Daily WHUFC News - 7th October 2016

Ladies bag first win of the season
WHUFC.com

C&K Basildon Ladies 0-1 West Ham United Ladies

The cold October wind blew across the aptly named Frost Financial Stadium in Canvey Island, but it was the West Ham United Ladies who were to turn the heat up on their bitter rivals C&K Basildon. The Hammers, who had earned their first and only point in the corresponding fixture a few weeks ago in a goalless draw, named two new signings in the squad. Jay Blackie and Shannon Albuery came in from Charlton and Chichester respectively. And it was Blackie, who had played under James Marrs at his previous club, who began dictating the game from her central midfield position, holding the ball up well and releasing the forwards. In a tight first half the West Ham Ladies had played some excellent free flowing football and had had the better of the chances, both falling to the speedy Sarah Wilson who narrowly missed with one and blasted the ball over the bar from close range with the other. West Ham Ladies carried on with their neat possession football in the second half, while the Basildon Ladies were restricted to long range shots which were being comfortably dealt with by keeper Chauhan. As the game progressed, the new fitness regime that Marrs has implemented seemed to be paying dividends as the West Ham Ladies attacked at will, but they were let down by some poor finishing.

Substitute Albuery got her chance in the 75th minute, replacing Wilson and she began to terrorise the Basildon defence with her pace and power. In the 85th minute, just when the game looked like it was heading for a draw, Blackie found space on the right wing and put in a glorious cross which cleared the Basildon keeper and was headed into the back of the net by Gerr.
Clifton came on for the goalscorer in the final minutes to see West Ham Ladies through to their first win of the season, a season that has now begun in earnest.

West Ham Ladies: Chauhan, Mackie, Wheeler, Bottom, Sammons, Cooper, Blackie, Wilson, Locke, Burr, Gerr.
Subs: Ray, Albuery, Clifton.

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Class act Antonio gets shirty
WHUFC.com

Michail Antonio has been class on the pitch this season - and now he has shown his class off it by driving 135 miles to deliver his West Ham United shirt to a charity.

The No30 winged his way to Birmingham on Saturday evening to present his shirt for Libby Mae's Little Angels to founders Richard and Charlotte Sharratt, having run out of time to post it before Saturday's black-tie ball and auction for neonatal units across the region.

After stepping off the pitch at the end of the Hammers' 1-1 Premier League draw with Middlesbrough at London Stadium, Antonio drove to the Midlands on his way to his family home in Manchester, before meeting up with the England squad at St George's Park in Staffordshire.

Antonio, whose kind gesture went viral after being shared on social media by the charity, said: "I knew they wanted it for the auction that night, so I thought I'd drop it off after the game before carrying on to see my family."

The charity has raised more than £135,000 so far after it was set up in 2013 in memory of Libby Mae Sharratt, who died at the age of just two weeks due to a heart defect.

The generous 26-year-old is an ambassador for the Guy Mascolo Football Charity and recently opened the Michail Antonio GMFC football centre in south London. Antonio has a long history of giving back to the community, having made a number of trips to his first club Tooting & Mitcham since joining West Ham in summer 2015.

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Cresswell thrilled to be back in action
WHUFC.com

Aaron Cresswell was thrilled to be back on the field following a successful return to action and now hopes to be in contention for the next Premier League game against Crystal Palace. Cresswell has been forced to miss the start of the season after suffering a knee ligament injury during the pre-season game against Karlsruher. Reports suggested that the talented full-back would be ruled out of action for four to six months, but the 26-year-old has nothing but praise for the way the Hammers medical staff have helped make a speedy recovery. Cresswell played 50 minutes in a training ground match against the Hammers PL2 side on Thursday and with another week until the big London derby at Selhurst Park, he hopes to be available for selection and help West Ham get back on the winning trail. Cresswell said: "It feels good to be back out there training with the lads and not being stuck in the gym or the treatment room as I look to get the knee right.
"I could not have asked anymore from the physio's, especially Eamon, our Rehab Fitness Coach who has helped me out massively over the last 12 weeks. "It is not just the body, it is the mind as well that you have to get right. For me this is the first time I have had a long-term injury and hopefully it will be the last. "I am looking forward to getting back in contention. I have played 50 minutes and the knee feels good. I am looking forward to next week."

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Lanzini back among the goals
WHUFC.com

Manuel Lanzini was back among the goals as he netted a brace to help the first-team record a 3-0 win over our PL2 team at the Club's training ground on Thursday. Simone Zaza also found the target as Slaven Bilic had plenty to be optimistic about after seeing Aaron Cresswell successfully come through his first game after suffering a knee ligament injury during the Club's pre-season tour to Austria. Cresswell played 50 minutes and will now be hoping to be in contention for the Premier League game against Crystal Palace on 15 October. Dimitri Payet might have stolen all the headlines against Middlesbrough with his wonder goal but Lanzini showed he can also steal the show with another impressive display following his recent return to first-team action. The 23-year-old played a part in all three goals and turned provider for the first when he played a perfect through ball into the path of Zaza. The Italian forward, on-loan from Juventus, showed his quality in front of goal when he fired an impressive finish past Raphael Spiegel. Lanzini doubled the lead when he showed a great piece of skill to burst clear into the box and struck the ball into the corner of the net. The talented midfielder made it three late in the game when he was picked out by Club skipper Mark Noble and fired a superb finish past Spiegel. Bilic was keen for his for his players to keep up their match fitness over the international break and also saw Adrian, Alvaro Arbeloa and Pedro Obiang compete in a strong starting line-up.

West Ham TV caught all the action and were on hand to see our Argentine midfielder back to his best.

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47k
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 6th October 2016
By: Staff Writer

West Ham's actual attendance figure for last weekend's Premier League clash against Middlesbrough was circa 47,000, according to a KUMB source.

And that's up a couple of thousand on the 45,000 who attended the Southampton game a week earlier.

Earlier this week David Sullivan reiterated that the game was a sell-out. But with thousands of empty seats dotted around the ground, it was clear that many season ticket holders - including many of those who had exercised the 'plus 2' option - had not attended the game.

"With 52,000 season ticket holders and 50,000 supporters on the waiting list, every game from now on will be the same," Sullivan told West Ham's wesbite. "Any empty seats are down to our current capacity limit of 57,000."

Sullivan's comments were repeated yeserday by Karren Brady, who was representing the club at a business conference.

"With 52,000 season ticket Holders, including 25,000 from families and 10,000 aged 16 or under, and more than 50,000 supporters on a waiting list to join them, the Hammers could soon be playing home matches in the largest club ground in London" she said.

That there have been so many empty seats has not been helped by supporters' inability to sell season ticket seats on a match-by-match basis. However a tciket exchange should be in place ahead of West Ham's next Premier League fixture at the Olympic Stadium, against Sunderland two-and-a-half weeks from now.

"We will be launching imminently a ticket exchange which means any supporters who can't make a game because of holidays or travel problems can legitimately sell their tickets to other supporters," added co-owner Sullivan.

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Brady forced to explain 'culture shift' comment
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 5th October 2016
By: Staff Writer

Vice chairman Karren Brady has been forced to defend comments she made at a business summit relating to the changing 'culture' at West Ham. Brady, speaking at the Leaders Sports Business Summit at Stamford Bridge caused a bit of a stir when she made a reference to changing the 'culture' at West Ham. Some fans mistook the comment to refer to West Ham United as a whole - something later denied by Brady, who insisted that it was a specific reference to the corporate side of the business. "To be 100 per cent clear, I did not and have never criticised the culture of our supporters," she said on twitter following a stream of criticism. "i said it's our supporters who make the club, NOT the stadium. "At Leaders [I was] was asked about corporate culture at WHU. I explained our world-renowned heritage is what sets us apart; shame not reported that way."

Speaking at the conference earlier in the day, Brady referred to the business opportunities that had been presented to the club as a result of securing a 99-year lease at the Olympic Stadium whilst defending the decision to move there. "We saw that as a real opportunity to change the brand values of the club," she told the conference. "There was a plan to plug the debt, build the future and create the culture. "Rebranding ourselves was really important with our stadium. We're in the London Stadium. We added the word London to our crest because we felt it had real global appeal. Nobody else does it. "We are in the heart of London, in the foothills of the financial sector. We have the best stadium – there are some great stadiums in this country but there is only one Olympic Stadium and it's ours. It's really had a dynamic impact on the things we can do. "We have this great stadium and much better prospects and facilities than in our old stadium but we charge a lower price. We offer a more dynamic product at an inferior price. It's been so well received and it comes back to our values and our culture."

However the comment that raised eyebrows came when Brady explained why the club's business side needed a major overhaul, following the mess left behind by former owner Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson. "There were two interesting things about it," she said. "One, it had £100million worth of debt. Two, it had no what I would call culture. "At football clubs we don't make anything, we don't manufacture anything, we don't really produce anything other than more players. So getting the culture right, being a place where something is expected of you, having discipline, planning and process and strategy. That wasn't there."

However Brady also recognised that no football club can be a success without the support of its fanbase. "If you're always driven by money, you lose your traditional values and what you're there for," she said. "The stadium and the league are not what makes a club. It's the people who support it. Protecting their traditions and their values and their integrity in their own brand is very important."

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To Bilic, or not to Bilic?
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 6th October 2016
By: Gary Portugal

On every metric, Slaven Bilic is failing THIS season, no matter how well he did last season. Whilst the excuses trotted out may have some merit, such as injuries and the stadium move, in the end they are just that – excuses.

In truth the decline started at the back end of last season, when Swansea battered us at Upton Park and we failed at Stoke on the last day with an assured European place on the line. To take one point from our last four fixtures of the season, all of which were winnable and three of which were at home is appalling. There's no other way to say it.

Despite all of this, I would NOT sack Bilic at the moment. Why not? Not because he's a nice guy, which he undeniably is. Because, simply put, I cannot think of a suitable, realistic replacement. Steve Bruce? No thanks. Harry Redknapp? Ditto.

With Avram Grant it was different – there WERE other options available,but the Board dithered and we paid the price. Circumstances are different now. There simply are few, if any, realistic alternatives to Bilic out there right now.

Does he deserve an ongoing free pass based on that? Nope, definitely not. But much as I think he DESERVES to be let go following our shambolic start, in my view sacking him now is not the answer, and could well make things a lot worse.

Am I being harsh by implying that if a decent replacement WERE available, that we should sack Bilic? In my view, no. The start of this season has been an unmitigated failure, from the Europa League onwards. Obviously the ultimate responsibility lies with the players, but Bilic does bear a significant portion of the blame for the nasty situation we find ourselves in.

He's a lovely guy, in contrast to the ogre who was his predecessor. As such, it pains me to see him failing this badly , because he's a really decent human being. In terms of results, it really could not be any worse. Booted out of Europe by average opposition, on our own patch. In the bottom three for the international break , with arguably the worst defence in the division at the moment. With few positives to find, the question becomes , who is responsible for all this, and to what degree?

Of course the players, Bilic and his staff and the Board all bear SOME responsibility. Nobody is guilt-free here. Not even the supporters. Obviously the football has been a shambles. But even BEFORE we've conceded in recent matches, the atmosphere at the 0lympic Stadium has been very subdued. INCREDIBLY quiet at times, although it was slightly better for the Boro fixture.

I think that the Board worked hard this summer to bolster the squad, but with limited success. It did not help matters that the Board telegraphed and advertised its intentions to all and sundry in a very unsubtle way, regarding transfers. Nobody can fault the amount of money invested by the board in recent seasons. But they left it very late to bring Zaza in, for which we're paying a price now, as he does not look sharp.

The Board were also slow to recognise the need for cover in the full back positions, even before Cresswell's injury and given Byram's lack of top flight experience. We brought Arbeloa in but only at the last minute, even though he was available all summer. Which means that if the Board can be faulted, but only a bit, then the bulk of the blame lies with the players and managerial staff.

Where exactly has it gone wrong for Bilic? Initially, the problem was the well documented playing of players out of position - specifically Michail Antonio and, to a lesser extent, Havard Nordtveit, neither of whom are proper full backs. Eventually Bilic saw sense, or was MADE to see sense, but by that time, the damage had been done.

More recently, team selection has been an issue as opposed to playing people out of position. Persisting with Collins , despite his catalogue of errors (starting with conceding a late equalizer in Romania and continuing in ALL his Premier League appearances apart from the Boor game, when he finally played well) is the best example. Ogbonna is way more mobile than Collins and much better on the ball, yet Bilic persisted for too long with the Welshman.

Bilic continues to play Simone Zaza, who to date has barely registered a shot on target and has struggled to even hold the ball up. Fletcher may be young, but in his limited time on the pitch he's looked more of a threat than either Zaza or Jonathan Calleri. Against Boro, Bilic finally thought outside the box and played Antonio up front, which was long overdue. The man DID play upfront at times for Forest, so this was not THAT radical an idea, and should have been tried sooner, especially given Antonio's goal scoring record this season and last.

But sadly, Bilic also chose to start Gokhan Tore against Boro, who is arguably our worst player of the season to date, and still looks unfit. Why do this when options like Spfiane Feghouli and Manuel Lanzini were available?

Bilic has lacked the bottle to bench senior players who are underperforming, notably Mark Noble and Cheik Kouyate, both of whom have been substandard. These two have failed to give adequate protection to the back four, yet have been rewarded with starts, whilst Pedro Obiang has been left to rot on the bench until recently.

It is true that none of our wingers have covered themselves in glory from a defensive point of view, but this responsibility must lie more with our holding midfielders, and with Bilic in terms of the formation he chooses. Just because Noble is the captain and Kouyate was such an engine LAST season does not mean that they should be left of the hook. And a player like Reece Oxford has been TOTALLY frozen out. Why?

If we're not going to play Oxford then why didn't we loan him out, assuming he's old enough to go out on loan? Additionally, was it really wise to sell James Tomkins, given our limited cover at right back and the ageing of Collins? Did Bilic have a say in the sale, or was it forced on him by the club? Or did Tomkins simply demand a move? We may never know what really happened there, or not for a while anyway. But Tomkins certainly would have come in handy at either right back or centre half in these first seven games.

The length of our injury list also calls into question Bilic's training methods. All teams suffer injuries, but what we are experiencing this season is beyond the pale. Something is not right and the way our players train, warm up and warm down must come under scrutiny.

The latest casualty, Byram, whilst making a diving header, injured his hamstring after just five minutes on the pitch. Andre Ayew lasted less than 20 minutes on his debut. Sometimes we shoot ourselves in the foot, though. Did we really need to risk Andy Carroll on a dodgy Romanian pitch? Did Arthur Masuako really need to start against Accrington, given our pre-existing injuries at fullback?

One way of assessing our current situation is to ask what place we would be in if we had a TOP manager, with our exact current squad. Under Guardiola, Wenger, Mourinho, Klopp, even Kouman, would we be 18th? I doubt it.

Obviously, we're in no position yet to get a manager of that stature, but that is not my point. My point is simply that these players have not become bad overnight, despite making a series of avoidable individual errors in the first seven games. A better manager would have seen our league position improve considerably, with the SAME squad.

Final thoughts on the matter? In an ideal world I'd replace Bilic as he has not been good enough THIS campaign, despite being very successful last season. But in the REAL world, we cannot sack/replace him. There simply is nobody out there worth taking a chance on now.

I sincerely hope that the point vs. Boro has not only stopped the rot, but marks the start of us gradually getting back to our best after the international break. Bilic is a good person and I would love to see him turn it around, but I'm not overly optimistic. In my view, even at this early stage the table does not lie. We need to start sorting it immediately, at Selhurst Park.

Please note that the opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, nor should be attributed to, KUMB.com.

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West Ham starlet Reece Oxford aiming to follow in Rio Ferdinand's footsteps
West Ham United news: All the latest from the London Stadium
Reece Oxford made his first-team debut for West Ham against Arsenal
Oxford hasn't yet made an appearance for Slaven Bilic's side this season
The 17-year-old admits that he is hoping to push on like Rio Ferdinand did
Oxford has been linked with many big clubs since breaking through
By CALLUM HOSIER FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 12:32, 6 October 2016 | UPDATED: 12:34, 6 October 2016

West Ham's Reece Oxford has revealed that he would like to emulate former Hammer Rio Ferdinand in his career. Ferdinand joined West Ham's youth academy back in 1992, amongst a whole host of other talent including former Chelsea legend Frank Lampard. The ex-England star went on to form an enormously successful career, with his capabilities on the ball, as well as off it, being a highlight of his success and Oxford hopes he can follow in Ferdinand's footsteps. 'The player that I looked up to the most at West Ham was probably Rio Ferdinand because he was the same position as me,' Oxford told Goal. 'When I came to the club I was a striker and he got moved to centre-back [too] and he just moved on from there, so hopefully I can push on the way he pushed on.' said Oxford. The 17-year-old made his Premier League debut in West Ham's 2-0 victory over Arsenal on the opening day of last season at the age of 16. The young defender appeared confident and composed, showing he had huge potential at such a young age. Since making his breakthrough at West Ham, Oxford has been linked with several big club but he insists he doesn't let the expectation that has been placed on him get to him. 'I just don't really take any notice [of the pressure], I try not to think about it too much,' he added. 'I just do what I can do and hopefully it's good enough.' Oxford is yet to make an appearance in Slaven Bilic's side this season but with the poor start West Ham have made, especially in defence, the youngster could be close to another first team opportunity.

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DON'T BE SHOCKED IF WEST HAM STRIKER'S SEASON IS NINE-GAMES LONG
news.ladbrokes.com

Little has gone right for West Ham this season, whether that be their dreadful start on the pitch, a raft of injuries to key men or unwanted headlines from fan behaviour. Hidden among all of that gloom is the fact that their big-name new striker, Simone Zaza, has yet to find the net in his first five appearances for the club. On-loan from Italian giants Juventus, the Azzurri international has cut a frustrating figure for Slaven Bilic's side. In his four Premier League outings thus far, Zaza has managed to fire a measly six shots at goal. That's the same number as centre-back James Collins and a whopping 21 fewer than Michail Antonio, who leads the team with 27. Should form like that continue it would be no surprise to see the 25-year-old dropped to the bench before long. However, there could be another reason why the Policoro native's season is cut short. According to media reports in Italy, West Ham are obligated to make their loan deal for Zaza permanent after he has made 10 appearances for them. The east Londoners revealed upon signing the striker that a permanent fee of €20m would automatically be triggered after a certain number of games. The club never actually disclosed what that figure was, but according to the player's agent the magic number is 10. That means that unless the 14-cap international starts firing soon, West Ham decision-makers may opt to throw him into shadows to avoid shelling out on an expensive flop. Zaza's latest opportunity to break his Hammers duck, in his sixth outing, will come after the international break against Crystal Palace. It's 23/10 that the Irons win.

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West Ham summer signing Andre Ayew hopes for injury return soon
HITC
Mathew Nash

The Ghanaian has been out of action with a thigh injury. West Ham United striker Andre Ayew has commented on his upcoming return to fitness during a trip to his Ghanaian homeland. The Black Stars attacker joined West Ham in the summer from Swansea City in an attempt to add some goals to the Hammers attack. Unfortunately, that plan quickly fell by the wayside.
Ayew picked up a serious thigh injury on his debut with the club and has not featured for the club since. He is currently in Ghana along with West Ham striker Ashley Fletcher and medical director Stijn Vandenbroucke as part of a sponsorship tour and is quoted by Sports World Ghana as having this positive message to say about his injury recovery: "I'm very hopeful of a return soon. I don't know when I will be fit but am certain that I will be back sooner than later". West Ham have certainly been struggling without his presence this season.
The club are currently at the wrong end of the Premier League table and a lack of striking options is certainly proving a problem for Slaven Bilic's men once again. Ayew will hopefully be back in action soon, as he proved at Swansea last term that he can be a potent threat in the Premier League. At the moment, that is something West Ham need.

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West Ham's Dribble King Martin Samuelsen on How He Mastered Flair Play
By Lars Sivertsen , Special to Bleacher Report Oct 6, 2016
http://bleacherreport.com/

There was a time not too long ago when only the anoraks and the insiders could claim to know much about the future stars of the game. But between the proliferation of TV coverage and the rise of social media, this has changed completely. So even though he has yet to make an appearance in the Premier League, West Ham United winger Martin Samuelsen, currently on loan at Blackburn Rovers, already has a small but enthusiastic fanbase. Because while online showreels are notoriously unreliable indicators of talent, the 19-year-old undeniably has something—a kind of natural grace and swagger on the ball that all football fans love.

"When I was a kid, the most important thing for me was to win games," Samuelsen told Bleacher Report. "And I found that the easiest way for us to win games was for me to just get the ball and score goals myself. So I did that more and more, got better at it and started learning different kinds of dribbles."

It has become quite common in football parlance to describe players such as Samuelsen, those with polished technique and a range of skills, as having "natural ability" or "natural talent." The use of the word "natural" implies his qualities were somehow bestowed upon him by the universe—that he is simply the grateful winner of some kind of genetic lottery. But behind every swerve and each cutback lies innumerable hours of meticulous practice.

From the age of seven, Samuelsen practiced a number of skills and dribbles in a systematic, targeted way. Together with his father, he developed a system: His father would show him video clips of specific skills, and they would give each dribble a name and put them all into a spreadsheet. They then devised a scale from one to 10 on which to mark the youngster's familiarity with that particular dribble.

Level 1 was simply knowing the dribble; Level 10 was mastering it to the point it could be used in matches with a success rate of 80 per cent or higher. The goal was to reach 10 with all the moves in the spreadsheet. "My father helped me," Samuelsen said. "It was nice to have a system, to see the progress. But it was my father who was the brains of the operation."

His father, Frode Samuelsen, told Bleacher Report he saw early on that his son had something: "First of all, he's a quick learner. And he has a very competitive nature, so he is motivated by improvement. That motivation has always been strong, and he has always sought to learn things.

"He never stops until he has fully mastered the thing he's trying to learn. He's honest with himself. A lot of people convince themselves that they've mastered something and that they don't need to practice any more, but Martin never stops. That mentality is important."

With his son eager to learn, Frode helped Martin devise the system so that he would get the greatest possible benefit from all the hours spent with the ball.
"I think what we got right was that we started working on technical drills at a very early stage, and we added enough of those so that they addressed all the various motor skills that are important at the age he was at," Frode explained.

"It's a cliche, but there is such a thing as the golden age for motor-skill development. It starts early and it ends at around 12 years of age. So it's important to spend a lot of time on these things at that age.

"Also, when we created the scale of one to 10 and used that both during training and during games, I think we got it right in the sense that we used the technical elements right up to the point where they become productive. We didn't just work on technical details in isolation; the goal was always to utilize them in matches."

In addition to spending hours training on his own almost every day, Samuelsen spent his time between the ages of seven and 12 playing for more than one team; he'd train and play with his own age group, but he'd also train and play with the age group above him. He visited several clubs around Europe, including Real Madrid, Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool.

In short, he played an extraordinary amount of football. And he remained passionate about improving and passionate about the type of player he wanted to be.

There's no real tradition in Norway for developing great dribblers. For a country of just five million people, Norway has made a reasonable impact in global football over the years—but aside from a handful of notable centre-forwards, the Norwegians who leave the country and do well in bigger leagues tend to be rugged defenders, reliable full-backs or hardworking midfielders.

There is a reason for that. Generally speaking, young players in Norway who try something flashy in training are usually told, in no uncertain terms, to stop it. But according to his father, the young Samuelsen found a rather effective way around that problem.

"What Martin did was that he managed to make himself somewhat untouchable," Frode said. "You can't really criticise a young player for his style of play when he is scoring 200 to 300 goals a year.

"A lot of kids will see a skill on YouTube, practice it a couple of times on their own and then try it in training or in a game—and then their coach will tell them to stop that nonsense.

Martin Samuelsen @samuelseen
Thank you to everyone who made my time at @theposhofficial so special!❤️ I will never forget #UpThePosh
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"And maybe the coach will be right, maybe the coach can see they're nowhere near good enough to actually do this skill. But with Martin, he's always taken it step by step. He's made sure he doesn't use a skill in training or in games until he knows he can do it nine out of 10 times. So he didn't give the coaches a chance to tell him to stop.

"This worked for him up to a certain point, but then you get to a level of football where there are fewer and fewer opportunities to try these skills during matches—and that's when you have to be tough mentally."

Looking at modern football at the highest level, it can seem as if the art of dribbling is in decline. Academies around Europe are churning out a steady supply of nifty playmakers who excel at quick passing and play one- and two-touch football. The point of transition has increasingly become the main focus of modern football tactics. Counter-attacking teams want to find the quickest and most direct route forward, to which dribbling isn't always conducive.

Possession-oriented teams fear losing the ball more than anything, so attempting to dribble past an opponent can end up being seen as an excessively risky pursuit. And most of all, with more money, more scrutiny and more pressure involved than ever before, there is an overwhelming fear of making mistakes running through football. This is not an easy time to be the kind of player Samuelsen has worked his entire life to become.

"My experience, having spent time at academies all around Europe, is that the higher the prestige of the academy, the lower the tolerance for mistakes," Frode said. "Players are effectively stripped of their skills in training. There's no training on your own time because the clubs want to control everything and make sure players don't train too much. So you deprive the players of the possibility of training alone, which is important in terms of developing certain skills.

Frode believes players are being stripped of the chance to develop, with too much focus on safe passes and not enough on being bold and creative: "Some clubs might be making progress, but I feel this is a culture that's permeated most of the player-development communities today. There's not enough risk. People forget that it's meant to be about development."

Even the players who do attempt dribbles these days also try to play it safe.

Former England international Chris Waddle, a man who knows a thing or two about dribbling, bemoaned this development during his appearance on Graham Hunter's Big Interview podcast last year:

The art of beating people is about how close you get to the man. I watch players today running with the ball, when they get within five yards of the full-back, or whoever they're playing against, and they start doing stepovers.

But the guy is five yards away. You're never going to beat a guy who's five yards away. The object of beating a man is getting as close as you can, within a yard, because that's where either you're going to go one way or the other, or he's going to nick the ball off you.

It is safer, naturally, to keep your distance—because if the defender doesn't fall for your feint, you will still have enough space to retain control of the ball or play a quick supporting pass. Samuelsen is trying to do it Waddle's way.

One person who has noticed that is former Arsenal defender Martin Keown, who was deeply impressed with the teenager following his performance against West Bromwich Albion in the FA Cup during his loan spell at Peterborough United last season.

"He's confident on the ball, travels with it really [well] and could transfer from left to right foot with ease," Keown wrote in the Daily Mail. "He ran with real quality. ... Sometimes he looked like he was about to lose possession because often he shows the ball to his opponent, but he quickly transfers it and whips it away. I was very impressed."

But there is, of course, risk. And for a young player who is trying to make a name for himself at the top level, you only have to be dispossessed a handful of times before coaches and managers become anxious.

There is also the issue of being productive. "That's the eternal battle for the type of player Martin is," Frode said. "If you dribble four guys but put your shot wide four times in a row, then you're just a guy who dribbles too much. You have to be extremely effective."

The psychology of football can be strange. It is somehow worse to miss a shot following a successful dribbling raid than it is to just miss a chance. It is similarly worse to lose possession having attempted a dribble rather than lose possession after a bad touch. To many coaches, managers and pundits, this is the difference between a greedy player and one who simply missed a shot or had an unlucky touch.

But there are also great rewards to playing in this way. Football is, after all, not just about winning at all costs. It is those who are prepared to take on these risks who make football such a popular sport. And whether he succeeds at the highest level or not, Samuelsen is determined to be this type of player.

During his loan spell at Peterborough and following his brief debut for Norway in June, there has been an overwhelmingly positive reaction from football fans. "That's been a huge motivation over the last year, when he's been playing games," Frode said. "He's had a great response from West Ham fans, from Peterborough fans and then from Norwegians.

"It just confirms to him that he's done the right thing in staying true to himself and the type of player he is. Football, after all, is an entertainment business. So having that feeling that you're entertaining the people watching is important."

Samuelsen himself is reasonably happy with how things went last season. "I knew that I could play well if I got a chance," he said. "I think I had a good season last year, and I hope to do even better this time around."

You get the sense Samuelsen won't be away from West Ham for too long. In spite of all the billions spent by clubs in the Premier League, there have been a number of unheralded youngsters who have taken their chance and established themselves as regulars in the English top flight over the last few years.

If he gets his chance, you wouldn't want to bet against Samuelsen becoming the next one.

All quotes were gathered firsthand unless otherwise stated.

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West Ham yearning to have Andre Ayew back- Hammers medical chief Vandenbroucke
Published on: 06 October 2016
GhanaSoccer.net

West Ham United's Head of Medical and Sports Science Stijn Vandenbroucke has described Ghana star Andre Ayew as a great player and cannot wait to have the injured player back in action.
Ayew, who is the club's record signing, has been out of action since suffering an opening day thigh injury in August. But the Ghana international is days away from making a return to the pitch to help the Hammers who are fighting for results. Vandenbroucke, who is in the country with Andre Ayew and Ashley Fletcher on a Betway activation programme, says West Ham cannot wait to have Ayew back. ''Andre is a great player and as a great player he is very important to the West Ham United family,'' he said ''His comeback will be crucial but we believe it is a team effort and definitely we will turn things around.''

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West Ham agree to team up with Nigerian football club FC Ifeanyi Ubah
By matt_harris | Posted: October 06, 2016
EssexLive

West Ham have made a move into Africa. The club have made a partnership with Nigerian Professional Football League side FC Ifeanyi Ubah. According to Nigerian newspaper Vanguard the deal will involve scouting, merchandising and friendlies being held in England. The team joined the NPFL in the 2014/15 and finished 11th in their first season and fourth in their second.
At a meeting in the Nigerian capital Lagos, where West Ham's managing director Angus Kinnear was present along with former Nigerian internationals, the club's owner, Dr Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah, who is also chairman of the Anambra State Football Association, said: "We have over 18 areas why we are partnering with West Ham United. "Ranging from scouting, merchandising, going to England to play friendly matches among others. With this partnership with West Ham United, we are going to be producing over 50,000 footballers in Anambra soonest."

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Night of Glamour as WestHam Signs Historic Partnership Deal with FC Ifeanyi Ubah (PHOTOS)
Posted By: Breaking Timeson: October 06, 2016
http://www.thebreakingtimes.com/

It was an evening of glamour as icons of the Nigerian sports industry, ex-internationals, sports journalists, football administrators and stakeholders converged at the Eko Signature Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, to witness the historic visit of English Premiership side, West Ham United to Nigeria, for a meeting with the Nigerian Football Federation, NFF and top Nigerian Professional Football League side, FC Ifeanyi Ubah.

The meeting which gave life to the partnership deal between the Hammers and FC Ifeanyi Ubah, also had a technical discussion session, and interactive session with journalists bordering on the essence of the partnership deal, as well as charting a way forward to developing young football super stars in Nigeria.

Roll Call Eminent sports icons, administrators and ex-internationals who graced the event were the Chairman Senate on Sports, Sen. Obinna Ogba; President, FC Ifeanyi Ubah, Dr. Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah; Managing Director, West Ham United, Mr. Angus Kinnear; President NFF, Amaju Pinnick; Chairman, League Management Company, LMC, Malam Shehu Dikko; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Sports, representing the Minister of Youths and Sports, Solomon Dalung. Others were Chairman, FC Ifeanyi Ubah, Mr. Chukwuma Ubah; Technical Director of FC Ifeanyi Ubah, Coach Mitko Dobrev; Head Coach of FC Ifeanyi Ubah, Coach Everton; ex-internationals Henry Nwosu, Julius Aghahowa, Peter Rufai, Victor Ikpeba, Pastor Taribo West and Victor Aghali, among others.

Also in attendance were President-General Nigerian Football Supporters Club, Dr. Rafiu Ladipo; former Super Eagles Head Coach, Ambassador Fani Amun; Super Eagles Midfielder, John Ogu; Chinedu Harryson, Guiness Book of Record Holder for holding a ball on his head from Redeemed Camp to National Stadium among others.

Speaking at the event, the Proprietor, FC Ifeanyi Ubah, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah said he has taken a good step by building a formidable team, FC Ifeanyi Ubah. According to him, the team just joined the NPFL in the 2014/2015 season ended 11th and this season ended 4th. "This is a laudable feat. We are bringing a lot of professionalism to the team. As you all know we have Brazilian and Bulgarian coaches, with foreign players from Brazil, Niger, Congo, Ghana among other foreign countries," Ubah said.

He disclosed that as Chairman of the Anambra State Football Aasociation, "Our vision is to get kids involved in football. Nigeria is a nation of over 180million people. Nothing should stop us from producing the future Chiristiano Ronaldo's and Lionel Messi's of these world."

He reiterated the huge investment that sports, particularly football offers, saying it's so huge even than the allocation of all the tiers of government. Ubah, however, revealed that "We have over 18 areas why we are partnering with West Ham United.

Ranging from scouting, merchandising, going to England to play friendly matches among others," adding that "with this partnership with West Ham United, we are going to be producing over 50,000 footballers in Anambra soonest."

The Chairman, FC Ifeanyi Ubah, Chukwuma Ubah, on his part, said it was the intention of FC Ifeanyi Ubah to get a continental ticket, but said the team ended 4th in the just ended 2015/2016 season of the Nigerian Professional Football League, NPFL, saying the team is appreciative of the support it's getting from Nigerians.

According to him, FC Ifeanyi Ubah, which is billed to play the finales of the Federations Cup, with winner between Enyimba and Nassarawa United, will buckle up next season to win the league, as well as pick a continental ticket. Speaking at the event, the Managing Director, West Ham United, Mr. Angus Kinnear, thanked Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah for his confidence reposed in West Ham and for inviting him to Nigeria.

He said "the fantastic achievements of FC Ifeanyi Ubah within two years shows that the driver, Dr. Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah is a man of vision. In the next two to 10 years, we want to look back and see that we have created a lot of value in the Nigerian football industry."

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Legal bother for Valencia back in Ecuador
Lyndon Lloyd Thursday 6 October 2016
ToffeeWeb.com

An attempt was made to detain Everton's on-loan striker, Enner Valencia, when he arrived for training at Quito's Atahualpa stadium yesterday as lawyers seek maintenance money they claim he owes for care of his five-year-old daughter. According to AS, Valencia apparently avoided detention when not all of the police officers complied with the judicial order to accost him.
They claim he owes $17,000 in maintenance payments but neither Valencia nor his representatives have publicly commented on the matter. "It's lamentable that certain police officers didn't collaborate with the detention of the footballer Enner Valencia, to ensure compliance with a judicial order", said Paul Marín, a lawyer for the mother of the striker's child.
"If they say this man earns so much, why doesn't he pay [the maintenance] monthly to his daughter?" Ecuador face Chile this week in CONMEBOL section World Cup qualifying.

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Don't Hammer Karren Brady - West Ham's rebrand was right... now it needs to be backed up on the pitch
20:18, 5 OCT 2016
OPINION BY MATT LAWLESS
Brady has become the figurehead for blame after dramas that have come with the move to London Stadium, but the real problem could be fixed with a run of wins
The Hammers' move to London Stadium has come with its share of controversy
The Mirror

Leaving the Boleyn Ground was a good chance to "rebrand" West Ham. Not my words. Those of Karren Brady, the vice-chairman of the club, on Wednesday at the Leaders conference at Stamford Bridge. And it has caused quite a stir. Cue contempt from a growing number of disillusioned and disgruntled supporters. "A new day and a new PR disaster by West Ham," wrote one on Twitter. "It's like an unfunny comedy sketch".
Brady has become the figurehead for blame. Along with co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold, the Baroness has been accused of selling the soul of the proud East End club. Why? Because they took the deal of the century to relocate West Ham to bigger and better pastures in Stratford. Do they deserve the flak? Absolutely not. The Boleyn Ground was great. It really was. But there are probably a hundred reasons why West Ham needed to move. To become a bigger club, to contend with the big boys, they simply had to. "We saw that as a real opportunity to change the brand values of the club," Brady said. "Rebranding ourselves was really important with our new stadium. "We're in the London Stadium."
The trouble is many have misinterpreted those comments and seen them in a negative light. It makes absolute sense to me, however. West Ham before Sullivan, Gold and Brady arrived was on its knees. £100million in debt. Going nowhere. Little ambition. West Ham didn't have a brand value. Now they do. Mark Noble, the club captain, highlighted that last season. "The key word is stability," he said. "In a way, the club was run like a circus in some stages over the last 10 or 20 years. "They [Gold, Sullivan, Brady] have brought in good players and put in money and that was what was needed. That is why the club is moving the way it is."
By rebranding, as Brady put it, they are no longer just West Ham. They are West Ham United London. With 52,000 season ticket holders they have the most in the capital - second behind Manchester United in England. The tickets are among the cheapest in the Premier League. And that was all thanks to the "rebrand" opportunity the new stadium offered. Affordable football. Tick. New supporters. Tick. I doubt Brady's comments were designed to stir fresh resentment. If anything, it was merely stating the obvious. To survive in the Premier League, you need to do so off the field as much as you do on it. The truth is, moving home hasn't been as easy as West Ham envisaged. Complaints range from the pitch is too far away to standing up during the game, to fighting in the stands - and outside the ground - and so on. In all honesty, I can't argue with many of those. The worrying trend of hooliganism is a real concern.
But, for me, the real flaw of the London Stadium, lies in the performances of the team. West Ham, with just one win in seven games, have suffered their worst start to a season since 2003 - when they were relegated. As much as increased security and policing in the stadium will help improve matters in the long-run, winning games is the only way to win the supporters hearts and minds. Brady - who I know works tirelessly behind the scenes - is getting all the blame and I fear that will continue if results do not improve. But the mood will quickly change after a winning run. The real rebranding needs to take place on the pitch.

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