Daily WHUFC News - 9th January 2014

Hammers blown away at City
WHUFC.com
West Ham United were beaten 6-0 by Manchester City in the Capital One Cup
semi-final first leg
08.01.2014

Manchester City 6-0 West Ham United
Capital One Cup semi-final first leg

West Ham United were dealt a crushing 6-0 defeat in the first leg of their
Capital One Cup semi-final at Manchester City on Wednesday night. The
Citizens have been an unstoppable force at their Etihad Stadium home this
season, and so they proved to be again as they swept the Hammers aside. An
Alvaro Negredo hat-trick did most of the early damage, with goals from Yaya
Toure and an Edin Dzeko double adding further pain. It was a more familiar
starting line-up for the Hammers following Sunday's FA Cup defeat at
Nottingham Forest, but a moment of indecision from Joey O'Brien almost let
Pablo Zabaleta in with three minutes played, but Adrian pounced after the
ball ricocheted around the Hammers' box. Manchester City didn't have to wait
long to take their first steps towards a first leg victory though,
establishing a twelfth minute lead in the simplest form possible as Toure
clipped a ball from deep in between O'Brien and George McCartney for Negredo
to watch over his shoulder and send an excellent volley beyond Adrian. The
Hammers forced four early corners, but were unable to trouble Costel
Pantilimon in the home goal, and before long Sam Allardyce's men were
staring at a monumental task. Adrian did well to keep the score at 1-0 on 23
minutes when he dived down to his left to push Samir Nasri's curling effort
behind, but three minutes later he was powerless to prevent Negredo adding a
second. Dzeko was the man who laid on the opportunity for his strike
partner, collecting Negredo's pass before playing a slide-rule ball back to
him, and the Spaniard avoided McCartney's attempts to get back by squeezing
the ball into the top corner. Dzeko and Negredo then lashed shots over the
top as City monopolised possession and when City scored the third the
Hammers would once again have been disappointed at the simplicity of it.
Toure picked up possession on halfway and kept on running as the Hammers
retreated, allowing him to pick his spot and stroke past the helpless
Adrian. Mo Diame forced a save from Pantilimon in first half stoppage time
with a shot from range, but the opening half had been a chastening
experience for the visitors. It didn't get any better at the start of the
second period as, just four minutes after the restart, Negredo completed his
hat-trick. City worked the ball down the Hammers' right, allowing David
Silva to pass across to Negredo, who swept home first time to make it 4-0.
Still the punishment kept on coming, with Dzeko getting in on the act
himself on the hour. This time Gael Clichy was the man who found space down
the left to send a low cross to the near post, where Dzeko was waiting to
crash home. Negredo went close to a fourth on 69 minutes, when the hosts
broke with menace again, with the frontman's shot deflecting off Roger
Johnson and behind for a corner. Adrian showed sharp reflexes to get down to
his right and deny City a sixth on 82 after Dzeko got a fierce shot away,
but there was still time for the home side to add another goal in the final
minute. Dzeko was the scorer, smashing into the top left hand corner from 15
yards after he was teed up by Aleksandar Kolarov.

Manchester City: Pantilimon; Zabaleta, Kompany, Lescott, Clichy; Nasri,
Toure (Demichelis 66), Garcia, Silva (Lopes 73); Negredo (Kolarov 79), Dzeko
Subs: Hart, Milner, Fernandinho, Nastasic
Goals: Negredo 12, 26, 49, Toure 40, Dzeko 60, 89

West Ham United: Adrian; Demel, Johnson, McCartney, O'Brien (Rat 75); Diame,
Noble (Diarra 57), Taylor; Downing, Maiga (C.Cole 46), J.Cole
Subs: Jaaskelainen, Jarvis, Collison, Morrison
Referee: Jonathan Moss

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'We will come out fighting'
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce is determined to end a difficult week with a victory at
Cardiff City on Saturday
09.01.2014

Sam Allardyce says he and his West Ham United team will 'come out fighting'
in Saturday's Barclays Premier League fixture at Cardiff City. The West Ham
United manager and his squad have endured a difficult week, being knocked
out of the FA Cup at Nottingham Forest on Sunday before going down to a 6-0
Capital One Cup semi-final first-leg defeat at Manchester City on Wednesday
evening. As they have done all season, the Barclays Premier League leaders
were in irresistible form on home soil, scoring three goals in each half to
take their tally to an amazing 61 in just 15 matches at the Etihad Stadium
in 2013/14. Alvaro Negredo grabbed a hat-trick, Edin Dzeko scored twice and
Yaya Toure once as Manuel Pellegrini's side hit top gear on a miserable
night - both in terms of the result and the weather, with incessant rain
pouring down throughout the tie. Speaking to West Ham TV, Big Sam admitted
City had just been too good, despite the efforts of his injury-ravaged side.
"Many teams have come here, like us, and suffered a painful time, including
those who are better than we are," said the manager. "It's hard to take and
difficult to accept but the facts are that Manchester City are the best team
in the league at home and have been the best team in the league since the
start of the season. "In the end, I think that we've all seen why, live
against us. We all knew they were very, very good and we've seen it live
tonight because our players tried as hard as they could, but couldn't get
near these Manchester City players. Their quality is top-drawer and they are
great finishers, never mind top footballers."

West Ham started the game well, forcing a succession of early corners, but
were unable to create anything from a set piece. After 12 minutes, City went
ahead with a goal of stunning quality and simplicity as Negredo volleyed
Yaya Toure's 50-yard pass into the bottom corner. From then on, the home
side got better and better. "They are a very good side but we wanted to come
here, having played so well and fought so hard to get to the semi-final, in
a much better situation. "We're having to manage the situation, which is
getting ever more difficult because our results are going worse and our
injuries are not getting back to fitness as quick as they can. "We lost Joey
O'Brien tonight, which is disappointing for us, because again it's in a
defensive area. That's why we have conceded so many goals. A full-back
playing as a centre-half against Dzeko and Negredo is not an easy job. "Joey
and George tried to do their best, but to try to stop those players is
difficult for an experienced Premier League centre-half, let alone a
full-back. "They carved us apart for the first goal because Yaya Toure is a
brilliant long passer and the run from Negredo and the finish were
outstanding. That is one of the best goals Man City scored tonight. "A goal
of that outstanding quality saw Yaya Toure pass the ball through nine of our
players and Negredo hit a left-foot volley over his shoulder first-time, not
even looking at the goal, and it's in the back of the net. That's just
world-class."

While the final scoreline may have been bitterly disappointing for everyone
connected with the Club, there were two major positives to take from an
otherwise horrible evening. First, the Claret and Blue Army never stopped
singing in the rain. Second, goalkeeper Adrian produced another string of
outstanding saves to add to those he made at the City Ground on Sunday.
"Adrian was brilliant tonight and he's growing stronger. He's gaining great
experience, even if he is bitterly disappointed about Sunday and Wednesday.
He played well on Sunday but he played even better on Wednesday. "What we
have to do is get our defenders back in the team defending like we know we
can, as a team, better. We have got to improve our clean-sheet ratio as
quickly as possible and once we start doing that, we'll start winning more
points and hopefully more games."

Looking forward, West Ham hit the road again on Saturday, when they visit
the Welsh capital for a Barclays Premier League fixture. Big Sam has
challenged his players and staff to take the criticism they have received
and use it as an inspiration to score an important victory over Ole Gunnar
Solskjaer's Bluebirds.
"They can't feel sorry for themselves. We are professionals and we've got to
take the criticism thrown at us because that's what happens in the game at
this level. We've got to be man enough to take it on the chin and be
determined enough to show people what they think at this particular moment
in time is wrong.
"You either come out fighting or you sink and die - I come out fighting as a
manager and my staff and players are the same. We've got to get out there,
face the music and use it to anger us, if you like, make us mad, prove them
wrong and win football matches."

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Sam Allardyce says he will fight on after Man City loss
BBC.co.uk
By Phil McNulty
Chief football writer

Sam Allardyce says he will fight on as West Ham United manager - despite
abuse from angry fans during the Capital One Cup thrashing at Manchester
City.
Travelling supporters turned on Allardyce as West Ham lost 6-0. The
semi-final first-leg loss came days after a 5-0 FA Cup third-round defeat at
Championship side Nottingham Forest. "There are times when it is good and
there are times when it is not so good. You have then got to draw on your
strength and experience," he said. "It is my job first thing in the morning
to get the players up. We have got to get our heads up, shoulders back and
chests out and try to bounce back, starting with Cardiff City at the
weekend." Allardyce's side are next to bottom of the Premier League as they
prepare for Saturday's trip to 17th-placed Cardiff.

West Ham's co-owners David Gold and David Sullivan wrote an open letter in
support of Allardyce before the game - but no such goodwill was offered up
by furious supporters at the Etihad Stadium. The patience of West Ham's fans
finally snapped after City went 5-0 up as the semi-final second leg at Upton
Park - scheduled for 21 January - was effectively reduced to a non-event.
Allardyce said: "It's life. When you are not doing well you get stick - and
I'm getting stick. That's the way it goes and that's the way this job is.
"They have travelled here tonight and we have not done well, so they are
going to give you some stick. We are not the first team to get beaten by so
many goals here and we won't be the last."

Spain striker Alvaro Negredo scored his second hat-trick of the season, with
Edin Dzeko scoring twice and Yaya Toure once as West Ham were humiliated by
Manuel Pellegrini's men. West Ham, winless in six matches, face a daunting
second leg against City, but before that will look to climb out of the
Premier League relegation zone when they visit Cardiff. Allardyce said: "We
fought very hard to get to the semi-final and won some great games and
fantastic football matches - but this game fell at the wrong time for us
with so many injuries and we have been heavily punished. "Defence is where I
have the most problems. When our defence was together, we had eight clean
sheets in our first 11 or 12 games. We have lost James Tomkins, James
Collins and Winston Reid. We also haven't had our biggest investment, Andy
Carroll, who we thought was going to get the goals for us. West Ham are
winless in their last six matches, losing five of them. They have conceded
22 goals during this run and scored just six. "If I could have done anything
differently tonight, I would have played with Reid, Collins, Carroll and
Kevin Nolan but we didn't have them available."

Manchester City have won 14 of their 15 home games this season, with their
only defeat coming in the Champions League against Bayern Munich. They have
scored 59 goals at the Etihad and conceded just 13. Allardyce said: "When
they have got such quality as they've got, we cannot near them. We tried to
get near them, and they laid the ball off with one touch. "When you buy some
of world's most outstanding players, it is as simple as that. Their squad is
far better than ours. We have not got a full squad. Even if we had, we might
have been beaten but I do not think we would have lost 6-0. "It is difficult
every morning waking up and (seeing) it is and doom and gloom and this and
that. We have to accept that is part of the job, and have to take the bad
with the good. At the moment, it is not very good. We have got to keep
getting players in the right mentality. "We could've done some things better
but when I look at the quality of City tonight, it makes me pretty jealous."

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Thomas Hitzlsperger: Former Aston Villa player reveals he is gay
BBC.co.uk

Former Aston Villa midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger has revealed he is gay.
The 31-year-old, who won 52 caps for Germany and also played for West Ham
and Everton, made the announcement in newspaper Die Zeit. He is the most
prominent footballer to publicly reveal his homosexuality and said it was "a
good time" to do so. "I'm coming out about my homosexuality because I want
to move the discussion about homosexuality among professional sportspeople
forwards," he added. The midfielder, who retired from the sport in September
after a series of injury problems, said he has only realised "in the past
few years" that he would "prefer to live together with another man", adding:
"I've never been ashamed of the way I am."

However, he said the issue is taboo inside the dressing room and it had not
always been easy to live with some of the comments dished out on the
subject.
"Just picture 20 men sat around a table together drinking - you've just got
to let the majority be, just as long as the jokes are halfway funny and the
talk about homosexuality doesn't get too insulting," he said.

Hitzlsperger's club career
August 2000: The 18-year-old joins Aston Villa from Bayern Munich's youth
set-up
August 2005: After almost 100 appearances for Villa, he makes free transfer
move to Stuttgart and wins Bundesliga in 2006-07 season
January 2010: Joins Lazio but makes only six appearances for the Italian
team
June 2010: Moves to West Ham on a free transfer, but plays just 11 times for
the club
August 2011: Signs for Wolfsburg on a free transfer following West Ham's
relegation from Premier League
October 2012: Joins Everton on short-term deal, making seven appearances for
the Toffees

High-profile athletes from other sports have openly discussed their
sexuality in recent years, with Olympic diver Tom Daley revealing in
December he was in a relationship with a man. But examples in football are
few and far between. In 1990, former England Under-21 international Justin
Fashanu was the first professional footballer in Britain to reveal he was
gay. He took his own life eight years later, aged 37. In February 2013,
former United States and Leeds United winger Robbie Rogers said he was gay
while Swedish footballer Anton Hysen, son of former Liverpool player Glenn
Hysen, announced his homosexuality in an interview with a Swedish football
magazine in 2011. "It's really going the right way now and it's a good
change, for me coming out has been 99% positive and I don't regret anything
about my decision," Hysen, who plays in the Swedish third division, told BBC
Radio 5 Live. "I've had a few things in games where people would say things,
players, fans, or anonymous messages on the internet. When that is around,
that is why we have to work for a better future. It shouldn't even be an
issue that is needed to be discussed in 2014."

Retired basketball star John Amaechi, 43, the first NBA player to come out
as gay, doubts other footballers will follow Hitzlsperger, telling BBC Sport
"football is toxic" and its culture must change. "Footballers coming out at
the highest level will happen only as the product of a cultural change
within the game. It will not be the precursor to cultural change in
football," he said. "If you want to see people being who they are, coming
out and playing at their very best because they're able to be who they are,
then the culture of football must change first."

Hitzlsperger joined Villa as a teenager in 2000 from Bayern Munich and went
on to play for Stuttgart, Lazio, West Ham and Wolfsburg, with a short stint
at Everton before the end of his career. It was during his five-year spell
at Aston Villa that the Munich-born midfielder made his name and while at
Villa Park he earned the nickname 'Der Hammer' because of his powerful
left-foot shot. The club wrote on Twitter: "Everyone who knows Thomas from
his time here at Villa has great respect for him, not only as the fine
player he was but also as a man. "His statement today is a straightforward
statement and, along with our support as a club, we hope that everyone
involved in the game extend to him their support as well."

Hitzlsperger also enjoyed a successful international career, making his
first senior international bow in 2004. He represented Germany at the 2006
World Cup - though he only played 11 minutes of that competition - and the
2008 European Championship, where he started in the quarter-final,
semi-final and final.
Germany international team-mate and Arsenal striker Lukas Podolski, Gary
Lineker and Joey Barton are among those to have tweeted their support for
Hitzlsperger. Podolski said: "Brave and right decision. Respect, Thomas
Hitzlsperger. His outing is a important sign in our time." Campaign group
Stonewall welcomed the announcement. Director of campaigns Sam Dick told BBC
Sport: "It's fantastic that he has been brave enough to openly discuss his
sexual orientation. "Every sports star who is willing to speak out makes it
just that little bit easier for gay players and fans, and we hope, a new
generation of footballers will feel confident enough to be themselves."

The Gay Football Supporters' Network said: "It shows that we are moving one
step closer to creating that atmosphere in football where players at all
levels would be able to come out should they want to, safely and free from
discrimination. "We hope that one day current players would feel able to
come out and that eventually a player's sexual orientation not be a news
story, but for now we wish Thomas Hitzlsperger well."

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Hammers agree Belfodil terms
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 8th January 2014
By: Staff Writer

West Ham are hoping to complete a second attacking signing to boost their
chances of Premier League survival. Respected Italian journalist Gianluca Di
Marzio revealed this lunchtime that West Ham United's secretary Andrew
Pincher was in Milan this morning for discussions with George Atangana, the
agent for Milan striker Ishak Belfodil. Those talks are said to have
proceeded positively and it is understood that an agreement has been reached
between the two parties, with the final decision now resting with the player
himself. West Ham are hoping to take Belfodil on loan for the remainder of
the current season along with Monaco's Lacina Traore.

22 this month, the Algerian international has been with the Nerazzurri for
only six months since moving from Parma last summer but has managed just one
start and seven appearances from the bench since. He was first linked with a
move to West Ham last week. With next summer's World Cup Finals just a
matter of months away, Belfodil is reported to be keen to move on a
short-term basis in order to secure first-team football ahead of the
tournament, where he hopes to represent his country. Despite having appeared
for France from Under 17s to Under 20s, the 6'4" forward opted to play for
the country of his birth at full international level. He made his debut for
Algeria and featured most recently as a late substitute in their 1-0 World
Cup qualifying win over Mali back in September.

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Hammers make permit application
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 8th January 2014
By: Staff Writer

West Ham are understood to have applied for a work permit for Lacina Traore.
The 6'8" striker, who completed a permanent move from Russian club Anzhi to
Monaco earlier this week, is set to join West Ham on loan for the remainder
of the 2013/14 season. Sources report that the Hammers will discover on
Monday whether they have been successful with their permit application;
should that proceed as planned, Traore will then undergo a medical before
completing his move. Although the 23-year-old Ivory Coast striker has
failed to feature in the required number of internationals to gain an
automatic permit, it is thought his application will not be an issue as he
has been a regular for his country in recent months.

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West Ham's Roger Johnson is up for survival battle
Last Updated: 08/01/14 6:51pm
SSN

Roger Johnson is delighted to have joined West Ham and is looking forward to
the 'massive challenge' of helping to keep his new side in the Premier
League.
The 30-year-old has joined the injury-depleted Hammers on loan from Wolves
for the remainder of the season. Johnson, who has recently been on loan at
Sheffield Wednesday, suffered two relegations at Wolves and he is delighted
to be given the chance to prove his worth in the Premier League once again.
He said: "The fight for league status and the chance to prove I can play at
this level is a massive challenge - and I'm bang up for it. "The Premier
League is what it's all about and there was no way I was going to turn it
down. "Everyone knows my time at Wolves wasn't ideal, so to get another
opportunity in the Premier League is great."

Johnson could make his debut in Wednesday's Capital One Cup semi-final first
leg at Manchester City. He is no stranger to high-pressure cup games, having
won the competition with Birmingham City back in 2011. He told West Ham TV:
"It's a massive game, I did look at the fixtures and after speaking to a few
people they told me that I if I did sign that would be my first game, so
hopefully I'll be in the team. "If not, I'll be on the bench and if I come
on I'll try and do what I can to get the club into the final."

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Sam Allardyce vows to battle on after hammering by Man City
Last Updated: 09/01/14 12:04am
SSN

West Ham manager Sam Allardyce refused to criticise his side after a 6-0
thrashing by Manchester City in the first leg of the Capital One Cup
semi-final but admitted his position was in peril. Alvaro Negredo bagged a
hat-trick, Edin Dzeko scored twice and Yaya Toure added another as a
swaggering City eased towards a place in the final at Wembley. Wednesday's
result came just days after an FA Cup humbling by Nottingham Forest, albeit
that beaten team an inexperienced one, and Allardyce acknowledged the threat
to his job. "You cannot keep losing football matches, that is for sure, as a
manager," Allardyce said.
"You cannot think it will be allowed to continue. I don't want it to
continue that is for sure. "We know the reasons why but in the end even
those reasons won't save you. We have to get those (injured) players back as
quick as we can and we have got to not lose confidence in our own ability
and get out of this hole we are in at the moment."

Allardyce had earlier struck a philosophical tone when reflecting on
"outstanding" opponents. "We are very disappointed obviously, but to look at
Manchester City's record at home this season and what they have done to
Tottenham and Manchester United, and Arsenal - we knew they had to have an
off night and we had to have a really good night from our point of view," he
told Sky Sports. "The fact of the matter was that Manchester City's
finishing was outstanding, never mind the build-up play. Outstanding in
every sense of the word. "We have a struggling defensive unit at the moment
because of injuries and down on a bit of confidence. We have a left-back
[George McCartney] playing centre-half that we got on a free transfer and it
is not fair on him playing against Negredo and Dzeko today, but that is how
it is. "We got Roger Johnson who has just come and I thought he did a good
job. He did as well as he could even though we got beat 6-0, but that is the
problem, we haven't got a fully-fit squad. We are in a bit of hole at the
moment and we have to dig ourselves out. "The fact of the matter was that
Manchester City's finishing was outstanding, never mind the build-up play.
Outstanding in every sense of the word."

"Now it is not as if they hadn't done this to anyone else, if this was a
team we came to and they beat us 6-0 and they hadn't done that to anyone
else this season you would say this is not good enough, but we tried our
best against a side that has got outstanding players because they play
outstanding money.
"What do you expect when you have got lads who are free transfers against
lads who have cost hundreds of millions and are paid hundreds of millions of
pounds in wages? "You can do better than we have done but I need a fully-fit
squad and have a little more confidence than we have today, but when they do
Manchester United, Tottenham and Arsenal then sometimes you have to take it
on the chin. "It is not the right time for us to get beat 6-0, we wanted to
do better in the semi-final but face facts they are a miles better squad
than us and have miles better players than we have got and certainly when we
want to compete against a team like Manchester city we want our best team
out on the field and we can't get that out at the moment, so we have to wait
until we can and try and refocus for Cardiff in just a couple of days."

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ARE WEST HAM CLOSING IN ON A LOAN DEAL FOR ISHAK BELFODIL?
By Sean Whetstone 8 Jan 2014 at 10:53
West Ham Till I Die

According to Sky Italia West Ham are moving swiftly to acquire Inter Milan
striker Ishak Belfodil with club representatives set to make the trip to
Italy.
Italian sources claim West Ham's recruiters will travel to Italy on Thursday
to persuade Inter, who have only given the Algeria international one start
in his eight league games this season. A loan deal is the most likely
scenario for Belfodil, contracted at Inter until 2018. "I hope to play more
often and this is not happening for now at Inter," Belfodil said "The market
window is coming, I have to talk to my leaders and I would like to be
competitive in view of the World Cup"

UPDATE

Sky Sports Italia reporter Gianluca Di Marzio tweeted out a photo of West
Ham Secretary Andrew Pincher and Belfodil's Agent George Atangana meeting in
Milan today On his own website he claims there is an agreement between Inter
Milan and West Ham so they have just got to agree personal terms with
Belfodil for a 6 month loan.

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Southampton reject West Ham's Rickie Lambert transfer bid in new blow to Sam
Allardyce
Jan 08, 2014 22:30 By Mirror Football 0 Comments
The Mirror

Southampton have rejected a bid from West Ham for England striker Rickie
Lambert. We first revealed last month that Hammers boss Sam Allardyce wants
Lambert to help fire his Londoners away from the Premier League relegation
zone. But now the Saints have made it clear they have no intention of
selling the Three Lions ace. Lambert, 32 next month, signed a new contract
in March last year that would keep him at St Mary's until summer 2016. He
also has a gentleman's agreement with the south coast club guaranteeing him
an extension from 2016, and for every year until he retires, if he plays
more than half of the club's matches. Lambert has scored six goals in 16
Premier League starts this season.

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