Manager on Monday
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce says that the focus will remain on looking to beat Everton at
home in the next match to reach the 50 points target and remain on course to
secure the aimed-for top ten finish. Much is being discussed on whether the
amount of possible bookings that may or may not be picked up by either the
Hammers or the Toffees when the two teams meet at the Boleyn Ground on
Saturday, may affect who could take the final Fair Play Europa League place.
But Hammers boss Allardyce will have his players only focusing on bouncing
back from the 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa at the weekend and getting three
points in what is the final home of the 2014/15 season. "I am not going to
look at it in that way, whether we are going to get any less cautions or
more than Everton. We just want to go out and play them to beat them, that's
the only thing we will be looking at. "I am not going to start saying to the
players, watch what you do, don't get cautioned because we might not finish
number one for European fair play place. It will be all about going out
there, playing our best and trying to win. And if we do that the right way,
hopefully we are still in the position for the fair play place."
Big Sam emphasised concentrating on the targets and aims that has been the
mainstay all season, having been in the top half of the table throughout the
current campaign. "Our position is to finish with 50 points or better and
finish in the top half where we have been all season. It would be very
disappointing to me if we don't manage that. "I know we have got more points
than we have ever got since promotion - we have one more point than in year
one back in the Barclays Premier League - but we have to get to the 50 point
mark and stay in the top half of the table."
The manager was ruing not being able to stick the ball into the back of the
net at Villa Park on Saturday and knows that and keeping a clean sheet will
be a key for facing Roberto Martinez's men this weekend. He also said the
continuing strong performances of young West Ham defender Reece Burke, who
featured in his third straight league match for the first-team against Villa
was fantastic for the club and said it further enhanced the long-admired
academy the club is famed for. "When you look across the Barclays Premier
League today, there are very few players under the age of 21 that are
actually playing [in first team] on a regular basis. "In fact, probably less
than double figures I would have thought. If you look across the whole of
the Premier League, it's a pity but it shows you how difficult it is for
youngsters to break into a Premier League team when he is an under 21.
"Obviously Reece has got in our side out of the fact we have two of our main
defenders injured [James Tomkins and Winston Reid], and when you get your
chance, you have to grasp it in this game.
"For me, he [Reece] has done that, he has grasped his chance, he has done a
fantastic job and I think that West Ham finding this lad from age of nine,
is very unusual now, because when you see youngsters breaking in, you will
see that they have probably been bought in by the igger clubs when they are
14 or 15 not when they are eight or nine like Reece. "It's great for him,
it's great for the reputation of the club, he played a part in making sure
we didn't give anything else away in the game at the weekend and that is
great."
Big Sam added that being more clinical in front of goal would be the main
key to undoing an Everton side. "Like I have said, we can't score a goal at
the minute from open play, we've gone so long, I can't remember the last
one, it's that long ago. The last goals we have scored were with Mark Noble
from the penalty spot and Aaron Cresswell from a free kick. It's been a long
time since we scored from open play. "We have to know, that when we play
Everton on Saturday, if we don't keep a clean sheet, it's unlikely we are
going to win because we are struggling to score goals at the minute, so the
need for to go back to being more clinical as well as keeping a clean sheet
is vital."
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Loan round up
WHUFC.com
Modibo Maiga played the full game in FC Metz' 4-0 home defeat to Lorient.
Two goals either side of half-time for the visitors was enough to seal the
win against already relegated Metz. Lorient opened the scoring in the
twelfth minute through Mehdi Mostefa before Romain Philippoteaux doubled the
lead. Into the second half, it only took Lamine Kone ten minutes to seal the
win. Maiga was booked on the hour mark before Jordan Ayew completed the rout
with six minutes left to play.
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Ladies lose to champions Pompey
WHUFC.com
West Ham United Ladies handed the FA Women's Premier League South title to
Portsmouth Ladies with a 3-1 defeat on the final day of the 2014/15 season.
First half goals from Sarah Kempson, Jess Frampton and captain Charley
Wilson set the hosts on their way to the title, meaning a goal from Hammers
skipper Stacey Little was nothing more than a consolation for Julian Dicks'
side. After an inspirational half time team talk from the former Hammers
left back, the Hammers came out and played out an impressive final 45
minutes of the season, although it was not enough to stop Pompey securing
the league title. Dicks decided to make two changes after Wednesday's
disappointing 5-0 London Capital Women's Cup final defeat to Charlton. Katie
Bottom was unavailable for selection for the trip to the South Coast,
allowing Kayleigh Xidhas to come in to cover at full back, whilst Jade Smith
replaced Lily Mellors on the left wing.
In the opening quarter of an hour, Portsmouth came out looking like they had
a job to do and immediately set about trying to get the opening goal of the
game. Wilson and Gemma Hillier were causing the Hammers backline all sorts
of problems. After just 17 minutes, the referee was caught up in the
occasion by giving a weak penalty decision for the home side. As Hammers
full back Vicky King dived in to clear the ball, there was an apparent
handball by the experienced defender, with Kempson stepping up to fire into
the corner of Nikki Duncan's goal.
The Hammers failed to deal with going behind early on in their Cup Final
defeat to the Addicks earlier this week and they repeated that again on
Sunday when Frampton stole possession from Xidhas and fired confidently into
the corner from 18 yards to double the hosts lead.
If being 2-0 behind within the opening half an hour wasn't bad enough for
Dicks side, the game went from bad to worse when Wilson lost Ruby Baxter at
a corner and was standing alone inside the six yard box giving her the
chance to tap home from a right wing corner.
It look Dicks' side until 40 minutes in to launch a comeback in the game.
Emma Sherwood's curling free kick wasn't dealt with by the Pompey keeper and
she palmed it straight into the path of Little, who finished well.
Throughout the second half, the Hammers looked like a much improved team as
they looked to scare their hosts. Sherwood again looked to fire an effort at
the Pompey keeper, but this time she managed to hold the ball. With the home
side two goals ahead with minutes left to play, it was clear that both sides
were ready for the full time whistle to blow and allow Portsmouth to begin
their championship celebrations.
Sunday's defeat means West Ham Ladies finish their 2014/14 FA Women's
Premier League South season in sixth place, which is a massive improvement
for the Hammers who finished second bottom of the league last season before
Dicks took charge at the club.
LADIES: Duncan, King, Revell, Baxter (Mellors), Xidhas, Blanchflower (Sale),
Little (c), Bowers, Smith, Kinsman, Sherwood.
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Stat's a Fact - Burke's impressive start
WHUFC.com
Reece Burke featured in the West Ham United starting line-up for the third
Barclays Premier League game in succession on Saturday and was arguably
faced with his toughest task to date by the in-form Christian Benteke. The
Belgian hotshot had scored twelve goals in his previous eleven games for the
Villans, but could not add to that streak against the Hammers, despite the
best efforts of Tim Sherwood's side to supply him in the attacking third.
29.9 percent of the game was played in the Hammers' defensive third,
indicating the pressure that Burke and centre back partner James Collins
came under, but the 18-year-old Newham boy continues to look assured. He
made 17 clearances, six with his head, to help his side, as well as making
three ball recoveries as the Hammers kept themselves in the contest, despite
Tom Cleverley's 31st minute goal. In possession, Burke was an asset to his
team, making 24 of his 31 passes, completing all six in the defensive third
and giving possession to Aaron Cresswell on seven occasions to help drive
forward. His manager was once again impressed with his contribution, saying:
"He was great and him and Ginge handled Benteke very well. I thought the
goal we gave away was a gift, though. We should have done a lot better with
the run from Grealish and made sure he didn't get that far, but he did."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Time up for Allardyce as deadline approaches
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 11th May 2015
By: Staff Writer
Hammers fans are likely to discover whether Sam Allardyce will be offered a
new contract within the next few days. The 60-year-old manager's existing
two-year contract expires at the end of the current season, with both the
Board and Allardyce having insisted previously that no decision will be made
with regards to a new agreement until the end of the campaign. That, both
parties have maintained, is par for the course. However two years ago, when
Allardyce's first contract was about to expire, it was confirmed he had
signed a new deal 24 hours before West Ham's penultimate game of the 2012/13
season. Ironically perhaps that came again Everton (a 2-0 defeat at Goodison
Park), who West Ham face at the Boleyn this weekend in their final home game
of the season. Few believe that Allardyce will still be at West Ham by the
beginning of next term, although the list of potential replacements
continues to grow shorter as the days pass. Jurgen Klopp and David Moyes
have already ruled themselves out of contention whilst Rafa Benitez, of whom
David Sullivan is a long-term admirer looks poised to sign a new contract
with Napoli.
The Sam old game
28 May 2011: Allardyce accepts offer to become West Ham's 14th manager.
19 May 2012: West Ham return to the Premier League at the first attempt via
a Wembley play-off final.
11 May 2013: Allardyce signs a new two-year contract. Few object.
19 May 2013: West Ham beat Reading 4-2 to finish 10th in their first season
back in the big time.
11 May 2014: Three wins over Spurs and a Capital One Cup semi final spot
fail to gloss over a poor season as the Irons finish 13th.
20 May 2014: Sullivan confirms Allardyce remains in the face of some stiff
opposition - and delivers new targets (European football).
May 2015: Allardyce looks set to deliver another top ten finish - but his
days appear numbered.
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PSYCHOLOGY 101
By Iain Dale 11 May 2015 at 08:00
West Ham Till I Die
Guest Post by RoHammer
A lot has been discussed lately about the (apparently) imminent appointment
of David Moyes as West Ham manager and I guess that was inevitable. Sam's
time seems to be at an end and for better or worse the board seem to be
looking for a replacement.
When we draw the line my only conclusion can be that Sam has done his job
and we are in a better place for it. So there's not gonna be any
maliciousness from me. I will say though, that at the end of the day I will
be happy with the change. Not necessarily because Moyes will be a tactical
genius for us or bring youth through or whatever other arguments have been
made (which are positives but not the be all end all for me)… but because I
genuinely hope for a change in mentality within the team.
My biggest concern and complaint against Sam will probably always be that he
doesn't seem to have a winner's mentality and doesn't seem able to convey
belief to the players. Of course this may well be a matter of personal
perception and I may be wrong. But when accounts appeared of how Sam divides
the season into chunks of 3-4 games targeting a certain amount of points
from each chunk I became increasingly worried that he will not be able to
take us any further.
It's one aspect of Sam's philosophy that hasn't been mentioned much but
personally I find this approach fundamentally wrong. It's all well and good
doing the math in your head points wise as a manager but when you make a
point of telling your players you are targeting 6-7 out of the next 9
available points (for example) you are basically telling them that a) you
don't think they are good enough to win at least 1 of the following 3 games
and b) that you'll be happy enough with 6-7 points… so then why would you
expect the players to give 100% for the win when you send them out there?
Doesn't it seem counter intuitive? And don't you end up basically throwing
games… look at Arsenal and Forest last season or Chelsea this season to name
a few. I would much rather have a manager that takes each game as it comes
and asks the players to give their all for the result… if they fall short on
the day so be it but at least you're not telling their subconscious that
it's ok if they fail before a ball is even kicked.
I may not be an expert in sports psychology but in my experience from
participating in both individual and team sport competitions at various
youth levels I remember coaches always making a point out of convincing the
players that they COULD get the win… that they WERE good enough and that
their hard work WILL pay off.
Because of this it is my humble opinion that Sam's approach may very well
have been one of the biggest pitfalls of his career and as the cliché goes…
he has been his own worst enemy … never quite getting there at the end of it
all.
Whether Moyes will bring an improvement in that regard (if indeed he is
appointed) remains to be seen but I hope he does. The human psyche is a
powerful thing… if can help or hinder… about time we had it on side no?!
Thanks of reading.
P.S.: I know y'all were missing a post on the manager and/or potential
replacement as they've been so scarce over the last few days… so here you go
;)
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West Ham keen on summer move for £6million Guingamp striker Claudio Beauvue
22:30, 10 May 2015 By Darren Lewis
The Guadeloupean hitman wants to test himself in England after a terrific
season in Ligue 1 at the Stade du Roudourou
The Mirror
West Ham are interested in £6million Guingamp striker Claudio Beauvue. The
27-year-old has scored 25 goals this season and is keen to build on this
success by moving to the Premier League. Bertrand Desplat, Guingamp
President, confirmed his player was interested in a move. "It seems that
this is the will of Claudio – to go to England," he said Beauvue claims to
have an agreement with his club which means that he could leave this summer.
The Frenchman, who has played wide right and as a central striker for
Guingamp this season, said: "The deal I had with the club president was that
I would leave in the event of a beautiful season. "The season has been very
beautiful."
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EXCLUSIVE: Irons wait on Benitez
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 11, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Rafa Benitez remains right at the top of the West Ham's wanted list and
those close to the Spanish boss are making encouraging noises in our
direction. We can reveal that intermediaries have been spoken to and that
the former Liverpool and Chelsea caretaker boss is listening to the Hammers'
overtures as a result. Although he is heading into possible contract talks
with Napoli we have been told that he remains keen on a Premier League club
and sees the Olympic Stadium move as a big plus on his own impressive CV. We
were told categorically earlier today that he is attracted to another crack
at the PL and assurances have even been sought that the Hammers won't
negotiate elsewhere until he knows where he is with Napoli. However, one
contender who has now been ruled out apparently is Marseilles boss Marcelo
Bielsa with the board uncomfortable working with a manager who doesn't
possess a word of English. Well places insiders have made it clear too that
there is no huge rush to appoint the new boss with one saying: "There is no
doubt in the board's mind they can attract a top quality manager. "They are
determined to ensure they give themselves the best chance they can of
attracting Rafa and that means waiting. He is the one that is at the top of
the list."
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Irons linked with French goal machine
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 11, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
The Hammers are reported to be interested in signing Guingamp striker
Claudio Beauvue valued around £6 million. The 27-year-old has scored 25
goals this season and is keen to move to the Premier League. Guingamp
President, Bertrand Desplat confirmed his player was interested in a move.
"It seems that this is the will of Claudio – to go to England," he said The
Frenchman, who has plays wide right and as a central striker for Guingamp
this season, said: "The deal I had with the club president was that I would
leave in the event of a beautiful season. "The season has been very
beautiful." Everton, Spurs and Hull have all been linked with the form
striker.
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10m euro fine for Hammers target
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 11, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
According to reports in Italy, Lassana Diarra has told he must pay a 10
million Euro penalty to Lokomotiv Moscow in a long running contractual
dispute with his former club. It is understood the player has already lodged
an appeal with the lawyer Jean Luis Dupont, made famous for the Bosman case.
Diarra claims that Lokomotiv Moscow management wanted to change his
contract. He refused and got fired by the club. Lassana Diarra is thought to
be training with West Ham in hope of securing a permanent contract in the
summer and to keep up his fitness levels. He is good friends with Hammer's
head of medicine Stijn Vandenbroucke, with whom he previously worked at
Anzhi Makhachkala. The 29-year-old Frenchman was previously played for
Chelsea, Arsenal and Real Madrid has been linked with a move to Celtic or
QPR. There remains a possability that Diarra could be West Ham's first
signing of the summer if FIFA gives him clearance to play. Earlier this
season Diarra has claimed his move to West Ham had been blocked by the
game's ruling body.
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Allardyce: We wont pull FPL punches against Everton
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 11, 2015 in Whispers
Claret 7 Hugh
Sam Allardyce has revealed that no punches will be pulled when the Hammers
meet Everton at the weekend. With the Toffees just a place behind us in
third in the Fair Play League there have been suggestions we might 'take it
easy ' in challengses. But – like David Gold on Twitter – manager Sam
Allardyce has dismissed any suggestions that tackles will be anything less
than 100 per cent. He said: ". "I am not going to start telling players to
watch what we do because we might not finish number one for the European
Fair Play place, it is 'go out there, play your best and make sure you win'.
"If you do that the right way you will hopefully still be in the same
position in the Fair Play. "Our position is to try to get 50 points or
better and finish in the top half where we have been all season. It will be
very disappointing for me if we don't manage that."
"I won't look at it that way. I don't want to know if we get less cautions
than Everton, I want to go out there and beat them. "I am not going to start
telling players to watch what we do because we might not finish number one
for the European Fair Play place, it is 'go out there, play your best and
make sure you win'. "If you do that the right way you will hopefully still
be in the same position in the Fair Play. Our position is to try to get 50
points or better and finish in the top half where we have been all season.
It will be very disappointing for me if we don't manage that."
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Irons aim for new Jenkinson spell
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 11, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham intend to keep Carl Jenkinson on loan next season if Arsenal can be
nailed down to another year. The right back has had a brilliant season at
Upton Park but Arsenal manager has made it clear the England under 21 is not
for sale. He has already spoken to the player and claims the only decision
to be made is whether the player will go out on loan. That is considered a
certainty as Wenger knows he can't afford to have unhappy players in his
dressing room season and the Hammers are keen to sign him up to another
campaign. A source told ClaretandHugh: "We are certainly keen to keep him
and that would probably be as a loan because he's an Arsenal player so they
hold all the cards." He confirmed that nether the widely touted Glen Johnson
return or a move for Micah Richards was likely adding: "These seem to have
been recycled from last summer."
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Angry DG hits back
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 11, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
David Gold has declared the irons players would be "devastated" if they were
aware of some fans claims they are not giving 100 per cent in games. The co
chairman has again taken a hammering on Twitter following the Aston Villa
defeat with some supporters claiming they are not giving their all and
instead are protecting themselves against being booked. With a Europa spot
place in prospect the suggestion is that the payers are ensuring they
receive no yellow or red cards although Alex Song received a caution at the
weekend against Villa.
With third placed FPL outfit Everton arriving at Everton on Saturday the
accusations take on a certain significance but Gold was having none of it.
He immediately made his position crystal clear declaring: " "Our players
would be devastated if they thought the fans believed they weren't giving
100% dg."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce to quit Upton Park
Sam Allardyce set to end tenure in east London and may consider move west
Sam Allardyce - West Ham manager Sam Allardyce ready to quit Upton Park
John Percy By John Percy10:30PM BST 11 May 2015
Telegraph.co.uk
Sam Allardyce will reject any offer to stay on as West Ham United manager at
the end of the season and he is understood to have turned down a tentative
approach from the club's board to open talks over a new deal. It was widely
expected that Allardyce would depart Upton Park, with his contract expiring,
but West Ham have experienced frustration with targets Jürgen Klopp, David
Moyes and Eddie Howe.
Klopp, who has announced that he will leave his position as Borussia
Dortmund manager this summer, was sounded out via intermediaries but is
prepared to wait until he makes his next career move.
Moyes is highly regarded by the West Ham board but he has made it clear that
he will be staying at Real Sociedad for another season, while Howe will not
leave Bournemouth after guiding the club to the Premier League by winning
the Championship title.
West Ham have other options, which could include Michael Laudrup, the club's
former defender Slaven Bilic and Napoli's Rafael Benítez, yet any hopes of
persuading Allardyce to stay on will be turned down by the 60-year-old.
Allardyce is understood to have two other offers, one in England and one
abroad, and one of those could be Fulham who are expected to search for a
new manager after another season of underachievement in the Championship.
His future will not be at West Ham, however, and he has decided that he will
leave the club even if they make a firm proposal to him in the next few
weeks. Sources at West Ham have insisted that there was an approach made to
Allardyce recently, with a new two-year deal potentially on offer, but it
was declined. That leaves West Ham facing a possible headache with their
options diminishing, ahead of a crucial 12 months when they prepare to move
into the Olympic Stadium for the 2016-17 season.
Allardyce is on the brink of securing a top-10 Premier League finish and
could even clinch a place in the Europa League next season. West Ham are
second in the fair play league, behind Liverpool, but could qualify if they
can finish with fewer bookings than nearest rivals Everton, who they play on
Saturday.
It has been a difficult final campaign for Allardyce, with injuries to the
club's record signing Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho leaving him woefully
short of attacking options. He has also been criticised by supporters over
his tactics and style of play despite a concentrated attempt to bring in
more flair players last summer. Allardyce is adamant that the season has
been a success. "Our position is to try to get 50 points or better and
finish in the top half where we have been all season. It will be very
disappointing for me if we don't manage that," he said. "I know we have more
points than we have ever got, we are one better off than year one, but we
have to get to the 50 mark and stay in the top half."
Allardyce's departure this summer will end a tenure of four years in east
London, following his appointment as manager in June 2011.
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Tuesday, May 12
Monday, May 11
Daily WHUFC News - 11th May 2015
Opportunity knocks for Nene
WHUFC.com
Disappointing. Frustrating. Agonising. Saturday's 1-0 Barclays Premier
League defeat at Aston Villa was all of the above for West Ham United, but
it represented something else for Nene. An opportunity. The Brazilian
forward has featured sparingly since his January arrival from Qatari
football, featuring six times as an eye-catching second-half substitute. At
Villa Park, the 33-year-old was given a full 45 minutes to show his quality,
and responded by producing two of the Hammers' five shots on goal and
setting up Enner Valencia to score with a header – albeit his fellow South
American's effort was ruled out for being narrowly offside. Speaking to West
Ham TV after the game, the former Paris St-Germain and Monaco star said he
enjoyed his extended appearance, and hopes to have done enough to start
against Everton next weekend. "I was happy to be on the field," the No12
confirmed. "It was a shame we didn't get the result, because in the second
half I thought we played better than them and we got some chances. "I would
have preferred to have got the result, but I did my best to help the team
and my legs feel good, so I was happy with that part. "The game was
difficult because they also needed the points, so they played very strong
and on the counter-attack. If we got more chances to shoot or cross, like
the one I gave to Enner, who I didn't think was offside, then we could have
come back in the game. "This is football. We need to work hard in the last
two games and do our best to get the most points possible."
As an experienced player who has spent more than a decade at the highest
level, Nene was asked how West Ham can become a more threatening attacking
force in their final two fixtures against Everton and Newcastle United.
"You've put me in a difficult situation! What we need to do is put the best
quality of ourselves for the team and to create chances and shoot on the
target. "We know what we need to do and we need to put that into practice in
the future."
Nene himself has also found himself in a difficult situation in recent
weeks, sitting on the bench when he – like any footballer – would much
rather have been in the midst of the action on the pitch. "Of course I
wanted to play more but I respect the staff. I work every day to do my best
to play and to help the team and when I get the chance I want to show I can
help my teammates. "It was difficult but this is football. I'm happy here
and I hope in the final two games I can get more minutes."
A prolific user of social media, Nene has endeared himself to West Ham fans
on Instagram and Twitter, where his excellent language skills see him
communicate in English, French and Portuguese. He is grateful for that
support. "Yes, that is really important for me and gives me force and power
to give my best every day. I want to thank them because from the time I
arrived until now they are really good with me and support me a lot with
their words. "I hope to give them what they want from me."
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AWAY FANS ALLOCATION IN THE OLYMPIC STADIUM
By Sean Whetstone 10 May 2015 at 08:16
West Ham Till I Die
Those West Ham supporters hoping away fans will tucked away in the upper
tier gods at the Olympic Stadium could be in a major disappointment.
Planning permission documents submitted by the LLDC show that the away fans
are most likely to be segregated in the South West corner of both the lower
and upper tiers. The diagram below shows a 5% section, the likely standard
away allocation for the Olympic Stadium totaling just 2,700. Contrary to
popular belief there is no minimum away allocation in Premier League
matches. The diagram also shows a 15% away fan allocation or 8,100 which
would take over the majority of the upper and lower south stands. These will
primary be used for FA Cup matches where 15% is required as long as their
are no safety concerns but could also be available for big games where there
is enough demand. The 50% allocation and segregation is reserved for
international matches.
The allocation of a large section of the lower tier of the Olympic Stadium
will concern some existing season ticket holders hoping to get a similar
seat and view to the one they currently enjoy at the Boleyn ground. Both the
Sir Trevor Brooking Lower and Bobby Moore Lower accommodate approximately
6,000 West Ham fans between them with another approximate 3,000 Hammers in
the corners of the West Stand all of which that are currently classed band
4.
There are thought to be 19,000 seats in the new lower tier of the Olympic
Stadium which has led some to question how West Ham will accommodate up to
9,000 Band 4 seats behind the goals and the corners of the Olympic Stadium.
The fear is many season ticket holders currently enjoying a lower tier band
4 ticket will be forced into an upper tier position much further away then
their current seat.
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ASTON VILLA 1, WEST HAM 0. BUT HOW ABOUT THOSE SUBS!
By David Hautzig 9 May 2015 at 18:16
West Ham Till I Die
I listen to a lot of Podcasts while driving from customer to customer. One
of my favorites is The Football Ramble. Last season, after we beat Spurs at
White Hart Lane in the League Cup, the Ramblers told a story about the game.
At some point after Maiga scored to put us ahead, Tim Sherwood got a bit
peeved about something. As he turned around to confront the fourth official,
Sam was standing right in his line of sight. Before Sherwood could even
muster up one word, Sam bellowed out "you getting the hang of this"!? Yeah,
Sam. He is. Maybe you need to ask yourself the same question.
The first half was as close to a one sided affair as is possible at this
level. Meaning, two teams that are essentially on the same level. In the 5th
minute, Villa played as if they were managed by Sam with Cleverley sending a
long pass near the box to Benteke. The on fire Belgian headed it down to
N'Zogbia but his first touch was too heavy and the chance was gone. Minutes
later, after Grealish won a corner, the ball bounced around the penalty area
for what seemed like minutes. Villa attempted two shots, but both were
blocked. Then, a long pass from Delph to Cleverly set up a volley by the
latter but Adrian was there to palm the ball out for a corner. Three minutes
later, Villa were awarded a free kick and this time Delph found Benteke in
the box, but despite beating Collins to the ball he couldn't get his header
on target and it rolled out wide for a goal kick. Moments later Cleverly
crossed to a wide open Benteke, but his header went off the post and across
the goal mouth.
It turned out the play was offside, but a theme was developing for the first
half. West Ham gain possession, lose possession, then defend as Villa attack
with speed and purpose. If it weren't for James Collins cement forehead the
game could have been ugly for the Hammers.
In the 27th minute, Benteke controlled a cross with his chest just outside
of the West Ham area. He layed it off for Delph, whose low shot looked to be
deflected by…you guessed it…Collins before being smothered by Adrian. But as
the old saying goes, if you play with fire you get burned. In the 31st
minute, all of the sloppy passes and deep defending caught up with West Ham.
After moving the ball well around the top of the area, Grealish made a run
down the left. He beat Downing by the touchline and sent a pass through
Collins legs and in to the path of the on-rushing Cleverly who tapped it in
from just a few yards out for his third goal in three games.
Aston Villa 1, West Ham 0.
Many of us have asked why Amalfitano hasn't played as much as we would like.
After seeing his tussle with Cleverley and the knee to the backside that the
Lee Mason missed, you can understand why his temperament might outweigh his
talent from time to time. On another day that could have been a straight
red.
West Ham appealed for a penalty in the 39th minute, both by Nolan and
Kouyate after West Ham won a corner. As the ball came into the box, Nolan
was sandwiched by Krul and Vlaar and Kouyate seemed to be pulled from behind
by Delph. Lee Mason's reply to both was no and no, and the first half ended
with Aston Villa in front by a goal.
In many ways, the most exciting moment for West Ham in the second half came
before the ball was kicked off. Which is rather pathetic. Be that as it may,
the announcement that Nolan and Amalfitano were being replaced by Song and
Nene sparked more enthusiasm on Twitter than any other moment in the game.
In the 50th minute, the Brazilian showed why he might be a better option in
our current state than Sam has led us to believe. Song played the ball wide
to Noble, who passed to Downing, who layed it off for Nene. With a quick
move to his left, he sent a curling effort just over the bar.
Aston Villa came close to doubling their lead in the 54th minute when
N'Zogbia broke down the right and sent a shot into the side setting. As he
completed his shot he tried to jump over a sliding Cresswell, but instead
landed on the Hammer Of The Year's left leg. Thankfully the injury wasn't
serious and Joey O'Brien was able to continue his sabbatical.
In the 59th minute West Ham created what we call a half chance, and what I
suspect Sam will call a missed opportunity. Nene attempted a cross to
Valencia, but the pass was cleared out for a corner by Vlaar. On the ensuing
free kick, Collins rose above the crowd but his header was palmed over the
bar by Given. The corner was cleared, but only as far as Alex Song, who
passed it to Nene. The man isn't afraid to shoot from anywhere and
everywhere. But his attempt from the top of the box sailed over the bar. A
few minutes later, he sent a cross from the right that found Valencia in
front of goal. Before the ball was headed past Given, the offside flag went
up. Many on Twitter lambasted the linesman for getting it wrong, but replays
showed he got it right.
In the 68th minute, Delph and N'Zogbia combined to split open the West Ham
defense, especially Jenkinson who looked to be in a slower speed. But just
as N'Zogbia was about to shoot Kouyate raced back to break up the play and
keep West Ham in it.
Can I say something else about Nene? Thanks. A minute later, West Ham had
the ball on the right hand side near the Villa eighteen yard box. Jenkinson
sent a pass towards Nene. Nene's Brazilian mind said Noble, Downing, or
Valencia would make a move into the open space to his left. So he dummied
it, and let the ball roll past him as he faked with his right foot. But the
Sam minds don't think that way, nobody moved, and Villa intercepted and
broke. I am NOT on a Nene love fest here. But if the only plays that made us
even sit up in our chairs went through him, it's notable.
In the 74th minute Aston Villa should have doubled their advantage. Delph
and Benteke combined well outside the West Ham area. Delph passed to
Cleverley breaking down the right, who then sent a low cross into the box
that Benteke somehow mis-timed before Collins cleared the ball from danger.
The final minutes of the match saw Collins miss a challenged header from a
corner, Agbonglahor break in on Adrian only to be foiled by Cresswell, and
Carlton Cole win a corner that again found Collins but not the net.
Final Score. Aston Villa 1, West Ham 0.
At times today West Ham were dire. Absolutely awful. At other times West Ham
were functional. Not a joy to watch, but not painful either. But at no time
today were we even a shadow of the club we thought we had earlier in the
year. We never really asked any questions of Villa, and I think the game
could have gone on for hours without West Ham scoring. I guess we haven't
seen that side in months, and as it stands I don't know when we will see it
again.
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Maiga stay at Metz unlikely after relegation
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
French team Metz were relegated straight back to French Ligue 2 on Saturday
as they suffered a crushing 4-0 defeat to Lorient. Hammer Modibo Maiga
joined Metz at the beginning of this season on a one-year loan deal with an
option to buy. Maiga signed West Ham for a reported £4.7m from Sochaux
scoring 6 goals for the Hammers from 37 appearances. Metz were thought to
paying just £6,000 of Maiga £30,000 per week wages but even that may be too
high a fee to pay in Ligue 2. He has one year remaining on his West Ham
contract worth around £1.5m in wages. A return to West Ham in the summer
looks likely now unless a new loan or permanent deal can be found elsewhere.
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Gold says Bobby Moore is coming with us
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
When Co Chairman David Gold was asked on social media by a West Ham fan "Is
the Bobby Moore memorial statue going to remain or move to the new
stadium?"He replied "The Bobby Moore statue will come with us to the new
stadium. dg"
This has left some Olympic Stadium watchers confused whether it West Ham's
to take with them. The memorial to England's 1966 World Cup triumph depicts
West Ham legend Bobby Moore, along with fellow West Ham players Geoff Hurst
and Martin Peters, as well as Ray Wilson from Everton. At four metres high
it is a prominent sight at the corner of Green Street and Barking Road was
designed and crafted by British artist Philip Jackson and weighs in at four
tonnes. Newham council website says financial contributors to the Champions
statue included the London Borough of Newham, West Ham United Football Club,
Green Street SRB, Arts Council for England, and Arts & Business. West Ham
would most likely need permission from these backers to relocate the statue
to the Queen Elizabeth park close to the Olympic Stadium.
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Benitez new bookies favourite for Irons hotseat
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Napoli boss Rafa Benitez is the new bookies favourite at 6/4 to replace Sam
Allardyce r next season replacing previous favourite David Moyes who remains
2/1.
It is claimed Rafael Benitez is set to leave Napoli at the end of the season
even if he is offered a new contract by the Italian club. Napoli president
Aurelio De Laurentiis says Benitez can remain at the San Paolo "for the next
five years" if he wants to. However, sources close to Benitez claim he will
quit Napoli when his contract expires in June, putting West Ham on alert
over his availability over the summer. The former Liverpool and Chelsea
manager Benitez joined Napoli in the summer of 2013 and led them to the
Coppa Italia and third place in Serie A in his first season in charge. This
season Napoli has failed to mount a serious bid for the title, but Benitez
has guided the club to the semi-finals of the Europa League.
David Moyes has moved to second favourite after he appeared to claim he was
staying at Real Sociedad.
Moyes said "There's always speculation, but I'm here to do the job,I'm going
to be here. I want to try to get everything in place so we can be at our
best for the start of next season. I don't think we need masses and masses,
but there are improvements I'd like to make, things I want to change. Small
things that will help. And if we do that. I'll be here. I'm not going
anywhere."
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Lack of attacking play could cost Irons Europa
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Yesterday West Ham picked up just one yellow card courtesy of Alex Song
while Everton picked up two. On face of it that it appeared good news for
our European hopes as each yellow card counts as minus one point from that
week's totals in the Premier League Fair Play table.
What is less well known is a further 10 points are available for teams
displaying attacking play. Despite losing two nil to Sunderland yesterday
media reports claim Everton attacked relentlessly. West Ham attacking play
was less obvious and that could cost us dear when Premier League officials
tally up the scores for West Ham and Everton over the past two games.
West Ham are 10 points ahead of Everton in the fair play table published on
the 5th May based on 34 games to the end of May. Just 4 games of scoring
remain for West Ham to finish above Everton with two of them already played.
West Ham picked up 3 yellow cards in our previous game against Burnley last
weekend (Noble, Downing and Valencia) while Everton (Coleman) picked up just
one in their 3-2 loss to Aston Villa on 2nd May. Liverpool lead the table
but are almost guaranteed to qualify for Europe under their league position
so the Europa would be awarded to second place should Liverpool top the
table.
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DG careful of playing injury card
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
David Gold has been careful not to replay the "injury card " in FULL as the
reason for our Villa Park failure. But he ventured back onto thin ice on
Twitter after yesterday's game to declare: "We are not winning because we
are not scoring goals. Obvious. Part reason. Our two top goal scorers are
injured. Dg The co chairman took a lot of stick last week when appearing to
blame a dismal performance at Loftus Road on injuries although he insisted
he was merely stating a fact rather than excuse finding. He told
ClaretandHugh: "I am not trying to protect or excuse anything – merely
stating a fairly obvious fact." However, another post was far more positive
and upbeat when he assured a fan on the future of the Bobby Moore statue. He
explained: "The Bobby Moore statue will come with us to the new stadium. Dg
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LEROY: We were pathetic and shameful
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Well, that was pathetic – no other word will do…West Ham were hopeless at
Villa. Worse than that, they looked like a team who didn't want to be there
and are simply looking after themselves to make sure they don't get injuries
before the summer break – awful!
They shamed themselves and my only thoughts were with the fantastic fans who
followed them up there. They should receive a refund after that. This is my
club and hurts like hell to have to talk like this but we have to be honest.
If we aren't all is lost. No excuses – no explanations from anywhere please.
We were awful. God, there were times when they couldn't even pass the ball
accurately over ten yards. Villa were hardly great so where does that put
us? …as low as it gets.
The players must hold their hands up. There's not much a manager can do in
those circumstances but I'm afraid there is also a collective responsibility
and Sam has to take his share of it because that's the nature of the job –
you have to get things sorted. And THAT hasn't been happening. Nor is it on
to keep talking about injuries as an excuse. There's a squad of 25
professionals – they are called that for a reason. Whatever the
circumstances there has to be btter than what we've seen for the last few
weeks – especially yesterday. Where they go from here I haven't a clue but
yesterday they shamed those brilliant fans.
Not on – simply not on!
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Missed chances – which chances were they?
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
You are awake an hour and read of referee's assistant guessing at a
disallowed West Ham goal accompanied by claims that nobody can score.
This won't take long but let's clear all that up! As stated earlier the
linesman guessed correctly – Enner Valencia's goal was rightly ruled out. It
was a yard offside so no moans about that please. As for our players not
being able to score, one small point – you have to make chances for that to
happen and West Ham aren't doing so. Thus the goal drought goes on and will
continue until a team is put out that can find it's way through defences as
19 year old Jack Grealish did ours yesterday before pulling the ball back to
Tom Cleverley for their goal. I'm too tired of the usual excuse making to
say much more other than like most others match day is now a trial from
beginning to end. But it really does need to be pointed out that those
chances we hear of, yesterday amounted to an offside goal and a James
Collins header from a Mark Noble corner.
Case rested!
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Cressie: "We paid the price"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Hammer of the Year Aaron Cresswell has spoken of his huge disappointment at
the Villa Park defeat. Speaking to the official site he said: "We just need
to take one of the chances we're creating, but unfortunately we couldn't do
that and we paid the price. "I think we had a couple of chances. Enner had
his header ruled out for offside, but I think if we score the first goal
it's a different game. "We were disappointed with the way we conceded.
Grealish pulled it back from the line and unfortunately for us it's gone
through James Collins' legs and the lad's tapped it in. "They're fighting
for their lives down at the bottom and that's never nice for anyone,
including the players. "They were 1-0 up and they were always going to sit
back in the last 15, 20 minutes. We just needed that goal which we couldn't
get."
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Err Sam – the official "guessed" right
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Sam Allardyce has had a whinge at 'the goal that never was' from Enner
Valencia during yesterday's game at Villa Park. With Villa leading, the
Ecuadorian striker rose to head home which at – at first sight – appeared to
be an okay goal. However, replays clearly showed Enner to be offside by
about a yard and the player greeted the decision from the referee's
assistant with a small smile. The manager however, unsurprisingly, took a
difference view and stormed afterwards: "The assistant was in no position to
give a decision – he guessed. "He was four yards out of place and I find
that difficult to take but beyond that our problem is we can't score goals
or finish chances." An odd response at best and just a small reminder – the
referee's assistant "guessed" right. Why you were apparently watching him
rather than the build up to the 'goal' WE can only GUESS at!
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West Ham teenager Reece Burke puts in another fine performance
Sat 2 May
HITC
Vincent Ralph
West Ham United may have lost 1-0 to Aston Villa this weekend but their
teenage centre-back continued to impress. West Ham United could not build on
their recent win against Burnley, as Sam Allardyce's men lost 1-0 to a
resurgent Aston Villa side on Saturday. The only goal of the game came from
Tom Cleverley; the Manchester United loanee scoring for the third match in
succession. But while Villa stole the show and won the points, Hammers fans
can at least take heart from another fine performance from their teenage
centre-back Reece Burke.
The 18-year-old was playing his third league game in a row, and for the
first time he was unable to help his side to a clean-sheet having previously
done just that against both Sean Dyche's men and Queens Park Rangers.
Burke is far from the finished article, but while there are areas of his
game that he can and no doubt will improve in time, he showed enough on
Saturday to suggest he should now remain a regular part of the Hammers'
first-team squad. The areas in which the West Ham youngster really impressed
at the weekend – apart from his brilliant composure for one so young – were
the sheer number of effective clearances he made and the fact that he was
not dispossessed all afternoon. Burke made 19 effective clearances in total
(12 with his feet and seven with his head) while he also recovered the ball
on three separate occasions. He also had an impressive passing accuracy of
80 per cent. The areas he will be less pleased with were duels, aerial
battles and interceptions, with Burke winning none on the day. But he is
young, he is extremely talented and in time he could become a great West Ham
centre-back.
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Sakho snubs Allardyce at awards evening – The ExWHUemployee Column
Ironsview.com
By ExWHUemployee on May 10, 2015 in ExWHUemployee column
It has been a while since I have written a blog but with any luck they will
be weekly again from now on.
The manager issue is still on going. At the player awards the chairmen and
the manager did not speak. In fact Sam seemed very aloof during the whole
evening, didn't present any awards or make a speech, neither did David
Sullivan unlike previous years and both Kevin Nolan and Andy Carroll left
early which got people talking. Diafra Sakho also offered his top scorer
award to the chairmen as a thank you for bringing him to the club providing
a very obvious snub to Allardyce.
I have heard that during the week a number of managers appear to be
distancing themselves from the job. David Moyes has always been the number
one target and I think he still is however he appears to be changing his
mind and almost distancing himself from the position. His advisors have
been spoken to indirectly on a couple of occasions now and he is of course
Tony Henry's first choice. Rafa Benitez looks likely to stay at Napoli or
take another big job and not come here, so he is now unlikely. The
Marseille boss has suffered some very poor form of late and his job is
currently under threat and so I think the club have lost interest. There
has been talk from a few people online that Ramos, the old Spurs boss,
could be considered. This will not happen but the options appear to be
running out. Howe of Bournemouth has been linked too but he is likely to
want to stay on and mange Bournemouth in the Premier League. There seems
to be a bit of concern around the West Ham hierarchy that, whilst they
would like to replace Sam, the options they thought they had seem to be
running thinner. Of course there is still Slaven Bilic who many people would
want at the club. He has been distancing himself from the job but I think
he would take it if offered.
I was told that there have been initial discussions with Steve McLaren who
is apparently keen on moving to us now having rejected us a couple of times
in the past. Whether this move is likely I am not sure but I believe
things are becoming concerning. As I have said for months we must wait
until the end of the season until worrying about it as that is when
decisions will be made.
I do believe it is time for Sam to go now. Many of you will know I have
backed him for a long time, written many an article on it and still believe
his criticism has been unfair. The problem is the fans are so against him
now that it really is almost impossible for him to make our last season at
Upton Park special because of the current negativity around him. The
performance in first half against Villa was terrible and then the changes
were made (to the system we all want with Nene on) and we looked better.
This really isn't rocket science! We then have the excuse that we are not
taking our chances yet we will not play more than one recognised forward
from the start. If the managerial options appear to vanish then it
increases the chances of Sam being offered another deal. All of this
however is pure speculation and not worth getting worked up about until the
end of the season as anything can happen.
I tweeted from the players' do that Jenkinson was happy to stay with us and
wanted to. Arsene Wenger put out a statement to say that the club still
want to keep Carl and would only consider a second loan deal. Of course the
manager will not come out and declare him for sale as it lowers the price
but it does mean the deal is harder to do. I had heard that we are close to
a couple of signings. One is Obiang for £8.5m which I have said for a
number of weeks now and a couple of free deals. Glen Johnson is someone who
I have regularly spoke about in recent blogs and is being lined up for a
move. There are a couple of other foreign free transfers who are also hot
on the radar.
The new Umbro deal was confirmed in recent weeks and has been agreed long
before, offering the best deal financially. There has also been a few
problems with Adidas which have upset the club including there being no
children's sizes available for the Christmas period. Umbro isn't my
favourite make but they will apparently work with the fans to listen to what
we want for designs in future years which can only be good.
The player of the year award was won by Aaron Cresswell. He had a large
majority and it was confirmed way before the night that he had won (hence
my tweet). Adrian was a deserving second but perhaps less so deserving
was Valencia achieving third. It has been said in the past that we now
have a number of Ecuadorian fans who regularly visit our website to check up
on their hero and his third place will be down to them voting. Valencia has
showed potential (especially at the start of the season in the right
formation) however he hasn't quite lived up to the player I thought he would
be. At this moment I would take the £20m supposedly Chelsea were
interested in paying or even take a swap deal for Remy. I don't think this
deal will happen and next season will be very important for Valencia to
prove he can make it in the Premier League.
Another player likely to leave is Alex Song. A couple of conversations with
him during the night suggested that he knows he is done at the club and
some big clubs have had a look. I think we are now reluctant to pay the
transfer fee and wages for a man whose form has dropped dramatically. We
have Lassandra Diarra and Obiang lined up as potential replacements it seems
and it appears Song will be on his way back to Spain, probably not in a
Ford Fiesta however.
Let's enjoy our last home game of the season. The closer this move comes the
more things I am realising I am going to miss. We still have the fair play
award to play for. As I tweeted a while back the QPR game was the last one
for the winning leagues to be decided. Thankfully despite the scaremongering
of other West Ham accounts, England did make it. The team chosen to
represent England will be decided at the end of the season. One of our
closest rivals is Everton who we play next week, let's hope we can wind
some of their players up and get them booked. Some people do not seem keen
on playing in Europe in our last season at Upton Park, which I cannot
understand. Whilst it is not the greatest tournament, European nights would
be special and we haven't had many in my life time!
ExWHUemployee
Also in our last season I want to squeeze out as many games as we can in our
home. COYI
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WHUFC.com
Disappointing. Frustrating. Agonising. Saturday's 1-0 Barclays Premier
League defeat at Aston Villa was all of the above for West Ham United, but
it represented something else for Nene. An opportunity. The Brazilian
forward has featured sparingly since his January arrival from Qatari
football, featuring six times as an eye-catching second-half substitute. At
Villa Park, the 33-year-old was given a full 45 minutes to show his quality,
and responded by producing two of the Hammers' five shots on goal and
setting up Enner Valencia to score with a header – albeit his fellow South
American's effort was ruled out for being narrowly offside. Speaking to West
Ham TV after the game, the former Paris St-Germain and Monaco star said he
enjoyed his extended appearance, and hopes to have done enough to start
against Everton next weekend. "I was happy to be on the field," the No12
confirmed. "It was a shame we didn't get the result, because in the second
half I thought we played better than them and we got some chances. "I would
have preferred to have got the result, but I did my best to help the team
and my legs feel good, so I was happy with that part. "The game was
difficult because they also needed the points, so they played very strong
and on the counter-attack. If we got more chances to shoot or cross, like
the one I gave to Enner, who I didn't think was offside, then we could have
come back in the game. "This is football. We need to work hard in the last
two games and do our best to get the most points possible."
As an experienced player who has spent more than a decade at the highest
level, Nene was asked how West Ham can become a more threatening attacking
force in their final two fixtures against Everton and Newcastle United.
"You've put me in a difficult situation! What we need to do is put the best
quality of ourselves for the team and to create chances and shoot on the
target. "We know what we need to do and we need to put that into practice in
the future."
Nene himself has also found himself in a difficult situation in recent
weeks, sitting on the bench when he – like any footballer – would much
rather have been in the midst of the action on the pitch. "Of course I
wanted to play more but I respect the staff. I work every day to do my best
to play and to help the team and when I get the chance I want to show I can
help my teammates. "It was difficult but this is football. I'm happy here
and I hope in the final two games I can get more minutes."
A prolific user of social media, Nene has endeared himself to West Ham fans
on Instagram and Twitter, where his excellent language skills see him
communicate in English, French and Portuguese. He is grateful for that
support. "Yes, that is really important for me and gives me force and power
to give my best every day. I want to thank them because from the time I
arrived until now they are really good with me and support me a lot with
their words. "I hope to give them what they want from me."
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AWAY FANS ALLOCATION IN THE OLYMPIC STADIUM
By Sean Whetstone 10 May 2015 at 08:16
West Ham Till I Die
Those West Ham supporters hoping away fans will tucked away in the upper
tier gods at the Olympic Stadium could be in a major disappointment.
Planning permission documents submitted by the LLDC show that the away fans
are most likely to be segregated in the South West corner of both the lower
and upper tiers. The diagram below shows a 5% section, the likely standard
away allocation for the Olympic Stadium totaling just 2,700. Contrary to
popular belief there is no minimum away allocation in Premier League
matches. The diagram also shows a 15% away fan allocation or 8,100 which
would take over the majority of the upper and lower south stands. These will
primary be used for FA Cup matches where 15% is required as long as their
are no safety concerns but could also be available for big games where there
is enough demand. The 50% allocation and segregation is reserved for
international matches.
The allocation of a large section of the lower tier of the Olympic Stadium
will concern some existing season ticket holders hoping to get a similar
seat and view to the one they currently enjoy at the Boleyn ground. Both the
Sir Trevor Brooking Lower and Bobby Moore Lower accommodate approximately
6,000 West Ham fans between them with another approximate 3,000 Hammers in
the corners of the West Stand all of which that are currently classed band
4.
There are thought to be 19,000 seats in the new lower tier of the Olympic
Stadium which has led some to question how West Ham will accommodate up to
9,000 Band 4 seats behind the goals and the corners of the Olympic Stadium.
The fear is many season ticket holders currently enjoying a lower tier band
4 ticket will be forced into an upper tier position much further away then
their current seat.
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ASTON VILLA 1, WEST HAM 0. BUT HOW ABOUT THOSE SUBS!
By David Hautzig 9 May 2015 at 18:16
West Ham Till I Die
I listen to a lot of Podcasts while driving from customer to customer. One
of my favorites is The Football Ramble. Last season, after we beat Spurs at
White Hart Lane in the League Cup, the Ramblers told a story about the game.
At some point after Maiga scored to put us ahead, Tim Sherwood got a bit
peeved about something. As he turned around to confront the fourth official,
Sam was standing right in his line of sight. Before Sherwood could even
muster up one word, Sam bellowed out "you getting the hang of this"!? Yeah,
Sam. He is. Maybe you need to ask yourself the same question.
The first half was as close to a one sided affair as is possible at this
level. Meaning, two teams that are essentially on the same level. In the 5th
minute, Villa played as if they were managed by Sam with Cleverley sending a
long pass near the box to Benteke. The on fire Belgian headed it down to
N'Zogbia but his first touch was too heavy and the chance was gone. Minutes
later, after Grealish won a corner, the ball bounced around the penalty area
for what seemed like minutes. Villa attempted two shots, but both were
blocked. Then, a long pass from Delph to Cleverly set up a volley by the
latter but Adrian was there to palm the ball out for a corner. Three minutes
later, Villa were awarded a free kick and this time Delph found Benteke in
the box, but despite beating Collins to the ball he couldn't get his header
on target and it rolled out wide for a goal kick. Moments later Cleverly
crossed to a wide open Benteke, but his header went off the post and across
the goal mouth.
It turned out the play was offside, but a theme was developing for the first
half. West Ham gain possession, lose possession, then defend as Villa attack
with speed and purpose. If it weren't for James Collins cement forehead the
game could have been ugly for the Hammers.
In the 27th minute, Benteke controlled a cross with his chest just outside
of the West Ham area. He layed it off for Delph, whose low shot looked to be
deflected by…you guessed it…Collins before being smothered by Adrian. But as
the old saying goes, if you play with fire you get burned. In the 31st
minute, all of the sloppy passes and deep defending caught up with West Ham.
After moving the ball well around the top of the area, Grealish made a run
down the left. He beat Downing by the touchline and sent a pass through
Collins legs and in to the path of the on-rushing Cleverly who tapped it in
from just a few yards out for his third goal in three games.
Aston Villa 1, West Ham 0.
Many of us have asked why Amalfitano hasn't played as much as we would like.
After seeing his tussle with Cleverley and the knee to the backside that the
Lee Mason missed, you can understand why his temperament might outweigh his
talent from time to time. On another day that could have been a straight
red.
West Ham appealed for a penalty in the 39th minute, both by Nolan and
Kouyate after West Ham won a corner. As the ball came into the box, Nolan
was sandwiched by Krul and Vlaar and Kouyate seemed to be pulled from behind
by Delph. Lee Mason's reply to both was no and no, and the first half ended
with Aston Villa in front by a goal.
In many ways, the most exciting moment for West Ham in the second half came
before the ball was kicked off. Which is rather pathetic. Be that as it may,
the announcement that Nolan and Amalfitano were being replaced by Song and
Nene sparked more enthusiasm on Twitter than any other moment in the game.
In the 50th minute, the Brazilian showed why he might be a better option in
our current state than Sam has led us to believe. Song played the ball wide
to Noble, who passed to Downing, who layed it off for Nene. With a quick
move to his left, he sent a curling effort just over the bar.
Aston Villa came close to doubling their lead in the 54th minute when
N'Zogbia broke down the right and sent a shot into the side setting. As he
completed his shot he tried to jump over a sliding Cresswell, but instead
landed on the Hammer Of The Year's left leg. Thankfully the injury wasn't
serious and Joey O'Brien was able to continue his sabbatical.
In the 59th minute West Ham created what we call a half chance, and what I
suspect Sam will call a missed opportunity. Nene attempted a cross to
Valencia, but the pass was cleared out for a corner by Vlaar. On the ensuing
free kick, Collins rose above the crowd but his header was palmed over the
bar by Given. The corner was cleared, but only as far as Alex Song, who
passed it to Nene. The man isn't afraid to shoot from anywhere and
everywhere. But his attempt from the top of the box sailed over the bar. A
few minutes later, he sent a cross from the right that found Valencia in
front of goal. Before the ball was headed past Given, the offside flag went
up. Many on Twitter lambasted the linesman for getting it wrong, but replays
showed he got it right.
In the 68th minute, Delph and N'Zogbia combined to split open the West Ham
defense, especially Jenkinson who looked to be in a slower speed. But just
as N'Zogbia was about to shoot Kouyate raced back to break up the play and
keep West Ham in it.
Can I say something else about Nene? Thanks. A minute later, West Ham had
the ball on the right hand side near the Villa eighteen yard box. Jenkinson
sent a pass towards Nene. Nene's Brazilian mind said Noble, Downing, or
Valencia would make a move into the open space to his left. So he dummied
it, and let the ball roll past him as he faked with his right foot. But the
Sam minds don't think that way, nobody moved, and Villa intercepted and
broke. I am NOT on a Nene love fest here. But if the only plays that made us
even sit up in our chairs went through him, it's notable.
In the 74th minute Aston Villa should have doubled their advantage. Delph
and Benteke combined well outside the West Ham area. Delph passed to
Cleverley breaking down the right, who then sent a low cross into the box
that Benteke somehow mis-timed before Collins cleared the ball from danger.
The final minutes of the match saw Collins miss a challenged header from a
corner, Agbonglahor break in on Adrian only to be foiled by Cresswell, and
Carlton Cole win a corner that again found Collins but not the net.
Final Score. Aston Villa 1, West Ham 0.
At times today West Ham were dire. Absolutely awful. At other times West Ham
were functional. Not a joy to watch, but not painful either. But at no time
today were we even a shadow of the club we thought we had earlier in the
year. We never really asked any questions of Villa, and I think the game
could have gone on for hours without West Ham scoring. I guess we haven't
seen that side in months, and as it stands I don't know when we will see it
again.
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Maiga stay at Metz unlikely after relegation
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
French team Metz were relegated straight back to French Ligue 2 on Saturday
as they suffered a crushing 4-0 defeat to Lorient. Hammer Modibo Maiga
joined Metz at the beginning of this season on a one-year loan deal with an
option to buy. Maiga signed West Ham for a reported £4.7m from Sochaux
scoring 6 goals for the Hammers from 37 appearances. Metz were thought to
paying just £6,000 of Maiga £30,000 per week wages but even that may be too
high a fee to pay in Ligue 2. He has one year remaining on his West Ham
contract worth around £1.5m in wages. A return to West Ham in the summer
looks likely now unless a new loan or permanent deal can be found elsewhere.
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Gold says Bobby Moore is coming with us
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
When Co Chairman David Gold was asked on social media by a West Ham fan "Is
the Bobby Moore memorial statue going to remain or move to the new
stadium?"He replied "The Bobby Moore statue will come with us to the new
stadium. dg"
This has left some Olympic Stadium watchers confused whether it West Ham's
to take with them. The memorial to England's 1966 World Cup triumph depicts
West Ham legend Bobby Moore, along with fellow West Ham players Geoff Hurst
and Martin Peters, as well as Ray Wilson from Everton. At four metres high
it is a prominent sight at the corner of Green Street and Barking Road was
designed and crafted by British artist Philip Jackson and weighs in at four
tonnes. Newham council website says financial contributors to the Champions
statue included the London Borough of Newham, West Ham United Football Club,
Green Street SRB, Arts Council for England, and Arts & Business. West Ham
would most likely need permission from these backers to relocate the statue
to the Queen Elizabeth park close to the Olympic Stadium.
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Benitez new bookies favourite for Irons hotseat
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Napoli boss Rafa Benitez is the new bookies favourite at 6/4 to replace Sam
Allardyce r next season replacing previous favourite David Moyes who remains
2/1.
It is claimed Rafael Benitez is set to leave Napoli at the end of the season
even if he is offered a new contract by the Italian club. Napoli president
Aurelio De Laurentiis says Benitez can remain at the San Paolo "for the next
five years" if he wants to. However, sources close to Benitez claim he will
quit Napoli when his contract expires in June, putting West Ham on alert
over his availability over the summer. The former Liverpool and Chelsea
manager Benitez joined Napoli in the summer of 2013 and led them to the
Coppa Italia and third place in Serie A in his first season in charge. This
season Napoli has failed to mount a serious bid for the title, but Benitez
has guided the club to the semi-finals of the Europa League.
David Moyes has moved to second favourite after he appeared to claim he was
staying at Real Sociedad.
Moyes said "There's always speculation, but I'm here to do the job,I'm going
to be here. I want to try to get everything in place so we can be at our
best for the start of next season. I don't think we need masses and masses,
but there are improvements I'd like to make, things I want to change. Small
things that will help. And if we do that. I'll be here. I'm not going
anywhere."
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Lack of attacking play could cost Irons Europa
Posted by Sean Whetstone on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Yesterday West Ham picked up just one yellow card courtesy of Alex Song
while Everton picked up two. On face of it that it appeared good news for
our European hopes as each yellow card counts as minus one point from that
week's totals in the Premier League Fair Play table.
What is less well known is a further 10 points are available for teams
displaying attacking play. Despite losing two nil to Sunderland yesterday
media reports claim Everton attacked relentlessly. West Ham attacking play
was less obvious and that could cost us dear when Premier League officials
tally up the scores for West Ham and Everton over the past two games.
West Ham are 10 points ahead of Everton in the fair play table published on
the 5th May based on 34 games to the end of May. Just 4 games of scoring
remain for West Ham to finish above Everton with two of them already played.
West Ham picked up 3 yellow cards in our previous game against Burnley last
weekend (Noble, Downing and Valencia) while Everton (Coleman) picked up just
one in their 3-2 loss to Aston Villa on 2nd May. Liverpool lead the table
but are almost guaranteed to qualify for Europe under their league position
so the Europa would be awarded to second place should Liverpool top the
table.
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DG careful of playing injury card
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
David Gold has been careful not to replay the "injury card " in FULL as the
reason for our Villa Park failure. But he ventured back onto thin ice on
Twitter after yesterday's game to declare: "We are not winning because we
are not scoring goals. Obvious. Part reason. Our two top goal scorers are
injured. Dg The co chairman took a lot of stick last week when appearing to
blame a dismal performance at Loftus Road on injuries although he insisted
he was merely stating a fact rather than excuse finding. He told
ClaretandHugh: "I am not trying to protect or excuse anything – merely
stating a fairly obvious fact." However, another post was far more positive
and upbeat when he assured a fan on the future of the Bobby Moore statue. He
explained: "The Bobby Moore statue will come with us to the new stadium. Dg
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LEROY: We were pathetic and shameful
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Well, that was pathetic – no other word will do…West Ham were hopeless at
Villa. Worse than that, they looked like a team who didn't want to be there
and are simply looking after themselves to make sure they don't get injuries
before the summer break – awful!
They shamed themselves and my only thoughts were with the fantastic fans who
followed them up there. They should receive a refund after that. This is my
club and hurts like hell to have to talk like this but we have to be honest.
If we aren't all is lost. No excuses – no explanations from anywhere please.
We were awful. God, there were times when they couldn't even pass the ball
accurately over ten yards. Villa were hardly great so where does that put
us? …as low as it gets.
The players must hold their hands up. There's not much a manager can do in
those circumstances but I'm afraid there is also a collective responsibility
and Sam has to take his share of it because that's the nature of the job –
you have to get things sorted. And THAT hasn't been happening. Nor is it on
to keep talking about injuries as an excuse. There's a squad of 25
professionals – they are called that for a reason. Whatever the
circumstances there has to be btter than what we've seen for the last few
weeks – especially yesterday. Where they go from here I haven't a clue but
yesterday they shamed those brilliant fans.
Not on – simply not on!
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Missed chances – which chances were they?
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
You are awake an hour and read of referee's assistant guessing at a
disallowed West Ham goal accompanied by claims that nobody can score.
This won't take long but let's clear all that up! As stated earlier the
linesman guessed correctly – Enner Valencia's goal was rightly ruled out. It
was a yard offside so no moans about that please. As for our players not
being able to score, one small point – you have to make chances for that to
happen and West Ham aren't doing so. Thus the goal drought goes on and will
continue until a team is put out that can find it's way through defences as
19 year old Jack Grealish did ours yesterday before pulling the ball back to
Tom Cleverley for their goal. I'm too tired of the usual excuse making to
say much more other than like most others match day is now a trial from
beginning to end. But it really does need to be pointed out that those
chances we hear of, yesterday amounted to an offside goal and a James
Collins header from a Mark Noble corner.
Case rested!
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Cressie: "We paid the price"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Hammer of the Year Aaron Cresswell has spoken of his huge disappointment at
the Villa Park defeat. Speaking to the official site he said: "We just need
to take one of the chances we're creating, but unfortunately we couldn't do
that and we paid the price. "I think we had a couple of chances. Enner had
his header ruled out for offside, but I think if we score the first goal
it's a different game. "We were disappointed with the way we conceded.
Grealish pulled it back from the line and unfortunately for us it's gone
through James Collins' legs and the lad's tapped it in. "They're fighting
for their lives down at the bottom and that's never nice for anyone,
including the players. "They were 1-0 up and they were always going to sit
back in the last 15, 20 minutes. We just needed that goal which we couldn't
get."
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Err Sam – the official "guessed" right
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 10, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Sam Allardyce has had a whinge at 'the goal that never was' from Enner
Valencia during yesterday's game at Villa Park. With Villa leading, the
Ecuadorian striker rose to head home which at – at first sight – appeared to
be an okay goal. However, replays clearly showed Enner to be offside by
about a yard and the player greeted the decision from the referee's
assistant with a small smile. The manager however, unsurprisingly, took a
difference view and stormed afterwards: "The assistant was in no position to
give a decision – he guessed. "He was four yards out of place and I find
that difficult to take but beyond that our problem is we can't score goals
or finish chances." An odd response at best and just a small reminder – the
referee's assistant "guessed" right. Why you were apparently watching him
rather than the build up to the 'goal' WE can only GUESS at!
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West Ham teenager Reece Burke puts in another fine performance
Sat 2 May
HITC
Vincent Ralph
West Ham United may have lost 1-0 to Aston Villa this weekend but their
teenage centre-back continued to impress. West Ham United could not build on
their recent win against Burnley, as Sam Allardyce's men lost 1-0 to a
resurgent Aston Villa side on Saturday. The only goal of the game came from
Tom Cleverley; the Manchester United loanee scoring for the third match in
succession. But while Villa stole the show and won the points, Hammers fans
can at least take heart from another fine performance from their teenage
centre-back Reece Burke.
The 18-year-old was playing his third league game in a row, and for the
first time he was unable to help his side to a clean-sheet having previously
done just that against both Sean Dyche's men and Queens Park Rangers.
Burke is far from the finished article, but while there are areas of his
game that he can and no doubt will improve in time, he showed enough on
Saturday to suggest he should now remain a regular part of the Hammers'
first-team squad. The areas in which the West Ham youngster really impressed
at the weekend – apart from his brilliant composure for one so young – were
the sheer number of effective clearances he made and the fact that he was
not dispossessed all afternoon. Burke made 19 effective clearances in total
(12 with his feet and seven with his head) while he also recovered the ball
on three separate occasions. He also had an impressive passing accuracy of
80 per cent. The areas he will be less pleased with were duels, aerial
battles and interceptions, with Burke winning none on the day. But he is
young, he is extremely talented and in time he could become a great West Ham
centre-back.
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Sakho snubs Allardyce at awards evening – The ExWHUemployee Column
Ironsview.com
By ExWHUemployee on May 10, 2015 in ExWHUemployee column
It has been a while since I have written a blog but with any luck they will
be weekly again from now on.
The manager issue is still on going. At the player awards the chairmen and
the manager did not speak. In fact Sam seemed very aloof during the whole
evening, didn't present any awards or make a speech, neither did David
Sullivan unlike previous years and both Kevin Nolan and Andy Carroll left
early which got people talking. Diafra Sakho also offered his top scorer
award to the chairmen as a thank you for bringing him to the club providing
a very obvious snub to Allardyce.
I have heard that during the week a number of managers appear to be
distancing themselves from the job. David Moyes has always been the number
one target and I think he still is however he appears to be changing his
mind and almost distancing himself from the position. His advisors have
been spoken to indirectly on a couple of occasions now and he is of course
Tony Henry's first choice. Rafa Benitez looks likely to stay at Napoli or
take another big job and not come here, so he is now unlikely. The
Marseille boss has suffered some very poor form of late and his job is
currently under threat and so I think the club have lost interest. There
has been talk from a few people online that Ramos, the old Spurs boss,
could be considered. This will not happen but the options appear to be
running out. Howe of Bournemouth has been linked too but he is likely to
want to stay on and mange Bournemouth in the Premier League. There seems
to be a bit of concern around the West Ham hierarchy that, whilst they
would like to replace Sam, the options they thought they had seem to be
running thinner. Of course there is still Slaven Bilic who many people would
want at the club. He has been distancing himself from the job but I think
he would take it if offered.
I was told that there have been initial discussions with Steve McLaren who
is apparently keen on moving to us now having rejected us a couple of times
in the past. Whether this move is likely I am not sure but I believe
things are becoming concerning. As I have said for months we must wait
until the end of the season until worrying about it as that is when
decisions will be made.
I do believe it is time for Sam to go now. Many of you will know I have
backed him for a long time, written many an article on it and still believe
his criticism has been unfair. The problem is the fans are so against him
now that it really is almost impossible for him to make our last season at
Upton Park special because of the current negativity around him. The
performance in first half against Villa was terrible and then the changes
were made (to the system we all want with Nene on) and we looked better.
This really isn't rocket science! We then have the excuse that we are not
taking our chances yet we will not play more than one recognised forward
from the start. If the managerial options appear to vanish then it
increases the chances of Sam being offered another deal. All of this
however is pure speculation and not worth getting worked up about until the
end of the season as anything can happen.
I tweeted from the players' do that Jenkinson was happy to stay with us and
wanted to. Arsene Wenger put out a statement to say that the club still
want to keep Carl and would only consider a second loan deal. Of course the
manager will not come out and declare him for sale as it lowers the price
but it does mean the deal is harder to do. I had heard that we are close to
a couple of signings. One is Obiang for £8.5m which I have said for a
number of weeks now and a couple of free deals. Glen Johnson is someone who
I have regularly spoke about in recent blogs and is being lined up for a
move. There are a couple of other foreign free transfers who are also hot
on the radar.
The new Umbro deal was confirmed in recent weeks and has been agreed long
before, offering the best deal financially. There has also been a few
problems with Adidas which have upset the club including there being no
children's sizes available for the Christmas period. Umbro isn't my
favourite make but they will apparently work with the fans to listen to what
we want for designs in future years which can only be good.
The player of the year award was won by Aaron Cresswell. He had a large
majority and it was confirmed way before the night that he had won (hence
my tweet). Adrian was a deserving second but perhaps less so deserving
was Valencia achieving third. It has been said in the past that we now
have a number of Ecuadorian fans who regularly visit our website to check up
on their hero and his third place will be down to them voting. Valencia has
showed potential (especially at the start of the season in the right
formation) however he hasn't quite lived up to the player I thought he would
be. At this moment I would take the £20m supposedly Chelsea were
interested in paying or even take a swap deal for Remy. I don't think this
deal will happen and next season will be very important for Valencia to
prove he can make it in the Premier League.
Another player likely to leave is Alex Song. A couple of conversations with
him during the night suggested that he knows he is done at the club and
some big clubs have had a look. I think we are now reluctant to pay the
transfer fee and wages for a man whose form has dropped dramatically. We
have Lassandra Diarra and Obiang lined up as potential replacements it seems
and it appears Song will be on his way back to Spain, probably not in a
Ford Fiesta however.
Let's enjoy our last home game of the season. The closer this move comes the
more things I am realising I am going to miss. We still have the fair play
award to play for. As I tweeted a while back the QPR game was the last one
for the winning leagues to be decided. Thankfully despite the scaremongering
of other West Ham accounts, England did make it. The team chosen to
represent England will be decided at the end of the season. One of our
closest rivals is Everton who we play next week, let's hope we can wind
some of their players up and get them booked. Some people do not seem keen
on playing in Europe in our last season at Upton Park, which I cannot
understand. Whilst it is not the greatest tournament, European nights would
be special and we haven't had many in my life time!
ExWHUemployee
Also in our last season I want to squeeze out as many games as we can in our
home. COYI
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Sunday, May 10
Daily WHUFC News - 10th May 2015
Aston Villa 1-0 West Ham United
WHUFC.com
The wait for a first away Barclays Premier League win of 2015 goes on, as
West Ham United succumbed to a 1-0 defeat by relegation-threatened Aston
Villa on Saturday. FA Cup finalists Villa bossed proceedings prior to the
interval and broke the deadlock after half an hour when Tom Cleverley
profited from Jack Grealish's low cross. The Hammers were vastly improved
after the break, with Nene, in particular, giving the visitors some
much-needed impetus going forward. The Brazilian himself flashed one over
the top from distance, while Enner Valencia had a headed effort chalked off
for offside. With Sunderland's win at Everton in the early kick-off dragging
Villa to within a point of the bottom three, it was the hosts who made all
the early running here. Leandro Bacuna was the first to take aim, fizzing a
25-yard free-kick narrowly over Adrian's crossbar. Then, a corner from the
left resulted in pin ball in the West Ham box, allowing Jose Okore to tee up
Charles N'Zgobia, who slammed his effort into Kevin Nolan. Still inside
quarter-of-an-hour, Fabien Delph picked out Cleverley at the far post, whose
excellent first-time volley was palmed away by Adrian. The clearest chance,
however, fell to the in-form Christian Benteke. Latching onto an Okore flick
from a Delph free-kick, the Belgian was unable to make sufficient contact to
steer inside the near post.
Villa were fluent and neat in possession around the box, particularly the
young Jack Grealish and he was the architect of the opener. The 19-year-old
burst past Stewart Downing to the by-line and drove across goal for
Cleverley to prod into the empty net. It had been coming.
An on-running dispute between Morgan Amalfitano and Cleverley made the
former pantomime villain for the afternoon, though Downing too was treated
to a hostile reception against his former employers. After a lacklustre
first 45, Sam Allardyce shuffled his pack at the break, with Nene and Alex
Song replacing Nolan and Amalfitano. It meant the Hammers reverted to the
diamond formation that served them so well prior to Christmas.
And it so nearly worked. Downing squared to Nene, who needed no second
invitation to let fly, flashing a vicious effort goalward. Shay Given had no
chance but it cleared the crossbar as well. At the other end, N'Zogbia
slalomed his way into the box and then lashed an effort into the side
netting. As the hour-mark approached, James Collins rose above Ron Vlaar to
meet a Mark Noble corner, but Given was on hand to comfortably tip it over
the top. Then Nene ducked inside onto his left foot but his ambitious curler
sailed behind. West Ham did at least get the ball in the Villa net, but
Valencia was flagged offside as he nodded Nene's centre into the left-hand
corner. Big Sam threw on Carlton Cole for the final 12 minutes, but
West Ham carved out very little of note in the closing minutes. In fact,
Villa came closer to extending their lead, not once, but twice. Ashley
Westwood's daisy cutter drifted past Adrian's right-hand upright, before
Gabriel Agbonlahor skewed wide with only the 'keeper to beat.
Aston Villa: Given, Vlaar, Okore, Bacuna (Hutton 78), Cleverley, Westwood,
Delph, Richardson, Benteke, N'Zogbia, (Agbonlahor 71), Grealish (Sanchez 90)
Subs: Guzan, Weimann, Cole, Senderos
Booked: N'Zogbia
Goal: Cleverley 31
West Ham United: Adrian, Cresswell, Nolan (Song 46), Kouyate, Downing, Noble
(Cole 78), Jenkinson, Collins, Amalfitano (Nene 46), Valencia, Burke
Subs: Jaaskelainen, O'Brien, Cullen, Cole, Jarvis
Booked: Song
Referee: Lee Mason
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On this day - 10 May
WHUFC.com
Classic match
West Ham United 4-3 Leicester City
Premier League
10 May 1998
The Hammers closed the 1997/98 season with a mid-table battle against Martin
O'Neill's Leicester City. Neither team had much to play for, but that was
not apparent in the way the game was approached, with plenty to entertain
the 25,781 Boleyn Ground crowd. West Ham were in a rich vein of goalscoring
form, having drawn 3-3 at Crystal Palace in their previous match, and it did
not take them long to get off the mark this time, with Frank Lampard's15th
minute strike opening the scoring. Samassi Abou made it two on 31 minutes to
give West Ham a position of strength before the break. Leicester pulled one
back on 59 through former Hammer Tony Cottee, but it was soon 3-1 thanks to
Trevor Sinclair. The drama continued and the Foxes again closed the deficit
thanks to Emile Heskey, before the hosts could relax again due to Abou's
second of the game. Cottee struck again with seven minutes to go, but West
Ham had done enough to secure a thrilling victory which gave them an
eighth-place finish.
Head to our Facebook and Twitter pages throughout the day to remember our
1980 FA Cup victory, which also fell on 10 May.
Complete record - 10 May
1980 West Ham United 1-0 Arsenal (FA Cup final)
1982 West Ham United 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur (Division One)
1983 West Ham United 1-3 Arsenal (Division One)
1995 West Ham United 3-0 Liverpool (Premier League)
1998 West Ham United 4-3 Leicester City (Premier League)
Played 4, Won 2, Drawn 1, Lost 1, Scored 10, Conceded 8
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'We have no cutting edge'
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce admitted a poor first-half showing cost West Ham United
anything from Saturday's 1-0 Barclays Premier League defeat at Aston Villa.
A lifeless showing from the Hammers in the opening 45 minutes was compounded
when Jack Grealish danced to the byline unchallenged before crossing for Tom
Cleverley to tap home just past the half-hour mark. Despite throwing on Alex
Song and Nene at the break and producing an improved performance after the
interval, Sam Allardyce's side had just one shot on target and failed to
navigate a way past or repeatedly test Villa goalkeeper Shay Given. When
West Ham did get the ball into the Irishman's net midway through the second
period, Enner Valencia's well-placed header was ruled out for offside
against the Ecuador forward - a decision that led to lively debate among
television and radio pundits and supporters on social media alike. "I was
baffled by the lack of quality shown by the whole team in the first half,
considering how much we train and how many passing drills we do," Big Sam
told West Ham TV. "We were kicking the ball straight to them or kicking it
out of play to the opposition, which was hugely frustrating. "We had to make
a change to the system and to the personnel and said to them 'If you want to
get something out of the game, you need to play better, especially in
possession'. That got better in the second half, but our old problem arose
again and that is that we can't score in open play. "That's been a problem
for weeks now and shows you how much we miss Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho
and it hammers it home. We might play well here and there and play as well
as Villa did in some parts of the game, but we have no cutting edge at the
minute. "The longer it has gone on and the more we look at it, the more
apparent it is that we have got a big problem there. No matter who gets the
chance, they can't put it in the back of the net and because of that, life
is very difficult for us to try to win a game at the moment."
After a toothless first-half performance, West Ham at least put some
pressure on Tim Sherwood's men after the break, but had just one shot on
target - a James Collins header tipped over by Given - to show for their
efforts. "We didn't think Enner's goal was offside. We thought the header
was onside and that it was a bad decision from the assistant referee. Enner
could have had a penalty for a foul by Bacuna in the first half, but we are
not finding the quality to hit the target enough or score goals. "I thought
Ginge had scored off the corner and it was a good save by Shay Given, but we
are disappointed we haven't scored a goal or created enough overall."
One of the few positives the Hammers could take from their trip to
Birmingham was the performance of Reece Burke on his third Barclays Premier
League start. The 18-year-old helped to shackle in-form Christian Benteke,
while he was blameless when Jack Grealish got past Stewart Downing and
crossed for Cleverley's winner. "He was great and him and Ginge handled
Benteke very well. I thought the goal we gave away was a gift, though. We
should have done a lot better with the run from Grealish and made sure he
didn't get that far, but he did. "It was very disappointing overall. We are
not under the pressure Aston Villa are under, but when they were getting a
bit nervous late in the game, we should have produced a bit more quality and
got back in the game but didn't."
With mid-table Everton at home and relegation-threatened Newcastle United
away to close out the the season, Big Sam should be optimistic of picking up
points, but he knows his team need to find ways to score if they are going
to do so. "If we can't score a goal, how are we going to win? That's a real
problem for us at the moment. No matter what system or combination I try,
nobody out there is capable of scoring a goal in open play. "It's going to
have to change dramatically in the last two games if we are to get the
points on the board and get up to that 50-point mark we are desperate to get
to."
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Cresswell frustrated as goal touch deserts Hammers
WHUFC.com
Aaron Cresswell admitted the Hammers felt a familiar frustration as they
slipped to a 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa on Saturday. With four goals in their
last nine games to their name and missing Diafra Sakho and Andy Carroll
through injury, West Ham's recent struggles to find the net surfaced again
at Villa Park. That meant Tom Cleverley's 31st minute goal was enough to
hand the hosts maximum points and leave Cresswell and his teammates still
searching for a first away league win of 2015. "We're disappointed," he
admitted. "We just need to take one of the chances we're creating, but
unfortunately we couldn't do that on Saturday and we paid the price with the
goal they scored in the first half. "I think we had a couple of chances.
Enner had his header ruled out for offside, but I think if we score the
first goal it's a different game. "We were disappointed with the way we
conceded. Grealish pulled it back from the line and unfortunately for us
it's gone through James Collins' legs and the lad's tapped it in. "They're
fighting for their lives down at the bottom and that's never nice for
anyone, including the players. "They were 1-0 up and they were always going
to sit back in the last 15, 20 minutes. We just needed that goal which we
couldn't get."
The Hammers now face a home meeting with Everton and an away trip to
Newcastle United to finish the season and Cresswell is determined to help
his team rediscover their shooting boots. He added: "We want to finish with
a flourish by taking six points from the two games against Everton and
Newcastle, to try and finish as high up that table as we can."
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Lletget joins LA Galaxy
WHUFC.com
West Ham United can confirm that midfielder Sebastian Lletget has joined MLS
club LA Galaxy on a permanent basis for an undisclosed fee.
Lletget, 22, returns to his native California after six years with West Ham,
during which he graduated from the Academy and made one first-team
appearance in the FA Cup third-round defeat at Nottingham Forest in January
2014. Having initially been scouted by the Hammers' International Academy,
the American also made more than 70 appearances for the Development Squad
during his time in east London.
San Francisco-born Lletget will join a Galaxy squad that also includes
former Hammers loanee Robbie Keane and will soon be augmented by the arrival
of Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard. West Ham United would like to thank
Sebastian for his hard work and commitment and wish him all the very best
for his future career.
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Foxes too strong for youthful U18s
WHUFC.com
West Ham United U18s closed their season with a 2-0 defeat by Leicester City
at Little Heath on Saturday.
The final-day loss saw the Hammers, who fielded no less than five U15
schoolboys during the course of the match, finish sixth in the Barclays U18
Premier League Tier Two table.
After a strong opening 40 minutes, a mistake in the midfield by West Ham
midfielder Noha Sylvestre allowed Leicester to break forward and take the
lead through Harvey Barnes' goal.
The Hammers tried to fight back in the second half against their older
opposition, but Foxes substitute Admiral Muskwe confirmed the result by
doubling the visitors lead with the final kick of the season.
After Wednesday's 2-1 defeat at home Reading, U18s coach Mark Phillips made
three changes to his starting line-up. Alex Pike, Emmanual Onariase - away
with the first team at Aston Villa - and Grady Diangana all missed out,
allowing Phillips to give 14-year-old trio Mason Barrett, Ben Wells and
Alfie Lewis their first starts at U18 level.
At the other end of the experience scale, goalkeeper Sam Howes captained the
Hammers on his 54th appearance for the youth team, while Oscar Borg and Joe
Powell joined another U15 star in Idris Kanu in attack.
To further lower the average age of the squad, Phillips' substitutes' bench
was made up of goalkeeper Clarke Bogard and more 14-year-olds in Malyk
Hamilton and Korrey Henry.
The Hammers came out the blocks positively and caused the Leicester backline
several problems from set pieces. Winger Powell is known for his crossing
ability so was placed on free-kick and corner duty, but the visiting defence
dealt with his whipped crosses into the penalty area.
It was Leicester that went to closest in the opening stages, though, when
Vashon Neufville gave away possession on the edge of the box, giving Foxes
striker Daniel Rowe the time and space to fire just wide of the post.
Down the other end, Lewis' tricky feet enabled him to skip through the
Leicester midfield before feeding Powell, who fired low at Max Smith-Vernam.
With 42 minutes of the clock, the visitors took the lead. Sylvestre
attempted to switch the ball to the opposite wing, but his pass was
intercepted by King. The Foxes player beat Ross Elsom inside the penalty
area and crossed low to Barnes, who slid the ball into the back of the net.
As half-time approached, the Hammers produced one more effort on goal.
Powell's corner was headed straight back to him on the right wing and, after
cutting in, his bending effort was just tipped over the bar by Smith-Vernam.
In the early stages of the second half, the visitors looked like they had
finally gained control over the young Hammers and were starting to pass the
ball around the pitch smoothly. Defenders Elliott Percival and Cedric Kipre
both found themselves in advanced positions and tested Howes in the the West
Ham goal.
Phillips then introduced his two U15 substitutes into the action. Hamilton
replaced Browne, who was playing his second game since returning from a
long-term injury, while Henry replaced Lewis in the centre of midfield.
The Hammers tried to fight back and grab an equaliser but it was Leicester
who were to score the second goal of the game and secure the three points
for themselves.
It was substitute Muskwe who retrieved the ball to feet inside and after
being given far too much room to turn, he placed the ball confidently past
Howes and into the corner of the net.
With the season's fixtures now all completed by Phillips' side, the Hammers
finished in sixth place in the Barclays U18 Premier League Tier Two Play-Off
Stage with seven points from their seven fixtures. Prior to the play-off
stages, West Ham finished the regular season in sixth place, with 32 points
from their 22 Barclays U18 Premier League South fixtures.
The Hammers will now take a squad away to the HTFC Citibank Soccer Sevens in
Hong Kong at the end of this month. It will be the fourth time that the club
have sent a squad the tournament. In both 2008 and 2009, the Hammers
finished as runners-up before winning the Plate competition in 2012.
Among the squad selected for the tournament are highly-rated winger Djair
Parfitt-Williams, striker Jordan Brown and Saturday's substitute goalkeeper
Bogard.
U18s: Howes, Barrett, Elsom, Wells, Neufville, Browne (Hamilton), Sylvestre,
Lewis (Henry), Borg, Kanu, Powell
Subs not used: Bogard
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Aston Villa 1-0 West Ham Utd
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 9th May 2015
By: Staff Writer
West Ham slumped to yet another miserable - and entirely predictable -
defeat against one of the Premier League's strugglers at Villa Park this
afternoon.
A first half strike from Tom Cleverley was enough to secure a much-needed
win for Villa, who are now four points clear of the drop zone with just two
fixtures to play.
And what better opposition for them to face on an afternoon when they
desperately needed to take all three points than a West Ham side who
continue to appear disjointed, dispirited and disinterested?
The Irons' season, effectively over the moment David Sullivan was attacked
by angry fans in the car park at West Brom in the FA Cup has lurched from
one disappointment to another since that particular Valentine's Day
massacre.
Since then, West Ham have managed to win just two games - both by a single
goal - against Sunderland and Burnley. So badly have the goals dried up that
as things stand, United have scored just three more goals this season than
during the 2013/14 Premier League campaign.
Indeed, since the defeat at the Hawthorns - a total of 11 games - West Ham
have scored a pitiful tally of just seven goals. With Carlton Cole, Enner
Valencia and Nene looking lost without the additional firepower of Diafra
Sakho and Andy Carroll, the writing was on the wall this afternoon from the
moment Cleverley scored.
The Hammers started the game poorly and with an emphasis on defence (a
strange decision, given the almost meaningless nature of the game). With
Enner Valencia ploughing a lone furrow in attack - a role he simply fails to
shine in - the only surprise was that it took the hosts a full 13 minutes to
fashion a decent shot at goal.
Benteke and Delph then went close, before the deciding goal arrived. A break
on the left-hand side saw Grealish find the byeline before pulling the ball
back to Cleverley, in acres of space, to add the finishing touch.
That he was afforded so much room was due to marker Kevin Nolan - who had
been tracking his run - shutting off a second too early, allowing the former
Man United midfielder to roam into the box unattended.
Having barely made an impression ahead of the break Sam Allarydyce rang the
changes, altering his team's shape to the 442 diamond that proved so
fruitful in the first half of the season. The ineffective Nolan was hooked
for Alex Song whilst Nene replaced the equally anonymous Morgan Amalfitano.
The new shape worked - to a degree, at least - for it took Villa until the
85th minute to fashion their first shot at goal following the half time
interval. West Ham were not exactly raining shots down upon Shay Given
though, and the Irish stopper rarely had to intervene; only once, when a
James Collins header was looping under the crossbar was he forced to make a
save.
Bar Collins' nod there were chances for Nene (a dipping volley inches too
high) and ... Nene (another volley that narrowly missed its intended target)
- although too often the Hammers failed to make the most of Villa's
reluctance to break forward in numbers.
Valencia briefly thought he'd grabbed the equaliser when finding the net
through Nene's delivery, although TV replays appeared to suggest the
linesman was right - just! - to flag for offside.
And in the end substitute Gabriel Agbonlahor should have wrapped the game
with a glorious chance in the fourth minute of added-on time but a fantastic
tackle from Hammer of the Year Aaron Cresswell meant the chance went
begging.
Next up for West Ham is the visit of Everton for the final home league game
of the season. If anyone can be bothered to turn up, that is.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sam Allardyce says his West Ham side are lacking a cutting edge in front of
goal
Last Updated: 09/05/15 7:32pm
SSN
Sam Allardyce has questioned the linesman's decision to rule Enner Valencia
offside during West Ham's defeat at Aston Villa. Manager Sam Allardyce
bemoaned West Ham's failures in front of goal after they suffered a 1-0
defeat at Aston Villa. Tom Cleverley scored Villa's winner to ease their
relegation fears while Allardyce admits his side "can't score goals" at
present, with just eight in their last 14 Premier League games. Saturday's
loss meant West Ham have continued their miserable run in the Premier
League, having picked up just three wins since December 20. For a number of
weeks now we have tried and tried and tried to find the goals you need and
we can't find them. Simple as that," said Allardyce. "Whatever we do,
whatever chances we create, none of our players seem to convert them into
goals. Because of that, life is extremely difficult. "Our last two goals
were an Aaron Cresswell free-kick and a Mark Noble penalty. We failed in
front of goal and because of that we end up losing the game 1-0."
Enner Valencia had a header ruled out for offside in the second half and
Allardyce added: "In saying all that, I think Valencia's header is a goal.
"The assistant referee is in no position to give a decision one way or the
other. He is four yards in the wrong position, so he guesses. I find that
rather difficult to take." However, Allardyce praised his makeshift defence
for keeping the Hammers in touching distance, adding: "I did think we were
pathetic with the way we let the goal in, but considering we have James
Tomkins and Winston Reid out, Ginge (James Collins) and Reece Burke have
done a fantastic job."
The Hammers were improved after making two changes at the break and
Allardyce said: "Our overall play got better at half-time when we changed
it, it wasn't very good in the first half. "I thought that our passing was
nothing short of awful, so we changed it around and it got better. "But,
like I said, no cutting edge sadly."
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Liverpool defender Glen Johnson poised for surprise free transfer back to
West Ham
22:30, 9 May 2015 By Neil Moxley
The England international is believed to be in discussions over a free
transfer back to his first senior club after six years at Anfield
The Mirror
Glen Johnson is poised for a return to West Ham, writes Neil Moxley in the
Sunday People. The Hammers are understood to be in negotiations to bring the
England international back to Upton Park. Johnson, 30, began his career with
the Eastenders before moving to Chelsea as the first signing of the Roman
Abramovich era at Stamford Bridge. Having spent the last six years with
Liverpool, Johnson is out of contract in the summer with no prospect of
being offered a new deal. Carl Jenkinson has performed well for Sam
Allardyce in the right-back slot this season but is poised to return to
Arsenal at the end of the campaign. Gunners boss Arsene Wenger confirmed
last week that he intends to keep Jenkinson. And West Ham's pursuit of
Johnson shows that Jenkinson is unlikely to return for the club's final
season at Upton Park. The Hammers are confident of landing their man after
making an early move to grab his signature. And Johnson could find his
former England boss Steve McClaren in charge if he signs. The Derby manager
has committed his future to the Rams after turning down Newcastle last week.
But West Ham could be ready to part company with Sam Allardyce and have
added McClaren's name to a list of possible replacements.
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West Ham will replace Alex Song with a big name signing when his loan deal
ends
22:28, 9 May 2015 By Dean Jones
Song, on loan from Barcelona, has previously stated that he could remain at
Upton Park because he loves living in London
The Mirror
Alex Song will leave West Ham this summer - but the club plan to replace him
with another big-name signing. Song, on loan from Barcelona, has previously
stated that he could remain at Upton Park because he loves living in London.
But it is understood no permanent deal will be taken up and the Hammers will
look at other options. There is currently uncertainty over who will be in
charge next season but whoever the long-term manager is will be given the
go-ahead to pursue two marquee signings - one in midfield and one in attack.
It is part of the club's plan to invest in quality players to try to keep
them clear of any relegation fight before they make an exciting move to the
Olympic Stadium. Carl Jenkinson was one loanee they wanted but they may now
look elsewhere for a right-back, as Arsene Wenger has hinted he will be
given a chance at Arsenal. Good news for West Ham is that player-of-the-year
Aaron Cresswell is committed to staying at the club and will be rewarded
with a new contract.
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Football bad boy Ravel Morrison reunited with girlfriend he was accused of
attacking
21:50, 9 May 2015 By Vaz Sayed
The former Manchester United and West Ham player was pictured cuddling Reah
Mansoor, 20, at Alton Towers
The Mirror
Football bad boy Ravel Morrison has been taken back by his ex, fewer than
four months after he was cleared of attacking her. Morrison, 22, was
pictured cuddling pouting Reah Mansoor, 20, at Alton Towers theme park in
Staffordshire. Yet charges that the ex-Manchester United and West Ham player
assaulted Reah and her mum Parveen were only dropped in January. A
harassment charge was withdrawn in November after Morrison was initially
accused of threatening to throw acid in Reah's face and have her shot. A
source told the Sunday People : "It is unbelievable they are back together
after all that has happened. But they love each other. They want to put the
past behind them and give their relationship another go."
Reah posted a selfie on Twitter of them cosying up while she pouts at Alton
Towers. She also posted an emoji of a man and woman holding hands. Charges
were dropped in January after Morrison was accused of hitting Reah and her
mum following a night at a club in his home city of Manchester in July.
Morrison, once considered England's best prospect since Paul Gascoigne, has
signed a pre-contract agreement with Italian side Lazio for next season.
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Baffled Allardyce returns to his old script
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 9, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
It's becoming increasingly difficult to report Sam Allardyce press
conferences and make them sound any different to the ones that have gone
before. Today he admitted to West Ham TVC: "I was baffled by the lack of
quality shown by the whole team in the first half, considering how much we
train and how many passing drills we do. "We were kicking the ball straight
to them or kicking it out of play to the opposition, which was hugely
frustrating. "We had to make a change to the system and to the personnel and
said to them 'If you want to get something out of the game, you need to play
better, especially in possession'. That got better in the second half, but
our old problem arose again and that is that we can't score in open play."
What he failed to add was that the same lack of quality has been present in
many games since Christmas which is why the pressure on his job is now at
bursting point. However, we are then treated to the familiar old story of
the missing Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho as he grinds on: "That's been a
problem for weeks now and shows you how much we miss Andy Carroll and Diafra
Sakho and it hammers it home.
"We might play well here and there and play as well as Villa did in some
parts of the game, but we have no cutting edge at the minute.
"The longer it has gone on and the more we look at it, the more apparent it
is that we have got a big problem there. No matter who gets the chance, they
can't put it in the back of the net and because of that, life is very
difficult for us to try to win a game at the moment."
What he didn't add was that in Nene - who until today has been barely used -
we have a player clearly capable of changing matches were he 100 pc Premier
League fit. He of course hasn't been given that opportunity! I'm tired of
Sam's script, of the season, of the regular excuses and refusal to admit
this may be a managerial problem. Watching a seemingly youthful Tim Sherwood
drive his Villa team on allowed me to see how it should be at our gaff. I
believe the change will be made. If it's not then all hell is likely to
break loose and rightly so. When a manager suffers this run of results and
effectively admits he doesn't know how to sort it there's only one solution.
No doubt there are some out there who will disagree and yer know what? That
baffles me
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Two games to go - oh God please make it end!
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 9, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Beating Burnley 1-0 at home and losing to Villa away by the same scoreline
shows us all where we are! Despite the League position of tenth we are no
better than a relegation side at the moment and as miserable week follows
miserable week, nobody seems to have a clue how to make it better. Two more
games - oh God please make it end!
The goal that won it was of the quality we would all love to see West Ham
produce - sadly we never even hinted that we were capable of such stuff.
Jack Grealish created it when the 19-year-old burst past Stewart Downing to
flash as cross from the dead ball line Cleverley to prod into the empty net.
It had been coming. Earlier Bacuna fired a free kick narrowly over Adrian's
crossbar; Okore teed up Charles N'Zgobia, whose shot was blocked by Nolan
and Delph picked out Cleverley whose volley was palmed away by Adrian.
Sam Allardyce finally decided to give Nene some real time introducing him
at the start of the second period and immediately there was more impact. He
crashed a shot over Shay Given's crossbar before a Collins header was turned
over the top by the Villa keeper. Nene was busy throughout the second period
but there was no cutting edge to these Hammers and the inevitable
introduction of Carlton Cole did nothing to change that. In fact it was the
hosts who almost extended their lead when Ashley Westwood's effort went
wide and Gabriel Agbonlahor screwed his effort wide. It was poor but if any
of us are entirely honest I don't believe we expected anything else. Villa
wanted it more; Tim Sherwood prowling the dug out area demonstrated that,
as for the most part Sam Allardyce sat snugly in his seat.
A change of manager at Villa Park has shown what can happen at a club - how
quickly things have turned around for the other team in claret and blue.
Yes I am making a big point! They are now all but safe and just four places
behind us on 38 points. It tells me everything I want to know.
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Moyes says it again: "I want to stay"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 9, 2015 in Whispers
Clart & Hugh
David Moyes has given a new interview in which he appears to make it crystal
clear he definitely wants to remain at Real Sociedad.
And he has explained why he went there, how he is preparing for the next
season and why he turned down various jobs in the Premier League.
Speaking to The Guardian he said: ""I turned down Premier League jobs; I
didn't think they were right. I would never have left Everton if it hadn't
been Manchester United.
I was [supposed to be] there six years and you think United give managers
time. I'd worked incredibly hard to get to the top and it was taken away
from me very quickly.
"I didn't want the disappointment to last. I had to take a step back and
climb up again. I wanted somewhere I'd be allowed to work, where I could
enjoy football again."
"I want new analysts. We have a chief scout; I would like another. I'd like
scouts in different countries. I've started to put the [recruitment] process
in place and, in time, that will help.
"That costs but long term it's cost-saving. The TV money changes soon and
I'd like us to be ready so that if we do have money to spend we have a
process in place. The president's in favour and so is the sporting
director."
"I've told the president I want three or four players. I'm looking at the
English market, players out of contract, boys under 23, people I can get for
little money."
However, despite that, reports published a week ago claim the sporting
director and bosses won't stand in his way should he receive a Premier
League offer and it is know the Irons are seriously keen.
Moyes however continues: I'm a bit of a threat [to other teams] now because
I can go there and bring players to Spain. I'm looking at loans too. I'd
like to keep my [limited] money for one player, maybe two, but maybe bulk up
[the squad] with one or two [loans or free transfers].
And because la Real has a British tradition I hope it won't be outrageous if
two or three British players end up here."
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WHUFC.com
The wait for a first away Barclays Premier League win of 2015 goes on, as
West Ham United succumbed to a 1-0 defeat by relegation-threatened Aston
Villa on Saturday. FA Cup finalists Villa bossed proceedings prior to the
interval and broke the deadlock after half an hour when Tom Cleverley
profited from Jack Grealish's low cross. The Hammers were vastly improved
after the break, with Nene, in particular, giving the visitors some
much-needed impetus going forward. The Brazilian himself flashed one over
the top from distance, while Enner Valencia had a headed effort chalked off
for offside. With Sunderland's win at Everton in the early kick-off dragging
Villa to within a point of the bottom three, it was the hosts who made all
the early running here. Leandro Bacuna was the first to take aim, fizzing a
25-yard free-kick narrowly over Adrian's crossbar. Then, a corner from the
left resulted in pin ball in the West Ham box, allowing Jose Okore to tee up
Charles N'Zgobia, who slammed his effort into Kevin Nolan. Still inside
quarter-of-an-hour, Fabien Delph picked out Cleverley at the far post, whose
excellent first-time volley was palmed away by Adrian. The clearest chance,
however, fell to the in-form Christian Benteke. Latching onto an Okore flick
from a Delph free-kick, the Belgian was unable to make sufficient contact to
steer inside the near post.
Villa were fluent and neat in possession around the box, particularly the
young Jack Grealish and he was the architect of the opener. The 19-year-old
burst past Stewart Downing to the by-line and drove across goal for
Cleverley to prod into the empty net. It had been coming.
An on-running dispute between Morgan Amalfitano and Cleverley made the
former pantomime villain for the afternoon, though Downing too was treated
to a hostile reception against his former employers. After a lacklustre
first 45, Sam Allardyce shuffled his pack at the break, with Nene and Alex
Song replacing Nolan and Amalfitano. It meant the Hammers reverted to the
diamond formation that served them so well prior to Christmas.
And it so nearly worked. Downing squared to Nene, who needed no second
invitation to let fly, flashing a vicious effort goalward. Shay Given had no
chance but it cleared the crossbar as well. At the other end, N'Zogbia
slalomed his way into the box and then lashed an effort into the side
netting. As the hour-mark approached, James Collins rose above Ron Vlaar to
meet a Mark Noble corner, but Given was on hand to comfortably tip it over
the top. Then Nene ducked inside onto his left foot but his ambitious curler
sailed behind. West Ham did at least get the ball in the Villa net, but
Valencia was flagged offside as he nodded Nene's centre into the left-hand
corner. Big Sam threw on Carlton Cole for the final 12 minutes, but
West Ham carved out very little of note in the closing minutes. In fact,
Villa came closer to extending their lead, not once, but twice. Ashley
Westwood's daisy cutter drifted past Adrian's right-hand upright, before
Gabriel Agbonlahor skewed wide with only the 'keeper to beat.
Aston Villa: Given, Vlaar, Okore, Bacuna (Hutton 78), Cleverley, Westwood,
Delph, Richardson, Benteke, N'Zogbia, (Agbonlahor 71), Grealish (Sanchez 90)
Subs: Guzan, Weimann, Cole, Senderos
Booked: N'Zogbia
Goal: Cleverley 31
West Ham United: Adrian, Cresswell, Nolan (Song 46), Kouyate, Downing, Noble
(Cole 78), Jenkinson, Collins, Amalfitano (Nene 46), Valencia, Burke
Subs: Jaaskelainen, O'Brien, Cullen, Cole, Jarvis
Booked: Song
Referee: Lee Mason
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
On this day - 10 May
WHUFC.com
Classic match
West Ham United 4-3 Leicester City
Premier League
10 May 1998
The Hammers closed the 1997/98 season with a mid-table battle against Martin
O'Neill's Leicester City. Neither team had much to play for, but that was
not apparent in the way the game was approached, with plenty to entertain
the 25,781 Boleyn Ground crowd. West Ham were in a rich vein of goalscoring
form, having drawn 3-3 at Crystal Palace in their previous match, and it did
not take them long to get off the mark this time, with Frank Lampard's15th
minute strike opening the scoring. Samassi Abou made it two on 31 minutes to
give West Ham a position of strength before the break. Leicester pulled one
back on 59 through former Hammer Tony Cottee, but it was soon 3-1 thanks to
Trevor Sinclair. The drama continued and the Foxes again closed the deficit
thanks to Emile Heskey, before the hosts could relax again due to Abou's
second of the game. Cottee struck again with seven minutes to go, but West
Ham had done enough to secure a thrilling victory which gave them an
eighth-place finish.
Head to our Facebook and Twitter pages throughout the day to remember our
1980 FA Cup victory, which also fell on 10 May.
Complete record - 10 May
1980 West Ham United 1-0 Arsenal (FA Cup final)
1982 West Ham United 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur (Division One)
1983 West Ham United 1-3 Arsenal (Division One)
1995 West Ham United 3-0 Liverpool (Premier League)
1998 West Ham United 4-3 Leicester City (Premier League)
Played 4, Won 2, Drawn 1, Lost 1, Scored 10, Conceded 8
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
'We have no cutting edge'
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce admitted a poor first-half showing cost West Ham United
anything from Saturday's 1-0 Barclays Premier League defeat at Aston Villa.
A lifeless showing from the Hammers in the opening 45 minutes was compounded
when Jack Grealish danced to the byline unchallenged before crossing for Tom
Cleverley to tap home just past the half-hour mark. Despite throwing on Alex
Song and Nene at the break and producing an improved performance after the
interval, Sam Allardyce's side had just one shot on target and failed to
navigate a way past or repeatedly test Villa goalkeeper Shay Given. When
West Ham did get the ball into the Irishman's net midway through the second
period, Enner Valencia's well-placed header was ruled out for offside
against the Ecuador forward - a decision that led to lively debate among
television and radio pundits and supporters on social media alike. "I was
baffled by the lack of quality shown by the whole team in the first half,
considering how much we train and how many passing drills we do," Big Sam
told West Ham TV. "We were kicking the ball straight to them or kicking it
out of play to the opposition, which was hugely frustrating. "We had to make
a change to the system and to the personnel and said to them 'If you want to
get something out of the game, you need to play better, especially in
possession'. That got better in the second half, but our old problem arose
again and that is that we can't score in open play. "That's been a problem
for weeks now and shows you how much we miss Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho
and it hammers it home. We might play well here and there and play as well
as Villa did in some parts of the game, but we have no cutting edge at the
minute. "The longer it has gone on and the more we look at it, the more
apparent it is that we have got a big problem there. No matter who gets the
chance, they can't put it in the back of the net and because of that, life
is very difficult for us to try to win a game at the moment."
After a toothless first-half performance, West Ham at least put some
pressure on Tim Sherwood's men after the break, but had just one shot on
target - a James Collins header tipped over by Given - to show for their
efforts. "We didn't think Enner's goal was offside. We thought the header
was onside and that it was a bad decision from the assistant referee. Enner
could have had a penalty for a foul by Bacuna in the first half, but we are
not finding the quality to hit the target enough or score goals. "I thought
Ginge had scored off the corner and it was a good save by Shay Given, but we
are disappointed we haven't scored a goal or created enough overall."
One of the few positives the Hammers could take from their trip to
Birmingham was the performance of Reece Burke on his third Barclays Premier
League start. The 18-year-old helped to shackle in-form Christian Benteke,
while he was blameless when Jack Grealish got past Stewart Downing and
crossed for Cleverley's winner. "He was great and him and Ginge handled
Benteke very well. I thought the goal we gave away was a gift, though. We
should have done a lot better with the run from Grealish and made sure he
didn't get that far, but he did. "It was very disappointing overall. We are
not under the pressure Aston Villa are under, but when they were getting a
bit nervous late in the game, we should have produced a bit more quality and
got back in the game but didn't."
With mid-table Everton at home and relegation-threatened Newcastle United
away to close out the the season, Big Sam should be optimistic of picking up
points, but he knows his team need to find ways to score if they are going
to do so. "If we can't score a goal, how are we going to win? That's a real
problem for us at the moment. No matter what system or combination I try,
nobody out there is capable of scoring a goal in open play. "It's going to
have to change dramatically in the last two games if we are to get the
points on the board and get up to that 50-point mark we are desperate to get
to."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Cresswell frustrated as goal touch deserts Hammers
WHUFC.com
Aaron Cresswell admitted the Hammers felt a familiar frustration as they
slipped to a 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa on Saturday. With four goals in their
last nine games to their name and missing Diafra Sakho and Andy Carroll
through injury, West Ham's recent struggles to find the net surfaced again
at Villa Park. That meant Tom Cleverley's 31st minute goal was enough to
hand the hosts maximum points and leave Cresswell and his teammates still
searching for a first away league win of 2015. "We're disappointed," he
admitted. "We just need to take one of the chances we're creating, but
unfortunately we couldn't do that on Saturday and we paid the price with the
goal they scored in the first half. "I think we had a couple of chances.
Enner had his header ruled out for offside, but I think if we score the
first goal it's a different game. "We were disappointed with the way we
conceded. Grealish pulled it back from the line and unfortunately for us
it's gone through James Collins' legs and the lad's tapped it in. "They're
fighting for their lives down at the bottom and that's never nice for
anyone, including the players. "They were 1-0 up and they were always going
to sit back in the last 15, 20 minutes. We just needed that goal which we
couldn't get."
The Hammers now face a home meeting with Everton and an away trip to
Newcastle United to finish the season and Cresswell is determined to help
his team rediscover their shooting boots. He added: "We want to finish with
a flourish by taking six points from the two games against Everton and
Newcastle, to try and finish as high up that table as we can."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Lletget joins LA Galaxy
WHUFC.com
West Ham United can confirm that midfielder Sebastian Lletget has joined MLS
club LA Galaxy on a permanent basis for an undisclosed fee.
Lletget, 22, returns to his native California after six years with West Ham,
during which he graduated from the Academy and made one first-team
appearance in the FA Cup third-round defeat at Nottingham Forest in January
2014. Having initially been scouted by the Hammers' International Academy,
the American also made more than 70 appearances for the Development Squad
during his time in east London.
San Francisco-born Lletget will join a Galaxy squad that also includes
former Hammers loanee Robbie Keane and will soon be augmented by the arrival
of Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard. West Ham United would like to thank
Sebastian for his hard work and commitment and wish him all the very best
for his future career.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Foxes too strong for youthful U18s
WHUFC.com
West Ham United U18s closed their season with a 2-0 defeat by Leicester City
at Little Heath on Saturday.
The final-day loss saw the Hammers, who fielded no less than five U15
schoolboys during the course of the match, finish sixth in the Barclays U18
Premier League Tier Two table.
After a strong opening 40 minutes, a mistake in the midfield by West Ham
midfielder Noha Sylvestre allowed Leicester to break forward and take the
lead through Harvey Barnes' goal.
The Hammers tried to fight back in the second half against their older
opposition, but Foxes substitute Admiral Muskwe confirmed the result by
doubling the visitors lead with the final kick of the season.
After Wednesday's 2-1 defeat at home Reading, U18s coach Mark Phillips made
three changes to his starting line-up. Alex Pike, Emmanual Onariase - away
with the first team at Aston Villa - and Grady Diangana all missed out,
allowing Phillips to give 14-year-old trio Mason Barrett, Ben Wells and
Alfie Lewis their first starts at U18 level.
At the other end of the experience scale, goalkeeper Sam Howes captained the
Hammers on his 54th appearance for the youth team, while Oscar Borg and Joe
Powell joined another U15 star in Idris Kanu in attack.
To further lower the average age of the squad, Phillips' substitutes' bench
was made up of goalkeeper Clarke Bogard and more 14-year-olds in Malyk
Hamilton and Korrey Henry.
The Hammers came out the blocks positively and caused the Leicester backline
several problems from set pieces. Winger Powell is known for his crossing
ability so was placed on free-kick and corner duty, but the visiting defence
dealt with his whipped crosses into the penalty area.
It was Leicester that went to closest in the opening stages, though, when
Vashon Neufville gave away possession on the edge of the box, giving Foxes
striker Daniel Rowe the time and space to fire just wide of the post.
Down the other end, Lewis' tricky feet enabled him to skip through the
Leicester midfield before feeding Powell, who fired low at Max Smith-Vernam.
With 42 minutes of the clock, the visitors took the lead. Sylvestre
attempted to switch the ball to the opposite wing, but his pass was
intercepted by King. The Foxes player beat Ross Elsom inside the penalty
area and crossed low to Barnes, who slid the ball into the back of the net.
As half-time approached, the Hammers produced one more effort on goal.
Powell's corner was headed straight back to him on the right wing and, after
cutting in, his bending effort was just tipped over the bar by Smith-Vernam.
In the early stages of the second half, the visitors looked like they had
finally gained control over the young Hammers and were starting to pass the
ball around the pitch smoothly. Defenders Elliott Percival and Cedric Kipre
both found themselves in advanced positions and tested Howes in the the West
Ham goal.
Phillips then introduced his two U15 substitutes into the action. Hamilton
replaced Browne, who was playing his second game since returning from a
long-term injury, while Henry replaced Lewis in the centre of midfield.
The Hammers tried to fight back and grab an equaliser but it was Leicester
who were to score the second goal of the game and secure the three points
for themselves.
It was substitute Muskwe who retrieved the ball to feet inside and after
being given far too much room to turn, he placed the ball confidently past
Howes and into the corner of the net.
With the season's fixtures now all completed by Phillips' side, the Hammers
finished in sixth place in the Barclays U18 Premier League Tier Two Play-Off
Stage with seven points from their seven fixtures. Prior to the play-off
stages, West Ham finished the regular season in sixth place, with 32 points
from their 22 Barclays U18 Premier League South fixtures.
The Hammers will now take a squad away to the HTFC Citibank Soccer Sevens in
Hong Kong at the end of this month. It will be the fourth time that the club
have sent a squad the tournament. In both 2008 and 2009, the Hammers
finished as runners-up before winning the Plate competition in 2012.
Among the squad selected for the tournament are highly-rated winger Djair
Parfitt-Williams, striker Jordan Brown and Saturday's substitute goalkeeper
Bogard.
U18s: Howes, Barrett, Elsom, Wells, Neufville, Browne (Hamilton), Sylvestre,
Lewis (Henry), Borg, Kanu, Powell
Subs not used: Bogard
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Aston Villa 1-0 West Ham Utd
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 9th May 2015
By: Staff Writer
West Ham slumped to yet another miserable - and entirely predictable -
defeat against one of the Premier League's strugglers at Villa Park this
afternoon.
A first half strike from Tom Cleverley was enough to secure a much-needed
win for Villa, who are now four points clear of the drop zone with just two
fixtures to play.
And what better opposition for them to face on an afternoon when they
desperately needed to take all three points than a West Ham side who
continue to appear disjointed, dispirited and disinterested?
The Irons' season, effectively over the moment David Sullivan was attacked
by angry fans in the car park at West Brom in the FA Cup has lurched from
one disappointment to another since that particular Valentine's Day
massacre.
Since then, West Ham have managed to win just two games - both by a single
goal - against Sunderland and Burnley. So badly have the goals dried up that
as things stand, United have scored just three more goals this season than
during the 2013/14 Premier League campaign.
Indeed, since the defeat at the Hawthorns - a total of 11 games - West Ham
have scored a pitiful tally of just seven goals. With Carlton Cole, Enner
Valencia and Nene looking lost without the additional firepower of Diafra
Sakho and Andy Carroll, the writing was on the wall this afternoon from the
moment Cleverley scored.
The Hammers started the game poorly and with an emphasis on defence (a
strange decision, given the almost meaningless nature of the game). With
Enner Valencia ploughing a lone furrow in attack - a role he simply fails to
shine in - the only surprise was that it took the hosts a full 13 minutes to
fashion a decent shot at goal.
Benteke and Delph then went close, before the deciding goal arrived. A break
on the left-hand side saw Grealish find the byeline before pulling the ball
back to Cleverley, in acres of space, to add the finishing touch.
That he was afforded so much room was due to marker Kevin Nolan - who had
been tracking his run - shutting off a second too early, allowing the former
Man United midfielder to roam into the box unattended.
Having barely made an impression ahead of the break Sam Allarydyce rang the
changes, altering his team's shape to the 442 diamond that proved so
fruitful in the first half of the season. The ineffective Nolan was hooked
for Alex Song whilst Nene replaced the equally anonymous Morgan Amalfitano.
The new shape worked - to a degree, at least - for it took Villa until the
85th minute to fashion their first shot at goal following the half time
interval. West Ham were not exactly raining shots down upon Shay Given
though, and the Irish stopper rarely had to intervene; only once, when a
James Collins header was looping under the crossbar was he forced to make a
save.
Bar Collins' nod there were chances for Nene (a dipping volley inches too
high) and ... Nene (another volley that narrowly missed its intended target)
- although too often the Hammers failed to make the most of Villa's
reluctance to break forward in numbers.
Valencia briefly thought he'd grabbed the equaliser when finding the net
through Nene's delivery, although TV replays appeared to suggest the
linesman was right - just! - to flag for offside.
And in the end substitute Gabriel Agbonlahor should have wrapped the game
with a glorious chance in the fourth minute of added-on time but a fantastic
tackle from Hammer of the Year Aaron Cresswell meant the chance went
begging.
Next up for West Ham is the visit of Everton for the final home league game
of the season. If anyone can be bothered to turn up, that is.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sam Allardyce says his West Ham side are lacking a cutting edge in front of
goal
Last Updated: 09/05/15 7:32pm
SSN
Sam Allardyce has questioned the linesman's decision to rule Enner Valencia
offside during West Ham's defeat at Aston Villa. Manager Sam Allardyce
bemoaned West Ham's failures in front of goal after they suffered a 1-0
defeat at Aston Villa. Tom Cleverley scored Villa's winner to ease their
relegation fears while Allardyce admits his side "can't score goals" at
present, with just eight in their last 14 Premier League games. Saturday's
loss meant West Ham have continued their miserable run in the Premier
League, having picked up just three wins since December 20. For a number of
weeks now we have tried and tried and tried to find the goals you need and
we can't find them. Simple as that," said Allardyce. "Whatever we do,
whatever chances we create, none of our players seem to convert them into
goals. Because of that, life is extremely difficult. "Our last two goals
were an Aaron Cresswell free-kick and a Mark Noble penalty. We failed in
front of goal and because of that we end up losing the game 1-0."
Enner Valencia had a header ruled out for offside in the second half and
Allardyce added: "In saying all that, I think Valencia's header is a goal.
"The assistant referee is in no position to give a decision one way or the
other. He is four yards in the wrong position, so he guesses. I find that
rather difficult to take." However, Allardyce praised his makeshift defence
for keeping the Hammers in touching distance, adding: "I did think we were
pathetic with the way we let the goal in, but considering we have James
Tomkins and Winston Reid out, Ginge (James Collins) and Reece Burke have
done a fantastic job."
The Hammers were improved after making two changes at the break and
Allardyce said: "Our overall play got better at half-time when we changed
it, it wasn't very good in the first half. "I thought that our passing was
nothing short of awful, so we changed it around and it got better. "But,
like I said, no cutting edge sadly."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Liverpool defender Glen Johnson poised for surprise free transfer back to
West Ham
22:30, 9 May 2015 By Neil Moxley
The England international is believed to be in discussions over a free
transfer back to his first senior club after six years at Anfield
The Mirror
Glen Johnson is poised for a return to West Ham, writes Neil Moxley in the
Sunday People. The Hammers are understood to be in negotiations to bring the
England international back to Upton Park. Johnson, 30, began his career with
the Eastenders before moving to Chelsea as the first signing of the Roman
Abramovich era at Stamford Bridge. Having spent the last six years with
Liverpool, Johnson is out of contract in the summer with no prospect of
being offered a new deal. Carl Jenkinson has performed well for Sam
Allardyce in the right-back slot this season but is poised to return to
Arsenal at the end of the campaign. Gunners boss Arsene Wenger confirmed
last week that he intends to keep Jenkinson. And West Ham's pursuit of
Johnson shows that Jenkinson is unlikely to return for the club's final
season at Upton Park. The Hammers are confident of landing their man after
making an early move to grab his signature. And Johnson could find his
former England boss Steve McClaren in charge if he signs. The Derby manager
has committed his future to the Rams after turning down Newcastle last week.
But West Ham could be ready to part company with Sam Allardyce and have
added McClaren's name to a list of possible replacements.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham will replace Alex Song with a big name signing when his loan deal
ends
22:28, 9 May 2015 By Dean Jones
Song, on loan from Barcelona, has previously stated that he could remain at
Upton Park because he loves living in London
The Mirror
Alex Song will leave West Ham this summer - but the club plan to replace him
with another big-name signing. Song, on loan from Barcelona, has previously
stated that he could remain at Upton Park because he loves living in London.
But it is understood no permanent deal will be taken up and the Hammers will
look at other options. There is currently uncertainty over who will be in
charge next season but whoever the long-term manager is will be given the
go-ahead to pursue two marquee signings - one in midfield and one in attack.
It is part of the club's plan to invest in quality players to try to keep
them clear of any relegation fight before they make an exciting move to the
Olympic Stadium. Carl Jenkinson was one loanee they wanted but they may now
look elsewhere for a right-back, as Arsene Wenger has hinted he will be
given a chance at Arsenal. Good news for West Ham is that player-of-the-year
Aaron Cresswell is committed to staying at the club and will be rewarded
with a new contract.
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Football bad boy Ravel Morrison reunited with girlfriend he was accused of
attacking
21:50, 9 May 2015 By Vaz Sayed
The former Manchester United and West Ham player was pictured cuddling Reah
Mansoor, 20, at Alton Towers
The Mirror
Football bad boy Ravel Morrison has been taken back by his ex, fewer than
four months after he was cleared of attacking her. Morrison, 22, was
pictured cuddling pouting Reah Mansoor, 20, at Alton Towers theme park in
Staffordshire. Yet charges that the ex-Manchester United and West Ham player
assaulted Reah and her mum Parveen were only dropped in January. A
harassment charge was withdrawn in November after Morrison was initially
accused of threatening to throw acid in Reah's face and have her shot. A
source told the Sunday People : "It is unbelievable they are back together
after all that has happened. But they love each other. They want to put the
past behind them and give their relationship another go."
Reah posted a selfie on Twitter of them cosying up while she pouts at Alton
Towers. She also posted an emoji of a man and woman holding hands. Charges
were dropped in January after Morrison was accused of hitting Reah and her
mum following a night at a club in his home city of Manchester in July.
Morrison, once considered England's best prospect since Paul Gascoigne, has
signed a pre-contract agreement with Italian side Lazio for next season.
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Baffled Allardyce returns to his old script
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 9, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
It's becoming increasingly difficult to report Sam Allardyce press
conferences and make them sound any different to the ones that have gone
before. Today he admitted to West Ham TVC: "I was baffled by the lack of
quality shown by the whole team in the first half, considering how much we
train and how many passing drills we do. "We were kicking the ball straight
to them or kicking it out of play to the opposition, which was hugely
frustrating. "We had to make a change to the system and to the personnel and
said to them 'If you want to get something out of the game, you need to play
better, especially in possession'. That got better in the second half, but
our old problem arose again and that is that we can't score in open play."
What he failed to add was that the same lack of quality has been present in
many games since Christmas which is why the pressure on his job is now at
bursting point. However, we are then treated to the familiar old story of
the missing Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho as he grinds on: "That's been a
problem for weeks now and shows you how much we miss Andy Carroll and Diafra
Sakho and it hammers it home.
"We might play well here and there and play as well as Villa did in some
parts of the game, but we have no cutting edge at the minute.
"The longer it has gone on and the more we look at it, the more apparent it
is that we have got a big problem there. No matter who gets the chance, they
can't put it in the back of the net and because of that, life is very
difficult for us to try to win a game at the moment."
What he didn't add was that in Nene - who until today has been barely used -
we have a player clearly capable of changing matches were he 100 pc Premier
League fit. He of course hasn't been given that opportunity! I'm tired of
Sam's script, of the season, of the regular excuses and refusal to admit
this may be a managerial problem. Watching a seemingly youthful Tim Sherwood
drive his Villa team on allowed me to see how it should be at our gaff. I
believe the change will be made. If it's not then all hell is likely to
break loose and rightly so. When a manager suffers this run of results and
effectively admits he doesn't know how to sort it there's only one solution.
No doubt there are some out there who will disagree and yer know what? That
baffles me
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Two games to go - oh God please make it end!
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 9, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Beating Burnley 1-0 at home and losing to Villa away by the same scoreline
shows us all where we are! Despite the League position of tenth we are no
better than a relegation side at the moment and as miserable week follows
miserable week, nobody seems to have a clue how to make it better. Two more
games - oh God please make it end!
The goal that won it was of the quality we would all love to see West Ham
produce - sadly we never even hinted that we were capable of such stuff.
Jack Grealish created it when the 19-year-old burst past Stewart Downing to
flash as cross from the dead ball line Cleverley to prod into the empty net.
It had been coming. Earlier Bacuna fired a free kick narrowly over Adrian's
crossbar; Okore teed up Charles N'Zgobia, whose shot was blocked by Nolan
and Delph picked out Cleverley whose volley was palmed away by Adrian.
Sam Allardyce finally decided to give Nene some real time introducing him
at the start of the second period and immediately there was more impact. He
crashed a shot over Shay Given's crossbar before a Collins header was turned
over the top by the Villa keeper. Nene was busy throughout the second period
but there was no cutting edge to these Hammers and the inevitable
introduction of Carlton Cole did nothing to change that. In fact it was the
hosts who almost extended their lead when Ashley Westwood's effort went
wide and Gabriel Agbonlahor screwed his effort wide. It was poor but if any
of us are entirely honest I don't believe we expected anything else. Villa
wanted it more; Tim Sherwood prowling the dug out area demonstrated that,
as for the most part Sam Allardyce sat snugly in his seat.
A change of manager at Villa Park has shown what can happen at a club - how
quickly things have turned around for the other team in claret and blue.
Yes I am making a big point! They are now all but safe and just four places
behind us on 38 points. It tells me everything I want to know.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Moyes says it again: "I want to stay"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on May 9, 2015 in Whispers
Clart & Hugh
David Moyes has given a new interview in which he appears to make it crystal
clear he definitely wants to remain at Real Sociedad.
And he has explained why he went there, how he is preparing for the next
season and why he turned down various jobs in the Premier League.
Speaking to The Guardian he said: ""I turned down Premier League jobs; I
didn't think they were right. I would never have left Everton if it hadn't
been Manchester United.
I was [supposed to be] there six years and you think United give managers
time. I'd worked incredibly hard to get to the top and it was taken away
from me very quickly.
"I didn't want the disappointment to last. I had to take a step back and
climb up again. I wanted somewhere I'd be allowed to work, where I could
enjoy football again."
"I want new analysts. We have a chief scout; I would like another. I'd like
scouts in different countries. I've started to put the [recruitment] process
in place and, in time, that will help.
"That costs but long term it's cost-saving. The TV money changes soon and
I'd like us to be ready so that if we do have money to spend we have a
process in place. The president's in favour and so is the sporting
director."
"I've told the president I want three or four players. I'm looking at the
English market, players out of contract, boys under 23, people I can get for
little money."
However, despite that, reports published a week ago claim the sporting
director and bosses won't stand in his way should he receive a Premier
League offer and it is know the Irons are seriously keen.
Moyes however continues: I'm a bit of a threat [to other teams] now because
I can go there and bring players to Spain. I'm looking at loans too. I'd
like to keep my [limited] money for one player, maybe two, but maybe bulk up
[the squad] with one or two [loans or free transfers].
And because la Real has a British tradition I hope it won't be outrageous if
two or three British players end up here."
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