Daily WHUFC News - 7th January 2014

A message from the Joint-Chairmen
WHUFC.com
West Ham United Joint-Chairmen David Sullivan and David Gold have written an
open letter to Hammers fans
06.01.2014

Like all West Ham United supporters we feel frustrated and hurt by our
recent results. We understand how you feel and we, the Board, feel the same.

It is never enjoyable being knocked out of a Cup competition and losing by
such a large scoreline to a lower division side is hard to take for us all.
We thought the youngsters gave their all and did not stop trying but in the
end Nottingham Forest's experience proved too much for us.
I know Sam would have loved to have put out a more varied side, with our
talented youngsters accompanied by more senior players in the starting XI.
But many key players are out injured and Sam has been handed a near
impossible task of coming through three crucial games in the space of six
days with a squad of only 14 fit and available senior players. This is not
an excuse it is a fact. We know Sam has not lost his ambition or desire and
is committed to making West Ham United a great Premier League Club.
We now face a Capital One Cup semi-final on Wednesday followed by a vital
Barclays Premier League trip to Cardiff on Saturday. Despite an extremely
difficult draw, we are determined to do all we can to get to the Capital One
Cup final over two legs with Manchester City. We hope to have several of our
missing players back in time for Cardiff and we go there knowing that a win
can get us out of the bottom three. Such is the nature of the Premier League
this season; there are only six points between us and the team in 13th
place.
Make no mistake, though; we are under no illusions as to the seriousness of
our current predicament in the Premier League. But on the Board we have a
combined talent of running football clubs and we will draw on all of our
nous to get West Ham United out of this situation.
We have experienced difficult times before and we know what will get us
results - hard work, determination and perseverance. To that end, we are all
working round the clock to do everything in our powers to help arrest our
slump in form.
Our first priority is to get our key players fit. Our record signing Andy
Carroll continues to make good progress following his return to first-team
training and he should be back on the pitch very soon along with Hammer of
the Year Winston Reid and our other missing central defenders, James Tomkins
and James Collins. Trust us, Andy Carroll is desperate to play and is ready
to do his bit for the team and we are confident that the return of all of
our injured players will lead to an upturn in our fortunes.
Thereafter, our second priority is to bring in the new talent needed to
bolster our squad in the most needed areas. January is not an easy time to
do business but we are pleased to confirm we are close to securing one of
our key striking targets. A defender is high on the list of priorities as
well and progress is being made on that front.
Despite our difficulties, what has remained consistent throughout the past
few weeks and months is the unwavering level of support you have shown for
the team home and away. We took over 3,000 fans to Fulham on New Year's Day
and nearly the same number again to Nottingham on Sunday. That has been a
constant and successful theme since our record-breaking season under Sam in
2011/12 and I know everyone at the Club is extremely grateful for the unique
backing you provide to the team every week.
Following the Cardiff fixture, we have two more vital games in January
before a hugely significant February, which has three massive home games. We
will go into those games with a much-improved squad and we remain confident
that we can turn our season around.
Whilst we have exceeded expectation off the pitch this year, by providing
the Olympic Stadium and financial stability by taking personal
responsibility for the Club's inherited debts of £100 million, we know that
quality on the pitch is more important to you.
We have 103 employees that directly relate to the football teams, but we
also have 477 colleagues who work behind the team across all areas of the
Club. All of these people are key to our success. We continue to invest in
the development of their future by ensuring that West Ham United remains a
great place to work.
We understand these are difficult times for the Club and its supporters, but
we must stay united and come through the other side together. Please support
us and the team - we have no desire to be where we are and we are all doing
everything in our power to improve this unenviable situation.
Thank-you once again for your fantastic support.

David Sullivan and David Gold
Joint-Chairmen, West Ham United

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Hammers move for Johnson
WHUFC.com
West Ham United have signed centre-back Roger Johnson on loan from
Wolverhampton Wanderers
06.01.2014

West Ham United are pleased to confirm the signing of centre-back Roger
Johnson on loan for the remainder of the 2013/14 season. Johnson joins the
Hammers from Sky Bet League One high-fliers Wolverhampton Wanderers and
could go straight into the squad for Wednesday's Capital One Cup semi-final
first leg tie at Manchester City. A League Cup winner with Birmingham City
in 2011, the 30-year-old reached the FA Cup final with Cardiff City in 2008
and has made more than 100 Premier League appearances for Birmingham and
Wolves. Johnson will boost Sam Allardyce's defensive options, with
centre-backs Winston Reid, James Collins and James Tomkins all recovering
from injuries at present. Born in Surrey, Johnson became Wycombe Wanderers'
youngest-ever player when he made his debut just eight days past his 17th
birthday in May 1999. The following season, 2000/01, he helped the Chairboys
to reach the FA Cup semi-finals as a Division Two side. After four seasons
as a first-team regular, Johnson celebrated being named in the 2005/06
League Two Team of the Year by making a £275,000 move to Cardiff City in
July 2006. Johnson quickly established himself in the Welsh capital, making
136 appearances over four seasons, including the 2008 FA Cup final defeat by
Portsmouth at Wembley. After being named in the Championship Team of the
Year in 2008/09, Johnson's stock had risen to an all-time high, tempting
Premier League new boys Birmingham to spend £5m to add him to their squad in
June 2009. At St Andrew's, Johnson formed an outstanding partnership with
Scott Dann as the Blues went on a 16-match unbeaten run between October 2009
and January 2010. Birmingham would finish the season in ninth place. The
following campaign, 2010/11, brought a mixture of elation and disappointment
for Johnson as he scored a late equaliser against West Ham at St Andrew's to
help the Blues win their thrilling League Cup semi-final with the Hammers
and went on to lift the trophy, only to suffer relegation after losing four
of their last five Premier League matches. Relegation did not affect
Johnson's value, however, as Wolves spent a reported £7m to take him to
Molineux in July 2011. Playing alongside Matt Jarvis, Johnson was appointed
captain and made 28 appearances, but was unfortunately unable to prevent
Wolves from being relegated from the Premier League. Johnson was again a
regular last season, making 42 Championship appearances and scoring twice
for the Black Country club. This term, with Wolves seeking to cut their wage
bill, the centre-back has spent three months on loan at Championship side
Sheffield Wednesday, playing 17 times.

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Key appointment for Stadium conversion
WHUFC.com
International infrastructure group Balfour Beatty Group Ltd is to lead the
Olympic Stadium's redevelopment
06.01.2014

The stunning transformation of West Ham United's future home continues to
gather pace, with Monday's landmark appointment of Balfour Beatty Group Ltd
as lead contractor to convert the Olympic Stadium. The E20 Stadium
Partnership, established between the London Legacy Development Corporation
(LLDC) and Newham Council, has awarded the £154 million contract to Balfour
Beatty to ready the iconic venue for West Ham United from 2016. The
international infrastructure group won the right to lead work on the
Stadium's magnificent new roof in the summer and is now set to spearhead the
remainder of the venue's much-anticipated transformation into a UEFA
category four football Stadium.

Balfour Beatty's remit will include the relocation inside the turnstile line
of key facilities such as the concessions and toilets (as at other
traditional football stadia), landscaping, the construction of first class
hospitality suites and a distinctive new building that is set to become the
Club's exclusive ticket office and flagship Store. During construction,
Balfour Beatty expects to employ up to 400 people and will work with
Workplace, Newham Council's employment service, to employ local residents.
West Ham United Vice-Chairman Karren Brady said: "We welcome this important
announcement which marks the start of a significant year for the conversion
of the Olympic Stadium into a world-class football stadium which will become
West Ham United's new home. "By the close of 2014 we hope to have seen the
majority of the work on the stunning new roof finalised, ahead of its
completion in spring next year. "I, along with my team, will be working
closely with the LLDC and Balfour Beatty every step of the way to ensure
that the conversion delivers a Stadium that West Ham fans can be proud of
and that guarantees them an unrivalled experience on a matchday.''

Balfour Beatty Chief Executive, Andrew McNaughton, said: "We are delighted
to be continuing our activity at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park supporting
the legacy commitment made as part of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic
Games. "During construction, our firm commitment to the use of local labour
and the creation of apprenticeships will continue to benefit the local
community and the wider industry and, upon completion, the Stadium will
provide a first-class sporting and cultural facility for many generations to
come. Balfour Beatty is proud to be associated with this project."

In addition to reconfiguring the world's largest cantilevered roof, Balfour
Beatty will also take charge of constructing state-of-the-art spectator and
hospitality facilities which are set to create a global benchmark in
spectator experience and sports hospitality. Works will commence on site in
early 2014 and are due for completion in the spring of 2016.

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Mixed emotions for Moncs
WHUFC.com
George Moncur is refusing to be downhearted after his first West Ham start
in Sunday's FA Cup exit
06.01.2014

George Moncur is adamant that Sunday's 5-0 FA Cup with Budweiser reverse at
Nottingham Forest will not dampen optimism in West Ham United's Development
Squad. In all, eight of the Club's youngsters featured at the City Ground,
including a total of five debutants, as the Hammers were eventually
overpowered by their experienced hosts. But despite the scoreline, the
20-year-old midfielder reckons he and his Under-21 colleagues can still take
a great deal from the experience, certain that confidence has not taken a
hit. "Obviously you can still take positives from the game," he told
whufc.com. "Having come to this stadium, we'll take things from the
experience, because a lot of us haven't really played for the first team.
We'll remember this and learn from it."

In fact, Moncur thought his contemporaries had plenty to be proud of, for
the first hour at least, as the Hammers fought gamely to recover from an
early penalty award. Though it was Moncur himself who felled Jamie Paterson
for the spot-kick, undeterred he went onto to put in a mature display,
before being substituted ten minutes into the second period. He continued:
"I gave away the penalty which didn't help at all and it was stupid to be
fair. But I thought that afterwards we settled in well and we definitely had
chances, we were pushing on in the game. "I created a few opportunities and
I thought I did quite well. It's nice to be able to do that out here and
when you're doing some good stuff, confidence does grow."

As for the late flurry of Forest goals, Moncur admitted fatigue had likely
played its part, with the Development Squad having not played a competitive
fixture since 2 December. "Maybe we did get tired, because to be fair there
were a lot of Under-21s playing for us and we haven't had a game for a
while, so I think that was probably played its part. They're playing week in
week out at the moment, so fitness and fatigue probably came into it for
us."

Result aside, Moncur was thankful to have been handed his chance, a first
start and only his second appearance for the Club. Similarly, to share the
experience with his friends and team-mates made it all the more memorable.
"It's great, because you're playing with them week in week out and it's
really nice to be playing with them all together on one big stage," he
added. "I play with Seb [Lletget] and Danny [Whitehead] in our normal
midfield and I thought both of them did really well on Sunday. They can take
great credit from it. I really enjoy playing with them in the U21s and
they're great players. "The result won't knock our confidence at all.
Whatever happened on Sunday, we'll take the positives and just push on from
there."

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'It was a big learning curve'
WHUFC.com
Stewart Downing said there was plenty for the young Hammers to learn from
Sunday's loss at Forest
06.01.2014

Captain for the day Stewart Downing felt a goal could have made all the
difference for an inexperienced West Ham United side at Nottingham Forest on
Sunday. The Hammers suffered a 5-0 loss to end their participation in the FA
Cup with Budweiser, as Forest notched four goals in the final 25 minutes of
the contest. Downing said that the visitors perhaps paid the price for
chasing the game in the closing stages, and that West Ham's youngsters still
emerged from the contest with credit. "I thought we started very well to be
honest," he explained. "We were still in the game after the penalty - Modibo
had a half-chance, Rav had a free kick saved and we were acquitting
ourselves well. "We made it quite difficult for them [at that stage], but
when they got the second goal we were a little naive in that we kept going
and trying to score. Credit to the lads that they kept going, but we left
ourselves open to concede. "It was a big learning curve for the lads and it
just shows what you have to do to play in this league. They're a
Championship side, and of a high standard. "It would have been good to see
how Forest dealt with it had we scored the equaliser. We'd have got the
momentum to go on as it was a good time to get a goal, but once they got the
second they had experienced players to see the game out. "We kept going
forward when maybe we should have kept the scoreline down, and they punished
us. The young lads did really well, but the last 15 minutes wasn't good
enough from us."

Downing made his first start since suffering an ankle injury at Liverpool in
early December and he was pleased to get more minutes under his belt ahead
of Wednesday's Capital One Cup semi-final at Manchester City. He added: "I'm
pleased to have got through the game, I probably wanted to play on a little
longer to be honest, but no arguments as from the manager's point of view he
wants to keep us fresh and fit for Wednesday."

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West Ham sign defender Roger Johnson from Wolves on loan
BBC.co.uk

West Ham have signed Wolves defender Roger Johnson on loan until the end of
the season. The former Cardiff City and Birmingham City player had a spell
with Sheffield Wednesday earlier in 2013-14 campaign. Johnson, 30, moved to
Molineux from St Andrew's in July 2011. Hammers manager Sam Allardyce has
been backed by the club's owners despite seeing the side slip to 19th in the
Premier League and losing 5-0 to Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup. Central
defenders James Collins and James Tomkins were injured in the Boxing Day
defeat by Arsenal and the draw with West Brom two days later respectively.
Fellow centre-back Winston Reid is still recovering from ankle surgery in
November, while striker Andy Carroll has yet to play this season because of
a foot injury. Everton's Johnny Heitinga rejected a move to West Ham despite
the two clubs agreeing terms over the Dutch defender earlier this month.
Wolves manager Kenny Jackett transfer-listed Johnson and three other players
in June following the club's relegation to League One, 12 months after they
dropped into the Championship. "It's a really good opportunity for him
because he's going to a Premier League club," Jackett told the Birmingham
Express and Star.

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Sam Allardyce: West Ham owners back manager
BBC.co.uk

West Ham co-owners David Gold and David Sullivan have issued an open letter
to fans in support of boss Sam Allardyce. The struggling Hammers lost 5-0 to
Championship side Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup on Sunday. The Upton Park
club are second from bottom of the Premier League after just one win in 13
top-flight games. "We know Sam has not lost his ambition or desire and is
committed to making West Ham United a great Premier League club," read the
letter. Gold and Sullivan also revealed the club are "close to securing one
of our key striking targets".

With record signing Andy Carroll yet to play this season because of a foot
injury, BBC Sport's Ben Smith reports Monaco's 6ft 8in forward Lacina Traore
could join the club on loan if he gets a work permit. Wolves defender Roger
Johnson has already signed on loan after the Hammers failed to bring in
Everton's Johnny Heitinga. "These may be tough times for everyone at West
Ham, but no-one at Upton Park is panicking yet. Sullivan and Gold mean what
they say. Both of them believe, and have believed all season, that Allardyce
is the best man to keep them up. "Premier League survival is paramount. The
club will spend again in January with that in mind."

"January is not an easy time to do business but we are pleased to confirm we
are close to securing one of our key striking targets," continued the
letter.
Allardyce, 59, fielded a youthful side at Forest as he made nine changes
from the team beaten 2-1 in the Premier League at Fulham on New Year's Day.
The Hammers boss said he had informed Gold and Sullivan of his plans to
prioritise the club's top-flight campaign and the Capital One Cup semi-final
against Manchester City. "It is never enjoyable being knocked out of a cup
competition and losing by such a large scoreline to a lower division side is
hard to take for us all," added the letter.

Missing in action
Andy Carroll
Kevin Nolan - suspended for three games
Mark Noble - calf injury
James Tomkins - groin injury
James Collins - calf injury
Winston Reid - ankle injury
Ricardo Vaz Te - dislocated shoulder
Andy Carroll (pictured) - foot injury

"We thought the youngsters gave their all and did not stop trying, but in
the end Nottingham Forest's experience proved too much for us. "I know Sam
would have loved to have put out a more varied side, with our talented
youngsters accompanied by more senior players in the starting XI. "But many
key players are out injured and Sam has been handed a near impossible task
of coming through three crucial games in the space of six days with a squad
of only 14 fit and available senior players. "This is not an excuse, it is a
fact."

Graeme Howlett, editor of West Ham online fanzine Knees Up Mother Brown,
feels the statement is "essentially a vote of confidence" in Allardyce. He
said: "It ties in with a poll we ran last week where a small majority of
supporters voted to stick with him. "It's injuries and suspensions that are
costing us dearly at present. Any manager would have his work cut out.
Replacing him won't make the likes of Andy Carroll, Winston Reid or Mark
Noble fit again."

West Ham visit Manchester City on Wednesday for the first leg of their
Capital One Cup semi-final before a league trip to fellow relegation
battlers Cardiff on Saturday. They are currently without Carroll, Reid,
Noble, Ricardo Vaz Te, James Tomkins and James Collins because of injury,
while captain Kevin Nolan is suspended "We are under no illusions as to the
seriousness of our current predicament in the Premier League," added the
letter. But on the board we have a combined talent of running football
clubs and we will draw on all of our nous to get West Ham United out of this
situation. "We are all working round the clock to do everything in our
powers to help arrest our slump in form."

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Hammers in for Johnson
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 6th January 2014
By: Staff Writer

West Ham are preparing to sign Wolves defender Roger Johnson, according to
morning reports. The 6'3" central defender is set to be named as West Ham's
fourth centre half and assuming the deal goes through smoothly, could go
straight into the team to face Manchester City at Eastlands on Wednesday
night when the two clubs meet in the first leg of the Capital One Cup semi
final. 30-year-old Johnson has spent the first half of the season on loan
with Championship side Sheffield Wednesday who were hoping to sign the
Ashford-born defender on a permanent basis. However the move has reportedly
been gazumped by the Hammers, who are hoping to tie up a deal within the
next 24 hours.

After starting his career as a pro at Wycombe, Johnson moved to Cardiff in
July 2006 in a £275,000 switch. Three years later, Birmingham City - owned
at the time by Messrs Sullivan and Gold - paid £5million to take him to to
St Andrew's before they sold him to neighbours Wolves for £7million in the
summer of 2011. He joined Wednesday on loan last September, since when he
has featured on 17 occasions.

KUMB member LincolshireHammer has seen plenty of Johnson in action for
Wednesday this season due to being based in Sheffield currently. "I've
popped across to a few games this season at Hillsborough and Johnson
struggled immensely," he said. "This was in the Championship against teams
like Wigan and Reading. "How is he going to do against Man City in one of
our biggest games in the past couple of years? A poor bit of business IMO, I
just hope he's not on decent money."

Meanwhile a Sheffield Wednesday fan, speaking via KUMB member Dannyboylister
added: "You're signing a player that's been on loan to a team currently
fifth bottom in the Championship. Don't get me wrong, he's a good honest
wholehearted player, but still. "He runs around a lot and doesn't kick as
many people as you'd think. I'd have been happy for him to come back to
Wednesday, but he is nowhere near Premier League standard."

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Sullivan and Gold call for United front
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 6th January 2014
By: Staff Writer

West Ham United's co-chairman David Gold and David Sullivan have urged fans
to remain patient despite a 5-0 drubbing away to Championship side
Nottingham Forest yesterday.

The Club's owners spoke out in the wake of the humiliating defeat and
accusations that manager Sam Allardyce "threw the game" in order to
concentrate on this week's Capital One Cup smei final, first leg against
Manchester City.

The full statement - as initially published on whufc.com - was as
follows....

Like all West Ham United supporters we feel frustrated and hurt by our
recent results. We understand how you feel and we, the Board, feel the same.

It is never enjoyable being knocked out of a Cup competition and losing by
such a large scoreline to a lower division side is hard to take for us all.
We thought the youngsters gave their all and did not stop trying but in the
end Nottingham Forest's experience proved too much for us.

I know Sam would have loved to have put out a more varied side, with our
talented youngsters accompanied by more senior players in the starting XI.
But many key players are out injured and Sam has been handed a near
impossible task of coming through three crucial games in the space of six
days with a squad of only 14 fit and available senior players. This is not
an excuse it is a fact. We know Sam has not lost his ambition or desire and
is committed to making West Ham United a great Premier League Club.

We now face a Capital One Cup semi-final on Wednesday followed by a vital
Barclays Premier League trip to Cardiff on Saturday. Despite an extremely
difficult draw, we are determined to do all we can to get to the Capital One
Cup final over two legs with Manchester City. We hope to have several of our
missing players back in time for Cardiff and we go there knowing that a win
can get us out of the bottom three. Such is the nature of the Premier League
this season; there are only six points between us and the team in 13th
place.

Make no mistake, though; we are under no illusions as to the seriousness of
our current predicament in the Premier League. But on the Board we have a
combined talent of running football clubs and we will draw on all of our
nous to get West Ham United out of this situation.
We have experienced difficult times before and we know what will get us
results - hard work, determination and perseverance. To that end, we are all
working round the clock to do everything in our powers to help arrest our
slump in form.

Our first priority is to get our key players fit. Our record signing Andy
Carroll continues to make good progress following his return to first-team
training and he should be back on the pitch very soon along with Hammer of
the Year Winston Reid and our other missing central defenders, James Tomkins
and James Collins. Trust us, Andy Carroll is desperate to play and is ready
to do his bit for the team and we are confident that the return of all of
our injured players will lead to an upturn in our fortunes.

Thereafter, our second priority is to bring in the new talent needed to
bolster our squad in the most needed areas. January is not an easy time to
do business but we are pleased to confirm we are close to securing one of
our key striking targets. A defender is high on the list of priorities as
well and progress is being made on that front.

Despite our difficulties, what has remained consistent throughout the past
few weeks and months is the unwavering level of support you have shown for
the team home and away. We took over 3,000 fans to Fulham on New Year's Day
and nearly the same number again to Nottingham on Sunday. That has been a
constant and successful theme since our record-breaking season under Sam in
2011/12 and I know everyone at the Club is extremely grateful for the unique
backing you provide to the team every week.

Following the Cardiff fixture, we have two more vital games in January
before a hugely significant February, which has three massive home games. We
will go into those games with a much-improved squad and we remain confident
that we can turn our season around.

Whilst we have exceeded expectation off the pitch this year, by providing
the Olympic Stadium and financial stability by taking personal
responsibility for the Club's inherited debts of £100 million, we know that
quality on the pitch is more important to you.

We have 103 employees that directly relate to the football teams, but we
also have 477 colleagues who work behind the team across all areas of the
Club. All of these people are key to our success. We continue to invest in
the development of their future by ensuring that West Ham United remains a
great place to work.

We understand these are difficult times for the Club and its supporters, but
we must stay united and come through the other side together. Please support
us and the team - we have no desire to be where we are and we are all doing
everything in our power to improve this unenviable situation.

Thank-you once again for your fantastic support.

David Sullivan and David Gold
Joint-Chairmen, West Ham United

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West Ham striker Carlton Cole has interest from other clubs
Last Updated: 06/01/14 6:24pm
SSN

Carlton Cole's agent has told Sky Sports that the striker is keeping his
options open amid interest from other clubs as talks continue with West Ham
regarding a contract extension. The 30-year-old had left Upton Park last
summer before rejoining West Ham in October on a deal that expires later
this month. He has scored three goals in 12 appearances for the Premier
League strugglers and Sam Allardyce is keen to extend Cole's deal. However,
the likes of Aston Villa, where Cole spent the 2004/05 season on loan,
Newcastle United and Queens Park Rangers are all reported to be monitoring
his current situation. Cole's representatives Saif Rubie confirmed
discussions are ongoing with West Ham and is waiting to see what develops
over the next couple of weeks. Rubie told Sky Sports: "It is correct that
West Ham have made contact about extending Carlton's deal which is due to
expire later this month. "Carlton is West Ham through and through and we
will sit down and listen to what they have got to say. "Carlton has done
well for West Ham when he has played in difficult circumstances.
"Carlton wants to help West Ham get out of trouble and stay in the Premier
League, but the deal has to be right him. "There has been interest in
Carlton from other clubs and he is keeping his options open. "At this stage
of his career he wants a deal best suited to him and he is West Ham player
until January 20th and then we will see what happens."

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West Ham sign Roger Johnson on loan from Wolves
Last Updated: 06/01/14 9:12pm
SSN

West Ham have announced the signing of defender Roger Johnson from Wolves
for the remainder of the season. The Hammers are desperately short of
defensive options due to a string of injuries and Johnson could make his
debut in Wednesday's Capital One Cup semi-final first leg at Manchester
City. A statement on the club's official website read: "West Ham United are
pleased to confirm the signing of centre-back Roger Johnson on loan for the
remainder of the 2013/14 season." West Ham defender Winston Reid has been
sidelined since early November and was joined in the treatment room by
centre-backs James Collins and James Tomkins. Johnson, who has been on loan
at Sheffield Wednesday since September, will be hoping for a happier spell
in the top-flight after suffering relegation with Birmingham and Wolves. He
joins the Hammers in the midst of another survival fight, with the east
Londoners sitting second from bottom and three points adrift of safety.

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West Ham keen on loan deal for Monaco striker Lacina Traore
Last Updated: 06/01/14 9:09pm
SSN

Sky sources understand that West Ham are interested in signing striker
Lacina Traore on loan from Monaco. Manager Sam Allardyce is hunting a new
frontman in the transfer window as he prepares his side for a survival push
in the second half of the campaign. Andy Carroll's lengthy absence has left
the Hammers short of a targetman and the 6'8" tall Traore would add some
physical presence to their forward line. Monaco only completed the signing
of Traore on Saturday from Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala for a fee thought
to be £8.3 million, but he could soon be heading to east London. The Hammers
are yet to make a formal offer, but Monaco are thought to be willing to let
the 23-year-old leave on loan for the rest of the season. Traore caught the
eye of Monaco after scoring 15 goals in 39 matches during an 18-month spell
in Russia.

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THE SIGNINGS START - ROGER JOHNSON SIGNS ON LOAN
By Iain Dale 6 Jan 2014 at 14:26
West Ham Till I Die

Forgive me if our first signing of the transfer window leaves me slightly
underwhelmed, but West Ham have today signed Wolves central defender Roger
Johnson on loan until the end of the season. He's 30 and has been on loan at
Sheffield Wednesday all season so far. he made his name at Wycombe scoring
19 times is 157 games. before a transfer to Cardiff City in 2006, where he
scored 12 times in 119 games. In 2009 he moved to Birmingham and in 2011 he
crossed the city to Wolves where he's made 69 appearances, scoring twice.

He's actually not a bad player, and it may be that getting back to the
Premier League will spur him on to recapture the form that he has shown in
the past. But you have to say that having been told we were looking at
players like Joleon Lescott to plug our defensive gap, it does seem a little
deflating that we sign a player who is regarded as expendable by a League
Two side. Or am I just being cynical?

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
WHY DO WEST HAM PLAYERS GET INJURED SO OFTEN?
By Iain Dale 6 Jan 2014 at 12:42
West Ham Till I Die

Roy Keane said something during the ITV coverage of yesterday's match which
made me think.

"We've almost been brainwashed in the last 10 years that Sam Allardyce is
years ahead in terms of sports science, so why so many injuries?"
Why indeed? There have long been suspicious that the Chadwell heath pitches
are the cause of some of our injuries. Big Sam raised that as a possibility
the other day when he related a conversation with Alan Curbishley, who is
convinced that is true. Allardyce dismissed it, but the very fact he raised
it indicates he thinks there's something in it. Either that, or our medical
staff are not up to scratch, or it's just a run of bad luck that all clubs
get at some stage.

It's no secret that the Chadwell Heath facilities are not exactly state of
the art and I wonder whatever happened to the plans to sell the site and
build a new training centre elsewhere. Perhaps those plans should be revived
fairly quickly. If we're going to attract high quality players we need to
have the best facilities to get the best out of them. I have no idea how
much it would cost to build a new training centre with quality pitches, but
surely it has to be seen as a good investment.

Sam Allardyce has got a reputation for relying heavily on sports science and
statistics. Surely he has go an answer as to why our players get injured so
much – what were the stats at Bolton, Newcastle and Blackburn?

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham crisis sees Harry Redknapp installed as favourite to replace
manager Sam Allardyce
Jan 06, 2014 22:30 By Darren Lewis 1
TheMirror

Harry Redknapp is the bookies' favourite to succeed Sam Allardyce - even
though West Ham's owners have publicly backed their under-fire boss. David
Gold and David Sullivan took the unusual step of issuing a statement on
Monday morning confirming their intention to stand by their manager - as
reported in Mirror Sport last week. It said: "We know Sam has not lost his
ambition or desire and is committed to making West Ham United a great
Premier League club. "Make no mistake, we are under no illusions as to the
seriousness of our current predicament in the Premier League. "But on the
Board we have a combined talent of running football clubs and we will draw
on all of our nous to get West Ham United out of this situation."

That has not stopped the bookmakers making 66-year-old Redknapp - in line
for promotion with QPR - odds-on for a shock return to Upton Park. Besiktas
chief Slaven Bilic, a former Upton Park hero, is also in the picture along
with ex-Cardiff boss Malky Mackay. The Hammers have won just one of their
last 13 Premier League games with the club sitting second from bottom. The
east Londoners are anxious to retain their top-flight status and consolidate
ahead of a move to the Olympic Stadium. As such they have prioritised their
League games, starting at Cardiff on Saturday, over the cup competitions.
But following widespread fan anger at the 5-0 humiliation for a shadow side
in the FA Cup at Championship Nottingham Forest, Gold and Sullivan have
promised an improved showing in against Manchester City on Wednesday in the
first leg of a Capital One Cup semi-final. They added: "Many key players are
out injured and Sam has been handed a near impossible task of coming through
three crucial games in the space of six days with a squad of only 14 fit and
available senior players. "This is not an excuse it is a fact. We know Sam
has not lost his ambition or desire and is committed to making West Ham
United a great Premier League Club. "We now face a Capital One Cup
semi-final on Wednesday followed by a vital Barclays Premier League trip to
Cardiff on Saturday. "Despite an extremely difficult draw, we are determined
to do all we can to get to the Capital One Cup final over two legs with
Manchester City. "We hope to have several of our missing players back in
time for Cardiff and we go there knowing that a win can get us out of the
bottom three. "Such is the nature of the Premier League this season; there
are only six points between us and the team in 13th place."

West Ham have Andy Carroll, Ricardo Vaz Te, James Tomkins, James Collins,
Winston Reid and Mark Noble all out through injury. Skipper Kevin Nolan is
suspended after being sent off at Fulham - his second red card within a
month. The Hammers have moved to solve their defensive crisis by snapping up
Wolves defender Roger Johnson - who has been relegated in each of the last
three seasons - on loan. Johnson, 30, has been on loan at Championship soide
Sheffield Wednesday after suffering the drop twice with Wolves and before
that with Birmingham.

Allardyce is also keen on Manchester City defender Joleon Lescott after
seeing a move for Everton centre-half Johnny Heitinga collapse last week. A
loan deal for Monaco's 6ft 6in striker Lacina Traore is also close, pending
a work permit. West Ham are still hopeful of a deal for another forward -
either Everton's Nikica Jelavic or former Sunderland star Asamoah Gyan,
currently at UAE club Al Ain. Redknapp parted company with the Irons 13
years ago, after a bust-up with then-chairman Terry Brown. He has since led
Portsmouth into the Premier League and to FA Cup Final triumph, and also
took charge at struggling Spurs in 2008 and steered them into the Champions
League.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham's Carlton Cole to be offered transfer to Queens Park Rangers on an
18-month contract
Jan 06, 2014 22:29 By John Cross 0 Comments
The Mirror

QPR boss Harry Redknapp is hoping he can pinch Carlton Cole - by offering
him a longer deal than West Ham do. Former England striker Cole's short-term
contract at the Hammers expires next week and they are only likely to offer
him an extension until the end of the season. But Redknapp, desperate to
improve his goal-shy strike-force and keep Rangers' Championship promotion
push on the rails, is hoping an 18-month contract will help persuade Cole to
move to Loftus Road. The west Londoners are also eyeing Croatia striker
Nikica Jelavic, whose two goals for Everton helped knock them out of the FA
Cup at Goodison on Saturday.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Roger and out? Allardyce's new signing Johnson has been relegated three
times in a row
By MATT BARLOW
PUBLISHED: 22:30, 6 January 2014 | UPDATED: 22:30, 6 January 2014
The Daily Mail

If the vote of confidence from West Ham's owners was not bad enough for
manager Sam Allardyce, he has also acquired a player who has been relegated
in each of his last three seasons. Co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold
released an open letter in which they acknowledged the manager had to field
a young and inexperienced team in a 5-0 FA Cup defeat at Nottingham Forest.
They also vowed to sign players in January and started with Roger Johnson,
who has been relegated in each of his last three seasons and has moved to
Upton Park from Wolverhampton Wanderers until the end of the season.
Allardyce, never the most popular manager at Upton Park, is under intense
scrutiny. Two wins in 13 games culminated in the humiliation at Forest on
Sunday, yet his side are in a Capital One Cup semi-final, with important
players nearing fitness and the promise of more signings to follow Johnson.
Giant Ivorian striker Lacina Traore is supposed to be on his way if a work
permit can be secured next week. Traore has a deal to join Monaco from Anzhi
Makhachkala in the summer and permission from the French club to spend the
next six months at West Ham. The Hammers also enquired on Monday about
Wolves keeper Wayne Hennessey and could snatch him from the clutches of
Crystal Palace, who have yet to agree a fee for him. Sullivan and Gold, in
an open letter to supporters on Monday, said Allardyce had only 14 fit
senior players for three games, starting at Forest, and accepted his reasons
for selecting a young side. 'Like all West Ham supporters we feel
frustrated and hurt by our recent results,' said the letter. 'We understand
how you feel and we, the Board, feel the same.' They thanked fans for their
loyal support, no doubt aware of their growing discontent, but stopped short
of offering to compensate the 3,000 who travelled to the City Ground — apart
from one young boy caught sobbing on camera, who has been invited to watch a
game from the Upton Park directors' box. Instead, they said: 'Many key
players are out injured and Sam has been handed a near impossible task of
coming through three crucial games in the space of six days with a squad of
only 14 fit and available senior players. 'We know Sam has not lost his
ambition or desire and is committed to making West Ham United a great
Premier League club.'

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Chelsea U21 2 West Ham U21 1: Ake compounds Hammers' cup woes as Baker
shines again after first-team debut
By ADAM SHERGOLD
PUBLISHED: 21:42, 6 January 2014 | UPDATED: 21:42, 6 January 2014
Daily M ail

Nathan Ake deepened the week's cup misery for West Ham's youngsters by
sending Chelsea into the last eight of the Under 21 Premier League Cup. The
day after Sam Allardyce's faith in youth resulted in FA Cup third round
humiliation at Nottingham Forest, another group of Hammers hopefuls
experienced the heartbreak of cup elimination. It was Chelsea's Lewis Baker,
another teenage prospect granted his first team debut in Sunday's cup ties,
who ran the show on a soggy Monday night in Aldershot. Having been given a
taste of what awaits him when Jose Mourinho threw him on for the last couple
of minutes at Derby, it was back to the daily grind for Baker. But rubbing
his shoulders with the seniors only seemed to inspire the prodigiously
talented midfielder, who set up first-half goals for Isaiah Brown and Ake,
made countless other openings and stuck the post with an early free-kick.
West Ham played their part in a contest affected by sheets of driving rain,
a swirling wind and a playing surface that visibly disintegrated into sticky
mud with every tackle. But their goal was a stroke of fortune - an own goal
from Blues goalkeeper Mitchell Beeney - and they should have been buried by
half-time as Chelsea wasted a hatful of good chances.

Baker gave a clear signal of his intentions as early as the third minute
when his whipped 25-yard free-kick was touched onto the post by West Ham
keeper Sam Howes. Not that the England youth international would be denied
for long - he played Isaiah Brown into space shortly afterwards and the
striker side-stepped his marker before leathering the ball through Howes and
into the net. The visitors had come close prior to Chelsea's opener when
captain Kieran Bywater's angled shot was pushed away by Beeney, and they
equalised when an otherwise innocuous low ball from right-back Jerry Amoo
hit Adam Nditi and bounced in off Beeney. It was a high octane opening and
Chelsea were soon back in front. Again, Baker was the architect, sliding the
perfect low through pass to Ake, playing in midfield rather than his usual
defensive station. The Dutchman showed plenty of composure to shoot across
Howes and into the far corner.
At this point, a repeat of the 3-3 league thriller back in November, when
Ake salvaged a late point, was on the cards. Chelsea threw everything
forward in search of a third, winning a succession of chances just before
half-time. An intricate one-two between Baker and Jeremie Boga deserved
better than the latter firing his shot straight at Howes. And the busy West
Ham stopper did brilliantly to turn away Boga's header with a reaction save
seconds later. The Hammers improved after the break and Jordan Brown was
sent clear by Nathan Mavila touch, only to lose composure and fire into
Beeney's hands.

At the other end, Brown found himself in a similar situation after Baker had
again released him but his hurried shot lacked power. A couple of minutes
later, a teasing right-wing cross from the lively John Swift was nudged
goalwards by Baker, only for Howes to again get in the way. Swift was
proving he's equally adept out wide as in his usual central position and he
drove inside well to fire fractionally wide with 20 minutes left. But
these missed chances didn't matter as Chelsea reached the quarter-finals
with plenty to spare.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Costs of West Ham Olympic Stadium Renovation Rise
January 6, 2014
http://www.worldfootballinsider.com/

A London-based infrastructure group has been awarded the contract for the
transformation of the 2012 Olympic Stadium amid concerns about the venue's
rising costs. Balfour Beatty has been awarded a 154 million-pound contract
to turn the facility into a new home ground for West Ham United, pushing the
total cost of the Summer Games venue to more than 580 million. The completed
project will feature a cantilevered roof, corporate offices, retractable
seats, and a capacity of 54,000. Work is expected to begin quickly with
completion expected by spring 2016. "[U]pon completion," said Balfour Beatty
chief executive Andrew McNaughton, "the stadium will provide a first-class
sporting and cultural facility for many generations to come." Balfour Beatty
was previously awarded the contracted to install the roof for 41 million
pounds. It will now lead the remainder of the project as well. The deal
comes under criticism as West Ham United plays under threat of relegation
and questions about whether the club will be able to sell enough tickets to
justify the move. "Where is the cash coming from? Who's paying for it? We
still don't really know, but chances are we're all contributing," said
Andrew Boff of the London Assembly, according to The Guardian. "Taxpayers
shouldn't be paying for Premier League football clubs."

Club vice chair Karren Brady defended the decision, asserting that "West Ham
is not getting a free stadium." "The stadium was built for the Olympics and
what are we going to do with it?," she said. "Across the world, stadiums
that are not used die. Without anchor tenants, the cost would be huge to the
taxpayer."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham switch attention to Chelsea star
Sportsdirectnews.com
Exclusive
by Mark Brus6th January 2014 9:23pm GMT

West Ham manager Sam Allardyce could target a loan move for Chelsea
left-back Ryan Bertrand after missing out on Alexander Buttner. SportsDirect
News understands that Buttner had become a top target for the Hammers this
January, though he confirmed earlier today that he would be looking to stay
at United to fight for his place. This has seemingly now seen Allardyce
enquire about Bertrand's potential availability, with the 24-year-old
currently behind both Ashley Cole and Cesar Azpilicueta in the pecking order
at Stamford Bridge. Bertrand has been out on loan at five different clubs in
the past, and West Ham may look to sign him with the view to a permanent
transfer on this occasion. The former England Under-21 international has
also been linked with Southampton and Liverpool in recent times.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Ake gives Chelsea youngsters cup victory
Soccer - NextGen Series - Group Three - Chelsea v Ajax - EBB Stadium
06/01/2014
By Matt Barrett
Westlondonsport.com

Nathan Ake's first-half goal gave Chelsea a 2-1 win against West Ham, taking
them through to the quarter-finals of the Under-21 Premier League Cup.
Driving rain meant both teams had to contend with atrocious conditions at
Aldershot, where the Blues made a great start and went ahead after only six
minutes. Lewis Baker, who made his first-team debut at Derby on Sunday, went
close after barely a minute when his free-kick was tipped on to the post by
outstanding keeper Sam Howes. Isaiah Brown fired in the opener before the
visitors drew level when Jerry Amoo's cross was deflected past keeper Mark
Beeney by the unfortunate Ake. But Ake then restored the lead by finishing
well after being set up by Baker. Dermot Drummy's side are now unbeaten in
12 games, having won nine of them. And they would have beaten the young
Hammers by a bigger margin but for the brilliance of Howes, who produced
fine saves to deny Baker, Brown and Jeremie Boga.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

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Daily WHUFC News - 6th January 2014

Paterson treble sends Hammers out
WHUFC.com
West Ham United's FA Cup challenge was ended with a 5-0 defeat at Nottingham
Forest
05.01.2014

Nottingham Forest 5-0 West Ham United
FA Cup with Budweiser third round

Jamie Paterson's 14-minute hat-trick sent West Ham United tumbling out of
the FA Cup with Budweiser on Sunday afternoon. Nottingham Forest already led
at the break through a Djamal Abdoun penalty before Paterson took over in
the closing quarter of the contest. His treble started with a goal in the
65th minute, with others in the 71st and 79th soon following. Andy Reid's
stoppage time strike completed a 5-0 rout and ended the Hammers' interest in
the competition for 2014. Three young Hammers were given their debuts from
the start, with Callum Driver, Seb Lletget and Danny Whitehead all in the
line-up. The inexperienced visitors did not get off to the start they hoped
for, though, falling behind to a twelfth minute penalty. George Moncur was
the unfortunate guilty party, perhaps showing too much eagerness in trying
to win the ball back after being dispossessed and only succeeding in
clipping Paterson. Abdoun showed considerable calm in dispatching the
penalty, chipping down the middle with Adrian committed to diving to his
right. Twelve minutes later the Hammers were within a whisker of equalising,
when Ravel Morrison's free kick flew over the wall and towards goal, but
Karl Darlow stretched out a hand to touch over. At the other end the Forest
fans felt they may have had a second penalty when Greg Halford and Driver
slid in to contest a loose ball in the six yard box, but referee Martin
Atkinson was correct in his assessment that the West Ham man had made the
tackle. West Ham's moments of genuine threat were limited before the
interval, although they did create an opportunity with 35 minutes played
when Matt Jarvis drove at the home backline and fed Modibo Maiga, but the
ball got stuck under his feet and Eric Lichaj recovered to make the tackle.
Seven minutes later Adrian kept the deficit at one, spreading himself to
block from Lichaj, after he drifted in unchecked from the flank to collect a
pass from Andy Reid.

The Hammers started the second half in brighter fashion as they got on the
ball more and Morrison drew a save from Darlow after working a corner short
and weaving his way past Dan Harding down the by-line. Forest withstood that
spell as the Hammers gathered momentum and Henri Lansbury should have done
better on 61 minutes when he met Reid's free kick in a good position but
headed over. The hosts did not have to wait long for their second, as with
65 minutes played Halford got the better of Reece Burke over a bouncing
ball, allowing Paterson to take over and net via the far post. Six minutes
later Paterson killed the tie when he picked up a pass from Lansbury and
unleashed a shot which flicked off Burke's foot and left Adrian helpless. It
was to get even worse for the Hammers eleven minutes from time when Paterson
completed his hat-trick, being allowed to move across the face of the
Hammers defence too easily before drilling into the bottom left corner. The
rout wasn't yet complete and Reid added to the Hammers woes in stoppage
time, stroking into the top left hand corner after the hosts seized on a
loose Maiga pass to break quickly. Abdoun raced clear before slamming the
brakes on and squaring unselfishly for Reid to do the rest.

Nottingham Forest: Darlow; Jara, Lascelles, Hobbs, Lichaj (Harding 58);
Moussi, Reid; Abdoun, Lansbury, Paterson (Derbyshire 75); Halford (Cox 75)
Subs: Mackie, MIller, Evitmov, Majewski
Goals: Abdoun pen 12, Paterson 65, 71, 79, Reid 90+1
Booked: Derbyshire

West Ham United: Adrian; Driver, Diarra (Burke 55), Potts; Jarvis, Lletget,
Whitehead, Moncur (Fanimo 55), Downing (Turgott 64); Morrison; Maiga
Subs: Spiegel, Lee, Maguire, Gordon
Booked: Lletget

Referee: Martin Atkinson
Attendance: 14,397

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Big Sam reflects on FA Cup exit
WHUFC.com
Manager Sam Allardyce has spoken following Sunday's FA Cup third round
defeat at Nottingham Forest
05.01.2014

Sam Allardyce said his young West Ham United side will learn from the
experience of Sunday's 5-0 FA Cup with Budweiser third-round defeat at
Nottingham Forest. Injuries and a packed fixture list, including a Capital
One Cup semi-final first leg at Manchester City and Barclays Premier League
trip to Cardiff City this week, forced the manager to blood a host of
youngsters at the City Ground. A Hammers team containing three debutants and
two other Development Squad regulars gave the Championship high-fliers a
stern test for more than an hour, only for the hosts to score four times in
the final 25 minutes. After falling behind to Djamel Abdoun's early penalty,
Big Sam saw his players battle back and enjoy a dangerous spell around the
hour-mark. Just when it looked like the Hammers could grab an equaliser,
Jamie Paterson drilled in a second. With youth-team defender Reece Burke and
Development Squad players Matthias Fanimo and Blair Turgott also introduced
from the bench, the young Hammers conceded three more goals in the closing
stages - two more to Paterson and one to Andy Reid - to give the final
score-line an unfortunately one-sided appearance.. "We were having our best
spell attacking-wise and I always say to young lads, when you're having a
few sustained attacks, you have to be careful about it because if you don't
score and take full advantage at that time you have to make sure you don't
leave the back door open," said Big Sam. "I think it happens at first-team
level sometimes and it happened on Sunday. "When we allowed the second goal
to go in, which was probably against the run of play at that time, they
didn't do themselves any favours with the way they approached the tie after
that, going all guns blazing on the all-out attack, making it very easy for
Nottingham Forest to run through us and score more goals. That was the
disappointing thing for me - not the first hour. "I thought everybody stuck
to their task and tried to play to their best and put a huge amount of
effort in. We all know how many young players we had out on the field which
gave Forest an advantage as they played their Championship side that played
week-in and week-out. "In the end it over-ran them by the fact the young
players got lost at the end and didn't realise that, at 2-0, the most
important thing was to make sure that Nottingham Forest didn't score another
goal. We needed to try to play our way back into the game and stabilise the
situation, but they didn't do that."

The magnificent 3,000-strong travelling support continued to sing until the
very end, despite seeing their unfamiliar-looking team defeated. The manager
said he took no joy or pride whatsoever in overseeing a defeat, but pointed
to this week's semi-final and the need to secure Barclays Premier League
safety as the reasons for his team selection on Sunday. "The big picture is
that my hands were tied in the selection process regarding who I could pick.
My hands have been tied nearly all season, because a lot of my players have
not played even a third of the season so far due to trauma and other
injuries. "We know what the problem is and we've got to overcome the problem
as quickly as possible. "Nobody wants to get beat and we certainly don't
want to get beat 5-0, but at the end of the day the semi-final against
Manchester City is more important than this game. "More managers change
their team for the FA Cup than don't. Billy Davies didn't change his team,
but he is one of very few. Most managers, even from the Championship, will
change their team for the FA Cup third round.
"Managers change their team in the Capital One Cup as we did this year to
good effect because we've got to the semi-finals. "It would have been
impossible to play the same 14 players on Sunday, on Wednesday and next
Saturday at Cardiff, because that would have promoted us getting more
injuries than we have already got. "Circumstances were against me and I had
to play the young players. I told everybody very early, so everybody knew
what was going to happen. I was hoping the players were still going to stand
up and make a better game of it, but unfortunately they didn't. "Manchester
City played on Saturday and we had to play on Sunday. I still needed to use
Ravel Morrison, Modibo Maiga and Matt Jarvis and they played the whole game,
while I brought Stewart Downing and Alou Diarra off as I need them as well.
"We also have the lads at home who are fit and they will all get themselves
ready and prepare for the big, big game on Wednesday."

Finally, the manager confirmed again that the Club are working hard to bring
in new recruits to bolster the injury-affected squad. "We're still looking
in the market to sign more players if we can. It's a critical situation at
the moment and there nobody aware of it more than me, how desperate our
situation has become over the last few weeks. "With our position in the
league, we have all got to stick together and get people back in the side
with the experience and the quality and determination I know they have got
to secure our Premier League status and get to the Capital One Cup final."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Nottm Forest 5 West Ham 0
5 January 2014
Last updated at 14:37
By Mandeep Sanghera
BBC Sport

Jamie Paterson scored a hat-trick as Nottingham Forest added to West Ham's
woes by knocking the struggling Premier League side out of the FA Cup.
Hammers boss Sam Allardyce fielded a youthful side and the visitors went
behind to a Djamel Abdoun penalty after George Moncur tripped Paterson.
Forest were dominant, and Paterson angled in the second before slotting in
from eight yards to make it 3-0. Paterson drove home his third before Andy
Reid sealed a comfortable win. "We looked at the sides pre-match and thought
it looked like it could be an uneven match-up. That was exactly the way it
panned out.
"West Ham have gone out of this competition with a whimper, never at any
stage looking like they were going to give Forest a problem on the day. Big
Sam is now under big pressure."

Whether Forest's win counts as an upset is debatable considering the team
selected by Allardyce, but the comprehensive manner of the defeat will only
add to the pressure on the West Ham boss. Allardyce said before the game
that the FA Cup fell behind top-flight survival and the Capital One Cup
semi-final against Manchester City in his priorities, and also bemoaned the
injury problems he is having to contend with. He fielded three debutants at
Championship promotion chasers Forest in Danny Whitehead, Callum Driver and
Sebastian Lletget, as well as handing George Moncur his first start. And
Allardyce's decision to put the emphasis on youth soon backfired. Moncur's
over-exuberance resulted in the midfielder making a rash challenge on
Paterson, and Abdoun nonchalantly chipped in the resulting penalty. Ravel
Morrison had a dipping 22-yard free-kick tipped over by Forest keeper Karl
Darlow, but the visitors struggled to make any impression as they were
outplayed by the East Midlands side. Forest striker Greg Halford found
himself in on goal after a fortunate deflection and only a last-ditch
sliding tackle from Driver denied him the chance to shoot from close range.
Halford, who had scored three goals in as many games operating as a
makeshift forward, then headed another chance straight at keeper Adrian
following a well-worked move. The home side's main regret would have been
they were not further ahead, and that feeling was compounded when Eric
Lichaj was through on goal only to have his low shot saved, with Henri
Lansbury shooting high from the rebound. Forest's inability to turn their
dominance into more goals was almost punished as the visitors briefly
rallied after the break. Lletget had a deflected shot parried away by
Darlow, who also had to palm a Morrison shot wide before the home side's
nerves were settled. Paterson made the most of Halford holding off a
defender to latch onto a loose ball, surging into the area and finishing
with a drilled left-foot shot. The forward then made the most of a Lansbury
lay-off to drive in his second via a deflection before completing his
hat-trick with a powerful shot after running across West Ham's box. The
Hammers fell apart and, after Reid shot home, referee Martin Atkinson's
final whistle was all that could end their misery.

Nottingham Forest manager Billy Davies: "I think someone was waiting to be
hit for four or five here. Our play has been very good and we created a host
of chances, I'm delighted with the way we played. "I have to say we know
[West Ham boss] Sam Allardyce has bigger fish to fry... We know he has
injuries like ourselves. "But before the game we were concerned, because in
[Stewart] Downing and [Matt] Jarvis, [Modibo] Maiga and [Ravel] Morrison
they had £20m of talent in the front four. We had to make sure we were up
for the game, I wish I had £20m worth of front players because they have
very good players."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sam Allardyce: West Ham owners knew of FA Cup team changes
BBC.co.uk

West Ham manager Sam Allardyce says he informed the club's owners of the
changes he was planning for the FA Cup third round tie at Nottingham Forest.
Allardyce made nine changes from the New Year's Day Premier League defeat by
Fulham, including three debutants. Two players also made debuts from the
bench as a youthful side were thrashed 5-0 by the Championship outfit. "I
made them (David Gold and David Sullivan) aware of what would happen," said
Allardyce. "I'm not in the position to go and do these things without
telling everybody internally what is planned for the next few games." West
Ham are second-from-bottom of the Premier League after only one top-flight
win in their last 13 games. They also have a lengthy injury list, with Andy
Carroll, Riacrdo Vaz Te, James Tomkins, James Collins, Winston Reid and Mark
Noble sidelined. Captain Kevin Nolan is also unavailable as he serves a
four-game suspension after his sending off at Craven Cottage. With a Capital
One Cup semi-final first-leg tie at Manchester City on Wednesday and league
game at fellow strugglers Cardiff on Saturday, Allardyce said he had little
choice in the team he picked for the FA Cup. "My hands are tied behind my
back every time I see what's available and the team is almost picking
itself," he said. "It's a disaster at the moment, a total disaster and in
certain areas we've not been able to cope. "My priorities meant I put too
many youngsters in and they were not able to withstand Forest's pressure in
the last half an hour. "I picked the team so it is my responsibility. You
know what my priorities are: the priorities are the Premier League first and
then Capital One Cup."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Allardyce defends Cup policy
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 5th January 2014
By: Staff Writer

Sam Allardyce says that he fielded a seriously weakened team at Nottingham
Forest this afternoon in order to protect his senior players ahead of
Wednesday night's Capital One Cup semi final, first leg at Manchester City.
Allardyce - along with almost 3,000 embarrassed travelling supporters -
watched his team thrashed 5-0 by the Championship side before insisting that
he had very little choice in the matter, given West Ham's busy programme of
fixtures and his chronic shortage of fully fit, first team players. "My
experience told me to play the young players today to protect the players
I've got fit at the moment to play in the Capital One Cup semi final," he
told 5-Live's Rob Nothman. "It's a very difficult period for us all and
nobody knows more than I do how important it is and what it means to
everybody - myself included. "But I have to keep professional, I have to
keep focused on what is the right thing to do - not just for the next game
but for the next few games that are coming up and manage that situation to
make sure we've got the best chance for Wednesday and at Cardiff after."

Allardyce also praised his young debutants for their efforts today, but
conceded that they ran out of steam as the game progressed. "The sad thing
is, after an hour I thought they were showing a reasonable understanding of
how the game has to be played against a very strong Championship side here
at Forest," he said. "It was looking like we may get back in the game at
1-0 as we had some chances, but when the second goal went in they lost their
shape, they lost their desire to defend correctly and they chased the game -
and when you chase a game, you very rarely get in back. "What they did was
leave themselves too open and allow Forest to score at will in the final
part of the game, which was a shame considering how well some of them had
done up to the hour. But the game is 90 minutes [long], not 60."

Eight Games In 32 Days: Big Sam's January Backlog

Weds, 1st Jan: Fulham (a) 1-2
Sun, 5th Jan: Nottingham Forest (a) 0-5
Weds, 8th Jan: Manchester City (a)
Sat, 11th Jan: Cardiff City (a)
Sat, 18th Jan: Newcastle United (h)
Tues, 21st Jan: Manchester City (h)
Weds, 29th Jan: Chelsea (a)
Sat, 1st Feb: Swansea (h)

Injury Outlook: Return Dates

James Tomkins: Fit for Man City or Cardiff
James Collins: Fit for Man City or Cardiff
Ricardo Vaz Te: Mid-to-late January
Andy Carroll: Mid-to-late January
Winston Reid: Early-to-mid February

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Jamie Paterson hits a hat-trick in Nottingham Forest's 5-0 rout of West Ham
Last Updated: 05/01/14 9:00pm
SSN

Jamie Paterson notched a quick-fire second-half hat-trick as Nottingham
Forest beat an under-strength West Ham 5-0 to dump them out of the FA Cup.
Djamel Abdoun put the Championship side ahead via the penalty spot in the
12th minute after George Moncur had fouled Paterson in the box. Paterson
slotted home on 65, 71 and 79 minutes and Andy Reid scored in injury-time to
see their side easily progress to the fourth round. Sam Allardyce faces
fresh questions over his future as West Ham manager as his unrecognisable
side were routed. While Forest's win might go down in some quarters as a cup
upset, once the team-sheets were announced the bookmakers had already
installed the hosts as odds-on favourites. Allardyce, with injury and
suspension problems and a Capital One Cup semi-final in midweek, handed out
a total of five debuts, three from the start and two more off the bench,
among nine changes to his team. It was a gamble that backfired horribly as
the relegation-battling Hammers simply had their confidence further
assaulted by lower-league opposition. The young rookies - Seb Lletget, Danny
Whitehead, Callum Driver, Reece Burke and Blair Turgott - can hardly be
blamed for the humbling result, but Allardyce may not be as lucky. His
future may detract slightly from Paterson's efforts, but it should not -
with the winger winning his side's spot-kick and then converting three fine
goals of his own. The opener came after just 12 minutes as Paterson beat
Moncur with some neat footwork before being tripped by the midfielder.
Referee Martin Atkinson pointed to the spot and Abdoun dinked the ball down
the middle with a cheeky finish.

Experienced players

West Ham's most experienced players were stationed on either wing, with
captain-for-the-day Stewart Downing left and Matt Jarvis right. The Hammers
looked for the pair with every attack and in the 23rd minute, the visitors
went close to levelling. Reid's foul gave Ravel Morrison a chance to test
his free-kick skills from 20 yards out and his bending shot would have crept
under the crossbar had Karl Darlow not responded with a fine save. At the
other end, there was a big penalty appeal soon after when Driver went in
hard on Greg Halford as he looked to convert from close range, but the
defender got a piece of the ball. Regardless, West Ham were clinging on -
goalkeeper Adrian tested first by Jamaal Lascelles' long-ranger and then by
Halford's downward header. Three minutes before the break, Forest missed two
more chances to double the lead. Reid's clever through-ball deserved a
better finish than Eric Lichaj could provide and, when Adrian's save came
back out, Henri Lansbury shot over from an inviting position. After the
break, Downing's shot deflected over and Whitehead followed up with a wild
attempt of his own. Allardyce threw on more youth, handing debuts to Burke
and Turgott and also sending on Mathias Fanimo. The visitors might have
equalised before the hour mark had it not been for Darlow, who saved low
from Lletget while unsighted and stood firm to Morrison's near-post drive.
That was as good as it got, though, with the game ended as a contest on 65
minutes when Halford held the ball up well before teeing up Paterson to find
the bottom corner. Paterson's second came just six minutes later as West
Ham's frailties continued to be exposed. Lansbury played creator this time,
squaring the ball for Paterson, who stroked home confidently with a
first-time effort. By now, Forest were all over their opponents - Lansbury,
Paterson and Abdoun taking turns to torture their young markers. Paterson's
hat-trick duly arrived and there was one final insult when Reid smashed home
Abdoun's lay-off in injury time, leaving West Ham thoroughly humbled and
with plenty to ponder.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham's Sam Allardyce admits there could be repercussions after loss
Last Updated: 05/01/14 4:05pm
SSN

West Ham boss Sam Allardyce is looking ahead but he admits there could be
repercussions after he saw his youthful side routed 5-0 by Nottingham Forest
in the FA Cup. Allardyce made nine changes for the third-round tie at the
City Ground, handing debuts to three rookies in his starting XI and two more
from the bench. But the move backfired as Jamie Paterson notched a
quick-fire second-half hat-trick - sandwiched between a Djamel Abdoun
penalty and Andy Reid's injury-time effort - as Forest progressed to the
fourth round. Asked if he expected repercussions from the club's co-owners
David Gold and David Sullivan, he said: "There might be, who knows? It's
their decision, not mine. "I'm not saying it won't happen unless I start to
get results. I have got to get results, I know that. "But I made them (Gold
and Sullivan) aware of what would happen today because I'm not in the
position to go and do these things without telling everybody internally what
is planned for the next few games."

No apologies

Allardyce made no apologies for his decision to place the trip to Nottingham
down the pecking order, saying: "My priorities meant I put too many
youngsters in and they were not able to withstand Forest's pressure in the
last half an hour. "I picked the team so it is my responsibility. You know
what my priorities are: the priorities are the Premier League first and then
Capital One Cup (semi-final against Manchester City). "It's leg one on
Wednesday and we need to get back to the second leg with an opportunity to
get to Wembley and then get some points at Cardiff. "My hands are tied
behind my back every time I see what's available and the team is almost
picking itself. It's a disaster at the moment, a total disaster and in
certain areas we've not been able to cope."

The Hammers' most pressing concerns at present are in defence, where there
are several injuries and - on this evidence - few ready to take up the
mantle.
The January transfer window may help with that and Allardyce confirmed he
was interested in, though not confident, of a move for Manchester City's
Joleon Lescott. "I don't know if Joleon is available, but if it is possible
I would like to get him," he confirmed.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
NOTTINGHAM FOREST 5 WEST HAM 0 - STUFFED, HUMILIATED & MAULED
By Iain Dale 5 Jan 2014 at 13:53
West Ham Till I Die

As my LBC colleague Steve Allen would say, "Dreadful, Ladies & Gentlemen,
Dreadful". What a way to go out of the FA Cup. It was Nottingham Forest who
looked like a Premier League side. We looked like a League One side at best.
And for the most part, I don't blame the West Ham players at all. I blame
one man.

Sam Allardyce.

It wasn't the fact that he played far too many inexperienced players. It was
the fact that he played them in an unfamiliar formation and played several
of them in positions they have never played before. Since when did Daniel
Potts play as a centre back? Callum Driver is a full back, not a centre
back. Dan Whitehead is a deep playing midfielder. In this game he seemed to
be playing a forward attacking role alongside the totally anonymous Modibo
Maiga.

Where was Jack Collison? Where was Matt Taylor? That's just to name two. Joe
Cole and Mo Diame could have done with runouts for at least part of the
match.

The first teamers who played hardly covered themselves with glory. Ravel
Morrison looks a shadow of the player who started the season. Jarvis and
Downing created very little and Maiga, well, what's the point? After his
last game he should have taken this game by the scruff of the neck, yet he
was totally anonymous. Funnily enough Adrian did quite well and you could
only really blame him in any way for one of the goals.

Of the young players I thought Callum Driver did really well, and Blair
Turgott had a couple of great shots and runs late on. For the others it was
largely a day they ought to want to remember, but probably will want to
forget.

This was a humiliation, a mauling, a stuffing. I wanted to cower behind my
sofa. If I had traveled up to Nottingham and paid £30 to watch that I think
I'd want my money back. I wrote this before Sam Allardyce has given his post
match interview. God alone knows how he can explain this one. If he for one
moment blames 'the kids' then he's finished as far as I am concerned. He
needs to take 100% of the blame for playing the wrong players in the wrong
formation. But he won't. He'll blame injuries. He'll blame the number of
games. Anyone but the real culprit. Himself.

I'll finish odd by paying tribute to Nottingham Forest. They were fantastic
mainly because they were allowed to be. They clearly couldn't believe their
luck. Jamie Patterson was superb and deserved his hattrick, and the
evergreen Andy Reid had a brilliant game too. Well done to them.

As for us. If we lose 5-0 to Nottingham Forest, just imagine what Manchester
City will do to us on Wednesday.

Knowing us we'll probably win that.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sam Allardyce says situation at West Ham is a DISASTER after 5-0 mauling by
Nottingham Forest
Jan 05, 2014 17:46 By Liam Prenderville 4 Comments
The Mirror

The Hammers are already struggling in the league and after being dumped out
of the FA Cup, Allardyce accepts there could be repercussions for his future
Dejected: Allardyce watches his young players get dismantled at
ForestDejected: Allardyce watches his young players get dismantled at
ForestIan Walton
West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce accepts the current situation at Upton
Park is a "disaster" following the 5-0 FA Cup humiliation against Nottingham
Forest. A number of injuries and suspensions led to the Hammers' boss making
nine changes for the trip to the City Ground - as the Premier League
strugglers were thumped by their Championship opponents. And Allardyce
accepts things are currently at an all-time low at Upton Park - as the
problems continue to mount. He said: "My hands are tied behind my back every
time I see what's available and the team is almost picking itself. "It's a
disaster at the moment, a total disaster and in certain areas we've not been
able to cope."

The defeat compiles the misery for Allardyce - who is now under immense
pressure - with the club sliding perilously to 19th in the Premier League
table, following a run of seven games without a win. Co-owners David Gold
and David Sullivan are unlikely to act immediately but their hand could well
be forced - should the Hammers fail to pick up in the coming weeks -
something which Allardyce is well aware of. Asked if he expected
repercussions, he said: "There might be, who knows? It's their decision, not
mine. "I'm not saying it won't happen unless I start to get results. I have
got to get results, I know that."

Injuries and suspensions led to the West Ham manager handing debuts to
several of the club's youngsters - including Seb Lletget, Danny Whitehead
and Callum Driver - as his second string were thumped by the Reds. And with
a Capital One Cup semi-final against Manchester City coming up this week,
Allardyce admits his priorities ultimately lay away from this afternoon's
encounter. The 59-year-old said: "What choice did I have? I don't think I
had one. "I make the decisions for benefit of everyone at the football club.
We have a huge amount of problems in terms of available players. "I picked
the team so it's my responsibility. You know what my priorities are: the
priorities are the Premier League first and then Capital One Cup."

His problems have not been helped by the failure to sign Everton defender
John Heitinga - with the Dutchman rejecting a move to Upton Park last week.
Allardyce has made no secret of his desire to improve his defence this month
and earmarked Manchester City's out-of-favour man Joleon Lescott as a
potential acquisition. He added: "I don't know if Joleon is available, but
if it is possible, I would like to get him."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham eye move for Joleon Lescott
Last Updated: 05/01/14 7:38pm
SSN

West Ham United have made an approach for Manchester City defender Joleon
Lescott. Sky Sports understands that in a similar deal to that for Everton's
John Heitinga, who turned down a move to Upton Park earlier this week, West
Ham are willing to take over the remaining six months of Lescott's deal,
with an additional two years on top. Turkish outfit Besiktas have previously
claimed that they are hopeful of landing the England international, who is
keen to secure regular first team football ahead of the summer's World Cup.
Now West Ham are looking to entice Lescott to East London, and help bolster
their relegation battle.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sam Allardyce: FA Cup gamble won't cost me West Ham job
Sunday 5 Jan 2014 8:27 pm
Metro.co.uk

Sam Allardyce does not think his selection gamble in the FA Cup humiliation
at Nottingham Forest will cost him his job as West Ham manager. Allardyce
made nine changes for the third round tie, with debuts to three rookies in
his starting XI and two more from the bench. His youthful side were thrashed
with Jamie Paterson scoring a superb second-half hat-trick for Forest in
between Djamel Abdoun's penalty and Andy Reid's late goal. But with a
lengthy injury list, Allardyce insisted co-owners David Gold and David
Sullivan were fully aware of his plans to prioritise Wednesday's Capital One
Cup semi-final with Manchester City and Premier League survival. Asked if he
expected repercussions from his team selection, he said: 'There might be,
who knows? It's their decision, not mine. 'I'm not saying it won't happen
unless I start to get results. I have got to get results, I know that. 'But
I made them aware of what would happen today because I'm not in the position
to go and do these things without telling everybody internally what is
planned.' Seven games without a win have seen the Hammers drop to
second-bottom in the league and Allardyce added: 'My priorities meant I put
too many youngsters in and they were not able to withstand Forest's pressure
in the last half an hour. 'My hands are tied and the team is almost picking
itself. It's a disaster at the moment and in certain areas we've not been
able to cope.'

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham appeal to find fan forced to tears following Forest capitulation...
and offer him chance to watch another Hammers fixture in the director's box
By ELLIOTT BRETLAND
PUBLISHED: 21:54, 5 January 2014 | UPDATED: 21:54, 5 January 2014
Daily Mail

West Ham have offered one young supporter and his family the chance to watch
a future match in the club's director's box after the fan was spotted crying
by TV cameras during the Hammers' 5-0 drubbing at the hands of Nottingham
Forest in the FA Cup third round. Sam Allardyce's side suffered a deflating
defeat away to the Championship outfit on Sunday and it was too much to take
for some supporters. A statement on West Ham's official website read:
'Sunday afternoon's defeat at Nottingham Forest was tough for all to take,
but particularly for one tearful young man in the away end.'Everyone at West
Ham United shares this young man's disappointment and are grateful for the
large numbers of fans that made the trip to the City Ground.' 'To show the
Club's appreciation for the travelling Claret and Blue army, the Board,
manager and captain would like to offer this young fan and his family a
chance to watch an upcoming fixture at the Boleyn Ground from the Directors'
Box.' The east Londoners travelled to Nottinghamshire with a depleted squad
and were deservedly beaten - Forest frontman Jamie Paterson scored a
14-minute second-half hat-trick while wideman Djamel Abdoun and Andy Reid
also got their names on the scoresheet.
West Ham, who travel to Cardiff next Saturday, currently sit 19th in the
Premier League table, three points from safety, and have lost four and drawn
two of their last six fixtures.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham enter race for Defoe's signature as Hammers eye loan move to boost
survival hopes
PUBLISHED: 22:59, 4 January 2014 | UPDATED: 19:33, 5 January 2014
Daily Mail

West Ham will enter the race for England striker Jermain Defoe if Spurs let
him leave this month. Hammers owners David Sullivan and David Gold are
prepared to bankroll a move for a proven Premier League goalscorer such as
Defoe, 31, to help in their relegation battle. A loan would be the most
likely option as they will not want to commit to a permanent deal until they
know which division they will be playing in next season. Defoe, who spent
five years with West Ham, needs to play to boost his World Cup hopes and
will talk to his manager Tim Sherwood about his prospects at Tottenham. A
move to Toronto is not sealed and QPR's interest will come to nothing if
Defoe is offered Premier League football elsewhere.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

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Daily WHUFC News - 5th January 2014

Sam confirms Cole talks
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce revealed that West Ham United are in negotiations to extend Carlton Cole's stay
04.01.2014

Sam Allardyce has revealed that West Ham United are in negotiations to extend Carlton Cole's stay with the Club. The England striker returned to the Boleyn Ground for a second spell in October 2013 and, after returning to full match-fitness, has scored three times in nine Barclays Premier League appearances.
The 30-year-old has bagged against Fulham, Manchester United and Arsenal and, with his short-term deal set to run out on 13 January, the manager said the Club are moving to secure Cole's future. "We've got that in mind and are talking about that as quickly as we possibly can because obviously it needs to be addressed," confirmed Big Sam. "Carlton will be dealt with very shortly."

Cole's three goals this season have taken him up to 17th on West Ham's all-time list of goalscorers, ahead of Julian Dicks, Bill Robinson and Frank McAvennie.
Capped seven times by his country, the Croydon-born frontman has netted 62 goals for the Hammers and could make his 250th appearance for the Club in Sunday's FA Cup with Budweiser third-round tie at Nottingham Forest. Cole scored on his most-recent visit to the City Ground in a 4-1 Championship success in August 2011. After scoring just seconds into his initial debut against Charlton Athletic in August 2006, he finished as West Ham's leading scorer in four consecutive seasons between 2008 and 2012 and also scored the opening goal in the 2012 Championship Play-Off final victory over Blackpool at Wembley.
Meanwhile, the Club has exercised an option in Play-Off final match-winner Ricardo Vaz Te's contract that will extend his stay at the Club until summer 2015.
The 27-year-old, who is closing in on a return to action after three months out with a dislocated shoulder, has scored 19 goals in 55 appearances since his arrival from Barnsley in January 2012. A versatile forward, the former Bolton Wanderers and Hibernian man became a cult hero among the Claret and Blue Army when his late goal secured promotion at the Home of Football in May 2012. While Vaz Te's future has been secured and Cole could be set to stay at the Boleyn Ground, Big Sam also confirmed that Croatia striker Mladen Petric has departed by mutual consent. The forward, who turned 33 on New Year's Day, made four substitute appearances after joining the Club as an unattached free agent in September 2013. However, a calf injury restricted Petric's availability.
"Mladen Petric has been released on the fact the unfortunately, for whatever reason, he never recovered from his [calf] injury that he picked up, so that was another one who everybody seems to forget about who sadly wasn't able to make an impact for us," Big Sam confirmed. West Ham United would like to thank Mladen for his efforts and wish him luck in his future career.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
'It's a massive opportunity'
WHUFC.com
Stewart Downing is urging his young team-mates to make the most of Sunday's cup tie at Nottingham Forest
04.01.2014

Stewart Downing insists Sunday's FA Cup with Budweiser third round tie at Nottingham Forest presents West Ham United's Academy prospects the perfect opportunity to stake a claim for first-team football. With two cup ties in the space of just four days, Hammers boss Sam Allardyce is expected to shuffle his pack at the City Ground, thereby handing the Club's latest crop of youngsters the chance to shine. Twenty-nine-year-old Downing, meanwhile, is backing those selected to produce the goods, adamant that the Barclays Premier League is by no means out of their reach should they impress. "It's a massive opportunity [for the younger players]," he told West Ham TV. "When I was younger your chances mostly come in the cup, and if the manager sees a performance on Sunday, he might stick him in for the league game, you just don't know. "We have got a good group of younger players here, but it's been difficult to put them in a team that's not been winning. You need experienced players out there to start. There are some really good players and if they come in on Sunday and do really well they could take a senior player's place."

The Hammers winger concedes that it has, until now, been tough for Big Sam to blood the youngsters this term, with the Club finding the going tough in the Premier League. But opportunity now knocks and Downing reckons a cup outing will stand the Development Squad boys in good stead for future league football. He continued: "Winning any game breeds confidence. If young players get a chance then, when they need to play in the league, it gives them experience and confidence to go into a winning team. "That has been difficult for them as well, coming into a team that has not been getting results. But whether it's a league or a cup game, it's a chance to win a game and build confidence."

For Downing too, Sunday's cup tie is handily timed. The England international made his return from injury in the New Year's Day defeat by Fulham and is now in need of minutes under his belt. Though his return provides a considerable boost, the Club's list of absentees remains a lengthy one and unlike anything that Downing has ever previously experienced. He continued: "No, [I've never known anything like it] and strange injuries too. I had two, probably from bad tackles that went unpunished. Andy [Carroll] has had an injury in the same place twice, Vaz Te falls awkwardly and his shoulder pops out. It has been a bit strange but it's part and parcel of football. "Other clubs have probably got injuries as well, it's about how you deal with them. For us, we just need to stay positive and try to get a result as quickly as we can. "Getting eleven out at times has been difficult for the manager. In that sense it was always going to be tough for us. I think we've played quite well in a lot of the games and not killed teams off. Fulham was probably the biggest one. We had three or four chances at 1-0 and didn't see Fulham off and then we lose the game. That has probably been the story of our season."

Injuries aside, the No23 remains as confident as ever that the Hammers will recover in good time to climb the table, convinced that the squad is plenty strong enough to turn the tide. "A few of us have been in this situation before and I think it's easy to sulk and point and blame. But at the end of the day, you've got to go out and get results. The main thing at the minute is to win games. "There are obviously things going about in the press, who's to blame, this and that, but behind closed doors we stay strong. We play for a really good manager who has been in these situations before and gradually we'll get our players back fit, and from suspension, we'll kick on."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Turgott up for the cup
WHUFC.com
Blair Turgott is hoping to play a part in the FA Cup third round against Nottingham Forest on Sunday
04.01.2014

Blair Turgott is ready to make his mark in the FA Cup with Budweiser third round, if selected, when West Ham United meet Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Sunday. The winger has recently returned from a month-long loan spell at Sky Bet League One side Colchester United and is among a young squad that Sam Allardyce has selected for the game against Billy Davies' team amid a backdrop of injuries and suspension. Turgott played four times while with the U's, scoring once, and is eager to impress the manager if given the chance on Sunday. He told West Ham TV: "It's good that the manager is playing a lot of the young boys and we've just got to repay him now by putting in a good, solid performance. "No matter what happens we've just got to come off the pitch proud, show what we're about and show the manager we can play at that level. "I definitely think that it's a chance for everyone to show what they're good at in front of a big crowd, in front of other professionals, just do what you do and don't be nervous."

An appearance on Sunday would mark the 19-year-old's debut for the Club and complete a great few weeks for the youngster, who scored his first league goal in the U's 4-0 defeat of Stevenage on Boxing Day. The wide man enjoyed his time at the Weston Homes Community Stadium and felt he did himself justice while with Joe Dunne's side. "The manager was great with me; the way he wanted me to play was the way I want to play in the team. He tried to play to my strengths, he wanted me to be free and try and get on the ball, which is good. "He said he knows what I'm about so don't be nervous. It's good that they've got a young team down there as well and basically just said do what you do. "I enjoyed it because there was a good morale within the team, a good spirit and when I came in everybody took to me well. I thought that when I got going I could show what I was about and I enjoyed it."

With the first team squad stretched at present due to a mounting injury list, it is possible that Turgott and his Development Squad teammates could be seeing more competitive action over the coming weeks. Another competition where some of the U21s may feature is in the Capital One Cup, a tournament that the winger is familiar with having been present for Bradford City in their run to last year's final. The Hammers are now only two games away from reaching Wembley with Manchester City the team standing in their way and Turgott believes that success will be dependent on the team not being out of sight after the first leg at the Etihad Stadium. "We've got to be patient and not try and win it in the first leg but also not to go all out and lose it in the first leg either. "The key is to leave it open for the second leg so when it comes to it you've got a massive chance. It's also good for us that the second leg's at home. Hopefully we can give the crowd something to shout about and take it to the last game. "The first game, playing away, we just have to stay in the tie so that going into the second leg it will be all to play for."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Frustrating time for West Ham boss Sam Allardyce
Last Updated: 04/01/14 11:31am
SSN

West Ham United boss Sam Allardyce believes he faces a 'nearly impossible' challenge during the winter transfer window. The Hammers are in the market for fresh faces, and need them in their battle to preserve their Premier League status. A new frontman is considered to be a top priority, but proven marksmen are not easy to find - especially in January. Allardyce acknowledges as much, with a vastly-experienced coach aware that prices tend to inflate in the New Year and players become pickier about where they end up. "As always, the window is an impossible scenario to deal with. To have to work in it under the circumstances we have makes it even more difficult." He said in the Daily Mirror: "I knew it was going to be nearly impossible anyway in this window. "As always, the window is an impossible scenario to deal with. To have to work in it under the circumstances we have makes it even more difficult. "You've got players who will look around and say, 'Do I want to go to a team in the bottom three? Do I want to go for that fight?' "Perhaps some of them will say, 'No, I might as well stay and play the odd game'. You just keep searching and looking." One of those to have already said 'no' to Allardyce is Everton defender Johnny Heitinga, with the Dutchman having pulled out of a proposed switch to Upton Park at the last minute. On the collapse of that deal, Allardyce said: "I don't know what changed his mind. "By the following morning, he'd had a change of heart and decided it wasn't for him. Did he call me direct? No. "But we are still talking about bringing in new players."

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West Ham boss Sam Allardyce confirms Carlton Cole talks
Last Updated: 04/01/14 2:55pm
SSN

West Ham United boss Sam Allardyce has confirmed that the Premier League club are in talks with striker Carlton Cole over an extended contract. The 30-year-old, who was released in the summer before being re-signed by Allardyce earlier in October, has featured 12 times for the Hammers so far this season.
Cole's short-term deal at Upton Park is due to expire on January 13, but Allardyce says that he is now looking to increase the striker's stay. "We've got that in mind and are talking about that as quickly as we possibly can because obviously it needs to be addressed," he told West Ham's official website. "Carlton will be dealt with very shortly."

Meanwhile, another striker whose stay at West Ham has been increased is Ricardo Vaz Te, with the 27-year-old's contract being extended until 2015.
However, Allardyce confirmed that Croatian forward Mladen Petric has left the club due to injury problems after making just four appearances this campaign.
"Mladen Petric has been released on the fact that unfortunately, for whatever reason, he never recovered from his injury that he picked up, so that was another one who everybody seems to forget about who sadly wasn't able to make an impact for us," he said.

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WHY WE SHOULD BE UP FOR THE CUPS
By Tony McDonald 4 Jan 2014 at 19:53
West Ham Till I Die

IT obviously won't happen, but wouldn't it be nice if Big Sham actually fielded his best available XI for both the Nottingham Forest and Man City cup games and vowed to have a real go at taking West Ham as far as possible in the League Cup and FA Cup – as all clubs set out to do back in the day.

Fans will be paying lots of hard earned money to travel to both Forest and The Etihad in the next week, not to mention the cost of watching the home leg of the City tie, but for what? To see an understrength side put out by a manager who couldn't care less about the cup competitions. OK, so City are a mortgage job to do us over two legs, but at least let's go down having a go and fighting. Let's at least give chance a chance, no matter how slim our prospects seem to be.

After all, who are Nottingham Forest? An average team who often struggle to score goals, chasing a place in the Championship play-offs. Even with our current injury crisis, we should still have enough to beat them – if not at the City Ground, then via a replay.

The credibility of both domestic cup competitions has sadly been lacking for a number of years, a sad state of affairs exacerbated by the FA actually allowing – no, actively encouraging – Manchester United to opt out of the FA Cup completely one year so that they could play in the World Club Cup on the other side of the world instead. If the game's governing body doesn't take the world's oldest and once greatest competition too seriously, then it is any surprise that very few Premier League clubs do either?

Of course, we all know that money is at the root of this problem, as it is with many of the game's ills.

But why wouldn't a club like, say, Newcastle United – who have won nothing since 1969 – not go all out to win the cups? They are not going to challenge for the Champions League places this season and neither are they in danger of being relegated, so wouldn't it be nice to give their fans a trophy to cheer? Yet they have played a weakened team again, lost at home to Cardiff today and have now gone out at the third round stage in two consecutive seasons.

To be fair to Pardew, he was the last Hammers manager to take us close to emulating what John Lyall achieved 33 years ago, but let's not punish ourselves any more by reflecting upon how the 2006 Cup Final panned out in the closing stages.

Of course, managers of teams tangled up in a relegation battle will try and justify putting out fringe and inexperienced young players by saying 'it's the league that counts' and 'we can't afford any more injuries to first team regulars'. As it happens, this year, our ongoing injury problems will largely dictate the teams BS puts out at Forest and against City, although he – along with far too many other managers – has been treating the cups with contempt for too long. Even if Carroll, Downing and other injury victims had been available, there is no way BS would have put out his first choice team in cup games this season.

And yet the fans are expected to carry on turning up, paying their hard-earned (is it £49 for a ticket to the City home leg of the semi later this month?) and put up with watching what are effectively reserve team line-ups. Unconditional love and devotion. Or, as I see it, taking the piss.

The cynic in me has also noted a disturbing trend that is another blight on the game. Rather than set out to win League Cup and FA Cup ties, Premier League clubs (and others in the lower divisions) now routinely use these games as a convenient opportunity to manipulate the disciplinary totting up process. Clock how many players commit inexplicably ridiculous fouls to deliberately bring about a suspension that will preclude them from (in their eyes) a meaningless cup tie and leave them free to play in forthcoming league matches. You can imagine the dialogue in the dressing room 15 minutes before kick-off…

Manager: "Now remember (insert player's name), make sure you get booked before the end because we need you to be suspended for next week's cup game so that you will be back for the league game after that…"

Player: "Ok boss, leave it to me, no problem."

(I'm not sure what was said between Big Sham and Nolan at Anfield or Craven Cottage, but perhaps the skipper misheard the instructions….)

The FA should take a seriously close look at this widespread abuse of the system and introduce a new rule that would see player suspensions apply to league matches only.

It wasn't always this way.

Many of us doubtless recall those memorable floodlit games in the thrilling 1971-72 League Cup run that ended famously with a 2-3 defeat by Stoke on the Old Trafford mud. It was heart-breaking to lose in such unfortunate circumstances when Bobby Ferguson got injured and Mooro had to replace him between the sticks, especially after having overcome Leeds, Liverpool and Sheffield United in style in the build up to the semi-final saga. Chelsea had already reached the final and we had the Twin Towers in our sights.

At the age of 12, I was overjoyed to see Bryan Robson put Sheffield United to the sword in a 5-0 victory, Pop and Hurstie score the goals that sent Liverpool packing and Clyde Best notch a shock headed winner in an away replay at Leeds. This, at a time when Leeds and Liverpool were among the top sides in the country. There was never any suggestion that Leeds, under the ruthless Revie, would send out a lesser team against us. Look at the quality of their line-up on the night we won 1-0 at Elland Road: Harvey, Reaney, Cooper, Bremner, Charlton, Hunter, Lorimer, Clarke, Jones, Giles, Madeley, Gray.

Many of you will recall that gut-wrenching experience when Hurst's thunderbolt penalty was somehow diverted over the bar at the North Bank end by his England team-mate Gordon Banks in the second leg of the semi-final against Stoke. Those agonising replays that followed at Hillsborough and Old Trafford should have been unnecessary.

But when we inevitably lose to Man City over two legs this month (and there will certainly be no shame in that), no-one apart from us sad, old romantics will give a toss. By the next morning, all thoughts will turn again to the desperate battle for precious league points. It's all about money now.

There is, however, one obvious way the English football's governing authorities of the could change clubs' attitude towards the cups for the better… simply award Champions League places to the winners of those trophies, instead of the top four in the league. In the event of a team winning the cup double, give the CL place to the losing finalists.

*The latest issue of our retro EX magazine includes a rare, in-depth and exclusive interview with Frank Lampard, whose diving header winner against Everton in the 1980 FA Cup semi-final is etched in West Ham folklore. A year's (UK) subscription costs as little as £12 at www.ex-hammers.com

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BIG SAM POLL RESULT: 2,000 VOTES & IT DOESN'T MAKE HAPPY READING FOR BIG SAM
By Iain Dale 3 Jan 2014 at 21:36
West Ham Till I Die

This site has a bit of a reputation among other West Ham sites for being, well, a bit loyalist and not wishing to rock the boat. I've never quite understood why that is. Well tonight I don't think anyone can accuse us of that. Over the last 24 hours we have been conducting a poll asking the same question as KUMB is asking…

Do you believe West Ham United FC should retain the services of Sam Allardyce as manager?

This poll has had the biggest response of any poll ever carried out on the site. More than 2,000 of you voted. Here is the result

Yes – he should stay 32% (639 votes)
No – he should go 68% (1370 votes)

That's a fairly emphatic result. However, KUMB have been asking exactly the same question and have got a somewhat different result. 964 fans have voted in their poll.

Yes – he should stay 53% (515 votes)
No – he should go 46% (449 votes)

Put the two polls together and you have the views of 2,973 Hammers fans…

Yes – 39%
No – 61%

As I have stated before, I believe the board needs to make a decision and make it quickly. If Sam is to be axed, it should be done within the next few days. If they decide to stick with him, they need to make that clear both to him and to us to prevent speculation getting out of control.

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REMEMBERING ANDY MALCOLM (RIP); 1933-2013
By Tony Hanna 4 Jan 2014 at 12:22
West Ham Til I Die

Sadly, news has come through that former Hammer, Andy Malcolm, passed away on Boxing Day at the age of 80.

Andy made his debut for the club, aged 20, in a home loss to Notts County in December 1953. He went on to play over 300 times for the Hammers with his last game in October 1961 against Sheffield Wednesday. Andy Malcolm was typical of so many players of that generation, in that he was born a stones throw from the Boleyn ground. He was a tough tackling wing half, no nonsense, and tough as teak himself – only missing a handful of games in his career. He was ever present in the promotion winning side of the 1957/58 season, winning a Division Two champions medal along with being named Hammer of the Year for his contribution to the side. Andy Malcolm was the very first recipient of the award. This was no mean feat and highlights the importance of the man in a team that included Gregory, Bond, Brown, Allison, Cantwell, Musgrove and prolific goal scorers Vic Keeble and John Dick. Andy was not renown for his goal scoring, but he scored three of his four goals for the club in that one season.

The job Andy was good at was man marking. Many claim that he has been the best that West Ham have ever had in this role. In the 1958/59 season back in the top flight, he played players like Jimmy Greaves, Denis Law and Johnny Haynes out of the game. These were three of the giants of the game at the time. About ten years ago Andy bumped into Johnny Haynes at an airport, to which Johnny remarked – "you are still following me around after all these years". Some players nicknamed him "Shadow", as they were more likely to get a kick from Andy than a kick of the ball.

Andy also had the honour of being West Ham's first England youth international, although he did not go on to win a full England cap. He did represent the Football League in a fixture against the Scottish League in 1958. When Ron Greenwood took over from Ted Fenton as club manager in 1961, Andy lost his place in the team. Perhaps his style was not suited to Ron's philosophy? So he was transferred to Chelsea in 1962 before later joining QPR. He was to have a brief spell in South Africa before returning to England. Like many retired professional footballers of the time he went on to become landlord at Essex pubs, The Ship and Anchor in Malden and The Lion in Latchingdon. In 1986 Andy Malcolm returned to South Africa where he would spend the rest of his life.

Everyone at WHTID would like to pass on their sincere condolences to Andy Malcolm's family and friends at this sad time.

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Big Sam is West Ham's best hope to avoid the drop, says Hammers winger Stewart Downing
Jan 04, 2014 22:30 By Mirror Football 0 Comments
The Mirror

Stewart Downing insists under-fire manager Sam Allardyce is the best man for the job to save West Ham from the drop. The winger, who experienced relegation with his hometown club Middlesbrough in 2009, admits it has been a tough season at Upton Park. But he doesn't plan on adding a second relegation to his CV. Former Liverpool midfielder Downing said: "Sam picks the team and it's up to us to go out and get results, and that's what we've not done. "It's easy to blame the manager because he's at the top. "He does very well at taking a lot of pressure off of the players. "Sam was one of the reasons I came to play here, to play for a good manager like him. "No one wants a relegation on their CV. I've been through that and it's difficult. "You're living in the area and people are asking questions all the time. "When Middlesbrough went down, we were a young team. But when I look at this West Ham team it's a lot stronger."

An endless list of Hammers on the treatment table has not helped but Downing refused to offer injury problems as an excuse for the club's woeful form – three wins in the league all season. He added: "It's easy to sulk and point and blame, but at the end of the day you've got to go out and get results. "Getting 11 out at times has been difficult for the manager. "In that sense it was always going to be tough for us. But I think we've played quite well in a lot of the games,. but just not killed off teams."

West Ham's threadbare resources will be stretched again today when they come up against Nottingham Forest. Allardyce revealed he will have only 14 senior players available for selection. The Hammers can forget about their position near the foot of the Premier League table for the next four days at least. They make the daunting trip to the Etihad Stadium for the first leg of their Capital One Cup semi-final tie against Manchester City on Wednesday, before renewing their survival fight in the Premier League against Cardiff. Downing says Premier League survival is the priority, but two consecutive cup fixtures have come as a welcome breather. He added: "I look at the positives. "I look at the players coming back from injury like myself, and the cup games are games to get fit.
"If you play a quick succession of games you obviously get fit quicker."

West Ham could field as many as eight young players at the County Ground today due to the injury crisis. Downing, 29, said: "When I was younger most of my chances came in the cup, and if the manager sees a good performance against Forest he might stick the kid in for the league game."

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West Ham bid for giant Italian defender with law degree
HITC.com
Paul Watson

West Ham have approached Guglielmo Stendardo - a towering centre back with a law degree and a massive list of former clubs. West Ham have tabled a bid for Atalanta's Guglielmo Stendardo and are waiting for a response from the Bergamo club, Turin-based newspaper Tuttosport has reported. The Hammers sit second bottom of the Premier League and face a relegation dogfight in the second half of the season. Manager Sam Allardyce has often admitted that his defence isn't as strong as it should be and is expected to bring in some new faces to steady the ship. One of those could be experienced Naples-born defender Stendardo, who is currently plying his trade for Atalanta, who are also facing a battle to stay afloat in Serie A. Former Lazio man Stendardo is an interesting figure off the football field - he has a law degree and runs an agriturismo farm where guests can stay near Salerno. The 32-year-old is a towering six foot three and is noted for his prowess in the air but he is regarded as something of a journeyman in Italy. Stendardo has played for Napoli, Sampdoria, Salernitana, Perugia, Catania, Lazio, Juventus, Lecce and Atalanta. His most successful spell came at Lazio where he played 85 games between 2005 and 2012 despite not always having the best relationship with coaches.

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Nottingham Forest v West Ham United
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 4th January 2014
By: Preview Percy

Werther's originals, Australian sheep farms and condoms. Must be another Preview Percy, er, preview. There may be some stuff about football in there too if you can be bothered to look. We couldn't......

They're getting their money's worth out of me this week aren't they? Or they would be if they actually paid me. And past sell-by date Werther's Originals don't count. So next up we have to mosey on up the M1 to the City Ground Nottingham where Forest will host us in a third round FA Cup tie. Kick-off is at midday and, should the scores be level at full time, it'll be all back to our place to try and fit a replay in somewhere along the line.

Forest, the world's most hated club with the right amount of syllables in its name to fit the song, sit in 5th place in the Championship at the moment with 40 points from 24 matches. They are seven points off an automatic playoff place and four points clear of Brighton in 7th place.

The spotty work experience kid tells me that they've won three and drawn three of their last six league matches, the wins coming away at Sheffield Wednesday (1-0), and at home to QPR (2-0) and Leeds (2-1). The draws came at home to Ipswich (0-0) and away at Birmingham (0-0) and at Reading (1-1).

They are managed by Billy Davies, who you might recall was in charge of the Preston team that we beat in the 2005 Playoff final. Davies is now in his second spell at Forest having been sacked at the end of 2010/11 having failed in the playoffs. Just under two years later he returned after changes in the composition of the Forest board paved the way for him to take over from Alex McLeish who had left "by mutual consent" (yeah, right). Whilst at Preston, Davies' teams were characterised by a tendency to go down clutching their faces at every opportunity backed by a constant barrage of twaddle being shouted at the ref from Davies and his staff on the touchline. That's one thing we could do without.

The usual first choice 'keeper is a chap called Karl Darlow. Darlow is the grandson of a former Welsh international striker called, wait for it, Ken Leek. So Darlow actually qualifies for Wales by having a granddad called Leek, though he turned down an invitation to join the Welsh squad for a friendly against Austria last February.

There are a couple of ex-Hammers in the squad. Sadly we won't be seeing anything of Academy product Chris Cohen, who is the current club skipper. On his debut for us at 16 Cohen was the youngest outfield player to play for us in over 80 years and he formed part of the 2004/05 promotion squad before leaving for Yeovil (originally on loan) the following season. He's out for the season with cruciate ligament damage. Cruel game football. You do your knee in then get drawn against your old club a few weeks later.

They also have midfielder and occasional 'keeper Henri Lansbury in the team. Lansbury was part of the last promotion squad. His most memorable match was the 4-1 win up at Blackpool where the 5 on the bench rule saw us go up there without a sub 'keeper. When Green was (erroneously) dismissed Lansbury took over between the sticks and kept a clean sheet in the process. Lansbury was a bit of a fringe player during his one season long loan and left for Forest when Arsenal (his parent club) decided to flog him at the end of the season for a reported £1m.

There are a number of familiar faces about the place. These include Andy Reid who is back at the club where he started his English career. He's had some depressing times in his life, having spent time at Spurs. That would be depressing enough for a player, even if he were playing well. Which he wasn't. Things looked up for him a bit when he earned transfer to Charlton. One of his managers described Reid as reminding him of famous Hungarian maestro Ferenc Puskas. Whilst on the face of it, in pure footballing terms this would seem to be a compliment, for those of you not as old as me (ie nearly everyone) I should point out that there is a visual resemblance between the two, both being what you might call on the "portly" side of things.

I've mentioned striker Matt Derbyshire before. Here at the Avram Grant Olympic Rest Home For The Bewildered a number of us inmates, sorry, residents, like to blame some of our less lucid moments (like this column – Ed) on concussion. Those slaps around the back of the head from Matron carry no little force. However, none of us have ever been able to attribute a Greek Cup Final victory to a bang on the head. Unlike Derbyshire who, when playing for Olympiakos a few years ago, headed a last second equaliser against AEK despite a bang on the noggin which meant that he had no idea he'd scored until he saw the crowd jumping up and down. Olympiakos went on to win 15-14 on penalties.

Striker Darius Henderson is available after suspension for this one. His career includes spells at Reading, Sheffield United and Millwall so he's not one to worry about popularity. He's looking at a third attempt to complete a trial over an alleged assault in a St Albans restaurant a few years back. The first trial collapsed when a key witness declared himself unable to leave his sheep farm in Australia to attend court. The second go last September ended with a hung jury so they're giving it another attempt in February.
The two injury doubts listed are midfielders David Vaughan and Damjel Abdoun. Vaughan is on loan from Sunderland where he provided the icing on the cake to the Di Canio era by netting the third in their 3-0 win over Newcastle.

Abdoun arrived at West Bridgeford this season from Olympiakos. French-born he's represented the cheese-eating surrender monkeys at a number of levels. However, when it came to full international recognition he switched to the nation of his parents' birth and is now a full cap for Algeria.

Our turn now. New Year's Day was depressing wasn't it. I'd suggest that Kevin Nolan might want to avoid the Swan and Superinjunction for his evening pint for the foreseeable. Surely the only sane reaction to his contribution to proceedings the other day (apart from a hefty fine) would be to lighten the weight of his kit-bag to the tune of one armband. Unless, of course, he's claiming concussion, in which case we'll send Matron over to slap some sense back into him.

Injuries? Everyone is injured. Everyone. It's a good thing that this is away as we'd be struggling to field a fully fit tea lady if we were at the Boleyn. Expect to see the likes of young Pottsy, Chambers, Ruddock-Mpanzu somewhere about the squad, as well as a bit more game time for the likes of Downing, Jarvis and possibly Adrian.
Prediction? Well it's all very well sticking a second string out against rubbish like Spurs but this will be a sterner test. The lack of resources (nobody's arrived at the time of writing) gives us few options. Having said that, a similar XI accounted for the likes of Burnley in the other cup so it's not all Mission Impossible.

Probably the last thing we want/need at this point in proceedings is a replay so, with sod's law uppermost in mind, I'll be putting the collection we had at the Avram Grant Olympic Rest Home For The Bewildered to buy Kevin Nolan a brain (£2.50) on an unwelcome 1-1 draw.

Enjoy the game!

When Last We Met At The City Ground – Won 4-1(Championship August 2011) Noble, Cole C., Chambers (og) and Reid were all on target to give us comfortable three points for what was our third successive away victory in a season where we had yet to win at home.

Referee: Martin Atkinson last seen doing our 3-0 win over Fulham. Gotta be a good omen, hasn't it?

Danger Man: Andy Reid. The chubber has a way with free-kicks. So do we: we concede them.

Daft fact of the week: Boots The Chemists was founded in Nottingham in 1849 by John Boot and transformed by his son Jesse. Between 1920 and the 1960's the chain refused to sell condoms until they realised the profits to be made on selling toothpaste, plasters and all the other stuff that teenage boys buy out of embarrassment when picking up a pack of three. Meanwhile, in 1929 Jesse Boot was elevated to the peerage and took on the name of Baron Trent of Nottingham, partly in recognition of his philantropic services, but mainly so he could avoid walking around Nottingham with the name "Jesse".

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£16m transfer opens the door for Fulham and Crystal Palace in striker hunt
HITC.com
Mathew Nash

West Ham United may be about to benefit from AS Monaco's transfer dealings. Could Inter Milan striker head for Premier League strugglers? Giant Ivory Coast international striker Lacina Traore has finally moved away from crisis club Anzhi Makhachkala - leaving one big spending outfit for another. He joined Anzhi in June 2012 for a fee of €18 million from Kuban Krasnodar - and helped them fight for the title under Guus Hiddink last season. But things have gone sour at Anzhi - and sitting bottom of the Russian Premier League did not appeal to the big Ivorian striker. So he has joined AS Monaco fee for an undisclosed fee believed to be in the £16 million region - although he is not expected to stick around. Initial reports claim Monaco want to loan him out immediately, with West Ham the likely destination. The Hammers need striker cover as Andy Carroll continues to suffer with a serious heel problem. And bringing in the 6ft 8ins striker might just be the perfect option. And it seems the ramifications are already apparent - which could provide good news for Fulham and Crystal Palace.

Reports in Italy suggest that Inter Milan striker Ishak Belfodil could move to either London club on loan in January - now that West Ham are said to have their eyes fixed solely on Traore. The Algerian, who was linked with a Liverpool move this summer, only joined from Parma a few months ago - but first-team football is hard to come by. He was recently informed by his national team coach that despite playing for an illustrious club and being obviously very talented - he will not go to the World Cup in Brazil if he is not playing regular football. That has seen him force permission for a loan move - with Fulham and Palace certainly in need of his services. He has a French passport, so no need for a Work Permit, and is a player playing for a World Cup spot - so should be fired up.
Fulham could lose Dimitar Berbatov this winter - but regardless, another striker is needed. Meanwhile Palace will need all the firepower they can get to survive the drop. The transfer merry-go-round then is in full swing - and it could be a player's switch from Dagestan to the principality of Monaco could have a vital impact on the season of these two relegation fighters.

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Defender mulls decison
January 13, 2013. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito
by Tony Beaker
4th January 2014 6:43pm GMT
Sportsdirectnews.com

West Ham United are reportedly interested in Atalanta defender Guglielmo Stendardo, according to reports in Italy. The Italian centre back is on the January shopping list for Irons boss Sam Allardyce as he looks to bolster an injury ravaged defence. The Hammers have James Collins, James Tomkins and Winston Reid all absent through injury meaning the last few games have had to feature full backs George McCartney and Joey O'Brien at the heart of the defence.
According to Tuttosport, Stendardo's club Atalanta have marked the Hammers as favourite for 32-year-old Stendardo's signature. The defender, who has been capped by Italy, is reportedly out of contract at the end of next season and is mulling over whether to sign an extension. The Hammers have also been linked with a move for Argentine Nicolas Burdisso who is currently playing for Roma. Although former Lazio defender Stendardo remains favourite to make the move.
The Hammers are getting ready to face Nottingham Forest in the third round of the FA Cup on Sunday at the City Ground and Allardyce has already stated he will be forced to play a young side because of the extent of his injury crisis.

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Ricardo Vaz Te pens new West Ham United contract
West Ham's Ricardo Vaz Te celebrates after scoring the winner against Cardiff during their League Cup match on September 24, 2013© Getty Images
By Joe Fish, Reporter
Filed: Saturday, January 4, 2014 at 16:28 UK
Last Updated: Saturday, January 4, 2014 at 18:10 UK
Sportsmole.com

West Ham United forward Ricardo Vaz Te has signed a contract extension that will keep him at the club until 2015. The Portuguese handed in a transfer request at Upton Park in the summer after complaining about a lack of regular first-team football. However, there were no suitors for him and he has ended up featuring seven times for them in the Premier League this term, scoring twice before being sidelined with a dislocated shoulder. Vaz Te now seems to be committed to the Hammers' cause and has put pen to paper on a new one-year contract with Sam Allardyce's side, who have released Croatia international Mladen Petric this afternoon. Vaz Te, 27, has scored 19 goals in 55 games for the Hammers since joining them in 2012.

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Traore completes move to Monaco... now giant striker will join West Ham on loan
By DAVID KENT
PUBLISHED: 14:33, 4 January 2014 | UPDATED: 14:35, 4 January 2014
Daily Mail

Lacina Traore has completed his move to Monaco and will be immediately loaned to relegation-threatened West Ham until the end of the season. The 6ft 8in Ivory Coast striker has joined from Russian side Anzhi Makhachkala for an undisclosed fee and has signed a four-and-a-half-year deal. As revealed by Sportsmail, Traore will now travel to London for a medical but West Ham must await a work permit hearing before he can be declared officially theirs. Traore has played for FC Cluj, Kuban Krasnodar and Anzhi with clubs spending over £26million in transfer fees on the 23-year-old since he broke onto the scene in 2008 with African side Stade Abidjan. He has figured against Liverpool - against who he scored a superb lob in November 2012 - and Tottenham in European competition over recent seasons and was a target for Mark Hughes while he was manager at Fulham. He scored 13 goals in 29 games for Anzhi and has four in seven internationals for the Ivory Coast. West Ham badly need something to spark their league season into life and manager Sam Allardyce will hope Traore brings goals.

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West Ham will offer Rickie Lambert £65k a week to tempt him away from Southampton
Jan 05, 2014 00:32 By Alan Nixon
The Mirror

West Ham will offer England striker Rickie Lambert a staggering £65,000-a-week contract to tempt him away from Southampton, writes Alan Nixon in the Sunday People. The Hammers want the 31-year-old to save them from relegation and hope to agree a fee with Saints. Lambert will be handed a deal worth twice what he is on to switch to the strugglers. The deal is backed by Hammers owners David Sullivan and David Gold, who know they need a genuine No.9 to survive. The club currently lie 19th in the Premier League with 15 points from 20 matches.

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West Ham face £5million payout if they sack under pressure manager Sam Allardyce
Jan 04, 2014 22:53 By Alan Nixon 1 Comments
The Mirror

West Ham will have to pay Sam Allardyce a staggering £5million if they sack him, writes the Sunday People's Alan Nixon. Allardyce is under fire from fans and under pressure for results going into today's FA Cup tie with Nottingham Forest. But the major stumbling block to his exit is that Allardyce is protected by pay-off clauses in his deal – in the same way he was at Newcastle and Blackburn. The much-travelled manager's future is under review after some bad results and the poor return on the £15m spent on Andy Carroll. Murmurs behind the scenes are growing, with Harry Redknapp and Malky Mackay whispered as potential bosses to save Hammers from the drop. But West Ham's money men know it will cost a fortune to replace him.

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