Daily WHUFC News - 14th July 2013

Big Sam content with Bournemouth win
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce was happy to see his side continue their pre-season with
victory on the south coast
13.07.2013

Sam Allardyce expressed his contentment after West Ham United scored a 2-0
pre-season win at Championship new boys AFC Bournemouth. First-half goals
from Kevin Nolan and Jack Collison were enough to secure victory in a
Testimonial match for former Hammers and Cherries full-back Stephen Purches.
Thousands of Hammers fans swelled the attendance to 7,080 in hot sunshine at
the Goldsands Stadium. Big Sam handed first pre-season appearances to
Mohamed Diame and Joey O'Brien, while Netherlands international midfielder
Orlando Engelaar was given a trial after the break. As West Ham prepare to
take on League One side Colchester United on Tuesday before flying out for a
three-game tour of Germany the following day, Big Sam said things were
dropping into place ahead of the big Barclays Premier League kick-off on 17
August. "It's finished off another fine week for us in our pre-season
preparation," the manager told West Ham TV. "The level of the game was up a
level in terms of the quality of Bournemouth Football Club, which has given
us a bit more of a test. "It was never that comfortable and we took our two
goals very, very well indeed and I think we easily could have more. Modibo
Maiga hit the post with a delicate chip, which was unlucky for him, and we
had a few more chances to boot. "Results are not that important at the
moment. It's more about improving the fitness and we're doing that very
well. We're fitter than we were at this stage last season. "We've got to
keep clear of injuries if we can and let's hope we can continue to grow
looking forward to 17 August, when we want to hit the ground 100 per cent
running and make sure we get off to a start like we did last season."

After a frenetic start, Nolan headed West Ham in front on seven minutes from
Guy Demel's pinpoint cross before Collison expertly rounded home goalkeeper
Daryl Flahavan to double the lead a minute before half-time. The second half
saw Maiga hit the post and Joe Cole, who showed some outstanding bits of
skill, come close on a couple of occasions. For Eddie Howe's Bournemouth,
man-of-the-moment and Hammers Academy graduate Purches appeared late on, as
did Cherries legends Darren Anderton and Steve Fletcher. More pleasing for
Big Sam, however, was the sight of Diame and O'Brien returning to action
after FIFA World Cup qualifying duty and a hamstring injury respectively.
"Joey had a bit of a hamstring niggle and the only two who are out now are
George McCartney and Andy Carroll, who we hope to have back as soon as
possible. "Both of those injuries occurred last season and not this
pre-season, so we'll try to keep the players as fit as we possibly can. "We
got to Colchester on Tuesday and then have three big games in Germany so
we'll see where we are after those."

Finally, Big Sam confirmed that the Club would run the rule over Engelaar, a
giant midfielder who has played for Schalke 04, PSV and the Dutch national
team.
"A player of his experience and his quality, we'll have him with us for a
few days to see if he could be a valuable member of our team. We'll
obviously make that decision in the near future."

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West Ham win 2-0 at Bournemouth
Last Updated: July 13, 2013 9:33pm
SSN

Goals by Kevin Nolan and Jack Collison guided West Ham to a 2-0 victory at
Bournemouth in a testimonial game for Stephen Purches at the Goldsands
Stadium.
The Hammers took the lead after nine minutes when Guy Demel's whipped-in
cross found Nolan and he headed home from eight yards with goalkeeper Darryl
Flahavan left grasping thin air. It appeared the teams would be separated by
one goal at the end of a first half that ebbed and flowed but the Premier
League side doubled their lead in injury time with a goal that had a whiff
of controversy. The Cherries believed Steve Cook had been fouled by Modibo
Maiga when retrieving the ball but the referee waved play on and Collison
rounded the keeper before slotting the ball home. There was a notable
appearance from Darren Anderton eight minutes from time when the former
England international came on for the Cherries.

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Allardyce DID Try to Sign Diouf But Fan Pressure Scuppered Him
By Iain Dale
West Ham Till I Die

I have just been reading Neil Warnock's autobiography. It's a pacy and
entertaining read, as you would expect from such a controversial character.
There's not an awful lot about West Ham and amazingly the Tevez saga merits
only a single page. He says how much he likes West Ham fans and hints that
we approached him to take over from Avram Grant at one point, although he
doesn't actually name us. But it was on page 316 that my eyes almost popped
out of my head when he describes how El Hadj Diouf came to sign for him at
Leeds. As an aside, he writes...

I spoke about him to Sam Allardyce who had signed Diouf twice. Eighty per
cent of what Big Same said about him was good. He'd tried to sign him at
West Ham the previous year but the supporters hadn't liked the idea, and as
Sam was trying to win over the fans at the time, he decided against it.

It just goes to show, pressure from fans can sometimes work.

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Bournemouth 0 West Ham 2
Published: 13th July 2013
The Sun

KEVIN NOLAN and James Collison struck as West Ham saw off Championship
new-boys Bournemouth. Skipper Nolan broke the deadlock early on in Stephen
Purches' testimonial at Dean Court. And Collison struck a controversial
second just before the break to give Sam Allardyce's men an easy friendly
win. Nolan used his loaf to put the Hammers ahead when he nodded home Guy
Demel's ninth-minute cross. Collison then put the game safe — but the
Cherries felt hard-done by after seeing a free-kick shout fall on deaf ears.
Modibo Maiga initially lost the ball on the touchline but won it back off
Steve Cook. Bournemouth wanted a foul but play was waved on and Maiga freed
Collison to round keeper Darryl Flahavan. Former Spurs star and Cherries
icon Darren Anderton was given a late run-out in the match, to celebrate
Purches' decade at the club.

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West Ham close in on £5million deal for Inter Milan ace Zdravko Kuzmanovic
Saturday 13 Jul 2013 1:32 pm
Metro.co.uk

West Ham have opened talks with Inter Milan over a deal for Zdravko
Kuzmanovic as Sam Allardyce looks to overhaul his midfield options. Hammers
boss Allardyce has already enjoyed a busy start to the transfer window,
bringing in Andy Carroll from Liverpool for a club record fee, while
defender Razvan Rat and goalkeeper Adrian have also arrived. But the deals
are not stopping there, with West Ham keen to land at least two midfielders
to freshen up their engine room – starting with Inter ace Kuzmanovic. The
25-year-old only moved to the San Siro from Fiorentina in January, but Inter
are ready to part with him for around £5million, and Allardyce is keen.
Kuzmanovic, a former target for Arsenal and Liverpool, would represent a
major coup for West Ham, who want to add extra steel and power to their
midfield. It's understood that negotiations with Inter have gone smoothly so
far, and West Ham are readying a four-year-contract that would see
Kuzmanovic become one of their highest earners. Allardyce is also chasing a
more attack minded partner for Kuzmanovic, with Bolton's Stuart Holden and
Wigan's James McCarthy other options being considered. Elsewhere, West Ham
are expected to complete the £6.8million signing of Colombian striker Duvan
Zapata from Estudiantes within days, after lodging an official bid for a
work permit.

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Former £9m record West Ham signing joins obscure Israeli outfit
HITC Sport
by Mathew Nash

Savio Nsereko? Remember him? Well now he is trying to salvage his
controversial and troubled career in Israel. West Ham recently broke their
transfer record in order to bring Andy Carroll to the club on a permanent
deal for a fee worth £15 million. But do you remember the guy who previously
held the record as West Ham's most expensive signing? When Gianfranco Zola
and Gianluca Nani splurged £9 million on 19-year-old German youth
international Savio Nsereko in January 2009 Scott Duxbury, the CEO at Upton
Park, had this to say about the player: "We are delighted to sign Savio,
particularly with the fierce competition for his services across Europe. He
is an exciting prospect, who Gianfranco Zola believes will prove a valuable
asset for this club now and in the years to come. It is a significant
investment and shows our determination to continue moving this club
forward."

Today it is being reported that the player has now agreed a free transfer
move to Israeli side Hapoel Ironi Akko. Don't be worried if you have never
heard of them because either had I; and I did a dissertation piece on the
role of football in the development of Israel post partition.

They are that obscure…

Last season they finished bottom of the Israeli Premier League table but
survived by two points in the Bottom Half Playoff; so they will be playing
in the top tier in Israel next term but in terms of famous players for
reference point I am sorry but I have nothing. At just 23-years-old by this
time Nsereko was supposed to be doing all manner of wonderful things but the
Ugandan born forward has seen his career spiral out of control since his
move from Brescia to London. After just ten games for The Hammers he failed
to score and left for Fiorentina. In that time he spent much of his time
reportedly AWOL, out on loan and generally ticking off the establishment at
La Viola. He spent time on loan with Bologna, Juve Stabia and 1860 Munich
whilst also sampling football in Bulgaria and Romania with Chernomerets
Burgas and FC Vaslui respectively. After yet another unsuccessful stint back
in Germany with SpVgg Unterhaching the one time under-20 international went
right down the football ladder to play for Viktoria Koln in German
football's fourth tier. He once again faltered and still hasn't found the
net since he was playing for Brescia as a teenager. He will now hope that
Israel is his saving grace so that he is not forever known as the £9 million
West Ham flop, who, once spent three weeks in a Thai jail after faking a
kidnapping to extort money from a family member. Unfortunately that is a
pretty difficult tag to shake off.

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