Daily WHUFC News - 9th July 2013

Allardyce seeking 'top quality' player
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 8th July 2013
By: Staff Writer

Sam Allardyce believes that his squad isn't a million miles away from that
with which he hopes to start the new 2013/14 season. Allardyce, whose team
opened their pre-season campaign with a 6-2 win against Cork City at the
Turner's Cross Stadium last night has already brought in three players to
challenge for a first team berth, namely goalkeeper Adrian San Miguel del
Castillo, defender Razvan Rat and striker Andy Carroll. And whilst he
continues to seek further improvements - albeit with limited available
finances - Allardyce admits that he won't be looking to make too many more
changes before now and the start of the new campaign against Cardiff on
August 17th. "I think they [the new signings] will add real quality to the
squad, but you always want a little bit more and you are never satisfied as
a manager," he told whufc.com. "I am not saying that is the end of what we
are going to bring in and we will look to add one more player at least. If
we can secure that one more player, that would probably be it. "What I want
in that one player is top quality. I want that player to challenge the
players already here for their place immediately and keep it. That would
help improve the team. "I want somebody to come in and make a real
difference, as we did last year when the players we brought in made a
massive difference. That took us to the next level and led to us having a
fantastic season and finish tenth."

West Ham continue to be linked with a number of players in all areas of the
field, although Allardyce remains most keen to add at least one more striker
to his pack before the start of the new season. Co-chairmen David Sullivan
and David Gold spent much of last week in France on transfer business
although no details from that trip have emerged as of yet.

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The season ahead
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 8th July 2013
By: Andrew Patterson

With the pretty bubbles at the Boleyn Ground flying high, following a
successful first season back in the big league, Big Sam has completed the
biggest transfer in West Ham's history. But are all these positives leading
to a false sense of security? What happens when those bubbles burst?

The season to come can go one of two ways. We can be as successful as last
season which, let's be honest, would be a massive achievement - or it can
all go wrong; relegation.

What would we be left with if we took a trip back to the Championship? A
striker on a five-year deal costing us £100,000 a week? A contract worth
that much would cover most Championship squads! Needless to say, some
vulturesque, Premier League club would snap Andy Carroll up at a
not-so-handsome price.

In the 2004/05 season we were promoted from the Championship and finished
the following season in a very respectable 9th place - not so unlike last
season. However we failed to finish higher than 9th again in that particular
Premier League run. West Ham started on a downhill slope finishing 15th the
season. After that we enjoyed two successful seasons followed by a narrow
escape and eventual relegation, finishing in a pitiful 20th place.

But when you look back at our Premier League history, you don't see a side
who have always struggled to stay up - you see a fairly mid-table side who
have been unluckily relegated, twice! What Big Sam has realised is that, we
need a side, confident and ready.

We acquired a deal with adidas to produce our shirts. I'm not saying that
this is the independent variable, which will inevitably lead to West Ham
becoming England's Real Madrid, but it is reflective of the positive future
the Hammers have on the horizon. We've signed the most expensive English
player in football history, we are moving to a colossal new (Olympic)
stadium and we still worry about relegation?

Ludicrous! Too many people still see West Ham as the 'up and down' side but
with such a promising future ahead, how can we justify fears of relegation?
Rather than asking: "How long till we go back down?" I'm thinking: "How long
till we qualify for Europe?"

We enter season 2013/2014 in a tricky situation. We haven't been back in the
Premier League long enough to be considered a serious threat to the
longer-serving members, yet we finished too high last season to be ignored.
We are in a state of limbo and the season coming will decide our fate; sink
or swim.

Is Big Sam getting it right? Absolutely. A massive signing has already
arrived at the club and our targets are set on another striker to accompany
him. News of a £10million offer for Vitesse star Wilfried Bony was recently
all over the West Ham transfer pages, as well as the possibility of loaning
Romelu Lukaku from Chelsea (and even a slightly less expensive option in,
Salomon Kalou from French side Lille OSC).

Carlton Cole has regrettably left the Hammers so bringing in another
successful, goalscoring striker is imperative to our success this coming
season. My one complaint last season was the lack of goals from strikers.
Our top scorer was skipper Kevin Nolan in midfield; if we want to be
consistent next season we need reliable forwards. Big Sam is making the
right decision bringing big name forwards to the club, as to be taken
seriously West Ham need big players coming in to show other sides we are a
genuine force to be reckoned with.

So will those pretty bubbles continue to fly high next season, or will they
fade and die? Time will only tell on that one, but we can be sure that Big
Sam is making the right decisions now. You couldn't blame anyone for being
sceptical of the money we've spent so far, but in the footballing industry
it's 'go hard or go home'! West Ham potentially have a very promising season
ahead. Our first game against Cardiff promises to be an exciting start to
what should be another successful season in the top flight!

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Interest mounts in West Brom midfielder Graham Dorrans
Last Updated: July 8, 2013 6:17pm
SSN

A number of clubs are ready to launch moves for West Brom midfielder Graham
Dorrans. The Scotland international was told in January that he could look
for a new club, but the 26-year-old remained at the Hawthorns and completed
the season with the Baggies. He played over 20 games for West Brom, but it
is still understood that boss Steve Clarke will not stand in his way should
an offer come in. Sky Sports understands that a number of Premier League
clubs are ready to make offers. Amongst them are West Ham, who have
previously had bids rejected, and they remain abreast of the situation along
with newly-promoted Cardiff City. Dorrans currently has two years left on
his deal with the Baggies.

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Liverpool In Talks With West Ham Over Stewart Downing Sale
by Thomas Bore July 9th, 2013
caughtoffside.com

Upton Park side look to seal second Anfield raid of the summer. West Ham
United have held talks with Liverpool for the second time this transfer
window, this time over the availability of Stewart Downing according to the
Guardian. The Merseyside club have told the Hammers they want £8million for
their 28 year-old winger as they look to remove him from the club's wage
bill. It is unlikely that David Sullivan and co will be interested in a fee
of that size, especially after just paying £15.5million for 24 year-old
striker Andy Carroll. A fee in the region of £4million is a lot closer to
what the Hammers valuate the winger at, who has two years remaining on his
Anfield contract.

The former Aston Villa star has failed to impress for Liverpool since his
£20million move back in 2011, managing just 7 goals, and 11 assists, in his
91 appearances. But with the likes of Carlton Cole and Robert Hall leaving
the London based club this summer, Allardyce is fairly limited when it comes
to attacking options – with only one striker with more than 20 Premier
League appearances (Andy Carroll).

In other news, West Ham are trying to fight off interest from Newcastle for
their English centre back James Tomkins. The 24 year-old was being tracked
by Joe Kinnear and his team but when the Hammers responded to their enquiry
with an asking price of £6million, the Magpies appeared to have refused to
follow up their interest. Although negotiations are ongoing, it is unlikely
that David Sullivan will allow James Tomkins to leave the Boleyn Ground for
anything less than £6million this summer – especially with no replacement
lined up.

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Everton close in on Diame move
By talkSPORT | Monday, July 8, 2013

Everton could be poised to make a bid for West Ham midfielder Mohamed Diame.
The Senegal international was strongly linked with moves to Tottenham and
Arsenal back in the January transfer window as he is reported to have a
£3.5m buy-out clause in his contract. Diame was outstanding for the east
London club last season and played a major role in helping the Hammers
secure a top-half finish in the Premier League. New Everton manager Roberto
Martinez is keen to bring in his own players and following the signing of
Arouna Kone from Wigan, he is now looking to bring in a new midfielder. The
Spanish coach knows Diame well having managed him at Wigan, which could work
in his favour as he knows the qualities he can bring to a team. But West Ham
will be doing everything in their power to ensure the 26-year-old remains at
Upton Park and could even offer him a new long-term deal.

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