Daily WHUFC News - 2nd May 2017

Loanee round-up
WHUFC.com

Reece Burke and Wigan Athletic suffer relegation from the Sky Bet
Championship at Reading
Josh Cullen's Bradford City and Sam Howes' Hampton & Richmond Borough bound
for Play-Offs
Enner Valencia starts for Everton in defeat by Premier League leaders
Chelsea

West Ham United players featured during an eventful weekend of action in the
Premier League, Sky Bet EFL and non-league. Reece Burke suffered the
disappointment of relegation from the Championship with Wigan Athletic, as
the Latics lost 1-0 at Reading to lose their second-tier status. To add
injury to insult, Burke was also forced off late in the first half with an
injury, with the defender having only recently returned from a lengthy spell
out with a hip problem.

Fellow Academy of Football graduate Reece Oxford was an unused substitute
for Reading at the Madejski Stadium, while former Hammers goalkeeper Jussi
Jaaskelainen remained on the bench for Wigan.

In League One, George Dobson completed the full 90 minutes for Walsall, but
the Saddlers were beaten 4-1 at home by MK Dons to finish the season in 14th
place. The midfielder ended his first season as a senior footballer with 26
appearances under his belt for Walsall, including 21 in League One, and one
goal.

With his side guaranteed to finish fifth, Josh Cullen was rested by Bradford
City manager Stuart McCall ahead of the Bantams' Play-Off semi-final with
Fleetwood Town.

Scunthorpe United will face Millwall in the other semi-final after the Lions
dramatically edged out a Southend United squad containing Anton Ferdinand,
Zavon Hines and Frank Nouble on the final afternoon by beating Bristol
Rovers 4-3.

Another young Hammers loanee bound for the Play-Offs is goalkeeper Sam
Howes, who has helped Hampton & Richmond Borough reach the post-season in
Vanarama National League South. There, the Beavers face Ebbsfleet United in
a two-legged semi-final.

Finally, Enner Valencia played the first 72 minutes of Everton's 3-0 home
Premier League defeat by Chelsea at Goodison Park, being substituted when
his side were just a single goal behind.

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Nothing to see here, say West Ham
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st May 2017
By: Staff Writer

West Ham have issued to a response to a report in a Sunday newspaper
claiming that the Club were raided last week due to a £1million bonus
payment to Dimitri Payet. According to the Mail on Sunday, last week's raid
on the Olympic Stadium was due in part to the seven-figure loyalty payment
made to Payet last September - just FOUR months before he re-signed for
Marseille. Meanwhile the 2011 transfer of Demba Ba from West Ham United to
Newcastle United is also being investigated by HMRC, who are reported to be
looking into the circumstances involving around 150 transfer deals.
West Ham responded to the story by insisting that all aspects of the Payet
transfer - including any bonus payments - were clearly documented and above
board.
"Dimitri Payet had a £1million annual loyalty payment, which was detailed in
his contract submitted to the Premier League and The FA," read a statement
on whufc.com. "Payment was made via his normal monthly pay and subject to
45 per cent income tax and National Insurance, which was deducted at source
and was paid to his UK bank account along with his normal monthly wages.
"There is nothing to probe about this payment."

The club also denied involvement in the practise of paying a percentage of
players' salaries via indirect methods - particularly with regards to image
rights. "In contrast to many Premier League clubs, not a single West Ham
United player has any part of his salary paid as image rights," the
statement added.

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Benched Adrian admits: 'it's been hard'
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st May 2017
By: Staff Writer

Reinstated number one Adrian admits that he has endured a difficult season
since being relegated to the subs bench. Prior to regaining his first team
spot for the clash with Everton last week the Spanish stopper had spent five
months on the subs' bench as back-up to Darren Randolph, who was himself
dropped prior to the clash with the Merseysiders following a series of
high-profile blunders. And Adrian - whose contract was recently extended by
12 months at the behest of the club, who stood to lose him on a free
transfer this summer otherwise - admitted that, at times, he found it hard
to watch on. "It was difficult waiting to play," he told whufc.com. "I am a
professional so it's been hard the last few months, but at the end of the
day we are a team. "Darren and me work hard every day together, and yes, we
are good friends. It's not just us – there is Raphael [Spiegel] and the
young goalkeepers too."
Since returning to the fold, Adrian has kept clean sheets against Everton
and Stoke - and he was particularly pleased with at least one of several
saves he was on hand to make in order to keep the Potters at bay. "It was a
reaction save from Arnautovic," he added. "I tried to touch it with my hand
to get it away from his head, which I managed to do. " Today we were a
little bit unlucky that we couldn't score that one goal and get the three
points. It's also very difficult to keep a clean sheet in the Premier
League, and we have now two in two games."
Adrian's appearance at The Bet365 Stadium on Saturday was only his 13th
Premier League start this season, during which he has conceded 21 goals at
an average of 1.6 per game. In contrast, Randolph has started 21 matches and
conceded 40 goals - an average of 1.9 per game.

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West Ham boss Slaven Bilic says Tottenham are the best team in the Premier
League
By Allan Valente
Last Updated: 01/05/17 8:22pm
SSN

Slaven Bilic believes Tottenham are "the best team in the league" but says
West Ham will adopt a positive approach to their London derby on Friday. The
two sides meet in the Friday Night Football clash at London Stadium, live on
Sky Sports 1 HD, with second-placed Spurs looking to cut Chelsea's
four-point lead at the top of the Premier League, while West Ham are looking
for the points to extinguish any remaining relegation worries. The Hammers
are 15th in the league, but are unbeaten in their last four and are seven
points clear of the drop zone but, with three games left, Bilic is looking
for the win to ensure safety and is hoping for a repeat of last season's 1-0
home victory against Tottenham. "That game is always big, it's a derby, and
it can't be just an ordinary game. Then, if you add to that that they need
points to stay in the race and we need points to climb or to make us safe,"
Bilic told the club's website. "We're going to approach it in a very
positive way, knowing we are playing, for me, against the best team in the
league. "Hopefully, I'm going to enjoy it, but it's going to be a very
nervous game. We will have to be on top of our game. "But we did it last
year, beating them at home when they were also on fire and everything."

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Slaven Bilic ready to turn to Andy Carroll as a super sub for Friday night's
Tottenham clash
The Hammers boss admits his striker will not be fit enough to play 90
minutes, but is backing him to make an impact
The Mirror
BYNEIL MCLEMAN
17:30, 1 MAY 2017

Slaven Bilic is ready to launch sub Andy Carroll from the bench to sink
Tottenham's title hopes on Friday night. The England striker has been out
for the last two games with a groin injury – and the Hammers have failed to
find the net. But the Irons boss, who reckons Spurs are "the best team in
the league", said: "I will be very disappointed if he is not involved in our
next game. "It looked like he would be 50-50 for the Everton game, but it
wasn't, so hopefully he's going to make it to be involved against Tottenham.
"He won't be available for 90 minutes, but you don't need to play the whole
game to be effective. You want to have him at least on the bench, because it
gives a lift to the team as we are lacking goals. "Everything else I am
happy with. We are defending good, we have a good shape and everything,
never losing composure, good on the ball, but there we are. "I know that
Andy is not injured because he is not professional. That script is not the
case. I know that Andy is very settled down, very up for training and
looking after his body and it looked, at one stage of the season, that he
would be OK and all that.
"It's not coincidence that during that period we won six out of nine, then
suddenly we are without him."
West Ham, who still need a win to guarantee survival, beat Spurs at home
last season. That game is always big, it's a derby, and it can't be just an
ordinary game,
"We're going to approach it in a very positive way, four games unbeaten,
with three clean sheets in the last four games and knowing we are playing,
for me, against the best team in the league."

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West Ham's Adrian wants 'revenge' against Tottenham at London Stadium
VAISHALI BHARDWAJ
Evening Standard

West Ham goalkeeper Adrian wants "revenge" when the Hammers host Tottenham
on Friday because of the way Spurs snatched victory in the last London derby
clash between the two clubs earlier this season. West Ham were leading their
Premier League game against Spurs at White Hart Lane 2-1 before two late
strikes from Harry Kane sealed a last-gasp 3-2 victory for Mauricio
Pochettino's men in mid-November. The defeat was heavy for West Ham as they
had only won three league games at the time, although they did go on to
enjoy a mini-revival in form and results. The Hammers have had an
up-and-down time of things in the Premier League, but remain unbeaten since
the 3-0 loss away to Arsenal on 5 April. With 15th-placed West Ham now
taking on a Tottenham team who have won nine straight league matches, Adrian
admits he wants to exact revenge on Spurs at the London Stadium on Friday
for the defeat in north London five months ago.
The goalkeeper sat out that match with Darren Randolph preferred in goal
but, after winning back his place and keeping two clean sheets in the past
two games, Adrian said: "We can have revenge.

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Slaven Bilic plans end of season talks with Andy Carroll over West Ham
striker's injury record
JAMES BENGE
Evening Standard

West Ham boss Slaven Bilic will seek talks with Andy Carroll at the end of
the season over the striker's chequered injury record. Carroll has missed
West Ham's last two games with a groin injury that also kept him out in
February, the striker having not made his second league appearance of the
season until early December after battling with a major knee injury. In all
Carroll has completed just 12 games in all competitions this season and
despite a healthy return of seven goals his ongoing injury troubles, which
have plagued him for much of his career, continue to frustrate his manager.
"I don't like to moan but I would be very disappointed if he is not involved
in our next game," Bilic said after Saturday's 0-0 draw at Stoke. "You
don't have to play 90 minutes but if he is on the bench it gives you a lift
because we are lacking that power at the moment. We will talk about [his
injury record] after the season. "It is not his way of life or that he is
not professional. As far as I know he is very settled, he is very up for
training. "It looked at one stage of the season that he was okay. It was no
coincidence that in that period we won six of nine. And then suddenly you
are without him..."
The Hammers turned down offers from three Chinese clubs to bring in Carroll
in February but the injury-plagued striker's future may be more liable to be
reassessed after the season is over. Bilic has already revealed West Ham are
plotting to bring in new strikers in the January transfer window and hinted
Liverpool's Daniel Sturridge, another with recurring injuries that have
slowed his progress, could be on his radar.

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