Daily WHUFC News - 24th June 2016

Randolph - It is not just about Dimi
WHUFC.com

Darren Randolph is relishing the chance to come up against his Hammers team-mate Dimitri Payet in last 16 of the Euro Finals in France and hopes to celebrate another famous night in Lyon. Randolph played his part in helping the Republic of Ireland defy all the odds to record a dramatic late victory over Italy on Wednesday night to secure qualification for the knockout stages. Robbie Brady's late header ensured Martin O'Neill's side prolonged their stay in France and they are now preparing for a mouthwatering game against the host nation on Sunday. Payet has been one of the star performers in the tournament so far having scored two goals during the group stages and Randolph knows more than most what is needed to stop the French superstar getting on the scoresheet. The Hammers keeper is used to facing Payet in training every day, but says it would be wrong for Ireland to focus all their attentions on stopping the 29-year-old. Randolph said: "It is not just about Dimi although he is grabbing all the headlines right now so we will see what happens at the weekend. "It is another great occasion and the chance for us to get in the history books against the hosts in the last 16. "It is something to go and enjoy. We have worked incredibly hard."

Randolph says he will never forget the drama that unfolded against Italy including his own personal moment when he produced a Cruyff turn to stop Simone Zaza getting on the scoresheet. The Hammers keeper believes the victory demonstrates the impressive team spirit that Ireland have and feels they can be a match for any team. Randolph added: "What a night. We knew we would get a couple of chances and at half-time we said that we need to keep going and that when we get a chance we need to take it. We did that in the second half.
"If you look from the outside we knew it was not going to be the easiest group, but we had to get a win from somewhere and it happened to be in the last game when we needed it to get through. "We had two very good performances and now we are through. "Robbie still had to be brave and got his head on the end of that cross from Wes (Hoolahan) to spark the celebrations."

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Italian Hammers impressed with Angelo
WHUFC.com

Martelli D'Italia founder Nicola Morosini reflects on Angelo Ogbonna's first appearance at Euro 2016. Italy and Ireland met in Lille on Wednesday night with two Hammers on the field – Angelo Ogbonna on one hand, on the other Darren Randolph. The winner was the Irish goalkeeper after a race that saw Italy deploy many replacements after already qualifying for the second round and waiting for Monday's game against Spain. Perhaps there was more motivation for Ireland, who played a good game but left it late to score in the second half. Robbie Brady's 85th minute goal gave qualification to his side, alongside Italy and Belgium. Ogbonna's match was positive, however. Always careful and precise with his interventions. Randolph did not encounter any particular problems if we exclude the post hit by Insigne also in the second half.
Now the way for the two international Hammers continues. For the second round Ogbonna against Spain, Randolph against France. #COYI

Nicola Morosini
Founder, Martelli D'Italia (Hammers of Italy)

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of West Ham United

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Hammers set for Pride in London Parade
WHUFC.com

West Ham United will join tens of thousands of people at the UK's biggest LGBT+ parade this weekend. Forty members of the Pride of Irons, the official West Ham United LGBT Supporters Group, will take part in the Pride in London Parade on Saturday afternoon. The Hammers fans will be joined by representatives from #PrideinFootball, Gay Gooners and a host of other sports clubs from all over the country. Pride of Irons have invited those taking part, and members of the public watching the Parade, to make themselves known to the West Ham group and share their love for football and the Club.

Treasurer Alastair Holmes, secretary Dave Wood and committee member David Springer are all Season Ticket Holders who will be among those involved on Saturday, when Pride of Irons will march as a group for the first time.

"Last year we walked with the #PrideinFootball umbrella organisation, but this year we took the decision to walk on our own, which is a massive step forward," said Wood. "We have ordered 40 wristbands and have a meeting point on Saturday. We have a few spaces left, so if people want to come along they can contact us via our Facebook group.

"Pride will help us raise awareness of LGBT and it's not something I thought I'd see in my lifetime, but it is happening and it is wonderful.

"Last year people were shouting 'Come on you Irons!' from the side of the road when they saw our t-shirts, which was amazing, but this year we'll have our banner and hopefully we'll get even more support and raise more awareness of the group."
Pride will help us raise awareness of LGBT and it's not something I thought I'd see in my lifetime, but it is happening and it is wonderful
Pride of Irons secretary Dave Wood
Holmes says the fact the group is marching independently shows how Pride of Irons has grown hugely over the past 12 months.

"We've been building up support and have over 100 members and nearly 1,000 followers on Twitter now," said Holmes. "We've had various social activities both within our clubs and met up with LGBT supporters of other clubs and had a great day out in Norwich in February.

"The Club very kindly granted us a block booking of seats to the Manchester United FA Cup replay, so we were able to get a lot of us together for that game.

"We have also held various fundraising and awareness events and posts on social media highlighting that West Ham is a Club that is supportive of LGBT fans."

Springer issued an open invite to West Ham fans to find out a bit more about Pride of Irons at the Pride in London Parade, whatever their own background.

"Pride is not an exclusively LGBT event, it's for everybody and that includes all West Ham fans, no matter what your background or occupation is – it's a celebration of us as a Club," he explained.

"With the Club moving to the new Stadium, it's going to see more supporters at each game and we're looking at holding more events next season and looking to work in partnership with the Club as we continue to build," Holmes confirmed.

As West Ham fans, Springer said Pride of Irons cannot wait to watch Slaven Bilic's side in action at their new home on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

"As a fan for so many years, this is the most exciting season yet and something to look forward to. My son has got his first Season Ticket this coming season and we can't wait!"

The Pride in London Parade leaves from Portland Place at 1pm, moving down Regent Street through Oxford Circus, Piccadilly Circus, Lower Regent Street, Waterloo Place, Pall Mall East, Cockspur Street, Trafalgar Square, and Whitehall, before dispersing in Whitehall Place. For more information, click here.

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Mark Noble shows West Ham dedication as midfielder battles UK floods for club shop's grand opening
11:32, 23 JUN 2016 UPDATED 12:34, 23 JUN 2016
BY MATT LAWLESS
No mountain too high, no river too wide...
The Mirror

West Ham have taken their first official step towards their new Olympic Stadium home. And captain Mark Noble had to travel THREE hours over land and (a small) sea to get there. The Hammers favourite was the special guest at the club's opening of their new Stadium Store at Queen Elizabeth Park on Thursday morning. But the chaos caused by the overnight storm and downpour deluge in Essex meant he had to negotiate a heavily water-filled route to east London. Take a look above... West Ham uploaded the video on their official Twitter account of Noble, 29, driving in his 4x4 car at slow speed through a flooded road. Judging by the footage above, Noble may have been better off taking a rubber dinghy!

The new-look store attracted hundreds of Hammers supporters, snapping up the club's new Umbro away kit. And Noble, speaking to club's official website, said: "I don't think I've ever seen so much West Ham gear!

Paul Gilham
Noble is loved by fans and players alike
6h
West Ham United FC ✔ @whufc_official

.@Noble16mark cuts the 🎀 and our new Stadium Store is officially open! https://vine.co/v/5BPapXaap9a
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West Ham United FC ✔ @whufc_official

.@Noble16Mark formally opened the new Stadium Store at @LondonStadium this morning ➡ http://wes.hm/Store2306 pic.twitter.com/I9iv8ebNwM
11:28 AM - 23 Jun 2016
35 35 Retweets 65 65 likes

"This is a whole new level for the Club and, to be fair, it looks great. "The opening of the Store shows just how close we are to making the move. "This is a massive summer for the Club and we're all looking forward to getting in there for those first couple of games, in the Europa League and then the Betway Cup against Juventus."

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West Ham captain Mark Noble expects Dimitri Payet to stay next season
By Dev Trehan
Last Updated: 23/06/16 12:58pm
SSN

West Ham captain Mark Noble expects Dimitri Payet to stay at the club amid reports his eye-catching performances for club and country have attracted the attention of some of Europe's top clubs. Payet - linked with clubs including Chelsea, Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain - lit up the Premier League in his debut season in England, netting 12 goals and contributing 15 assists, helping West Ham qualify for the Europa League. The 29-year-old has taken that form onto the international stage, scoring in France's first two games at Euro 2016, and Noble says the former Marseille winger has been the standout player of the tournament so far.
Asked by Sky Sports News HQ reporter Jamie Weir if he thought Payet would be at the club next season, Noble said: "I think he will be. I've been in a lot of contact with him over the summer and he loves the football club. "But football is football, so you never know, but obviously we'd all like to see him back here in the summer. "We were all hoping he would go (to Euro 2016, and earlier in the season) I said to him: 'Dim I'm 100 per cent you're going to go', even though he thought he had no chance. "To see him doing so well is great because he's been the player of the tournament so far. I think we all knew how good he was but now the world knows how good he is."
Noble was speaking at the opening of West Ham's brand new club shop at their new Olympic Park home where some fans had begun queuing at 3am. The 29-year-old admitted he will miss the club's former home but insisted the move to the new Olympic Stadium represents an exciting new chapter for West Ham football club. Noble added: "At Upton Park the Boleyn Ground surface was fantastic and the memories that people have from there will never be forgotten and nor will I. But we are moving on to a new era and hopefully this is the way forward for the football club."

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West Ham remain in talks with Gokhan Tore despite rejected loan bid – Sky sources
By Sky Sports News HQ
Last Updated: 23/06/16 3:56pm
SSN

West Ham remain in negotiations with Besiktas over a deal for winger Gokhan Tore, according to Sky sources, despite having a loan bid rejected. It is understood the Hammers were keen to secure the 24-year-old on a season-long deal with a view to a permanent move next summer. However, Besiktas have turned down the bid and told West Ham they will only entertain offers that will see Tore leave the club on a permanent basis. Negotiations between the clubs continue with Besiktas hoping to secure more than £12m for Tore, who spent two years at Chelsea as a youth player. West Ham boss Slaven Bilic is looking to bolster his squad ahead of the new season and has already secured the signings of Norway midfielder Havard Nordtveit and Algeria winger Sofiane Feghouli. Tore, capped 26 times by Turkey, joined Besiktas from Rubin Kazan in 2013 and played under Bilic for two seasons at the club. He made 24 league appearances and scored four times last season as Besiktas claimed their first Super Lig title in seven years.

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Hammers study striker options
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on June 23, 2016 in News, Whispers
C and H

West Ham are again looking at their striker options after Alexandre Lacazette gave the club a thumbs down to a move earlier in the week. Despite one morning newspaper claiming the Hammers are considering a new bid for him, both CandH via club insiders and the general media, through his agents, have been told the move won't happen. Now both Christian Benteke and Edin Dzeko are re-emerging as possible targets as the club reassesses it's position. Benteke is a striker admired by Slaven Bilic and at 25 years old is in front of Dzeko, 30, for whom Roma want £15 million. The Liverpool front man is understood to be looking in excess of £100k a week and we were told earlier: "Buying from Liverpool is difficult as very big numbers are ALWAYS involved. "There's no panic and we are considering all our options – they are just two names in our minds along with several others. However, were the Irons to move for Dzeko they would offer only around £11 million seeing him as the second striker they are looking for this season.

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New mega store under pressure from Mike Ashley
Posted by Sean Whetstone on June 23, 2016 in News, Whispers
C and H

West Ham's new mega store, which was opened in the Queen Elizabeth Park by skipper Mark Noble this morning is already being under cut by Newcastle United's owner Mike Ashley.
His Sports direct store in the Westfield shopping centre in Stratford, which is a stones throw away from the new club stadium store is selling the new West Ham away shirt for £44.99 while the club charges a tenner more for the same shirt. Pricing for the 2016/2016 away shirt is £55 in the official stadium club store outside the former Olympic Stadium.
However, the Stadium Store, which is more than two-and-a-half times the size of its Boleyn Ground equivalent, does has 1,200 new product lines and will be open seven days a week for Hammers fans to get their hands on official Club merchandise. The Store is complete with some 44 till points and a dedicated shirt printing area with 12 printing machines, ensuring that supporters can be served quickly at the busiest times.

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FFP drives Besiktas decision to sell Tore
Posted by Sean Whetstone on June 23, 2016 in News, Whispers
C and H

West Ham did made a loan bid with a future option to buy clause for Gokhan Tore according to Besiktas president Fikret Orman in a press conference. "We received a loan offer with a buyout clause option which we rejected," Orman stated "We have not transfer listed Gokhan Tore he is a very important player but if he wants to leave we will sell him for the right price," he added.

In reality, Besiktas need to sell Tore to conform to strict UEFA Financial Fair Play rules which they have breached over a number of years. UEFA previously suspended Besiktas from all European competition for one year in 2012/2013, and fined them €200,000, due to financial problems at the Istanbul club. In 2015 UEFA, Besiktas were fined a further 5.5 million euros and restricted the Turkish club's transfer transactions for Financial Fair Play violations,.

Later in 2015 they reached a settlement with the Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) investigatory chamber. The agreement stated Besiktas would not be able to transfer any footballer unless they manage to sell one of their own. Besiktas would pay 1.5 million euro despite being sanctioned with 5.5 million euro. Four million euros could be waived if Besiktas obeys the agreement. It is stated that Besiktas can register 23 players for the 2016-17 season. In accordance with the UEFA's rules, a club's transfer incomes must not go down below their transfer spendings.

As part of this they agreed to report a maximum break-even deficit of €20 million for the financial year ending in May 2016 and €10 million for the financial year ending in May 2017. It is this target of limiting their losses in 2016 and 2017 which is thought to be driving their refusal to loan Tore and insisting on getting as close to their full valuation as possible thought to be high £15m which is around 20 million Euros.

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Bubbles to surround Olympic (London) Stadium
Posted by Sean Whetstone on June 23, 2016 in News, Whispers
C and H

New planning permission documentation submitted this week reveals that the lyrics to the famous West Ham bubbles song will fully encompass the circumference of the former Olympic Stadium since renamed the London Stadium. As part of the ongoing WestHamIfication process of the London stadium, the proposed perimeter glazing vinyl will contain the Bubbles chorus lyrics repeated several times around the full stadium circumference in sections.

"I'm forever blowing bubbles"
"Pretty bubbles in the air, they fly so high"
"Nearly reach the sky"
"Then like my dreams they fade and die"
"Fortunes always hiding"
"I've looked everywhere"
"I'm forever blowing bubbles"
"Pretty bubbles in the air"

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West Ham and Juventus in running to sign Michy Batshuayi from Marseille
• Tottenham also weighing up offer for £31m-rated Belgium striker
• West Ham's bid for Batshuayi has been on table since start of May
Thursday 23 June 2016 14.16 BST Last modified on Thursday 23 June 2016 14.33 BST
The Guardian

Michy Batshuayi's future could be resolved this week, with West Ham and Juventus battling it out to sign the Belgium striker from Marseille and Tottenham considering whether to make an offer. Batshuayi, who is yet to play a single minute for Belgium at Euro 2016 having been named as a substitute for all three group stage matches, has been the subject of increased transfer speculation since Marseille's caretaker coach Franck Passi admitted last month that the 22-year-old will leave the Stade Vélodrome this summer.
West Ham submitted an official offer worth up to €40m (£31m) for the former Standard Liège striker at the start of May and it is understood that bid – which would include more than €30m up front plus significant add-ons – remains on the table. However, the Italian champions Juventus have also entered the fray after selling Álvaro Morata back to Real Madrid this week, having been put off a move for Batshuayi's Belgium team-mate Romelu Lukaku because Everton want more than £40m. They are understood to have offered a deal worth €30m which was rejected by Marseille but are now expected to increase their bid. The French club, who were put up for sale by owner Margarita Louis-Dreyfus in April, are reported to be under pressure to sell their prized asset before the end of the month to avoid a fine from the DNCG (Direction Nationale du Controle de Gestion) which rules on financial matters in France although it is understood that they could decide to wait in order to gain the best price possible.
That could allow time for Tottenham to make a bid as well, with the player believed to favour a move to Mauricio Pochettino's side if given the choice. The Spurs manager admitted at the end of April that Batshuayi was a potential target this summer, although it remains to be seen whether Tottenham will offer enough. "We are looking for a striker this summer, that's clear," Pochettino said. "Michy's a young player who has a lot of talent. He is on the list of many clubs. We have quite a few people who have given us information about him. He has good potential. We'll see. We have other players in our sights too."
Atlético Madrid have also registered an interest in signing Batshuayi, while Borussia Dortmund could also make a move should Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leave the club this summer.
Meanwhile, Juventus are reported to be considering a €27m (£20.6m) bid from Wolfsburg for the Italy striker Simone Zaza, who has also been linked with West Ham, Southampton, Everton and Crystal Palace in the past.

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French striker Anthony Modeste to hold crunch talks with FC Koln amid Hammers links
By talkSPORT - @talkSPORT
Thursday, June 23, 2016

West Ham target Anthony Modeste will hold crunch talks with current club FC Koln over his future next week. The Hammers have come up short in their attempts to lure primary target Alexandre Lacazette away from Lyon this summer and have now switched their attentions to the French striker. Modeste also has an offer on the table from an unnamed Chinese Super League club, who have written up a lucrative contract for him. According to Bild, Modeste will hold meetings with Koln representatives when he returns from his holidays next week, and he is expected to put in a transfer request. However, with no clause in his contract which allows him to leave for a certain fee, Koln can drive up their asking price for the 28-year-old. Modeste only joined Koln from Hoffenheim last summer but made an instant impact, scoring 18 goals and helping the club finish ninth in the Bundesliga.

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