Daily WHUFC News - 17th November 2017

Toni Martinez: I want to keep working hard
WHUFC.com

Toni Martinez has enjoyed the experience of training with the West Ham
United first team and is eager to keep working hard to impress the new
coaches at the Club. David Moyes is now more than a week into his tenure as
West Ham United manager and confirmed his backroom team on Sunday evening
with Alan Irvine, Billy McKinlay and Stuart Pearce coming in as his
assistants. With a number of senior players away on international duty over
the last fortnight the new West Ham manager also invited the Club's U23s to
train at Rush Green, allowing Martinez and his teammates the chance to work
under the new coaching set-up. And the Spaniard has been impressed with what
he's learned from Moyes and his assistants already. "It's been a great
week," Martinez told whufc.com: "The U23s and myself have been training with
the first team. It's given us a chance to learn a lot and improve. "He
[Moyes] really wants us to work hard and he wants all eleven players
defending as well. It's really good for us and our development."

Martinez's impressive goal tally currently sits at eleven for the season, a
number the 20-year-old attributes to the hard work of his fellow squad
members. And the striker is keen to continue working hard and scoring goals
to further improve himself and the team's standing "I just try to do my
best," Martinez modestly answered when asked about his goal record. "I say
that all the time. The team is brilliant around me and, with their help, I
know I will keep scoring goals. "I will keep working, keep my head down and
putting in the effort to score goals and get even better."

The U23s will return to London Stadium on Friday evening to play Derby
Country and Martinez boasts fond memories of playing at the West Ham home.
The forward netted the first ever hat-trick by a Hammer at London Stadium in
the U23s 4-2 victory against Manchester United last month. And Martinez is
excited to return to the pitch in front of the West Ham fans and is grateful
for their support. "I'm really excited to get back to London Stadium. I
can't wait for the match in front of as many fans as possible. "It's great
that the fans are behind me, behind us, and it's really appreciated. I'm
really happy to know I have their support. I'm now looking to Friday's
match. It's an important game."

Tickets for Friday's game are free for Season Ticket Holders and Claret
Members, and £5 adults or £3 concessions otherwise. Supporters must book in
advance by clicking here.

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West Ham most affordable Premier League club to support in London - BBC
survey
WHUFC.com

West Ham United remains the most affordable Premier League club to support
in London, the BBC's annual Price of Football survey has found. Based on a
Season Ticket Holder buying a pie, programme and a cup of tea at every game
in the 2017/18 season, alongside their ticket, a Hammers fan's matchday
experience works out at £100 less than the next-cheapest London club.

An adult can watch every home Premier League game for just £289 – just
£15.21 per match – and only newly-promoted Huddersfield Town offer a cheaper
Season Ticket in the top flight.

The club's affordable family football ethos extends to matchday tickets too,
with match-by-match pricing at London Stadium the joint-second cheapest in
the Premier League.

The Hammers are also among the clubs which offer the best-value for young
adults, with Under-21s able to purchase a Season Ticket for just £145 – also
the cheapest in London and second only to Burnley across the Premier League
for supporters in the 18-21 age bracket.

The Club also boast nearly 10,000 Under-16 Season Ticket Holders who pay
just £99 for their season ticket and also ensure that disadvantaged local
residents living in Newham have access to free tickets for certain matches,
so everybody has the opportunity to watch Premier League football.

For the league as a whole, more than 80% of tickets prices have either
reduced or been frozen for the 2017/18 season, although the Hammers'
reductions have been most pronounced, with the cheapest Season Ticket now
more than £300 cheaper than two years ago.

"At West Ham United we are totally committed to providing affordable, family
football for our supporters and we are delighted that this has once again
been recognised in the BBC Price of Football survey," Joint-Chairman David
Sullivan said. "With 52,000 season ticket holders for the second season
running, and almost 50,000 on the waiting list, I think it is clear that our
supporters are seeing the benefits of that commitment.

"We think very carefully about our ticket pricing structure and are always
pleased when that is recognised, particularly when compared to other Premier
League clubs, and especially our London neighbours."

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Chicharito – I'm 100 per cent committed to the Hammers
WHUFC.com

Chicharito has dismissed speculation and stated his total commitment to
helping West Ham United out of their current predicament. A report in his
native Mexico claimed the striker is keen to return to his first club Chivas
Guadalajara in January. But Chicharito responded on Thursday morning,
confirming that he will always support Chivas, but has no interest in
leaving London Stadium, particularly with the Hammers currently sitting 18th
in the Premier League table. "The news is completely false," the striker
tweeted. "I'm 100% committed to improve the situation we are in at West Ham.
"As I've always said, I'm a Chivas supporter at heart but I have absolutely
never requested to leave West Ham."

Guadalajara-born Chicharito started his career with Chivas, making his debut
at the age of 18 in 2006, and scoring 29 goals in 80 appearances. The centre
forward joined the Hammers from German club Bayer Leverkusen in July 2017
and has netted four times in 13 games in all competitions. Mexico's all-time
leading goalscorer, Chicharito has netted 49 in 99 appearances for his
country.

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Reid's World Cup hopes ended in Peru
WHUFC.com

Winston Reid's dream of playing at a second FIFA World Cup finals was
shattered as New Zealand fell to a OFC/CONMEBOL Play-Off second leg defeat
in Peru.
The All Whites' hopes were ended as Jefferson Farfan and Christian Ramos
netted a goal in each half at the Estadio Nacional in Lima overnight on
Wednesday, giving the South Americans a 2-0 aggregate victory. Reid
captained his country in the tie and produced a typically strong defensive
performance, while he also went closest to scoring for former West Ham
youngster Anthony Hudson's men, only for his header to flash over the
crossbar just before half-time with New Zealand trailing 1-0. Defeat meant
New Zealand missed out on their third World Cup finals appearance and first
since Reid burst onto the scene in South Africa in 2010. The OFC Nations Cup
champions will now concentrate their efforts on qualifying for Qatar in
2022. Reid will return to England on Friday morning and manager David Moyes
will assess the centre-back's fitness ahead of Sunday's Premier League
fixture at Watford.

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Javier Hernandez: West Ham striker denies reports he has asked to leave
BBC.co.uk

West Ham striker Javier Hernandez has denied suggestions he has asked to
leave the Premier League club. Reports in his homeland said the 29-year-old
Mexican wanted to rejoin Chivas before next year's World Cup. The former
Manchester United forward, who joined the Hammers from Bayer Leverkusen for
£16m in July, said the stories were "completely false". "I am 100% committed
to helping improve the situation that we are all experiencing in West Ham,"
he tweeted. Hernandez added he had not asked to leave "at any time". West
Ham, who sacked manager Slaven Bilic earlier this month, are 18th in the
Premier League.
Hernandez is set to miss David Moyes' first match in charge of the Hammers
after injuring his hamstring during Mexico's friendly against Belgium on
Friday.

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Cheik's 'beautiful gesture'
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 16th November 2017
By: Staff Writer

West Ham midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate has been praised for breaking with
convention. For many years now it has been commonplace for opponents to swap
shirts at the end of international matches. However Kouyate had different
ideas when he spotted a young disabled fan attempting to catch his attention
at the culmination of Senegal's 2-1 World Cup qualifying win over South
Africa earlier this week. The big-hearted Hammer broke away from team
celebrations to read a letter the young fan had writen for him, before
posing for a picture with the young fan - who later received the Senegal
captain's shirt too.
Unsurprisingly perhaps Kouyate's kind gesture has been well-publicised and
well-received in his home country. Senegalese media outlet Galsen221 wrote:"
Through this beautiful gesture, Cheikhou Kouyate honours his role as captain
and representative of the Senegalese people." Unbeaten Senegal qualified for
next summer's World Cup Finals in Russia having finished top of African
qualifying Group D, winning four and drawing their remaining two group
matches.

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Kouyate a wanted man, claims agent
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 16th November 2017
By: Staff Writer

Cheikhou Kouyate's agent claims he has been inundated with offers for the
West Ham midfielder since he led Senegal to next summer's World Cup Finals.
Agent Saffet Balkan - who claims to represent the African star - told
turkish-football.com that although he is yet to recieve any firm offers, his
client had been the subject of several phone calls following Senegal's 2-1
victory over South Africa. "We have received a lot of interest," he said.
"Interest spiked after Senegal qualified for the World Cup yesterday.
"Several clubs and agents want to hold talks. Both Italian and Premier
League scouts have been very impressed. "However Cheikhou is very happy in
England, he's settled into life. There are no offers on the table at this
stage, we will hold talks and consider our options."

Speaking back in June, Kouyate said he was unsure what the future held for
him. "Every player dreams of going as high as possible," he told Sen360FR.
"There are certain things that are not said publicly. What counts is that at
the resumption [of pre-season training], I will be with West Ham. The rest,
I do not control."

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No truth in exit rumours, insists Hernandez
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 16th November 2017
By: Staff Writer

West Ham striker Javier Hernandez has refuted reports suggesting that he
asked to leave the club in the next transfer window. Journalist Nicolas
Romay, a presenter on sports platform Claro Sports claimed yesterday that
Hernandez had handed in the transfer request following the appointment of
David Moyes, whom he formally worked under at Manchester United. However
Hernandez - who joined West Ham less than six months ago - took to social
media this morning in order to deny Romay's claim, which he insisted were
"completely false".
Speaking via his twitter profile, the 29=year-said: "I am 100 per cent
committed to helping improve the situation that we are all experiencing in
West Ham. And as I always say, I am #chivadecorazón but I have not asked to
leave West Ham at any time."
West Ham paid £16m to sign the Mexican international from German outfit
Bayer Leverkusen in the summer, since when he has scored four goals in his
opening 13 games. He is expected to miss this weekend's trip to Watford
having tweaked a hamstring against Belgium.

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Reid's dream over as Kiwis beaten
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 16th November 2017
By: Staff Writer

Winston Reid's hopes of playing in next summer's World Cup Finals are over
after the Kiwis were beaten 2-0 by Peru in Lima's Estadio Nacional last
night. The West Ham defender and his team went into the game with renewed
hope of qualifying having held the South Americans to a goalless draw in the
first leg in New Zealand last week. However they were sunk in the return tie
by goals from Lokomotiv's Jefferson Farfan and Emelec's on-loan centre half,
Christian Ramos, whose 65th minute drive was enough to secure passage for
the Incas - themselves qualifying for their first Finals since 1982.
Reid went closest to scoring for the Kiwis shortly after half time when his
header fizzed narrowly over the crossbar. Meanwhile Burnley's in-form
striker Chris Wood, who appeared at half time, missed a great chance to
score right at the death right at the death. A disappointed All Whites coach
Anthony Hudson admitted that Peru had been the better side over the two
ties, but criticised the hosts for the build-up to the game. "They used
every trick in the book to put us off," he said. "We got on the airplane and
I asked the stewardess how long it was to Peru and she said 'We're not going
to Peru, we're going to Chile!' "Ever since then, it's been unbelievable. We
didn't sleep at all last night with the fireworks. Today I thought I'd grab
a quick hour's sleep by the pool and all of a sudden all these jet fighter
planes are flying past. "But never once in the two or three days here in
Peru have we used that as an excuse. We just got on with it and said we
wouldn't let it beat us and we did deal with it very well."

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Javier Hernandez denies claims he wants to leave West Ham
By Nick Lustig
Last Updated: 16/11/17 12:34pm
SSN

Javier Hernandez has denied claims he has asked to leave West Ham after the
arrival of new manager David Moyes. The Mexico forward has scored four goals
since his £16m summer switch from Bayer Leverkusen despite the Hammers'
struggles in the Premier League. Reports in Spain earlier this week
suggested that Hernandez had asked to leave West Ham ahead of the January
transfer window, with Mexican side Chivas his preferred destination. But the
29-year-old said via his official Twitter account: "Completely false. I am
100 per cent committed to helping improve the situation we are experiencing
all at West Ham. "And as always I say this I am #chivadecorazón but I have
not asked to leave West Ham in no time."
Hernandez worked under Moyes at Manchester United, but started just five
Premier League matches during the Scot's 10-month spell at Old Trafford.
Moyes has welcomed the chance to work Hernandez for a second time, but is
likely to be without him for the Super Sunday clash with Watford due to a
hamstring injury he picked up while on international duty. West Ham have won
only two of their opening 11 Premier League matches and currently sit in
18th place.

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David Moyes' West Ham hopes could hinge on Andy Carroll's fitness
Last Updated: 16/11/17 11:40am
SSN

David Moyes was mocked for his crossing obsession but now he has his ideal
target man. Why Andy Carroll could be the key figure for West Ham under
their new manager…

It was surely the nadir. The moment that summed up the problem with David
Moyes and his version of Manchester United. Fulham were the visitors to Old
Trafford in February 2014. They were bottom of the Premier League with the
competition's worst defence. They had not scored in five hours and had lost
their previous nine against United. They drew 2-2.

It was not just the result. United looked like a team out of ideas, though
it would be more accurate to say that they had one idea that proved
ineffective. "Manchester United's approach was straightforward," said Fulham
boss Rene Meulensteen. "Get it wide and put it into the box. That can be
easy to defend against. They kept producing the crosses."

There were 81 of them in total. Thirty more than any other team had produced
in a game that season. Thirty more than any other team has produced in a
game this season or last. Fulham central defender Dan Burn, all 6'7" of him,
dealt with most of them. Many Manchester United supporters simply could not
believe what they were witnessing.

"To say it's disappointing is an understatement," former United assistant
Mike Phelan told Sky Sports. "It's devastating more than anything. The
variety in their play wasn't there. It was all about crossing the ball."
Phelan had been relieved of his duties the previous year, but it soon became
clear that his views were very much in tune with those still at the club.

"Some players felt they kicked the ball long more than at any time in their
career," Rio Ferdinand later explained in his autobiography. "Sometimes our
main tactic was the long, high, diagonal cross. It was embarrassing. In one
home game against Fulham we had 81 crosses! I was thinking, why are we doing
this? Andy Carroll doesn't play for us!"

Andy Carroll still doesn't play for Manchester United, but he does now play
for David Moyes. With the Scot appointed as West Ham's new manager and
tasked with dragging the club clear of the relegation zone, do not be too
shocked if he plans to make the 6'4" target man the focal point of his
attack. With Carroll around, all that crossing might even work.

These are Moyes' tried and trusted methods, after all. There will be space
created for the full-backs and there will be crosses into the box. That
could suit Aaron Cresswell too - "he whips them in and puts them on a
plate," Carroll once said of the left-back - and even the ageing Pablo
Zabaleta, once one of the most effective attacking full-backs in the league.

"Probably one of my best seasons at City was when I was overlapping all the
time and making runs," noted the Argentine earlier this year. He certainly
has a target in Carroll and the team as a whole could benefit from a clarity
of approach given that one of the criticisms of this West Ham side is that
there appears to be no orchestrated plan in attack or defence.

The problem is that none of this is news to Slaven Bilic. His side already
ranked second for long balls and fourth for crosses this season, but he
could not get Carroll on the pitch often enough. With Carroll, Bilic's West
Ham were unbeaten in five this season - even clinging on for a point after
his red card at Burnley. Without him, they lost six of their eight games.

Here, there are echoes of Moyes' experiences at Sunderland. Of course, there
can be no ignoring the woeful mistakes made in the transfer market and on
the pitch during his time at the Stadium of Light. Even so, it is
interesting to note that the Black Cats were a different proposition when
the team's target man, Victor Anichebe, was on the pitch.

Without the burly Nigerian striker in the Sunderland starting line-up,
Moyes' men picked up only eight points from 24 games - a truly wretched
record to rival the worst teams in Premier League history. But with Anichebe
in the team, they managed 16 from 14 - more than enough to stay up and much
closer to the haul of a mid-table top-flight team.

"He is a handful and on his day, if we can keep him fit, he is a really
powerful boy," Moyes said in last November after Anichebe's two goals
against Hull. But they could not keep him fit and Sunderland failed to find
another solution. "When we lost Victor, that was the key to it," Moyes later
admitted. "We needed to keep looking for another way to get up the pitch."

It illustrates just how vital the target man is in a Moyes team. And now he
has the ultimate target. If Carroll can stay fit then his new manager will
have a clear idea of how to use him and will be confident that West Ham will
climb the table. If he cannot stay fit then recent history suggests that
neither club nor manager has yet found another way to succeed.

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Paul Merson's predictions: Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur, Man Utd v Newcastle
United and more...
Last Updated: 16/11/17 7:47pm
SSN

Watford v West Ham - Super Sunday, Sky Sports Premier League, 3.30pm

Watford vs West Ham
November 19, 2017, 3:30pm
Live on Sky Sports Premier League HD

David Moyes is in a catch 22 because the fans are going to be on his back
from day one. I do not think he was a great appointment for the West Ham
fans and to the end of the season does not give you much leeway, and where
is the club going?

He will have to go out and have a go at Watford, if they sit back and draw
0-0, the fans will not be happy at all. And I think it will be a hard game
as Watford are one of those teams that are alright if they are not expected
to win, but when they are expected to win I think they crumble under the
pressure. And again, I am going for a draw.

PAUL PREDICTS: 1-1 (Sky Bet odds 5/1)

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TRAIN IN VAIN?
By Blind Hammer 16 Nov 2017 at 08:00
WTID

Blind Hammer looks at the training challenges Moyes will face.

The publicity following David Moyes appointment has focussed on the
revolution in intensity he and his team will bring to training. Sergeant
Major Moyes alongside Drill Sergeants Pearce, Irvine and McKinley are
presented as the "hard men" who will brook no slackers and wrought a
transformation in fitness.

Nobody could, now, argue that fitness was not an issue under Bilic's team.
Too many players revealed that training was too relaxed after they departed.
The evidence of running stats and the visible, proof of players jogging
rather than sprinting to cover during recent games was a damning indictment.

However the capacity of Moyes' to transform our squad through a fitness
regime is vastly overblown. New standards of fitness will be a long rather
than a short term fix. Moyes reflected that he has only been able to work
with 8 first team players during this International break. More importantly
when the squad finally re-assembles for the Watford game we will undertake a
period of fixture congestions which will provide the biggest fitness
challenge of the season. Little if any time will be available to rebuild
fitness.

Starting with the game on the 19th November we will play 11 fixtures in 42
days, averaging a game every 3.9 days. The opener against Watford will be
followed closely by games against Leicester and Everton. Then we will be
hard into what some are describing as nil points December. We will play
Arsenal in both cup and league, alongside games against Manchester city,
Chelsea and Tottenham. Less daunting challenges will be provided by Stoke,
Newcastle and Bournemouth.

Moyes has, then, the worst period of the season to work on fitness. Of the
42 days 33 will be unavailable for intense training. These are the 11 match
days, the 11 post match recovery days, and the 11 pre match light training
session. This leaves 9 days out of which we will have to remove days spent
travelling to Watford, Liverpool (Everton), Manchester Stoke and
Bournemouth. This leaves a maximum of 4 days, probably less, in these 42
days where anything like intense training could be considered. This also
assumes that players get no leave apart from recovery days, an unlikely
scenario over the Christmas period.

In reality there will be no opportunity for any boot camp style fitness
program. So expecting Moyes to wave immediate fitness magic over the squad
is unrealistic in the extreme.

Practically the weeks ahead will focus on injury recovery and injury
management. Gary Lewin and his medical team will be busier in ensuring
fitness than Moyes, Pearce et al.

What Moyes can and probably will do is identify a cohort of players who will
not make the 11 on any match day and work with those more intensively. Those
who are to be substitutes on the day can also have their preparation
slightly stepped up, though there are risks associated with the need for an
early substitution. In contrast those who are not to be involved at all can
be subjected to greater intensity. In this way the hope could be that when
they are eventually called upon they will demonstrate more fitness for
purpose.

So, an immediate physical fitness transformation for key players is
unlikely. Nevertheless opportunities for improvement persist. Moyes and his
team can crucially improve mental capability. Increased tactical awareness
and organisation are nowadays facilitated through video analysis. Players
are taken through real life game examples of not only what they did badly
but what they did well. Improved organisation, decision making, game
management and tactical consciousness, are all aspects of the game which can
be studied even if a player is injured. It is in this area of mental
strength and confidence that Moyes and his team can drive improvement over
the next season defining weeks.

We must hope that they are up for this challenge.
COYI
David Griffith

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http://vyperz.blogspot.com