to make a first team appearance in 2021/13.

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Allardyce blasts Dowd after Old Trafford Cup exit
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 16th January 2013
By: Staff Writer

West Ham boss Sam Allardyce might find himself in a spot of bother following
comments he made - rightly so in the minds of many - regarding the
performance of referee Phil Dowd in tonight's FA Cup third round replay.
United were sent crashing out of the Cup at Old Trafford losing 1-0 on the
night thanks to Wayne Rooney's ninth minute strike - but it was second half
two penalty appeals that left Big Sam furious. West Ham were denied a 48th
minute penalty appeal when Reds defender Rafael clearly handled inside the
area. But when Jordan Spence was caught in a similar situation at the
opposite end later in the half, match offical Dowd immediately awarded the
spot kick. "There's no doubt whatsoever about the difference between
Rafael's hand ball and Jordan Spence's," Allardyce told ITV. "Jordan Spence
plays for West Ham away at Man United and Rafael plays at home at Old
Trafford. It's got to be that simple when you see it. "Phil Dowd was in a
perfect position - hand to ball, he pushes the ball away with his left arm
but no penalty. At the other end Jordan Spence's arm comes up and the ball
hits his hand and he gives a penalty. "If you're going to give one you've
got to give the other. You've got to give them both, it's as simple as
that."

When asked whether he was suggesting that away teams get a raw deal at Old
Trafford, Allardyce replied: "You've seen it for yourself, haven't you? Look
at the replays as many times as you want; look at the referee's position. "I
can't come out here and say that the referee didn't see Rafael's hand ball,
because of his position. I've looked at his position and it's perfect. He's
straight inline with it and straight in front of it."

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FA Cup: Wayne Rooney fires Manchester United past West Ham
Last Updated: January 16, 2013 11:33pm
SSN

Wayne Rooney scored a ninth-minute winner to send Manchester United through
to the fourth round of the FA Cup with a 1-0 victory over a spirited West
Ham United. The England striker side-footed into an empty net after Javier
Hernandez had raced in behind the visitors' defence and squared. Sir Alex
Ferguson's side will now face Fulham at home in the last 32. There was a
tinge of sadness for Rooney, however, who dedicated his goal to his late
sister-in-law Rosie, who died on January 5th.He then went on to miss a
second-half penalty, blazing his effort over the bar as West Ham threatened
to mount a comeback. Ferguson made 10 changes to his team and the disruption
showed in a below-par performance that lacked cohesion and tempo. They
started well and deservedly took the lead, but failed to build on their
advantage, with their only other clear chance of the first half being a shot
from Nani that was kicked off the line by Dan Potts. West Ham lacked
penetration in the opening period but fared far better after the break and
had several opportunities to draw level. They could have had a penalty
shortly after the restart when the ball struck Rafael's arm, but referee
Phil Dowd waved play on. United were then fortunate that the Brazilian
right-back was in the right place to prevent Matt Taylor's square ball
reaching Ricardo Vaz Te. Taylor later curled an excellent chance over,
before Chris Smalling managed to nick the ball away from Kevin Nolan just as
the Hammers substitute was about to shoot from close range. United should
have put the game beyond doubt after Jordan Spence handled the excellent
Ryan Giggs' cross, but Rooney missed from the penalty spot.

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West Ham boss Sam Allardyce fumes at penalty decision after Manchester
United defeat
Last Updated: January 16, 2013 11:49pm
SSN

West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce accused referee Phil Dowd of home bias
after denying his side a penalty in their 1-0 FA Cup third-round reply
defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford. Wayne Rooney scored the only
goal of the game and later missed a second-half spot-kick after Jordan
Spence was adjudged to have handled Ryan Giggs' cross. West Ham had an
equally strong claim for a penalty when Rafael kneed the ball on to his own
arm, but Dowd waved play on, leaving Allardyce seething. He said: "There's
no doubt about the difference between Rafael's handball and Jordan Spence's.
"Spence plays for West Ham and the away team, while Rafael plays for the
home side at Old Trafford. With Rafael, the ball hits his hand, but no
penalty is given. With Jordan Spence, the ball hits his hand and it's a
penalty. "You see it time and time again at Old Trafford. The ref did not
see Rafael's handball because of his position. But he was in a worse
position to see Jordan Spence's than Rafael's."

Victory saw United through to a fourth-round tie against Fulham and United
veteran Giggs was relieved to progress. "I'm pleased," he said. "It's the FA
Cup and anything can happen. You saw that from some of the results last
night, so I'm pleased to get through. "When you have got players coming back
from injury it can be tough sometimes. And we have to give credit to West
Ham - they were tough to play against."

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Second bid for Blackburn's Martin Olsson has been made by West Ham
By Graeme Bailey - Tweet me: @graemebailey. Last Updated: January 16,
2013 11:40pm
SSN

Sky Sports understand that West Ham United have made an increased bid for
Blackburn defender Martin Olsson. The Hammers made an initial bid for Olsson
earlier this month, believed to be around £2million. Rovers rejected this
claiming they wanted three-times this amount - but Olsson himself has asked
the club to let him join his former boss Sam Allardyce. Now West Ham have
returned with a new bid for the left-back, and they are waiting to see if
Blackburn will accept. Allardyce is keen to get the deal for Olsson tied up
as soon as possible.

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West Ham boss Sam Allardyce accepts undisclosed damages from Steve Kean
Last Updated: January 16, 2013 2:21pm
SSN

West Ham manager Sam Allardyce has accepted substantial undisclosed damages
from former Blackburn boss Steve Kean. Kean had claimed that Allardyce was
sacked from his previous post at Rovers because he was a "crook". Allardyce
brought defamation proceedings in London's High Court against Kean, who was
Blackburn's manager during a summer 2011 pre-season tour of the Far East.
His solicitor, Hanna Basha, told Mr Justice Eady that the "false and
defamatory" allegation, made while Kean was drinking in a bar in Hong Kong,
was filmed on a camera phone and subsequently published to many hundreds of
thousands of people over the internet and reported in the national press.
She said that Kean had acknowledged the allegation was completely untrue,
withdrawn it, and agreed to pay a substantial sum in damages. Kean's
counsel, John Mehrzad, offered his apologies for the hurt and distress
caused and said he was pleased to set the record straight. Ms Basha said
that Allardyce's claim against Blackburn had been settled and as the club
had published an apology on its website, it was not a party to Wednesday's
statement in court.

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