Manager on Monday
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce is delighted with West Ham United's start to 2013 after the
2-2 draw with Manchester United
07.01.2013
Sam Allardyce is hoping West Ham United can continue to 'grow' following
their unbeaten start to 2012. Saturday's compelling 2-2 with Manchester
United in the FA Cup third round followed the New Year's Day victory against
Norwich City four days earlier. Allardyce's side came within a minute of
making it a perfect start to 2013 against the Red Devils, but Robin van
Persie's stunning late strike ensured the teams will meet again in an Old
Trafford replay in ten days' time.
"People might look at 2-2 and ask how many chances they missed but they
haven't created an awful lot and that for us is a really good thing to build
on," Allaryce said. "It is a great effort and after a disappointing December
with the injury problems running onto some bad results, we have turned that
around against Norwich. "We had one or two players that have had to be
rested with knocks and fatigue. Some have stepped in and done a great job
and some are still injured. "We've also had new players coming in from
Liverpool and Arsenal, so hopefully we will grow from here. What we have
achieved against Manchester United should give us great confidence."
Central defender James Collins - who headed both of West Ham's goals -
admitted after the game that he had mixed emotions following the visitor's
late leveller. His manager confessed to similar sentiments but was
unsurprised by both the quality and timing of Sir Alex Ferguson's dramatic
late strike. "We all know it's Manchester United and it's 2-1 and we know
what they can do and what they have done in the past in the final throes of
a game. They have the mental capacity to continue to carve out chances when
most important. They had to do it by one of the classiest goals you will see
this season. "I can't criticise anyone for the quality of Giggs' throughball
or van Persie's first touch and finish. It was so silky and smooth. They
scored before we knew it, in a split second, from the ball being on the
halfway line and in a non-dangerous position with us having seven or eight
behind the ball."
van Persie's goal was all the harder to take after Big Sam's side so nearly
made it 3-1 seconds earlier as both Matt Taylor and Carlton Cole could not
quite turn in Matt Jarvis' dangerous cross. The late chance perfectly summed
up West Ham's potent attacking play, which caused Sir Alex Ferguson's side
problems throughout the match. "We went to the other end and Jarvis produced
a cross with three players in the box to score the third in the 88th or 89th
minute. Matt Taylor should have scored and Carlton Cole almost scored. That
was us. We did not sit back and try and play the game out. "United played by
throwing everyone forward and we exploited the spaces. The difference is in
split seconds. They were dead and then a minute or two later, it was bang,
bang, goal."
The teams will now contest a replay at Old Trafford on Wednesday 16 January,
with the prize for the winners a home tie with either Fulham or Blackpool in
round four. The Hammers' hopes of staging a memorable FA Cup victory in
Manchester could be boosted not just by the availability of new signings Joe
Cole and Marouane Chamakh, but also the return from injury of key players
Momo Diame and Andy Carroll. "We are still in the hat. I always think
players look forward to the FA Cup because it is less mental strain than the
Premier League and we showed that. "I think Andy and Momo will be very close
to making the return leg. It's great having Jack Collison back after not
playing since Wembley and Ricardo Vaz Te back from 12 weeks out along with
Joe and Chamakh, who hopefully we can get to his potential. We have to get
the squad as fit as it can be for a mammoth January. Joe Cole marked his
second debut for West Ham with two assists and his manager is now looking
forward to seeing if he can once again deliver on a regular basis for his
boyhood club. And judging by the reaction of the Boleyn Ground faithful,
they too are also excited about what could lie ahead for the returning
Hammers No.26. "We know Joe has it in the locker. You don't play for Chelsea
and win the league, the FA Cup and play for England 56 times if you don't.
The fans made him feel good. "It made him feel good when he ran on how they
welcomed him, and more importantly even better when he came off, with even
bigger applause and a bigger cheer for what he's done. A player feeling good
about who he is playing in front of is a massive bonus."
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FA Cup fourth-round draw
WHUFC.com
The Hammers will host Fulham or Blackpool if they beat Man United in their
FA Cup third-round replay
06.01.2013
West Ham United will host Fulham or Blackpool if they beat Manchester United
in their FA Cup with Budweiser third-round replay. The Hammers played out a
fantastic 2-2 draw with the Red Devils at the Boleyn Ground on Saturday
evening, coming from behind to take the lead through two James Collins'
headers, only for Robin van Persie's late equaliser to force a replay. That
game will take place at Old Trafford on Wednesday 16 January, with the
winners hosting either Fulham or Blackpool in the fourth round. The tie
would be played on the weekend of 26/27 January. If West Ham get through,
the fourth-round tie will have plenty of historical significance. The
Hammers beat Bobby Moore's Fulham 2-0 at Wembley in the 1975 final, while
they of course overcame Blackpool 2-1 at the new Wembley in last season's
npower Championship Play-Off final. West Ham have faced Fulham five times in
the FA Cup, with the first meeting coming in the Intermediate Round on 3
December 1903, when the Cottagers ran out 1-0 winners at the Memorial
Grounds. The most recent FA Cup meeting with the Cottagers went to a replay,
with the west Londoners winning 3-0 at the Boleyn Ground in the fifth round
on 24 February 2004. The Hammers have faced Blackpool on six previous
occasions - the first being a 2-1 first-round win at the Boleyn Ground on 12
January 1907 and the most-recent being a 4-0 third-round defeat at
Bloomfield Road on 27 February 1971. Ticket details for the third-round
replay at Old Trafford will be confirmed on whufc.com soon.
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Play-off final replay on the cards
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 6th January 2013
By: Staff Writer
West Ham could face fellow Championship play-off finalists Blackpool in the
fourth round of the FA Cup - should both teams overcome difficult third
round replay ties. The two teams will meet in the next round of the
compeition just seven months after West Ham beat Blackpool 2-1 at Wembley in
what was billed as 'the richest game in football' - if both teams can
overcome Premier League opposition at the second attempt. Blackpool, who
drew 1-1 against Fulham at Craven Cottage on Saturday have a second bite of
the cherry next week - whilst Sam Allardyce's West Ham, who were just
moments away from knocking Manchester United out of the competition travel
to Old Trafford for the replay in ten days time. An 87th minute striker from
Ricardo Vaz Te was enough to win the day for West Ham at the national
stadium back in May - since when the Hammers have gone from strength to
strength in the top flight. Blackpool - who lost their talismanic manager
Ian Holloway to Crystal Palace earlier in the season - are now managed by
Michael Appleton and currently sit 14th in the Championship.
The full fourth round draw was as follows; all ties to take place on the
weekend of 26/27 January:
Norwich v Luton
Oldham v Mansfield or Liverpool
Macclesfield v Wigan or Bournemouth
Derby v Blackburn
Hull or Leyton Orient v Barnsley
Middlesbrough v Aldershot
Millwall v Aston Villa
Leeds or Birmingham v Tottenham
Brighton v Swansea or Arsenal
Crystal Palace or Stoke v Manchester City
West Ham Utd or Manchester Utd v Fulham or Blackpool
Southend or Brentford v Chelsea
Reading v Sheffield United
Huddersfield v Leicester
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Allardyce on... Manchester United
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 6th January 2013
By: Staff Writer
A disappointed Sam Allardyce comes to terms with his team conceding yet
another late goal at the Boleyn and looks ahead to a money-spinning replay
in a fortnight's time...
Sam: you more than gave them a run for their money. A tad disappointed with
their late equaliser?
More than a tad disappointed. You're never satisfied and you've never beat
Manchester United until the final whistle blows, I've learnt that in the
past.
When Matt Jarvis broke down the left hand side late on and put in a great
ball for Mark Noble who headed it down to Matt Taylor I'm going "please put
it in, please" - because if that goes in, Manchester United won't come back.
If we don't put it in it's going to be nail-biting until the final whistle
goes because somewhere along the line they might just carve out a chance
with the quality they've got - and you saw it, it was just a brilliant goal
they scored.
The first goal was good enough but the second... The ball from Ryan Giggs
who smashed a volley over James Tomkins' head from about 60 yards, then Van
Persie's first touch and finish was just unbelievable. Sadly for us, it was
an equaliser for Man United with just a couple of minutes to go.
We had one cleared off the line, we had to be patient and tactically we were
very good. We've conceded two goals but I can't really remember what else
Jussi [Jasskelainen] had to do today.
Joe Cole was outstanding today, key deliveries for both goals?
Yes. It's obviously a fantastic debut for him and he had a great reception
from the fans, which must have him feel really good. That aside, the whole
team has played really well today, the whole team.
At one end of the spectrum there's Joe Cole coming back and then at the
other end you've got Danny Potts who gets hauled back from Colchester on
loan, because of our problems at left back, and goes out and plays a
fantastic game which is fantastic for me to see. At his age, just 19 years
old, to be able to put in a performance like that should give him great
confidence now and he shouldn't need to go back out on loan anywhere given
that type of performance.
That's an extra boost for me based on our injuries at the moment. Alou
Diarra's first game in centre midfield as well since a three-month injury,
that's a nice boost for me. Joe - a massive boost, obviously and two great
goals for James Collins off his deliveries.
Was it a risk playing Joe?
No, because he's fit - he's been fit all season. He's hardly had a problem.
He's had one or two problems previously but not at the moment. There's more
of a risk with [Ricardo] Vaz Te and Jack Collison as they've been out for so
long in terms of getting injured again and they played their part as well.
Like I said, it was a great performance and in the dressing room we almost
feel like we've lost - [that's how it feels] when you get done in the last
minute, but we're still in the hat. We've got a difficult January now. That
game will be fitted in around the 16th, on a Wednesday; we've got some very
important league games before that and some very important games after it.
We run into QPR, then Arsenal away in midweek (again) and then another
Premier League game after that. So we've got to get the players who are out
injured fit and we've got to boost the squad. We've done that with two
players to replace [Modibo] Maiga who's gone to the African Nations and
Yossi Benayoun, who's gone back to Chelsea. If we can find another one or
two we'll try that and if we can get the ones who are injured fit, we've got
enough in the squad to rotate - which is what we'll need.
Is the replay a hindrance given your schedule?
Not if the players who are injured come back, because it'll be a great game
for them to play in as they haven't played for a while. That's Andy Carroll
and [Mo] Diame, although I think it might be a bit soon for George
McCartney.
We've only just got Vaz Te and Jack Collison back and we've got [Marouane]
Chamakh to bring into the squad now and Joe Cole bursting for games, as many
as he can get. So let's keep going the way we're going and if we continue to
produce those sort of performances we're not going to go too far wrong in
terms of getting the results that we want.
Is there a better striker anywhere in the world than Robin Van Persie at the
moment?
The lad at Athletico Madrid..?
In England?
But he's some striker as well, isn't he? In goalscoring terms [Lionel]
Messi's probably the best all round player and goalscorer in the world at
the minute, then Ronaldo. Those two are brilliant.
Will he made the difference, do you think, in terms of Man United winning
the title?
Well, if they put him on the bench and they don't quite win it while he's
not there, they've got him to win a game - and when he's on the field they
win most of the games he plays in. What has he scored now, 18 or 19? You
know, he who has the best goalscorer gets the best results.
You've been strongly linked with Wellington [Paulista] and [Martin] Olsson
in the last few days...
The weather's not that bad is it? For Wellingtons? Sorry, I had to throw
that in...
That's ok, I forgive you! Go on...
I don't know. We're searching for players but at this time of year an agent
will ring me up, or our head of recruitment, or he'll contact the chairman,
David Sullivan, and then next minute they ring the papers or contact the
media and say we're going to buy him. That happens all the way through
January so when we've got one who's having a medical or nearly clinched
we'll announce it. But then we'll probably be linked with another 150
players between now and January 31st.
Their club have announced it on their website, that's why we've asked.
Have they? Good for them... [laughs]
Steve Kean was mentioned in the papers this morning; is that all done and
dusted?
No, I don't think it's final but close. Thank you.
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Teenage kicks: Why Joe Cole's unfulfilled promise should be a warning to
Sturridge
The Mirror
6 Jan 2013 13:21
Jamie McDonald
Three Premier League titles, three FA Cups, 56 England caps, trips to three
World Cups and a £3million pay-off from Liverpool to bank alongside the
untold riches that come from a decade as a stellar earner in world
football's richest competition. So, Joe Cole, where did it all go wrong?
As the prodigal son returns to West Ham, 10 years after joining the first
wave of Roman Abramovich's Chelsea revolution, it is worth remembering that
there are plenty of former teenage prodigies who have achieved far less than
Cole. Yet his relative underachievement remains a pertinent tale – not
least, perhaps, for Daniel Sturrridge, the former teenage prodigy who was
being ushered into Anfield just as Cole was heading out. Even as a kid Cole
was being spoken about in reverential tones and he had been dubbed the
Cockney Pele by the age of 17. No pressure, there, then. Likened to Paul
Gascoigne as a youngster, Cole's career was never affected by the
self-destructive demons of the Geordie maestro. He remains a dedicated pro,
a likeable bloke and, at 31, still something of a man-child in his pure
love of playing. A loan spell at Lille last season proved he was not willing
just to count his cash on the Anfield sidelines. So where, relatively
speaking, did it go wrong? Because, as a raw talent the young Cole was
almost Messi-like in his dribbling ability. Had he been born French,
German, Spanish or South American, he would almost certainly have been a
central figure for clubs and country. Yet English football never quite
understood him, never cherished him, never attempted to fully accommodate
or build teams around him. Despite masterminding two of Cole's three title
wins, Jose Mourinho was partly to blame for his regression. There was fault
on both sides here – Cole was publicly criticised by his boss for spurning
defensive duties, most memorably after scoring a winner against Liverpool,
and he was always the first to be substituted if matches were not going to
the Special One's plan. Yet Cole's tendency to showboat and over-elaborate
was always going to exasperate an ultra-conservative manager who, with
great success, manipulated his team as a grandmaster with inanimate chess
pieces. A cruciate knee ligament injury, which sidelined Cole for most of
2009 hastened his decline for Chelsea and England.
He had been England's player of the tournament in Germany in 2006 – the only
member of Sven Goran Eriksson's squad to enhance his reputation in that
WAG-blighted summer. Yet even during a decent England career, he was
generally used as a left midfielder rather than the creative, game-changing
No.10 he wished to be.
In South Africa in 2010, John Terry caused a storm by publicly advocating
Cole's inclusion following the 0-0 debacle against Algeria. Yet Cole never
started a match under Fabio Capello in that shambolic campaign and after
the humiliation by Germany in Bloemfontein, in which he made a poor
appearance as a sub, he gave a lengthy insight into his views on the
failings of the English game. When he argued that England never trusted
flair players or coveted possession of the ball, he was clearly talking
about his own frustrations. Cole has not worn the Three Lions since, after a
move to Liverpool which made him the wrong player at the wrong club at the
wrong time. Returning to West Ham may provide his career with a renaissance,
or at least a pleasing swansong. Whereas Cole is never going to be a major
part of England's future, Sturridge just might. Like Cole, he was a teenage
starlet who was marginalised at Chelsea. At times, he did not help himself.
When Andre Villas-Boas gave him his first sustained run last season, there
were grumblings that he was unhappy playing wide – despite scoring plenty of
goals, cutting in from the right. During talks with Liverpool, Sturridge
apparently insisted on being played as a central striker. While that was
never going to be agreed, Brendan Rodgers is adamant he will move his most
influential player, Luis Suarez, to grant Sturridge's wish. It would be a
bold move and exactly the sort of faith Cole needed from a manager, yet
never quite received. A few years hence, we could be describing Sturridge
as England's centre-forward or as a former Liverpool winger.
It's up to Sturridge to deliver now. Unlike the bloke heading out of
Anfield's revolving door, he'll have no excuses.
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
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