Daily WHUFC News - 5th October 2015

Sunderland 2-2 West Ham United
Whufc.COM

Sunderland 2-2 West Ham United

West Ham United extended their unbeaten run in the league to five games
after coming back from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Sunderland.
First-half goals from Steven Fletcher and Jeremain put the Black Cats in a
commanding position, yet the Hammers dug deep and rallied through strikes
from Carl Jenkinson and Dimitri Payet. The Hammers went into the game
looking for their fourth consecutive away win of the season however a
sluggish start to the game was punished as Steve Fletcher, unmarked from a
free-kick, fired home to give the Black Cats an early lead. Just moments
later, the hosts went close to doubling their lead as Fabio Borini worked a
yard of space before smashing his effort into the side netting. A let off as
the Stadium of Light was rocking. The Irons' first chance of the match fell
to livewire Manuel Lanzini who carried the ball 40 yards before trying a
speculative effort from range. Dick Advocaat's men made the most of their
spell on top when Jeremain Lens picked up a loose pass in midfield and
managed to pull off an audacious chip just out of Adrian's reach. 2-0
Sunderland who were value for their lead. Nevertheless, as the half wore on,
the Hammers grew into the game, yet they had few chances to speak of and it
was Borini who could, perhaps should, have put the game out of sight. The
forward ran on to Ola Toivonen's exquisite flicked pass and fired inches
wide of Adrian's right-hand post. This warning sign appeared to strike the
visitors into life and they gave themselves a lifeline just before half-time
after a sustained period of pressure resulted in Carl Jenkinson sweeping
home Victor Moses' cross. 2-1 at the break and all to play for.

Whatever Slaven Bilic said at half-time seemed to have the desired effect as
the Claret and Blues came out with a much greater intensity and purpose.
Sensing the change in tides, Sunderland became more compact in an attempt to
see the game out; however their task was made much harder when Lens was sent
off after picking up a second yellow card. The change in atmosphere was
palpable. Bilic brought on Nikica Jelavic to add a further presence up front
and the switch paid off as just after the hour mark, the Irons drew level
thanks to superb work from Lanzini, a willing runner all day, who teed up
Payet. The Frenchmen, clean through on goal, was never going to miss. Just
moments later, Payet turned provider as he whipped in an inviting ball for
Jelavic to hurl himself at. Somehow from under the cross bar the Croatian
connected yet it ballooned up and over. Into the final minutes, Bilic's side
were well on top yet could not quite find the final incisive ball. They
enjoyed plenty of possession and balls into the box, yet Sunderland stood
firm.

Sunderland: Pantilimon, Jones, Cattermole, Borini, O'Shea C, Lens, Toivonen
(Larsson 83), M'vila (Gomez 90), Coates, Yedlin, Fletcher (Rodwell 83)
Subs: Mannone, Van Aanholt, Brown, Defoe

Bookings: Lens, Cattermole, Coates
Sent off: Lens
Goals: Fletcher 10, Lens 22

West Ham United: Adrian, Reid (Collins 66), Cresswell, Tomkins, Kouyate,
Jenkinson, Sakho, Noble C (Zarate 79), Moses (Jelavic 58), Payet, Lanzini

Subs: Randolph, Obiang, Antonio, Oxford
Bookings: Noble, Reid, Cresswell, Jenkinson
Goals: Jenkinson 45, Payet 61

Referee: Neil Swarbrick

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Young Hammers extend run at Royals' expense
WHUFc.com

West Ham United U18 won their third Barclays U18 Premier League South game
in a row after beating top of the table Reading 1-0 on Saturday morning.

After back-to-back 2-0 wins against Chelsea and Southampton in the past
fortnight, the Hammers were on their way to making it a third when Idris
Kanu rose well in the penalty box to head home Marcus Browne's cross.

In the second half, Reading midfielder Josh Barrett missed a golden
opportunity to equalise however his penalty was well saved by England youth
international goalkeeper Sam Howes.

The Hammers' first shot on goal came after seven minutes when Browne found
space from 20 yards but dragged his shot well wide of the target.

Just two minutes later, a deep free kick on the right from Joe Powell found
centre half Declan Rice alone at the back post, but his header went straight
into Luke Southwood's hands.

The Irons took the lead after just 14 minutes when a right wing corner from
Powell found its way through to Browne on the opposite wing. His fantastic
first time cross was headed home by Kanu.

Reading rallied after going behind and begun showing some more of the
attacking threat that saw them sit atop of the table and they caught the
Hammers defence napping just after going ahead, Barrett found space in the
box and fired a shot off the top of the crossbar.

Just before half time, it was still the visitors that were having the
majority of chances on goal as they hunted for the equaliser, but neither
Barrett nor Sam Smith could find a way past Howes.

The Royals continued to push forward as 12 minutes after half time, Smith
thought he'd equalised for the Royals until he realised that the assistant
referee had flagged for offside. Replays showed that the visiting player was
onside and the goal should've stood.

On 70 minutes, the hosts could've punished their Berkshire guests when
George Dobson stole back possession in the midfield, drove forward but only
managed to fire his shot straight at Southwood.

Dobson was then involved in another West Ham chance, as he linked up with
substitute Grady Diangana who forced a great strong save out of Southwood
once again.

With just five minutes left on the clock, Reading were given a huge lifeline
when Tunji Akinola was punished for tripping Smith in the penalty box,
although Howes made a fantastic low save to keep the Hammers ahead.

That was the start of the excitement as the game entered the final stages.
Dobson had a header from six yards well saved by Southwood, before Browne
and Reading's Gabriel Osho were both cautioned after an on-pitch brawl.

The Academy held on in the final few minutes of the game as the Reading
pressure increased, with West Ham securing their third league victory in a
row.

Up next for West Ham in the Premier League is a trip to Aston Villa U18 on
Saturday 10th October, kick-off is 12pm.

U18: Howes, Akinola, Rice (Eggleton), Pask, Borg, Carter, Sylvestre, Dobson,
Browne, Powell (Diangana), Kanu
Subs not used: Rosaire Longelo, Henry, Boness.

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Bilic: Our reaction in the second half was excellent
WHUFc.com

West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic praised his side for their excellent
second half performance and felt the Hammers could have come away with all
three points. After going two goals down in the first half, the West Ham
players showed all their fighting qualities to get back into the game and
goals from Carl Jenkinson and Dimitri Payet helped secure a well deserved
2-2 draw. Sunderland were reduced to ten-men in the second half when
Jeremain Lens was sent off and Bilic was clearly going for the victory
bringing on both Mauro Zarate and Nikica Jelavic, but the Hammers were
unable to clinch a winner. Bilic said: "It was our first away game that we
went behind and it was a very cheap goal. It lifted them as they have not
been in this position this season. "It was then a big mistake from us for
the second goal. We were then lucky not to be three down and the crucial
moment of the game was the last ten minutes of the second half and we
managed to score a goal. "We showed after that goal that we were going to
raise the game. Our team-talk at half-time was good and our reaction in the
second half was excellent. We scored early on and then dominated. "They had
a man sent-off and after than it was all us. We wanted the game to last
longer but when you see the character and spirit it was a good point. "We
finished the game with Lanzini in central midfield with Payet and Zarate on
the flanks and Sakho and Jelavic through the middle and we could not have
done more. "Overall the second half was really good for us."

Bilic had special praise for Manuel Lanzini who produced a superb display in
the Hammers midfield and played a crucial role in the Payet equaliser. Bilic
added: "He is that type of player and that is why we got him. People are
saying he is a number ten, for me he is not that and he likes to get a lot
of contact on the ball and he is gaining space. I like him a lot as a player
and he is a big asset for us.
"He is the one that gives Payet a breather and the opportunities to get the
ball when he is not marked. The two of them are really good together."

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Antonio - I have to wait for my opportunity
WHUFC.com

West Ham United winger Michail Antonio is relishing the fierce competition
for places and hopes to make his breakthrough into the first-team in the
near future. Antonio has been waiting patiently for his chance following his
big money move from Nottingham Forest on transfer deadline day. With West
Ham United unbeaten in their last four league games the talented forward
knows he faces a battle to win a regular starting place in the side. But the
25-year-old says he is ready for the challenge and hopes to show Slaven
Bilic why he should be given a chance to showcase his talents in the Premier
League. Antonio said: "There is big competition for places with Dimitri,
Lanzini and Moses who can play out wide. "I have just got to be patient and
wait for my opportunity and when I get it hopefully I can take it. "There
are quality players in every position at Premier League level and when you
get the shirt you have got to keep performing well. "Even though we had a
2-2 draw with Norwich there are always positives you can take from the game
and getting a last minute equaliser. "We are still in good form and unbeaten
so we need to keep pushing on and see where it takes us."

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Jenko enjoys first West Ham goal
WHUFc.com

Carl Jenkinson was left wondering what might have been after his first West
Ham United goal dragged the Hammers back into contention at the Stadium of
Light on Saturday. With Slaven Bilic's men two goals down and seemingly set
to surrender their unbeaten away Barclays Premier League record, full-back
Jenkinson timed his run to perfection to convert Victor Moses' centre in
first-half stoppage time. Jenkinson's timing was perfect in every sense.
The full-back's stylish left-footed finish gave the Hammers renewed impetus
after the break and once Dimitri Payet had levelled proceedings, the
visitors looked much the likelier to wrestle all three points from the lowly
Mackems. But even in spite of Jeremain Lens' subsequent dismissal for two
bookable offences after 57 minutes, Sunderland battled away to claim a share
of the spoils, leaving Jenkinson, ultimately, to rue missed opportunities.
He told West Ham TV: "It's nice to get on the scoresheet. I don't do it too
often, so it's great. "I saw Victor [Moses] getting down the line. I've got
to try to get in the box sometimes, it came to me and I slotted it home.
"Obviously it was a good time to score just before half-time and I think
that rattled them a bit. "In the second half we just dominated the game. We
had chances and just couldn't put the ball in the back of the net. Fair play
to Sunderland they dug deep and they got the result. "We're disappointed
that we didn't score again and get three points, but we're on a good little
run now and we've not lost in a while. Of course we wanted to win and it's a
bit frustrating. Sunderland dug deep and sometimes you have to give the
other team a bit of credit."

The Hammers' second-half resurgence was a far cry from much of the first
half, with a rampant Sunderland threatening to run away with proceedings.
And Jenkinson himself confessed that it could have been a whole lot worse at
the interval. "To be fair, Sunderland were brilliant in the first half.
We started well but then we let them play and we had a dip," he confirmed.
"We were fortunate to only be two behind at one point. But once we got back
into the game, from then on there only really looked like there was going to
be one team to go on and win the game. "It's a shame that we couldn't get
that last goal to be honest. But it wasn't through a lack of effort."

All in all, the Hammers can reflect on another positive away day, with ten
points now gleaned from a possible 12 on their travels, and Jenkinson hopes
the Hammers can cement an excellent start to the new campaign. "It's great,
it's a really good away record. It's something we can proud of and we've got
to build on that now. "We've got some tough games coming up and we've got
to in there with confidence, which obviously we've got right now."

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Cresswell - We could have got the victory
WHUFC.com

West Ham United defender Aaron Cresswell was disappointed that his side
could not go on to record a victory over Sunderland even though they came
from two goals down to secure a 2-2 draw. Cresswell was pleased to see the
positive reaction from his team-mates after they suffered such a bad start
to the game when goals from Steven Fletcher and Jeremain Lens put the home
side into a comfortable lead.
But Carl Jenkinson's first goal for the Club right on half-time and Dimitri
Payet's second half equaliser ensured the Hammers extended their unbeaten
run in the league to five matches. Cresswell feels the result could have
been even better after Lens was shown a red card midway through the second
half, but the team could not find the all important winner late in the game.
Cresswell said: "I think we could have got the victory at the end of the
game. We went two goals down and we know the first half simply wasn't good
enough. "It has happened to us a couple of times but we knew it was going to
be tough coming to Sunderland with what is happening there at the moment.
We knew the gaffer was not going to be happy with us at half-time but all
credit for the way we came out fighting in the second half.
"They were reduced to ten-men for the last 35 minutes and it was a bit of a
disappointing end as you would have fancied us to get the three points, but
it wasn't meant to be. "It was frustrating and they were always going to
drop off and defend their 18-yard box which they did and we couldn't get the
goal to go on and win the game. "We have a little break now and then we go
again (against Crystal Palace)."

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Reece Oxford: West Ham manager explains England U17 omission
BBC.co.uk

West Ham's Reece Oxford was left out of England's Under-17 World Cup squad
because of concerns over fatigue, says Hammers manager Slaven Bilic.
Midfielder Oxford, 16, has appeared in three Europa League and three Premier
League games this season. England play their first World Cup match against
Guinea in Chile on 17 October, with the final on 8 November. "Reece is an
exceptional talent that we have to nurture. And we need him in the first
team," said Bilic. "We have made a long-term plan for him to not to affect
his body and his development. If we let him go for one and a half months or
whatever, it's no good." Oxford captained England when they qualified for
the World Cup by beating Spain on penalties in a play-off in May. Bilic
added: "We are trying to sort that situation out with the Football
Association and with Reece. "My opinion is that if he plays, he should play
for the Under-21s at least."

Oxford impressed on his Premier League debut as West Ham beat Arsenal on the
opening day of the season on 9 August. He played 79 minutes in that game,
was substituted at half-time against Leicester the following week and came
on for the final eight minutes against Liverpool on 29 August, his most
recent first-team match.

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Sunderland 2 West Ham 2
3 October 2015
Last updated at 18:12
By Neil Johnston
BBC Sport

Sunderland are yet to win in the Premier League this season after blowing a
2-0 lead to draw against West Ham at the Stadium of Light.
The Black Cats raced 2-0 ahead, Steven Fletcher firing home from Yann
M'Vila's free-kick before Jeremain Lens's sublime chip doubled the
advantage. Carl Jenkinson led the fightback after Victor Moses' cutback
before Lens was sent off for a second yellow card. A mistake by Costel
Pantilimon allowed Dimitri Payet to equalise.

What next for Advocaat?

Sunderland midfielder Lee Cattermole was at his tigerish best in the first
half, making five recoveries (yellow), three interceptions (blue), one
tackle (green) and one clearance (purple) There were mixed feelings for
Sunderland boss Dick Advocaat at the final whistle.
Though his side allowed a comfortable lead to slip, the point was enough to
haul them off the bottom of the table above Newcastle United, who lost 6-1
at Manchester City. The build-up to the game was dominated by reports
Advocaat was considering quitting, having apparently become disillusioned
with working on a limited budget. The former Netherlands manager's players
showed they were behind him by turning in their best 45 minutes of the
season against a team who had won their previous three away league games -
at Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal. Fletcher marked his return by
lashing home from inside the area following M'Vila's free-kick before a
sublime finish from Lens doubled the lead. The Dutch forward produced a
wonderful chip over Adrian after a through-ball from the impressive M'Vila,
the goal reducing Advocaat to tears of joy. But Sunderland were made to pay
as Fabio Borini spurned one great chance to put the game out of sight and
John O'Shea was denied by Adrian.

West Ham hard to beat

West Ham, who twice came from behind to secure a point in their last game
against Norwich, again showed character to rescue a point when all seemed
lost. They were back in the game when Jenkinson converted Moses's cutback on
the stroke of half-time. Sunderland's afternoon went downhill when they were
forced to play more than half-an-hour with 10 men after Lens' 57th-minute
red card for a second bookable offence. West Ham were level when Pantilimon
could not hold Manuel Lanzini's shot from distance and Payet was on hand to
convert the rebound. The Hammers, who drop from third to fifth in the table,
are unbeaten in their past five league matches.

Man of the match - Victor Moses

Victor Moses has only been at West Ham one month but the on-loan winger from
Chelsea is already proving a shrewd signing. Moses was brilliant in the
build-up to the goal that allowed Carl Jenkinson to reduce the deficit. Had
Sunderland gone in at 2-0 at half-time, the outcome could well have been
different

What they said

Sunderland manager Dick Advocaat: "The performance has to lift the spirits.
We showed if we work hard, we can get points and results, because West Ham
are a good side and we know they have had good results in their away games,
so I have to give compliments for their performance."

West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic: "If you asked me yesterday would I
take a point, I would never say I would take a point, we want three but we
knew it would be a hard game. "Emotions are mixed, a point is a point is
especially when we were 2-0 down, but if we look at the last 20 minutes I am
disappointed we didn't capitalise on it. But we are not greedy. It's a good
point for us."

What next?

There will be relief at the Stadium of Light that Sunderland are not
propping up the Premier League table going into the international break. Yet
they face a challenging time when the domestic campaign resumes in two
weeks' time. They are away at West Bromwich Albion on 17 October before
hosting fellow strugglers Newcastle United in the Wear-Tyne derby on 25
October.
West Ham, unbeaten on their travels this season, are at Crystal Palace on 17
October before hosting champions Chelsea on 24 October.
The stats that matter

Sunderland have won just one of their past seven Premier League games
against the Hammers (D4 L2).
Advocaat's first Premier League game in charge of Sunderland was the meeting
between the two sides in March, won by West Ham. The Dutchman has taken just
15 points from 17 league games.
Payet has had a hand in 14 goals (five goals, nine assists) in his past 16
league appearances (Premier League & Ligue 1 combined).
Mark Noble's booking after one minute 44 seconds was the second-quickest in
the Premier League this season.
Sunderland have averaged a red card every 852 minutes in Premier League
history - only two clubs have received one more frequently (Blackburn - 842
mins, Hull- 720 mins).
Sunderland had 12 shots in this game but only one of them came after
half-time.

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West Ham bosses Sullivan and Gold lucky not to be on crashed plane
Last Updated: 04/10/15 6:20pm
SSN

West Ham United co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold have said they were
fortunate not to be on the light aircraft which crashed in Essex on
Saturday, killing the two crew. Sullivan and Gold had been due to fly from
Stapleford Airport to the north east where their team were playing
Sunderland in a Premier League fixture. There were two planes available to
them - one was the Beechcraft King Air 200 turboprop aircraft which came
down in a field in Chigwell shortly before 10.20am. Sullivan said: "The
aviation company, London Executive Aviation (LEA), have two planes and we
have flown on that particular plane about 50 times. "It was 50/50 whether we
got on the plane that crashed or the other one. It's a real shock. My heart
goes out to the families of the pilots, it's very, very sad. "When we
arrived at the airport it was already closed off because of the crash and we
had to divert to Stansted to get a flight to Newcastle to get to the
Sunderland game. We were a bit late for the match." He added: "We used that
airline all the time and they are really excellent." Investigations are
continuing into why the aircraft crashed only moments after take-off. Both
people on board were described by LEA as "highly-experienced professional
pilots".

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Sunderland 2-2 West Ham: Dimitri Payet earns point amid uncertainty over
Dick Advocaat's future
By Stephen Turner
Last Updated: 03/10/15 8:55pm
SSN

Sunderland blew a two-goal lead as they drew 2-2 with West Ham in what could
be Dick Advocaat's final game in charge. Uncertainty over the manager's
future did not prevent the home side taking a 2-0 lead, with excellent goals
from Steven Fletcher (10) and Jeremain Lens (22) scant reward for their
early verve. Had Fabio Borini then taken a one-on-one chance a first Premier
League win of the season would surely have been in the bag, but Carl
Jenkinson halved the deficit right on half-time and Dimitri Payet equalised
(60) two minutes after Lens was shown a red card. Amid the drama of a
sending-off, a surrendered lead and a manager supposedly on the brink, it
should not be overlooked that Sunderland became the first team this season
to deny West Ham an away win. In doing so they prevented Slaven Bilic
breaking new ground as the first Hammers boss in the Premier League era to
win four straight on the road, but the Croat will know his side could easily
have made the trip back south with nothing at all. If the rumours about
Advocaat swirling around Wearside were designed to bring a response from his
players, then it worked big-time as their early ploy of sitting off the
visitors gave way to an attacking first-half performance of real menace.
Fletcher's opener was the catalyst; the Scot peeling off to the penalty spot
to sweep in Yann M'Vila's training-ground free-kick as John O'Shea made
mischief with West Ham's muddled markers. Better, implausibly, was to come,
with Payet's poor pass forcing a rushed clearance from Winston Reid and
again M'Vila capitalised, sliding through Lens for a beautiful first-time
chip which beat Adrian and found the net via the crossbar. The goalkeeper's
one-handed stop kept out O'Shea's header, but he was committed minutes later
as Fletcher's flick sent Borini in on goal. The Italian picked his spot:
sadly for Sunderland it was a foot outside the post. Still they should have
gone in with a two-goal lead, but three defenders failed to prevent Victor
Moses delivering a left-wing cross, and Jenkinson careered up from
right-back to fire a first West Ham goal.

The nerves among the home fans were obvious, and with good reason: referee
Neil Swarbrick was officious all afternoon in dishing out eight yellow
cards, but Lens' hack at Reid more than merited the second yellow that came
his way. And any hope of a rearguard action went by the wayside within a
couple of minutes as Costel Pantilimon spilled Manuel Lanzini's shot
straight to a grateful Payet, who gobbled up a fourth Premier League goal. A
home defeat seemed almost inevitable at that point, but Sunderland regrouped
admirably and held out comfortably but for one Lanzini shot that missed by a
whisker.

West Ham boss Slaven Bilic is happy with his teams positive performance,
after a difficult first half, against Sunderland.

Soccer Saturday verdict - Matt Le Tissier

"For the first time this season, I thought Sunderland could stay in the
Premier League. They got the early goal which gave them a great boost of
confidence. The turning point came when Borini had the chance to put
Sunderland 3-0 up. It was inches wide and it should have been game over.
"West Ham got a goal before half-time and the momentum swung when Lens was
sent off for Sunderland. Pantilimon was at fault for the second goal, but
Sunderland showed a lot of character to hold on for the point."

Player ratings

Sunderland: Pantilimon (4), Yedlin (6), Coates (7), O'Shea (7), Jones (7),
Cattermole (7), M'Vila (7), Toivonen (8), Lens (6), Borini (7), Fletcher
(7).

Subs used: Larsson (n/a), Rodwell (n/a), Gomez (n/a)

West Ham: Adrian (7), Jenkinson (7), Tomkins (6), Reid (7), Cresswell (6),
Kouyate (6), Noble (6), Payet (7), Lanzini (7), Moses (6), Sakho (6)

Subs used: Jelavic (5), Collins (6), Zarate (6)

Man of the match: Ola Toivonen (Sunderland)

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Slaven Bilic tells West Ham to stop first-half shockers after draw at
Sunderland
Last Updated: 03/10/15 7:24pm
SSN

Slaven Bilic called on West Ham to sort out their first-half performances
after they salvaged a 2-2 draw at Sunderland. The Londoners went to Wearside
chasing a fourth straight away win for the first time in the Premier League
era, but they were 2-0 down inside 22 minutes against a side yet to win in
the league. But Carl Jenkinson halved the deficit right on half-time, and
Dimitri Payet completed the comeback after Sunderland had Jeremain Lens sent
off. Bilic told Sky Sports: "We couldn't be worse than we were in the first
half, losing second balls and all that, and our offensive players were
simply not there. "But at the end of the game it's a good point for us. We
are sitting good in the table, we scored two goals and we ended very
positively with us trying for half an hour to win the game. "We can talk
about two totally opposite emotions. It was awful in some parts of the first
half - they could even have been three up, but we showed good team spirit
and quality. We ended up totally dominating the game."

West Ham were two goals down at the break against Leicester and Bournemouth
earlier in the season, and Bilic said: "OK - we are not Real Madrid, not
Manchester United, but we shouldn't be like we were in a couple or maybe
three first halves so far. "Sometimes it can happen but three out of eight
is, for my taste, a bit too much." Bilic shared a final-whistle embrace with
Dick Advocaat, whose future as Sunderland manager is uncertain. He said: "I
would really like him to stay because I saw him on the touchline with me and
he is full of energy. It would be a shame if he goes, and I really hope that
he stays."

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Top six Hammers could hit second place
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 4, 2015 in News, Whispers
Cand H

West Ham tonight sit in sixth place having slipped one place from yesterday
as a result of today's games.

Arsenal's thumping win over Manchester United lifted the north Londoners
into second place but that other team in that part of the world could manage
only a draw at Swansea and remain two places and a point beneath us.

Before today's matches there was a chance we could slip as far as eighth so
to be holding our place in the top six is a result as we prepare to meet
fourth places Palace at Selhurst Park after the international break.

We sit just one point behind Alan Pardew's outfit and on the same day
Leicester, one point ahead of us, travel to Southampton whilst Arsenal visit
Watford and Everton - one point below us - are at home to Manchester United.

What it all adds up to is that if we win at Palace, Leicester, United and
Arsenal lose we go second whilst the worst scenario is that a defeat at
Selhurst and wins for Everton and Spurs could dump us into eighth place.

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AC told he may never have another major injury
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 4, 2015 in News, Whispers
C and H

David Gold is again singing the praises of Irons record signing Andy
Carroll. The co chairman believes that the big fella deserves all the credit
in the world for fighting his way back from injury and has regularly leapt
to the player's defence publicly. Carroll was not risked at Sunderland
yesterday after suffering bruising to an ankle during last weekend's match
against Norwich City The club insist it isn't serious and that he will be
available after the international break but in the meantime DG has been
responding on twitter to the player's injury problems. He said: "Carroll is
the bests English centre forward of his type imo. He could easily go the
rest of his career without a major injury. dg." He was also delighted with
the team's recovery at the Stadium of Light yesterday after going two down
adding:"Great fight back after falling behind to Sunderland our fans were
magnificent. dg"

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Alan Shearer 'West Ham are doing VERY well'
Posted by Sean Whetstone on October 4, 2015 in News, Whispers
C and H

Last season BBC Match of the Day presenter Alan Shearer was one of a number
of pundits who trotted out the infamous line of 'Be careful what you wish
for' to West Ham fans after Sam Allardyce's contract with the Hammers was
not renewed. Alan Shearer said at the time following Big Sam's departure
"All the teams he's left have plummeted afterwards. Look what happened to
Blackburn, Bolton & Newcastle when Big Sam left. Be careful what you wish
for, West Ham fans" After the Hammers beat Man City in September Shearer
wrote on his official twitter. "West Ham first team in 10 years to beat
Arsenal, Liverpool & Man City away in a season. Can't believe they didn't
get rid of Sam sooner" Last night on BBC's match of the day Shearer was
forced to admit "West Ham are doing VERY well." Apology accepted Mr Shearer
or the closest we will probably get to him admitting he was wrong!

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Daily WHUFC News - 3rd October 2015

Preview - Sunderland
WHUFC.com

The background

West Ham United make the long journey to Sunderland this Saturday for their
latest Barclays Premier League assignment

Sunderland are currently propping up the top flight table and are without a
win from their first seven games.

In fact it has been a miserable start to the 2015/16 campaign for the north
east as a whole, as Sunderland and Newcastle are the only two teams yet to
taste success this term.

As a result, Dick Advocaat's men are eleven points and 17 places worse off
than the Hammers at this early stage, and the visitors will be hoping to
maintain their 100 percent away record.

Having seen off Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City, a trip to Sunderland
might look easier on paper, but Slaven Bilic will be having none of that as
his team travel to the Stadium of Light.

As for Sunderland, their two points have come from draws with Swansea City
and Aston Villa, while Leicester, Norwich, Tottenham, Bournemouth and
Manchester United have all triumphed against the Black Cats this term.

The history

Saturday's game will be the 89th meeting between the Hammers and Sunderland,
and it is West Ham who have the edge with 34 victories to the Black Cats'
31.

In recent times, West Ham have won two of the last three games – a 2-1
victory at the Stadium of Light in 2013/14 thanks to goals from Andy Carroll
and Mohamed Diame, and a 1-0 success at the Boleyn Ground last term, with
Diafra Sakho on target.

Before then West Ham had gone five games without victory against Sunderland,
so they will certainly be looking at that last three game spell for
inspiration this weekend.

Sunderland include former Hammer Jermain Defoe in their ranks. Defoe scored
41 goals in 105 games for West Ham, and has notched nine times in 26 matches
since joining the Black Cats.

Match info

Team news

West Ham United

Slaven Bilic will make a late check on Winston Reid, who has been nursing a
slight problem in his hip area.

Angelo Ogbonna remains out with a hamstring injury, while Andy Carroll
missed training in the early part of this week with a minor ankle problem.

Alex Song and Enner Valencia continue to make good progress in their injury
rehabilitation but are unavailable on Saturday.

Sunderland

Midfielder Jack Rodwell is expected to recover from the ankle injury which
forced him to miss last weekend's defeat to Manchester United in time for
Saturday.

Meanwhile, former West Ham striker Jermain Defoe could be recalled up front
as the Black Cats look for their first win of the season.

Match info

Saturday's referee will be Neil Swarbrick. He will be assisted by Scott
Ledger and Eddie Smart. Craig Pawson is the fourth official.
West Ham are undefeated in their last four league meetings with Sunderland
(W2 D2).
Diafra Sakho's 88th minute goal secured victory for the Hammers in the last
meeting, which also happened to be Dick Advocaat's first game in charge of
Sunderland.
West Ham have the best away record in the Premier League this season, having
won all three games at the cost of just one goal conceded.
Should they win on Saturday, the Hammers will record a fourth consecutive
away win in the same Premier League season for the first time.
Sunderland have the worst defensive record in the division, having conceded
16 goals.
The Black Cats have won only four of their 26 league games in 2015, scoring
just 21 goals.
Ticketing, travel, coverage and other info

A limited number of tickets will be available at the Stadium of Light for
Hammers supporters. Click here for full information.
Saturday looks like being a dry, if dull day on Wearside. Temperatures are
on the autumnal side, with a high of 11C (52F) at kick-off.
Click here for the latest travel news on the roads and here on the railways.
If you're not heading to the game, our digital channels are where to stay up
to date with all the latest news. Our whufc.com match centre will have live
audio, stats, photos and more, while you can get involved with the
conversation on social using the hashtag #SUNWHU
For fans making the trip to the north east, Sunderland have launched a brand
new fanzone outside their East Stand this season. Including bars, food
stalls, football games and FIFA for the kids, live music from top bands
across the North East and player appearances pre-match and post-match, it
will be open three hours before kick-off and is open an hour after the game
too.

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Chadwell Chatter - Manuel Lanzini
WHUFC.com

It's a dream come true to play in the Premier League
Hola!

I would like to first start by thanking everyone connected to the club for
welcoming me into life at West Ham United! The fantastic support I have
received has certainly helped me to settle in quickly, and after speaking to
the other new foreign players – Dimi and Pedro, I know it has helped them a
lot too. We have made an excellent start to the season, and we are all
determined to keep this unbeaten run going for as long as possible. Having
watched the Premier League when I was growing up, it has been a dream of
mine to play in England for a very long time. I've always knew about the
passion and the pace but I didn't appreciate how hard this league really is.
In the Premier League, you can never underestimate any team. It is a very
competitive league, and we've already seen how any team can beat anyone. So
far, I am enjoying every game and every training session, the quality and
intensity is really amazing.

This weekend we travel to play Sunderland and while we are at opposite ends
of the table, we are not going underestimate. We have to continue carry on
playing as we have been, and try and maintain our position in the league. No
matter who the opposition is, we always look to play the same style, at home
and away. We know the quality we have in our team and we have some very good
players; that's why we have been getting such good results.

On a personal note, I can't help but mention my goal against Liverpool away
at Anfield. It is a moment I will never forget, and brings a smile to my
face whenever I think about it. At the time, I didn't know it had been so
long since West Ham had last won at Anfield. It was a huge win for us and a
great achievement. Liverpool are one of the biggest clubs in the world, and
have a huge following back home in Argentina. To score in such an iconic
stadium as Anfield meant a lot to me. It's always been a dream of mine to
score goals, like it is for every attack minded player so hopefully I will
score a few more this season! The most important thing is for the team to do
well, I am happy to celebrate every goal, no matter scores. My priority is
to help the team, whether that is scoring or making goals.

A lot of people are talking about the impact of Dimitri Payet. He is a very
important player but what people may not realise is how hard he works in
training. We've been getting on very well; he is one of the best players we
have here and I am learning a lot from just watching him training. He can
change a game in an instant and he creates so many chances.
Finally, I would also like to thank the manager because ever since I
arrived, he has treated me very well, as has all the staff. He knows the
game inside out and has a great reading of the matches. He picks out aspects
of the game we need to improve on, during the game, and helps us adapt to
it.

Hasta luego!

Manuel

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Adrian signs new contract
WHUFC.com

West Ham United are delighted to confirm that Adrian has signed a new
two-year contract with the Club, with the option of a further two-years. The
Spanish goalkeeper has become a firm fans' favourite at the Boleyn Ground
following his move from Real Betis back in June 2013 and few could forget
his memorable winning penalty that helped the Hammers beat Everton in the FA
Cup last season. Adrian has now put pen to paper on a deal that will keep
him in east London until 2017, with the Club having the option to extend the
stay for a further two years. The 28-year-old has once again showed this
season why he is rated so highly with some outstanding performances. Adrian
was one of the star performers as West Ham recorded a memorable victory over
Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium. The talented keeper says he is
thrilled to pledge his long-term future to the Club and is relishing the
chance to play at the new Stadium next summer.

Adrian said: "This is a proud moment for myself, my family and friends and I
am really happy to have signed my second contract with the Club. I feel
really happy for the Club and the fans. "I never imagined this kind of
relationship with the fans. I spent 16-years at Real Betis and it was
difficult to leave your home. "But from the moment I arrived in London the
West Ham fans had a special relationship with me. "For me this is a really
good moment and I just want to enjoy it. This is my third season here and I
want to stay here for a long time. "Next season is really important for the
Club. I have enjoyed playing at Upton Park and I want to enjoy playing in
the new Stadium. It is a big step for the Club and I am really excited about
this moment."

Adrian San Miguel del Castillo, more commonly known as Adrian, is an
imposing 6'3 shot stopper who spent virtually his entire career with his
hometown club Real Betis , enjoying an outstanding 2012/13 season in the
Spanish top flight. His performances did not go unnoticed and West Ham acted
quickly to secure his signature in the summer of 2013. Adrian faced a battle
to get into the side when he first arrived as Jussi Jaaskelainen was the
first-choice keeper. He made his debut against Cheltenham in the Capital One
Cup as Ricardo Vaz Te and Ravel Morrison helped the Hammers secure a 2-1
victory. Adrian waited patiently for his chance but he finally made his
breakthrough into the team when he made his Premier League debut against
Manchester United at Old Trafford in December 2013 and has established
himself as the first-choice goalkeeper ever since.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
From the Boardroom - David Gold
WHUFC.com

I am looking forward to the big game against Sunderland on Saturday and I
know Slaven and the players will be heading up there with the aim of coming
away with another away win this season. We are hopeful of getting straight
back on the winning trail following the 2-2 draw with Norwich last weekend.
Before the game we were the favourites to win, but after what happened right
at the end, we see it as a point gained. We made a mistake which led to
their goal and we had the same thing against Bournemouth and Leicester. If
we cut out those mistakes we are going to win more points than we lose.
There are no easy games in the Premier League. I know that is a cliché but
it is a fact. The gap between victory and defeat is a very thin line in the
Premier League. Any time you score in the last minute of a game, whether it
is a win or a draw it is a great feeling and we managed to take two points
away from Norwich in the last minute. I don't think the home form is a
long-term problem. We could have easily had more points on the board had we
not made individual errors.

My message to the fans is that I am sure we will do a lot better at home
than what we have achieved in the opening four games. Those individual
errors will disappear and with that comes confidence and success. We have
still got 13 points from seven games which is fantastic. We have played an
extra home game but that will get levelled out when we face Sunderland away
and we can then have a better judgement of the league. I will look at the
league on even numbers after all the teams have played this weekend and if
we are still in third place I will be thrilled. I have said it before but I
genuinely believe this is the best squad we have had at the Club for some
time and we are slowly getting back all our injured players. Obviously
someone will get a kick or knock that will keep them out for a couple of
weeks, but we don't want the long-term injuries. I have a lot of sympathy
for what Bournemouth are going through at the moment losing some of their
key players having just gained promotion into the Premier League. We are
fortunate to have a strong squad of players. But it is about luck and that
is the element that no-one can control. They say you make you own luck but
we deserve a bit of luck on that front.

Enner Valencia and Alex Song are not far away from making a return to action
so it looks good on that front. We now head to Sunderland on Saturday and if
we can make it four away wins in a row it will be an amazing achievement and
something that is very hard to do. I have no doubts we will be going there
looking to win the game. Slaven will tell you he is going there to win and
the players will feel the same. We are not going there to battle out a
point. We have lifted the fans expectations and rightly so. That is what
comes with success and you lift the spirits of the players, people inside
the football club and most importantly the fans. It is incredible what is
going on with the two north east clubs this season and they have been
struggling. But we will be concentrating on winning the game on Saturday.
Dimitri Payet had another great game last weekend and he is great to have
around the football Club. I can remember watching players like Trevor
Brooking and Alan Devonshire and you always get excited when they get on the
ball. It is the same with Dimitri and he is only going to get stronger. He
seems very capable of coping with the expectation and very capable of
continuing to deliver. He has settled in, is very measured and genuine. He
works very hard in training and it is great to have players of that quality
around. We have other good ball players like Victor Moses, Manuel Lanzini,
Alex Song – all creative footballers and we have an abundance of players who
look to create for other people.

I hope all the fans who are travelling have a safe journey to the Stadium of
Light on Saturday and that we can come away celebrating another three
points.

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Goalkeeper Adrian signs new two-year West Ham contract
BBc.co.uk

West Ham goalkeeper Adrian has signed a new two-year contract which will
keep him at the club until 2017, with the option of a further two years. The
Spaniard's previous deal had been due to expire next summer. Adrian, 28,
joined West Ham from Real Betis on a free transfer in June 2013 as backup to
Jussi Jaaskelainen but established himself as first choice. "This is my
third season here and I want to stay here for a long time," Adrian told West
Ham's website. "From the moment I arrived in London the West Ham fans had a
special relationship with me." West Ham will leave the Boleyn Ground at the
end of the season and move into the Olympic Stadium and Adrian is excited to
be part of the new era. He added: "I have enjoyed playing at Upton Park and
I want to enjoy playing in the new stadium. "It is a big step for the club
and I am really excited about this moment."

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Sunderland v West Ham
KO 15:00
2 October 2015
Last updated at 11:26
BBC.co.uk

Barclays Premier League
Venue: Stadium of Light Date: Saturday, 3 October
TEAM NEWS

Sunderland midfielder Jack Rodwell is expected to recover from the ankle
injury that caused him to miss last weekend's defeat at Manchester United.
Jermain Defoe could be recalled as the Black Cats look for their first
league win of the season.
Andy Carroll is pushing for his first West Ham start since January, having
come off the bench last weekend. Angelo Ogbonna and Alex Song are out
injured, while Winston Reid is a doubt with a hip problem.

MOTD COMMENTATOR'S NOTES

Steve Bower: "These two clubs couldn't have had more contrasting starts.
Facing West Ham is back where it all began at Sunderland for boss Dick
Advocaat. There must have been moments so far this season that he has
questioned his decision to come back for more. "The longer the winless run
continues the more the pressure will build. With the international break on
the horizon, the importance of victory is huge. "Such has been West Ham's
form on the road, they are expected to leave the North East with a positive
result. They will look to use the anxious atmosphere around the Stadium of
Light to their advantage." Twitter: @SteveBowercomm

WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY

West Ham manager Slaven Bilic: "Our three wins and where we got them mean
absolutely nothing. If we start to think for a couple of seconds about how
we did against Arsenal, Liverpool or Manchester City and think it is going
to be easier against Sunderland, we had better stop that before we even
start. "Are we confident? Yes, we are. But we are playing a team who have
also been unlucky in some of their games. They have to start collecting
points. We are expecting a tough, tough game on Saturday."

LAWRO'S PREDICTION

West Ham have been brilliant away from home, so you might think this will be
a straightforward victory for the Hammers. But football does not work like
that, which is why we love it. I just have a feeling we are in for a
surprise result at the Stadium of Light.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head
West Ham are unbeaten in the last four league meetings (W2, D2).
The Hammers won the last meeting 1-0 in Dick Advocaat's first game in charge
of Sunderland.

Sunderland
Sunderland have failed to win any of their last 10 league games (D4, L6) -
the longest current run in the division.
They have only won four of their 26 league games in 2015, scoring just 21
times.
The Black Cats have yet to keep a clean sheet in their nine matches in all
competitions this season.
Dick Advocaat's side scored more goals (seven) in their two League Cup ties
than they have managed in seven Premier League matches (six).
They have the worst defensive record in the division, conceding 16 goals.

West Ham
West Ham have the best away record in the Premier League this season,
winning all three fixtures and only conceding one goal.
They have never won four consecutive away games in the same Premier League
season.
The Hammers have scored an unsurpassed 15 Premier League goals - opponents
Sunderland have managed just six.
Dimitri Payet has been involved in 13 goals (four goals, nine assists) in
his last 15 league appearances in England and France.

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Reid in, Carroll out of Sunderland test
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 2nd October 2015
By: Staff Writer

Andy Carroll is almost certainly out of this weekend's trip to Sunderland
after being omitted from Slaven Bilic's travelling party. The 26-year-old
striker has not flown to the North East with the rest of the squad having
failed to recover completely from a knock, despite training with the fitness
coaches yesterday. However there is better news concerning key defender
Winston Reid, who has been in excellent form so far this season. The Kiwi
was also considered a doubt after pulling up with a hip injury in training
this week. Although he failed to train with the rest of the first team
squad yesterday (Thursday), Reid has been included in the squad to face the
Black Cats at the Stadium of Light tomorrow afternoon. Also likely to
feature in the 18-day match day squad once again is 16-year-old Reece
Oxford, whose most recent top flight outing came in the 3-0 win at Liverpool
at the end of August.

West Ham Utd v Sunderland - likely starting XI: Adrian; Jenkinson,
Cresswell, Tomkins, Reid; Noble (c), Kouyate, Moses, Payet, Lanzini; Sakho.

Earlier today Slaven Bilic backed England striker Carroll to win his place
back in the national team - despite having none of his players selected in
the latest squad by Roy Hodgson.
"The England squad will come as a logical result if things are cured," he
said. "First of all he has to stay away from injuries. Only with that can he
be in a position to have a great season. "In the past it has not been
because he dropped in form, it's because he was injured. Step number one, he
has made it, he has had a good pre-season, even it was after the season
already started. "The quality was never in doubt, the problem was fitness
and without that you can't have form."

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Sunderland v West Ham United
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 2nd October 2015
By: Preview Percy

Unlike Jeremy Corbyn, not only would Preview Percy press the big red button
in the event of a nuclear war, he'd probably do it in peacetime. Croydon,
Liverpool and White Hart Lane are first on his hit list. Sunderland isn't on
the list. Yet........

Next we visit the naffly-named Stadium of Light where our hosts will be
Sunderland. Kick-off is 3pm on Saturday (hurrah). There doesn't seem to be
any engineering works between here and there and even the trains and tubes
into town like they will be behaving themselves, with the exception of those
running into Liverpool Street from Tottenham territory which, in an attempt
to keep the rest of the city free from contamination will be closed. If
that's your route to Kings Cross for the journey north, check before you
leave. Oh, and move.

Our hosts will come into the match in less than rude health. Not to put too
fine a point on it, they are rock bottom. Two points is their sole reward
this season courtesy of a home draw against Sunderland and one on the road
at Villa. Other than that it's been defeats all the way, going down 4-2 at
Leicester, 3-1 at home to Norwich, 2-0 at Bournemouth and 3-0 at Man Utd.
Hell they even managed to go down 1-0 at home to Spurs.

They are of course used to scrapping about the nether regions of the league
in recent times. Last season looked a little bleak up to St Patrick's Day at
which point Dick Advocaat (still sounds like the sort of game those wacky
rugby types play) took over from "Father Of A Hammer" Gus Poyet. Advocaat
took over on a deal that was to keep him there until the end of the season
after which, whether or not they stayed up, he was to ride off into the
sunset. His first match was at the Boleyn and ended in a 1-0 defeat. Things
got better the following week with a 1-0 defeat of Newcastle and over the
course of the next few months they gleaned enough points to escape by the
penultimate game of the season, a 0-0 draw with Arsenal.

At the conclusion of the season Advocaat carried out his original plan of
retiring from the game. However, and reportedly much to his wife's disgust,
he was persuaded to stay on for another season. That's a decision that he
may well be regretting at the moment, though the way results are going Mrs A
may well get her way after all, with Burnley croakmeister Sean Dyche already
going into print to deny interest in the role, amid speculation that the
Mackems have been setting up a shortlist including Dyche's name.

Advocaat reversed his decision to sling his hook in June, the timing of
which may or may not have had an effect on transfer dealings. In the end
they brought in five players on permanent deals. A closer look at the five
new boys shows that two of them had already been on loan at the club in a
past life.

The biggest fee paid according to the work experience kid with the Harry
Potter spectacles was the £10m (including add-ons) lobbed in the general
direction of Anfield in exchange for the services of Fabio Borini. Before
joining the Merseyside Diving Academy, Borini had spent some time being
loaned out to Swansea as part of the Chelsea player hire operation and it
was during this period that he first encountered Brendan Rodgers. Despite
this the player elected to become David Brent's first signing at Anfield,
having been conned by Mario Balotelli into believing that Liverpool's
supporters were somehow "exciting". Maybe it's just whenever we go up there
that they are so quiet. Borini failed to stir the Anfield faithful out of
their collective slumbers during his time there, though a number of lengthy
spells on the treatment table didn't help much. He spent much of 2013/14 on
loan at Wearside and on his return to Scouseland it was reported that the
Mackems had had a £14m bid accepted. Borini didn't want to go but after a
season on the fringe of an average Liverpool side he elected to cut his
losses and swap coasts.

The other returning old boy also came from Liverpool with £2m going in the
other direction. Sebastian Coates – and I expect that I'm still the only one
to nickname him "Ralph" – arrived on a season-long loan last season but the
centre-half seemed to annoy his compatriot Poyet after a 3-1 defeat by Hull
and was banished to whatever the reserve team is called these days. Coates
might have returned to Liverpool never to be seen again at the end of the
season had Sunderland not dispensed with Poyet's services. However, he was
given a fresh start by Advocaat and he didn't miss a minute of the five game
unbeaten run that kept them up. Such was the reversal of fortune that the
centre back, who has 17 caps at full level for Uruguay, signed a four-year
deal this summer.

They coughed up £8m for Dutch winger Jermain Lens. Lens arrived from what I
insist on spelling as Dynamo Kiev this summer having done the double with
the Ukranian outfit last season. Lens had previous with Advocaat, who had
been his gaffer at AZ "Where's The 67 Gone?" Alkmaar and PSV Eindhoven. Lens
is one of the increasingly rare bunch who have played international football
for two different countries. Although born in Amsterdam, he qualified for
Surinam through ancestry and because "he felt more Surinamese". In 2009 he
represented the former Dutch colony in the never to be forgotten PARBO Bier
Cup. Oh come on you MUST remember that one. No? Well you're not alone. It
seems that it wasn't quite the major festival of football that the good
people at PARBO Bier had hoped and it also escaped the attention of FIFA,
who failed to interrupt their money laundering for long enough to actually
give the tournament any kind of official recognition. This came in handy a
year later when, after the 2010 World Cup, Lens suddenly felt slightly more
Dutch after all, making his debut in the orange in a 1-1 draw against
Ukraine, scoring the Dutch goal in the process. He now has over 30 Dutch
Caps (come on that joke is becoming traditional now) and the rules now mean
that should he come over all Surinamese again that's tough.

They also brought in Younes Kaboul into the centre of defence. The poor
bloke had two separate spells with Spurs, popping down to Pompey inbetween.
The return to Spurs happened on the Redknapp watch and took place whilst
cash-strapped Pompey still owed £3m to Spurs over the original transfer. It
was wryly noted by many observers that the £9m fee paid by Spurs for Pompey
for the return of the player, might be considered to have been, well, a bit
generous to say the least. Which was odd because it's not like a transfer
involving a member of the Redknapp family to raise eyebrows is it? Kaboul
can console himself with the fact that, as bad as things may seem for
Sunderland at the moment, at least he's not at White Hart Lane.

The final permanent deal brought Welsh international right back Adam
Matthews in from Celtic. £2m was paid for the former "Football League
Apprentice Of The Year" who won the award for his clever idea for a device
to enable apprentices polish multiple pairs of first team players' boots. Or
was that another programme? I forget.

They brought in a further three loan bodies during the window. Most
interesting of these is French international midfielder Yann M'Vila. M'Vila
is on a season with an option loan from Russian League outfit Rubin Kazan,
which is just one of a number of clubs he's fallen out with over the years.
Even back in his early years in France the words "possible attitude problem"
were being bandied about. Having had a look at his record in recent years I
think we can dispense with the word "possible". He's currently on the
naughty step in Tatarstan having walked out of Rubin's training camp in
Turkey to go back to France a couple of years back. He was loaned out to
Inter at the start of 2014/15 on a season with an option deal which lasted
only up to January when it was announced that he'd been sent back to
Tatarstan after a bust-up with Inter boss Roberto Mancini. He then spent a
spell training with Dynamo Moscow, a period which came to an end after an
unspecified incident resulted in him trashing his Moscow lodgings.

Disciplinary issues are a recurring theme for M'Vila. Although he has 10
full caps for the French, he hasn't featured in the squad since 2011/12,
receiving an international ban until June 2014 after an unauthorised night
out. He hasn't been selected since. So you might think that the move to
Wearside represents something of a chance to get his career on track at the
ripe old age of 25. If that's the case, it wasn't the most auspicious of
starts which saw him get his marching orders in a development squad match v
Norwich for head-butting an opponent. He has since appeared for the first
XI, scoring a 20 yard free-kick to open the scoring in the match against his
namesake team. However, I'd suggest that he is still probably one to file
under "nutjob".

And so to us. Last week was a match full of ifs and buts. We'd started off
ok until Noble's hospital pass left Tomkins stranded. That knocked us for
six and, if Jerome had been better than the journeyman he obviously is, a
0-2 deficit might have proved difficult to overcome. There again, as the old
saying goes, if my granny had wheels she'd be a skateboard.

The equaliser was a fine goal and served to spur the team on for the
remainder of the half. I thought the second half was pretty even and we had
a couple of good chances to go ahead and later equalise before we actually
did. So all in all a fair result. Pack up, eat the pigeon, go home. Prepare
for next week.

We do have a few injury doubts. There can be few who didn't think "here we
go again" when Carroll went down shortly after coming on as a sub.
Thankfully he managed to run the knock off but he is still not 100% for the
trip north. Of slightly more concern is the hip/back problem that saw
Winston Reid pulled out of training the other day. With Ogbonna still not
quite right, Reid's absence would mean a start for Ginge. Good job we didn't
sell him during the window then. Valencia and Song are still improving but
still some way away whilst Amalfitano may be on the blower to M'Vila to
compare notes.

Prediction? Well the presence of one Defoe, J. amongst the opposition ranks
probably means that we'll concede at some stage – he often nets against us.
However, such footage as I have been able to look at of Sunderland suggests
that they are currently weaker than the lager they serve in the Swan &
Superinjunction to those not able to handle real beer. Defoe has often
looked a bit isolated up front and they may elect to pair him with Borini,
whose record doesn't exactly match the transfer fees laid out for him over
the years.

Now in the hundred or so years that I have been following this club of ours,
we have built up a reputation amongst ourselves as "sequence busters." Your
team hasn't won for ages? Play West Ham. Striker hasn't scored for you? Give
him a start against West Ham. Now I don't know how genuinely common such
events are with us. It may be that that's the sort of coincidence that
happens to every team once in a while and we just happen to notice it a bit
more because we're looking at our team. However, the way things are at the
moment I really can't see us losing up there.

This match is being touted as "make or break" on Wearside at the moment.
However, an early goal will serve to put their heads down so I will stick
the Avram Grant Olympic Rest Home For The Bewildered's fund (£2.50 + 5p for
the carrier bag) to buy Roy Hodgson a map that has somewhere other than
Liverpool on it (Ings? Really? I'm back in the home now Roy if you want to
make that call) on a 2-1 win to us which will probably please Mrs Advocaat
and create some sort of record for consecutive away wins. Probably. I
expect. The work experience kid with the Harry Potter spectacles has gone
for his tea so you'll have to look it up yourselves.

Enjoy the game!

When Last We Met Up There: Drew 1-1. Downing equalised a Gomez penalty after
a(nother) Johnson dive.

Danger Man: Jermain Defoe. Their top scorer and main threat. And that's even
before you factor in the "law of the ex".

Referee: Neil Swarbrick Last seen by us in the FA Cup 3rd round replay
against Everton, the match of "Adrian's Gloves".

Irritating Celebrity Supporter Of The Week: Not a great crop of celebs this
week but purely for ruining Sunday evenings for a generation of kids forced
to watch the oh so bland "All Creatures Great And Small" I give you the late
James "Hand Up A Cow's Backside" Herriott.

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Sunderland v West Ham preview: Black Cats still chasing first win
Last Updated: 02/10/15 5:38pm
SSN

Sunderland will be hoping to claim their first victory of the season when
West Ham visit the Stadium of Light on Saturday. Dick Advocaat's side have
started the season in terrible form, and are propping up the Premier League
table having claimed just two points from their first seven games. West Ham,
meanwhile, have had a very different opening to their campaign, and are
currently sitting in third with 13 points. It is their away form which will
be of most concern to the Black Cats as Slaven Bilic's side have a 100 per
cent record on the road so far following wins at Arsenal, Liverpool and
Manchester City.

Team news

Sunderland boss Advocaat does not envisage any fresh injury concerns, and he
will be tempted to restore striker Jermain Defoe to his starting line-up
after leaving the former England man on the bench for last weekend's 3-0
defeat at Manchester United. Defoe has fully recovered from the hamstring
problem that dogged him in the build-up to the trip to Old Trafford while
Jack Rodwell is also aiming to return from an ankle injury, but Adam
Matthews (ankle) remains sidelined.

Andy Carroll could make his first league start in more than eight months for
West Ham at Sunderland. Carroll tore ligaments in his knee in February but
came off the bench against Norwich last weekend and is expected to shake off
a sore ankle ahead of the game at the Stadium of Light. Angelo Ogbonna
(hamstring) and Alex Song (ankle) are both out while Winston Reid is a doubt
with a hip problem. Enner Valencia has returned to light training following
a knee injury but is short of match fitness.

Opta stats

Merson's prediction

It just doesn't get any easier for Sunderland, does it? If you looked at
this at the start of the season you would have probably said this wasn't a
bad game for Sunderland, but West Ham are probably the worst team to play at
the moment at home. West Ham have been phenomenal on the road this season
and they are set up perfectly for the win. Sunderland will have to come out
and have a go and that plays right into West Ham's hands. They've counter
attacked a lot better teams than Sunderland and they'll be too strong come
Saturday.

PAUL PREDICTS: 1-2 (Sky Bet odds 8/1)

Betting

Away-day specialists West Ham are Sky Bet's favourites 7/5 favourites with
winless Sunderland 19/10 and the draw 12/5. The Hammers have already
recorded wins at Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City and are 100/30 to
add the Black Cats to their list of scalps in a win to nil. Last year this
fixture finished 1-1 and Sky Bet are offering 5/1 for a repeat of that
outcome.

The Soccer Saturday pundits and Jamie Redknapp are all backing West Ham to
win in their Sky Bet tips, including Charlie Nicholas' 50/1 fancy for
Dimitri Payet to score first in a 2-0 victory.

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Silliness…secrecy…and the Andy Carroll affair
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 2, 2015 in Hugh's Blogs, News, Whispers
C and H

Most people realised last Saturday that Andy Carroll had a problem for on
Sunday morning I was receiving facebook messages and e mails asking if the
striker was injured. On Monday – when things came back to life at UP – we
asked the question and were told "As far as we know he's ok" which seemed a
dubious answer given how closely his fitness is monitored. So it came as no
big surprise to learn later in the week that he's been taken to hospital for
checks, that Slaven Bilic believed he may or may not be fit, before David
Gold said it was likely he would turn out although he did have a small
injury. Tonight, our friends over at www. kumb.com reported that he hadn't
travelled to the north east with the rest of the squad and was highly
unlikely to make it tomorrow. Now one of two things are happening here.
Either, as CandH's chief analyst Leroy Rosenior said last night, the club
have become paranoid about him and treating him as if he's made of glass, or
he really is becoming a totally unknown injury quantity. Either way it's bad
news.

Whilst all of this was going on Slaven chose to claim, with an odd sense of
timing, that "if he can stay fit" he can reclaim his international place.
Weird. But what I really don't get in any of this is all the secrecy and
mystery. He's either fit or he's not and it would hardly be a huge surprise
to the opposition were they to have learned days back that the lad wouldn't
be playing tomorrow.
Indeed I'm sure they have made their plans on the basis that he won't be.
What we've seen this week though is typical of what goes on in this game all
the time with everybody giving the impression they are all signed up to the
Official Secrets Act and the boss of the club is a geezer called 'M.'
Secrecy – often for no good reason – is the name of the game at this club
and every other and it really is all rather sad and silly. Andy Carroll's
future however and I do have a big impression it's all gonna end in tears.

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Advocaat dismisses quit claims if Irons win
Posted by Hammers Newshound on October 2, 2015 in News, Whispers
C and H

Sunderland Manager Dick Advocaat has dismissed suggestions that will quit
the Mackems if the Black Cats suffer another defeat against the Hammers at
home tomorrow. Advocaat told a pre match conference "There's all these
reports about 'if, if, if'. But there is no 'if'.
"The fact is I'm here and I will do the game tomorrow. And then I will do
the game next week. But I don't know what will happen next week, next month
or what will happen in nine months. That's football. SamA"I'm the one who
takes the decisions about my future. "If I felt I wasn't the right person,
then I wouldn't be here now." "If you don't get a result and the other teams
are winning, then the gap becomes bigger," We still have 31 games to go,
but the difference could be bigger than last year." Former Hammers Boss Sam
Allardyce is joint favourite to replace Advocaat at Sunderland this season
at odds at 2/1 with Patrick Vieira.

Dick Advocaat is the odds on favorite as the next Premier League manager to
be sacked with odds as short as 2/5 Brendan Rogers is second favourite at
3/1

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Mr Lawrenson – you are a joke!
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 2, 2015 in Hugh's Blogs, News, Whispers
C and H

Mark Lawrenson truly has become an absolute joke to most people at West Ham.
Week in week out his apparent dislike of the club is becoming more and more
apparent but today he truly manages to surpass himself. For whether we win,
draw or lose at Sunderland tomorrow there really is no good reason to
predict defeat for the Irons in the north east. And even in tipping us to do
so, the lamest pundit in the game himself fails to come up with a single
reason why reason which is surely of some importance if you are expecting
to be taken seriously.
We can only assume the former player turned media clown has given up on that
score too for his latest pronouncements smack of bias in the extreme.
Writing for the BBC ( what on earth are the guardians of decent journalistic
standards thinking of?) Lawrenson declares: 'From what I have seen so far
this season, Sunderland are the worst team in the Premier League. West Ham
have been brilliant away from home, so you might think this will be a
straightforward victory for the Hammers. But football does not work like
that, which is why we love it, and why I am going for a surprise result at
the Stadium of Light.' Lawro's prediction: 2-0

In normal circumstances I wouldn't have bothered writing a word about such
nonsense but his constant predictions of defeat have become a joke. This one
– without a single qualification as to why such a defeat could happen – is
the most ridiculous of them all.

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Leroy: "Here's how we get 3 points at Sunderland"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 2, 2015 in News, Whispers
C and H

Tomorrow at Sunderland will be all about how we start! There's been a
criticism of West Ham at home that they have surrendered too much space to
the opposition as they have attempted to hit them on the break. That may
well be the case but I'm sure they will turn that around soon as the new way
of playing develops. However tomorrow at Sunderland we have to make a quick
start and quieten down the already anxious fans and players. Do that, grab a
goal and we'll have 'em on the run in a big way and could go onto an even
better win than at Arsenal, Liverpool or Man City. Sunderland are – without
question as shown by their league position – by far the worst team in the
Premier League and I really can't think in terms of any other result than a
convincing Irons win. There will come a time when Sunderland get a result
and go on a little run but that won't be tomorrow – we will be too good for
them but a fast start is really essential. Jermain Defoe still has something
about him and can be a threat, maybe, but after that where do they go in the
face of such as Payet, Sakho, Lanzini and Moses for example.
Everything points to a win for our lads and I don't expect there to be a
hint of complacency. Slav is proving hmself far too professional for that
stuff. So for me a good 2-0 win – possibly even more with the goalscorers
being Sakho and Tomkins from a set piece.

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West Ham boss Slaven Bilic: As much as I respect Dick Advocaat, it's my job
to make his position worse
SLAVEN BILIC Friday 2 October 2015 12:08 BST0 comments
Evening Standard

Tomorrow we play Sunderland, who will be fighting for their Premier League
lives after no wins so far. Fortunately, I have not managed a team yet who
are at the bottom of the league — and I would like to keep it like that.
Every team and every manager suffers bad spells. Maybe your club's aim is to
qualify for the Champions League, but you find you are struggling in seventh
place. No one is happy, but you always have next year. That is not good but
it doesn't compare to when you are fighting for your football lives. If you
go down, that is a major setback.
I know Sunderland manager Dick Advocaat a little. We met at one or two
seminars when I was in charge of the Croatian national team and he was
manager of Russia. Those meetings are good because you are with top coaches
for a couple of days. You could see then how well respected he was. We also
played a friendly against Belgium when he was manager there. He also won the
UEFA Cup with Zenit St Petersburg in 2008. He is vastly experienced and has
managed six national teams — Holland, the UAE, South Korea, Belgium, Russia
and Serbia — and last year he saved Sunderland from relegation. He wanted to
retire but there was a lot of emotion surrounding the club at that time and
he decided to stay on. Now he faces another big challenge in his long
career. It is still comparatively early in the season, but Sunderland
haven't won yet in the Premier League — and the longer that goes on, the
greater the pressure becomes. Yes, there is still a long way to go and the
media can make your problem bigger, but Sunderland have to start winning. As
much as I respect Dick, I have to try and make his position worse. We're all
under pressure at West Ham, too. We're not happy we only drew our most
recent game against Norwich. We have 13 points, however, and are in third
place, while Sunderland are bottom with just two. The pressure on them is
much bigger and it is a negative pressure. In that situation, it is tempting
to change a lot, but big managers — the experienced ones — are reluctant to
alter their philosophy, especially the Dutch ones.

Managers such as Rinus Michels and Johan Cruyff were real innovators,
pioneers in fact, and Dutch coaches in general believe in their philosophy
and don't change it because it has brought them success. I remember Croatia
playing Turkey in the 2012 Euro play-offs in Istanbul and we were 3-0 up
early in the second half. Guus Hiddink was their coach and put a striker on
— but for another striker! He didn't go two up front and take a centre-back
off — he said: "This is the way I am playing, this is the way we've been
practising, this is the way it stays."

I am not saying necessarily that Dick will not change anything for tomorrow.
He has hinted that he may play two strikers. I suppose, when you haven't won
a match, something like that is worth trying at home. When it rains, it
pours. They still have quality players like Jermain Defoe and they have been
unlucky in some games, but we want to maintain our 100 per cent away record,
that is for sure.

Alex was a gamble but one we had to take

For us managers, international breaks are a double-edged sword. Training is
disrupted because many players are away and you just keep everything crossed
that they will all come back from various parts of the globe fit and well
afterwards. One positive, though, is that your injured players can press on
with their recovery programmes. In our case, we have both Alex Song and
Enner Valencia progressing really well and close to a return to full
training. I can't wait for both to be available, but we have to be patient.
Enner was here when I arrived, but Alex's future was uncertain after he had
returned to Barcelona. We were determined to try to get him. Alex is a great
player and, at 28, at the peak of his powers. He has lots of experience at
the top level with Arsenal and Barca, but most importantly he has real
quality. He can defend, he can close gaps, he helps you be compact. With the
ball he can hurt you with a pass. He showed that to West Ham fans in the
first half of last season. The problem was that he was not going to be fit
for maybe the first three months of the season. I took a risk there. I am
not in a position of signing a young talent who will produce in a couple of
years' time. I have to do well in my first season and then, hopefully, reach
that status in the future. With Alex, though, I was prepared to take a risk.
I saw that we had enough good players in midfield and that we could wait
until he was fit again — and so far it's worked out. We checked the
situation, of course, we did our homework with doctors and physiotherapists.
I also talked to him even when I was back in Split, before I came here for
pre-season. I could heard in his voice his enthusiasm for coming back. That
was before his ankle injury and the operation, but we still decided to take
the gamble.

Pressing problem can be overcome

One win from four home games is not good enough for us and we have some
ideas about how to improve things. There have been suggestions that we
should play a pressing game further up the pitch. Although that has some
merit, you can't press for 90 minutes, unless you are Barcelona. They
probably only press out of possession 10 times in a game because the rest of
the time they have the ball. While they are playing their tiki-taka
football,they are resting, comparatively speaking. So when they lose it,
they are fresh. To press, you have to keep the ball longer. We've done it in
spells, but need to improve in that respect.

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Dick Advocaat set to quit Sunderland post if they lose to West Ham
By CRAIG HOPE and MIKE KEEGAN FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 10:11, 2 October 2015 | UPDATED: 10:25, 2 October 2015

Dick Advocaat looks set to quit Sunderland if they lose to West Ham on
Saturday, Sportsmail understands. The head coach, who turned 68 on Tuesday,
took his first-team staff for dinner on Thursday and club sources say it had
the feel of a farewell meal. Indeed, we understand that Burnley's Sean Dyche
is the man Sunderland will target should Advocaat go.

WEARSIDE WOES - SUNDERLAND 2015-16 PREMIER LEAGUE RESULTS SO FAR
Saturday 8 August - Leicester City (A) - LOST 4-2
Saturday 15 August - Norwich (H) - LOST 3-1
Saturday 22 August - Swansea (H) - DREW 1-1
Saturday 29 August - Aston Villa (A) - DREW 2-2
Sunday 13 September - Tottenham (H) LOST 1-0
Saturday 19 September - Bournemouth (A) LOST 2-0
Saturday 26 September - Man United (A) LOST 3-0

The Black Cats boss is said to be growing increasingly disillusioned with
the limitations of his squad and has promised to walk if he feels another
man could do a better job.
Sources say that scenario looks increasingly likely and defeat at home to
West Ham – which would leave them bottom and winless heading into the
international break – would see him call time on seven months at the Stadium
of Light. Sunderland's Jermain Defoe during their English Premier League
soccer match between Sunderland and Tottenham Hotspur at the Stadium of
Light, Sunderland, England, Sunday, Sept. 13, 2015. Dyche, meanwhile, was
top of Sunderland's wanted list before Advocaat decided to return to the
club in June having earlier told owner Ellis Short he planned to retire from
club management after guiding the Wearsiders to safety last season. But
Advocaat was frustrated with the quality of players brought in during the
summer and, with just two points from seven matches, he fears a first
relegation in 28 years as a manager.

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How West Ham could finally have some England recognition from Roy Hodgson
07:10 02 October 2015
London 24

Andy Carroll will play for England at next year's European Championships -
if he can stay fit, according to West Ham boss Slaven Bilic. Roy Hodgson has
announced his squad for next week's qualifiers against Estonia and Lithuania
but Carroll, who is yet to start a league game this season, was not in
contention. Carroll has been ravaged by fitness problems since signing for
the Hammers in June 2013. He missed five months of the 2013-14 campaign with
a heel injury and last season made only 16 appearances after separately
tearing ankle and knee ligaments.
Carroll is now close to full fitness, after starting West Ham's Capital One
Cup defeat to Leicester last week, and Bilic believes the striker will win
an England recall if he avoids further time on the sidelines. "The England
squad will come as a logical result if things are cured," Bilic said. "First
of all he has to stay away from injuries. Only with that can he be in a
position to have a great season. "In the past it has not been because he
dropped in form it's because he was injured. "Step number one, he has made
it, he has had a good pre-season, even it was after the season already
started, he is now fit. "The quality was never in doubt, the problem was
fitness and without that you can't have form."

Carroll came off the bench in West Ham's 2-2 draw against Norwich last
Saturday but raised concern after taking a heavy challenge on his ankle. A
scan has shown no serious damage, however, and the fearless 26-year-old is
expected to be available for Saturday's trip to struggling Sunderland. "You
don't want to take it away from him, that's why he is Andy Carroll," Bilic
said.
"It's his biggest enemy but also his biggest quality, that he rolls up his
sleeves and he goes straight in the box, gives the centre half and
goalkeeper a bit of a strange look - that's why he's like that. "You want to
moderate that a little bit, maybe 10 per cent, tell him not to go for those
crazy challenges, but you don't want to take that away because then he would
be half the player."

Carroll may have to work hard to re-establish himself in the West Ham side
given they have scored the highest number of goals in the division so far
this season. Fellow forward Enner Valencia also returned to light training
on Thursday after injuring his knee against Astra Giurgiu in July. "Enner is
great news for us," Bilic said. "It's a matter of two or three weeks now if
everything goes well. He's a naturally fit player."

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Daily WHUFC News - 2nd October 2015

Song itching to return
WHUFC.com

Alex Song cannot wait to make his return to action with West Ham United. The midfielder returned to the Hammers for a second loan spell on deadline day but has had to wait for his debut after undergoing ankle surgery in the summer. But with a comeback now in sight, Song is itching to pull his boots on once more. He said: "I'm getting better and don't want anything to hurt my foot. "It's very hard because I was always playing and seeing your team-mates play, you want to be with them and help them but I can't at the moment. "It's about getting my treatment done properly and then coming back to help the team. "It's good for me to be here, the future of the club is really big, in the next five years West Ham will be a very big club in London and I want to be part of the story."

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Ladies hit eight in cup victory
WHUFC.com

Strikers Emma Sherwood and Whitney Locke both bagged hat-tricks as West Ham United Ladies defeated Burgess Hill Town 8-0 in the first round of the Boux Avenue Ryman Women's Cup.

Marc Nurse's side were 3-0 up within the first 12 minutes when Sherwood confidently claimed her hat-trick, before Locke matched her efforts in the lead up to half time.

Just before the half time break, winger Lily Mellors topped off a fantastic first half performance with a low finish into the corner, with Italian striker Romina Pinna adding an eighth late in the second half.

It was assistant manager Tom Camp who selected the squad and led the team for Wednesday's cup tie, with four changes being made after Sunday's 3-0 FA Women's Premier League South defeat to Forest Green Rovers.

Pinna, along with Kayleigh Xidhas, Giulia Ferrandi and Shirvae Edwards missed the trip south, allowing captain Stacey Little to return after suspension and centre half Danielle Sillitoe to make her first team debut. Locke returned to the side to add threat to the Irons' attack, whilst Mellors overcame an injury to return to the matchday squad.

The first goal took just two minutes to come when Mellors flew down the right wing and managed to find Sherwood alone in the box, who finished well past the keeper.

Within ten minutes, Sherwood had added two more to claim her hat-trick, both of which came in similar fashion to her first.

The goalscoring duties were then handed over to Locke, who secured a hat-trick for herself too by finishing twice from a Mellors cross, along with a long solo run and finish in between.

Just minutes before the half-time break, Mellors turned from provider to scorer when she finished after full back Kerry Stimson's shot was going well wide of the target.

After the break, Camp decided to bring his dangerous front three off including both hat-trick stars, with Sherwood, Locke and Mellors being replaced by Italian duo Pinna and Erika Campesi, along with former Crystal Palace midfielder Danni Ritson.

The eighth and final West Ham goal came on 78 minutes when Burgess Hill's extremely high defensive line allowed a fantastic through ball to find Campesi. She raced through alone, before squaring past the goalkeeper for Pinna to net her first goal since joining the club.

In the final ten minutes, the Hammers continued to try and push their winning margin even further, Camp and co settled for the result and their place in the next round.

Nurse's side will continue in cup action this Sunday when they travel to Canvey Island FC for a second away fixture against C&K Basildon in as many weeks. The FA Women's Premier League Cup First Round fixture will kick-off at 7:45pm and is free entry for all.

Ladies: Chauhan, Stimson, Wheeler, Sillitoe, Bottom, Little (c), Miller, Blanchflower, Mellors (Campesi), Locke (Ritson), Sherwood (Pinna)

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Third in the Premier League - but no Hammers in England squad
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 1st October 2015
By: Staff Writer

Quelle surprise ... West Ham United players have been overlooked once again for Roy Hodgson's latest England squad.

With West Ham third in the Premier League, hopes were high that one or two Hammers may receive a call-up for the England squad to face Estonia at Wembley (Friday, 9 October) and Lithuania (away) three days later.

However Hodgson has yet again overlooked West Ham's Englishmen in favour of the likes of Danny Ings (Liverpool) and Tottenham's Dele Alli, who has made just three Premier League starts in his career.

That's just one more than West Ham's 16-year-old prodigy Reece Oxford.

Carl Jenkinson, Aaron Cresswell, James Tomkins, Mark Noble and Andy Carroll have all been snubbed despite playing a role in West Ham's wins at venues such as the Emirates, Anfield and the Etihad this season.

By way of contrast, Arsenal have three players in the squad (Gibbs, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Walcott), Liverpool four (Clyne, Lallana, Milner and Ings) whilst Man City have two (Hart and Sterling).

The England Under 21s squad is also missing any representation from West Ham, whilst goalkeeper Sam Howes is the only Hammer to be named in Aidy Boothroyd's Under 19s squad to face Macedonia and Finland next week.

Meanwhile Reece Burke - currently on loan at Bradford City - has been selected by Keith Downing for the Under 20s trip to Germany for the Mercedes-Benz Elite Cup.

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Slaven Bilic warns West Ham that focus must be right at Sunderland
Last Updated: 01/10/15 1:21pm
SSN

Slaven Bilic has warned his West Ham side they cannot afford any let-up in their approach as they prepare to travel to Sunderland this weekend. United have raised eyebrows with wins at Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City already this season and Bilic is expecting an equally tough challenge on Wearside. Sunderland are bottom and searching for their first league win of the season but Bilic warned his players not to be complacent as they look for a fourth conscutive away win for the first time in the Premier League. Bilic said: "Those three away wins mean absolutely nothing for Saturday because if we begin to think it will be easier against Sunderland then we need to stop that. "We are confident but we are expecting a tough, tough game. Neutrals are expecting us to win the game but we have to be fully aware in our approach. We've watched their games and in some of them they've been very unlucky. Up front they have some good individuals with pace."

The Hammers are third in the table with 13 points from seven games and are also joint top scorers with Leicester City on 15 goals.
Bilic said striker Enner Valencia would return to training for the first time since injuring his knee and ankle in a Europa League qualifier in July. He said: "Enner will join us in parts of training today. It is massive news for us that he is getting closer. If everything goes well it's a matter of two or three weeks for him."

Defender Angelo Ogbonna is ruled out on Saturday as he continues to recover from the hamstring injury he picked up in the 2-0 win over Newcastle United. Striker Andy Carroll and defender Winston Reid are also doubts.

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West Ham boss Slaven Bilic foresees England recall for Andy Carroll
Last Updated: 01/10/15 10:03pm
SSN

West Ham manager Slaven Bilic believes Andy Carroll can make the England squad for Euro 2016 if he can stay fit. Carroll has been ravaged by fitness problems since signing for the Hammers from Liverpool in June 2013. The 26-year-old missed five months of the 2013/14 campaign with a heel injury and last season made only 16 appearances after separately tearing ankle and knee ligaments. But Carroll is now close to full fitness, after starting West Ham's Capital One Cup defeat to Leicester last week, and Bilic believes the striker will win an England recall if he avoids further time on the sidelines. "The England squad will come as a logical result if things are cured," Bilic said. "First of all he has to stay away from injuries. Only with that can he be in a position to have a great season. "In the past it has not been because he dropped in form, it's because he was injured. Step number one, he has made it, he has had a good pre-season, even it was after the season already started, he is now fit. "The quality was never in doubt, the problem was fitness and without that you can't have form."
Carroll came off the bench in West Ham's 2-2 draw against Norwich last Saturday but raised concern after taking a heavy challenge on his ankle. A scan has shown no serious damage, however, and the fearless frontman is expected to be available for Saturday's trip to struggling Sunderland. "You don't want to take it away from him, that's why he is Andy Carroll," Bilic said. "It's his biggest enemy but also his biggest quality, that he rolls up his sleeves and he goes straight in the box, gives the centre-half and goalkeeper a bit of a strange look - that's why he's like that. "You want to moderate that a little bit, maybe 10 per cent, tell him not to go for those crazy challenges, but you don't want to take that away because then he would be half the player."

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WHAT IF BIG SAM WAS STILL WEST HAM MANAGER...
By Iain Dale 1 Oct 2015 at 17:00
WTID

Guest Post by Jack C

It may be tiny, but in football terms there is no bigger word.

I can't imagine a single Hammer would want to swap our fantastic start to the season, though after the Norwich game, there is obvious disappointment at our continued poor home form. I've asked myself how we might have started the season had the board kept faith with Sam Allardyce?

Of course, we can only speculate. We'll never know how he would have approached the Europa League, and in particular the away leg against Astra just days before our opener at the Emirates (though I suspect he would have done the same as Slaven and opted to save his best players). And it's impossible to know how his transfer policy would have panned out. Downing and Jarvis could have stayed, and you can bet Nolan would still be skipper, albeit with less game time. Would Sam have had the imagination to tempt Payet, Lanzini and Ogbonna? And would Song have re-signed given Sam practically made him a scapegoat for our end of season dip in form? Almost certainly not.

But let's given him some credit. Overall he brought in some fantastic players since promotion and I think he would have had a few big signings planned. Top of his list would have been an experienced back up keeper, a commanding centre-back (a friend of Scott Dann told me he was approached last season), a winger (who's to say he wouldn't have got Victor Moses in anyway?) and a striker (I think he would have possibly taken a chance on Charlie Austin whose game he would have known a lot more about than Slaven).

Whatever he had achieved in the transfer market, there is one thing I think we can all agree on. His team would have played the same way as always: Safety first, with too much reliance on the long ball, hopeful crosses and a refusal to commit too many players on the break. Only once did he give us a great away win to compare to any of Slaven's three, and that 3-0 at Spurs was based on an enforced team selection that he would never have made willingly.

Still, looking at our opening league fixtures, I think there is an argument to be made that, with Sam in charge, we would now likely be on at least eight points, and maybe 11. Either way we'd be in a solid mid-table place, though we would have all been denied the utter joy of winning those three incredible away games!

(A) Arsenal – We'd have lost here. Sam would have set us up to defend deep, with a lone isolated striker, and once they got their noses in front, that would have been that….again – 0 pts

(H) Leicester – They had a fantastic start and could well have beaten us regardless, but Sam would have known more about them than Slaven and I think we'd have drawn this under him – 1 pt

(H) Bournemouth – I just can't imagine an Allardyce team making so many schoolboy errors. This game would have been made for his tactics. He would have bullied them with crosses and have known about their pace in advance – 3 pts

(A) Liverpool – We would probably have lost here as Sam just didn't instil any confidence in his teams on their travels, and without the win at Arsenal the belief would not have been there. Then again, Liverpool are pretty ordinary and a rear-guard action to secure a 0-0 might have been possible – 0 pts (or 1 pt)

(H) Newcastle – Given their awful start to the season I think a win here was always likely, and let's not forget that we're a different proposition under the lights at Upton Park (oh how those nights will be missed!) – 3 pts

(A) Man City – Let's be brutally honest. An Allardyce team and set-up here would have led to only one conclusion, and probably a very harsh one – 0 pts

(H) Norwich – A possible win but they're a decent team away from home and I recall they would have beaten at home us the year they were relegated but for a special performance from Adrian. I think we'd still have taken just a point, but it would have been a much more boring game! – 1 pt (or 3 pts)

As for our poor home form, I think it's no co-incidence that the three clubs we have failed to beat would have been relatively unknown to Slaven and presented him with a headache. He has proved the big games hold no fear, having managed at International and Champions League level, with both Arsenal and Liverpool held by or beaten by Besiktas.

This is where he really needed a good number two with knowledge of the Premier League, and the English game generally, to guide him. You can bet that Brian Kidd played an important role in Manuel Pellegrini's first season at City, as did Sammy Lee in Ronald Koeman's for Southampton, whilst Ryan Giggs is giving invaluable information to Louis van Gaal. But who did Slaven have? The manager of our ladies team, that's who! Of course we all love Julian and he's probably great for team morale, but I can't imagine he has contributed anything significant tactically. He has as little knowledge about James Wilson or Nathan Redmond as Slaven.

If you're going to make an appointment with Public relations in mind then someone like Kevin Keen, Iain Dowie or Martin Allen would have been a better choice. The last two were also team-mates of Slaven and understand the way Bournemouth and Norwich set up to a tee.

Hopefully Slaven is a quick learner, and will know more about Sunderland before Saturday than he did those other "lesser" teams. Big Sam would have settled for a point there, even though they are bottom with no win! The great thing about Slaven is that he understands that a draw isn't really a great result.

Ultimately the big difference between them is that Big Sam would take 4 draws and some clean sheets on the spin and regard it as a decent run. Slaven would take 2 wins and accept 2 losses. There are more points to be had his way – it makes sense.

Without doubt, we would not be sitting third if Big Sam had stayed, and though I'm equally sure he would have ensured we headed into our new era with a sound footing, it would be a rather anti-climactic one. Both we and the Boleyn deserve better than that.

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Sunderland's Steven Fletcher wants that first win so spotlight will move off rock-bottom club
0 COMMENTS 20:30, 1 OCT 2015 UPDATED 21:35, 1 OCT 2015
BY SIMON BIRD
The Wearsiders and north-east rivals Newcastle are the only sides left in all four divisions without a league victory — will that change when West Ham visit?
The mirror

Steven Fletcher has admitted Sunderland need a win to take the spotlight away from the club. They are one of only two teams in the top four divisions with out a league victory – the other? Their neighbours and bitter rivals Newcastle. But striker Fletcher says rock-bottom Sunderland can clinch their first three-point haul of the campaign against visitors West Ham this weekend, because they are creating chances. He said: "You get that first win and attention goes somewhere else. "There is a lot of attention on us not winning a game. If we do it on Saturday it will help. "We are a bit different to last year. Last year we were draw specialists. Keeping clean sheets, but not scoring. "This year we have got a few goals but not got clean sheets. If we can keep the back door shut and create chances we'll be ok.
"We need to stick at it more when we are top and get a goal to get a team on the back foot. It will be a tough game and they are on good form. "The boys have got to be (confident). "We have to keep upbeat. We have characters to keep the lads upbeat especially on a Monday after a defeat when it is not a nice place to be."

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Happy Hammers front men set to shun moves
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 1, 2015 in News, Whispers
C and H

West Ham are keen to hold on to all four strikers this season and will only consider loaning any out of they are desperately unhappy.
Diafra Sakho has nailed down the No 1 spot but with Andy Carroll slowly returning to full match fitness the heat is on Mauro Zarate and Enner Valencia who is also on the comeback trail. Zarate is also under pressure for his position from Manuel Lanzini who has made a great start to his Hammers career but is desperately keen to emerge as a front line Irons player.

After being loaned out to QPR last season he returned to Upton Park he has returned to show real form with three goals in his eight appearances. And although he was being linked with a move away in the summer he is believed keen to stay and fight for a place in Slaven Bilic's set-up in a system he believes suits him far better than that employed by Sam Allardyce. A source told ClaretandHugh exclusively: "We will look at everything in January. Some players are not happy on the bench and might ask to go although Mauro is showing a lot of appetite for the club. "If both AC and Enner Valencia are both 100% fit we are a bit heavy in the forward/striker position but there is a saying you can never have enough forwards and Zarate gives you something different!"

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Irons told not to wrap Carroll up in cotton wool
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 1, 2015 in News, Whispers
C and H

Leroy Rosenior has told West Ham they can't wrap Andy Carroll up in cotton wool forever and that it's time to let him loose. ClaretandHugh's chief analyst – aware of reports that Carroll had faced new scans this week following last weekend's action – declared: "They may be being ultra careful with him…on the other hand it could be argued they are becoming over paranoid."

Slaven Bilic revealed in his morning press conference today that the club's record signing is today working with fitness coaches ahead of the weekend game at Sunderland and that he may not be available for the game after his appearance as a sub against Norwich City.

Carroll-West-Ham-team-news-541122Carroll's return seems to have been organised along the lines predicted several weeks ago when it was made clear absolutely no chances would be taken with him.

But Leroy said: "He's a professional footballer who is either fit to play or not. The club appear to be taking extraordinary precautions with him to make sure he is 100 per cent and guaranteed to stand up to things.

"The trouble is in this game there are no guarantees EVER! Anything can happen at any time and they may be becoming a bit paranoid.
"I'm sure Andy just wants to be allowed to be let loose. They can't keep him wrapped up in cotton wool forever. They have to let him off the leash."

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Kouyate deal on the way
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 1, 2015 in News, Whispers
C and H

West Ham are ready to offer Cheik Kouyate an improved deal but not until the season hits the midway point. The former Anderlecht star has been in great form so far and is believed to want to negotiate around £40 to £45k a week. The all action midfielder is believed to be on around £30k a week at the moment and with his contract not due to run out until 2018 is keen to receive an upgrade. There were strong suggestions in the transfer window that Spurs were keen but ClaretandHugh was assured that the player would be going nowhere but that wage negotiations would be on the agenda later in the season. And today we were told the club will be ready to talk to the player's advisers one the Christmas programme has passed. We were told: "It's the club's usual procedure to look at that time and if negotiations are to take place that's when they would start. "There was a lot of talk about Tottenham at the end of the transfer window but it didn't happen than and it won't – we are always ready to keep our players happy."

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Reid and Carroll could miss Sunderland trip
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 1st October 2015
By: Staff Writer

In-form defender Winston Reid is struggling for fitness ahead of this weekend's trip to Sunderland, says Hammers boss Slaven Bilic. Bilic, speaking to the media this morning ahead of the trip to Wearside also revealed that Andy Carroll - whose presence in the penalty area led to Cheik Kouyate's dramatic late equaliser against Norwich last Saturday - is battling to shake off a knock. "Carroll will train with the fitness coach today," said Bilic. "If it goes well. he will train with us tomorrow. And Reid is doubtful. They are small things, but they may be enough to prevent one or two players from playing."

However there s better news where one or two others are concerned, with Enner Valencia, Alex Song and Angelo Ogbonna all close to returning from long spells on the sidelines. "Enner Valencia has been working hard to reach the level of fitness that is required to train with the squad," Head of Medical and Sports Science, Stijn Vandenbroucke, told whufc.com. "We had the official team photo on Tuesday and trained at the Boleyn Ground in the morning. We used the stadium stairs to do some fitness work with Enner and Alex Song; Alex is doing fine, working with the ball and is on schedule. "Angelo Ogbonna has entered the final stages of rehab and will join full training soon."

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It shouldn't be a privilege to watch football, says Bilic
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 1st October 2015
By: Staff Writer

Slaven Bilic has told the media top flight matches should be affordable to all football fans - just 48 hours before supporters across the country plan a mass protest against the cost of watching Premier League fixtures. This weekend home and away supporters will join forces to deliver the 'Twenty's Plenty' message – a call for all away tickets in England and Wales to be capped at £20. Fans from every Premier League club - along with several in the Football League - will meet ahead of this weekend's fixtures for joint protests, before displaying banners inside stadiums proclaiming 'Fans back Twenty's Plenty'.

And Bilic, speaking to the media ahead of West Ham's trip to Sunderland this weekend, backed fans who believe they are being held to ransom by top flight football clubs. "Football is not golf or polo for VIPs, for the elite," said Bilic. "Football is the people's sport, it is a sport for the masses. It shouldn't be a privilege to be able to go by yourself, with your mates, your girlfriend, your wife or kids to a football game. It should be there for everybody. "On the other hand you have the clubs and teams who are building new stadiums. They invest big money in those great stadiums, they want money back and put the ticket prices up. "For me they should find a balance because the fans are very important for this sport. You see fans in every sport but football games are not just about the quality of the game, they are about the atmosphere at the ground - and that is created by the fans. "So you need fans. Without the fans, it's useless. It shouldn't be a privilege for some people to take their kids - everybody should be able to do that."

The 'Twenty's Plenty' campaign began in 2013 when high away ticket prices were the catalyst, with many away fans expected to pay in excess of £50 or even £60 for tickets. Since then, the campaign has grown and secured improvements for away fans. Premier League clubs have introduced the £12m 'Away Supporters Initiative' while more teams in the Football League are now entering into £20 reciprocal deals for away fans. It has been claimed that the 'Twenty's Plenty' scheme has already saved fans across the country more than £700,000.

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Olympic Stadium information order appealed by London Legacy Development Corporation
Last Updated: 01/10/15 3:08pm
SSN

The decision ordering West Ham to release financial details of the club's move to the Olympic Stadium has been appealed. The Information Commissioner ruled on September 15 that the terms of the deal should be made public, after Freedom of Information was requested by campaigners. The London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) and the Premier League club have attempted to block any unveiling of information, insisting that in the interests of commercial confidentiality the details of the deal involving the largely taxpayer-funded stadium must remain private.

On Thursday, the LLDC made their objections more formal and lodged an appeal against the Information Commissioner's judgment, claiming the order would hamper any future negotiations over its use. Their statement read: "This follows careful consideration, informed by legal advice, and is limited to a smaller number of redactions. "The appeal relates only to information which, if released, could significantly reduce the level of financial return to the taxpayer as it would undermine negotiations with future users of the stadium and other partners. "We have listened to the Commissioner's comments and as a public body are committed to maximising transparency. "As a result, we will shortly publish more details of the agreement with West Ham United in all areas that fall outside the scope of our appeal. "

The Hammers will take on a 99-year deal as tenants of the stadium in east London, at a reported annual cost of £2.5m, from the start of next season. A coalition of club supporters' trusts, who formed to contest the decision to allow West Ham the move, recently praised the decision to release information.

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Big Irons signing told he must wait
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 1, 2015 in News, Whispers
C and H

West Ham's £7 million deadline day signing Michail Antonio has been told he will have to wait for his Hammers career to take off. The Victor Moses loan has stood in the way of the former Nottingham Forest wideman's chance and the exit from the Capital One Cup looks set to delay it further. Moses was a hugely expensive signing and the Irons are keen to capitalise on the player's outstanding form which has seen him short listed for the African Premier League Player of the month award. The Irons were determined to snatch the player on deadline day as he was being tracked by two or three other Premier League outfits but should Moses remain fit the 25 year old will need to wait for his chance. ClaretandHugh was told this morning that with the club so spoiled for choice at the moment anything was possible but that Moses was seen as the number one right sided player this term. Our top source said: "He's been terrific since he arrived and yes, we are spoiled for choice but Michail was brought in as the long term prospect for that position. "This season may be frustrating for him but he has a very big future at this club – that's a certainty."

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Midfielder: "We will be a very big London club"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 1, 2015 in News
C and H

Alex Song wants to pull his boots back on big time as he closes in on a return to action. But the midfielder is demonstrating a ot of patience and said: "I'm getting better and don't want anything to hurt my foot." Speaking to www.whufc.com he said: "It's very hard because I was always playing and seeing your team-mates play, you want to be with them and help them but I can't at the moment. "It's about getting my treatment done properly and then coming back to help the team. "It's good for me to be here, the future of the club is really big, in the next five years West Ham will be a very big club in London and I want to be part of the story."

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Great news on Valencia
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 1, 2015 in News
C and H

Enner Valencia is all set to join in with first-team training this week. And the top news is that he could be back sooner than expected possibly even feature for the Hammers this month. Head of Medical and Sports Science Stijn Vandenbroucke told the official site: "Enner Valencia has been working hard to reach the level of fitness that is required to train with the squad,
"The plan is for Enner to join some parts of team training later in the week and we then hope he will be able to step up his training regime and join in a few full team training sessions next week." Alex Song is also pushing for a return with Vandenbroucke saying: "Injured players also trained in the stadium and we used the stadium stairs to do some good fitness work with Enner and Alex Song. "Alex is doing fine, working with the ball and is on schedule."

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CandH interviewed for Black Cats v Irons
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 1, 2015 in News, Whispers
C adn H

There's a big weekend prospect with the mighty Irons travelling to Sunderland looking for a win which would take them to a brilliant 16 points. That would be close to half way towards the off mentioned relegation 'safety ' target of 38 points – after just eight games! It will surpass most people's pre-season expectations if we achieve it at such a stage of the season and the Claret and Blue Army are gonna more than a tad be delighted should we bring home another victory on the road. ClaretandHugh's founding editor Hugh Southon was asked to give his view on the match and an awful lot more by top Sunderland fanzine Salut! Sunderland in a lengthy question and answer session. They covered lot of ground including 'The West Ham Way' – myth or reality; the two Davids – good job or bad; Big Sam, the Boleyn Farewell; PDC and much more.

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Slaven's Carroll hopes
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 1, 2015 in News
C and H

News of Andy Carroll is encouraging today after it was reported last night that the striker had been to the club's hospital for a check up after the match against Norwich. ClaretandHugh blogger @Exwhuemployee had reported that the club's record signing had been checked over but it seems all is well with the manager declaring he could start at Sunderland. Slaven said in his morning press conference – reported at www.whufc.com: "Angelo Ogbonna is definitely out, there's a chance with Andy Carroll he could play. He's training with the fitness coaches today and then we'll see tomorrow. "Winston Reid is doubtful because he feels something in his back or hip area. They are small things but they may be enough to prevent them from playing on Saturday." However he confirmed the news that Enner Valencia is on his way back and is obviously delighted, saying: ""Yes, it is great news for us. He's been out for a while and is not in contention for this weekend; he is still a few weeks away with that. But he's going to join us in training today and we'll see how he copes. "It is massive for us to have him back. If everything goes well, it is matter of two or three weeks. He is a naturally fit player, but we will not rush him back. Him and Alex Song are going to be a big boost for us."

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What next for Aaron Cresswell after Roy Hodgson's insulting snub?
HITC
Tim Poole

The West Ham left-back has been snubbed in favour of Southampton and Arsenal stars once again. With the way the season has gone so far, this was the perfect chance to reward the 25-year-old for his form at club level with a place in the Three Lions squad. Dele Alli has been rewarded for his form. Danny Ings has been rewarded for 2-3 games of form. And yet West Ham's Cresswell is once again absent from Roy Hodgson's squad. His replacement is Southampton's Ryan Bertrand... who has played just the one game since returning from injury. Not only is the Southampton man ahead of Cresswell, however, but Arsenal's Kieran Gibbs is, too. In the England boss's defence, he may well be thinking about the tournament itself, during which it appears Southampton's Bertrand will be his main choice. But, right now, with the Saints man having played just one game while Cresswell has shone most of the season, the snub is nothing short of insulting. Another small note which probably isn't on Hodgson's mind but perhaps should be: the core of England's 1966 World Cup winning squad was, after all, a West Ham one. That tradition is being a little ignored - especially when Cresswell is such an obvious choice for the left-back slot now that Luke Shaw is injured. Has the Hammers full-back offended someone in the England camp or something...?

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Slaven Bilic: West Ham's away form counts for nothing ahead of Sunderland trip
JAMES OLLEY Thursday 1 October 2015 13:34 BST0 comments
Evening STandard

Slaven Bilic has told his West Ham players they must not let their impressive away form lead to complacency when they visit Sunderland on Saturday. The Hammers travel to the Premier League's bottom club looking to extend a 100 per cent record on the road this season after wins at Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City. Bilic said: "Those three away wins mean nothing for Saturday because if we think it will be easier against Sunderland, then we need to stop that. We are confident but we are expecting a tough game. Andy Carroll is pushing to make his first Premier League start since January 31

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West Ham co-chairman's son reacts on Twitter to England squad announcement
HITC
Subhankar Mondal

There are no West Ham United players in the current England squad. The son of West Ham United co-chairman David Sullivan has taken to social networking site Twitter to give his reaction to the England national squad announcement. Dave Sullivan is surprised that not a single West Ham player has been called up to the England squad for this month's Euro 2016 qualifiers against Estonia and Lithuania. Sullivan's tweet probably sums up what all West Ham fans are thinking right now. Slaven Bilic's side are third in the Premier League table at the moment and have a number of English players. Aaron Cresswell is one of the best left-backs in the English top flight and has been in good form so far this season, but he cannot get into the Three Lions' squad. Perhaps this is a blessing in disguise for West Ham. No England call-up for Cresswell means that there is no chance of him getting injured on international duty.

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WEST HAM PLOTTING SHOCK FREE TRANSFER MOVE FOR INTERNATIONAL FORWARD
By Ste Hoare
IronsInTheCircle

French publication Le10Sport are reporting that West Ham are one of three Premier League clubs – Arsenal and Manchester United being the others – who are interested in signing Ezequiel Lavezzi from PSG. The contract of the 30-year-old Argentine international expires in the summer, and all indications are that he'll leave Paris. He's been used mainly as a substitute so far this season, and if that continues, PSG may look to sell him in January rather than lose him for free in the summer. Lavezzi joined PSG from Napoli for €26.5million in 2012, and has won three consecutive Ligue 1 titles, as well as two French League cups and the Coupe de France. He has been a mainstay in the PSG side ever since signing, but has found himself as a bit-part player so far. This lack of playing time could well see him look to move on in search or regular first team action, something he could get at West Ham

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