Daily WHUFC News - 24th November 2014

AC hails magical Mauro
WHUFC.com
Andy Carroll hailed the impact made by Mauro Zarate after completing his
first 90 minutes of the season
23.11.2014

Andy Carroll felt a combination of pride, frustration and exhaustion after
West Ham United's 2-1 Barclays Premier League defeat at Everton. The striker
made his first start of the season at Goodison Park, completing the full 90
minutes as he continues his return from summer ankle surgery. However,
Carroll's happiness at coming through the physical test was tempered by the
disappointment of seeing Everton snatch victory through a controversial
Romelu Lukaku opener and Leon Osman's late winner against the run of play.
Lukaku struck from what appeared to be an offside position after Ross
Barkley's shot had been blocked before substitute Mauro Zarate drew West Ham
level with a deflected effort. Just as the visitors looked like going onto
grab a winner, Everton broke from a Hammers corner and Osman converted
Samuel Eto'o's cross. "It was disappointing," Carroll lamented. "We
controlled a lot of periods in the game. We were disappointed with the first
goal which we've seen back on the replay and it shouldn't have been a goal.
"That put us down but we came out second half and I thought we played well,
with Mauro coming onto the pitch and I thought he changed the game. He got a
goal and that lifted everyone and we carried on playing well. "They then got
their goal and I thought we were a bit unlucky really."

After starting the game partnered by Carlton Cole, Carroll was joined by
Zarate just after half-time. The Argentine was in outstanding form, dancing
past defenders, popping up all over the pitch and netting just five minutes
after his introduction. Playing ahead of the No10, Carroll clearly enjoyed
combining with Zarate for the first time. "He is great. He has got quick
feet, he is nippy and he gets in and around defenders. He's a great player
and he showed that on Saturday because he changed the game when he came on."


While Zarate benefited from a deflection off Phil Jagielka for his goal,
Carroll himself unleashed six shots, but could not find a way past Tim
Howard. Just one of the six, a looping header, was on target. "I just wanted
one to drop nicely for me, but unfortunately it didn't. I had a chance when
Carl Jenkinson pulled it back and it was a little bit behind me, but I
thought I could have done a little bit better with that. Other than that, it
didn't really fall for me. "I was a bit tired by the end, but I was still
giving it my all and trying my best to run around. I didn't expect to be
starting and I certainly didn't expect to be getting 90 minutes, so it was a
big positive at the end of the day and was well-needed."

Now, the challenge for Carroll and his teammates is to regroup ahead of home
games with Newcastle United and Swansea City and trips to West Bromwich
Albion and Sunderland. "We played really well at Everton. We're just
disappointed that we did play so well but we just conceded the first goal
like we did, then conceded another one after we'd pulled it back level.
"It's really disappointing but all the lads are good lads and they'll get
over it and move onto the next games."

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U18s edged out by Leicester
WHUFC.com
West Ham United's Under-18s were defeated 1-0 by Leicester City on Saturday
23.11.2014

West Ham United's U18s missed the chance to leapfrog Leicester City in the
Barclaus U18 Premier League South table on Saturday when they suffered a 1-0
defeat. Danny Rowe scored the only goal of the game with 22 minutes on the
clock to leave Steve Potts' men with nothing to show for their efforts. The
Foxes were in good form coming into this game, having defeated Norwich City
and Fulham 5-0, and they began in confident mood with Matty Miles setting up
Rowe, whose shot was saved. With 15 minutes on the clock, Jerry Amoo was
denied by a strong tackle from Hamza Choudhury, and seven minutes later the
home side had the lead as Keenan King made a burst down the right before
cutting back for Rowe, who took a touch before slotting past Sam Howes. Amoo
rattled the crossbar shortly afterwards as the Hammers looked to hit back,
but 1-0 was how it remained at the break. King went close twice at the start
of the second half for Leicester, but West Ham finished the game strongly
and twice forced home keeper Max Smith-Varnham into good saves. First, he
tipped Djair Parfitt-Williams' drive wide of the post, then denied the same
man with a brave block to frustrate the visiting Hammers.

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THE CURSE OF MANAGER OF THE MONTH
By Sean Whetstone 23 Nov 2014 at 18:27
West Ham Till I Die

Last season Sam Allardyce won manager of the month in February after four
wins out of four against Swansea, Villa, Norwich and Southampton.


Following his award, our first game in March saw a 1-0 loss against Everton
followed by another loss away to Stoke then a third loss in the row to
Manchester United at home. Despite two back to back 2-1 wins against
Sunderland and Hull in March we then continued with a winless April losing
all four games back to back which was only broken by a
2-0 win against Spurs at home before a final day of the season loss against
Manchester City.

This time Sam won the manager of the month for October after three wins out
our three against QPR. Manchester City and Burnley it appears our fortunes
have changed once again. Since the award we have yet to win a game in
November after two draws against Stoke and Villa and now the loss against
Everton on Saturday. Our last fixture against Newcastle will be a tall task
as they are in the form of their lives. After recording their sixth win on
the trot they have leap frogged us and relegated us back down to sixth.

The same curse appears to follow the Player of the Month for October, Diafra
Sakho who scored 3 goals in 3 games in October having scored in 5
consecutive league games up to the end of October. On 1st November those
goals dried up with Sakho suffering a shoulder injury and missing the trip
to Stoke, he has managed just 90 minutes on the pitch since November from a
3 possible games with zero goals and one assist. He is currently suffering
from a back injury and is doubtful for next Saturday.

The surprise injury list on Saturday of Diafra Sakho, Alex Song, Stewart
Downing and Enner Valencia plus International fatigue for Chek Kouyate is a
massive blow for any chance of a win in November and I understand these
injuries will last between 7 and 21 days meaning some players will not be
fit this weekend to line up against Pardew's men.

Added to this recent injury list is a suspension for Winston Reid after
picking up this fifth yellow card plus concerns for James Collins, Mark
Noble and Morgan Amalfitano who appeared to pick up knocks at Goodison Park
on Saturday.

With the way our luck is going you will excuse me if I don't hold out too
much hope for our final game in November against the Magpies!

December brings games West Bromwich Albion, Swansea City, Sunderland,
Leicester City,Chelsea and Arsenal.

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ZARATE MUST START AND WHY NOT CONSIDER BRINGING BACK MORRISON?
By S J Chandos 23 Nov 2014 at 08:00
West Ham Till I Die

One could only view the Hammers starting line up at Goodison with some
bewilderment. Carlton Cole is a decent professional, and a good servant to
West Ham, but we should not have voluntarily started with a Cole-Carroll
partnership up front. Certainly not when there was the much better option of
Zarate available. And this point was amply proven when Zarate came on as a
substitute, as he quickly underlined the specific qualities that he can
bring to the side. These include: creativity/vision, good technical ability
and the (refreshing) willingness to run at opposition defenders and make
things happen. West Ham's second half equalizer came from Zarate's ability
to carry the ball forward, put the opposition on the back foot and shoot
from distance. Yes, he had some good fortune with the deflection, but he
would not have benefited from that factor, if he had not had the bravery to
make the attempt on goal in the first place.

I can understand why Allardyce brought Kevin Nolan back in to the side, in
view of Downing's injury absence. I think that at 32 years of age, it is
probably asking a bit much of Nolan to achieve the level of graft/industry
shown by Noble, Kouyate and Song. However, one can expect him to play to his
strengths and that means posing a goal scoring threat in the final third (a
la the 0-2 win at Villa Park last season). Instead, he had one of those, all
too common, ineffectual and non-descript games at Goodison. Arguably, Nolan
needs to prove that he has a future role to play in this much improved West
Ham squad. And that inevitably means performing when selected and
underlining the fact that he continues to be 'worth his salt.'

Apart from Zarate, the other 'stand out' West Ham player was Amalfitano, who
constantly asked questions of Everton. And their solution seemed to be to
resort to foul and dangerous play. He was the victim of two examples of
dangerous play, at least one of which merited a red card. One must question
the leniency that referee Mark Clattenburg showed both McCarthy and
Mirallas. That, allied to failing to spot that Everton's opening goal was at
least 3 yards off-side, is more than enough to criticise the match
officials. Plus one might also ask how Clattenburg failed to book Barkley
for a blatant, simulated dive. And the Tomkins incident? yes, very silly
behaviour from Tomkins and I hope that the club have a serious word with
him. However, why book Tomkins, for his offence, and not only let Barkley
get away with simulation, but also reward him with a free kick!
Unbelievable, I certainly hope that the officials are held to account for
their performance, but I very much doubt it.

On the plus side, this match proved that we can cope with injuries to key
players and still put out a very competitive team. We went up to Goodison
with Kouyate, Song, Downing, Sakho and Valencia all sidelined. But the team
gave a good account of themselves and were very unfortunate to lose the
match. There are those out there who will probably tell you that this result
brings us back to earth and our current level of expectation (and league
position) is totally unrealistic. That, to me, is a loser mentality and one
that Hammers fans need to ditch once and for all. It is born of the
experience of years under-achievement and disappointment. It has led people
to accept low standards and expect the worst. Hopefully, this is a new era
for West Ham and success will eventually change such attitudes and
permanently raise expectations. We deserve, on merit, to be in the PL top
six and we must strive to stay there, not just this season, but consistently
hereafter. That is the challenge for the club going forward to the OS
migration. And the most immediate task, contributing to that, is to bounce
back with a home win against Newcastle Utd next week.

They say 'success breeds success' and that is very true. What is vital is
that the board keep the forward momentum going. Hard decisions were made
last summer and it is vital that the board do not now rest on their laurels.
They must continue to make the difficult decisions that facilitate
progression and continuous improvement. One of those decisions could
include, amongst other things, whether the present manager's contract should
be renewed next summer. I do appreciate Sam Allardyce's role (enforced or
otherwise), this season, in transforming the club's playing style and
improving results. As such, I have no real problem with him staying at the
helm, as long as he is able and willing to keep the club progressing to the
next level. However, the question that the board must consider is whether a
manager is theoretically any different to a player in at least one vital
respect? Successful clubs seek to recruit better players and, in doing so,
replace those deemed superseded and/or surplus to requirements. If West Ham
identify a manager, who they feel is better equipped to take the club on to
the next level, should they not bite the bullet and effect the transition?
Obviously, any new manager needs to be a significant upgrade, to make it
worth while, but if the club can attract them, why not? Controversial I
know, but it is a question which the board are arguably duty bound to
consider (as part of their end of season review) before agreeing to renew
the current incumbent's contract. Even if they ultimately conclude that the
current manager merits a new deal (and he in-turn agrees to sign it), they
should still review their alternative options first. After all, It is the
sensible way to proceed.

So, next week, we face a in-form Newcastle Utd with a long injury list and
Winston Reid serving a suspension. That means, in all probability,
Collins-Tomkins at centre-back, with Reece Burke on the bench. Hopefully,
one or two, such as Song, Downing and/or Valencia, will recover in time to
play. However, if Sakho and Valencia remain unavailable, then we need to
start with Carroll-Zarate up front. I just hope that Downing does recover
and replaces Nolan in the key role behind the strikers. If not, it looks
like we will be going with Nolan again. While, at the time of writing, the
biggest question mark, over selection, is regarding the composition of the
rest of the midfield unit?. What the current situation does emphasise is the
abject waste of leaving Ravel Morrison to stagnate at Cardiff City. Just
think what a great bonus a motivated and in-form Morrison would be to the
squad. Critics would say that is just it, Morrison is not presently in-form
nor seemingly particularly motivated. Perhaps, but why not gamble (in this
injury situation) and bring him back to use from the bench against Newcastle
Utd? It is clearly not working out at Cardiff City and Morrison might just
respond positively to a return to the club and PL football. It may prove
futile, but then again maybe it is worth a try?

SJ. Chandos.

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Zarate MUST be given a proper chance
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on November 23, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

Like most of us I'm unable to can't come to a definitive opinion on Mauro
Zarate's abilities given the lack of action we've seen from him but what I
do know is I think is that he is better than a 53rd minute sub – ie fifth
choice.

His appearance at Everton showed us that this is a bright player with bags
of ability who can change things – what he needs is a chance to show that
over a run of games.

From what we are hearing at ClaretandHugh, his opportunity may come over the
next couple of games with the injury situation unlikely to improve for two
or three weeks.

Chiekhou Koutaye could be back next week but reports on the other four –
Downing, Song, Valencia and Sakho are not encouraging.and we may even have
to make do without them over the next couple of games.

Of course nothing is certain and that is the worst case scenario but surely
if that turns out to be the case there has to be a place in the side for the
Argentinian.

However, let's hope that if he does, he won't be involved in a "let's hump
it forward" situation that confronted him in the last 20 minutes. We'll
never see him at his best in such a scenario. I felt for him!

He was brought here in the first place to play off Andy Carroll and, to
provide some variation to the play. Whilst I prefer not to knock Carlton
Cole's contribution down the years, he and Carroll don't work as a pair.

There's little point in moaning about the fact that Sam Allardyce loves a
big man or two but yesterday against Everton proved again that these two
don't work too well.

I think the manager has to face the fact that Kevin Nolan too needs to be
looked at very hard indeed and that whatever reservations he may have about
Zarate, it's surely the time to give him his chance.

We also need to keep playing football and Zarate can provide a real spark in
those circumstances. A return to the style of play we saw in the last 20
minutes isn't the answer to our current problems.

Zarate, however, may prove to be part of the answer.

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Irons anxieties on four stars
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on November 23, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

Chiekhou Kouyate is a "95 per cent certain starter" for the Hammers next
game against Newcastle on Saturday. The Senegal international return from
international duty "utterly exhausted" and was ruled out of the Everton game
a couple of days before the game. However, a source told Claretandhugh this
morning: "He's 95 per cent certain to play against Newcastle and is one of
those it's hard to keep down!
"However, there's no such certainty on the other four. Apart from Sakho they
all have knocks from the games against Stoke and Aston Villa and haven't
recovered as well as they or we had hoped. "It's impossible to say at this
stage but all of them look to be 7-21 day injuries. We may get one or two
back, maybe none. We aren't into false hope and need to be realistic."

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Tomkins slammed for feigning injury
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 23rd November 2014
By: Staff Writer

James Tomkins has been heavily criticised by supporters for pretending to
have been struck in the face by an opponent during yesterday's 2-1 defeat at
Everton. According to a number of fans sharing their opinion, West Ham's
Basildon-born centre half let himself badly when attempting to con referee
Mark Clattenburg into believing he had been head-butted by Everton's Kevin
Mirallas. "An almighty bollocking is in order," ludo22 wrote on the KUMB
Forum. "I don't care how many points we lose, I never want a West Ham player
to fake injury. We start doing that we might as well rip up the Claret and
blue."

Thoughts echoed by fellow KUMB member Harry Hound, who said: "I'm disgusted
with Tomkins and have very mixed feelings about him now as I can't
understand how he could pull such a stunt."

YWN continued the general theme of disappointment, adding: " I'm glad
Tomkins' got a dressing down, his reaction was almost as bad as Chico. I
don't want to see any West Ham player resort to that behaviour, even if they
had been diving or if Clattenberg and his assistants had been poor. Bad
darts."

And it wasn't only West Ham fans comparing the two incidents; Bradford City
fan Will Spivey, writing on Twitter said: "Just seen Match of the Day. I
assume West Ham fans will give James Tomkins the same level of abuse that
they gave Flores last year..."

Tomkins himself had nothing to say about the incident in a piece published
by the club this morning, although he did state that "it wasn't to be and
it's a hard one to take."

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Sullivan: "We deserved more from Everton"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on November 23, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh

David Sullivan has sent a "we move on" message to the Irons fans after the
disappointing defeat at Everton. The co-chairman steered clear of the
obvious first goal controversy and the edgy nature of the game but was
clearly frustrated at the outcome. And like most other neutrals he believes
the Irons are likely to have come out victorious had they not been hit with
injuries to our best players. Speaking exclsusively to ClaretandHugh, he
said: "They came to five new arrivals who have been performing so well. It's
an unfortunate situation for the club. "Having said that we deserved more
from the Everton match and had we had our two first first choice strikers I
think we would have won, but we move on'"

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Ross Barkley conned Mark Clattenburg with a clear dive during Everton
victory while James Tomkins was lucky to escape a red
Ross Barkley appeared to dive during Everton's win over West Ham
Referee Mark Clattenburg had to deal with a number of incidents during
heated match
West Ham defender James Tomkins held his face after being pushed in the
chest by Everton wideman Kevin Mirallas
By GRAHAM POLL FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 17:12, 23 November 2014 | UPDATED: 17:18, 23 November 2014
Daily Mail

Mark Clattenburg makes headlines on and off the field and this week is no
different. However, following a tough match at Goodison Park, it was Ross
Barkley and James Tomkins who should be highlighted after poor conduct
during Everton's clash with West Ham on Saturday.
Disappointingly, Barkley fooled Clattenburg with a clear dive when the
Everton man went down without contact from West Ham's Kevin Nolan; the blame
for this must lie with Barkley but Clattenburg will be cross with himself
for being conned. Everton's opening goal was clearly offside as Romelu
Lukaku was in an offside position before Barkley's shot was deflected to
him. of course assistant referees are the judges of offside so again the
Geordie referee should escape blame.

The melee which followed after Clattenburg awarded a free kick for James
McCarthy's very strong challenge on Morgan Amalfitano seemed to be down to
the referee's uncharacteristic casual approach to the incident. It was
clear that West Ham's players were angry at the tackle and looked to get
back at McCarthy. Usually, Clattenburg would have diffused the situation but
instead allowed players to confront one another. One could argue whether a
red card could have been shown but replays showed both players going in with
raised boots and so a yellow card for each player looked appropriate.

Fifteen minutes into a spiky second half, Clattenburg's 'laissez faire'
approach allowed the heat to rise again by failing to award Kevin Mirallas a
free kick. The angry Everton man then chased back and chopped Amalfitano
down – a clear caution. Before Clattenburg could issue a card, Tomkins
pushed Mirallas who responded by shoving him back. Both players clearly
pushed each other in the chest but embarrassingly Tomkins went down holding
his face, simulating where contact had occurred. Both men were fortunate to
escape with yellow cards. At least Clattenburg ended the game with some
credit as an excellent advantage led to the home team's winning goal but
this will not be a performance which he will list as one of his finest.

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Umbro rumoured to trump Adidas with kit offer – The ExWHUemployee Column
IronViews
By ExWHUemployee on November 23, 2014 in ExWHUemployee column

Zarate deserves to start

Well that was such a frustrating game. We deserved to win it in my opinion
and to come away with nothing was very disappointing. Everton should have
had two players sent off and the first goal shouldn't have stood. I know
Everton had a lot of injuries but for us to perform like that up there with
Song, Kouyate, Sakho, Valencia and Downing (arguably our five most important
players) out shows how far we have come. I tweeted these injuries on
Thursday and from then on didn't think we had a chance against Everton so
the fact that we did and deserved more means that it is only the Southampton
game and the Sheffield United one where we haven't played well.

I tweeted and had a discussion with a respected journalist during the
Everton game whether Zarate should have come on for Cole and, like most, I
really thought he should. Unfortunately Cole wasn't involved in the action
at all and I knew Zarate would be fired up for the game. He certainly made
all the difference. I would say that Morgan Amalfitano was my man of the
match and then I think Zarate comes a close second. I firmly believe that a
player should be selected on their last performance and therefore Zarate
deserves a start against Newcastle especially if some of the players are
still out.

David Gold has tweeted that they all have a chance to return but I would be
very surprised if all five did! Kouyate should do as he was very close for
Everton. I would imagine that Sakho has a good chance as his injury was back
pains related to travelling around and the physical demands of the Premier
League. Song's injury is one that he has had many times before and one that
has to be managed. I would expect these three to be back but the Newcastle
game may come too soon for Downing and Valencia. I think we have a recall
option on Poyet's loan which is only for a month anyway. Had the club felt
that Song and Kouyate would be out for longer I think he would have been
recalled.

Fringe players should go in January

In my anger I tweeted that Nolan, Cole, Vaz Te and Jarvis need to be moved
on in January. Despite what some people remarked I wasn't basing this on
that result but on their current impact (in the last two seasons) when
selected. Nolan has been a great servant to us and without him I do not
think we would be where we are now and he played alright against Everton.
His leadership and goals have been vital for us in recent years and whilst
he is a good player to have on the bench he just doesn't contribute enough
for me in games to be deserving of a first team start.

Carlton is a player who I really love after his loyal service to the club
and for being such a top man. Unfortunately his ability to hold up the ball
and be a physical threat is diminishing each season and I think it is now
time for him to move on.

Vaz Te is another player who we owe a lot to but the step up to the
premiership appears too big for him and he hasn't performed for us in the
top flight. His only real contribution when coming on was a dreadful cross
that went out for a goal kick.

Jarvis is the one that seemed to cause the biggest reaction. Many people
said I was wrong to suggest he was bought for his crossing ability and I was
in fact narrow minded! Here is my point: if you remember back to when we
signed Jarvis the figures of how he had put the most crosses in during a
season at Wolves were constantly referred to. He was essentially bought to
beat players and put crosses in to assist goals and that is the bottom line.
If you buy a goal scorer you expect goals, if you buy a hard man in midfield
you expect him to win the ball, if you buy a tall centre back you expect him
to win headers and so on. He hasn't provided many assists and, while he
hasn't had Carroll around much to aim for, his overall his contribution
hasn't been enough. I still maintain (and I have harped on about this for
the last two season) that I would like to see him on the right where he can
whip it in rather than checking back all the time. This seems unlikely and
if we could get even half of what we paid for him (approximately £5m) I
would take it. Those of you who follow me know I am not a negative fan and
regularly stick up for and praise players. However, I just believe that
with Financial Fair Play in place and players needing to move, those are the
ones I would look to send packing

Umbro set to replace Adidas

The new Supporters Advisory board appears to have been elected (shortened in
numbers now) and their first agenda item is apparently to design the final
kit for the Boleyn where the kit sponsorship is likely to be Umbro. This
does disappoint me as the Adidas kits are so much nicer than we have had in
recent years but it seems that Umbro have currently offered us the largest
sum. This is not confirmed, however.

Increasingly unlikely Reid will stay

Winston Reid apparently didn't travel to meet up with the New Zealand squad
during the international break so that he could sort out his plans for next
season apparently. It is looking increasingly unlikely that he will stay and
I do find his silence on the issue quite frustrating. Winston has been
brilliant since he has been here (excluding a few dodgy appearances when he
first joined). I cannot be grudge him a move to a big club – most likely to
be Arsenal – but I just wish he would talk on the matter. Winston is
extremely shy but even if he tweeted something it would put us fans more in
the loop. Unfortunately he is now suspended for Newcastle having picked up
his fifth yellow at Everton so we will get a chance to see Collins (assuming
he recovers from a knock) and Tomkins together again. Mark Noble also was
substituted off with an injury and the current load of injuries is something
that we have all got used to down the years.

It is a shame that the main talking part of this column has been the
injuries but hopefully during the week we will have positive news on this
front. If I hear anything I will update on Iron Views and my Twitter
account. Have a great week. COYI.

ExWHUemployee

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Ross Barkley is NOT a diver says Everton FC boss Roberto Martinez
Nov 23, 2014 12:43 By David Prentice
Barkley has received condemnation from many including MOTD pundit Alan
Shearer
Liverpoool Echo

Everton's Ross Barkley and West Ham United's Kevin Nolan (centre) battle for
the ball during the Barclays Premier League match at Goodison Park,
Liverpool. Everton FC boss Roberto Martinez has defended Ross Barkley from
accusations of diving – and claims his young midfielder probably "expected
contact" when he tumbled under pressure from West Ham's Kevin Nolan during
Saturday's victory at Goodison. There was no contact from the West Ham
player which resulted in a free-kick for Everton and the incident drew
condemnation from BBC pundit Alan Shearer on Saturday night. But Martinez
leaped to his player's defence. "I was not surprised because Ross Barkley
always tries to hold the ball so strong and the amount of knocks that he
gets is incredible," said the Blues boss. "I could show you his legs after
the game and he has so many signs of the amount of kicks that he gets. "In
that action maybe he was expecting a leg to come in and maybe tried to avoid
it. "Ross Barkley's not the type of player that goes down easy or doesn't
want contact, but I can understand at times if you get two or three knocks
then the fourth one you will try to avoid it. "I don't think it is something
he looks for, it is just a reaction."


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http://vyperz.blogspot.com



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