Hammers launch 2015/16 waiting list
WHUFc.com
Register yourself for the opportunity to be there for our final season at
the Boleyn Ground
27.08.2014
West Ham United are pleased to announce the launch of a Season Ticket
waiting list for the 2015/16 campaign, the Hammers' last at the Boleyn
Ground. The list will be open to all supporters from 9am on Saturday 30
August, but Academy Members can register in a priority window from 9am on
Thursday 28 August.
Existing Season Ticket Holders will, of course, have priority virtue of the
traditional renewal process and, as always, will be granted the opportunity
to relocate and/or purchase additional tickets prior to the renewal
deadline. They do not, therefore, need to join the waiting list.
Further information regarding renewals for current Season Ticket Holders and
migration details will be revealed on whufc.com in the coming weeks.
With the Club now celebrating some 110 years at its current home, the
2015/16 season will mark a unique opportunity to watch the Hammers at the
Boleyn Ground for the final time, before making the historic move to Queen
Elizabeth Olympic Park.
In consultation with supporters, the Club is already planning a series of
special commemorative events, not least for the legends of the Academy of
Football. And so, in what is shaping up to be a spectacular farewell to the
Boleyn Ground, a Season Ticket is the one and only way to guarantee your
seat for the final game at the Boleyn, come May 2016.
Whether it be at the Boleyn Ground or the new Stadium, a Season Ticket will
always be the most cost-effective way of watching the Hammers all season
long, while guaranteeing a seat for the biggest league and cup fixtures.
Individuals will be added to the final season waiting list on a first-come,
first-served basis, and allocated their Season Tickets accordingly. Please
note that a place on the waiting list does not automatically guarantee a
Season Ticket seat, with the likelihood of demand exceeding capacity.
Waiting list applicants are required to pay a £10 registration fee
redeemable against the purchase of a 2015/16 Season Ticket.
The Club can also confirm that all 2015/16 Season Ticket Holders will
automatically be entered into the Season Ticket selection process for the
Club's future Stratford home.
As part of that migration process, all Season-Ticket Holders will be invited
to individual appointments to select the best seat for them and give them a
chance to group together with family and friends in the new stadium, as well
as those they currently sit with at the Boleyn Ground.
Demand is expected to be exceptionally high, so the Club urges supporters
wishing to join the waiting list to do so promptly. Academy Members can
register online from 9am on Thursday 28 August at www.whufcboxoffice.com on
the phone via 0871 529 1966 and selecting option three, or in person at the
Alpari Stand Ticket Office. The registration process then opens to all
supporters from 9am on Saturday 30 August.
FAQs
As a Season Ticket Holder, do I have to join the waiting list?
No. Existing Season Ticket Holders will, of course, have priority virtue of
the traditional renewal process and so will not need to join the waiting
list.
I'm a Season Ticket Holder and I'd like an additional seat(s) for the final
season. Need I join the waiting list?
No. As has always been the case, Season Ticket Holders will be granted the
opportunity to relocate and/or purchase additional tickets prior to the
renewal deadline.
Having joined the waiting list, will I definitely get a Season Ticket for
next year?
Supporters will be added to the final season waiting list on a first-come,
first-served basis and allocated their Season Tickets accordingly. But with
demand likely to exceed capacity, a place on the waiting list does not
automatically guarantee a Season Ticket.
If I'm successful, how many tickets will I be entitled to?
Each successful application will be entitled to one Season Ticket per client
reference number.
Am I guaranteed to be in a particular price band or section of the Stadium?
No, all price bands and areas are subject to availability.
What if I want to join the waiting list in a group?
Absolutely, but each supporter in the group booking will require their
client reference number and the collective registration fee is to be paid in
one transaction.
Not registering together is likely to result in successful Season Ticket
applications being processed and located separately.
What happens if demand exceeds capacity? Will I remain on the waiting list
for the new Stadium?
Should there the waiting list exceed the capacity that the Boleyn Ground is
able to accommodate, those who are unsuccessful for the 2015/16 season will
instead be offered the opportunity to join the waiting list for a 2016/17
Season Ticket, subject to availability.
Do I get back my £10 back?
The registration fee is non-refundable, however, if due to lack of available
seats we are unable to offer you a Season Ticket for the final season at the
Boleyn Ground, you will instead be offered the opportunity to join the
waiting list for a 2016/17 Season Ticket, subject to availability.
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Diame disappointed at cup exit
WHUFC.com
Mohamed Diame wanted to reward the Hammers supporters for their terrific
backing on Tuesday
27.08.2014
Mohamed Diame was disappointed that the Hammers could not reward the fans
for their tremendous support at the Boleyn Ground on Tuesday night. A crowd
of nearly 29,000 turned out for the Capital One Cup tie against Sheffield
United, but the vast majority went home on the wrong end of a penalty
shootout defeat. The Blades prevailed 5-4 from the spot after a Winston Reid
own-goal cancelled out Diafra Sakho's opener and Diame felt the Londoners
should have made more of their chances. "We just missed too many chances,"
he explained. "We had a lot of opportunities in the first half and we didn't
score [enough of them]. "When you don't score it's always hard to win the
game. I feel sorry for the fans because they were behind the team from the
beginning to the end of the game. "It's a shame we didn't win this game at
home, but we need to keep going now and focus on the league. "We missed
chances against Tottenham and didn't win the game, we took our chances
against Crystal Palace and we won. "We have to keep focused and keep going.
We're doing great work with Teddy Sheringham in front of goal, so we have to
keep working and try to score goals."
Diame is fully focused on getting back on track when the Hammers welcome
Southampton to east London on Saturday for a Kids for a Quid game, for which
tickets are available here. He added: "Every time we play at home we need to
play for the three points. It's going to be a big game because Southampton
are a good, strong team. "I saw them against Liverpool and they played well.
We need to be ready for this game and make sure we take the three points."
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Modibo Maiga: Malian signs for Metz on loan from West Ham
BBC.co.uk
Malian striker Modibo Maiga has joined French side Metz on loan from English
Premier League club West Ham. The 26-year-old will spend the rest of the
season at Metz, who also have an option to buy the player. The deal is the
second between the clubs this month after Diafra Sakho joined West Ham in a
permanent move. Maiga spent the second half of last season loaned out to QPR
and has played only 31 times for West Ham since he joined the Londoners in
July 2012. He has already had experience of France's top flight, having
played for Le Mans and Sochaux. Maiga has played 31 times for his country
and scored five goal for the the Eagles.
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West Ham fail with Mexes bid
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 27th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
West Ham are reported to have failed with a bid to sign Milan defender
Philippe Mexes on loan. The 32-year-old central defender is surplus to
requirements at the San Siro, where Milan are seeking to offload both Mexes
and team mate Michael Essien ahead of next week's transfer deadline. However
the former French international centre half won't be coming to West Ham
after i Rossoneri rejected United's loan proposal - according to Corriere
dello Sport. A regular starter for Milan during the 2013/14 season, Mexes'
long career has also taken in stints at Auxerre and Roma. He also
represented France on 29 occasions between 2002-2012, when he made his most
recent appearance for the national team. Sam Allardyce remains desperate to
add another central defender to his squad ahead of the transfer window
deadline. 15-year-old Reece Oxford was named on the bench against Sheffield
United last night due to the lack of options currently available to the
manager. Currently, Allardyce has just three recognised central defenders in
his pack - James Tomkins, James Collins and Winston Reid - with the future
of the latter still shrouded in uncertainly.
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Stranded on Green Street
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 27th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Hundreds of fans were left stranded on Green Street last night as West Ham
struggled to cope with an unprecedented demand for tickets. This was the
scene outside the Boleyn Ground five minutes before kick off last night as
several hundred supporters queued to collect tickets they had booked online
for West Ham's Capital One Cup tie against Sheffield United.
And despite the numbers outside and an earlier accident on the A406 that
delayed many more fans, the decision was taken for the game to kick off on
time.
At the time, the queue extended beyond Ken's Cafe - some considerable
distance from the ground. As a result of the delays, some fans were still
entering the ground AT HALF TIME. One fan posting on the KUMB forum this
morning said: "Had they not increased ticket prices on the day, forcing
people to pre-book online, it wouldn't have been so bad. "Most people in
that queue were collecting tickets that had been booked over the bank
holiday weekend. I was one of the lucky ones who only missed 20 minutes of
the game!"
And fellow supporter zinger549 added: "One of the stewards said there were
3,500 people collecting tickets, hence the long queue. "She said she'd
asked if we could just use our email confirmation [to get in] as it had the
seat number on, but they said no."
A spokesperson for the club told KUMB: "Despite asking fans to arrive early,
a large queue began to form in Green Street around 6.30pm. "Unfortunately
we only have 20 ticket windows and there was a huge demand for tickets, with
some 5,000 sold over the weekend alone. "Due to the Bank Holiday we couldn't
post all of them, meaning there were a large number of collections. The club
had already paid Royal Mail to do an extra collection. "We got through them
as quickly as we could but the increased demand combined with major problems
on the roads caused delays."
And on the question of why kick-off wasn't temporarily delayed in order to
allow hundreds more fans to enter the ground, the spokesperson added: "The
Police and referee, who make the decision, wouldn't have allowed it. It was
their decision."
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Maiga departs
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 27th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
West Ham striker Modibo Maiga has, as expected, completed a loan move to FC
Metz. Maiga, who has been frozen out of the first team set-up at the Boleyn
since returning from a loan spell at Queens Park Rangers last season has
joined the Ligue 1 newcomers for the rest of the 2014/15 season with view to
a permanent deal - as revealed here on KUMB last week. West Ham are
understood to be paying a healthy portion of Maiga's salary but will be
delighted that the former Sochaux forward, who was deemed surplus to
requirements at the club, has moved on.
Signed by Sam Allardyce in July 2012 on a four-year contract (with an option
for an additional two years), the £5million striker failed to settle in
England and made just 19 starts for the Hammers during his stay at the club.
Maiga's tally of just six goals for West Ham consisted of three in the early
rounds of the Carling/Capital One Cup and three more in the Premier League -
against Southampton (October 2012), Chelsea (December 2012) and against West
Brom (December 2013).
However it will be for his winning goal at White Hart Lane in the 2-1
Capital Cup win over Tottenham last season for which he will be most fondly
remembered by West Ham fans.
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Sheffield United moving on from Carlos Tevez after beating West Ham
Last Updated: 27/08/14 3:42pm
SSN
Sheffield United manager Nigel Clough is hoping his side's penalty shoot-out
victory over West Ham in the Capital One Cup can draw a line under the
Carlos Tevez transfer debate. The Blades triumphed 5-4 in the shoot-out
after Diafra Sakho had put West Ham in front at Upton Park before an
unfortunate Winston Reid own goal levelled the match. West Ham fans had
taunted their Sheffield United counterparts with chants about Tevez in the
first meeting of the two sides since the Blades were relegated from the
Premier League, largely thanks to the Argentine's goals for the Hammers. A
legal wrangle over Tevez's ownership eventually led to West Ham paying out
almost £30million in compensation. With plenty of ill-feeling between the
two sides continuing seven years later, Clough believes his club can now
move on from the whole affair. "It was a long time ago," he said. "I think
it was more about winning on the night for our supporters than anything in
the past. I'm sure there will still be a bit of injustice felt by our
supporters and that will not go away. "You can't keep going on with things
like that. You move on - it was seven years ago and we all move on - we are
desperate to get out of League One."
Blades goalkeeper Mark Howard kept out Enner Valencia's penalty after an
evening of frustrating the hosts, with Clough full of praise for the former
Arsenal youngster. "He has been in great form so far this season," added
Clough. "We have made him number one and we are delighted - he is from down
here and had family and friends here. "I think it was more about winning on
the night for our supporters than anything in the past. I'm sure there will
still be a bit of injustice felt by our supporters and that will not go
away. You can't keep going on with things like that. You move on - it was
seven years ago and we all move on - we are desperate to get out of League
One." "It was reminiscent of last season. We have got some great blocks in,
bodies in the way. It is good for the lads who joined us to experience that.
"It is the first time this season we have looked like a team. We are not
close to where we want to be but this is positive."
West Ham reached the semi-finals of this competition last season but it was
their wastefulness in front of goal which once again cost them, with manager
Sam Allardyce also impressed with Howard's display. "We have lost on
penalties at the end of the day," he said. "The fans know we should've won
the game. We haven't been outplayed by Sheffield United, they made life
difficult for us by playing that defensive unit. That is well within their
rights when they come here.
"We opened them up time and time again with patient, good quality football,
but at the end of the day the end product deserted us - in the main due to
their goalkeeper. "We gave an own goal away and Sheffield United had one
shot on target in the 90 minutes and one on target in extra time. "At the
end of the day, it is our fault. It was an inspired performance from their
goalkeeper - whatever we threw at him he saved it or blocked it. "From our
point of view, it is a frustrating night after good performances from
players who have just joined us, like Sakho and Enner."
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A TRANSFER WINDOW ROUND UP
By ExWHUemployee 27 Aug 2014 at 19:00
West Ham Till I Die
With less than a week left of the transfer window I think if we were to sum
up whether it has been a successful window or not at this point we would all
agree that it has and I am trying to not let yesterday's cup game affect my
judgement. It has been widely reported that the chairmen, especially Mr
Sullivan, have taken a lot more active a role in the dealings and therefore
should take a lot of the credit. The chairmen come under a lot of unfair
stick in my opinion and they have continued to spend large amounts of money
(see Sean Whetstone's posts) on new players this window, having broken our
transfer record in the two summer windows prior to this.
It is fair to say that they have brought in the type of player that we have
all wanted to see at the club. Mauro Zarate's performance at Crystal Palace
was superb and he comes with the attacking creativity and flair that we have
all been missing in recent seasons. Although it was disappointing to go out
of the cup competition he also showed that he is prepared to put effort and
fight into his performances during this game. Kevin Nolan will be out for
around two months and I believe Zarate will be a more than adequate (this is
an understatement) replacement. This signing was clearly one instigated by
the chairmen as he was a player with them at Birmingham City and I know how
much his two sons rave about him too.
I will predict now that Cheikhou Kouyate will be Hammer of the Year assuming
he doesn't get injured (which as we all know with our luck is quite
possible). He has been an immense signing and I would agree with all that
have likened him to Patrick Vieira. Of course it is extremely early days and
you cannot judge on two games but if his pre-season performances are
anything to go by too, we have ourselves a great player.
Both Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho provide new attacking options. Both
unproven in the premiership and both hard to judge as yet but both looked a
handful in their recent substitute appearances and have had good seasons
with their previous club and country. I thought that Sakho played well
during the Cup game but unfortunately Valencia became a little lost after
Sakho went off and obviously missed the crucial penalty. I still remain very
positive about both purchases.
Carl Jenkinson has played for a top four club and always looked quite solid
when I have watched the games and of course this was recognised by England
too. I personally think Joey O'Brien gets a lot of unjustified stick for his
performances and is in fact very underrated and may even keep the spot for
now but if he doesn't I think Carl will step in well.
Again you get the general positive theme here but I have also been impressed
with Cresswell. A relative of mine is an Ipswich season ticket holder and he
assured me that Cresswell did not ever have a bad game for them and offers
loads going forward as well with excellent crossing and free kick tacking.
Diego Poyet is a great talent and one who was hot property at youth level. I
think he will go on to be a brilliant acquisition and showed that this was
possible when starting his first game yesterday. Of course we also have the
returning Ravel Morrison (and summer gloves) of whose skills we are no
strangers to. All in all the squad has a much better feel to it this season.
Another positive to emerge from this window is that we haven't lost any
first team regular players either. The departures of Joe Cole, Matt Taylor,
George McCartney, Alou Diarra and Jack Collison has freed up much needed
wages and the club have been desperate to get Maiga off the wage bill too.
He has been offered a contract termination as well as being offered around
for loan/permanent transfers. The club are prepared to pay a large
percentage of his wages even if it reduce them by only a little bit to get
him out on loan and this has finally been agreed with Metz where he will be
Sakho's direct replacement.
There has been strong talk of a supposed bid for Carlton Cole but I am led
to believe that this had no substance. I wouldn't sell him anyway certainly
at least until January when we will know whether Andy Carroll has returned
successfully. Carlton isn't the player he was under Zola but I do believe he
will play better with Zarate in the side.
The only other possible departure is that of Winston Reid. Winston has been
offered a contract and has not accepted this as yet. The club and player
appear to be quite far apart on what they consider an acceptable offer and
Arsenal have been circulating and potentially turning the players head (see
the IronViews article on this) and I felt this was shown during the Cup game
where he looked half interested. I personally believe we should do all that
we can to hold onto Winston. I think he and Tomkins can establish a centre
back partnership that could serve us well for many a year going into the
Olympic Stadium.
We have been after Micah Richards for a long time and this is still the
case. Micah's versatility across the back four is seen as a major plus and
if we could secure him on a loan deal we would. Richards hasn't really
featured for City and his contract is up for renewal at the end of the
season meaning City hope to cash in on him now. We have been working hard to
get this deal to happen but at the moment City want to sell him and we would
like to loan him on shared wages. I am hoping this will change and he can be
brought in before the close of the window.
Other sites have heavily linked us with Toby Alderweireld the Belgium World
Cup defender. I believe there is interest but there will be a lot of clubs
in for him and I think we will struggle to persuade him to join us
unfortunately. The Daily Mail has also reported yesterday that we are after
Bayer Leverkusen defender Philipp Wollscheid as well a player who I know
little about.
There has also been talk of another winger joining the club. We did allow
the popular ex player Matthew Etherington to train with us to gain fitness
after the best man at his wedding, James Collins, arranged it for him.
During his time at the club Matty was an exciting player to watch. He has
been apparently looking sharp (as David Gold tweeted) but at 33 and with a
chequered past at the club he would have needed an extremely impressive
trial at the club to be considered. We had looked at Morgan Amalfitano, who
was on loan at WBA last season, but we couldn't agree terms especially with
his agent and so that transfer seems unlikely now as well.
I am pretty certain we will bring in an extra defensive player but that may
be the end of our transfer window, if that is the case I think we will all
agree it has been a successful one. Please keep following the site and my
twitter for any transfer updates.
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MAIGA LEAVES WEST HAM
By Sean Whetstone 27 Aug 2014 at 14:00
West Ham Till I Die
Modibo Maiga has officially joined French Ligue 1 side FC Metz on an initial
one season-long loan deal with the option to buy next summer thought to be
around 3 million euros. The news was confirmed this morning by Metz official
website followed shortly by West Ham.The out of favor Hammers striker could
make his debut against Lyon this Sunday.
Maiga was loaned out to QPR at the half way point last season after Harry
Redknapp came in late for him on transfer deadline day in January. QPR were
believed to have paid half of his £30,000 per week wages as part of the six
month deal. Despite scoring on his debut for the Hoops he failed to make any
real impact after eight appearances and returned to the Hammers with his
tail between his legs in the summer where he was unceremoniously relegated
to the development squad to sit in humiliation on the bench as an unused
sub. The 26-year-old forward previously played for Le Mans and Sochaux in
France scoring a combined goal tally of 39 before joining West Ham but it
didn't quite happen for him in England.
West Ham signed Metz's Senegal striker Diafra Sakho for an initial fee of
£2.5m who made an immediate impact by scoring in last night's Carling cup
game. Maiga scored 6 goals for the Hammers from 37 appearances and has just
under 2 years remaining on his contract. Metz are thought to paying just
£6,000 per week of Maiga's £30,000 per week wages but the thought is that
something is better than nothing and if he gets his scoring boots back he
could attract value in his remaining year of his contract. Maiga cost West
Ham £4.7m when he joined in July 2012 plus another £5m in wages and employer
costs.
Lets hope this brings a new start for him and let us not forget this goal he
scored for us if nothing else!
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West Ham youngsters Reece Burke and Diego Poyet show the future is bright at
Upton Park
Aug 27, 2014 10:46
OPINION BY STEVESTAMMERS
The Hammers may have been knocked out of the League Cup, but Steve Stammers
was impressed by two emerging talents
The Mirror
What a difference a matter of months makes. Last season, West Ham were
jeered off after a win that secured three valuable Premier League points
when they beat Hull 21.
It prompted – ill-advisedly – the hand behind the ear gesture from manager
Sam Allardyce towards the fans who were clearly unhappy with the brand of
football. Come last night and a defeat in a penalty shootout against League
One Sheffield United in the Capital One Cup and there was appreciation for
the style in which West Ham attempted to play.
True, not raucous cheers. But 28,000-plus at Upton Park acknowledged that
passing and movement have been introduced. And promising young players have
been blooded in a competitive arena.
Two outstanding performances came from central defender Reece Burke and
midfield man Diego Poyet, the son of Sunderland manager Gus.
Burke looked assured and comfortable in possession but the standout
potential was shown by Poyet. He was always available, has an excellent
touch and passes with simplicity and accuracy – remind you of anyone else
called Poyet?
Steve BardensColossal youth: Burke scored against Sampdoria in pre-season
And Allardyce was genuinely disappointed at the club's exit. He fielded a
strong team, not an excuse for one. Lesson learned from last season when
what was tantamount to a youth team was hammered 50 at Nottingham Forest in
the FA Cup.
He wanted to prolong the run to give as many of his squad as possible the
chance to play in an environment in which they would be tested. The Capital
One Cup would have provided that.
But Poyet was a plus as was Burke. Just how serious he took the competition
was reflected in his substitutions – the inform Stewart Downing, the
inspirational Mark Noble and the everdangerous Mauro Zarate. Indeed it took
an amazing save from United goalkeeper Mark Howard to deny Downing a repeat
of his heroics at Selhurst Park last Saturday in the 31 win against Crystal
Palace.
However, do not get the impression that the Barking Road had been
transformed into Disneyland. Improvement is needed from the likes of Enner
Valenica. The Ecuador international looked short against Sheffield United.
True, it was his first competitive start but at £ 12 million, more was
expected. But United's defence snuffed him out a tad too easily. His missed
penalty was decisive and that summed up his night.
Poyet was more impressive. And so was Burke. Neither is likely to figure
against Southampton on Saturday but they will figure prominently in the
years to come. And both will be better for last night.
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QPR plot Mo Diame transfer from West Ham to add beef to their midfield for
fight against relegation
Aug 26, 2014 22:30 By Alan Nixon
The Hammers are ready to sell Senegalese midfielder Hoops boss Harry
Redknapp has been tracking since this time last season for a bargain fee
The Mirror
QPR boss Harry Redknapp is ready to snap up West Ham midfielder Momo Diame
in a surprise deal. Redknapp has been trailing the powerful Senegalese star
for a year and Sam Allardyce will now let him go for a bargain fee to make
way for a signing of his own. Diame is on the fringes of the Hammers' side
after losing his place and he is happy to head across London. Redknapp,
whose west Londoners are pointless and goalless after two games back in the
top flight, wants more strength in his midfield and the former Wigan giant
will give him that.
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New Irons striker worries
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 27, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Carlton Cole may be back in action against Southampton this weekend after
manager Sam Allardyce revealed that Diafra Sakho has suffered a back injury.
Cole may have expected his appearances to be few and far between with the
arrival of the Frenchman and Enner Valencia but instead is becoming a
regular.
Allardyce explained that Valencia had been forced to play 120 minutes
against Sheffield United instead of the expected 60 because of the Sakho
blow.
He said: "Considering Enner's not played a game since the World Cup, that
was going to be his first 60 minutes or so but Sakho tweaked his back so
he's had to play 120 minutes." Allardyce threw no further light on whether
Sakho would be available for Saturday's game raising predictions that Cole
would perhaps again appear in the lone striker role.
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Red hot keeper on Irons radar
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 27, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are keen to sign Southend first choice keeper Daniel Bentley
according to his girlfriend on social media today. The wannabe WAG posted
'West Ham want to sign my boyfriend, Premier League here we come!' Shrimpers
goalkeeper Daniel Bentley is also being considered for an England under 21
call-up after he was recently watched by scouts from the international set
up at Carlisle United last Saturday. Basildon-born Bentley began his career
with Arsenal, aged eight only to be released by the Gunners in 2008, before
he was snapped up by Southend. Bentley played for their Under-18s before he
was handed a professional contract in the summer of 2009. A loan spell at
Braintree Town was followed by a big step up taking over from the injured
Paul Smith. Southend United manager Phil Brown previously dismissed
speculation in July linking goalkeeper Daniel Bentley with a move to West
Ham saying ""I heard the rumour and wanted to check it out so I gave Sam a
call in New Zealand, you have to do these things to cover yourself,
especially if you're going to lose your first choice goalkeeper. "However,
Sam never made any reference to wanting to bring Daniel in."
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Troubled Rennes defender linked with Hammers
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 27, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Rennes' central defender Jean Armel Kana Biyik is in talks to join the
Hammers according to L'Equipe. The player recently held talks with Palermo
and has been linked with Arsenal, Hull City and Crystal Palace in recent
weeks. Rennes have made it obviously clear that they have no intention of
holding onto the player this transfer window after problems early this year.
The troubled player was suspended by his club Rennes after he was involved
in confrontations with fans. The French Ligue 1 side ordered the player
train apart from the first-team squad and the reserves until the end of the
season as well as being fined. Kana-Biyik exchanged insults with some of
the club's supporters and was involved in another altercation after training
in May this year. It is alleged that Kana-Biyik – whose father Andre and
uncle Francois Omam-Biyik played were also Cameroon internationals – stepped
out of his vehicle and tried to come to blows with members of Rennes' most
prominent ultra group before being held back by security guards.
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Hammers on QPR/Diame link
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 27, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Mo Diame's future still looks locked into West Ham despite new reports that
he could be on his way to Queens Park Rangers. A newspaper story emerged
this morning claiming that the Senegal midfielder could become a late
transfer window target for Loftus Road boss Harry Redknapp. The report
claims the former Hammers boss has trailed the player for a year and that
Sam Allardyce would let him go. However, a well placed Irons source told
ClaretandHugh: "These rumours about Mo just go on and on. "There has been
absolutely no contact from Rangers and time is getting short if they want
to. The same applies to Everton with whom he has also been linked."
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Sullivan wishes Maiga well
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 27, 2014 in Whispers
Calret & Hugh
West Ham co owner David Sullivan has wished Modibo Maiga well as he leaves
the club for a season-long spell at Metz. The striker – as revealed by
ClaretandHugh several days ago – has finally made his move across the
channel. And co-chairman Sullivan – speaking to us exclusively today said:
"We wish him well, it is just a loan and we are paying the bulk of his
wages. "But it is a chance for the player to put himself in the shop window
– we wish him well."
Metz announced this morning on their website that the player was joining
them. Maiga has scored 6 goals for the Hammers from 37 appearances and has
just under two years remaining on his contract.
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Sam Baldock: Brighton & Hove Albion sign Bristol City striker
BBC.co.uk
Championship side Brighton & Hove Albion have signed striker Sam Baldock
from League One Bristol City for an undisclosed fee. The 25-year-old joined
City from West Ham in August 2012 and the Robins captain scored 26 goals in
all competitions in 2013-14. Baldock had been the subject of several bids
from Albion during the summer transfer window. "We rejected six offers from
them," said City chief executive John Pelling. "We entered this transfer
window with the intention of keeping Sam, however, Brighton's persistence
has finally seen them come up with an offer which suited both the club and
Sam." The League One golden boot winner, who started his career at MK Dons,
was in the final year of his contract at Ashton Gate. Seagulls boss Sami
Hyypia told the Brighton website: "Sam was one of our key summer attacking
targets. "He's a predator, instinctive in front of goal and his career goal
record is excellent. He's played and scored goals at this level." Baldock,
who made his debut for the Dons as a 16-year-old in December 2005, has
scored 84 goals in 241 career appearances.
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Thursday, August 28
Wednesday, August 27
Daily WHUFC News - 27th August 2014
Hammers bow out of League Cup
WHUFc.com
Sheffield United prevail on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the Capital One
Cup second round
26.08.2014
Capital One Cup
West Ham United 1-1 Sheffield United, (4-5 on penalties)
West Ham United fell to a shock shootout defeat by Sheffield United in the
Capital One Cup on Tuesday evening, as the Sky Bet League One side prevailed
5-4 from the spot to book their place in the last 32. After the first eight
penalties had all been confidently converted, summer signing Enner Valencia
was denied by the excellent Mark Howard, allowing visiting skipper Michael
Doyle to tuck home the decisive strike from 12 yards. West Ham had looked
to be in control when Diafra Sakho marked his home debut with a maiden goal,
but Winston Reid put through his own net after 12 second half minutes to
force the extra 30 minutes. But there would be no winner in the additional
half hour, leaving Sheffield United to seal victory from the spot.
As expected, manager Sam Allardyce had earlier shuffled his pack, making
nine changes to the side that started in the Barclays Premier League at
Crystal Palace on Saturday. Of the new faces, there were starts for
Valencia, Sakho and Diego Poyet, while Reece Burke was rewarded for his
winning cameo against US Sampdoria with a first competitive outing.
Elsewhere, Ravel Morrison made his first appearance of the new campaign,
having worked his way back from minor groin surgery over the summer.
A new-look West Ham XI took a little while to hit their straps at the Boleyn
Ground and Ricardo Vaz Te's misdirected header, from a Guy Demel centre, was
the best they had to show from the first quarter-of-an-hour.
At the other end, Marc McNulty stole a yard on Reid in the Hammers box, but
then scarcely made contact as he hurriedly slashed at goal. Ben Davies swung
in the resulting corner and full-back Craig Alcock hooked wide of the near
post.
Moments later and Blades 'keeper Mark Howard was forced into a first save,
getting down smartly to gather Valencia's fiercely driven strike from 20
yards. Poyet was next to try his luck, unleashing a dipping volley from the
edge of the D that rose a yard or two over Howard's crossbar.
The chances, now, continued to come. Mohamed Diame set Valencia free, who
was again foiled by an excellent Howard stop, on this occasion at his near
post. And the busy 'keeper was back in action after 35 minutes, flinging
himself to his left to palm a Morrison free-kick around the post. Morrison
jogged across to take the corner in front of the East Stand and watched on
as Burke's goalbound header was, just, forced behind by a scurrying Howard.
But the Blades custodian was finally beaten when Sakho met Reece Burke's
right-wing centre and glanced a perfect header over the Blades keeper to
open the scoring and his Hammers account. Sakho very nearly turned provider
before the half was out, brilliantly bringing the ball under his spell and
squaring for Valencia, who, on the slide, was agonisingly close to applying
a touch.
The second half, much like the first, began quietly and the Blades made the
most of an indifferent start, bagging the equaliser after 57 minutes. A
cross from the left glanced off McNulty's head and Reid, unable to adjust
his feet, inadvertently stabbed goalward and wide of a wrong-footed Jussi
Jaaskelainen.
Now with their tails up, the hosts might have completed the turnaround but
Chris Basham headed well wide of Jaaskelainen's right-hand upright from a
Bob Harris centre.
A first West Ham change followed, as Sakho was replaced by Stewart Downing
and the pendulum almost instantly swung back towards the hosts. West Ham's
No11 firstly crossed for Reid, whose first-time effort flashed beyond the
near post, before a ball to the back post this time was met by an acrobatic
Vaz Te and blocked behind.
With little more than ten minutes to play, Alcock made his presence felt
from another set-piece, heading a ring-wing corner narrowly over the top.
Seconds later and Saturday's hero Mauro Zarate joined the fray in place of
Vaz Te, as the Hammers sought a route into the last 32. And it so nearly
came via Downing's wand of a left foot as he measured one up from 25 yards
and forced Howard, at full stretch, to tip it over the top.
Substitute Zarate then worried Howard, as he spilled the Argentine's drive,
albeit Valencia was unable to make anything of the rebound. Valencia was
presented with an even better chance in the 88th minute, when Demel's
knockdown sat up kindly for the Ecuadorian but a Blades block kept the
visitors in it.
So to extra time and Zarate looked the most likely for the men in Claret and
Blue, as Allardyce made his final switch with the introduction of Mark Noble
for Morrison. Jamal Campbell-Ryce's mazy run ended in a blocked short on the
edge of the box, before Valencia's effort at the other end suffered a
similar fate, flicking off a Sheffield shirt and flying well wide.
A nervous moment for Jaaskelainen followed, as Jay McEveley's bobbler almost
squirmed through the Hammers stopper, with Noble thankfully on hand to hack
clear of harm's way. As the first half of extra time drew to an end, Poyet
chanced his arm from range, only to see his effort nestle safely in the arms
of a well-positioned Howard.
Upon the restart, Noble's deep free-kick nearly deceived Howard, who was
ultimately grateful to claw it beyond the far post. Then, having been teed
up by Poyet, Noble's effort looked a good one, but cannoned into the limbs
of James Wallace.
Valencia blasted a free-kick goalward in the dying minutes and though it
moved in the air, proved no trouble for Howard. That was it for the added
30, with spot-kicks to decide the winners.
As it transpired, the first eight spot-kicks were almost nerveless. Noble
got the ball rolling for the hosts, with Davies doing likewise for the
Sheffield side. Then Downing, Collins, Zarate, McNulty, Poyet and McEveley
were each faultless, handing responsibility to Valencia. The Ecuador man
opted to go down the middle and, having motioned to his right, Howard
comfortably kept it out, before Doyle sent Jaaskelainen the wrong way.
West Ham United: Jaaskelainen, Demel, Reid, Burke, Potts, Poyet, Diame,
Morrison (98), Sakho (Downing 63), Vaz Te (Zarate 80), Valencia
Subs: Spiegel, Oxford, Lee, Page
Goal: Sakho 40
Booked: Morrison
Sheffield United: Howard, Alcock, Harris (McEveley 72), Basham, Flynn
(Campbell-Ryce 84), Doyle, Baxter (Wallace 100), McNulty, Collins, Davies,
McGahey
Subs: Turner, Wallace, Murphy, Higdon, Reed
Goal: Reid o.g. 57
Booked: Doyle
Referee: James Linington
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IT'S DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN
By Iain Dale 26 Aug 2014 at 22:23
West Ham Till I Die
Those of us who are slightly longer in the tooth have experienced nights
like this quite a few times over the years. But even though we think we
might have become immune to it, it's still a total humiliation.
I wasn't there, so maybe I am not the best person to pass comment, but with
a lineup like that, how the hell do we lose to a League Two side? There will
be plenty of people willing to blame Sam Allardyce, but it's the players who
have to accept responsibility. Those who were there can point the finger at
individuals, but from the BBC Sheffield commentary which I listened to it
didn't seem as though we did a lot wrong. They reckoned Enner Valencia
wasn't at the races, but in midfield they reckoned Diame had a stormer, even
if they couldn't pronounce his name (Dee-Am).
So if you were there, tell us what you made of it.
It's a crying shame that we are out of this competition which we nearly made
the final of last year. I hope the riot act is being read in the dressing
room as we speak.
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Sheffield fans stay away in droves
KUMb.com
Filed: Tuesday, 26th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Sheffield United are understood to have been left with thousands of unsold
tickets for their trip to West Ham this evening. Following the draw for the
second round of the Capital One Cup, which was made on 13 August, Hammers
fans residing in the Trevor Brooking Lower were informed that they would
have to find alternative seating for tonight's game as the entire lower tier
was being reserved for travelling Blades supporters. However that would
appear to have been an unnecessary move in hindsight as away fans have
decided to stay away from the ground en masse, with some citing the
potential for trouble - as a result of the recent animosity between the two
clubs - as the main reason for failing to attend. Sheffield had been
allocated approximately 3,500 tickets for the game, however less than half
of that number are likely to be used when the two teams meet at the Boleyn
Ground this evening.
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Duxbury on Tevez: 'we did absolutely nothing wrong'
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 26th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Five years ago KUMB.com sat down with Scott Duxbury for an exclusive
interview during which West Ham United's then-CEO revealed the full story
behind the Carlos Tevez case.
Subsequently blamed by many for the events that led to West Ham cutting
their losses and agreeing to a £20million+ out-of-court settlement with
Sheffield United in September 2008 following Lord Griffiths' bizarre
assertion that "West Ham would have secured at least three fewer points ...
if Carlos Tevez had not been playing for the club", Duxbury gave his side of
the story in a no-holds-barred interview - some of which missed the cut when
the original article was published.
On the day that West Ham United meet Sheffield United for the first time
since the acrimonious 'Tevez Affair' split the world of football, we reveal
the story behind the clandestine talks that led to the out-of-court
settlement figure of circa £20million - and the lengths Duxbury went to in
order to keep Carlos Tevez at the club for the final three games of the
2006/07 season.
Following months of legal wrangling and numerous hearings, all of which had
gone in West Ham's favour, a tribunal led by Lord Griffiths decided that the
Hammers should pay massive compensation to the Blades following their
relegation from the Premiership at the end of the 2006/07 season. The
Yorkshire club, who had led West Ham by 10 points just two months earlier
had asked for damages of between £30m-£45m to be considered.
Devastated by the incomprehensible verdict, Duxbury was keen to avoid
returning to court as he knew that to do so could potentially leave West Ham
facing administration. It was, he believed, a genuine possibility following
the previous year's worldwide banking collapse that left the club saddled
with massive debts and him effectively in charge by default, after the hasty
departure of Eggert Magnusson and Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson.
Duxbury persuaded Sheffield United's Kevin McCabe to attend a meeting in
Belgium, where the Blades chairman held business interests. And according to
the man introduced to West Ham by former chairman Terry Brown, proceedings
got off to a dreadful start. "We did it all in Brussels," he told KUMB. "But
the first meeting went really badly. Myself and Nick went to this bar in
Bruges because we thought that's it, we're screwed."
However a second meeting proved to be far more productive after the duo
representing West Ham decided that a more direct approach was necessary -
which ultimately proved successful. "We played hard-ball, and it was
fantastic," said Duxbury. "We said right, fine. Either you're going to put
us into administration or we will put the club into administration and you
won't get a penny. It was real brinkmanship. He [McCabe] wanted the money up
front and that would have made a difference to Sheffield. We staged it over
five years."
It was only last year that the final tranche of some £5million was paid to
the Blades, who have essentially squandered the huge sum of money they
managed to extort from West Ham. Brian Robson and Kevin Blackwell are held
culpable by many Blades followers for wasting sizeable warchests during the
club's Championship years (2007-11), since when they have fallen further
down the league ladder.
Even though the settlement figure nearly crippled West Ham and, combined
with other factors, left the club uncompetitive in the transfer market for
several years, Duxbury believed that the arrangement represented a good deal
for the club - who he maintained could have faced a bill twice the size had
the two parties not reached an agreement.
"It's a stupid amount of money but when you put it over five years it
doesn't hurt us," he insisted. "It's less than what we paid for Freddie
Ljungberg. But it became clear to me we simply couldn't risk an absurd
decision by Lord Griffiths that says the full £40million that Sheffield
United are claiming is payable, and it's payable within seven days - which
would be the award."
Duxbury, who departed West Ham shortly after the arrival of current owners
David Sullivan and David Gold was at the very centre of the entire Tevez
affair from beginning to end. The club's Legal Secretary at the time Tevez
and fellow Argentine Javier Mascherano joined West Ham, he was later accused
of misleading Tevez's representatives in order to keep the striker at the
club until the end of the 2006/07 season.
Famously referred to as 'oral cuddles', it was claimed that Duxbury lied to
Kia Joorbachian's lawyer Graham Shear regarding the player's contractual
status. Whilst the Premier League insisted that a new contract be drawn up
in order to allow Tevez to play the final games of the 2006/07 season
following an enquiry, Duxbury was said to have told Shear that the existing
deal remained in place - albeit now as a verbal agreement only.
They are charges that Duxbury vehemently denied.
"It was just a loan agreement, effectively," he began. "We had to serve
notice to Kia and Tevez, the Premier League insisted. Tevez was in a hotel
in Wigan when we had to serve this notice to him terminating the agreement.
So Tevez was kicking off, wondering what's going on.
"I calmed him down, saying we'd discuss it next week. Kia was saying 'right,
we need to talk because Tevez ain't playing again, you've terminated the
agreement and I'm going to sue you for tens of millions of pounds'. Good.
Nice preparation for the next couple of games...
"So we met with Kia in Eggert's office [following the Wigan game]. Eggert
didn't want to meet him originally, he was saying 'Kia's dangerous, I don't
want him here'. I said if we don't meet, he isn't going to play. Kia's not
bluffing, Tevez just won't play.
"At that point, Tevez was in an oxygen tent with an ankle injury and it
would have been the easiest thing in the world for him to say 'I'm not fit'.
But we met with Kia in his office and I dragged Eggert there.
"I said 'look, you're going to be absolutely destroyed in the world media if
Tevez doesn't play because you're seen as this evil third party. A judgment
goes against you and then Tevez doesn't play? It's absolutely in your
interest that Tevez plays. If he wants to go in the summer he can, but he
must play in these three games. It's absolutely in his interest.'
"At the same time, Lucas Neill was in the oxygen tent with Tevez so I had
Lucas getting into his head saying 'come on, you must play. It's ridiculous,
if you've got your dream move to Man Utd or whoever, you've got to play'.
"So the purpose of those meetings was, as I would do with any player or
agent that's not happy, to convince him to play and to convince his agent to
sort it out in the summer.
"The Premier League were happy with that. But Griffiths, who doesn't
understand football believes that the fact we even met Kia, the fact that we
convinced Tevez to stay was in some way a breach of the rules - which is
absolute nonsense."
It is often forgotten that Carlos Tevez failed to score a single goal in his
first 19 appearances for West Ham. However in his final three matches -
games in which West Ham beat Wigan, Bolton and Manchester United to
miraculously avoid relegation - he scored three times, giving him a total of
seven for the season.
And it was the Argentine's (considerable) influence in those trio of games
alone which led Lord Griffiths to rule in favour of Sheffield United,
leaving West Ham with the prospect of paying a world-record compensation
sum.
That inexplicable ruling followed the world record £5million fine West Ham
had already been hit with by the Premier League as a result of
irregularities regarding Tevez's original contract which, with agent's fees,
wages and other associated costs considered, meant the player ended up
costing the Hammers around £35million - all for just 29 matches.
Yet on reflection, Duxbury - now CEO at Championship club Watford -
maintained that he was content with the manner in which he handled the
affair immediately following the Premier League's insistence that Tevez's
contract be ripped up.
"As an executive of a football club it's exactly what you've got to do," he
argued. "You've just terminated their contract, you've just p*ssed them off
royally, you've got to do what you can to convince the player to play. If
you want to go in the summer - no problem. But it's entirely in your
interest to play now. And the Premier League agreed with this.
"If I had refused to meet Kia, Tevez wouldn't have played and that would
have been negligent. I had to meet Kia and Tevez and say 'look, if you want
to go somewhere else, that is not a problem'. I had the same conversation
with Nigel Reo-Coker in January when he wanted to go.
"It would've been easier for me for, self preservation, not to have met them
and just said 'I'm not getting involved' and Tevez wouldn't have played," he
continued. "But I did, and we did absolutely nothing wrong.
"We met, we got him to play and in the summer it was a huge battle, a
massive battle. We could not have done anything more consistent with
terminating the side agreement because we had legal battles, we were slagged
off in the press and after months of turmoil we eventually reached an
agreement where Tevez could go.
"If we were acting consistently with the side agreement he would have just
gone on 1 July. Griffiths just totally missed it. Quite frankly I think it
was the finest negotiation I've ever done. I'm proud of that, I've done
nothing wrong - and I got Tevez to play."
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Allardyce: Nolan injury a 'massive blow'
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 25th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce says that captain Kevin Nolan's injury is a huge loss to West
Ham. As reported here on KUMB at the weekend, Nolan injured a shoulder
during a training session at Chadwell Heath last Thursday and is now facing
a lengthy lay-off. And whilst some supporters sunk as low as to revel in the
captain's injury, Big Sam is under no illusion as to how much Nolan will be
missed both on and off the pitch. "Kevin fractured his shoulder and that's a
massive blow to us, along with all the other players we've got injured,"
said Allardyce. "He will be out for probably six weeks. It isn't a
dislocated shoulder, it's a fractured shoulder, but I don't know just how
long that will keep Kevin out. "We dealt with it brilliantly at Palace and
let's hope we can continue to do that. It didn't affect us at Palace and
maybe that's a sign there's more to come. "We were missing five players who
play a big part in our squad, so to win the game comfortably with as many
injuries as that was extremely pleasing. This might be the best and
strongest squad I've put together at the club; I hope it is."
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Big Sam blunted by Blades
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce said Sheffield United had goalkeeper Mark Howard to thank for
their Capital One Cup victory
26.08.2014
Sam Allardyce said Sheffield United had goalkeeper Mark Howard to thank for
their Capital One Cup second round win over West Ham United. Howard
repeatedly denied the Hammers during both normal and extra-time at the
Boleyn Ground. He saved from Enner Valencia, Ravel Morrison, Reece Burke,
Mauro Zarate, Stewart Downing, Diego Poyet and Mark Noble before winning the
tie for the League One side by saving Ecuador striker Valencia's shootout
penalty.
The 27-year-old was beaten by Diafra Sakho's header five minutes before
half-time, but Winston Reid's second-half own-goal gifted Sheffield United
an equaliser and the Blades defended resolutely to take the game to
penalties. After eight successful spot-kicks, Howard dived right to save
from Valencia before Blades skipper Michael Doyle beat Jussi Jaaskelainen to
settle the tie in the Yorkshire club's favour. "They were fantastic save by
their goalkeeper because time after time we hit the target, and time after
time he pulled off saves well beyond the league he is playing in," said Big
Sam, whose side had 23 shots on goal, nine of which tested Howard. "He has
had one of those inspired nights and, of course, if he plays like that all
season he won't be staying in League One.
"We found a 'keeper in his top form and that has cost us in the end because
he's the one who saved the penalty as well. It's a disappointing night in
the fact that we lost, but the football that we played and the people going
out there and getting the game they needed under their belts gave an
excellent account of themselves. "We didn't score enough goals because a
reflective score would have been three or maybe even four-one. The fact they
scored through an own-goal was very lucky for them when they went through
the entire 120 minutes having just two shots on target. "That showed how
much we dominated. Yet again, we should have got more goals, but we didn't.
"You've got to give Sheffield United credit for the way they defended. When
you decide to not try to go forward, which they did, it's difficult to break
them down. However, we had the quality of player to break them down, but we
didn't and we couldn't find a way past their goalkeeper. "The own-goal realy
knocked us off our stride because it was an average cross which wasn't going
anywhere until it hit Reidy on the knee and went past Jussi. If it hadn't, I
think we'd have won at least won 1-0, if not by more."
Had West Ham added to Sakho's maiden goal in Claret and Blue before
half-time - or even before Reid's unfortunate own-goal - then the manager
was confident his side would have played out the tie comfortably. Instead,
Sheffield United's equaliser gave them something to defend as a team and
they did that well in the second hour of play. "I think a second goal would
have settled it. Two or three-nil at half-time would have been a fairer
score to us, but their goalkeeper kept them in the game, so it wasn't poor
finishing so much as him having a storming game. "Even if he parried it out,
it didn't seem to be our night where it dropped to one of our players. It
went to one of their defenders instead. Then, our goalbound shots seemed to
hit their defenders and get blocked, so I can't complain about the
performance, but I can complain that we have lost on penalties after a very
good performance where we shouldn't have done.
"It's a disappointing night from that point of view, but there were a lot of
positives from the way the players played for most of the game, except
finishing the opposition off."
The manager had warm words for the performances of teenagers Poyet, Burke -
who assisted Sakho's goal - and Dan Potts. "They were very, very good. Three
Under-21 players didn't look out of place and were comfortable, so that's
good for the future of West Ham. Ravel Morrison also had his first game and
Enner had his first game since the World Cup, and he had to play 120
minutes, which was some going and he did a fantastic job. "Sakho took his
goal well and he also got down the right-hand side well during the game. so
that was good."
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Allardyce on... Sheffield United
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 27th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce remained upbeat despite having witnessed his team tumble out
of the Capital One Cup on penalties. His full post-match presser here...
Sam: that must be hard to take given the performance, given that you were
winning..?
... Given the fact that we gave an own goal away? Given the fact that
Sheffield United had one shot on target? One shot on target in the first 90
minutes and in the 30 minutes of extra time. At the end of the day it's our
fault, isn't it?
I think it was an inspired performance by the goalkeeper for Sheffield
United. Whatever we threw at him he saved it or blocked it and if it came
off him it seemed to drop to one of the Sheffield United boys.
So from our point of view, it's a frustrating night after a very good
performance by players who have just joined us in their first full games -
[that's Diafra] Sakho and Enner [Valencia]. Considering Enner's not played a
game since the World Cup, that was going to be his first 60 minutes or so -
but Sakho tweaked his back so he's had to play 120 minutes.
It was Rav's first game since 30 minutes at Stevenage, so it's really good
for him. The three young players under 21 were very impressive; Danny Potts,
Diego Poyet and Reece Burke at the back. The rest tried their very best and
played very well up to the fact that we didn't score more goals than
Sheffield United, which we should have done but didn't.
We're very frustrated. Then to lose on penalties as well was even more
frustrating.
Was this a competition in which you wanted to go far again? West Ham do have
the Cup tradition thing.
Well like I just said, there's nowhere else to get members of my 25-man
squad football at a very competitive level. Only the Capital One Cup that
can do that. The rest of the time we can only train them and play amongst
each other because the Under 21 league is not where you play them, because
that's not competitive enough.
It's a disappointment that when you have a 25-man squad - which we're going
to name two days after the [transfer] window shuts - a lot of them are going
to have to keep themselves by training and training alone rather than
getting a game in the Capital One Cup and making a statement to me.
The reason Adrian got the goalkeeping number one slot in the end was because
of his performances in the Capital One Cup last year and a few others. So
it's a disappointing night to go out of the competition.
Before the game started I was concerned by the fact that I already had five
injured players who weren't available today; everybody knows those five
first team players. Then there's players who needed a game or for whom it
was their first game and there's young players that get a game.
To get through to the next round of the competition, and have those players
and some of the players who come back from injury after the international
break play again - like Matt Jarvis, Carl Jenkinson, James Collins plus Andy
[Carroll] and Kevin [Nolan], who are a good way off - would have been
fantastic.
Now we're going to have to find a different way of picking up their match
fitness when they are fit - and keeping the players who played tonight fit
on the training ground for when they're needed in the first team in the
Premier League.
I know it was before your time but the shadow of Carlos Tevez was hanging
over this. Do you appreciate how frustrating it must be for the fans to lose
this?
Well we've lost on penalties at the end of the day and the fans know we
should have won the game. We haven't been outplayed by Sheffield United, we
haven't been under pressure, they've had one shot on target in the entire 90
minutes.
They made life very difficult for us by playing that defensive unit, which
they are well within their right to when they come here. With the quality of
players we had tonight, we opened them up time and time again with patience
and good, quality football. At the end of the day, the end product deserted
us tonight but that was mainly due to their goalkeeper making some top-class
saves.
Young Poyet did well for you tonight?
Well him, Burke and Pottsy did nothing wrong at all. Praise to them, because
they didn't look out of place, they didn't look like young players in that
team tonight. It must have been a fantastic experience for them apart from,
like everybody, losing on a penalty shootout.
I've got to ask - Ravel Morrison started with gloves and then in the second
half, no gloves?
Rav's Rav... [laughs] Thank you.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham 1-1 Sheffield United AET: Blades exact shoot-out revenge on Hammers
after Tevez affair
Aug 26, 2014 22:49 By Darren Lewis
The League One side took the Hammers to 120 minutes and then beat them from
12 yards despite being outplayed for large spells
The Mirror
Sheffield United exacted sweet revenge as they dumped West Ham out of the
Capital One Cup - seven years after the Carlos Tevez affair. The simmering
League One club have had to bide their time after the Hammers stayed in the
Premier League at their expense back in 2007 amid the Tevez controversy.
But the Blades laughed loudest by the end of this tie after Winston Reid
gifted them an own goal then £12million World Cup star Enner Valencia missed
a penalty in the shoot-out. Midfielder Michael Doyle hit winner to put the
Blades into the next round and end the hopes of last year's semi-finalists.
Blades boss Nigel Clough now believes it is time to bury the hatchet after
burying the ghost of controversial Tevez. "It was an injustice felt by our
supporters and it always will be," he said, "But you can't keep going on
with things like that. How many years ago was it? Seven years? We all move
on and we are now trying to get out of League One."
The night had started so differently for West Ham. who dominated early on
with their new signings gelling impressively. Striker Diafra Sakho, who
netted 20 times for Metz last season, capped the Hammers' first-half
dominance by heading in from Mo Diame's cross five minutes before the break.
As Sam Allardyce's men stroked the ball around confidently, the home fans
taunted their frustrated Bramall Lane rivals with chants of "you're gonna
sue in a minute!"
The jibe was a reference to the legal battle that eventually saw West Ham -
who were not docked points - agree an out-of-court settlement to pay
Sheffield United £25million in compensation for their Premier League exit.
United believe they have lost out on a whopping £260m in Premier League and
TV revenue since that tumble out of the top flight. West Ham, by contrast,
have invested heavily this summer in a bid to improve on the squad that had
flirted with relegation last season. Chairman David Sullivan has been open
about his desire to give the club's supporters a trip to Wembley and the
club's top brass had been confident of improving on last season's heroics in
this competition. They were denied, however, by a string of superb saves
from keeper Mark Howard.
The 27-year-old, who began his career at Arsenal, kept out efforts from
Valencia, Ravel Morrison, debutant Dan Burke and substitutes Mark Noble and
Stewart Downing. Allardyce said later: "They had one shot on goal in the
entire 90 minutes. But at the end of the day its our fault. It was an
inspired performance from their goalkeeper. "Whatever we hit at him he
seemed to save it. It was a frustrating night after a very good performance
from some of our new players.
"To lose on penalties is even more frustrating. The fans will be
disappointed in me but we should not have lost the game. We have not been
outplayed. They had one shot on goal in the first 90 minutes and another
shot on goal in extra time."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Hammers in clear on Friedel claims
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 26, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Sam Allardyce's decision to leave the grass at a particular length for the
visit of Spurs on opening day was approved by Premier League officials.
Former player Don Hutchison had revealed in his newspaper column that Brad
Friedel had claimed the grass had been left six inches long. The inference
was that the Hammers manager had wanted to slow the Spurs passing game. We
reported the story earlier today on ClaretandHugh and a Hammers source has
since contacted us saying: "The grass was checked by Premier League
officials and was found to be fine." There was never any suggestion of
wrongdoing anyway but we're pleased to report the manager's plan didn't
impinge on Premier League rules.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham plot Carlton Cole transfer after summer swoops for strikers
Valencia, Zarate and Sakho
Aug 25, 2014 22:30 By Neil McLeman
Hammers are ready to ditch the big striker for the second time in 13 months
in a £1million deal with Championship side Bournemouth
The Mirror
West Ham are ready to sell Carlton Cole to Bournemouth for £1million – but
the striker is reluctant to move to the Championship. The 30-year-old former
England star has started both Premier League games for the Hammers this
season and scored at Crystal Palace, but is set to drop down the pecking
order with the signings of Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho. He was released
by West Ham in July 2013, then rejoined last season after Andy Carroll's
heel injury and was rewarded with an 18-month deal in January. It is
understood Cole is also reluctant to accept a cut in his £25,000-a-week
wages. The Cherries have funds after pocketing £5m from Adam Lallana's
sell-on clause when he went from Southampton to Liverpool.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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WHUFc.com
Sheffield United prevail on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the Capital One
Cup second round
26.08.2014
Capital One Cup
West Ham United 1-1 Sheffield United, (4-5 on penalties)
West Ham United fell to a shock shootout defeat by Sheffield United in the
Capital One Cup on Tuesday evening, as the Sky Bet League One side prevailed
5-4 from the spot to book their place in the last 32. After the first eight
penalties had all been confidently converted, summer signing Enner Valencia
was denied by the excellent Mark Howard, allowing visiting skipper Michael
Doyle to tuck home the decisive strike from 12 yards. West Ham had looked
to be in control when Diafra Sakho marked his home debut with a maiden goal,
but Winston Reid put through his own net after 12 second half minutes to
force the extra 30 minutes. But there would be no winner in the additional
half hour, leaving Sheffield United to seal victory from the spot.
As expected, manager Sam Allardyce had earlier shuffled his pack, making
nine changes to the side that started in the Barclays Premier League at
Crystal Palace on Saturday. Of the new faces, there were starts for
Valencia, Sakho and Diego Poyet, while Reece Burke was rewarded for his
winning cameo against US Sampdoria with a first competitive outing.
Elsewhere, Ravel Morrison made his first appearance of the new campaign,
having worked his way back from minor groin surgery over the summer.
A new-look West Ham XI took a little while to hit their straps at the Boleyn
Ground and Ricardo Vaz Te's misdirected header, from a Guy Demel centre, was
the best they had to show from the first quarter-of-an-hour.
At the other end, Marc McNulty stole a yard on Reid in the Hammers box, but
then scarcely made contact as he hurriedly slashed at goal. Ben Davies swung
in the resulting corner and full-back Craig Alcock hooked wide of the near
post.
Moments later and Blades 'keeper Mark Howard was forced into a first save,
getting down smartly to gather Valencia's fiercely driven strike from 20
yards. Poyet was next to try his luck, unleashing a dipping volley from the
edge of the D that rose a yard or two over Howard's crossbar.
The chances, now, continued to come. Mohamed Diame set Valencia free, who
was again foiled by an excellent Howard stop, on this occasion at his near
post. And the busy 'keeper was back in action after 35 minutes, flinging
himself to his left to palm a Morrison free-kick around the post. Morrison
jogged across to take the corner in front of the East Stand and watched on
as Burke's goalbound header was, just, forced behind by a scurrying Howard.
But the Blades custodian was finally beaten when Sakho met Reece Burke's
right-wing centre and glanced a perfect header over the Blades keeper to
open the scoring and his Hammers account. Sakho very nearly turned provider
before the half was out, brilliantly bringing the ball under his spell and
squaring for Valencia, who, on the slide, was agonisingly close to applying
a touch.
The second half, much like the first, began quietly and the Blades made the
most of an indifferent start, bagging the equaliser after 57 minutes. A
cross from the left glanced off McNulty's head and Reid, unable to adjust
his feet, inadvertently stabbed goalward and wide of a wrong-footed Jussi
Jaaskelainen.
Now with their tails up, the hosts might have completed the turnaround but
Chris Basham headed well wide of Jaaskelainen's right-hand upright from a
Bob Harris centre.
A first West Ham change followed, as Sakho was replaced by Stewart Downing
and the pendulum almost instantly swung back towards the hosts. West Ham's
No11 firstly crossed for Reid, whose first-time effort flashed beyond the
near post, before a ball to the back post this time was met by an acrobatic
Vaz Te and blocked behind.
With little more than ten minutes to play, Alcock made his presence felt
from another set-piece, heading a ring-wing corner narrowly over the top.
Seconds later and Saturday's hero Mauro Zarate joined the fray in place of
Vaz Te, as the Hammers sought a route into the last 32. And it so nearly
came via Downing's wand of a left foot as he measured one up from 25 yards
and forced Howard, at full stretch, to tip it over the top.
Substitute Zarate then worried Howard, as he spilled the Argentine's drive,
albeit Valencia was unable to make anything of the rebound. Valencia was
presented with an even better chance in the 88th minute, when Demel's
knockdown sat up kindly for the Ecuadorian but a Blades block kept the
visitors in it.
So to extra time and Zarate looked the most likely for the men in Claret and
Blue, as Allardyce made his final switch with the introduction of Mark Noble
for Morrison. Jamal Campbell-Ryce's mazy run ended in a blocked short on the
edge of the box, before Valencia's effort at the other end suffered a
similar fate, flicking off a Sheffield shirt and flying well wide.
A nervous moment for Jaaskelainen followed, as Jay McEveley's bobbler almost
squirmed through the Hammers stopper, with Noble thankfully on hand to hack
clear of harm's way. As the first half of extra time drew to an end, Poyet
chanced his arm from range, only to see his effort nestle safely in the arms
of a well-positioned Howard.
Upon the restart, Noble's deep free-kick nearly deceived Howard, who was
ultimately grateful to claw it beyond the far post. Then, having been teed
up by Poyet, Noble's effort looked a good one, but cannoned into the limbs
of James Wallace.
Valencia blasted a free-kick goalward in the dying minutes and though it
moved in the air, proved no trouble for Howard. That was it for the added
30, with spot-kicks to decide the winners.
As it transpired, the first eight spot-kicks were almost nerveless. Noble
got the ball rolling for the hosts, with Davies doing likewise for the
Sheffield side. Then Downing, Collins, Zarate, McNulty, Poyet and McEveley
were each faultless, handing responsibility to Valencia. The Ecuador man
opted to go down the middle and, having motioned to his right, Howard
comfortably kept it out, before Doyle sent Jaaskelainen the wrong way.
West Ham United: Jaaskelainen, Demel, Reid, Burke, Potts, Poyet, Diame,
Morrison (98), Sakho (Downing 63), Vaz Te (Zarate 80), Valencia
Subs: Spiegel, Oxford, Lee, Page
Goal: Sakho 40
Booked: Morrison
Sheffield United: Howard, Alcock, Harris (McEveley 72), Basham, Flynn
(Campbell-Ryce 84), Doyle, Baxter (Wallace 100), McNulty, Collins, Davies,
McGahey
Subs: Turner, Wallace, Murphy, Higdon, Reed
Goal: Reid o.g. 57
Booked: Doyle
Referee: James Linington
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
IT'S DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN
By Iain Dale 26 Aug 2014 at 22:23
West Ham Till I Die
Those of us who are slightly longer in the tooth have experienced nights
like this quite a few times over the years. But even though we think we
might have become immune to it, it's still a total humiliation.
I wasn't there, so maybe I am not the best person to pass comment, but with
a lineup like that, how the hell do we lose to a League Two side? There will
be plenty of people willing to blame Sam Allardyce, but it's the players who
have to accept responsibility. Those who were there can point the finger at
individuals, but from the BBC Sheffield commentary which I listened to it
didn't seem as though we did a lot wrong. They reckoned Enner Valencia
wasn't at the races, but in midfield they reckoned Diame had a stormer, even
if they couldn't pronounce his name (Dee-Am).
So if you were there, tell us what you made of it.
It's a crying shame that we are out of this competition which we nearly made
the final of last year. I hope the riot act is being read in the dressing
room as we speak.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sheffield fans stay away in droves
KUMb.com
Filed: Tuesday, 26th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Sheffield United are understood to have been left with thousands of unsold
tickets for their trip to West Ham this evening. Following the draw for the
second round of the Capital One Cup, which was made on 13 August, Hammers
fans residing in the Trevor Brooking Lower were informed that they would
have to find alternative seating for tonight's game as the entire lower tier
was being reserved for travelling Blades supporters. However that would
appear to have been an unnecessary move in hindsight as away fans have
decided to stay away from the ground en masse, with some citing the
potential for trouble - as a result of the recent animosity between the two
clubs - as the main reason for failing to attend. Sheffield had been
allocated approximately 3,500 tickets for the game, however less than half
of that number are likely to be used when the two teams meet at the Boleyn
Ground this evening.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Duxbury on Tevez: 'we did absolutely nothing wrong'
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 26th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Five years ago KUMB.com sat down with Scott Duxbury for an exclusive
interview during which West Ham United's then-CEO revealed the full story
behind the Carlos Tevez case.
Subsequently blamed by many for the events that led to West Ham cutting
their losses and agreeing to a £20million+ out-of-court settlement with
Sheffield United in September 2008 following Lord Griffiths' bizarre
assertion that "West Ham would have secured at least three fewer points ...
if Carlos Tevez had not been playing for the club", Duxbury gave his side of
the story in a no-holds-barred interview - some of which missed the cut when
the original article was published.
On the day that West Ham United meet Sheffield United for the first time
since the acrimonious 'Tevez Affair' split the world of football, we reveal
the story behind the clandestine talks that led to the out-of-court
settlement figure of circa £20million - and the lengths Duxbury went to in
order to keep Carlos Tevez at the club for the final three games of the
2006/07 season.
Following months of legal wrangling and numerous hearings, all of which had
gone in West Ham's favour, a tribunal led by Lord Griffiths decided that the
Hammers should pay massive compensation to the Blades following their
relegation from the Premiership at the end of the 2006/07 season. The
Yorkshire club, who had led West Ham by 10 points just two months earlier
had asked for damages of between £30m-£45m to be considered.
Devastated by the incomprehensible verdict, Duxbury was keen to avoid
returning to court as he knew that to do so could potentially leave West Ham
facing administration. It was, he believed, a genuine possibility following
the previous year's worldwide banking collapse that left the club saddled
with massive debts and him effectively in charge by default, after the hasty
departure of Eggert Magnusson and Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson.
Duxbury persuaded Sheffield United's Kevin McCabe to attend a meeting in
Belgium, where the Blades chairman held business interests. And according to
the man introduced to West Ham by former chairman Terry Brown, proceedings
got off to a dreadful start. "We did it all in Brussels," he told KUMB. "But
the first meeting went really badly. Myself and Nick went to this bar in
Bruges because we thought that's it, we're screwed."
However a second meeting proved to be far more productive after the duo
representing West Ham decided that a more direct approach was necessary -
which ultimately proved successful. "We played hard-ball, and it was
fantastic," said Duxbury. "We said right, fine. Either you're going to put
us into administration or we will put the club into administration and you
won't get a penny. It was real brinkmanship. He [McCabe] wanted the money up
front and that would have made a difference to Sheffield. We staged it over
five years."
It was only last year that the final tranche of some £5million was paid to
the Blades, who have essentially squandered the huge sum of money they
managed to extort from West Ham. Brian Robson and Kevin Blackwell are held
culpable by many Blades followers for wasting sizeable warchests during the
club's Championship years (2007-11), since when they have fallen further
down the league ladder.
Even though the settlement figure nearly crippled West Ham and, combined
with other factors, left the club uncompetitive in the transfer market for
several years, Duxbury believed that the arrangement represented a good deal
for the club - who he maintained could have faced a bill twice the size had
the two parties not reached an agreement.
"It's a stupid amount of money but when you put it over five years it
doesn't hurt us," he insisted. "It's less than what we paid for Freddie
Ljungberg. But it became clear to me we simply couldn't risk an absurd
decision by Lord Griffiths that says the full £40million that Sheffield
United are claiming is payable, and it's payable within seven days - which
would be the award."
Duxbury, who departed West Ham shortly after the arrival of current owners
David Sullivan and David Gold was at the very centre of the entire Tevez
affair from beginning to end. The club's Legal Secretary at the time Tevez
and fellow Argentine Javier Mascherano joined West Ham, he was later accused
of misleading Tevez's representatives in order to keep the striker at the
club until the end of the 2006/07 season.
Famously referred to as 'oral cuddles', it was claimed that Duxbury lied to
Kia Joorbachian's lawyer Graham Shear regarding the player's contractual
status. Whilst the Premier League insisted that a new contract be drawn up
in order to allow Tevez to play the final games of the 2006/07 season
following an enquiry, Duxbury was said to have told Shear that the existing
deal remained in place - albeit now as a verbal agreement only.
They are charges that Duxbury vehemently denied.
"It was just a loan agreement, effectively," he began. "We had to serve
notice to Kia and Tevez, the Premier League insisted. Tevez was in a hotel
in Wigan when we had to serve this notice to him terminating the agreement.
So Tevez was kicking off, wondering what's going on.
"I calmed him down, saying we'd discuss it next week. Kia was saying 'right,
we need to talk because Tevez ain't playing again, you've terminated the
agreement and I'm going to sue you for tens of millions of pounds'. Good.
Nice preparation for the next couple of games...
"So we met with Kia in Eggert's office [following the Wigan game]. Eggert
didn't want to meet him originally, he was saying 'Kia's dangerous, I don't
want him here'. I said if we don't meet, he isn't going to play. Kia's not
bluffing, Tevez just won't play.
"At that point, Tevez was in an oxygen tent with an ankle injury and it
would have been the easiest thing in the world for him to say 'I'm not fit'.
But we met with Kia in his office and I dragged Eggert there.
"I said 'look, you're going to be absolutely destroyed in the world media if
Tevez doesn't play because you're seen as this evil third party. A judgment
goes against you and then Tevez doesn't play? It's absolutely in your
interest that Tevez plays. If he wants to go in the summer he can, but he
must play in these three games. It's absolutely in his interest.'
"At the same time, Lucas Neill was in the oxygen tent with Tevez so I had
Lucas getting into his head saying 'come on, you must play. It's ridiculous,
if you've got your dream move to Man Utd or whoever, you've got to play'.
"So the purpose of those meetings was, as I would do with any player or
agent that's not happy, to convince him to play and to convince his agent to
sort it out in the summer.
"The Premier League were happy with that. But Griffiths, who doesn't
understand football believes that the fact we even met Kia, the fact that we
convinced Tevez to stay was in some way a breach of the rules - which is
absolute nonsense."
It is often forgotten that Carlos Tevez failed to score a single goal in his
first 19 appearances for West Ham. However in his final three matches -
games in which West Ham beat Wigan, Bolton and Manchester United to
miraculously avoid relegation - he scored three times, giving him a total of
seven for the season.
And it was the Argentine's (considerable) influence in those trio of games
alone which led Lord Griffiths to rule in favour of Sheffield United,
leaving West Ham with the prospect of paying a world-record compensation
sum.
That inexplicable ruling followed the world record £5million fine West Ham
had already been hit with by the Premier League as a result of
irregularities regarding Tevez's original contract which, with agent's fees,
wages and other associated costs considered, meant the player ended up
costing the Hammers around £35million - all for just 29 matches.
Yet on reflection, Duxbury - now CEO at Championship club Watford -
maintained that he was content with the manner in which he handled the
affair immediately following the Premier League's insistence that Tevez's
contract be ripped up.
"As an executive of a football club it's exactly what you've got to do," he
argued. "You've just terminated their contract, you've just p*ssed them off
royally, you've got to do what you can to convince the player to play. If
you want to go in the summer - no problem. But it's entirely in your
interest to play now. And the Premier League agreed with this.
"If I had refused to meet Kia, Tevez wouldn't have played and that would
have been negligent. I had to meet Kia and Tevez and say 'look, if you want
to go somewhere else, that is not a problem'. I had the same conversation
with Nigel Reo-Coker in January when he wanted to go.
"It would've been easier for me for, self preservation, not to have met them
and just said 'I'm not getting involved' and Tevez wouldn't have played," he
continued. "But I did, and we did absolutely nothing wrong.
"We met, we got him to play and in the summer it was a huge battle, a
massive battle. We could not have done anything more consistent with
terminating the side agreement because we had legal battles, we were slagged
off in the press and after months of turmoil we eventually reached an
agreement where Tevez could go.
"If we were acting consistently with the side agreement he would have just
gone on 1 July. Griffiths just totally missed it. Quite frankly I think it
was the finest negotiation I've ever done. I'm proud of that, I've done
nothing wrong - and I got Tevez to play."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Allardyce: Nolan injury a 'massive blow'
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 25th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce says that captain Kevin Nolan's injury is a huge loss to West
Ham. As reported here on KUMB at the weekend, Nolan injured a shoulder
during a training session at Chadwell Heath last Thursday and is now facing
a lengthy lay-off. And whilst some supporters sunk as low as to revel in the
captain's injury, Big Sam is under no illusion as to how much Nolan will be
missed both on and off the pitch. "Kevin fractured his shoulder and that's a
massive blow to us, along with all the other players we've got injured,"
said Allardyce. "He will be out for probably six weeks. It isn't a
dislocated shoulder, it's a fractured shoulder, but I don't know just how
long that will keep Kevin out. "We dealt with it brilliantly at Palace and
let's hope we can continue to do that. It didn't affect us at Palace and
maybe that's a sign there's more to come. "We were missing five players who
play a big part in our squad, so to win the game comfortably with as many
injuries as that was extremely pleasing. This might be the best and
strongest squad I've put together at the club; I hope it is."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Big Sam blunted by Blades
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce said Sheffield United had goalkeeper Mark Howard to thank for
their Capital One Cup victory
26.08.2014
Sam Allardyce said Sheffield United had goalkeeper Mark Howard to thank for
their Capital One Cup second round win over West Ham United. Howard
repeatedly denied the Hammers during both normal and extra-time at the
Boleyn Ground. He saved from Enner Valencia, Ravel Morrison, Reece Burke,
Mauro Zarate, Stewart Downing, Diego Poyet and Mark Noble before winning the
tie for the League One side by saving Ecuador striker Valencia's shootout
penalty.
The 27-year-old was beaten by Diafra Sakho's header five minutes before
half-time, but Winston Reid's second-half own-goal gifted Sheffield United
an equaliser and the Blades defended resolutely to take the game to
penalties. After eight successful spot-kicks, Howard dived right to save
from Valencia before Blades skipper Michael Doyle beat Jussi Jaaskelainen to
settle the tie in the Yorkshire club's favour. "They were fantastic save by
their goalkeeper because time after time we hit the target, and time after
time he pulled off saves well beyond the league he is playing in," said Big
Sam, whose side had 23 shots on goal, nine of which tested Howard. "He has
had one of those inspired nights and, of course, if he plays like that all
season he won't be staying in League One.
"We found a 'keeper in his top form and that has cost us in the end because
he's the one who saved the penalty as well. It's a disappointing night in
the fact that we lost, but the football that we played and the people going
out there and getting the game they needed under their belts gave an
excellent account of themselves. "We didn't score enough goals because a
reflective score would have been three or maybe even four-one. The fact they
scored through an own-goal was very lucky for them when they went through
the entire 120 minutes having just two shots on target. "That showed how
much we dominated. Yet again, we should have got more goals, but we didn't.
"You've got to give Sheffield United credit for the way they defended. When
you decide to not try to go forward, which they did, it's difficult to break
them down. However, we had the quality of player to break them down, but we
didn't and we couldn't find a way past their goalkeeper. "The own-goal realy
knocked us off our stride because it was an average cross which wasn't going
anywhere until it hit Reidy on the knee and went past Jussi. If it hadn't, I
think we'd have won at least won 1-0, if not by more."
Had West Ham added to Sakho's maiden goal in Claret and Blue before
half-time - or even before Reid's unfortunate own-goal - then the manager
was confident his side would have played out the tie comfortably. Instead,
Sheffield United's equaliser gave them something to defend as a team and
they did that well in the second hour of play. "I think a second goal would
have settled it. Two or three-nil at half-time would have been a fairer
score to us, but their goalkeeper kept them in the game, so it wasn't poor
finishing so much as him having a storming game. "Even if he parried it out,
it didn't seem to be our night where it dropped to one of our players. It
went to one of their defenders instead. Then, our goalbound shots seemed to
hit their defenders and get blocked, so I can't complain about the
performance, but I can complain that we have lost on penalties after a very
good performance where we shouldn't have done.
"It's a disappointing night from that point of view, but there were a lot of
positives from the way the players played for most of the game, except
finishing the opposition off."
The manager had warm words for the performances of teenagers Poyet, Burke -
who assisted Sakho's goal - and Dan Potts. "They were very, very good. Three
Under-21 players didn't look out of place and were comfortable, so that's
good for the future of West Ham. Ravel Morrison also had his first game and
Enner had his first game since the World Cup, and he had to play 120
minutes, which was some going and he did a fantastic job. "Sakho took his
goal well and he also got down the right-hand side well during the game. so
that was good."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Allardyce on... Sheffield United
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 27th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce remained upbeat despite having witnessed his team tumble out
of the Capital One Cup on penalties. His full post-match presser here...
Sam: that must be hard to take given the performance, given that you were
winning..?
... Given the fact that we gave an own goal away? Given the fact that
Sheffield United had one shot on target? One shot on target in the first 90
minutes and in the 30 minutes of extra time. At the end of the day it's our
fault, isn't it?
I think it was an inspired performance by the goalkeeper for Sheffield
United. Whatever we threw at him he saved it or blocked it and if it came
off him it seemed to drop to one of the Sheffield United boys.
So from our point of view, it's a frustrating night after a very good
performance by players who have just joined us in their first full games -
[that's Diafra] Sakho and Enner [Valencia]. Considering Enner's not played a
game since the World Cup, that was going to be his first 60 minutes or so -
but Sakho tweaked his back so he's had to play 120 minutes.
It was Rav's first game since 30 minutes at Stevenage, so it's really good
for him. The three young players under 21 were very impressive; Danny Potts,
Diego Poyet and Reece Burke at the back. The rest tried their very best and
played very well up to the fact that we didn't score more goals than
Sheffield United, which we should have done but didn't.
We're very frustrated. Then to lose on penalties as well was even more
frustrating.
Was this a competition in which you wanted to go far again? West Ham do have
the Cup tradition thing.
Well like I just said, there's nowhere else to get members of my 25-man
squad football at a very competitive level. Only the Capital One Cup that
can do that. The rest of the time we can only train them and play amongst
each other because the Under 21 league is not where you play them, because
that's not competitive enough.
It's a disappointment that when you have a 25-man squad - which we're going
to name two days after the [transfer] window shuts - a lot of them are going
to have to keep themselves by training and training alone rather than
getting a game in the Capital One Cup and making a statement to me.
The reason Adrian got the goalkeeping number one slot in the end was because
of his performances in the Capital One Cup last year and a few others. So
it's a disappointing night to go out of the competition.
Before the game started I was concerned by the fact that I already had five
injured players who weren't available today; everybody knows those five
first team players. Then there's players who needed a game or for whom it
was their first game and there's young players that get a game.
To get through to the next round of the competition, and have those players
and some of the players who come back from injury after the international
break play again - like Matt Jarvis, Carl Jenkinson, James Collins plus Andy
[Carroll] and Kevin [Nolan], who are a good way off - would have been
fantastic.
Now we're going to have to find a different way of picking up their match
fitness when they are fit - and keeping the players who played tonight fit
on the training ground for when they're needed in the first team in the
Premier League.
I know it was before your time but the shadow of Carlos Tevez was hanging
over this. Do you appreciate how frustrating it must be for the fans to lose
this?
Well we've lost on penalties at the end of the day and the fans know we
should have won the game. We haven't been outplayed by Sheffield United, we
haven't been under pressure, they've had one shot on target in the entire 90
minutes.
They made life very difficult for us by playing that defensive unit, which
they are well within their right to when they come here. With the quality of
players we had tonight, we opened them up time and time again with patience
and good, quality football. At the end of the day, the end product deserted
us tonight but that was mainly due to their goalkeeper making some top-class
saves.
Young Poyet did well for you tonight?
Well him, Burke and Pottsy did nothing wrong at all. Praise to them, because
they didn't look out of place, they didn't look like young players in that
team tonight. It must have been a fantastic experience for them apart from,
like everybody, losing on a penalty shootout.
I've got to ask - Ravel Morrison started with gloves and then in the second
half, no gloves?
Rav's Rav... [laughs] Thank you.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham 1-1 Sheffield United AET: Blades exact shoot-out revenge on Hammers
after Tevez affair
Aug 26, 2014 22:49 By Darren Lewis
The League One side took the Hammers to 120 minutes and then beat them from
12 yards despite being outplayed for large spells
The Mirror
Sheffield United exacted sweet revenge as they dumped West Ham out of the
Capital One Cup - seven years after the Carlos Tevez affair. The simmering
League One club have had to bide their time after the Hammers stayed in the
Premier League at their expense back in 2007 amid the Tevez controversy.
But the Blades laughed loudest by the end of this tie after Winston Reid
gifted them an own goal then £12million World Cup star Enner Valencia missed
a penalty in the shoot-out. Midfielder Michael Doyle hit winner to put the
Blades into the next round and end the hopes of last year's semi-finalists.
Blades boss Nigel Clough now believes it is time to bury the hatchet after
burying the ghost of controversial Tevez. "It was an injustice felt by our
supporters and it always will be," he said, "But you can't keep going on
with things like that. How many years ago was it? Seven years? We all move
on and we are now trying to get out of League One."
The night had started so differently for West Ham. who dominated early on
with their new signings gelling impressively. Striker Diafra Sakho, who
netted 20 times for Metz last season, capped the Hammers' first-half
dominance by heading in from Mo Diame's cross five minutes before the break.
As Sam Allardyce's men stroked the ball around confidently, the home fans
taunted their frustrated Bramall Lane rivals with chants of "you're gonna
sue in a minute!"
The jibe was a reference to the legal battle that eventually saw West Ham -
who were not docked points - agree an out-of-court settlement to pay
Sheffield United £25million in compensation for their Premier League exit.
United believe they have lost out on a whopping £260m in Premier League and
TV revenue since that tumble out of the top flight. West Ham, by contrast,
have invested heavily this summer in a bid to improve on the squad that had
flirted with relegation last season. Chairman David Sullivan has been open
about his desire to give the club's supporters a trip to Wembley and the
club's top brass had been confident of improving on last season's heroics in
this competition. They were denied, however, by a string of superb saves
from keeper Mark Howard.
The 27-year-old, who began his career at Arsenal, kept out efforts from
Valencia, Ravel Morrison, debutant Dan Burke and substitutes Mark Noble and
Stewart Downing. Allardyce said later: "They had one shot on goal in the
entire 90 minutes. But at the end of the day its our fault. It was an
inspired performance from their goalkeeper. "Whatever we hit at him he
seemed to save it. It was a frustrating night after a very good performance
from some of our new players.
"To lose on penalties is even more frustrating. The fans will be
disappointed in me but we should not have lost the game. We have not been
outplayed. They had one shot on goal in the first 90 minutes and another
shot on goal in extra time."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Hammers in clear on Friedel claims
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 26, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Sam Allardyce's decision to leave the grass at a particular length for the
visit of Spurs on opening day was approved by Premier League officials.
Former player Don Hutchison had revealed in his newspaper column that Brad
Friedel had claimed the grass had been left six inches long. The inference
was that the Hammers manager had wanted to slow the Spurs passing game. We
reported the story earlier today on ClaretandHugh and a Hammers source has
since contacted us saying: "The grass was checked by Premier League
officials and was found to be fine." There was never any suggestion of
wrongdoing anyway but we're pleased to report the manager's plan didn't
impinge on Premier League rules.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham plot Carlton Cole transfer after summer swoops for strikers
Valencia, Zarate and Sakho
Aug 25, 2014 22:30 By Neil McLeman
Hammers are ready to ditch the big striker for the second time in 13 months
in a £1million deal with Championship side Bournemouth
The Mirror
West Ham are ready to sell Carlton Cole to Bournemouth for £1million – but
the striker is reluctant to move to the Championship. The 30-year-old former
England star has started both Premier League games for the Hammers this
season and scored at Crystal Palace, but is set to drop down the pecking
order with the signings of Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho. He was released
by West Ham in July 2013, then rejoined last season after Andy Carroll's
heel injury and was rewarded with an 18-month deal in January. It is
understood Cole is also reluctant to accept a cut in his £25,000-a-week
wages. The Cherries have funds after pocketing £5m from Adam Lallana's
sell-on clause when he went from Southampton to Liverpool.
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Tuesday, August 26
Daily WHUFC News - 26th August 2014
Manager on Monday
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce is hoping for big things from his new recruits after
Saturday's showing at Crystal Palace
25.08.2014
Sam Allardyce believes his new signings can continue their impressive start
to life in the Barclays Premier League when Southampton visit the Boleyn
Ground on Saturday. The West Ham United manager proudly explained that he
has never witnessed three new signings take to the UK's top flight so
quickly after watching Aaron Cresswell, Cheik Kouyate and Mauro Zarate play
an influential role in last Saturday's 3-1 win at Crystal Palace. Creswell
and Kouyate were equally impressive in the Hammers' first game against
Tottenham Hotspur and Big Sam is tipping them to take West Ham to new levels
this season. "It's the best I've seen three players adjust to the Premier
League in my eleven or 12 years in this league," Allardyce said. "All three
were good. I've seen one or two hit the ground running, but all three of
them have. It was a really good comeback from last week's loss to Spurs.
"Kouyate has got the modern-day midfield player written all over him. He's
high-energy, two-footed, great box to box, competes in the air and tackles.
It's also great to see a player who comes in with a big smile on his face
every day. He's living his dream by coming to play in the Premier League. "I
think Mauro has grown up and matured. I remember him from his spell at
Birmingham, but he's been to Italy since then and back to Argentina and
scored some goals. He looks a mature player with a lot of qualities in the
final third, something different to what we had. He's taken his opportunity
brilliantly. Hopefully he can continue to grow and improve. "The whole team
played well to start with, but with Mauro's goal, Kouyate in midfield and
Aaron, who has also just joined us, it was an all-round great performance.
It was an outstanding day for us after the bitter disappointment of last
weekend."
Like they did for much of the game against Spurs on the opening day, the
Hammers dominated their London opponents, but this time they made sure they
took their chances when presented. They could have been three up and out of
sight had James Tomkins' early first-half header hit the back of the net and
not the bar, but other than that it was a fine example of striking while the
Irons were hot. "The quality of our finishing was superb as opening the
opposition up is very difficult. You could see that by the quality of goal
we had to score to beat them. "The first one from Zarate was a fantastic
finish, and a fantastic run and finish for the second from Downing. Crystal
Palace couldn't complain."
Big Sam joked that his new attacking coach, Teddy Sheringham, would want to
take all of the credit, but added more seriously that he feels the former
England international is making a big difference on the training pitch with
his strikers. "I'm sure Teddy would say it's probably all down to him! He
can do little things in the groups but the only problem we have is the
sports scientists saying he's out there too long with them! "I don't mind
him taking all the credit for it if we continue to show the quality of
finishes we did on Saturday."
Before the Saints game at the weekend, the Hammers host Sheffield United in
an eagerly awaited Capital One Cup tie at the Boleyn Ground on Tuesday and,
given the strength in depth he currently has available, Big Sam may opt to
shuffle his pack. Aware of the importance of winning the game, though, it is
likely he will still field a strong team with the likes of Diego Poyet,
Ravel Morrison, Mo Diame, Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho all expected to
start.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Preview - Sheffield United
WHUFC.com
All the key information ahead of Tuesday's game against Sheffield United
25.08.2014
WEST HAM UNITED v SHEFFIELD UNITED
CAPITAL ONE CUP SECOND ROUND
BOLEYN GROUND
TUESDAY 26 AUGUST 2014
KICK-OFF: 7.45PM
REFEREE: JAMES LININGTON
In brief
West Ham United's Capital One Cup campaign gets underway on Tuesday evening
with the second round visit of Sky Bet League One side Sheffield United.
The Blades defeated Mansfield Town by a 2-1 scoreline to advance to this
stage of the competition, which the Hammers enter at Round Two. Last year,
West Ham reached the semi-finals after defeating Cheltenham Town, Cardiff
City, Burnley and Tottenham Hotspur, but came up short against eventual
champions Manchester City over two legs.
Sam Allardcye's men gained their first points of the season with a 3-1
victory at Crystal Palace on Saturday, while Sheffield United have six
points from their four games to date, and beat Crawley Town 1-0 at rhe
weekend.
Who are they?
Sheffield United were founded in 1889 as an offshoot of Sheffield United
Cricket Club and quickly enjoyed success, becoming champions of England in
1897/98 and FA Cup winners in 1899, 1902, 1915 and 1925. However, they have
not won a major trophy since that early heyday. Their darkest days came
between 1975-1981, when they fell all the way from the top flight to the
Fourth Division, although they subsequently recovered to become founder
members of the FA Premier League in 1992. Following relegation in 1994, they
have enjoyed one season at the top table since - 2006/07 - but have again
suffered recently, currently playing in the third tier. Last season did
bring a successful FA Cup run, though, as Nigel Clough's men made it to a
Wembley semi-final before losing out to Hull City.
Team news
West Ham United
Several of the Hammers' summer signings could be given their first starts
when Big Sam's men welcome Sheffield United to the Boleyn Ground. Diafra
Sakho and Enner Valencia could feature in attack, while Diego Poyet will be
hoping to be selected in midfield. James Collins returns following
suspension, but Kevin Nolan is out after suffering a shoulder injury last
week.
Sheffield United
Blades midfielder James Wallace could miss out with a groin problem, while
fellow midfielder Stefan Scougall has also been absent in recent weeks.
Sheffield United boss Nigel Clough has insisted that his team will approach
the game with all guns blazing as they look to embark on another famous cup
run.
Referee
Tuesday's referee will be James Linington. Linington was appointed to the
Select Group of assistant referees in 2006, but has yet to be promoted to
the Select Group of referees who officiate in the Barclays Premier League.
Linington has taken charge of a West Ham United first-team fixture twice
before in his career, having previously controlled the Hammers' 1-0 Carling
Cup victory over Oxford United in August 2010 and the 3-2 win over Leicester
City in the Championship in October 2011. After giving up playing football
at the age of 15, Linington moved into refereeing and originally specialised
in being an assistant referee through his career in the professional game.
After running the line in the 2006 League One play-off final at Cardiff's
Millennium Stadium, the official took charge of the 2010 League Two play-off
final between Dagenham & Redbridge and Rotherham United at Wembley in May
2010, having joined the National Group as a referee in 2008. He will be
assisted by John Busby and Ian Fissenden, while the fourth official will be
Gavin Ward.
One to watch
West Ham United
Senegalese forward Diafra Sakho could be given his first start in a Hammers
shirt when they take on the Blades at the Boleyn Ground on Tuesday. Sakho,
24, joined the Hammers on the eve of the new campaign from FC Metz in
France, where his goals helped win successive promotions to the top flight.
He came off the bench in Saturday's 3-1 win over Crystal Palace and will be
looking to maintain his fine goalscoring form from France, which brought 39
league strikes over the last two campaigns.
Sheffield United
Sheffield United's Jose Baxter scored the only goal of the game as his side
defeated Crawley Town on Saturday. 22-year-old Baxter started his career at
Everton and was capped at U17 level by England before dropping down to
Oldham Athletic in 2012 to gain more first team football. After a year at
Boundary Park, which saw him notch 15 league goals, he moved on to Sheffield
United, where eight goals in 45 games followed last term. An attacking
midfielder, Baxter clearly has an eye for goal and the Hammers will have to
wary over his talents on Tuesday.
Tickets
Tickets purchased in advance are priced at just £10 Adults and £5 Under-16s.
Tickets purchased on matchday rise in price by £5 for both categories. Buy
tickets now here.
Travel
No planned closures will affect the District, Hammersmith & City, Jubilee or
Central lines on matchday.
Weather
Another wet day is on the cards for Tuesday, although the rain is predicted
to clear up by the time the game kicks-off. Sunny intervals are forecast for
late evening, with temperatures of 16C (61F)
Last meeting
The Hammers last met Sheffield United towards the end of the 2006/07 season
with both sides fighting for Premier League survival. The Blades won
comfortably on that occasion, but it was the Hammers who celebrated come the
season's end as their great escape left Sheffield United back in the
Championship.
Sheffield United 3-0 West Ham United
14 April 2007
Sheffield United: Kenny, Geary, Jagielka, Armstrong, Davis (Morgan 56),
Gillespie, Montgomery, Tonge, Stead, Nade (Quinn 61), Kazim-Richards (Webber
83)
Subs: Kozluk, Shelton
Goals: Tonge 39, Jagielka 68, Stead 78
West Ham United: Green, Neill, Ferdinand, McCartney, Collins, Noble (Blanco
73), Reo-Coker, Etherington (Boa Morte 65), Bowyer (Mullins 65), Zamora,
Tevez
Subs: Walker, Spector
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham v Sheff Utd
KO 19:45
25 August 2014
Last updated at 11:54
CAPITAL ONE CUP SECOND ROUND
Venue: Upton Park Date: Tuesday, 26 August
Coverage: Text commentary online, with highlights on The League Cup Show on
Wednesday 27 August at 23:05 BST (BBC1 and BBC1 Scotland) or 23:35 (BBC 1
Wales) or on Thursday 28 August at 00:05 BST (BBC1 Northern Ireland)
TEAM NEWS
West Ham will again be without captain Kevin Nolan, who sat out Saturday's
win at Crystal Palace because of a fractured shoulder. James Collins is back
after a ban and Matt Jarvis could return following a thigh problem but Carl
Jenkinson (hamstring) is unlikely to be risked
Sheffield United boss Nigel Clough has no new fitness concerns. He may be
tempted to rotate his squad, so Jamal-Campbell-Ryce, Mark McNulty and Bob
Harris will hope for recalls.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Sheffield United have lost only one of their last five games against West
Ham in all competitions (W2, D2).
The Hammers have won the two previous League Cup meetings, in 1971 and 1991.
They scored a total of seven unanswered goals in those two cup ties.
West Ham United
The Hammers reached the final four of the League Cup last season.
However, their 9-0 aggregate defeat to Manchester City was the biggest
losing margin in a semi-final in the competition's history.
West Ham's last League Cup defeat against lower league opposition came in
August 2011, when they were beaten 2-1 by Aldershot Town in the first round.
The Hammers have won nine of their last 12 League Cup matches at home,
losing the other three.
Sheffield United
The Blades have not reached the third round of the League Cup since 2008.
Their win over Mansfield in the opening round was their first in eight
matches (D2, L5) in this competition.
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Bournemouth want Cole
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 25th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Carlton Cole looks set to be the first casualty of West Ham's recent
recruitment programme. The 30-year-old striker scored his first goal of the
season in the 3-1 win at Crystal Palace at the weekend but could be on the
verge of leaving West Ham some eight years after moving to the club from
Chelsea. According to reports from various sources, Championship side
Bournemouth are poised to enter talks with the former England international
after a fee was agreed between the two clubs for the transfer of Cole, whose
latest deal with West Ham expires at the end of the current campaign. Eddie
Howe's side are currently 11th in the Championship with six points from
their opening four matches. Cole has made more than 250 appearances for West
Ham since Alan Pardew signed him for £2million.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Mauro Zarate aiming to emulate Carlos Tevez at West Ham
Last Updated: 25/08/14 11:01am
SSN
Mauro Zarate is hoping to emulate fellow Argentine Carlos Tevez and become a
fans' favourite at West Ham United. Zarate has arrived at Upton Park eight
years after his countryman completed a shock switch to England and helped to
fire West Ham to Premier League survival. He lasted less than a season with
the Hammers, but did enough during his brief spell to earn cult hero status.
Zarate has some way to go before he can claim to sit alongside Tevez, but
the 27-year-old is determined to enjoy similar success. He is back in the
Premier League for a second spell, having spent time on loan at Birmingham
City in 2008, and believes he returns better equipped to handle the
challenges which lie ahead. Zarate said after netting in a 3-1 victory over
Crystal Palace on Saturday: "I don't know if I am a better player than I was
then. But I am more experienced. That is very important in football. "I
spoke with other Argentine players before I came back here. I speak with
Sergio Aguero, sometimes we have dinner together. I always wanted to come
back to England. He said West Ham was a good move for me. "Carlos Tevez is a
star. He won everything – the Champions League with Manchester United,
everything with Manchester City. Now he is with Juventus. "I am different. I
know he was very popular with West Ham fans. I hope I can have the same
impact."
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce is convinced that Zarate can make a positive
impression, with the former Lazio and Inter Milan frontman offering
something different to the other strikers on his books. He said: "He is a
different kind of player. He likes to find spaces. None of our other players
are like that. "He has some strengths that other players at our club don't
have, and he showed that. He has the quality to break down tight defences."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Stewart Downing impressed with West Ham's signings
Last Updated: 25/08/14 4:28pm
SSN
Stewart Downing believes West Ham's new recruits have already shown that
manager Sam Allardyce has spent wisely during the summer. Aaron Cresswell,
Cheikhou Kouyate and Mauro Zarate were among seven of Allardyce's signings
and the trio played their part in Saturday's 3-1 win over Crystal Palace.
Zarate opened the scoring with a spectacular volley, while further goals
from Downing and Carlton Cole secured a first Premier League victory of the
season at Selhurst Park. A mid-season injury crisis hampered the Hammers
last season, but Downing believes there is much more strength in depth and
has been impressed by recent additions. I think all the new signings have
settled in well and those who have played have made good starts," said the
winger. "We have a bit of a stronger squad this season which I think helps
the manager. Last season the team had to literally pick itself at times
because of injuries. "We have a lot more options now and can change it
around a bit if needed."
The 30-year-old has slipped out of England contention, but gave a reminder
of his attacking threat with a curling shot past Julian Speroni in the first
half.
He admits that Allardyce has urged him to shoulder some of the goalscoring
burden during this campaign. "Obviously I am eager as is the manager for me
to get more goals this season," he said. "To get off the mark second game
in, is nice. I want to shoot more, get in the positions I need to be in.
With the goal, I had it in my head what I wanted to do and hit it where I
wanted to and it worked."
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Capital One Cup team news: West Ham v Sheff United preview
Last Updated: 25/08/14 3:48pm
SSN
West Ham will be without captain Kevin Nolan for Tuesday's Capital One Cup
second-round tie against Sheffield United. The midfielder has been ruled out
for six weeks with a fractured shoulder and manager Sam Allardyce must now
decide if Mauro Zarate will keep his place in the side after replacing Nolan
for Saturday's win at Crystal Palace. Matt Jarvis could return following a
thigh problem but Carl Jenkinson (hamstring) is unlikely to be risked. New
strikers Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho could make their full debuts while
youngsters Dan Potts, Reece Burke, Diego Poyet and Danny Whitehead will all
hope to be involved.
Sheffield United manager Nigel Clough is expected to make one or two changes
for his side's Capital One Cup clash at West Ham. Clough, who has no new
major injury or suspension worries, could be tempted to utilise his squad
with the likes of winger Jamal Campbell-Ryce, striker Mark McNulty, defender
Bob Harris and teenage midfielder Louis Reed pushing for recalls. Striker
Michael Higdon was rested for the recent win at Peterborough and could start
on the bench again, while winger Ryan Flynn is another who could return to
the starting line-up. The Blades are chasing a third straight victory after
successive league wins.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
AFC BOURNEMOUTH WANT CARLTON COLE
By Sean Whetstone 25 Aug 2014 at 12:16
West Ham Till I Die
Carlton Cole representatives are in talks with AFC Bournemouth for a
possible move to the Championship club. Cherries Manager Eddie Howe is a big
fan of the Hammers striker and is keen to sign the player before the
transfer window finishes. Whether Carlton Cole who scored the Hammers third
goal yesterday afternoon will personal terms remains to be seen. There
remains a question whether Bournemouth can afford his wages. The Cherries
are thought to be prepared to pay West Ham a £1m transfer fee. When Enner
Valencia and Diafro Sakho are fully match fit and Andy Carroll hopefully
returns in two months time Cole must realise he is likely to drop down the
striker pecking order significantly. Carlton Cole signed a 18 month contract
with West Ham in January 2014 which will take him up to the end of this
season after he was previously released in May 2013. He is believed to have
taken a pay cut to re-join the hammers from the £30,000 per week he
previously enjoyed. Cole admitted he once took a 50% pay cut when the
Hammers dropped down the championship and has remained a loyal servant to
the club since joining from Chelsea in 2006. In 2011 West Ham agreed to sell
Cole to Stoke but Carlton failed to agree personal terms and the deal
collapsed.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
THE PRICE OF PREMIER LEAGUE SURVIVAL
By Sean Whetstone 25 Aug 2014 at 08:24
West Ham Till I Die
West Ham are believed to have paid about £24.5m in initial transfer fees
this summer transfer window for the seven signings but that amount could
rise to £37m based on certain conditions such as appearances, goals and the
Hammers final league position this season. Add to this a massive £49m wages
and national insurance we have committed to over the next four to five years
for the new recruits, agents fees are thought to add another £4m to the
total bill.
The annual budget for players wages is thought to have now reached £57m
leaving just £1m before the Premier League Financial Fair Play limit is
reached for this season.
Although West Ham received over £73m from TV income last season and are
likely to pass £110m turnover when figures are released next January for
last season there is likely to be a short fall with the recent huge
investment in signings. I wouldn't be surprised if David Sullivan and David
Gold injected more money to help balance the books this season after already
loaning £45.7m in the form of share holder loans plus another £25.5m for
shares from the Icelandics on the condition they loaned the money back to
the club.
The cost of staying in the Premier League have never be higher but the
consequences of relegation before we move to the Olympic Stadium would be
catastrophic at this stage.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Carlos Tevez affair still cuts deep as Sheffield United face West Ham
• Mutual loathing as Bramall Lane club return in League Cup
• Relegation after Argentinian signed for West Ham still festers
John Ashdown
The Guardian, Monday 25 August 2014 19.58 BST
Carlos Tevez scored the only goal against Manchester United to relegate
Sheffield United in 2007. Carlos Tevez, who scored the only goal against
Manchester United at Old Trafford, to relegate Sheffield United in 2007.
Photograph: Tom Jenkins for the Guardian The second round of the League Cup
is not usually associated with vitriol, venom and downright loathing but
there will be an abundance of all three at Upton Park on Tuesday evening
when West Ham welcome Sheffield United for the first time since the clubs
had an ever so minor disagreement over a certain Argentinian.
The memory of Carlos Tevez and the court cases that saw West Ham pay £20m in
compensation to Sheffield United remains an incendiary issue between the
clubs and one that infuses this fixture like lighter fluid. Resentment has
festered.
Tevez's arrival with Javier Mascherano at West Ham on transfer deadline day
in August 2006 sowed the seeds of a problem. The discovery of the
third-party agreements concerning the players that came to light in January
2007 provided the soil in which they could grow. The independent Premier
League commission's decision to impose a record £5.5m fine rather than a
points deduction did all the watering and weeding required for the issue to
come into full bloom. West Ham opted not to appeal. Kevin McCabe, the
Sheffield United chairman, felt the decision "invited anarchy".
On the final day of the season West Ham went to Old Trafford to face
Manchester United and got the win they needed, with, of course, Tevez
scoring the only goal of the game. At Bramall Lane Neil Warnock's side
needed only a draw to relegate their opponents Wigan Athletic, who would
then very likely have taken United's place in what was to come, but lost 2-1
thanks to a David Unsworth penalty.
United lost an initial appeal against their relegation in the summer of
2007, despite an arbitration panel admitting that it "would in all
probability have reached a different conclusion and deducted points from
West Ham". A year after relegation an independent FA tribunal found in their
favour, with the chair, Lord Griffiths, judging that: "We have no doubt that
West Ham would have secured at least three fewer points over the 2006-07
season if Carlos Tevez had not been playing for the club."
Sheffield United had wanted compensation of up to £45m in lost income but in
the end came to an out-of-court settlement with West Ham that saw the
Hammers pay almost £20m. The West Ham chief executive, Scott Duxbury, said
he was pleased to "draw a line under this whole episode", McCabe was "happy
and satisfied" with the settlement that had been reached in discussions that
were "friendly, co-operative and in the best of spirit". The final payment
was delivered in the summer of 2013. The boardrooms and moneymen may have
been able to bury the hatchet but football fans have longer memories than
those that run their clubs.
Sheffield United's trajectory since 2007 has hardly helped. Thanks to that
original £5.5m fine, the Premier League itself has been the target of much
of the supporters' ire and the club have spent the intervening years getting
as far away from it as possible. The financial boon of the final settlement
should have helped Sheffield United bounce back towards the top flight but
the parachute payments and money received from West Ham were squandered and
the club are beginning their fourth successive season in the third tier.
All but a handful of the original players in the drama have moved on – Chris
Morgan, now first-team coach, is the only member of the playing staff from
2006-07 still at Bramall Lane. Carlton Cole, James Collins and Mark Noble,
one of whom is likely to start on Tuesday evening, are the only West Ham
players at the club who were team-mates of Tevez. The No32 shirt worn by
Tevez is now on the back of 17-year-old Reece Burke, who was 10 years old
when West Ham performed their great escape at Old Trafford.
Both sets of fans seem convinced that the other is far more bothered about
the tie than they are. In truth, both desperately want a modicum of revenge.
"It's about me making sure that they [the fans] go home happy because they
feel aggrieved about what Sheffield United did," said the West Ham manager,
Sam Allardyce. "So if I can do that for them it will be great."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Stewart Downing insists West Ham have the squad to go far in the cup AND
survive
Stewart Downing insists West Ham have a stronger squad this season
Sam Allardyce's side won their first game of the campaign against Crystal
Palace on Saturday, with Downing scoring
West Ham reached the semi-final of the Capital One Cup last season
They face Sheffield United in the second round on Tuesday evening
By MARK BRYANS, PRESS ASSOCIATION
PUBLISHED: 18:41, 25 August 2014 | UPDATED: 18:41, 25 August 2014
Daily Mail
Stewart Downing believes West Ham have a stronger squad this season as the
challenge of juggling league and cup football beckons. Sam Allardyce's side
reached the semi-finals of the Capital One Cup last season and start their
tilt at the trophy with a home game against Sheffield United on Tuesday
evening.
The Hammers were in the midst of a mid-season injury crisis as they lost 9-0
on aggregate to the eventual winners Manchester City in January - with
Barclays Premier League survival the main concern. With a number of
first-team players missing at the time, Allardyce was forced to field an
inexperienced side in both legs - but Downing, who scored his first goal of
the season in Saturday's 3-1 win at Crystal Palace, reckons the summer
recruit drive at Upton Park will help significantly on that front. 'I think
all the new signings have settled in well and those who have played have
made good starts,' said the England winger. 'We have a bit of a stronger
squad this season which I think helps the manager. Last season the team had
to literally pick itself at times because of injuries.
'We have a lot more options now and can change it around a bit if needed.'
Of the seven new acquisitions, Aaron Cresswell, Cheikhou Kouyate and Mauro
Zarate have made an instant impact - with the latter opening the scoring at
Selhurst Park with a spectacular volley.
Strikers Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho are still working on their fitness,
while Carl Jenkinson is injured and young midfielder Diego Poyet has played
just eight minutes. With a deeper squad at his disposal, Allardyce is likely
to give Poyet - as well as Valencia and Sakho - a chance to work their way
into his thinking against the Blades. Downing will also want to be involved
against the Sky Bet League One side as he looks to add to his goal on
Saturday, which equalled the solitary strike he managed throughout the whole
of last season. 'Obviously I am eager as is the manager for me to get more
goals this season,' he added. 'To get off the mark second game in, is nice.
I want to shoot more, get in the positions I need to be in. With the goal, I
had it in my head what I wanted to do and hit it where I wanted to and it
worked.' It will be the first meeting of the two sides since West Ham agreed
an out-of-court settlement for a fee reported to be in excess of £20million
to be paid as compensation to the Blades.
The argument stemmed following Sheffield United's relegation from the
Barclays Premier League in 2007 - with West Ham surviving thanks largely to
the goals of Carlos Tevez. It was later discovered that Tevez, as well as
fellow Argentina international Javier Mascherano, were partially owned by
Media Sports Investment, a company run by Kia Joorabchian. The Premier
League fined West Ham £5.5million and, after United unsuccessfully appealed
to be reinstated to the league with West Ham relegated instead, a two-year
legal wrangle ended with the settlement. With plenty of ill-feeling between
the two sets of fans, Allardyce insisted on Saturday he would do his utmost
to appease West Ham's supporters by winning the fixture. 'I think the
reaction is to get a team out there that wins,' he said. 'I'm not so sure
how guilty Sheffield United were on it but that's nothing do with me. It's
about making sure the fans are happy when I go on Tuesday because they feel
aggrieved at what Sheffield United did and if I can do that for them, then
great.'
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Hammers agree Cole fee with Cherries
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 25, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham have agreed a fee of around £1m with Bournemouth for Carlton Cole
but the player has yet to agree to the move. The striker is currently in
talks with The Cherries and there is no problem over the fee with the
Championship outfit's owners. A well placed Irons insider told ClaretandHugh
this morning that a fee of around £1 million had been agreed between the two
clubs and that it was now down to the player . A Hammers source said: "The
fee is around that sort of figure but we are not sure whether they can
afford Carlton's wages. The ball is in his court." However, The Cherries are
well placed financially and recently landed a £5 million plus cash windfall
from the sale of Adam Lallana who was poached from their academy as a
youngster. The Cherries had a 25 per cent of any sell on clause put in which
has now given them a welcome addition to their finances. A Bournemouth
source told us: "Everybody here is hoping it happens – Carlton is exactly
what we need at the moment.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Andy Carroll on the mend
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 25, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Andy Carroll had his protective boot removed last week and is now working
hard in the gym to recover from his ankle operation in an attempt to return
to the Hammers team before Christmas. Carroll had his operation by a world
specilaist in America in late July after being sent home from the New
Zealand tour early and was not expected to return until the New Year but now
it seems Christmas period is the new target. His specialist has given to
green light for him to resume strengthening and fitness work in the gym.
Whether Carroll will automatically regain his slot up front as the lone
striker will depend how Zarate, Valencia and Sakho do between now and
December. One or both of the new strikers are expected to play some part in
tomorrow's cup match against Sheffield United.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Hammers likely line-up for Blades
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 25, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Sam Allardyce has this evening given a very strong indication of the type of
team he will be selecting for the Second Round Capital One Cup clash against
Sheffield United. In a separate story on this site he says that he can
blood Sakho, Valencia, get Ravel [Morrison] back, Mo Diame in there, Diego
Poyet, Guy Demel and Jussi Jasskelainen. "That's the kind of side I'm going
to pick with a couple of young ones in."
Here's the team ClaretandHugh believes the manager will put out tomorrow
evening: Jaaskalainen, Demel, Collins, Burke, Potts; Sakho, Poyet, Diame,
Vaz Te, Morrison, Valencia.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Cole deal collapses
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 25, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Carlton Cole will be staying at Upton Park after his talks aimed at securing
a move to Bournemouth collapsed earlier this evening. Sources inside the
Boleyn were staying tight lipped over the reasons but some reports claim
that manager Sam Allardyce had a late change of heart and wants to keep the
club loyalist.
However, we understand the terms on offer from the Championship club were
also short of Cole's expectations. And it now seems possible that the Irons
will be offering the big fella a new deal at the end of his present deal. A
primary ClaretandHugh source simply said: "It's a non runner. It definitely
won't happen. Things have changed. Carlton's staying. "It looked for a long
time as though it would go through but there are good reasons why it didn't
happen."
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WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce is hoping for big things from his new recruits after
Saturday's showing at Crystal Palace
25.08.2014
Sam Allardyce believes his new signings can continue their impressive start
to life in the Barclays Premier League when Southampton visit the Boleyn
Ground on Saturday. The West Ham United manager proudly explained that he
has never witnessed three new signings take to the UK's top flight so
quickly after watching Aaron Cresswell, Cheik Kouyate and Mauro Zarate play
an influential role in last Saturday's 3-1 win at Crystal Palace. Creswell
and Kouyate were equally impressive in the Hammers' first game against
Tottenham Hotspur and Big Sam is tipping them to take West Ham to new levels
this season. "It's the best I've seen three players adjust to the Premier
League in my eleven or 12 years in this league," Allardyce said. "All three
were good. I've seen one or two hit the ground running, but all three of
them have. It was a really good comeback from last week's loss to Spurs.
"Kouyate has got the modern-day midfield player written all over him. He's
high-energy, two-footed, great box to box, competes in the air and tackles.
It's also great to see a player who comes in with a big smile on his face
every day. He's living his dream by coming to play in the Premier League. "I
think Mauro has grown up and matured. I remember him from his spell at
Birmingham, but he's been to Italy since then and back to Argentina and
scored some goals. He looks a mature player with a lot of qualities in the
final third, something different to what we had. He's taken his opportunity
brilliantly. Hopefully he can continue to grow and improve. "The whole team
played well to start with, but with Mauro's goal, Kouyate in midfield and
Aaron, who has also just joined us, it was an all-round great performance.
It was an outstanding day for us after the bitter disappointment of last
weekend."
Like they did for much of the game against Spurs on the opening day, the
Hammers dominated their London opponents, but this time they made sure they
took their chances when presented. They could have been three up and out of
sight had James Tomkins' early first-half header hit the back of the net and
not the bar, but other than that it was a fine example of striking while the
Irons were hot. "The quality of our finishing was superb as opening the
opposition up is very difficult. You could see that by the quality of goal
we had to score to beat them. "The first one from Zarate was a fantastic
finish, and a fantastic run and finish for the second from Downing. Crystal
Palace couldn't complain."
Big Sam joked that his new attacking coach, Teddy Sheringham, would want to
take all of the credit, but added more seriously that he feels the former
England international is making a big difference on the training pitch with
his strikers. "I'm sure Teddy would say it's probably all down to him! He
can do little things in the groups but the only problem we have is the
sports scientists saying he's out there too long with them! "I don't mind
him taking all the credit for it if we continue to show the quality of
finishes we did on Saturday."
Before the Saints game at the weekend, the Hammers host Sheffield United in
an eagerly awaited Capital One Cup tie at the Boleyn Ground on Tuesday and,
given the strength in depth he currently has available, Big Sam may opt to
shuffle his pack. Aware of the importance of winning the game, though, it is
likely he will still field a strong team with the likes of Diego Poyet,
Ravel Morrison, Mo Diame, Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho all expected to
start.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Preview - Sheffield United
WHUFC.com
All the key information ahead of Tuesday's game against Sheffield United
25.08.2014
WEST HAM UNITED v SHEFFIELD UNITED
CAPITAL ONE CUP SECOND ROUND
BOLEYN GROUND
TUESDAY 26 AUGUST 2014
KICK-OFF: 7.45PM
REFEREE: JAMES LININGTON
In brief
West Ham United's Capital One Cup campaign gets underway on Tuesday evening
with the second round visit of Sky Bet League One side Sheffield United.
The Blades defeated Mansfield Town by a 2-1 scoreline to advance to this
stage of the competition, which the Hammers enter at Round Two. Last year,
West Ham reached the semi-finals after defeating Cheltenham Town, Cardiff
City, Burnley and Tottenham Hotspur, but came up short against eventual
champions Manchester City over two legs.
Sam Allardcye's men gained their first points of the season with a 3-1
victory at Crystal Palace on Saturday, while Sheffield United have six
points from their four games to date, and beat Crawley Town 1-0 at rhe
weekend.
Who are they?
Sheffield United were founded in 1889 as an offshoot of Sheffield United
Cricket Club and quickly enjoyed success, becoming champions of England in
1897/98 and FA Cup winners in 1899, 1902, 1915 and 1925. However, they have
not won a major trophy since that early heyday. Their darkest days came
between 1975-1981, when they fell all the way from the top flight to the
Fourth Division, although they subsequently recovered to become founder
members of the FA Premier League in 1992. Following relegation in 1994, they
have enjoyed one season at the top table since - 2006/07 - but have again
suffered recently, currently playing in the third tier. Last season did
bring a successful FA Cup run, though, as Nigel Clough's men made it to a
Wembley semi-final before losing out to Hull City.
Team news
West Ham United
Several of the Hammers' summer signings could be given their first starts
when Big Sam's men welcome Sheffield United to the Boleyn Ground. Diafra
Sakho and Enner Valencia could feature in attack, while Diego Poyet will be
hoping to be selected in midfield. James Collins returns following
suspension, but Kevin Nolan is out after suffering a shoulder injury last
week.
Sheffield United
Blades midfielder James Wallace could miss out with a groin problem, while
fellow midfielder Stefan Scougall has also been absent in recent weeks.
Sheffield United boss Nigel Clough has insisted that his team will approach
the game with all guns blazing as they look to embark on another famous cup
run.
Referee
Tuesday's referee will be James Linington. Linington was appointed to the
Select Group of assistant referees in 2006, but has yet to be promoted to
the Select Group of referees who officiate in the Barclays Premier League.
Linington has taken charge of a West Ham United first-team fixture twice
before in his career, having previously controlled the Hammers' 1-0 Carling
Cup victory over Oxford United in August 2010 and the 3-2 win over Leicester
City in the Championship in October 2011. After giving up playing football
at the age of 15, Linington moved into refereeing and originally specialised
in being an assistant referee through his career in the professional game.
After running the line in the 2006 League One play-off final at Cardiff's
Millennium Stadium, the official took charge of the 2010 League Two play-off
final between Dagenham & Redbridge and Rotherham United at Wembley in May
2010, having joined the National Group as a referee in 2008. He will be
assisted by John Busby and Ian Fissenden, while the fourth official will be
Gavin Ward.
One to watch
West Ham United
Senegalese forward Diafra Sakho could be given his first start in a Hammers
shirt when they take on the Blades at the Boleyn Ground on Tuesday. Sakho,
24, joined the Hammers on the eve of the new campaign from FC Metz in
France, where his goals helped win successive promotions to the top flight.
He came off the bench in Saturday's 3-1 win over Crystal Palace and will be
looking to maintain his fine goalscoring form from France, which brought 39
league strikes over the last two campaigns.
Sheffield United
Sheffield United's Jose Baxter scored the only goal of the game as his side
defeated Crawley Town on Saturday. 22-year-old Baxter started his career at
Everton and was capped at U17 level by England before dropping down to
Oldham Athletic in 2012 to gain more first team football. After a year at
Boundary Park, which saw him notch 15 league goals, he moved on to Sheffield
United, where eight goals in 45 games followed last term. An attacking
midfielder, Baxter clearly has an eye for goal and the Hammers will have to
wary over his talents on Tuesday.
Tickets
Tickets purchased in advance are priced at just £10 Adults and £5 Under-16s.
Tickets purchased on matchday rise in price by £5 for both categories. Buy
tickets now here.
Travel
No planned closures will affect the District, Hammersmith & City, Jubilee or
Central lines on matchday.
Weather
Another wet day is on the cards for Tuesday, although the rain is predicted
to clear up by the time the game kicks-off. Sunny intervals are forecast for
late evening, with temperatures of 16C (61F)
Last meeting
The Hammers last met Sheffield United towards the end of the 2006/07 season
with both sides fighting for Premier League survival. The Blades won
comfortably on that occasion, but it was the Hammers who celebrated come the
season's end as their great escape left Sheffield United back in the
Championship.
Sheffield United 3-0 West Ham United
14 April 2007
Sheffield United: Kenny, Geary, Jagielka, Armstrong, Davis (Morgan 56),
Gillespie, Montgomery, Tonge, Stead, Nade (Quinn 61), Kazim-Richards (Webber
83)
Subs: Kozluk, Shelton
Goals: Tonge 39, Jagielka 68, Stead 78
West Ham United: Green, Neill, Ferdinand, McCartney, Collins, Noble (Blanco
73), Reo-Coker, Etherington (Boa Morte 65), Bowyer (Mullins 65), Zamora,
Tevez
Subs: Walker, Spector
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham v Sheff Utd
KO 19:45
25 August 2014
Last updated at 11:54
CAPITAL ONE CUP SECOND ROUND
Venue: Upton Park Date: Tuesday, 26 August
Coverage: Text commentary online, with highlights on The League Cup Show on
Wednesday 27 August at 23:05 BST (BBC1 and BBC1 Scotland) or 23:35 (BBC 1
Wales) or on Thursday 28 August at 00:05 BST (BBC1 Northern Ireland)
TEAM NEWS
West Ham will again be without captain Kevin Nolan, who sat out Saturday's
win at Crystal Palace because of a fractured shoulder. James Collins is back
after a ban and Matt Jarvis could return following a thigh problem but Carl
Jenkinson (hamstring) is unlikely to be risked
Sheffield United boss Nigel Clough has no new fitness concerns. He may be
tempted to rotate his squad, so Jamal-Campbell-Ryce, Mark McNulty and Bob
Harris will hope for recalls.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Sheffield United have lost only one of their last five games against West
Ham in all competitions (W2, D2).
The Hammers have won the two previous League Cup meetings, in 1971 and 1991.
They scored a total of seven unanswered goals in those two cup ties.
West Ham United
The Hammers reached the final four of the League Cup last season.
However, their 9-0 aggregate defeat to Manchester City was the biggest
losing margin in a semi-final in the competition's history.
West Ham's last League Cup defeat against lower league opposition came in
August 2011, when they were beaten 2-1 by Aldershot Town in the first round.
The Hammers have won nine of their last 12 League Cup matches at home,
losing the other three.
Sheffield United
The Blades have not reached the third round of the League Cup since 2008.
Their win over Mansfield in the opening round was their first in eight
matches (D2, L5) in this competition.
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Bournemouth want Cole
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 25th August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Carlton Cole looks set to be the first casualty of West Ham's recent
recruitment programme. The 30-year-old striker scored his first goal of the
season in the 3-1 win at Crystal Palace at the weekend but could be on the
verge of leaving West Ham some eight years after moving to the club from
Chelsea. According to reports from various sources, Championship side
Bournemouth are poised to enter talks with the former England international
after a fee was agreed between the two clubs for the transfer of Cole, whose
latest deal with West Ham expires at the end of the current campaign. Eddie
Howe's side are currently 11th in the Championship with six points from
their opening four matches. Cole has made more than 250 appearances for West
Ham since Alan Pardew signed him for £2million.
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Mauro Zarate aiming to emulate Carlos Tevez at West Ham
Last Updated: 25/08/14 11:01am
SSN
Mauro Zarate is hoping to emulate fellow Argentine Carlos Tevez and become a
fans' favourite at West Ham United. Zarate has arrived at Upton Park eight
years after his countryman completed a shock switch to England and helped to
fire West Ham to Premier League survival. He lasted less than a season with
the Hammers, but did enough during his brief spell to earn cult hero status.
Zarate has some way to go before he can claim to sit alongside Tevez, but
the 27-year-old is determined to enjoy similar success. He is back in the
Premier League for a second spell, having spent time on loan at Birmingham
City in 2008, and believes he returns better equipped to handle the
challenges which lie ahead. Zarate said after netting in a 3-1 victory over
Crystal Palace on Saturday: "I don't know if I am a better player than I was
then. But I am more experienced. That is very important in football. "I
spoke with other Argentine players before I came back here. I speak with
Sergio Aguero, sometimes we have dinner together. I always wanted to come
back to England. He said West Ham was a good move for me. "Carlos Tevez is a
star. He won everything – the Champions League with Manchester United,
everything with Manchester City. Now he is with Juventus. "I am different. I
know he was very popular with West Ham fans. I hope I can have the same
impact."
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce is convinced that Zarate can make a positive
impression, with the former Lazio and Inter Milan frontman offering
something different to the other strikers on his books. He said: "He is a
different kind of player. He likes to find spaces. None of our other players
are like that. "He has some strengths that other players at our club don't
have, and he showed that. He has the quality to break down tight defences."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Stewart Downing impressed with West Ham's signings
Last Updated: 25/08/14 4:28pm
SSN
Stewart Downing believes West Ham's new recruits have already shown that
manager Sam Allardyce has spent wisely during the summer. Aaron Cresswell,
Cheikhou Kouyate and Mauro Zarate were among seven of Allardyce's signings
and the trio played their part in Saturday's 3-1 win over Crystal Palace.
Zarate opened the scoring with a spectacular volley, while further goals
from Downing and Carlton Cole secured a first Premier League victory of the
season at Selhurst Park. A mid-season injury crisis hampered the Hammers
last season, but Downing believes there is much more strength in depth and
has been impressed by recent additions. I think all the new signings have
settled in well and those who have played have made good starts," said the
winger. "We have a bit of a stronger squad this season which I think helps
the manager. Last season the team had to literally pick itself at times
because of injuries. "We have a lot more options now and can change it
around a bit if needed."
The 30-year-old has slipped out of England contention, but gave a reminder
of his attacking threat with a curling shot past Julian Speroni in the first
half.
He admits that Allardyce has urged him to shoulder some of the goalscoring
burden during this campaign. "Obviously I am eager as is the manager for me
to get more goals this season," he said. "To get off the mark second game
in, is nice. I want to shoot more, get in the positions I need to be in.
With the goal, I had it in my head what I wanted to do and hit it where I
wanted to and it worked."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Capital One Cup team news: West Ham v Sheff United preview
Last Updated: 25/08/14 3:48pm
SSN
West Ham will be without captain Kevin Nolan for Tuesday's Capital One Cup
second-round tie against Sheffield United. The midfielder has been ruled out
for six weeks with a fractured shoulder and manager Sam Allardyce must now
decide if Mauro Zarate will keep his place in the side after replacing Nolan
for Saturday's win at Crystal Palace. Matt Jarvis could return following a
thigh problem but Carl Jenkinson (hamstring) is unlikely to be risked. New
strikers Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho could make their full debuts while
youngsters Dan Potts, Reece Burke, Diego Poyet and Danny Whitehead will all
hope to be involved.
Sheffield United manager Nigel Clough is expected to make one or two changes
for his side's Capital One Cup clash at West Ham. Clough, who has no new
major injury or suspension worries, could be tempted to utilise his squad
with the likes of winger Jamal Campbell-Ryce, striker Mark McNulty, defender
Bob Harris and teenage midfielder Louis Reed pushing for recalls. Striker
Michael Higdon was rested for the recent win at Peterborough and could start
on the bench again, while winger Ryan Flynn is another who could return to
the starting line-up. The Blades are chasing a third straight victory after
successive league wins.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
AFC BOURNEMOUTH WANT CARLTON COLE
By Sean Whetstone 25 Aug 2014 at 12:16
West Ham Till I Die
Carlton Cole representatives are in talks with AFC Bournemouth for a
possible move to the Championship club. Cherries Manager Eddie Howe is a big
fan of the Hammers striker and is keen to sign the player before the
transfer window finishes. Whether Carlton Cole who scored the Hammers third
goal yesterday afternoon will personal terms remains to be seen. There
remains a question whether Bournemouth can afford his wages. The Cherries
are thought to be prepared to pay West Ham a £1m transfer fee. When Enner
Valencia and Diafro Sakho are fully match fit and Andy Carroll hopefully
returns in two months time Cole must realise he is likely to drop down the
striker pecking order significantly. Carlton Cole signed a 18 month contract
with West Ham in January 2014 which will take him up to the end of this
season after he was previously released in May 2013. He is believed to have
taken a pay cut to re-join the hammers from the £30,000 per week he
previously enjoyed. Cole admitted he once took a 50% pay cut when the
Hammers dropped down the championship and has remained a loyal servant to
the club since joining from Chelsea in 2006. In 2011 West Ham agreed to sell
Cole to Stoke but Carlton failed to agree personal terms and the deal
collapsed.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
THE PRICE OF PREMIER LEAGUE SURVIVAL
By Sean Whetstone 25 Aug 2014 at 08:24
West Ham Till I Die
West Ham are believed to have paid about £24.5m in initial transfer fees
this summer transfer window for the seven signings but that amount could
rise to £37m based on certain conditions such as appearances, goals and the
Hammers final league position this season. Add to this a massive £49m wages
and national insurance we have committed to over the next four to five years
for the new recruits, agents fees are thought to add another £4m to the
total bill.
The annual budget for players wages is thought to have now reached £57m
leaving just £1m before the Premier League Financial Fair Play limit is
reached for this season.
Although West Ham received over £73m from TV income last season and are
likely to pass £110m turnover when figures are released next January for
last season there is likely to be a short fall with the recent huge
investment in signings. I wouldn't be surprised if David Sullivan and David
Gold injected more money to help balance the books this season after already
loaning £45.7m in the form of share holder loans plus another £25.5m for
shares from the Icelandics on the condition they loaned the money back to
the club.
The cost of staying in the Premier League have never be higher but the
consequences of relegation before we move to the Olympic Stadium would be
catastrophic at this stage.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Carlos Tevez affair still cuts deep as Sheffield United face West Ham
• Mutual loathing as Bramall Lane club return in League Cup
• Relegation after Argentinian signed for West Ham still festers
John Ashdown
The Guardian, Monday 25 August 2014 19.58 BST
Carlos Tevez scored the only goal against Manchester United to relegate
Sheffield United in 2007. Carlos Tevez, who scored the only goal against
Manchester United at Old Trafford, to relegate Sheffield United in 2007.
Photograph: Tom Jenkins for the Guardian The second round of the League Cup
is not usually associated with vitriol, venom and downright loathing but
there will be an abundance of all three at Upton Park on Tuesday evening
when West Ham welcome Sheffield United for the first time since the clubs
had an ever so minor disagreement over a certain Argentinian.
The memory of Carlos Tevez and the court cases that saw West Ham pay £20m in
compensation to Sheffield United remains an incendiary issue between the
clubs and one that infuses this fixture like lighter fluid. Resentment has
festered.
Tevez's arrival with Javier Mascherano at West Ham on transfer deadline day
in August 2006 sowed the seeds of a problem. The discovery of the
third-party agreements concerning the players that came to light in January
2007 provided the soil in which they could grow. The independent Premier
League commission's decision to impose a record £5.5m fine rather than a
points deduction did all the watering and weeding required for the issue to
come into full bloom. West Ham opted not to appeal. Kevin McCabe, the
Sheffield United chairman, felt the decision "invited anarchy".
On the final day of the season West Ham went to Old Trafford to face
Manchester United and got the win they needed, with, of course, Tevez
scoring the only goal of the game. At Bramall Lane Neil Warnock's side
needed only a draw to relegate their opponents Wigan Athletic, who would
then very likely have taken United's place in what was to come, but lost 2-1
thanks to a David Unsworth penalty.
United lost an initial appeal against their relegation in the summer of
2007, despite an arbitration panel admitting that it "would in all
probability have reached a different conclusion and deducted points from
West Ham". A year after relegation an independent FA tribunal found in their
favour, with the chair, Lord Griffiths, judging that: "We have no doubt that
West Ham would have secured at least three fewer points over the 2006-07
season if Carlos Tevez had not been playing for the club."
Sheffield United had wanted compensation of up to £45m in lost income but in
the end came to an out-of-court settlement with West Ham that saw the
Hammers pay almost £20m. The West Ham chief executive, Scott Duxbury, said
he was pleased to "draw a line under this whole episode", McCabe was "happy
and satisfied" with the settlement that had been reached in discussions that
were "friendly, co-operative and in the best of spirit". The final payment
was delivered in the summer of 2013. The boardrooms and moneymen may have
been able to bury the hatchet but football fans have longer memories than
those that run their clubs.
Sheffield United's trajectory since 2007 has hardly helped. Thanks to that
original £5.5m fine, the Premier League itself has been the target of much
of the supporters' ire and the club have spent the intervening years getting
as far away from it as possible. The financial boon of the final settlement
should have helped Sheffield United bounce back towards the top flight but
the parachute payments and money received from West Ham were squandered and
the club are beginning their fourth successive season in the third tier.
All but a handful of the original players in the drama have moved on – Chris
Morgan, now first-team coach, is the only member of the playing staff from
2006-07 still at Bramall Lane. Carlton Cole, James Collins and Mark Noble,
one of whom is likely to start on Tuesday evening, are the only West Ham
players at the club who were team-mates of Tevez. The No32 shirt worn by
Tevez is now on the back of 17-year-old Reece Burke, who was 10 years old
when West Ham performed their great escape at Old Trafford.
Both sets of fans seem convinced that the other is far more bothered about
the tie than they are. In truth, both desperately want a modicum of revenge.
"It's about me making sure that they [the fans] go home happy because they
feel aggrieved about what Sheffield United did," said the West Ham manager,
Sam Allardyce. "So if I can do that for them it will be great."
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Stewart Downing insists West Ham have the squad to go far in the cup AND
survive
Stewart Downing insists West Ham have a stronger squad this season
Sam Allardyce's side won their first game of the campaign against Crystal
Palace on Saturday, with Downing scoring
West Ham reached the semi-final of the Capital One Cup last season
They face Sheffield United in the second round on Tuesday evening
By MARK BRYANS, PRESS ASSOCIATION
PUBLISHED: 18:41, 25 August 2014 | UPDATED: 18:41, 25 August 2014
Daily Mail
Stewart Downing believes West Ham have a stronger squad this season as the
challenge of juggling league and cup football beckons. Sam Allardyce's side
reached the semi-finals of the Capital One Cup last season and start their
tilt at the trophy with a home game against Sheffield United on Tuesday
evening.
The Hammers were in the midst of a mid-season injury crisis as they lost 9-0
on aggregate to the eventual winners Manchester City in January - with
Barclays Premier League survival the main concern. With a number of
first-team players missing at the time, Allardyce was forced to field an
inexperienced side in both legs - but Downing, who scored his first goal of
the season in Saturday's 3-1 win at Crystal Palace, reckons the summer
recruit drive at Upton Park will help significantly on that front. 'I think
all the new signings have settled in well and those who have played have
made good starts,' said the England winger. 'We have a bit of a stronger
squad this season which I think helps the manager. Last season the team had
to literally pick itself at times because of injuries.
'We have a lot more options now and can change it around a bit if needed.'
Of the seven new acquisitions, Aaron Cresswell, Cheikhou Kouyate and Mauro
Zarate have made an instant impact - with the latter opening the scoring at
Selhurst Park with a spectacular volley.
Strikers Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho are still working on their fitness,
while Carl Jenkinson is injured and young midfielder Diego Poyet has played
just eight minutes. With a deeper squad at his disposal, Allardyce is likely
to give Poyet - as well as Valencia and Sakho - a chance to work their way
into his thinking against the Blades. Downing will also want to be involved
against the Sky Bet League One side as he looks to add to his goal on
Saturday, which equalled the solitary strike he managed throughout the whole
of last season. 'Obviously I am eager as is the manager for me to get more
goals this season,' he added. 'To get off the mark second game in, is nice.
I want to shoot more, get in the positions I need to be in. With the goal, I
had it in my head what I wanted to do and hit it where I wanted to and it
worked.' It will be the first meeting of the two sides since West Ham agreed
an out-of-court settlement for a fee reported to be in excess of £20million
to be paid as compensation to the Blades.
The argument stemmed following Sheffield United's relegation from the
Barclays Premier League in 2007 - with West Ham surviving thanks largely to
the goals of Carlos Tevez. It was later discovered that Tevez, as well as
fellow Argentina international Javier Mascherano, were partially owned by
Media Sports Investment, a company run by Kia Joorabchian. The Premier
League fined West Ham £5.5million and, after United unsuccessfully appealed
to be reinstated to the league with West Ham relegated instead, a two-year
legal wrangle ended with the settlement. With plenty of ill-feeling between
the two sets of fans, Allardyce insisted on Saturday he would do his utmost
to appease West Ham's supporters by winning the fixture. 'I think the
reaction is to get a team out there that wins,' he said. 'I'm not so sure
how guilty Sheffield United were on it but that's nothing do with me. It's
about making sure the fans are happy when I go on Tuesday because they feel
aggrieved at what Sheffield United did and if I can do that for them, then
great.'
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Hammers agree Cole fee with Cherries
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 25, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham have agreed a fee of around £1m with Bournemouth for Carlton Cole
but the player has yet to agree to the move. The striker is currently in
talks with The Cherries and there is no problem over the fee with the
Championship outfit's owners. A well placed Irons insider told ClaretandHugh
this morning that a fee of around £1 million had been agreed between the two
clubs and that it was now down to the player . A Hammers source said: "The
fee is around that sort of figure but we are not sure whether they can
afford Carlton's wages. The ball is in his court." However, The Cherries are
well placed financially and recently landed a £5 million plus cash windfall
from the sale of Adam Lallana who was poached from their academy as a
youngster. The Cherries had a 25 per cent of any sell on clause put in which
has now given them a welcome addition to their finances. A Bournemouth
source told us: "Everybody here is hoping it happens – Carlton is exactly
what we need at the moment.
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Andy Carroll on the mend
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 25, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Andy Carroll had his protective boot removed last week and is now working
hard in the gym to recover from his ankle operation in an attempt to return
to the Hammers team before Christmas. Carroll had his operation by a world
specilaist in America in late July after being sent home from the New
Zealand tour early and was not expected to return until the New Year but now
it seems Christmas period is the new target. His specialist has given to
green light for him to resume strengthening and fitness work in the gym.
Whether Carroll will automatically regain his slot up front as the lone
striker will depend how Zarate, Valencia and Sakho do between now and
December. One or both of the new strikers are expected to play some part in
tomorrow's cup match against Sheffield United.
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Hammers likely line-up for Blades
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 25, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Sam Allardyce has this evening given a very strong indication of the type of
team he will be selecting for the Second Round Capital One Cup clash against
Sheffield United. In a separate story on this site he says that he can
blood Sakho, Valencia, get Ravel [Morrison] back, Mo Diame in there, Diego
Poyet, Guy Demel and Jussi Jasskelainen. "That's the kind of side I'm going
to pick with a couple of young ones in."
Here's the team ClaretandHugh believes the manager will put out tomorrow
evening: Jaaskalainen, Demel, Collins, Burke, Potts; Sakho, Poyet, Diame,
Vaz Te, Morrison, Valencia.
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Cole deal collapses
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 25, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Carlton Cole will be staying at Upton Park after his talks aimed at securing
a move to Bournemouth collapsed earlier this evening. Sources inside the
Boleyn were staying tight lipped over the reasons but some reports claim
that manager Sam Allardyce had a late change of heart and wants to keep the
club loyalist.
However, we understand the terms on offer from the Championship club were
also short of Cole's expectations. And it now seems possible that the Irons
will be offering the big fella a new deal at the end of his present deal. A
primary ClaretandHugh source simply said: "It's a non runner. It definitely
won't happen. Things have changed. Carlton's staying. "It looked for a long
time as though it would go through but there are good reasons why it didn't
happen."
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