Daily WHUFC News - 15th December 2017

Moyes: As a manager, you're always looking for more
WHUFC.com

David Moyes has challenged his players to rise to a different challenge as
they embark on a run of games against teams in the lower reaches of the
Premier League. After showing well against Manchester City, Chelsea and
Arsenal, West Ham United now take on Stoke City, Newcastle United, AFC
Bournemouth and West Bromwich Albion – all teams who go into the weekend
sitting 14th or below in the table. And Moyes wants his charges to take
control of those matches, get on the front foot, show a clinical edge in
front of goal and score the victories required to rise up the standings over
the festive season. "If you'd given me four points before Chelsea and
Arsenal, I'd have snapped your hand off. More importantly, our performances
have been resilient and we've been hard to beat and hard to play against.
"We've got different challenges coming up now, though, because we'll be
coming up against teams who we might be expected to show something else when
we come up against them. "I don't think it's a case of needing to get the
players up for it, but more about if we can be good enough to take the ball,
play more, be braver in possession and create chances. Those are the things
we need to come to the fore. "We have organised really well to be good
defensively and now we have to show we can put players in attacking
positions, get them on the ball and take our chances when we create them."

While attacking prowess will need to be shown in those next four fixtures,
Moyes is not about to abandon the new-found defensive solidity that has
served the Hammers so well in recent games. "We've done it in a couple of
games recently, here against Chelsea and away at Manchester City, where we
were 2-1 down but should have got an equaliser late on, so we've got that.
"The most important thing is that we're not conceding goals. When we first
came in, we found we were conceding an awful lot of goals, so thankfully the
last few games have been better. "I don't know any good team that is bad
defensively. You can have loads of attacking players, but you don't win
games if you are not good at the back. "We've got good attacking players,
and different types of attacking players, but we certainly still want to
improve defensively. As a manager, you're always looking for more."

Moyes has also challenged goalkeeper Adrian (pictured, above) to maintain
the form that has seen him keep clean sheets against Chelsea and Arsenal,
and produce an outstanding display in the 2-1 defeat at runaway leaders
Manchester City, where he replaced the ineligible Joe Hart. "Joe hadn't
played that badly, but Adrian got in and I felt that 'if you got in, play
well and you'll keep the jersey'. If you do, you will stay in, but if you
don't, you won't. "Joe is a quality goalkeeper with great experience,
whether that be international, Champions League or Premier League football,
and he'll definitely play games this season. "Goalkeepers, if you make
mistakes, your position could be changed. It'll be no different for Adrian,
but hopefully Adrian keeps the form he is in at this moment."

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Ticket details confirmed for three New Year fixtures
WHUFC.com

West Ham United are pleased to confirm ticket details for three exciting New
Year matches.

The Hammers will kick-off 2017 with an exciting series of fixtures in the
Premier League and Emirates FA Cup.

After welcoming West Bromwich Albion to London Stadium on Tuesday 2 January,
David Moyes' team travel to Wembley Stadium two nights later. Ticket details
for both fixtures are on sale now can be found on whufc.com.

In addition, the Club can confirm that ticket information for the Emirates
FA Cup third-round tie at Shrewsbury Town and Premier League fixtures at
Huddersfield Town and at home to Crystal Palace have now been finalised.

The Hammers head for the New Meadow on Sunday 7 January, with kick-off at
the League One promotion-chasers at 2pm. West Ham have been allocated 1,464
Standard Tickets for the trip to the 9,875-capacity home of the Shropshire
club.

Next up, a 2,340-strong Claret and Blue Army will head to the John Smith's
Stadium on Saturday 13 January at 3pm – the first-ever Premier League visit
to the home of the newly-promoted Terriers.

This match will form part of the Club's new Away ticket trial, whereby 10
per cent of the allocation (234) will be held to be sold to Season Ticket
Holders yet to purchase and Claret Members. When the game reaches 90 per
cent sold, this shall go off-sale and the website updated with a time the
following day when the remaining 10 per cent will be sold.

Finally, details have also been confirmed for the Category B home fixture
with Roy Hodgson's Eagles on Tuesday 30 January at 7.45pm, when the Hammers
will be out to improve on the 2-2 draw they scored at Selhurst Park in
September.

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Cresswell: I'm enjoying my new defensive role
WHUFC.com

Back around the turn of the century, a smart transfer target on the
legendary management simulation computer game Championship Manager was a
'LB/LCB' named Stuart Pearce.

As a younger player, Pearce had been a standout left-back; strong in the
tackle, keen to get forward and in possession of a thunderous left foot
capable of delivering pinpoint crosses and rapier-like shots.

Later, Pearce returned to the position he had played as a teenager,
centre-back, playing out the final season his West Ham United career on the
left side of Harry Redknapp's experienced three-man defence alongside a
combination of Christian Dailly, Igor Stimac or Ian Pearce.

Fast forward 16 years and the Three Lions legend is back in Claret and Blue,
this time as a first-team coaching assistant, overseeing the transformation
of another England left-back, Aaron Cresswell, into a central defender.

Cresswell has played on the left of David Moyes' own three-man defence in
each of West Ham's last three Premier League matches; matches in which the
Hammers have looked strong, organised and resilient in taking on three of
the best teams in the country.

The No3 himself has enjoyed his new role, although he admits he was
surprised when Moyes and Pearce suggest he move inside from the position he
has played for his entire career up to this point.

"I'm enjoying it," he confirmed. "When the gaffer asked me to play there
against Manchester City, sometimes you have to fill in when we have a few
injuries, but we've picked up from there and we've kept two clean sheets in
a row, so hopefully we can keep that going.

"I definitely feel I'm improving under the manager and his staff. Anyone who
watches his training sessions will see organisation, set pieces and
defending as a unit are his main things and that's what we've done.

"Defensively, it hadn't been good enough, so to get two clean sheets against
two of the best teams in the league, defend really well and be unfortunate
not to get something out of the game at Manchester City was very good."

With Winston Reid suspended, Cresswell is likely to remain in the centre of
defence at Stoke City on Saturday, should Moyes stick with the five-man
defence that has served him so well in recent weeks.

"We're looking forward to it and relishing it as we're certainly feeling
full of confidence after playing against three of the best teams in the
league and taking four points from the last two. We just need to continue
that now and take it into Saturday.

"It's very demanding at this time of year. Some of the front boys put so
much effort in, as they run the most sprints, whereas the back five are
sitting in deep and defending. They really put a shift in and credit to them
for putting that effort in for the team.

"It'll be a different type of game at Stoke, but we're still going to be
focused on keeping that clean sheet and, with the midfielders and attacking
players we've got in the team, I'd fancy us to get some goals."

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Chicharito: It's vital West Ham supports the local community
WHUFC.com

Hammers Chicharito, Winston Reid, Declan Rice and Sam Byram were special
guests at 'Full Hearts Full Tummies' - an annual event where parents and
children are invited to watch a Christmas play and enjoy a festive meal. The
players took the time to take selfies, sign autographies and serve food to
the children, mums and dads at the arts centre, based less than two miles
from London Stadium. The Full Hearts Full Tummies scheme was set up by
Stratford Circus three years ago to provide a fun and unforgettable
experience to local disadvantaged families. "We've just been trying to make
it a better afternoon for all these people over here," Chicharito told
whufc.com: "I know that the Stratford Circus Arts Centre are trying to help
in this community, so we've come here to try and give these family more of a
good afternoon. "It was great. Coming in and seeing all the reaction of the
people – they were very happy, very glad, taking pictures with us – I think
that this was the main goal."
The Mexican striker was proud to see the Club working with projects in the
local community and was more than happy to put smiles on faces during the
event.
He continued: "It's great that West Ham is integrating itself into the
community in Stratford. It's very important. One of the most important
things is that all these young kids can see us and can feel that we're
close. "The Stadium is here and not very far away from this Centre. We had
the match yesterday and today we've come here to help them. We wanted to
give them a better afternoon and I think we did a pretty good job."
Disadvantaged families can share a festive lunch after watching a special
performance of circus adventure 'The Ramshackle House', Stratford Circus
Arts Centre's Christmas show.
You can donate online here or by text. Donate £10 by texting: 'FHFT17 £10'
to 70070 or £5 by texting 'FHFT17 £5' to 70070

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Zabaleta: We need to move forward from here
WHUFC.com

Pablo Zabaleta believes the Hammers' four points from their two tough London
derbies against Chelsea and Arsenal is a sign of better things to come from
the east Londoners. Having ended a two-month wait for league victory by
seeing off the Blues on Saturday, David Moyes' men backed that up with a
hard-earned goalless draw against Arsenal on Wednesday. A win and a draw
with two clean sheets represented a highly satisfying return for Zabaleta,
who says the team now needs to build from that base with a visit to Stoke
just two days away. He explained: "It is a good point, sometimes when you
can't win it's important not to lose. We kept a clean sheet and everything
is so tight at the bottom of the table, so now we need to move forward. "We
knew we needed to improve. We were conceding so many goals and we needed to
improve our discipline, because we knew we had players up front who can
score goals. "In the last three games, we have done that. Probably at times
we have been too deep and we need to be braver at keeping the ball, but when
you play against teams with a lot of quality, you need to make sure you
don't give them too much space. "We have a very tough game against Stoke on
Saturday, away from home against a team who have struggled recently.
Hopefully we can put in another good performance and it would be great if we
can get three points."

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Hammers' teamwork was the key to keeping Arsenal at bay
WHUFC.com

West Ham United's resilient defensive display against Arsenal – their third
such performance in successive Premier League matches – was built on many
different foundations. Formation, tactics, teamwork, commitment, discipline
and bravery were all evident as David Moyes' team held the Gunners scoreless
for the first time in 14 top-flight matches. And West Ham could even have
snatched all three points late on, when their selective high pressing turned
the ball over deep in Arsenal territory, and Chicharito's well-struck curler
was tipped onto the underside of the crossbar in the first minute of added
time.

Let's start with the sheer hard work Moyes' boys put in on Wednesday
evening.

In total, West Ham ran 2km more than their opponents at London Stadium,
covering 113.17km to Arsenal's 111.16km. Just six teams outran West Ham
during the midweek Premier League round of fixtures. Only AFC Bournemouth,
West Bromwich Albion, Liverpool, Newcastle United, Huddersfield Town and
Burnley covered more ground than the Hammers. Unsurprisingly, Mark Noble led
the way, covering 12.52km. Only West Bromwich Albion's James McClean covered
more ground of the 220 players who started Premier League games on Tuesday
and Wednesday evening and, even then, it was just 10 metres more than the
West Ham captain.
Manuel Lanzini ranked third overall, with 12.39km, with Burnley's Jack Cork
being the only other Premier League player to pass 12km. Pedro Obiang was
not far behind, covering 11.95km himself, while Arthur Masuaku, Marko
Arnautovic, Pablo Zabaleta and Aaron Cresswell all passed the 10km-mark.
Arnautovic sprinted 67 times, with Lanzini (64), Noble (58), Zabaleta (53)
and Antonio (51) all stretching their legs more than 50 times each. In
comparison, Hector Bellerin (69) was one of just three Arsenal players to
break the half-century mark. These figures are even more impressive when you
consider West Ham spent so much time defending inside their own half, as the
heatmap shows.

The game was played inside the hosts' defensive third 36.6 per cent of the
time, in the middle third for 44.9 per cent of the time and inside the
Arsenal defensive third for just 18.5 per cent of the time. West Ham
employed a 5-3-1-1 formation and stuck to it rigidly, staying compact and
not allowing Arsenal to penetrate their defensive line. Instead, the Gunners
spent much of the game passing the ball sideways around 30-40 yards from the
West Ham goal, while 12 of Arsenal's 22 shots were unleashed from outside
the penalty area. It was Italy international Angelo Ogbonna who was the
Hammers' standout defender, making eleven clearances, blocking three shots,
making two interceptions and one tackle. Ogbonna's disciplined display was
replicated by every player in Claret and Blue, as West Ham committed just
nine fouls in the entire 90 minutes. Arsenal also committed nine. The home
side's teamwork was evidenced by the number of touches each West Ham player
had of the ball. Lanzini led the way with 57, but every outfield player had
at least 34, and nine had 43 or more. And, while they were undoubtedly under
a lot of pressure for long periods, West Ham did not just wastefully punt
the ball away, either. Lanzini completed 90.9 per cent of his passes, while
Noble, Arthur Masuaku and Angelo Ogbonna all completed at least 81 per cent
of theirs.

Going forward, the work done by Arnautovic and Antonio in attack was
invaluable, with both players, supported by Lanzini, Noble and Obiang,
pressuring the Arsenal back line and turning possession over no fewer than
35 times between them. Surprisingly, perhaps, the Austrian was West Ham's
most-advanced player in terms of average position, a good ten yards ahead of
Antonio, who nominally started the game as the team's centre forward. All in
all, the Hammers gave absolutely everything. Again. And got their reward.

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Hammers top group at Truce Tournament
WHUFC.com

West Ham United's U12s enjoyed a successful weekend away at the Premier
League's Truce Tournament in Ypres as they topped their group in Belgium
before weather halted play. The semi-finals and final of the annual
competition, which is held in memory of the Christmas Day truce which took
place during WWI between the Allied forces and Germany, could not be staged
due to the adverse weather conditions which were also felt back in the
United Kingdom. The Hammers could look back on the tournament with pride,
however, having finished level on points at the top of their group with
fellow English sides Brighton and Hove Albion and Manchester United, though
the east Londoners beat clubs to the summit on goal difference. West Ham
were due to play group A runners-up Arsenal in the semi-finals, and although
the following fixtures were postponed, the Premier League may still yet
arrange to have them played in the UK at some point in the near future. The
trip was not just about the football, though; players from all clubs visited
memorials, cemeteries, trenches and tunnels at the scenes of devastation a
century ago, remembering the servicemen who battled. They were also treated
to first hand demonstrations of kit and weapons in use, before they gathered
at Menin Gate – in Ypres – to lay a wreath on behalf of the Club.

On the Saturday evening of the weekend, all 12 teams – six from England, one
from each of the US and France and two from Germany and Belgium – united to
exchange gifts, just as soldiers did over 100 years ago. Oli Lethbridge,
West Ham United Academy Head of Education, was delighted with how the
Hammers got on both on and off the pitch out in Belgium. He said: "It was
extremely pleasing to see the boys perform so well on the pitch; they
adopted a dedicated and enthusiastic approach to their preparations for the
tournament and this was reflected in their performances during the group
stages, in which they went unbeaten.
"It was a good experience for the boys to challenge themselves against some
of the best academies in Europe and overcoming different styles of football.
"Throughout the educational aspects of this project, the boys conducted
themselves in a conscientious and professional manner. The boys worked
extremely hard to raise awareness about the Battle of Passchendaele through
the organisation of a Remembrance Service at West Ham Cemetery and the
production of a video that told the story of the Battle. "They engaged with
the project fully, understanding the importance of remembering those who had
fought in the First World War. This meant that they were fully prepared for
the experiences that they faced whilst in Ypres, Belgium. "They were able to
develop their knowledge further by asking the tour guide questions and
whilst presenting their work. They truly were outstanding young ambassadors
for the Club."

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Ogbonna: We have to keep this up until we are dead!
WHUFC.com

Angelo Ogbonna says West Ham United's 'new approach' under David Moyes
served them well in Wednesday's goalless draw with Arsenal. The Hammers
defended resolutely for the third Premier League game in a row, stifling
Arsene Wenger's star-studded side with their organisation, teamwork and
never-say-die attitude.
Ogbonna led the way, making a team-high eleven clearances and two
interceptions, before Chicharito came within inches of snatching all three
points by rattling the underside of the crossbar with seconds remaining. "We
are not individuals. If I play well, it's because the team played well. I
think the team is playing so much better than before and we have to keep
this up until we are dead! "We need to keep the concentration in every
detail, because the details can change. If Chicha's shot had gone in, it
would have been totally different. When they got the free-kick right at the
end with [Mesut] Ozil, it could also go in, but it hit the wall.
"In football, detail is so important so we have to be focused on
everything." Wednesday's stalemate made it two clean sheets in succession
and five for the season.
Ogbonna said the team's improved defensive output is testament to the work
the players are putting in and the methods of new manager Moyes and his
staff.
"I'm really proud of the team because we kept a clean sheet and we did
really well. Hopefully, maybe on Saturday we can get three points. "It's not
only about the clean sheets, but the way we have approached the last three
games was so different than the way we approached the other games. "In this
game, we wanted to get something important and for us, for the staff and for
everybody, it's really good."

Next up for the Hammers is a trip to Stoke City on Saturday, where Ogbonna
believes West Ham have an opportunity to extend their unbeaten run to three
matches with a first away win of the season. "Everybody wants to show what
they can do. The manager has put some basics in place which have helped us
to do that. "It's difficult at Stoke, but this is a big chance to get three
points up there. We needed to change attitudes and the way we approach games
is much better than before."

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WEST HAM, WHAT NEXT FOR THIS CLUB AND ITS BOARD?
AUTHOR: EXWHUEMPLOYEE. PUBLISHED: 14 DECEMBER 2017 AT 9:40PM
TheWesTHaMWayc.o.cuk

Written by Jack Allum @westham009

West Ham- what would I do without you? Have a lot less stress for a start!
Be prepared people for a very brutally honest article- I take no prisoners.

I suppose the more pertinent questions for me are these: what would West Ham
do without the current board? What would the club do without the fans
support?

I think they are basically one and the same. This club is heavily divided.
More so than at just about any point in its history I believe. The board are
largely disliked I would say, for many reasons. I believe this to be
justified fully, for a number of reasons I will explain later. But my end
point is this- without the fans, the club is nothing. It's the sum total of
zilch.

Without the fans, the club is finished. Is the club losing fans currently?
No. Are the board and their antics forcing people to stay away? Absolutely.
No question. This is where the divide starts to show heavily, between the
two camps of fans that are most vocal- the "board lovers" and "board
haters".

I am very firmly in the "board hater" group. The lies over transfers and
debt. The huge levels of unprofessionalism. The sheer incompetence on so
many levels. I can't explain enough why the current owners along with Brady
are just far too incompetent to run this great, beautiful and wonderful
club. My biggest bug bear at the moment- David Sullivan's kids. Dave Jnr
especially, as Jack seems to have calmed his club based tweeting down. He
isn't employed at the club in any capacity I am aware of. His twitter bio
says his views aren't those of WHU. Yet today he decided it would be totally
appropriate to tweet about a claimed "new project" at the club. I don't
believe there is any such thing (just the club trying to win a few days of
good publicity I think), but if there is then it should be the club tweeting
about it- not the owners eldest child who has no role at the club. How to
irritate the fan base 101 here, and the board damn well know it. Let's also
not forget that this is the same Dave Sullivan Jnr that believed it to be
completely appropriate to announce on his personal twitter account that the
club were taking legal action against Sporting! An incident the club should
apologise for. That sort of stuff should either stay on the official club
website or preferably in private completely. David Sullivan Snr should also
take responsibility here, and apologise on behalf of his eldest child for
posting such inflammatory information on a personal social media account.
Yet the club haven't even mentioned it- utterly disgraceful.

Secondly- the constant lies about "next level" this and that. We can all see
that David Sullivan Snr is far more interested in his ego than the club.
This has always been the case and always will be in my view. I think the way
he acts at the club proves it beyond doubt. Who remembers the £40mil plus we
were going to spend on a striker alone? What about the avardy bid Sullivan
openly discussed? Or Ibrahimovic? I believe the Ibrahimovic one was
something his kids may have talked about as well. Don't even get me started
on Carvalho for crying out loud. Where is all this money he magically claims
the club had for these transfers? We certainly didn't spend it. Like the
millions in interest they have sucked out of the club, has it gone to their
bank balance? Either they pocketed the money somewhere, or the club never
had it in the first place. The first one I could actually accept if at the
very least they were honest about it (after all, we live in a capitalist
world), but the second would be totally unacceptable in all circumstances.
More TV money. More ticket money. More money from merchandise. Yet we try
and look around for free loans, free transfers and then cheap deals before
actually going for the quality they have long promised us just before season
ticket renewal time. Yes they have gone for Arnautovic and Ayew, but I think
they were neither as expensive as they claimed and were funded significantly
by outgoings. Interestingly on the issue of spending, it is rumoured Moyes
is on no more than £10k a week. That shows why they went for him over all
others- because he is CHEAP. He's failed at his last three clubs, so god
only knows what else they saw in him.

Next- stadium. It's been a disaster on so many levels. Not that this is
their fault, but it's a PR disaster for the premier league and the country
as a whole to have a stadium totally unfit for purpose as a football
stadium. But for the club it's been a disaster from the moment we started
the move. Who remembers Mr Gold talking about how we wouldn't move unless
the seats were as close to the pitch as the church that was The Boleyn? Who
remembers all the guff about it attracting the next level players (although
that probably has more to do with the aforementioned finances). So many
other issues with the stadium such as access, stewarding that it is too
numerous to talk about.

The club also has a serious PR issue, which is connected to the issues
mentioned above. The club has absolutely no idea how to communicate with
fans. I don't mean the physical methods by which to communicate, I mean it
more subtly than that. It doesn't understand the fans.

The board don't realise that getting the Sullivan kids to tweet about club
business when they have no business doing so in a totally unprofessional
manner will seriously irritate fans, despite the fans making this very loud
and very clear on a number of occasions to be unacceptable.The board don't
realise the constant lies and broken promises will make fans snap. They
don't realise the clubs own twitter account pumping out pre planned rubbish
from players or videos of great goals in training after a 4-0 loss will
irritate fans.

The club, the management especially, have no common sense. These are the
things that will destroy this club, and why it is clearer than ever that
this board must sell up as quickly as possible and with as little fuss as
possible. Saying that, I would prefer it if they didn't sell to a fraudster
like happened at Birmingham. Due diligence can't be that difficult David
Sullivan- not even you could muck it up twice in a row I imagine.

Finally, to answer my two questions at the beginning- 1) I believe West Ham
would fly to new heights. 2) The club would sink.

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WHY THE PATHOLOGICAL HATRED OF DAVID SULLIVAN JNR?
AUTHOR: EXWHUEMPLOYEE. PUBLISHED: 14 DECEMBER 2017 AT 9:24PM
TheWesTHamWay.co.uk
Written by @farehamhammer

The abuse is sickening, childish, vicious, well over the top and totally
uncalled for. The way some have targeted Dave Sullivan Jnr, you would think
that he was the child murderer Jon Venables. Whatever Dave does or attempts
to do people always seem to find fault and try their utmost best to put him
down. He has certainly discovered the meaning of fake 'friends' this season.
Some have said he deserves it, because he is on Social Media and should not
be discussing West Ham's business. What a load of sanctimonious crap! No, he
should not allow himself to be bullied off the internet by keyboard
warriors. Like you or I, he is entitled to have an opinion on anything, West
Ham related or otherwise. Yes, he has made ill-judged personal remarks
regarding Kevin Nolan in the past, but Christ on a bike that was FIVE years
ago! Not right I know, but at the age of 20 and greatly matured, that sort
of thing won't happen again.

Judging by my opening stance you will gather that I think a lot of Dave Jnr.
Yes I do, it was not always so, but through sporadic contact with him I am
able to vouch for him, no doubt has his faults but who doesn't? He is
intelligent, kind, tries to be helpful, is opinionated, pulls no punches and
says things like he sees it. He also accepts other people may see things
different to he does, I remember once savaging The Board in an extremely
harsh tweet. The tweet came up and he said: "Nothing wrong with being true
to yourself ". So, when I read on social media and the rest that he is: a
racist, spoilt brat, homophobic, hateful, fascist pig. I have a one word
reply! Bullshit. Then we get the daily: "F*** O** out of my club", "Your Dad
is a c***", "You are a retard", "Tell your dwarf of a Dad to spend some
F****** money you c***"! Seriously my fellow Hammers, we have always stood
for decency. Is that as good as it gets? Should anyone have to put up with
that sort of hurtful abuse? No, they shouldn't! That sort of abuse leads to
depression and worse.

What are the charges levied against young David? The main one being that as
a kid, he admitted that he supported Arsenal Football Club. He did not have
to disclose that at all. He could have given it the old, West Ham till I
die, and no one would have known any different. He is by no means an
isolated case. Kids like to rebel but eventually see the light. I don't
think Dave is any different. However, what was stupid of David, was having
admitted he supported Arsenal as late as 2014, to then come out and say he
then fell in love with West Ham as soon as his Dad bought The Club. I think
Dave's journey has seen him flip flop between both sides for a while, before
finally settling down to become a fully-fledged Hammer. If West Ham had
spent say £120m in the transfer window, and The Club were say sixth or
seventh in the league. Do you think Dave or Jack for a matter of fact, would
of have to have put up with the fan back lash that they have had to do deal
with? Of course not.

It would have been all: "Have a good weekend Dave", "Thank your Dad and Mr
Gold for all their good work, we really appreciate it". "Blah blah blah". Of
course, things have not panned out like that. So, it's a case of being like
a spoilt brat, who didn't get what they want for Christmas. We turn nasty,
venting our frustration at people who had nothing to do with the predicament
we find ourselves in. A fickle lot us fans are, I'm no different at times,
it was one of my best mates, Danny Twigg, a massive Manchester United fan
who remarked about David and Jack Sullivan. "They are young, will make
mistakes. But at least they are trying to interact with fans, they want to
make a difference. They deserve support, try have the Glazers in charge!" We
have record debt and we never see them! "Dave, like any youngster his age
has made mistakes, and will continue to do so that is part of life. But to
vilify him just because his Dad has not spent a fortune in bringing 3 or
four big name signings in, during a transfer window is unfair and harsh in
the extreme. Another reason he has been abused, was that some thought we
would reach the 'next' level as soon as we moved to The London Stadium.

To think that by moving into The London Stadium, West Ham going to
automatically reach the next level overnight, was being unrealistic I'm
afraid. It was always going to take time. We, have had a dreadful first half
of the season. But the last three games will have given even the most cynic
amongst us real heart. Last night at times we resembled a boxer on the ropes
with punches being rained on us, we never wilted, stood firm and got a
well-deserved a point. If, anyone had told me before the Manchester City
game, that we would of got four points and only conceded two goals against
City, Chelsea and Arsenal, I would have shouted MEDICATION TIME!

So proud of the team, the biggest change in my opinion has been the attitude
of the team. None more typifies this more than Angelo Ogbonna. He has gone
from Bambi on ice to a good defender overnight. What the results have shown
us is that we DO have the potential to be a top Club. But it's no good on
the back of three good results thinking that we can brush our ills under the
carpet. We can't! The Board has got to change the way they do business and
they must be held accountable. No stone must be left unturned, questions
have to be asked and answered honestly. No more of the ridiculous: "We have
a substantial transfer budget" from Mrs Brady. A fan group representing all
wings of The West Ham Parish, driving change. With David Jnr as the go
between The Group and The Board would not be a bad start. Me? Like YOU!
Aboard The, West Ham Express heading for The Promised land. Let's face it a
bit of silverware is LONG overdue! Like, any family we have our spats. But,
deep down we are all West Ham United.

We are more than a football Club, we're a way of life!
COYI!!

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#REFWATCH: JON MOSS – WEST HAM VS ARSENAL
AUTHOR: SAMTWHWREF. PUBLISHED: 14 DECEMBER 2017 AT 9:17AM
TheWestHamWayc.o.uk
Written by @SamRoyden

I was up at 7:19am last Saturday watching NBC Sports Extra in an apartment
in Summit, New Jersey, in anticipation on what might happen and what team
will walk out on that pitch. It was the perfect home game for West Ham and
David Moyes against Chelsea and Moyes is starting to imprint his way onto
this West Ham team in a positive way! Yesterday, we welcomed an Arsenal team
who have only won two away games so far this season.

Jonathan Moss was the referee appointed for this London Derby. This fixture
is Moss's first fixture officiating both Arsenal and West Ham this season.
Moss has made some ropey decisions so far this season so to have a game
without controversy was a bonus for him and his team.

Jon Moss and particular his assistants had a good first half in fairness,
Moss was allowing the game to flow and wasn't too quick to get the cards out
in the early stages of the half. Some referees brand cards early on if they
feel the game is getting away from them so they can get the game under
control. Moss and his assistant referee Harry Lennard showed from the off
that their teamwork and collaboration is key to ensure the game is managed
successfully. Both Moss and Lennard worked well to award West Ham a free
kick within two minutes after young Arsenal left back Maitland-Niles dragged
back the West Ham man.

West Ham and Marko Arnautović thought they'd taken the lead with a great
header but celebrations were cut short with Edward Smart's flag raised high
in the air for offside against Marko Arnautović. The West Ham man drifted
offside and came back from an offside position once the ball was played
forward. The decision was tight, must have been a couple of yards give or
take but it was superb vision and decision by the assistant referee.

Jon Moss kept his cards in his pocket until the 41st minute when Manuel
Lanzini deliberately brought down Jack Wilshere while progressing on the
counter attack but Nacho Monreal could have easily got his name into the
Moss's notebook within 20 minutes. The Arsenal left back caught Michail
Antonio late with the West Ham man on the half turn 30 yards in the West Ham
half. Moss spoke to Monreal and a free kick was enough punishment from
Moss's perspective.

Midway through the first half, Granit Xhaka and Manuel Lanzini were tussling
for the ball into the penalty area, Lanzini went down and West Ham fans were
bellowing at Moss appealing for the penalty. It would have been a soft
penalty if Moss gave it. Xhaka was defending the ball in possession with the
West Ham man desperately to win the ball and there wasn't much contact with
Xhaka ushering the ball out of play, all in all Moss got the decision right.

In the later stages of the first half, Olivier Giroud tried the spectacular
Andy Carroll type bicycle kick, connecting with the ball but the Frenchman's
boot was inches away from Aarron Cresswell's head. These types of challenges
are extremely dangerous if the player makes contact with the player.
Luckily, Cresswell pulled out as much as he could with the ball hitting the
West Ham man on the back of the head. Moss was quick to stop the game for
treatment although Cresswell was up on his feet pretty quickly.

The second half for Moss and his team was frustrating. I felt that as the
game went on Moss missed a couple of fouls against West Ham. Monreal's foul
on Arnautović and when Antonio was blocked on the half way line by
Maitland-Niles. This infuriated the crowd and players with decisions not
going in West Ham's favour.

Marko Arnautović was a clear Man of The Match in my opinion with the
Austrian running on fumes in the later stages after putting a solid shift
in. Even though the West Ham record signing strayed offside at least four
times during the game, he made a lot of the attempts and following his
disallowed goal in the first half, Arnautović nearly got on the scoresheet
but was penalised by Moss for a push on Koscielny. It was an eagle eyed
decision by Jon Moss with the slightest of touches from Arnautović being
enough for Moss to blow for a foul.

With the game going into the final minutes, the game intensified with West
Ham's Javier Hernandez coming on as a substitute hitting the crossbar and up
the other end Winston Reid was cautioned after a sloppy Pablo Zabaleta pass
gave Danny Welbeck possession. With two minutes already up of additional
time, Reid hacked the former England man down for a free-kick 25 yards from
the West Ham goal. Luckily, the Arsenal free-kick rebounded off a West Ham
head and Jon Moss blew the final whistle.

Overall, I thought Jon Moss and his officiating team had a good game,
particularly the first half when I thought they had the better of halves but
it was a solid performance all round.

A note on West Ham, if someone offered me four points ahead of Man City,
Chelsea and Arsenal, I would have bitten your arm off. It had put us in a
better position post-Bilic. We travel to Stoke who are also struggling two
points above us in the relegation zone. It's extremely tight at the bottom
half of the table with only ten points between 20th and 10th. We go again on
Saturday. COYI!

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Hard to beat, now make us difficult to stop
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 14th December 2017
By: Graeme Howlett

David Moyes may have put a stop to West Ham leaking unnecessary goals - but
now he has to find a way to start scoring them again.

The new boss has been widely praised - and rightly so - for making West Ham
a "hard to beat" side following the recent matches against Chelsea, Arsenal
and runaway league leaders Manchester City in which the opposition have
mustered a total of just two goals in four-and-a-half hours' play.

However since taking over from Slaven Bilic six matches ago, the Hammers
have scored just three times - in the 1-1 draw at home to Leicester, the
narrow 2-1 defeat at Manchester City and against Chelsea. And that HAS to
improve if West Ham are to stand a chance of avoiding relegation.


West Ham: efforts at goals under David Moyes
Total shots (on/off target in parenthesis)

v Watford 10 (6/4)
v Leicester 8 (4/4)
v Everton 7 (3/4)
v Man City 7 (4/3)
v Chelsea 5 (2/3)
v Arsenal 6 (0/6)

Totals: 39 shots, 19 on target (average 3.17 per match)

Of course, the calibre of opposition has to be taken into account when
assessing these statistics and there are few teams that would be expected to
go gung-ho against a side such as Man City, blessed as they are with a team
capable of destroying opponents on the counter attack.

However whilst Moyes is being lauded for engendering a new resolve within
his team, this weekend's trip to Stoke will provide a different test
altogether - one in which the Hammers will now be EXPECTED to get a result
following their recent marked improvement (and do it without the
inspirational Winston Reid, who is banned having accrued five bookings).

In some ways it'll prove an even tougher test that the recent derbies
against Chelsea and Arsenal - whilst the rejuvenated and freshly-inspired
Marko Arnautovic is likely to have all his buttons pressed by a Stoke side
who are acutely aware of every flaw in his character.

On paper, the Hammers have a plethora of striking options to choose from.
But Michail Antonio has appeared less than enamoured (again?) at being asked
to play outside of his comfort zone, and whilst serving a purpose up front
in the last two games doesn't appear comfortable as a sole striker.

Elsewhere there's Andy Carroll, though unfortunately he's about as reliable
as a Brexit campaign promise. Diafra Sakho, despite looking our best option
given his pace can't wait for January to come around so he can finally up
and leave whilst Toni Martinez simply isn't ready to be thrown in at the
deep end.

Meanwhile Andre Ayew continues to frustrate, despite showing occasional
signs of being worth the market-rate £20million West Ham shelled out in
order to acquire his services last season. Finally there's Javier Hernandez,
who is currently scoring at a rate of one goal every 3.5 games - hardly
prolific, although it is of course early days for him still at West Ham.

West Ham's mis-firing strikers: 2017/18

Andre Ayew: 18 appearances, 5 goals
Javier Hernandez: 14 appearances, 4 goals
Diafra Sakho: 15 appearances, 3 goals
Michail Antonio: 13 appearances, 1 goal
Andy Carroll: 9 appearances, 0 goals

Altogether, those five have scored just 13 goals this season from 69 matches
- an average of just one goal ever five games or so, which is patently
insufficient for a team hoping to stave off the threat of relegation.

Yet Stoke have been even more generous to their opponents that West Ham,
having shipped 36 goals already this season. Even though defensively they
were dreadful under Slaven Bilic earlier in the campaign, the Hammers have
conceded four fewer at 32 - albeit enjoy a slightly inferior GD, as the
Potters have found the net on 19 occasions compared to West Ham's 14.

And there's the other albatross West Ham will be carrying into the game,
namely being only one of two Premier League teams yet to win on their
travels this season (the other being the equally-troubled Crystal Palace).

All of which tends to point towards the game being a stalemate, or being won
by a single goal - as has been the case in the last six meetings between the
two sides (five draws plus one 2-1 win for our hosts last year). Hence the
importance of scoring first is magnified, intensely.

In addition to addressing the chronic lack of goals Moyes has to find a way
to successfully incorporate Manuel Lanzini, one of few players capable of
unlocking a defence, into his team. The Argentine midfielder has been a
virtual spectator in recent weeks and is one of a handful of players to have
made less of an impact, post-Bilic.

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