Sam gives summer deals the thumbs up
WHUFC.com
Manager Sam Allardyce has hailed West Ham United's summer transfer dealings
02.09.2014
Sam Allardyce has hailed West Ham United's summer transfer dealings after
completing his ninth and final signing on deadline day. France international
Morgan Amalfitano arrived from Olympique de Marseille on Monday, joining
Alex Song, Mauro Zarate, Cheikhou Kouyate, Enner Valencia, Diafra Sakho,
Carl Jenkinson, Aaron Cresswell and Diego Poyet. With more goals and
entertainment on the agenda, Big Sam believes the Hammers have added plenty
of attacking threat to their squad, with the added bonus of the nine
arrivals having an average age of just 24 and a half. Speaking to West Ham
TV, the manager spoke enthusiastically about the Club's recent arrivals. At
the same time, Mohamed Diame was the only senior first-team squad member to
leave after Hull City made a bid acceptable for a player in the final year
of his contract.
"It has been a good window for us," Big Sam confirmed. "There are some
players of development among our signings in young Sakho and Diego Poyet,
particularly those two. There, we are hoping to develop them this season,
but it may not be this season. "All the others, we're hoping will adapt to
be very successful, particularly Enner Valencia. However, he is the most
difficult one coming from South America and from a club in Mexico, so we may
need to be a little more patient with him. "Of course, our injury list has
been a little too long, but hopefully we will improve that by the time the
window has shut."
The final piece of the transfer window jigsaw fell into place just minutes
before the deadline on Monday evening, when Amalfitano put pen to paper on
an initial one-year contract, which could extend to up to three seasons
should the player achieve certain criteria. The manager certainly expects
the new No21 to be a hit in a Claret and Blue shirt following successful
spells with Sedan, Lorient, Marseille, where he earned a reputation for his
creativity and accurate delivery from both open play and set pieces. "We
finally sorted it out and to be fair to Morgan, he flew over first thing
Monday morning as soon as we knew that there was a deal to be done.
Obviously, that was on the back of Mo leaving and the fact that the cause in
his contract was triggered on the money side. We wish Mo all the best.
"Morgan has come in and improved the squad. If you look at his record of
French international football, Champions League football with Marseille and
what he has done over there and of course a good season at West Brom under
Steve Clarke. "I spoke to Steve a few days ago and he told me nothing but
good things about Morgan, so he fits the bill and he adds more creativity to
the team. As everybody knows, we're trying to play a more expansive game,
but that is all down to the quality that we hope we have in the squad, even
after the disappointment of our performance against Southampton. "We have
signed a lot of players and we hope they bed in now. Hopefully they will get
better and better as quickly as possible. With Morgan, he certainly has the
experience and quality and his technical and physical stats stand up very,
very well in the Premier League, based on what he achieved at West Bromwich
Albion. "Morgan fits the bill as he plays in three positions - down the
right, down the left or in the hole - and his goal at Old Trafford last year
sprang to mind when the deal came about. If anybody hasn't done it, they
should get on YouTube and sees what he did there last year. If he can
reproduce that on a regular basis and score and provide goals, then we have
a very good player on our hands."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
'We're only three games in'
WHUFC.com
Despite Saturday's defeat, Joey O'Brien is confident the Hammers can get
their season back on track
02.09.2014
Despite a disappointing 3-1 home defeat by Southampton, Joey O'Brien remains
confident that West Ham United can achieve a top-ten Barclays Premier League
finish this season. The Hammers took the lead on Saturday through a
deflected Mark Noble shot before Morgan Schneiderlin equalised just before
half-time. Southampton were the better team in the second half and were
rewarded when Schneiderlin scored from a quickly-taken corner before
Graziano Pelle secured the three points with a powerful finish. Speaking
after the game, O'Brien admitted: "We were off on all aspects of the pitch.
We weren't at our full complement on Saturday, we were awful. But no
excuses, we got what we deserved."
While defeat may have been deserved, the No17 remained upbeat on the
Hammers' prospects for the season as a whole: "It's only early into the
season. It's important we don't lose enthusiasm or lose focus. The end game
is to finish in the top ten. We're only three games into a 38 game season."
O'Brien is anticipating the Hammers' next league game, away to Hull City on
the 15 September, perhaps more than most, as he wants to erase the memory of
the same fixture last season. Then, he gave away a hotly-disputed penalty
for a foul on compatriot Robbie Brady, who got up to convert the spot-kick
as Hull won 1-0. "Our next game is against Hull and we're looking forward to
performing against them. It's going to be a big game."
Hammers fans have further reason to be positive as Matt Jarvis, James
Collins and Carl Jenkinson should all be back available for selection
following injury issues. When asked about the tough competition for places,
O'Brien responded: "If you perform you get a chance. The manager picks the
best players that he thinks deserve to play. If you train well, perform
well, that's all you can do really."
Another player who will be ready for selection is loan signing Alex Song.
The Cameroon midfielder is a player who the full-back believes will make a
huge impact in a Claret and Blue shirt. "It's a massive signing," O'Brien
enthused. "It's a big positive, bringing in a player of his quality. It's a
powerful sign to bring in someone from Barcelona, he's going to add serious
quality to the squad. Prior to the trip to the KC Stadium, the 27-year-old
will hope to earn his sixth and seventh senior international caps for the
Republic of Ireland. The Irish face a friendly meeting with Oman at the
Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Wednesday 3 September before contesting their
opening UEFA Euro 2016 Group D qualifier with Georgia at the Dinamo Arena in
Tbilisi on Sunday 7 September.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
McCartney's magical mystery tour
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 2nd September 2014
By: Staff Writer
'Gorgeous' George McCartney could be set for an Antipodean adventure, after
it was revealed he is in talks with Sydney FC over a permanent move. The
popular full back enjoyed two spells at West Ham, the latter ending in June
of this year after his two-year contract, signed in 2012, expired. Since
then the 33-year-old left back, who West Ham sold for £8million in 2009
before landing him again on a nominal fee three years later, has been
without a club. However that could be set to change following the A-League
side's decision to approach the former Northern Ireland international with
view to going down under.
According to the Sydney Herald, McCartney is one of several options
available to the Sky Blues who embarrassed West Ham when they beat Sam
Allardyce's side 3-1 during the summer's Football United tour. The club have
already filled three of their four available slots for foreign players, but
believe that McCartney would be the perfect fit for the final space.
McCartney is expected to confirm his decision by the weekend. Sydney FC open
their 2014/15 A-League campaign at home to the freshly-rebranded Melbourne
City on 11 October.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Joey adds to injury woes
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 2nd September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Joey O'Brien has been sent home from international duty after picking up a
knock during training. The 28-year-old full back, who has started all three
of West Ham's Premier League games so far this season has sustained a knee
injury and has been sent back to West Ham for further assessment. An FAI
spokesman told the Irish Times: "The Football Association of Ireland today
confirmed that Joey O'Brien has withdrawn from the Irish squad, and will
return to his club for treatment on an ongoing knee problem."
O'Brien becomes the latest addition to a lengthening injury list that
already includes the likes of Andy Carroll, Kevin Nolan, Carl Jenkinson and
Matt Jarvis.
However all bar Carroll and Nolan - and possibly O'Brien, depending on the
diagnosis - are expected to return for West Ham's next Premier League outing
at Hull in a fortnight's time. Ireland - currently managed by former Hammers
target Martin O'Neill - face Oman in a friendly tomorrow night (Wednesday)
and Georgia in a European Championship qualifier this weekend (Sunday).
O'Brien, whose career has been interrupted by a constant stream of injuries
has made just 157 starts for Bolton, Sheffield Wednesday and West Ham since
making his professional debut for the Trotters against Yeovil in September
2004.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Fans give thumbs-up to transfer window
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 2nd September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Four out of five Hammers fans voting in a new KUMB.com Poll have backed the
club's summer transfer business.
An overwhelming 83 per cent of supporters voting in our poll so far today
believe the club can be pleased with their summer overhaul, having
introduced nine new faces to the first team squad.
KUMB member HongKongHammer was one of the majority in favour. "A very good
window and a nice mixture of purchases for the future, a bit of experience
and the wild card punt," he said. "No doubt we are a much stronger squad
than this time last year."
It was a view shared by fellow member Simon Hammer, who added: "Our best
transfer window ever. Every player we have got in represents an upgrade on
the ones that have gone out. Cresswell is better than McCartney, Song is
better than Diame etc. I'm massively pleased with the signings, let's see if
Sam can get them playing as a team now."
Mauro Zarate, Cheikhou Kouyate, Enner Valencia, Diego Poyet, Aaron
Cresswell, Alex Song, Diafra Sakho, Carl Jenkinson and Morgan Amalfitano
have all joined West Ham this summer, giving Sam Allardyce's squad a
considerable boost for the remainder of the campaign.
However some fans have expressed concern about the failure to adequately
address the lack of cover in central defence - an issue that seriously
disrupted last season's campaign when Allardyce was forced to bring in Roger
Johnson from League One Wolves as emergency cover.
For now, Winston Reid, James Tomkins and James Collins remain Allardyce's
only three dedicated central defenders. Whilst the likes of Alex Song and
Cheikhou Kouyate can also 'do a job' there - and 17-year-old Reece Burke has
appeared against Sampdoria and Sheffield United without any evidence of
being overawed by the occasion - it remains an area of concern.
"Priority for me was a first choice centre back, not a fourth choice as that
should be [James] Collins," wrote another KUMB member, Doctor Mopp. "If Reid
gets an injury like last year we will struggle in the same way again."
That view was seconded by The Celestial Insect, who added: "As yet, the Reid
situation hasn't been resolved, and looks to be unsettling. We're only a
couple of injuries away from a very serious problem in defence."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
BRINGING THE BALL OUT FROM THE BACK (AKA "THE WEST HAM WAY")
By Iain Dale 2 Sep 2014 at 21:00
West Ham Till I Die
Guest Post by Neil Clack
For me, a fundamental part of the hallowed 'West Ham Way' is central
defenders bringing the ball out from the back.
That started with Bobby Moore, and continued through Tommy Taylor, Alvin
Martin, Tony Gale, Bilic and Rieper, Rio Ferdinand… even Steve Potts used to
play the ball out.
We also had attacking full backs who would over-lap and get forward, best
exemplified by John Bond, Noel Cantwell, Billy Bonds, Lampard Snr, McDowell,
Dicks, Stewart, Breaker…
Billy Bonds has a repuation as a hard tackler, but when he played at centre
back, he too used to bring the ball out with no little skill, sometimes
going on swashbucking runs, well into the opponents half.
Of course, that cavalier style of play made us vulnerable and is one of the
reasons we used to concede so many goals – even with Moore at the back!
But that style of play was part of our identity, and very few English teams
played that way (especially in the 1980s). Ultimately, we were playing in a
more European/South American style, and were good for English football, in
general, in my opinion.
Every now and again, when the stars line up in the right order, it all comes
together, and we have a good team, both attacking and defensively, eg. 1986,
the early Greenwood years, and the golden 1980-84 period when we finished
9th, 8th, 9th, with Brooking, Devonshire and Alvin Martin at their peak –
that team was a real joy to watch… but most of the time, the West Ham Way
will always be incomplete because we've never had enough money to have top
players in every position, which that intricate style of playing requires.
But, for me, striving to play that way is funadamental to the clubs
identity, and why I'm proud to be a West Ham supporter, even though it means
we'll lose a lot of matches, and sometimes be on the receiving ends of some
right hammerings due to the openness of the style.
It may not have come off all the time, but until the last decade West Ham
sides did always try and play that way.
I remember once a teenage Rio Ferdinand gave the ball away which led to some
groans from the crowd, but manager Redknapp was quick to defend him
afterwards,"He's still learning the game, and we've told him to play like
that", he said,"I'd rather he makes a ricket than just kick it into the
stands". There was a clear philosophy, handed down by Ron Greenwood; it
sometimes cost us points, but was one of the reasons why, on a good day,
West Ham were great to watch.
It's not so much the fact that we don't play that way anymore that hurts,
but the fact that there's no attempt to. We're just another club in terms of
style of play. No, it's worse than that because other teams, not just the
bigger clubs like Arsenal, but clubs smaller than us, like Southampton and
Swansea, play more like West Ham used to play than West Ham.
Southampton decided a couple of years back to implement a clear style of
play that goes right the way through from the youth to the first team, so
when they inevitably have to sell players or have a change of manager/coach,
it can all be done smoothly without much disruption to the way they play.
Swansea decided a decade ago, when their Supporters Trust tookover the club,
to have a very clear footballing ethos – a modern passing game that they'll
stick to come what way.
The complete opposite to West Ham.
We've jumped from Zola/Clarke to Allardyce via Grant, in a manner
reminiscent of the schizophrenic behaviour of Alan Sugar, a man who clearly
had no idea how he wanted his Tottenham team to play as he went from the
polar opposites of Ossie Ardiles to George Graham in just a couple of years.
I hope I'm wrong, but demanding the most 'direct' manager of the last 15
years to suddenly change his whole footballing outlook, and then trying to
graft South American ball-players onto his tactics is asking for a mess, in
my opinion.
I worried when I saw David Gold quoted on ESPN.
When we suggested we were looking for more attacking style this season, it
essentially meant we want to see more goals from the team. We scored 40
goals in 38 games last season and it is not too much to ask for an
improvement on those figures."Let me tell you categorically that Sam wants
us to score more goals, just as much as I do, and all the club's fans and
the players. Those players we have looked to bring to the club this summer
will hopefully allow us to offer more of an attacking threat in the weeks
and months ahead.
(Full quotes here)
That sounds naive to me? That you just buy some attacking players, and there
you go… But what do I know? Maybe he's right? Maybe it's as simple as that?
To be honest, I've never quite understood what's been going on at West Ham
over the last few years. The owners issued a statement at the end of last
season, saying that some people (meaning Allardyce, I guess?) may question
what the West Ham Way is, but "we understand what it means". If that's true,
why did they appoint Allardyce in the first place? That's a contradiction,
surely?
And the irony is that when the owners tookover we had a management team who
had a very clear attacking and passing philosophy, who believed in coaching,
who believed in playing the yougsters, and who were happy not to be involved
in transfers, but they sacked them! Personally, I always felt Zola/Clarke
were never given enough credit for keeping the club in the Prem despite
having thier best players (Bellamy, Etherington) sold from above them,
replaced by cheap inferior loans and has-beens. They even lost influential
captain Lucas Neill on the eve of the new season, who simply wasn't replaced
either as a leader or as a right back, and yet they kept us up.
Although I despaired when Allardyce was appointed, because I thought –
perhaps wrongly? -that he represented everything that West Ham was not, I am
not one who boos or demands he gets sacked now. He's here now, and I believe
we should back him – after all, wasn't loyalty and not sacking managers
another long lost tradition of the West Ham Way?
No, I'm not angry with West Ham, as so many of my fellow fans seem to be
these days, just a bit baffled by it all, to be honest?
And without wishing to stick the boot into Sam anymore, I think it should be
pointed out that he was a bit economical with the truth in that infamous
first conference when he mocked the West Ham Way – or, to give him the
benefit of the doubt, maybe his memory failed him a bit? – because when he
said he used to enjoy coming to Upton Park as a player as West Ham were
known as a soft touch and it invariably meant leaving with 3 points, a quick
bit of research reveals that, for nearly all his playing career, Allardyce
was in a different Division to West Ham (Bolton came up in 78, the year we
went down), and neither did his teams (Bolton, Sunderland, Coventry,
Millwall) meet us in any of the Cups. He actually played at Upton Park only
once, for Coventry in 1983, and the score that day was 5-2 to the Hammers! I
remember that game well; I was watching from the North Bank, one of my
favourite ever matches, as Brooking, Devonshire, and Dave Swindlehurst tore
the big moustachioed Coventry cent re-half apart with beautiful passing
moves, wave upon wave of attacks, many initaited by Alvin Martin and Billy
Bonds bringing the ball out from the back.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
WINLESS WEEKEND FOR WEST HAM
By Tommy Wathen 2 Sep 2014 at 17:00
West Ham Till I Die
As a West Ham fan, I sometimes like to think that if we were winning all the
time, it would get boring. Luckily for me, none of the major branches of the
club secured a victory this weekend. On Saturday morning, I was at Little
Heath reporting on the Academy as West Ham U18 wasted a 2-0 lead at home to
Spurs U18 to take a 3-3 draw, before I headed to Upton Park to watch the
first team get picked apart by Southampton. Then on Sunday, I went for a
long trip to Bristol as Keynsham Ladies came from behind to beat West Ham
Ladies, while up at Manchester City, the Development Squad played out a 1-1
draw.
West Ham United U18 3-3 Tottenham Hotspurs U18
West Ham Goals: Jordan Brown (2), Manny Onariase.
Steve Potts' Academy side however do remain unbeaten after three league
games this season, with the Spurs game following an opening day victory at
West Brom and a home draw with Leicester City. West Ham named a youthful U18
side that contained first year scholars and schoolboys, with England U18
left back Kyle Knoyle stepping in once again to captain the side after
former captain Kieran Bywater stepped up to the Development Squad over the
summer. The Hammers got off to the perfect start when striker Jordan Brown
and defender Manny Onariase smashed the home side into an early two goal
lead, although Joe Pritchard and Luke Amos levelled the scores by half time.
After the break, Spurs midfielder Josh Onomah fired Spurs into the lead from
the edge of the box, before Brown grabbed his second goal of the game
immediately after to steal a point for the Hammers.
Keynsham Town Ladies 3-1 West Ham United Ladies
West Ham Goal: Emma Sherwood.
The West Ham Ladies left Upton Park and headed west at 9am on Sunday morning
with the hopes of progressing to the next round of the FA Women's Premier
League Cup. In the opening ten minutes, West Ham were dominant and exposed
Keynsham's high defensive line several times, but the finish eluded the
team.
The Hammers were rewarded for their first half pressure when Emma Sherwood
was in the right place to head Sarah McCrea's corner into the back of the
net.
After the break, Keynsham came back into the game through Pilar Garcia's
well taken goal, before Arianna Somaschini and Justine Lorton-Radburn ended
the contest. West Ham return to league action with a home fixture against
Tottenham Ladies at Aveley FC on Thursday evening, before a trip down to
Lewes on Sunday.
Manchester City U21 1-1 West Ham United Development Squad
West Ham Goals: Kieran Sadlier.
Both West Ham and Man City went into this game without a victory in their
opening two league games this season, although the hosts had already gained
a point unlike Nick Haycock's side. The Hammers Development Squad featured
Reece Burke, who played a full 120 minutes for the first team against
Sheffield United last week, alongside 15 year old Reece Oxford who was a
substitute in that match too. The visitors, like the other three Hammers
teams this weekend, went ahead when Kieran Sadlier was well positioned to
score after the City defence only half cleared Danny Potts' cross. Being the
final West Ham game of the weekend, the win was minutes away from being
secured when Man City's Oliver Ntcham cut in from the wing to bury his shot
low into the corner of the net.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
THE ROAD TO ATTRACTIVE FOOTBALL
By Iain Dale 2 Sep 2014 at 13:00
West Ham Till I Die
Guest Post by West Ham Way
As I'm sure most here will agree, the board's, and in particular David
Sullivan's, effort to regain control in the transfer market have resulted in
some interesting recent additions to the squad. These efforts are now taking
the club in a much more positive direction, which is obviously a hugely
welcome change from the divisive negativity the club has seen over the last
twelve months or so.
Whilst much of the focus of that negativity has been on Allardyce's
shortcomings and failures, the board have largely escaped such criticism. In
my opinion, there should be much more scrutiny of their role in the adoption
of a playing style acceptable to the club's long-suffering fans. What we
should be demanding, however, is not that we play decent, attractive,
entertaining football right now, but that the board has an effective
strategy to ensure a smooth transition to this style in the near future.
Whilst the board has, so far, come into only a limited amount of criticism
for failing to implement a style of football at West Ham that reflects the
club's proud traditions, we do need to recognise the fact that changes in
this regard cannot and do not happen overnight. Based on the changes that
have been made at the club in recent months, however, I believe that they
have may well have heard the message that has been so vociferously
transmitted by the club's supporters, and are intent on doing what they can
to make a smooth transition to the style of football that many supporters
would like to see.
Obviously, there are huge doubts about Allardyce's ability to adapt his
managerial style to the possession-oriented, creative, attacking football
that would be welcomed by many a West Ham fan. I for one freely admit to
having called for his replacement on several occasions. However, in the
context of a safe transition by the club to a much more progressive style,
and the huge costs of compensating Allardyce and his backroom staff when
there's only another nine months on his contract, I can now see the logic in
continuing with his services until the end of the season. He remains a
relatively safe pair of hands and, despite his frustrating tactical
inflexibility, he should at least be able to keep away significant
grumblings of discontent with the quality of the players that have been
added to the squad in the last transfer window.
Whatever happens this season, I would imagine the season's end will likely
also represent the end of Allardyce's reign at the club, and would hope and
expect that the club will then seek to employ a progressive manager with
much more expansive style of play. If premiership status is secured at a
reasonably early stage, and the chairmen go on to appoint a new manager in
the creative mould, such a strategy of transition should be recognised as
extremely good governance by the board. If not, then they are the ones that
should be held accountable for the failure to find such a strategy.
Sullivan's desire to take more control of the club's transfer dealings mean
he has also assumed responsibility for the club's future direction, succeed
or fail, and the supporters should recognise this accordingly.
The quality of the players now at the club should be enough to convince a
progressive manager of the necessary quality that he would have enough
talent at his disposal to succeed with the development and implementation of
the required style of football here. Another transfer window of added
defensive reinforcements should then ensure that the club is well placed to
establish itself in the top half of the table, whilst adapting to a playing
style that would see some much-needed excitement return to the club.
If this is the case, the board should rightly be applauded for their
transitional strategy, and, if a truly inspirational manager can be found to
unite the club around a style of play, we can all look forward to a bright
future of creative football to take us into the Olympic Stadium.
It remains to be seen whether the signs of such a strategy are truth or
illusion, but I fully hope and expect that some truly exciting times will
return to the club once again, hopefully in the not-too-distant future.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham's transfer window: Some promising signings, but plenty of question
marks remain
Sep 02, 2014 15:40
OPINION BY STEVESTAMMERS
Steve Stammers thinks the Hammers' season may rest on whether acquisitions
like Enner Valencia can find their feet
The Mirror
Sam Allardyce has enjoyed mixed fortunes in the summer transfer window.
Successes? Aaron Cresswell without a doubt. Mauro Zarate, certainly. And
Cheikou Kouyate will be a formidable asset to West Ham, no question. But the
jury is still out on Enner Valencia, a £12million signing who has yet to
justify the outlay. The Ecuador international has looked less than
impressive to date and he needs to come good - and soon. He has yet to
justify the outlay in his two outings to date against Sheffield United in
the Capital One Cup (lost on penalties and it was his spot kick that was
saved in the shoot-out) and against Southampton in the 3-1 Premier League
defeat when he made little or no impact in the ten minutes he was on as
substitute. Allardyce believes Valencia will come good when he has match
sharpness. For his sake that needs to be sooner rather than later. Diafra
Sakho looked the part when he came on against Crystal Palace in the 3-1 win
at Selhurst Park and he scored an excellent goal against Sheffield United. A
slight injury restricted him to bench duty against Southampton. He should be
fit for the resumption of the Premier League programme.
And the man yet to kick a ball for West Ham is Alex Song - on loan for the
season from Barcelona. The Cameroon international has rarely shirked a
tackle in his time with Arsenal and at the Camp Nou. Now Allardyce is
hoping, in the his words, that Song "will kick a few backsides " - of his
own team-mates, rather than the opposition. Alex Song of West Ham United
acknowledges the fans as he joins the club on loan prior to the Barclays
Premier League match between West Ham United and SouthamptonSong and dance:
Can this man improve the West Ham midfield? And that came after the defeat
to Southampton when West Ham were, in all honesty, woeful. It was the same
eleven that saw off Palace in such emphatic fashion but they performed like
they were strangers.
There was no cohesion, no tempo and no fire. Allardyce, in so many words,
accused his players of talking a good game but then failing to produce where
it mattered. Enter Song to bring a solidity in front of the back four.
Allardyce was a convenient target for disaffected West Ham fans on Saturday.
A section of support has never been convinced by the appointment of
Allardyce and the result against Southampton gave them more fodder. The
truth is that to blame Allardyce is too easy. He can never be accused of the
under-preparation of a team under his command. Quite simply, they did not
show up on Saturday and any offerings like that at Upton Park four days ago
and the speculation about his position will start again.
The board of Davids Gold and Sullivan and Karren Brady do not, historically,
sack their managers. They stick by them which is to their credit. But
Allardyce needs results and the next three matches will be crucial. And they
do not make comfortable reading - Hull away, Liverpool at home and
Manchester United away. Time for Valencia to turn up. Time for Sakho to get
fit. Time for Song to bring some steel to midfield. Come the end of the
month, West Ham and Allardyce will know the direction of their season.
And many more performances like last Saturday and the Premier League table
will not make comfortable reading. Allardyce will get the blame. He has been
long enough in the game to know that is the way of the football world.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Attack…attack… policy expected at Hull
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on September 2, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Sam Allardyce will be expected to show the team's "new attacking style" when
the team arrive at Hull for their next game. ennerThere's a hugely buoyant
mood around the club with nine new signings through the door and nobody is
ready to accept a defensively based away formation aimed at "respecting the
point." We were told today by one senior source today: "We have a squad for
all occasions now and we expect to go away and show attacking enterprise
starting at Hull. "We expect to have Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho
available so we should be at somewhere close to full strength. "And with
Alex Song coming in we expect the team to be hard to be beat and to drive
forward home and away. "We also expect to have James Collins back for the
Hull match and there is a chance that Matt Jarvis will be available so we
have plenty of attacking options. "Last season we were something of a one
trick pony but the manager has been working on a new way forward and we are
expecting to see an attacking game at Hull. Things have changed –
expectations are different."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Olympic Stadium Conversion Costs May Soar
Posted by Sean Whetstone on September 2, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
According to Paul Kelso from Sky News, The final cost of converting the
Olympic Stadium into West Ham's new home could rise by more than £15m
because of complications in work to install a new roof. Work is under way to
build a new roof but contractors Balfour Beatty believe costs may have to
rise to complete the project. The original stadium cost £429m to build, with
the conversion to make it suitable for football budgeted at a further £154m.
It is claimed additional costs arising from the latest complications with
the roof could take the total cost of the stadium above £600m with the tax
payer picking up the majority of the over spend. The LLDC has a fixed-price
contract with contractors Balfour Beatty to deliver the roof and main
contract for the stadium, and say they will hold the contractor to its deal.
In a statement the LLDC said: "The Legacy Corporation and its contractors
are working closely together to convert the Stadium from its Games-time mode
into a multi-use, year round venue." However, we understand West Ham's
contribution of £25m towards the stadium conversion is unlikely to be
affected by the latest developments.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
DG questions judge's wisdom on pitch invader
Posted by Sean Whetstone on September 2, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham co chairman David Gold has questioned the wisdom of District Judge
Gareth Branston. The judge made a joke of the antics of Hammers fan Jordan
Dunn who invaded the pitch to take a free kick against Spurs on opening day.
He commented that the fan had bent it like Beckham.Regrettably it was about
30mph slower than David Beckham and the West Ham goalkeeper did his job by
easily saving it.The professional footballer who followed you did not do any
better." The judge decided not to impose a football banning order on Jordan
Dunn called for by the prosecution, saying he was taking into account Dunn's
previous good character and he was instead fined £305. Gold took to twitter
to say: 'You bent it like Beckham': Judge PRAISES drunk pitch invader who
took free kick. What kind of message does this send out?? dg'
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
---
This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active.
http://www.avast.com
Wednesday, September 3
Tuesday, September 2
Daily WHUFC News - 2nd September 2014
Morgan spices up Hammers
WHUFC.com
France international midfielder Morgan Amalfitano has become West Ham
United's ninth summer signing
01.09.2014
West Ham United are delighted to announce the signing of France
international Morgan Amalfitano. The 29-year-old, who can play in a variety
of midfield roles, has linked up with the Hammers from French Ligue 1 club
Olympique de Marseille on a permanent deal for an undisclosed fee.
Amalfitano spent last season on loan at Barclays Premier League side West
Bromwich Albion, for whom he scored four goals in 31 appearances. After
completing his deadline-day move to east London, the Nice-born player told
West Ham TV he is looking forward to his second crack at English football.
"It's very good news and I'm very happy to come to this big club," he began.
"I've waited a long time, but I am very happy to have signed here. The Club
wanted me a lot and for that I waited for West Ham and now I'm here. "The
manager explained to me how the team plays and how he needs me. I explained
to him where I prefer as my position in his team. This is a new team with
very good players with great experience of this league. I think everything
can go well and I hope we have a good season. "I prefer to play behind the
striker, but last year with West Brom I played on the right. I like to cross
the ball too, but I can also give through passes from behind the striker.
The coach will see what happens in every game and if he finds another
position for me in the team, there is no problem for me. "I enjoyed my first
year in English football and for that reason I have come back and hopefully
I can improve again. The first year was good for my experience and I will
try to help West Ham now by giving my best and continue to improve in this
league. I like this country and this is the best league."
Able to play in central midfield, behind the central striker or out wide,
Amalfitano came through the same AS Cannes academy that produced France
internationals Zinedine Zidane, Patrick Vieira and Gael Clichy. At 18, he
moved to Sedan, where he began his professional career in 2003. In five
seasons, he totalled 137 appearances before moving to Lorient in the summer
of 2008. Amalfitano discovered his goalscoring touch in Brittany, netting 15
goals in 121 games in all competitions and attracting the attention of some
of France's biggest clubs. The summer of 2011 saw Marseille snap him up on a
free transfer. Amalfitano's debut for the club saw him win the Champions'
Trophy as Marseille defeated Ligue 1 champions Lille 5-4 in Morocco. The
2011/12 season also ended with a trophy as he played the full 120 minutes in
a 1-0 extra-time victory over Lyon in the French League Cup final. The same
campaign saw Amalfitano win his first cap for France in a 2-1 friendly
victory over Germany. The 2013/14 campaign saw the midfielder move to The
Hawthorns on a season-long loan. Amalfitano capped an impressive first
season in English football with an outstanding individual goal in West
Brom's 2-1 victory at Manchester United a year ago. He would love nothing
more than to repeat that experience when West Ham travel to Old Trafford on
27 September. "I hope so! It was a fantastic game for our team and if I can
do that again I would do so with pleasure. For the time being, I need to
work with this team and win as many games as I can for West Ham."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Diame departs
WHUFC.com
West Ham United can confirm Mohamed Diame has joined Hull City on a
permanent basis
01.09.2014
West Ham United can confirm that midfielder Mohamed Diame has joined
Barclays Premier League club Hull City on a permanent basis for an
undisclosed fee.
The 27-year-old Senegal international departs the Boleyn Ground after a
little more than two years, having made 79 appearances and scored seven
goals in Claret and Blue. With just ten months remaining on Diame's
contract, the Hammers reluctantly accepted an offer from Hull. West Ham
United would like to thank Mohamed for his efforts and wish him all the best
for his future career.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Potts reflects on six-goal thriller
WHUFC.com
U18s manager Steve Potts reflects on Saturday's thrilling 3-3 home draw with
Tottenham Hotspur U18s
01.09.2014
West Ham United U18s 3-3 Tottenham Hotspur U18s
West Ham United U18s boss Steve Potts was left with mixed emotions after his
side let a two-goal lead slip before fighting back to draw 3-3 with
Tottenham Hotspur at Little Heath on Saturday. Potts' side have made a
bright start to the Barclays U18 Premier League South Group, having
convincingly beaten West Bromwich Albion 3-1 and drawn 0-0 with Leicester
City. The Hammers initially continued their good run of form against Spurs,
starting brilliantly when striker Jordan Brown and defender Manny Onariase
put the Hammers two goals up after only 17 minutes. However, Tottenham
responded well as Joe Pritchard and Luke Amos scored to level the game.
Spurs made a bright start to the second half as Josh Onomah fired the away
side in front, before Brown netted his second goal of the game to secure the
Hammers a point. "I thought the players were a little bit naive when they
were 2-0 up because Tottenham are a good team and managed to find the gaps
to get the game back to 2-2 by half-time," Potts reflected. "In the second
half, we came out and played much better. When we went 3-2 down, we worked
hard to bring the game back to 3-3, which showed effort and commitment from
the team."
Both sides had several chances to take all three points and Potts feels that
there are areas of their performance that need further attention in
training.
"There were certain areas of the team performance where I thought the boys
played well and other areas where we let ourselves down," he continued. "I
spoke to the lads after the game about ways that we can manage different
parts of our performance and manage certain areas of the pitch, which we
could've managed better but will work on more in training. "There is still
plenty to work on with the lads but there are certain parts in all three
games this season where the lads have played really well, so we will get
back to training and prepare for our next game."
Potts is satisfied with a return of five points from an unbeaten start,
particularly in the light of so many of his regulars being called away to
represent the first team and Development Squad. Speaking about how the U18s'
season has started so far, Potts explained: "We've had quite a few new lads
come into this team, which has been different because we had quite a settled
squad last season. The new players have come in and we have even had
schoolboys featuring for us in the early part of the season which is good
for their development."
Recently, the Academy have seen some of their players push up as far as the
first team, including centre-half Reece Burke, who played the full 120
minutes in the Capital One Cup defeat by Sheffield United, and defenders
Lewis Page and Reece Oxford, who were named as substitutes on the night.
Potts, a former West Ham youth player himself and father of recent Academy
graduate Dan Potts, said proudly, "I'm really pleased for any of the lads
that push on to a higher level. It's a fantastic opportunity for them.
That's what we as an Academy are here for so hopefully they carry on
improving."
U18s: Howes, Pike, Onariase, Akinola, Knoyle, Browne, Sylvestre (Neufville),
Parfitt-Williams, Adebayo (Powell), Diangana, Brown (Sheriff)
Subs not used: Linley, Bogard
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Eight receive international calls
WHUFC.com
Eight West Ham United players have been called-up for international duty
during the current break
01.09.2014
Eight West Ham United players have been called-up by their respective
countries for international duty during the current break.
Winston Reid will be travelling to Qatar - host nation for the 2022 FIFA
World Cup finals - for an international friendly between his New Zealand and
Uzbekistan on Monday 8 September.
Closer to home, Joey O'Brien is in the Republic of Ireland squad for their
friendly meeting with Oman at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Wednesday 3
September and the Boys in Green's opening UEFA Euro 2016 Group D qualifier
with Georgia at the Dinamo Arena in Tblisi on Sunday 7 September.
New boy Enner Valencia is in the Ecuador squad for two friendly
internationals with South American opposition in the United States. Ecuador
will take on Bolivia in Miami on Saturday 6 September and Brazil in New
Jersey on Tuesday 9 September.
Cheikhou Kouyate (pictured) has been included by Senegal, who face their
opening two 2015 CAF Africa Cup of Nations Group G qualifiers. Senegal's
campaign opens with a home fixture with Egypt in Dakar on Friday 5 September
before an away match with Botswana in Gaborone on Wednesday 10 September.
The tournament proper will take place in Morocco in January/February 2015.
At age-group level, midfielder Kieran Sadlier is in the Republic of Ireland
U21 squad for their final UEFA European U21 Championship qualifier with
Germany in Magdeburg on Friday 5 September. Unfortunately, Ireland cannot
qualify for the Play-Off round.
Northern Ireland U19s have included defender Jamie Harney in their squad for
a friendly double-header with Iceland. The first fixture will take place in
Dungannon on Wednesday 3 September and the second in Belfast on Friday 5
September.
Josh Cullen is in the Republic of Ireland U19 squad for the first time. The
midfielder has been included in the selection for a friendly with the
Netherlands at Tallaght Stadium in Dublin on Monday 8 September.
Finally, Sam Howes has a friendly match for England U18s against the
Netherlands at The JD Stadium, Bury FC on Friday 5 September 2014 at 7.30pm.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Mohamed Diame leaves West Ham for Hull
BBC.co.uk
Hull have completed the signing of midfielder Mohamed Diame from West Ham
for an undisclosed fee. The 27-year-old, who scored seven goals in 76
appearances for the Hammers after joining from Wigan two years ago, has
signed a three-year deal with City. "I'm delighted to welcome Mo to the
club," said Hull boss Steve Bruce. "His experience, both at international
level and in the Premier League will be invaluable as we look to cement our
place in the top flight." Diame is Hull's second deadline-day signing along
with the club-record £10m purchase of Uruguay striker Abel Hernandez from
Palermo. They have also sold forward George Boyd to Premier League rivals
Burnley for £3m. Diame, who reportedly has a £3.5m buyout clause in his
contract, has been allowed to leave Upton Park after manager Sam Allardyce
made eight summer signings, including fellow midfielder Alex Song on loan.
West Ham are also looking to bring in a defender before the transfer window
closes.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Deal complete, Amalfitano a Hammer
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
West Ham have completed their ninth signing of the summer transfer window,
say reports. L'Equipe are reporting this evening that French midfielder
Morgan Amalfitano has completed his move to the Boleyn Ground with just
minutes of the transfer deadline remaining. We'll have a full summary of
West Ham's summer business for you shortly.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Diame completes Hull switch
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Senegal international Mo Diame has become the first player to leave the club
on transfer deadline day after joining Hull in a £3.5million switch. Diame,
who was hotly-tipped to leave the Boleyn Ground during the current transfer
window has completed a move to Hull, despite previously insisting that he
would only leave West Ham for "a top six club". West Ham lost patience with
Diame - whose current contract expires next summer - after he failed to
accept terms that would have extended his stay at the club. And the arrival
of Cheikhou Kouyate from Anderlecht and Alex Song from Barcelona had already
pushed him further down the pecking order.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Oh no! It's not Devo
KUMb.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Alan Devonshire has been overlooked for the vacant Colchester job, despite
being linked with the post earlier in the day. Former youth team coach Tony
Humes was the surprise choice to success the recently-departed Joe Dunne,
despite former Hammer Devonshire being touted as a potential successor this
morning. According to the Chronicle, Devonshire's current club were not
contacted with view to his availability. Braintree Town chairman Lee Harding
told the paper that he had not heard from the League One club, who have
endured a difficult start to the 2014/15 campaign. Devonshire, now 58, has
been in charge of Braintree for three years. His managerial career began in
1997 at Maidenhead. Following three years with the Magpies, Devo became
manager of Hampton & Richmond Borough with whom he stayed for eight years,
before taking the Braintree role.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Cech him out, say fans
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Petr Cech has been made available for loan - sparking interest from Hammers
fans, if not necessarily the club itself. The 32-year-old Chelsea goalkeeper
is currently considered second choice at Stamford Bridge following the
emergence of Belgian international Thibaut Courtois. This morning it was
revealed (Mail) that Chelsea had offered the Czech international to
neighbours Queens Park Rangers, although the two parties failed to agree
terms. And with West Ham still having one loan space in the squad available,
a number of supporters have urged the club to move for Cech - who, it is
understood, will not be offered to clubs competing in Europe or the
Champions League. West Ham's current number one Adrian has had a mixed start
to the 2014/15 season, whilst current number two Jussi Jaaskelainen is
rapidly approaching his 40th birthday. Cech has made more than 450
appearances for Chelsea since joining the club for just £3.75million from
Rennes in 2004
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Arsenal launch Reid bid
KUMb.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Unconfirmed reports are suggesting that Arsenal have launched a deadline day
attempt to sign West Ham United's New Zealand international Winston Reid.
The 26-year-old central defender has been hotly tipped as a potential
Arsenal signing and, according to speculation this afternoon (Metro), West
Ham have been offered £3million by the north London club for his services.
Although that would appear to be a paltry offer, Reid has less than a year
of his current contract to run. All offers to extend his current contract
have been rejected, meaning that a bid perhaps double that already on the
table could well be enough to tempt the Board into selling. Elsewhere, the
Guardian are reporting that Morgan Amalfitano - on whom we brought you news
earlier this afternoon - is set to sign a three-year contract with West Ham,
having flown to England in order to complete a move from Marseille.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Mohamed Diame has signed a three-year deal at Hull
Last Updated: 01/09/14 7:32pm
SSN
Midfielder Mohamed Diame has joined Hull City on a three-year deal. The
Senegal international heads to the KC Stadium - for an undisclosed fee -
after spending two seasons at West Ham. Diame, who worked under Tigers boss
Steve Bruce when the pair were at Wigan, has made 79 appearances for the
Hammers since joining them in the summer of 2012. However, the France-born
player has only started one game for Sam Allardyce's men this season - the
penalty shoot-out defeat to Sheffield United in the Capital One Cup last
week. Bruce has earmarked the recruitment of a midfielder to bolster his
squad before the end of the transfer window and has also been linked with a
move for Manchester United's Tom Cleverley. The former Rayo Vallecano player
has moved further down the pecking order at Upton Park following the summer
arrivals of fellow battle-hardened midfielders Alex Song and Cheikhou
Kouyate. And Bruce is pleased with his latest signing, saying: "I'm
delighted to welcome Mo to the club. "His experience, both at international
level and in the Premier League, will be invaluable as we look to cement our
place in the top-flight."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Amalfitano set to join on loan
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on September 1, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are tonight closing in on their ninth signing of the transfer
window with Morgan Amalfitano set to sign a year's loan deal with the club.
The Hammers have had the player on their radar all summer and are now
working frantically to ensure that he puts pen to paper by 11pm. The
midfielder was on loan at West Brom last season but was a tad inconsistent –
one of the reasons the Hammers have waited until the very last minute as
they weighed up all options.
But with the player now inside Upton Park, it appears the 29 year old is set
to cross the channel from Marseilles to join the club. Meanwhile co-chairman
David Gold took to Twitter earlier to declare: "This is one of the best
transfer windows in West Ham history."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
One over the eight
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
The summer transfer window has 'slammed shut' - with West Ham completing a
ninth signing minutes before the 11pm deadline.
Marseilles winger Morgan Amalfitano became Sam Allardyce's ninth signing of
a very busy window by joining the Hammers on a season-long loan.
West Ham - who have spent around £30million in transfer fees during the
summer, representing a new club record - have strengthened in several areas
with only one first team squad member, contract rebel Mo Diame leaving for
pastures new (Hull City).
Two of the signings are season-long loans, whilst a further three arrived
for a nominal fees. West Ham's biggest single outlay was the reported
£12million fee paid to CF Pachua for Ecuador international Enner Valencia.
Despite West Ham's business being generally well-received, some supporters
have already expressed concern at the failure to sign a fourth central
defender given the problems experienced last Christmas when injuries to key
personnel left Allardyce without a single fit centre half.
The full list of new arrivals are as follows:
May
Mauro Zarate (Velez Sarsfield): nominal fee
June
Cheikhou Kouyate (Anderlecht): £7million
July
Enner Valencia (CF Pachua): £12.5million
Diego Poyet (Charlton Athletic): nominal, tribunal
Aaron Cresswell (Ipswich Town): £4million
August
Alex Song (Barcelona): season-long loan
Diafra Sakho (FC Metz): £4million
Carl Jenkinson (Arsenal): season-long loan
Morgan Amalfitano (Marseilles): nominal fee
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham sign winger Morgan Amalfitano from Marseille
Last Updated: 01/09/14 11:32pm
SSN
West Ham have signed France international winger Morgan Amalfitano from
Marseille. The 29-year-old becomes the Hammers' ninth summer signing.
Amalfitano, who has earned a solitary cap for France, spent most of last
season on loan at West Brom. He was part of the Marseille side that lifted
the French League Cup in 2012, the same year he made his international debut
by playing 23 minutes against Germany in a friendly. According to the French
club's website he played 87 matches for Olympique Marseille, scoring seven
goals and providing 14 assists. Nice-born Amalfitano said: "I've waited a
long time but I am very happy to have signed here. "The club wanted me a lot
and for that I waited for West Ham and now I'm here. "The manager explained
to me how the team plays and how he needs me. I explained to him where I
prefer as my position in his team. "I prefer to play behind the striker but
last year with West Brom I played on the right. "I enjoyed my first year in
English football and for that reason I have come back and hopefully I can
improve again. "The first year was good for my experience and I will try to
help West Ham."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
HOW DO YOU RATE WEST HAM'S SUMMER TRANSFER BUSINESS?
By S J Chandos 2 Sep 2014 at 00:02
West Ham Till I Die
So, the summer transfer window finally slams shut! However, did you notice
something very different about this window? All our major business was done
early and there was an absence of the usual deadline day desperation, panic
and disappointment. This season, the club did their business the right way,
early! And we generally identified and landed our targets. There was none of
the serial abortive deals, yes we got some rejections along the way, but
arguably these were outweighed by the successes.
In all (as far as we know at this point in time), we made nine signings this
summer and they are as follows:
Zarate, Kouyate, Valencia. Cresswell. Sakho, Poyet, Jenkinson (loan), Song
(loan) and Amalfitano
In terms of exits, we moved out:
Joe Cole, Taylor, McCartney, Collison, Diarra, Maiga and Diame
Personally, I am very happy with the business conducted. We completed the
major overhaul of the squad that was so badly needed. We have brought in
greater quality and increased competition for places in the squad. Moreover,
we have signed skillful players like Zarate, Valencia and Amalfitano, who
added to the likes of Downing, Noble and Morrison, can contribute to
positively transforming our style of play. And this skill must be allied to
the power and competitive edge provided by Kouyate, Song, Reid and Carroll.
I think that even their most strident critics must conceed that the West Ham
Board did a good job in bankrolling the transfer activity and landing the
club's targets. Sam Allardyce now has the tools, but can he do the job that
is required? Can he get the team to gel and make the best of the talent at
his disposal? That is the challenge to the manager. If not, and there are
any repeats of the abject Southampton defeat, then change will become
inevitable. There can be no more excuses, we need to see progress!
How do you rate the transfer business completed? Do we now have the squad to
progress this season?
SJ. Chandos.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
---
This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active.
http://www.avast.com
WHUFC.com
France international midfielder Morgan Amalfitano has become West Ham
United's ninth summer signing
01.09.2014
West Ham United are delighted to announce the signing of France
international Morgan Amalfitano. The 29-year-old, who can play in a variety
of midfield roles, has linked up with the Hammers from French Ligue 1 club
Olympique de Marseille on a permanent deal for an undisclosed fee.
Amalfitano spent last season on loan at Barclays Premier League side West
Bromwich Albion, for whom he scored four goals in 31 appearances. After
completing his deadline-day move to east London, the Nice-born player told
West Ham TV he is looking forward to his second crack at English football.
"It's very good news and I'm very happy to come to this big club," he began.
"I've waited a long time, but I am very happy to have signed here. The Club
wanted me a lot and for that I waited for West Ham and now I'm here. "The
manager explained to me how the team plays and how he needs me. I explained
to him where I prefer as my position in his team. This is a new team with
very good players with great experience of this league. I think everything
can go well and I hope we have a good season. "I prefer to play behind the
striker, but last year with West Brom I played on the right. I like to cross
the ball too, but I can also give through passes from behind the striker.
The coach will see what happens in every game and if he finds another
position for me in the team, there is no problem for me. "I enjoyed my first
year in English football and for that reason I have come back and hopefully
I can improve again. The first year was good for my experience and I will
try to help West Ham now by giving my best and continue to improve in this
league. I like this country and this is the best league."
Able to play in central midfield, behind the central striker or out wide,
Amalfitano came through the same AS Cannes academy that produced France
internationals Zinedine Zidane, Patrick Vieira and Gael Clichy. At 18, he
moved to Sedan, where he began his professional career in 2003. In five
seasons, he totalled 137 appearances before moving to Lorient in the summer
of 2008. Amalfitano discovered his goalscoring touch in Brittany, netting 15
goals in 121 games in all competitions and attracting the attention of some
of France's biggest clubs. The summer of 2011 saw Marseille snap him up on a
free transfer. Amalfitano's debut for the club saw him win the Champions'
Trophy as Marseille defeated Ligue 1 champions Lille 5-4 in Morocco. The
2011/12 season also ended with a trophy as he played the full 120 minutes in
a 1-0 extra-time victory over Lyon in the French League Cup final. The same
campaign saw Amalfitano win his first cap for France in a 2-1 friendly
victory over Germany. The 2013/14 campaign saw the midfielder move to The
Hawthorns on a season-long loan. Amalfitano capped an impressive first
season in English football with an outstanding individual goal in West
Brom's 2-1 victory at Manchester United a year ago. He would love nothing
more than to repeat that experience when West Ham travel to Old Trafford on
27 September. "I hope so! It was a fantastic game for our team and if I can
do that again I would do so with pleasure. For the time being, I need to
work with this team and win as many games as I can for West Ham."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Diame departs
WHUFC.com
West Ham United can confirm Mohamed Diame has joined Hull City on a
permanent basis
01.09.2014
West Ham United can confirm that midfielder Mohamed Diame has joined
Barclays Premier League club Hull City on a permanent basis for an
undisclosed fee.
The 27-year-old Senegal international departs the Boleyn Ground after a
little more than two years, having made 79 appearances and scored seven
goals in Claret and Blue. With just ten months remaining on Diame's
contract, the Hammers reluctantly accepted an offer from Hull. West Ham
United would like to thank Mohamed for his efforts and wish him all the best
for his future career.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Potts reflects on six-goal thriller
WHUFC.com
U18s manager Steve Potts reflects on Saturday's thrilling 3-3 home draw with
Tottenham Hotspur U18s
01.09.2014
West Ham United U18s 3-3 Tottenham Hotspur U18s
West Ham United U18s boss Steve Potts was left with mixed emotions after his
side let a two-goal lead slip before fighting back to draw 3-3 with
Tottenham Hotspur at Little Heath on Saturday. Potts' side have made a
bright start to the Barclays U18 Premier League South Group, having
convincingly beaten West Bromwich Albion 3-1 and drawn 0-0 with Leicester
City. The Hammers initially continued their good run of form against Spurs,
starting brilliantly when striker Jordan Brown and defender Manny Onariase
put the Hammers two goals up after only 17 minutes. However, Tottenham
responded well as Joe Pritchard and Luke Amos scored to level the game.
Spurs made a bright start to the second half as Josh Onomah fired the away
side in front, before Brown netted his second goal of the game to secure the
Hammers a point. "I thought the players were a little bit naive when they
were 2-0 up because Tottenham are a good team and managed to find the gaps
to get the game back to 2-2 by half-time," Potts reflected. "In the second
half, we came out and played much better. When we went 3-2 down, we worked
hard to bring the game back to 3-3, which showed effort and commitment from
the team."
Both sides had several chances to take all three points and Potts feels that
there are areas of their performance that need further attention in
training.
"There were certain areas of the team performance where I thought the boys
played well and other areas where we let ourselves down," he continued. "I
spoke to the lads after the game about ways that we can manage different
parts of our performance and manage certain areas of the pitch, which we
could've managed better but will work on more in training. "There is still
plenty to work on with the lads but there are certain parts in all three
games this season where the lads have played really well, so we will get
back to training and prepare for our next game."
Potts is satisfied with a return of five points from an unbeaten start,
particularly in the light of so many of his regulars being called away to
represent the first team and Development Squad. Speaking about how the U18s'
season has started so far, Potts explained: "We've had quite a few new lads
come into this team, which has been different because we had quite a settled
squad last season. The new players have come in and we have even had
schoolboys featuring for us in the early part of the season which is good
for their development."
Recently, the Academy have seen some of their players push up as far as the
first team, including centre-half Reece Burke, who played the full 120
minutes in the Capital One Cup defeat by Sheffield United, and defenders
Lewis Page and Reece Oxford, who were named as substitutes on the night.
Potts, a former West Ham youth player himself and father of recent Academy
graduate Dan Potts, said proudly, "I'm really pleased for any of the lads
that push on to a higher level. It's a fantastic opportunity for them.
That's what we as an Academy are here for so hopefully they carry on
improving."
U18s: Howes, Pike, Onariase, Akinola, Knoyle, Browne, Sylvestre (Neufville),
Parfitt-Williams, Adebayo (Powell), Diangana, Brown (Sheriff)
Subs not used: Linley, Bogard
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Eight receive international calls
WHUFC.com
Eight West Ham United players have been called-up for international duty
during the current break
01.09.2014
Eight West Ham United players have been called-up by their respective
countries for international duty during the current break.
Winston Reid will be travelling to Qatar - host nation for the 2022 FIFA
World Cup finals - for an international friendly between his New Zealand and
Uzbekistan on Monday 8 September.
Closer to home, Joey O'Brien is in the Republic of Ireland squad for their
friendly meeting with Oman at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Wednesday 3
September and the Boys in Green's opening UEFA Euro 2016 Group D qualifier
with Georgia at the Dinamo Arena in Tblisi on Sunday 7 September.
New boy Enner Valencia is in the Ecuador squad for two friendly
internationals with South American opposition in the United States. Ecuador
will take on Bolivia in Miami on Saturday 6 September and Brazil in New
Jersey on Tuesday 9 September.
Cheikhou Kouyate (pictured) has been included by Senegal, who face their
opening two 2015 CAF Africa Cup of Nations Group G qualifiers. Senegal's
campaign opens with a home fixture with Egypt in Dakar on Friday 5 September
before an away match with Botswana in Gaborone on Wednesday 10 September.
The tournament proper will take place in Morocco in January/February 2015.
At age-group level, midfielder Kieran Sadlier is in the Republic of Ireland
U21 squad for their final UEFA European U21 Championship qualifier with
Germany in Magdeburg on Friday 5 September. Unfortunately, Ireland cannot
qualify for the Play-Off round.
Northern Ireland U19s have included defender Jamie Harney in their squad for
a friendly double-header with Iceland. The first fixture will take place in
Dungannon on Wednesday 3 September and the second in Belfast on Friday 5
September.
Josh Cullen is in the Republic of Ireland U19 squad for the first time. The
midfielder has been included in the selection for a friendly with the
Netherlands at Tallaght Stadium in Dublin on Monday 8 September.
Finally, Sam Howes has a friendly match for England U18s against the
Netherlands at The JD Stadium, Bury FC on Friday 5 September 2014 at 7.30pm.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Mohamed Diame leaves West Ham for Hull
BBC.co.uk
Hull have completed the signing of midfielder Mohamed Diame from West Ham
for an undisclosed fee. The 27-year-old, who scored seven goals in 76
appearances for the Hammers after joining from Wigan two years ago, has
signed a three-year deal with City. "I'm delighted to welcome Mo to the
club," said Hull boss Steve Bruce. "His experience, both at international
level and in the Premier League will be invaluable as we look to cement our
place in the top flight." Diame is Hull's second deadline-day signing along
with the club-record £10m purchase of Uruguay striker Abel Hernandez from
Palermo. They have also sold forward George Boyd to Premier League rivals
Burnley for £3m. Diame, who reportedly has a £3.5m buyout clause in his
contract, has been allowed to leave Upton Park after manager Sam Allardyce
made eight summer signings, including fellow midfielder Alex Song on loan.
West Ham are also looking to bring in a defender before the transfer window
closes.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Deal complete, Amalfitano a Hammer
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
West Ham have completed their ninth signing of the summer transfer window,
say reports. L'Equipe are reporting this evening that French midfielder
Morgan Amalfitano has completed his move to the Boleyn Ground with just
minutes of the transfer deadline remaining. We'll have a full summary of
West Ham's summer business for you shortly.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Diame completes Hull switch
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Senegal international Mo Diame has become the first player to leave the club
on transfer deadline day after joining Hull in a £3.5million switch. Diame,
who was hotly-tipped to leave the Boleyn Ground during the current transfer
window has completed a move to Hull, despite previously insisting that he
would only leave West Ham for "a top six club". West Ham lost patience with
Diame - whose current contract expires next summer - after he failed to
accept terms that would have extended his stay at the club. And the arrival
of Cheikhou Kouyate from Anderlecht and Alex Song from Barcelona had already
pushed him further down the pecking order.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Oh no! It's not Devo
KUMb.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Alan Devonshire has been overlooked for the vacant Colchester job, despite
being linked with the post earlier in the day. Former youth team coach Tony
Humes was the surprise choice to success the recently-departed Joe Dunne,
despite former Hammer Devonshire being touted as a potential successor this
morning. According to the Chronicle, Devonshire's current club were not
contacted with view to his availability. Braintree Town chairman Lee Harding
told the paper that he had not heard from the League One club, who have
endured a difficult start to the 2014/15 campaign. Devonshire, now 58, has
been in charge of Braintree for three years. His managerial career began in
1997 at Maidenhead. Following three years with the Magpies, Devo became
manager of Hampton & Richmond Borough with whom he stayed for eight years,
before taking the Braintree role.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Cech him out, say fans
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Petr Cech has been made available for loan - sparking interest from Hammers
fans, if not necessarily the club itself. The 32-year-old Chelsea goalkeeper
is currently considered second choice at Stamford Bridge following the
emergence of Belgian international Thibaut Courtois. This morning it was
revealed (Mail) that Chelsea had offered the Czech international to
neighbours Queens Park Rangers, although the two parties failed to agree
terms. And with West Ham still having one loan space in the squad available,
a number of supporters have urged the club to move for Cech - who, it is
understood, will not be offered to clubs competing in Europe or the
Champions League. West Ham's current number one Adrian has had a mixed start
to the 2014/15 season, whilst current number two Jussi Jaaskelainen is
rapidly approaching his 40th birthday. Cech has made more than 450
appearances for Chelsea since joining the club for just £3.75million from
Rennes in 2004
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Arsenal launch Reid bid
KUMb.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
Unconfirmed reports are suggesting that Arsenal have launched a deadline day
attempt to sign West Ham United's New Zealand international Winston Reid.
The 26-year-old central defender has been hotly tipped as a potential
Arsenal signing and, according to speculation this afternoon (Metro), West
Ham have been offered £3million by the north London club for his services.
Although that would appear to be a paltry offer, Reid has less than a year
of his current contract to run. All offers to extend his current contract
have been rejected, meaning that a bid perhaps double that already on the
table could well be enough to tempt the Board into selling. Elsewhere, the
Guardian are reporting that Morgan Amalfitano - on whom we brought you news
earlier this afternoon - is set to sign a three-year contract with West Ham,
having flown to England in order to complete a move from Marseille.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Mohamed Diame has signed a three-year deal at Hull
Last Updated: 01/09/14 7:32pm
SSN
Midfielder Mohamed Diame has joined Hull City on a three-year deal. The
Senegal international heads to the KC Stadium - for an undisclosed fee -
after spending two seasons at West Ham. Diame, who worked under Tigers boss
Steve Bruce when the pair were at Wigan, has made 79 appearances for the
Hammers since joining them in the summer of 2012. However, the France-born
player has only started one game for Sam Allardyce's men this season - the
penalty shoot-out defeat to Sheffield United in the Capital One Cup last
week. Bruce has earmarked the recruitment of a midfielder to bolster his
squad before the end of the transfer window and has also been linked with a
move for Manchester United's Tom Cleverley. The former Rayo Vallecano player
has moved further down the pecking order at Upton Park following the summer
arrivals of fellow battle-hardened midfielders Alex Song and Cheikhou
Kouyate. And Bruce is pleased with his latest signing, saying: "I'm
delighted to welcome Mo to the club. "His experience, both at international
level and in the Premier League, will be invaluable as we look to cement our
place in the top-flight."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Amalfitano set to join on loan
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on September 1, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are tonight closing in on their ninth signing of the transfer
window with Morgan Amalfitano set to sign a year's loan deal with the club.
The Hammers have had the player on their radar all summer and are now
working frantically to ensure that he puts pen to paper by 11pm. The
midfielder was on loan at West Brom last season but was a tad inconsistent –
one of the reasons the Hammers have waited until the very last minute as
they weighed up all options.
But with the player now inside Upton Park, it appears the 29 year old is set
to cross the channel from Marseilles to join the club. Meanwhile co-chairman
David Gold took to Twitter earlier to declare: "This is one of the best
transfer windows in West Ham history."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
One over the eight
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
The summer transfer window has 'slammed shut' - with West Ham completing a
ninth signing minutes before the 11pm deadline.
Marseilles winger Morgan Amalfitano became Sam Allardyce's ninth signing of
a very busy window by joining the Hammers on a season-long loan.
West Ham - who have spent around £30million in transfer fees during the
summer, representing a new club record - have strengthened in several areas
with only one first team squad member, contract rebel Mo Diame leaving for
pastures new (Hull City).
Two of the signings are season-long loans, whilst a further three arrived
for a nominal fees. West Ham's biggest single outlay was the reported
£12million fee paid to CF Pachua for Ecuador international Enner Valencia.
Despite West Ham's business being generally well-received, some supporters
have already expressed concern at the failure to sign a fourth central
defender given the problems experienced last Christmas when injuries to key
personnel left Allardyce without a single fit centre half.
The full list of new arrivals are as follows:
May
Mauro Zarate (Velez Sarsfield): nominal fee
June
Cheikhou Kouyate (Anderlecht): £7million
July
Enner Valencia (CF Pachua): £12.5million
Diego Poyet (Charlton Athletic): nominal, tribunal
Aaron Cresswell (Ipswich Town): £4million
August
Alex Song (Barcelona): season-long loan
Diafra Sakho (FC Metz): £4million
Carl Jenkinson (Arsenal): season-long loan
Morgan Amalfitano (Marseilles): nominal fee
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham sign winger Morgan Amalfitano from Marseille
Last Updated: 01/09/14 11:32pm
SSN
West Ham have signed France international winger Morgan Amalfitano from
Marseille. The 29-year-old becomes the Hammers' ninth summer signing.
Amalfitano, who has earned a solitary cap for France, spent most of last
season on loan at West Brom. He was part of the Marseille side that lifted
the French League Cup in 2012, the same year he made his international debut
by playing 23 minutes against Germany in a friendly. According to the French
club's website he played 87 matches for Olympique Marseille, scoring seven
goals and providing 14 assists. Nice-born Amalfitano said: "I've waited a
long time but I am very happy to have signed here. "The club wanted me a lot
and for that I waited for West Ham and now I'm here. "The manager explained
to me how the team plays and how he needs me. I explained to him where I
prefer as my position in his team. "I prefer to play behind the striker but
last year with West Brom I played on the right. "I enjoyed my first year in
English football and for that reason I have come back and hopefully I can
improve again. "The first year was good for my experience and I will try to
help West Ham."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
HOW DO YOU RATE WEST HAM'S SUMMER TRANSFER BUSINESS?
By S J Chandos 2 Sep 2014 at 00:02
West Ham Till I Die
So, the summer transfer window finally slams shut! However, did you notice
something very different about this window? All our major business was done
early and there was an absence of the usual deadline day desperation, panic
and disappointment. This season, the club did their business the right way,
early! And we generally identified and landed our targets. There was none of
the serial abortive deals, yes we got some rejections along the way, but
arguably these were outweighed by the successes.
In all (as far as we know at this point in time), we made nine signings this
summer and they are as follows:
Zarate, Kouyate, Valencia. Cresswell. Sakho, Poyet, Jenkinson (loan), Song
(loan) and Amalfitano
In terms of exits, we moved out:
Joe Cole, Taylor, McCartney, Collison, Diarra, Maiga and Diame
Personally, I am very happy with the business conducted. We completed the
major overhaul of the squad that was so badly needed. We have brought in
greater quality and increased competition for places in the squad. Moreover,
we have signed skillful players like Zarate, Valencia and Amalfitano, who
added to the likes of Downing, Noble and Morrison, can contribute to
positively transforming our style of play. And this skill must be allied to
the power and competitive edge provided by Kouyate, Song, Reid and Carroll.
I think that even their most strident critics must conceed that the West Ham
Board did a good job in bankrolling the transfer activity and landing the
club's targets. Sam Allardyce now has the tools, but can he do the job that
is required? Can he get the team to gel and make the best of the talent at
his disposal? That is the challenge to the manager. If not, and there are
any repeats of the abject Southampton defeat, then change will become
inevitable. There can be no more excuses, we need to see progress!
How do you rate the transfer business completed? Do we now have the squad to
progress this season?
SJ. Chandos.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
---
This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active.
http://www.avast.com
Monday, September 1
Daily WHUFC News - 1st September 2014
Haycock frustrated to see points slip
WHUFC.com
Development Squad coach Nick Haycock felt his side could have beaten
Manchester City on Sunday
31.08.2014
The Development Squad opened their Barclays U21 Premier League points
account for the season with a 1-1 draw at Manchester City on Sunday
afternoon, but coach Nick Haycock felt his side could, and should, have gone
back down the M6 with all three. Kieran Sadlier's 26th minute goal gave the
Hammers a lead which lasted until the very last minute of the contest, when
City's Olivier Ntcham rifled a shot in from the edge of the box to ensure
the spoils were shared.
West Ham created several chances to add to their advantage before City came
on strongly in the game's final quarter to level, and Haycock knows his team
need to keep improving in the final third. "You don't want to harp on about
games in the past but I think we've been unlucky not to have taken seven
points from the first three games," he explained. "They work hard every day
in training, there are certain things you ask of them and the more they play
together the better they look. I thought the first half was a solid
performance, we got the goal and it wouldn't have flattered us if we had
come in two or three to the good.
"We knew we had to take our chances because otherwise something will fall
for them in the game. We were hoping that we could see it out at 1-0, but
they got the goal and all credit to them because in the last 15 minutes they
looked the likely winners in a game that we were the better team for 75
minutes.
"I said to them afterwards that you can be comfortable in a game thinking
they're going to find it hard to muster a chance, but they have good
players, as all the sides in this top league do, and you have to expect them
to have a rally, especially being coached by someone like Patrick Vieira.
"He actually said to me at the end of the game, very honestly, that he
didn't know how his team got something out of the game, but we didn't get it
over the line and the lads are very disappointed with that."
The Hammers have found the net once in all three of their league games to
date - enough to draw with City, but not against Tottenham Hotspur or
Southampton - but Haycock believes more fruitful times lay just around the
corner. He continued: "We're doing all the work in training, we've now
settled into the working week after pre-season, where we do small-area game
days, then the shape work towards the end of the week. "The boys are getting
plenty of finishing, plenty of combination plays and it will turn if we keep
playing with this attitude and the way we're pressing the ball with
intensity. The players will get fitter and the more they play together the
more they'll mould into a team."
The Hammers faced a moment of concern early in the second period when right
back Sam Westley was stretchered from the field with a knee injury, but
Haycock said the early prognosis was encouraging. He said: "I think Sam is
okay, and I think he had a good first half as well. He was really hungry to
go out in the second half, and I think he got a knock on his knee. "At the
moment I don't think it's too serious but we'll leave him in the good,
capable hands of the physios at the football club and we'll see where he is
tomorrow and the day after."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Manager on Monday
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce will be sharing some stern words with his squad on Monday
morning
31.08.2014
Sam Allardyce will be expecting his players to 'clear their heads' at
Chadwell Heath on Monday as the squad prepare for a two-week break from
Barclays Premier League action. The West Ham United manager pulled no
punches in his post-match analysis of Saturday's 3-1 defeat to Southampton
after he held a full and frank discussion with his players in the dressing
room after the match. The Hammers visit Hull City on Monday 15 September and
it is clear he is expecting the lessons from the Southampton match will have
been learned. "The players were down and out in the dressing room after the
game," the manager said. "I always think it's best to get things said
quickly, in the dressing room. Let's get it out the way. Let's tell the
truth. "Let's get back in on Monday, clear our heads and get going for the
match against Hull City away. It was a poor performance, it wasn't what we
expected. They have to remember as much as they have been praised for
Crystal Palace and Tottenham, two huge, huge performances, in both of those
games. "They have to take the good with the bad. We're all in it together -
I'll accept my part of it and take responsibility. It's a wake-up call.
"There are no excuses. I can pussyfoot around it like lots of us managers
do, unlucky this and unlucky that, we passed the ball well and all that. But
we haven't played well, I can only protect them to a certain degree. You
lads [the press] are not daft, the supporters are certainly not daft. So I'm
not going to try and cover up what has been a poor performance."
The international break should allow several key first-team players to
return from injury, namely Matt Jarvis, Carl Jenkinson and James Collins.
The trio could be joined by Alex Song, the loan signing from Barcelona that
received such a rapturous welcome from the Boleyn Ground crowd before
kick-off on Saturday.
"We will get a few players back from injury - Jarvis, Jenkinson and Collins
- and Alex Song will be with us. "Hopefully nobody gets injured over the
international break and the squad that we can select for Hull City will be
much bigger than the one we had. But in saying that the same team played
against Southampton played against Crystal Palace brilliantly, but
underperformed sadly in front of their own fans."
The Hull match is followed by a home game with Liverpool and then a trip to
Manchester United, but the manager is more concerned about how his side
perform rather than who they are lining up against. "All of the games are
tough, you got to be 100% at every game to get a result in the Barclays
Premier League, whoever we play. Burnley did an unbelievable job against
Manchester United on Saturday. "Everybody thinks that when we go there or
they come here, that they're going to be fodder, they won't. They're going
to be tough. They're going to be hard to beat, like we were when we were in
the first year in the Premier League. "What worries me more than anything
else is two home games, two defeats. It's really the one that kills me the
most. We didn't deserve to get beat against Tottenham but we did.
Realistically on Saturday we didn't deserve to get anything."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Reid excited by Song arrival
WHUFC.com
Hammers defender Winston Reid believes new signing will be a Boleyn Ground
hit
31.08.2014
West Ham United defender Winston Reid is looking forward to working
alongside new loan signing Alex Song. Barcelona midfielder Song became the
Hammers eighth summer signing when he finalised a season-long loan move from
the Nou Camp on Saturday before receiving a warm welcome from the Boleyn
Ground crowd. Song possesses six years of Barclays Premier League experience
from his time with Arsenal and Reid is sure the 26-year-old will prove to be
an exciting addition to the squad. He said: "Alex Song is a good player and
will help improve the squad so I'm looking forward to working with him. "The
club has done a massive job to get him here. He's going to be a big player
for us, he's proven himself at Arsenal and Barcelona and it's good that he's
here. "
Reid had no complains over Saturday's result, saying that his team deserved
nothing from the game following a lacklustre display against Southampton.
"We were not at our best and we need to improve," he admitted. "It was
disappointing to concede the second goal from a short corner, but that's
only one goal. We conceded three and that shouldn't happen. It wasn't our
day. "We lost the game - we didn't play very well. We've played a lot better
than that, and now we've lost three home games, so we have to put that
right. "It was a general off day, our passing wasn't there and Southampton
were the better team. That was it."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Noble 'disappointed' by England snub
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 31st August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Mark Noble admitted today that he was disappointed at being overlooked by
Roy Hodgson for the latest England squad - and confirmed earlier reports
that he would give serious consideration to switching loyalties. Back in
2010 it was revealed that Canning Town-born Noble would be able to represent
Ireland through a family link. But at just 23, the midfielder decided to
reject the opportunity in order to wait for an England call-up. Some four
years down the line, Noble was touted as a potential squad replacement for
the likes of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, both of whom have declared
that they no longer wish to be considered for the national team.
However Hodgson chose instead to call up rookies Fabian Delph (Aston Villa)
and Newcastle youngster Jack Colbeck, leaving Noble to face the very real
prospect that he has no future with the English national team. "I was a
little bit disappointed not to be involved with the England squad,"
admitted. "But that's only natural if you're an English player and you've
got a chance. It's the pinnacle of every English boys career to play for
England."
And when asked whether he'd consider representing the Irish, he added: "I've
captained the [England] Under 21s in the European Championships where we
lost to an amazing German team who've just gone on to win the World Cup.
"But you never know; football is a strange game. I'll just keep on enjoying
playing for West Ham and playing the way I am - and I'll make a decision
within the next couple of weeks."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Deadline day: Italian giants join Richards race
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
West Ham United face stiff opposition in the race to sign Manchester City
defender Micah Richards, after it emerged that Italian club Fiorentina had
expressed an interest. The Hammers are just one of a number of clubs linked
with a move for the England international as the transfer window enters its
final 24 hours.
In addition to la Viola - who are also keen on Genoa midfielder Abdoulay
Konko (DiMarzio) - both Sunderland and Everton are rumoured to be keen on
snapping up Richards, who is being allowed to leave the Citizens having
failed to secure a first team slot. As tonight's 11pm deadline rapidly
approaches, West Ham are expected to be busy with possibilities of further
arrivals - and departures. The introduction of an additional central
defender appears to be a distinct possibility, even though Barcelona's Alex
Song - who became Sam Allardyce's eighth signing of a busy summer on
Saturday - has experience of featuring in that role. Song's arrival - viewed
as a major coup by many - has raised the possibility of Mo Diame's
pre-deadline departure, according to several sources.
Despite having previously ruled out a move to anyone but a 'top six club'
the Senegal international is being strongly linked with both Queens Park
Rangers and Hull City (Mail etc), whose efforts to land Manchester United's
Tom Cleverly appear to have failed with the midfielder set for Aston Villa.
With regards to potential outgoings, Matt Jarvis - who was linked with West
Bromwich Albion last month - is another who could yet feature during the
day. Carlton Cole may be the subject of one or two enquiries whilst Ricardo
Vaz Te, who asked to leave the club a year ago and has failed to impress
this season could also be on the move.
Deadline Day: WIll fans' favourite Carlton Cole be shown the door?
2014/15 New Faces - So Far
May
Mauro Zarate (Velez Sarsfield): nominal fee
June
Cheikhou Kouyate (Anderlecht): £7million
July
Enner Valencia (CF Pachua): £12.5million
Diego Poyet (Charlton Athletic): nominal, tribunal
Aaron Cresswell (Ipswich Town): £4million
August
Alex Song (Barcelona): season-long loan
Diafra Sakho (FC Metz): £4million
Carl Jenkinson (Arsenal): season-long loan
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Goals on Sunday: Mark Noble says West Ham fans should back Sam Allardyce
'Boss has improved side'
SSN
The West Ham fans should get behind under-fire Sam Allardyce, Mark Noble
told Goals on Sunday. The Hammers manager has regularly received criticism
from the Upton Park faithful during his three-year tenure and the team were
booed from the pitch after losing 3-1 at home to Southampton on Saturday.
However, Noble says the players enjoy a great relationship with Allardyce
and the good work he's doing at the club is going unnoticed. "He's up there
with the best of the managers I've played under. His man management skills
are second to none," said the midfielder. "You can sit with him in his
office and sometimes you get managers you're not like that with. He'll come
and sit down with the players while they're having their breakfast and 10
minutes later he's opening you up on the pitch but there's no hard feelings.
"Obviously the fans don't know him personally but he came to West Ham with a
philosophy with the way he plays and he's been successful over the years –
he's never been relegated as a manager. "When he came to West Ham it was at
a low point, the club needed a massive change, it needed a figure to lead
and we got that. We got promoted, came 10th in the Premier League and then
last year was a tough year but we still ended up coming 13th."
Style
Allardyce's style of play has often been an issue with West Ham supporters,
who would prefer to see a less direct approach from their team, and the
board even demanded a more 'entertaining' brand of football be played this
term. Noble believes there has been a significant improvement from the team
at the start of this campaign but conceded the criticism of Allardyce after
Saturday's loss was inevitable, given his history at the club. "The
first two games of this season were better than any games we played last
year," he said. "Against Crystal Palace we played really well and against
Spurs we played really, really well but didn't get anything out of it. "But
with the way it's been over the summer for the manager and for the stick he
got last year, he knew and the players knew that as soon as we got a bad
result it was going to come again and it did yesterday, when there were boos
after the game. "But Sam's thick-skinned enough to deal with that and
hopefully we can go to Hull next week and get some more points on the
board."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
WELCOME TO ALEX SONG
By Iain Dale 31 Aug 2014 at 10:29
West Ham Till I Die
Amidst all the gloom and doom about yesterday the one bright spot was of
course the unveiling of Alex Song. I can't think anyone will argue that this
isn't an exciting signing, albeit only on loan. According to Claret & Hugh
we are paying a £3 million loan fee but Barcelona will continue paying his
£130,000 a week wages.
He has the advantage of being able to play in a number of positions in
midfield and central defence, and also knocks in the odd goal. He played 138
times for Arsenal, scoring 7 goals. In two seasons he played 39 times for
Barcelona, scoring one goal. He has also played 47 times for Cameroon.
One interesting fact about Song is that he has 17 sisters and 10 brothers.
Quite what he thought about yesterday's game is anybody's guess. I just hope
he had already put pen to paper! I feel rather sorry for David Sullivan, who
I believe was the driving force behind the move and personally persuaded
Song to pick us over other clubs who were interested. I doubt whether he
knew what to say to him at the end of the game.
It will be interesting to see where he fits in. He has been described by
former Cameroon coach Javier Clemente as a "much better player in attack
than he is defensively."
So where would you play him?
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
313 games, 26 assists, one dismissal: West Ham's loan signing
Vincent Ralph
HITC
West Ham United have brought in Alex Song on loan, so what are the numbers
behind his career to date? West Ham United completed their latest piece of
summer transfer business on Saturday, announcing that Alex Song would spend
the season on loan from Barcelona. The Cameroon international had been
linked with a whole host of Premier League clubs but ultimately he headed to
Upton Park. It is quite a coup for Sam Allardyce and in the latest in our
series on the numbers behind a player's career to date we take a closer look
at West Ham's new arrival.
313 – The number of appearances Song has made in his club career to date. He
featured 204 times for Arsenal, 65 times for Barcelona, 32 times for Bastia
and 12 times for Charlton Athletic.
11 – The number of club goals he has scored so far. Obviously not signed for
his impact in front of goal, the defensive midfielder has still found the
net a few times over the years. The new West Ham man scored 10 of those
goals for Arsenal, where he became far more of a creative threat.
26 – The number of assists Song has in his club career to date. The
now-26-year-old set up an impressive 23 goals during his time in North
London. He also set up two goals for Barcelona and one for Charlton.
1 – The number of times Song has been sent off in his club career. This
really is an impressive statistic considering the number of games he has
played over the years. His temperament may have been one of the reasons West
Ham were so keen to bring him to the club.
64 – The number of yellow cards he has clocked up for his various clubs.
While that is a tidy sum it is spread over 313 appearances and only once has
he collected two bookings in a single match. Allardyce will hope that
continues for the season ahead.
Verdict – This really is a win-win deal for West Ham and for Song. The
player returns to a country and a league where he previously excelled, while
the Hammers are signing a player with plenty to prove and yet with Premier
League experience in abundance.
The Cameroon star will want to prove his critics wrong and given that there
is no transfer fee involved, and with other clubs reportedly interested, it
is a fine piece of business from the London club.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Harry wants Diame
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 31, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
There are renewed rumours coming out of West London today that former
Hammers manager Harry Redknapp will be up to his old tricks by making a late
bid for Hammers midfielder Mo Diame on transfer deadline day. Hull City have
already made a bid under the buy out clause despite Steve Bruce denying it.
Hull have yet to come in with a second bid and Bruce did confirm they are
interested. One barrier for Hull could be Diame's wage demands, It is
believed in addition to the £3.5m buy out clause another clause is said to
insist he earns £50,000 per week or more in any transfer deal with Diame's
agents wanting as much as £70,000 per week. We all know Harry loves a
bargain but I am doubtful the West Ham board will sell Diame to QPR under
his buy out clause but that won't Harry from trying. Harry Redknapp's
through the car window interview with Sky Sports News on deadline day has
become an institution but we await the end of the transfer window to see if
we have held on to all our players with baited breath.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Carlton's "God bless" to Twitter abusers
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 31, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Carlton Cole received a torrent of abuse on social media last night after
the 3-1 defeat at home by Southampton. This culminated in Carlton tweeting
"I know I'm easily accessible. It's a team game and I know I had a poor
game. But to take the stick for the whole thing is ludicrous." Carlton
originally seemed to be taking the abuse in his stride by replying 'God
bless!' to his haters before making that statement. It has been a topsy
turvy week for Carlton Cole after scoring the third goal at Crystal Palace
the previous Saturday. He was allegedly told by Allardyce he was surplus to
requirements and wanted by Bournemouth. The manager then had a chance of
heart starting Cole again yesterday after Diafra Sakho suffered an injury
and Enner Valencia remained short of match fitness.
Many Carlton fans took to Twitter to defend the Hammers striker pointing out
his loyalty and the important goals he has has scored in a West Ham shirt
including the Play Off final which won us promotion.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Warnock enters Diame race
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 31, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
According to the Sunday People today new Crystal Palace manager Neil Warnock
is set to leap frog QPR & Hull City to sign Mo Diame on transfer deadline
day tomorrow. The Eagles would have to meet the £3.5m buy out clause price
tag plus be prepared to pay him £50,000 per week or more. Earlier this week
Sam Allardyce was asked about the possibility of Carlton Cole and Mo Diame
leaving the club he said ""I expect both of them to be here next week and
beyond"
However, with Hull, QPR, Palace and possibly Everton after his signature the
chances of keeping after 11pm tomorrow seem slim. Speaking about the
transfer deadline day Sam added: "I think all the managers have the TV on
for the countdown to the end of the window, but what I am hoping is that I
am just sat there watching because all my business is done, I don't want to
be the one of the phone at the last minute trying to make a signing, or the
one losing a player I don't want to lose, because at that stage there is no
time to find a replacement."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Richards in, Diame out is Irons Deadline Day hope
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 31, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are still on the Micah Richards case. As reported on ClaretandHugh
last week the club are doing all they can to land the Manchester City
defender on loan tomorrow (Mon). With Mohamed Diame being chased by Hull,
QPR, and Palace - Richards' could become the second quality loan signing
in three days following Alex Son's arrival. Irons negotiators were locked
in talks with Manchester City all last week over a loan deal but the
champions were hoping to sell the player rather than let him out on loan.
However, unless there's a late bid a loan move to the Boleyn could happen
during deadline day. A well placed source told ClaretandHugh exclsuively:
"We are still working on the Richards situation. It's fifty fifty. "As far
as Diame is concerned it looks at the moment like Hull still but Palace and
QPR are interested."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
---
This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active.
http://www.avast.com
WHUFC.com
Development Squad coach Nick Haycock felt his side could have beaten
Manchester City on Sunday
31.08.2014
The Development Squad opened their Barclays U21 Premier League points
account for the season with a 1-1 draw at Manchester City on Sunday
afternoon, but coach Nick Haycock felt his side could, and should, have gone
back down the M6 with all three. Kieran Sadlier's 26th minute goal gave the
Hammers a lead which lasted until the very last minute of the contest, when
City's Olivier Ntcham rifled a shot in from the edge of the box to ensure
the spoils were shared.
West Ham created several chances to add to their advantage before City came
on strongly in the game's final quarter to level, and Haycock knows his team
need to keep improving in the final third. "You don't want to harp on about
games in the past but I think we've been unlucky not to have taken seven
points from the first three games," he explained. "They work hard every day
in training, there are certain things you ask of them and the more they play
together the better they look. I thought the first half was a solid
performance, we got the goal and it wouldn't have flattered us if we had
come in two or three to the good.
"We knew we had to take our chances because otherwise something will fall
for them in the game. We were hoping that we could see it out at 1-0, but
they got the goal and all credit to them because in the last 15 minutes they
looked the likely winners in a game that we were the better team for 75
minutes.
"I said to them afterwards that you can be comfortable in a game thinking
they're going to find it hard to muster a chance, but they have good
players, as all the sides in this top league do, and you have to expect them
to have a rally, especially being coached by someone like Patrick Vieira.
"He actually said to me at the end of the game, very honestly, that he
didn't know how his team got something out of the game, but we didn't get it
over the line and the lads are very disappointed with that."
The Hammers have found the net once in all three of their league games to
date - enough to draw with City, but not against Tottenham Hotspur or
Southampton - but Haycock believes more fruitful times lay just around the
corner. He continued: "We're doing all the work in training, we've now
settled into the working week after pre-season, where we do small-area game
days, then the shape work towards the end of the week. "The boys are getting
plenty of finishing, plenty of combination plays and it will turn if we keep
playing with this attitude and the way we're pressing the ball with
intensity. The players will get fitter and the more they play together the
more they'll mould into a team."
The Hammers faced a moment of concern early in the second period when right
back Sam Westley was stretchered from the field with a knee injury, but
Haycock said the early prognosis was encouraging. He said: "I think Sam is
okay, and I think he had a good first half as well. He was really hungry to
go out in the second half, and I think he got a knock on his knee. "At the
moment I don't think it's too serious but we'll leave him in the good,
capable hands of the physios at the football club and we'll see where he is
tomorrow and the day after."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Manager on Monday
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce will be sharing some stern words with his squad on Monday
morning
31.08.2014
Sam Allardyce will be expecting his players to 'clear their heads' at
Chadwell Heath on Monday as the squad prepare for a two-week break from
Barclays Premier League action. The West Ham United manager pulled no
punches in his post-match analysis of Saturday's 3-1 defeat to Southampton
after he held a full and frank discussion with his players in the dressing
room after the match. The Hammers visit Hull City on Monday 15 September and
it is clear he is expecting the lessons from the Southampton match will have
been learned. "The players were down and out in the dressing room after the
game," the manager said. "I always think it's best to get things said
quickly, in the dressing room. Let's get it out the way. Let's tell the
truth. "Let's get back in on Monday, clear our heads and get going for the
match against Hull City away. It was a poor performance, it wasn't what we
expected. They have to remember as much as they have been praised for
Crystal Palace and Tottenham, two huge, huge performances, in both of those
games. "They have to take the good with the bad. We're all in it together -
I'll accept my part of it and take responsibility. It's a wake-up call.
"There are no excuses. I can pussyfoot around it like lots of us managers
do, unlucky this and unlucky that, we passed the ball well and all that. But
we haven't played well, I can only protect them to a certain degree. You
lads [the press] are not daft, the supporters are certainly not daft. So I'm
not going to try and cover up what has been a poor performance."
The international break should allow several key first-team players to
return from injury, namely Matt Jarvis, Carl Jenkinson and James Collins.
The trio could be joined by Alex Song, the loan signing from Barcelona that
received such a rapturous welcome from the Boleyn Ground crowd before
kick-off on Saturday.
"We will get a few players back from injury - Jarvis, Jenkinson and Collins
- and Alex Song will be with us. "Hopefully nobody gets injured over the
international break and the squad that we can select for Hull City will be
much bigger than the one we had. But in saying that the same team played
against Southampton played against Crystal Palace brilliantly, but
underperformed sadly in front of their own fans."
The Hull match is followed by a home game with Liverpool and then a trip to
Manchester United, but the manager is more concerned about how his side
perform rather than who they are lining up against. "All of the games are
tough, you got to be 100% at every game to get a result in the Barclays
Premier League, whoever we play. Burnley did an unbelievable job against
Manchester United on Saturday. "Everybody thinks that when we go there or
they come here, that they're going to be fodder, they won't. They're going
to be tough. They're going to be hard to beat, like we were when we were in
the first year in the Premier League. "What worries me more than anything
else is two home games, two defeats. It's really the one that kills me the
most. We didn't deserve to get beat against Tottenham but we did.
Realistically on Saturday we didn't deserve to get anything."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Reid excited by Song arrival
WHUFC.com
Hammers defender Winston Reid believes new signing will be a Boleyn Ground
hit
31.08.2014
West Ham United defender Winston Reid is looking forward to working
alongside new loan signing Alex Song. Barcelona midfielder Song became the
Hammers eighth summer signing when he finalised a season-long loan move from
the Nou Camp on Saturday before receiving a warm welcome from the Boleyn
Ground crowd. Song possesses six years of Barclays Premier League experience
from his time with Arsenal and Reid is sure the 26-year-old will prove to be
an exciting addition to the squad. He said: "Alex Song is a good player and
will help improve the squad so I'm looking forward to working with him. "The
club has done a massive job to get him here. He's going to be a big player
for us, he's proven himself at Arsenal and Barcelona and it's good that he's
here. "
Reid had no complains over Saturday's result, saying that his team deserved
nothing from the game following a lacklustre display against Southampton.
"We were not at our best and we need to improve," he admitted. "It was
disappointing to concede the second goal from a short corner, but that's
only one goal. We conceded three and that shouldn't happen. It wasn't our
day. "We lost the game - we didn't play very well. We've played a lot better
than that, and now we've lost three home games, so we have to put that
right. "It was a general off day, our passing wasn't there and Southampton
were the better team. That was it."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Noble 'disappointed' by England snub
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 31st August 2014
By: Staff Writer
Mark Noble admitted today that he was disappointed at being overlooked by
Roy Hodgson for the latest England squad - and confirmed earlier reports
that he would give serious consideration to switching loyalties. Back in
2010 it was revealed that Canning Town-born Noble would be able to represent
Ireland through a family link. But at just 23, the midfielder decided to
reject the opportunity in order to wait for an England call-up. Some four
years down the line, Noble was touted as a potential squad replacement for
the likes of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, both of whom have declared
that they no longer wish to be considered for the national team.
However Hodgson chose instead to call up rookies Fabian Delph (Aston Villa)
and Newcastle youngster Jack Colbeck, leaving Noble to face the very real
prospect that he has no future with the English national team. "I was a
little bit disappointed not to be involved with the England squad,"
admitted. "But that's only natural if you're an English player and you've
got a chance. It's the pinnacle of every English boys career to play for
England."
And when asked whether he'd consider representing the Irish, he added: "I've
captained the [England] Under 21s in the European Championships where we
lost to an amazing German team who've just gone on to win the World Cup.
"But you never know; football is a strange game. I'll just keep on enjoying
playing for West Ham and playing the way I am - and I'll make a decision
within the next couple of weeks."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Deadline day: Italian giants join Richards race
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 1st September 2014
By: Staff Writer
West Ham United face stiff opposition in the race to sign Manchester City
defender Micah Richards, after it emerged that Italian club Fiorentina had
expressed an interest. The Hammers are just one of a number of clubs linked
with a move for the England international as the transfer window enters its
final 24 hours.
In addition to la Viola - who are also keen on Genoa midfielder Abdoulay
Konko (DiMarzio) - both Sunderland and Everton are rumoured to be keen on
snapping up Richards, who is being allowed to leave the Citizens having
failed to secure a first team slot. As tonight's 11pm deadline rapidly
approaches, West Ham are expected to be busy with possibilities of further
arrivals - and departures. The introduction of an additional central
defender appears to be a distinct possibility, even though Barcelona's Alex
Song - who became Sam Allardyce's eighth signing of a busy summer on
Saturday - has experience of featuring in that role. Song's arrival - viewed
as a major coup by many - has raised the possibility of Mo Diame's
pre-deadline departure, according to several sources.
Despite having previously ruled out a move to anyone but a 'top six club'
the Senegal international is being strongly linked with both Queens Park
Rangers and Hull City (Mail etc), whose efforts to land Manchester United's
Tom Cleverly appear to have failed with the midfielder set for Aston Villa.
With regards to potential outgoings, Matt Jarvis - who was linked with West
Bromwich Albion last month - is another who could yet feature during the
day. Carlton Cole may be the subject of one or two enquiries whilst Ricardo
Vaz Te, who asked to leave the club a year ago and has failed to impress
this season could also be on the move.
Deadline Day: WIll fans' favourite Carlton Cole be shown the door?
2014/15 New Faces - So Far
May
Mauro Zarate (Velez Sarsfield): nominal fee
June
Cheikhou Kouyate (Anderlecht): £7million
July
Enner Valencia (CF Pachua): £12.5million
Diego Poyet (Charlton Athletic): nominal, tribunal
Aaron Cresswell (Ipswich Town): £4million
August
Alex Song (Barcelona): season-long loan
Diafra Sakho (FC Metz): £4million
Carl Jenkinson (Arsenal): season-long loan
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Goals on Sunday: Mark Noble says West Ham fans should back Sam Allardyce
'Boss has improved side'
SSN
The West Ham fans should get behind under-fire Sam Allardyce, Mark Noble
told Goals on Sunday. The Hammers manager has regularly received criticism
from the Upton Park faithful during his three-year tenure and the team were
booed from the pitch after losing 3-1 at home to Southampton on Saturday.
However, Noble says the players enjoy a great relationship with Allardyce
and the good work he's doing at the club is going unnoticed. "He's up there
with the best of the managers I've played under. His man management skills
are second to none," said the midfielder. "You can sit with him in his
office and sometimes you get managers you're not like that with. He'll come
and sit down with the players while they're having their breakfast and 10
minutes later he's opening you up on the pitch but there's no hard feelings.
"Obviously the fans don't know him personally but he came to West Ham with a
philosophy with the way he plays and he's been successful over the years –
he's never been relegated as a manager. "When he came to West Ham it was at
a low point, the club needed a massive change, it needed a figure to lead
and we got that. We got promoted, came 10th in the Premier League and then
last year was a tough year but we still ended up coming 13th."
Style
Allardyce's style of play has often been an issue with West Ham supporters,
who would prefer to see a less direct approach from their team, and the
board even demanded a more 'entertaining' brand of football be played this
term. Noble believes there has been a significant improvement from the team
at the start of this campaign but conceded the criticism of Allardyce after
Saturday's loss was inevitable, given his history at the club. "The
first two games of this season were better than any games we played last
year," he said. "Against Crystal Palace we played really well and against
Spurs we played really, really well but didn't get anything out of it. "But
with the way it's been over the summer for the manager and for the stick he
got last year, he knew and the players knew that as soon as we got a bad
result it was going to come again and it did yesterday, when there were boos
after the game. "But Sam's thick-skinned enough to deal with that and
hopefully we can go to Hull next week and get some more points on the
board."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
WELCOME TO ALEX SONG
By Iain Dale 31 Aug 2014 at 10:29
West Ham Till I Die
Amidst all the gloom and doom about yesterday the one bright spot was of
course the unveiling of Alex Song. I can't think anyone will argue that this
isn't an exciting signing, albeit only on loan. According to Claret & Hugh
we are paying a £3 million loan fee but Barcelona will continue paying his
£130,000 a week wages.
He has the advantage of being able to play in a number of positions in
midfield and central defence, and also knocks in the odd goal. He played 138
times for Arsenal, scoring 7 goals. In two seasons he played 39 times for
Barcelona, scoring one goal. He has also played 47 times for Cameroon.
One interesting fact about Song is that he has 17 sisters and 10 brothers.
Quite what he thought about yesterday's game is anybody's guess. I just hope
he had already put pen to paper! I feel rather sorry for David Sullivan, who
I believe was the driving force behind the move and personally persuaded
Song to pick us over other clubs who were interested. I doubt whether he
knew what to say to him at the end of the game.
It will be interesting to see where he fits in. He has been described by
former Cameroon coach Javier Clemente as a "much better player in attack
than he is defensively."
So where would you play him?
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
313 games, 26 assists, one dismissal: West Ham's loan signing
Vincent Ralph
HITC
West Ham United have brought in Alex Song on loan, so what are the numbers
behind his career to date? West Ham United completed their latest piece of
summer transfer business on Saturday, announcing that Alex Song would spend
the season on loan from Barcelona. The Cameroon international had been
linked with a whole host of Premier League clubs but ultimately he headed to
Upton Park. It is quite a coup for Sam Allardyce and in the latest in our
series on the numbers behind a player's career to date we take a closer look
at West Ham's new arrival.
313 – The number of appearances Song has made in his club career to date. He
featured 204 times for Arsenal, 65 times for Barcelona, 32 times for Bastia
and 12 times for Charlton Athletic.
11 – The number of club goals he has scored so far. Obviously not signed for
his impact in front of goal, the defensive midfielder has still found the
net a few times over the years. The new West Ham man scored 10 of those
goals for Arsenal, where he became far more of a creative threat.
26 – The number of assists Song has in his club career to date. The
now-26-year-old set up an impressive 23 goals during his time in North
London. He also set up two goals for Barcelona and one for Charlton.
1 – The number of times Song has been sent off in his club career. This
really is an impressive statistic considering the number of games he has
played over the years. His temperament may have been one of the reasons West
Ham were so keen to bring him to the club.
64 – The number of yellow cards he has clocked up for his various clubs.
While that is a tidy sum it is spread over 313 appearances and only once has
he collected two bookings in a single match. Allardyce will hope that
continues for the season ahead.
Verdict – This really is a win-win deal for West Ham and for Song. The
player returns to a country and a league where he previously excelled, while
the Hammers are signing a player with plenty to prove and yet with Premier
League experience in abundance.
The Cameroon star will want to prove his critics wrong and given that there
is no transfer fee involved, and with other clubs reportedly interested, it
is a fine piece of business from the London club.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Harry wants Diame
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 31, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
There are renewed rumours coming out of West London today that former
Hammers manager Harry Redknapp will be up to his old tricks by making a late
bid for Hammers midfielder Mo Diame on transfer deadline day. Hull City have
already made a bid under the buy out clause despite Steve Bruce denying it.
Hull have yet to come in with a second bid and Bruce did confirm they are
interested. One barrier for Hull could be Diame's wage demands, It is
believed in addition to the £3.5m buy out clause another clause is said to
insist he earns £50,000 per week or more in any transfer deal with Diame's
agents wanting as much as £70,000 per week. We all know Harry loves a
bargain but I am doubtful the West Ham board will sell Diame to QPR under
his buy out clause but that won't Harry from trying. Harry Redknapp's
through the car window interview with Sky Sports News on deadline day has
become an institution but we await the end of the transfer window to see if
we have held on to all our players with baited breath.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Carlton's "God bless" to Twitter abusers
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 31, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Carlton Cole received a torrent of abuse on social media last night after
the 3-1 defeat at home by Southampton. This culminated in Carlton tweeting
"I know I'm easily accessible. It's a team game and I know I had a poor
game. But to take the stick for the whole thing is ludicrous." Carlton
originally seemed to be taking the abuse in his stride by replying 'God
bless!' to his haters before making that statement. It has been a topsy
turvy week for Carlton Cole after scoring the third goal at Crystal Palace
the previous Saturday. He was allegedly told by Allardyce he was surplus to
requirements and wanted by Bournemouth. The manager then had a chance of
heart starting Cole again yesterday after Diafra Sakho suffered an injury
and Enner Valencia remained short of match fitness.
Many Carlton fans took to Twitter to defend the Hammers striker pointing out
his loyalty and the important goals he has has scored in a West Ham shirt
including the Play Off final which won us promotion.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Warnock enters Diame race
Posted by Sean Whetstone on August 31, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
According to the Sunday People today new Crystal Palace manager Neil Warnock
is set to leap frog QPR & Hull City to sign Mo Diame on transfer deadline
day tomorrow. The Eagles would have to meet the £3.5m buy out clause price
tag plus be prepared to pay him £50,000 per week or more. Earlier this week
Sam Allardyce was asked about the possibility of Carlton Cole and Mo Diame
leaving the club he said ""I expect both of them to be here next week and
beyond"
However, with Hull, QPR, Palace and possibly Everton after his signature the
chances of keeping after 11pm tomorrow seem slim. Speaking about the
transfer deadline day Sam added: "I think all the managers have the TV on
for the countdown to the end of the window, but what I am hoping is that I
am just sat there watching because all my business is done, I don't want to
be the one of the phone at the last minute trying to make a signing, or the
one losing a player I don't want to lose, because at that stage there is no
time to find a replacement."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Richards in, Diame out is Irons Deadline Day hope
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 31, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are still on the Micah Richards case. As reported on ClaretandHugh
last week the club are doing all they can to land the Manchester City
defender on loan tomorrow (Mon). With Mohamed Diame being chased by Hull,
QPR, and Palace - Richards' could become the second quality loan signing
in three days following Alex Son's arrival. Irons negotiators were locked
in talks with Manchester City all last week over a loan deal but the
champions were hoping to sell the player rather than let him out on loan.
However, unless there's a late bid a loan move to the Boleyn could happen
during deadline day. A well placed source told ClaretandHugh exclsuively:
"We are still working on the Richards situation. It's fifty fifty. "As far
as Diame is concerned it looks at the moment like Hull still but Palace and
QPR are interested."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
---
This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active.
http://www.avast.com
Sunday, August 31
Daily WHUFC News - 31st August 2014
West Ham sunk at home by Saints
WHUFc.com
Southampton fight back from a goal down to triumph 3-1 at the Boleyn Ground
on Saturday afternoon
30.08.2014
Barclays Premier League
West Ham United 1-3 Southampton
Southampton came from behind at the Boleyn Ground on Saturday to consign
West Ham United to a second home Barclays Premier League defeat in as many
outings. It had all started so well for Sam Allardyce's men, with Mark
Noble finding the bottom corner from distance after 27 minutes. But Morgan
Schneiderlin curled home on the stroke of half-time and then converted a
well-worked short corner to complete the turnaround midway through the
second period. Ronald Koeman's side were rewarded for a fluent second-half
display with a late third courtesy of Graziano Pelle, a goal that leaves the
Hammers still searching for a first home point of the new campaign. The
afternoon had earlier begun with the unveiling of former Arsenal midfielder
Alex Song, who has signed on a season-long loan from FC Barcelona. As for
more matters on the pitch, Allardyce reverted to the XI that did the
business with such style at Crystal Palace last weekend. The Hammers then
had an early sniff of goal, as Carlton Cole's header dropped towards Ricardo
Vaz Te, but skipped off the turf and through to Fraser Forster. A succession
of Saints corners followed, with the second resulting in a Hammers
breakaway. Cheikhou Kouyate released Stewart Downing down the right, whose
cross-field ball was aimed at Mauro Zarate, but cut out en route.
Following a sedate opening, West Ham were within inches of opening the
scoring midway through the half. Downing's free-kick ricocheted off several
a leg and fell invitingly to Vaz Te, whose side-footer hit the inside of
Forster's left leg and somehow squeezed past his right-hand upright. But Big
Sam's men would not have to wait much longer for the opener, as Noble made
amends for his penalty mishap against Tottenham Hotspur with a 27th-minute
strike here. Zarate stole possession in the Saints' half, fed Noble and his
25-yard strike flicked off Maya Yoshida and past the left hand of Forster.
In response, Aaron Cresswell was perfectly placed to block Pelle's header on
the line, before Dusan Tadic's centre fell to Steven Davis on the edge of
the box, but he blasted way over the top. The Saints, however, drew level on
the stroke of half-time, as a left-wing free-kick came all the way through
to France midfielder Schneiderlin at the far post. Though Joey O'Brien did
superbly well to block the midfielder's first effort, Schneiderlin steadied
himself and bent the rebound left-footed into the far corner.
Buoyed by their leveller, the Saints raced out of the traps after the
interval and Adrian had to fling himself to his left to divert Shane Long's
low drive around the post. At the other end, a typically energetic Kouyate
went haring down the right and his low ball across the face of goal fizzed
just beyond Cole. But back came the visitors, with Adrian unable to hold
Tadic's left-foot volley from the left-edge of the box. The resulting corner
flicked off the head of Noble and through to Schneiderlin who, from no more
than eight yards, side-footed over the bar. Moments later and Koeman's men
did indeed have the ball in the back of the net, but the linesman came to
the Hammers' rescue, chalking off Pelle's close-range effort from a James
Ward-Prowse dead ball. A second scare in a matter of minutes prompted Big
Sam to shuffle his pack, with Mohamed Diame and Ravel Morrison introduced
for Vaz Te and Zarate. But the double switch would not stem the tide, as
Southampton completed the turnaround on 68 minutes. A short corner caught
the Hammers unaware and Ward-Prowse's near-post delivery enabled
Schneiderlin to tuck home.
West Ham were soon undone by another smart set-piece, when Pelle was set
free on the right edge of the box, only for Adrian to deny the No19 on this
occasion. But the Hammers' reprieve was short-lived. Nathaniel Clyne burst
beyond Diame on the right and once Adrian had merely parried his centre,
Pelle was on hand to fire high into an ungaurded net and settle the contest.
West Ham United: Adrian, O'Brien, Tomkins, Reid, Cresswell, Noble, Kouyate,
Downing, Zarate (Morrison 57), Vaz Te (Diame 58), Cole (Valencia 79)
Subs: Jaaskelainen, Sakho, Demel, Poyet
Goal: Noble 27
Booked: Cresswell, O'Brien
Southampton: Forster, Clyne, Yoshida, Schneiderlin, Fonte, Long (Ramirez
66), Davis, Tadic, Ward-Prowse (Cork 71), Pelle, Bertrand
Subs: Davis, Gardos, Wanyama, Cork, Mayuka, Hooiveld
Goals: Schneiderlin 45, 68, Pelle 83
Booked: Pelle
Referee: Mike Dean
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sam slams set play setbacks
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce said West Ham United had gifted Southampton a 3-1 Barclays
Premier League victory
30.08.2014
Sam Allardyce said West Ham United only had themselves to blame for their
3-1 Barclays Premier League defeat by Southampton. The Hammers took a
first-half lead through Mark Noble's deflected effort before two set play
goals from Morgan Schneiderlin allowed the Saints to turn the game on its
head either side of half-time. Southampton frontman Graziano Pelle
emphatically netted a third seven minutes from full-time to complete a
deserved away win and an afternoon to forget for the home side. Speaking to
West Ham TV, Big Sam could not hide his disappointment and frustration at a
performance that nobody of a Claret and Blue persuasion could have
predicted. "I think we were in a pretty confident [going into the game] and
if that spilled into some over-confidence, I don't know," he began. "Tthe
bottom line was under-performance from the team and if you don't perform to
your best in the Barclays Premier League, you get punished.
"That was the big problem - lack of movement, lack of ball retention, simple
passes going astray, the team not being patient and waiting to get into the
opposition half and continually giving the ball back to them, so they could
break and create more and more attacks against us. "Our normal resilience in
defensive areas from open play meant they initially didn't have any shots on
target on our goal, but then we went on to concede from a set play. People
could say we were unlucky because there was a great block in there, but our
starting positions were all wrong and we only ran through them on the field
on Friday at Upton Park. People weren't taking responsibility for taking the
right starting position and it ultimately accumulated into them scoring just
before half-time.
"While we weren't playing well, we could have come in at 1-0 and even at 1-1
I said to the lads 'If you don't start doing this then you will not get
anything from this game'. I made a couple of substitutions to try to rectify
at least getting possession of the ball and keeping it, but we didn't get
too much better. "We then conceded the second goal off a corner, which was
just suicidal from our point of view. We haven't played well, but we could
have battled and got a well-earned point when we hadn't deserved it because
Southampton were better than us. To give it to Southampton off two set plays
was massively disappointing, even though the second goal shouldn't have been
a corner. I am 100 per cent certain it should have been a goal kick. "Our
switch-off time after the corner was awarded was really poor for their short
corner. Players forgot they had to get out there and we paid a heavy price
for that."
When asked if he could put his finger on why West Ham under-performed so
markedly, the manager admitted there was more than one aspect of their
display that left him perplexed. "None of the players performed to their
best, excepted Cheikh Kouyate who went about his job pretty well, but he had
no help from the rest of his mates," he continued. "There wasn't enough
energy, team commitment when the opposition had it or quality and movement
when we had the ball.
"We needed to show some resilience, grit and determination to make sure
Southampton didn't score, but we've gifted them two set play goals. If, with
their good passing and movement, they had rapped one in the top corner like
the third goal, then you can say they've played really well there. But when
you don't do your job right from set pieces, you ulitimately pay a heavy
price at this level. "It's a real blow and hopefully a real wake-up call for
the players for the fact that they cannot do anything but hit 100 per cent
of their game every time they turn out in the Barclays Premier League,
because that's what's needed from this squad to get a result."
One positive on an otherwise miserable afternoon was the unveiling of new
signing Alex Song moments before kick-off. The Cameroon international has
joined on a season-long loan from Barcelona and Big Sam expects the African
to bring both quality and leadership to the Hammers ranks. "I hope he adds
some leadership, because he is a very experienced man who has played for
Arsenal and Barcelona in the Champions League," said the manager. "We are so
pleased that the the Co-Chairmen have worked so hard to get him into the
squad. "It should make us better so I hope he can get straight in there and
inspire us to play more like we did against Crystal Palace and Tottenham and
less like we did against Southampton. "He is a massively talented player,
but the others have to play their best to play with him and he will
definitely add something to us. "The big responsibility for us is that we
need to support the players who have come to us from abroad and have fitted
in quite well. We needed Carl Jenkinson, James Collins, Andy Carroll and
Matt Jarvis back in the squad and, if all four were fit, probably all four
would have played. Maybe that stood out, that we've been caught a little
short of numbers at the moment."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Tonks disappointed with Saints display
WHUFc.com
James Tomkins was frustrated with West Ham United's 3-1 defeat to
Southampton
30.08.2014
James Tomkins admitted Saturday's performance against Southampton was one to
forget after West Ham United failed to build on last weekend's win over
Crystal Palace. Mark Noble fired the Hammers into a first half lead on their
return to the Boleyn Ground, but a Morgan Schneiderlin double and Graziano
Pelle's late goal consigned them to defeat. Tomkins was especially annoyed
to concede two goals from set pieces and he says the Londoners will have to
work hard on the training pitch to ensure it does not happen again. "The
only positive from the game is Nobes' goal," he admitted. "We never really
got going and didn't deserve to win on Saturday. "We should have gone on
from our goal. They had a lot of possession, but I didn't think they were
going to score, but then they've got one from a set play which was
frustrating from our point of view. "We work hard on them, so to let in
another one in the second half is very disappointing. We're going to have
pick ourselves up, because we've got two weeks to get it right for the next
game. "To go from such a high last Saturday and go into today's game with
such confidence, we felt we could win the game, but maybe we thought it
would be easier than it was and they played really well. "We wanted to go
into the international break with a positive and it hasn't worked out that
way. We'll be disappointed for the next couple of days, but we can't lie on
that and we'll have the chance to work on what we did wrong on Saturday."
The Hammers completed their eighth summer signing on the day of the game,
loaning Alex Song from Barcelona for the season, and Tomkins is looking
forward to working with the midfielder. "Alex comes with a great record,
playing for Arsenal and Barcelona," he added. "It's a good signing and it
shows what the club's trying to do here. "Hopefully he can settle in
quickly."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Hammers go for a Song
WHUFc.com
West Ham United have snapped up Cameroon midfielder Alex Song on a
season-long loan deal
30.08.2014
West Ham United are delighted to confirm they have beaten off interest from
some of Europe's biggest clubs to complete the signing of Barcelona
midfielder Alex Song on a season-long loan deal. Song, 26, has spent the
last two seasons at the Nou Camp following his £15million move from Arsenal
in the summer of 2012, playing 39 La Liga matches and winning the title in
2012/13. The Cameroon international, who can also play at centre-back, is
delighted to be returning to London with the Hammers and cannot wait to face
the challenge of Barclays Premier League football again. Song said: "I'm
very happy to be here and very happy to see the guys and the fans today and
to start to do my job for West Ham United. I think this is very important
for me to be coming back to London to West Ham United, which is a club with
ambition to build a new stadium and become a big club. I am very excited to
be part of this project. "For me, when I was in Spain, I always said that if
I was to leave one day I would return to the Premier League. It was a very
hard decision, because when you have options of a lot of clubs who are
playing in the Champions League, but at the end of the day I chose West Ham
because I wanted to come to the Premier League. This is a league which has
given me a lot and I didn't finish what I wanted to achieve here. "For my
family too, it was very important, because my children and my wife wanted to
come back to England. This is an opportunity to do that with West Ham and I
just took it. I am very happy to be here and very proud to be part of the
project at this club."
Song revealed that a long discussion with manager Sam Allardyce about the
Hammers' ambition to rise to the next level convinced him that this is the
right club for him. "When I spoke to the manager, he gave me very good
advice," he continued. "I had a very good chat with him and that's why I am
coming here. We have to do better than last season. I think the club has
very good ambition and I hope we can maybe catch the European positions,
because that would be very good for the club. "I want to be part of that and
that's why I came here. The manager knows what he wants and I know what he
wants and that's why I want to help the team. I want to be part of what the
club wants to achieve this year. "I need some games to be ready and get my
fitness back. When I am 100 per cent, I will bring the experience and I will
make the fans happy, I am sure. I am lucky to be back in London, back in
England and with West Ham. I am looking forward to showing everyone what I
can do. "West Ham is looking to be a very, very big Club in the future. The
Club has a great project and it is a very big project with very big
ambition. I think it's great for the fans that the Club wants to be one of
the biggest in England. That's why I chose to come here."
Born in Douala, Cameroon, Song started his professional career in France
with Bastia on the island of Corsica, where he quickly progressed to the
first team, making his debut as a 16-year-old in the 2003/04 campaign. After
32 Ligue 1 appearances by the age of 17, he earned a move to Arsenal,
initially on loan, before signing a permanent contract with the Gunners in
summer 2006. Despite still being a teenager, Song appeared in the Barclays
Premier League and UEFA Champions League during his debut Arsenal season
and, after returning from a loan spell at Charlton Athletic in 2007,
established himself in Arsene Wenger's side. In October 2010, he scored a
late Barclays Premier League winner against the Hammers at the Emirates -
one of ten goals he netted for the Gunners. By the time he moved on to
Barcelona in 2012, Song had made 138 Premier League appearances for the
Gunners - 206 in all competitions - and was a League Cup runner-up in 2011.
With Barcelona, in addition to his La Liga winners' medal, Song also won the
Supercopa Espana in 2013 and was part of the Barca squad which lost to Real
Madrid in the Copa del Rey final last term.
Internationally, Song has been capped 47 times by Cameroon, finishing second
in the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations and featuring in the last two FIFA World
Cup finals. The midfielder becomes the third Cameroonian to play for the
Hammers, following cousin and namesake Rigobert and the late Marc-Vivien
Foe.
He is West Ham's eighth summer capture, following the arrivals of Mauro
Zarate, Cheikhou Kouyate, Enner Valencia, Diafra Sakho, Carl Jenkinson,
Aaron Cresswell and Diego Poyet.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Alex Song joins West Ham United on loan from Barcelona
BBC.co.uk
West Ham have signed former Arsenal midfielder Alex Song on a season-long
loan deal from Barcelona. The 26-year-old Cameroon international, wearing a
Hammers shirt, was introduced to home fans before Saturday's Premier League
game against Southampton. "I think the club has very good ambition and I
hope we can maybe catch the European positions," he said. Song joined
Barcelona in 2012 from Arsenal for about £15m with an 80m euros (£63m)
release clause. He played 206 times for the Gunners between 2005 and 2012
and has made 39 appearances since moving to the Nou Camp. The Hammers
indicated they fought off interest from "some of Europe's biggest clubs" to
seal the deal. And Song said he was impressed by the ambitions of the London
club, which will move from the Boleyn Ground to the Olympic Stadium in time
for the 2016-17 season. "I need some games to be ready and get my fitness
back," he said.
"When I am 100%, I will bring the experience and I will make the fans happy,
I am sure. I am lucky to be back in London, back in England and with West
Ham. I am looking forward to showing everyone what I can do. "West Ham is
looking to be a very, very big club in the future. The club has a great
project and it is a very big project with very big ambition."
Song is West Ham's eighth summer signing, following the arrivals of Mauro
Zarate, Cheikhou Kouyate, Enner Valencia, Diafra Sakho, Carl Jenkinson,
Aaron Cresswell and Diego Poyet.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Allardyce on......Southampton
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 30th August 2014
By: Staff Writer No.2
A disappointed Sam Allardyce gives his thoughts on today's poor performance
against Southampton...
Sam the players seemed to lose their way in the second half – too many
players not on song?
Yeah – you're spot on there. I don't think we were that good in the first
half, to be honest with you. Compared to what we expected and what we were
like in the last two games here against Tottenham and last week against
Crystal Palace, we had a massive under-performance across the board today,
which was a massive blow to us. A massive disappointment to everybody,
particularly at home again.
Two home games. Two defeats. This can't happen it can't carry on. Yes,
against Tottenham a good performance but we still got beat when we should
have won. We didn't even get a point. Today we could have scraped a point.
As good as Southampton were – and we must give them credit – up to the
second goal there were no shots or openings created in open play.
We practice set plays on a regular basis and set them out on the analysis
board. Our defending of set plays was a massive massive disappointment.
Letting them score from two was unacceptable – even though we know the
second goal was a goal kick and not a corner. You can't allow it to punish
you like we allowed it to punish us. We started to get a bit desperate then
and you don't get anything when you're desperate.
Sam do the players play with a bit of pressure here that they don't get
anywhere else?
Well we didn't against Tottenham. I think everyone was looking forward to a
continuation of the good performances. After the result at Palace there's
nothing in the performance today that I can be pleased about. For a long
time our resilience in open play was pretty good. But why do all that hard
work only to give it away on two set pieces? Massively disappointing.
Perhaps it's a reality check here. The new players have seen the ups and
downs and what the Premier League can do to you if you're not 100% and
you're not on top of your game. Certainly a lot of our players were not on
top of their game.
You were screaming at the players before their first goal?
Yes – to get across at the back they had 3 v 1. The players didn't look over
their shoulders to shuffle over. We nearly got away from it with a massive
block from Joey O'Brien but it fell to the spare man again who put it away.
We were 1-0 up but I can't argue that Southampton weren't the better team
today
What do you think Alex Song can bring?
I'm hoping he can bring a bit of leadership. Out on the pitch the lads are
not opening their mouths enough. They all talk about what they should do
before the game and in training. They all talk in the dressing room but when
they get out on the pitch they stop talking to each other. The communication
is zero.
Somebody's got to get a grip and say "it's a short corner – there are two
out there". Somebody needs to say "there's three against one at the back
here." It doesn't appear to me that anyone is taking the responsibility.
Having spoken to [Song] he looks like a bit of a leader to me. He'll go out
there and kick a few backsides on the pitch. That's what we need. Somebody
needs to kick a few backsides on the field and get them motivated.
Will you be bringing any more in before the deadline?
I don't know. We had a massive boost, a massive uplift when I met Alex after
all the hard work put in by David Sullivan, recruitment and everyone to
bring this fantastic player to the club. The big let down is that he arrives
on the pitch and it should have lifted everybody, especially the players
that played today and the players haven't performed. I didn't expect a
performance like this especially after the two we've just given.
He will make us better. Hopefully with the return of Carl Jenkinson, James
Collins, Matt Jarvis and eventually Kevin Nolan and Andy Carroll we'll be
more of a force to be reckoned with.
Mark Noble is looking at playing for Ireland now. What would you advise him
to do?
Play. Go play international football. He's clearly not going to get an
opportunity here so if he gets the opportunity through parentage to play for
Ireland he should go – international football is fantastic.
Have you spoken to him about it?
No – I didn't realise he had an Irish parent – not with that cockney accent!
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham sign Barcelona midfielder Alex Song on season-long loan
Last Updated: 30/08/14 3:50pm
SSN
West Ham have completed the signing of Barcelona midfielder Alex Song on a
season-long loan deal. The 26-year-old Cameroon international struggled to
hold down a regular place at the Nou Camp following a move from Arsenal in
2012 and returns to the Premier League with the Hammers. He was paraded at
Upton Park ahead of the clash with Southampton on Saturday afternoon. Clubs
throughout Europe were put on alert when it emerged Song would be allowed to
leave Barcelona - with West Ham having won the race to sign him on a
temporary basis despite reported interest from the likes of Napoli and
Galatasaray. Song revealed it was a conversation with Hammers boss Sam
Allardyce that led to his decision to move to east London and he is
targeting European qualification.
"When I spoke to the manager, he gave me very good advice," he told
whufc.com. "I had a very good chat with him and that's why I am coming here.
We have to do better than last season. I think the club has very good
ambition and I hope we can maybe catch the European positions, because that
would be very good for the club. "West Ham is looking to be a very, very big
club in the future. The club has a great project and it is a very big
project with very big ambition.
"I think it's great for the fans that the club wants to be one of the
biggest in England. That's why I chose to come here. I always said that if I
was to leave (Barcelona) one day I would return to the Premier League. "It
was a very hard decision when you have options of a lot of clubs who are
playing in the Champions League, but at the end of the day I chose West Ham
because I wanted to come to the Premier League."
Song, who won one La Liga title during his spell in Spain, is likely to be
West Ham's final summer signing - taking the total of new recruits to eight.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham 1-3 Southampton: Morgan Schneiderlin double sees Saints take the
points
By Chris Harvey. Last Updated: 30/08/14 7:00pm
SSN
Two goals from Morgan Schneiderlin and a late Graziano Pelle strike saw
Southampton come from behind to beat West Ham 3-1 at Upton Park. Frenchman
Schneiderlin, who handed in a transfer request earlier in the summer, twice
profited from some sloppy Hammers defending to put the visitors on their way
to three points they thoroughly deserved.
MATCH FACTS
Man of the match - Dusan Tadic. There were a few in Saints colours who could
lay a claim for man of the match but Serb Tadic showed great quality and
tormented the Hammers defence throughout.
Save of the match: Fraser Forster was a virtual spectator in the second half
but in the first he made a wonderful block with his boot to deflect Ricardo
Vaz Te's close-range effort behind
Goal of the match: Saints were inventive throughout but their short corner
routine which allowed Schneiderlin to score his second was a gem
Talking point: Just what did Ronald Koeman say to his side at half-time to
trigger the transformation as Saints swept the home team aside?
The midfielder curled in a sweet left-footer on the stroke of half-time to
cancel out Mark Noble's deflected effort then put the visitors ahead on 69
minutes when the Hammers fell asleep at a corner, allowing him to turn in
James Ward-Prowse's cross at the near post. The points were made safe seven
minutes from time when Pelle got his reward for a fine centre-forward
display, smashing in from close range after Adrian could only parry
Nathaniel Clyne's cross into his path. The third goal sparked a rush to the
exits for the home fans, following a second home defeat in the space of a
week for manager Sam Allardyce whose team were knocked out of the Capital
One Cup on penalties by Sheffield United. Southampton, who won at Millwall
in the cup, started brightly as Pelle and Shane Long, a £12million signing
from Hull, stretched the Hammers' defence.
West Ham paraded new loan signing Alex Song, the former Arsenal man joining
from Barcelona, before kick-off, but took time to get into any sort of
passing rhythm against the well-organised Saints. It was 20 minutes before
the home side were able to create an opening. Southampton boss Ronald Koeman
says his side's late 1st half equaliser against West Ham gave his side the
believe to go on and win the game 3-1. A free-kick from Stewart Downing was
only half cleared, with the ball dropping back to the far post through a
crowded six-yard box where Ricardo Vaz Te turned it goalwards. However,
Saints goalkeeper Fraser Forster somehow made a reaction save with his leg
at point-blank range to push the ball wide across the face of goal. There
was, though, little the former Celtic number one could do a few moments
later to prevent West Ham taking the lead in the 27th minute. Noble robbed
Schneiderlin and drove towards the edge of the Saints penalty area. He let
fly from 25 yards, with the ball deflecting off the boot of Maya Yoshida and
into the far corner, just out of Forster's reach.
Southampton looked to make a quick response, with a deep cross from the left
glanced down by Pelle, which Aaron Cresswell guided off the line. To their
credit, the visitors continued to stay composed despite now having to chase
the match, with West Ham dropping an extra man into a packed midfield to
compensate. Pelle missed his kick when Serbian midfielder Dusan Tadic found
space on the left for another dangerous cross into the West Ham penalty
area, which Winston Reid gratefully cleared. West Ham boss Sam Allardyce
said his side were second best in their 3-1 defeat against Southampton.
Schneiderlin showed the Italian how it should be done when he equalised on
the stroke of half-time. A free-kick on the left touchline was floated in by
Tadic and flicked on to the far post, where Schneiderlin drilled it back
goalwards. Although Joey O'Brien made a brave block, Schneiderlin latched
onto the rebound and curled it inside the far post.
Saints went close to taking the lead at the start of the second half when a
shot by Long at the edge of the penalty area was turned behind by Adrian.
Tadic then had the West Ham goalkeeper scrambling down to his right with a
low shot from 18 yards, and Schneiderlin crashed the ball over from 10 yards
following the corner. Saints had the ball in the net again when Pelle
converted a free-kick from Ward-Prowse at the far post, but was one of three
players ruled offside - although the decision was a tight one. Allardyce had
seen enough, and made a double change on the hour, as Ravel Morrison and
Mohamed Diame replaced Mauro Zarate and Vaz Te. It was no surprise when
Schneiderlin put the Saints ahead midway through the second half. A short
corner caught West Ham asleep, with a cross from Ward-Prowse flicked home at
the near post by the French midfielder, who wheeled away to celebrate in
front of the away fans behind the goal.
West Ham needed inspiration from somewhere, and £12million Ecuador forward
Enner Valencia was sent on with 11 minutes left, replacing the ineffective
Carlton Cole. However, Southampton made sure of the victory in the 83rd
minute when Pelle smashed home after Adrian had palmed out a cross from
Clyne. The boos rang out around the Boleyn Ground at full-time from those
disgruntled fans who had stayed on.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham 'not good enough' in 3-1 defeat to Southampton
Last Updated: 30/08/14 7:16pm
SSN
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce said his side were second best in their 3-1
defeat against Southampton. West Ham boss Sam Allardyce said his team were
"not good enough" in their 3-1 home defeat to Southampton. The Hammers had
led at Upton Park through Mark Noble's deflected effort, but France
midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin scored twice before Graziano Pelle's maiden
Premier League goal rounded off a fine away day for Saints. A penalty
shoot-out defeat to Sheffield United in midweek saw the Hammers knocked out
of the Capital One Cup at their first hurdle and Allardyce's side were not
at the races once again.
"We weren't good enough," Allardyce said. "Southampton taught us a lesson,
we weren't sharp enough and didn't retain the ball as well as they did,
close down as well as they did and gifted them two goals. "As much as they
were in control and on top of the game, we've lost two very stupid goals
from set-pieces."
One bright point for West Ham was the pre-match announcement that they have
signed Barcelona midfielder Alex Song on loan. The former Arsenal man will
spend the remainder of the campaign at Upton Park and Allardyce wants to see
the Cameroon international "kick a few backside s". "I hope he can bring a
bit of leadership as well as his quality play," Allardyce said. "The lads
are not opening their mouth enough. They all talk about what they should do
before the game in the dressing room and in training, but when they go out
on the pitch they don't talk to each other. It is clear that their
communication is zero. "Somebody has got to get a grip and open their mouth.
If it is a short corner get someone out there. It is not difficult for
someone to look around and organise the team. It doesn't appear that anyone
is analysing what the situation is and not have the desperate defending that
we had. "Having spoken to him he looks a leader to me and will kick a few
backsides on the field. If they are not playing as well as they should do he
will get them motivated."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Season ticket anyone? Good try but no cigar
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 30, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
The West Ham media department must have believed it was a great day to
produce a sales pitch for 2015-16 season tickets. A nice little win at
Palace had kept the feelgood factor going all week with the Capital One Cup
match result almost being overlooked as we headed for today's game. There
was all the Alex Song hype going on and a planned introduction to the fans
for about 2.50. So at 2.35 this little offering appeared in our e-mail
in-trays: 'Get on the 2015-16 season ticket waiting list!' 'Perfect timing'
were presumably the buzzwords.
Unfortunately, however, Mr Allardyce's latest attempt to win a match at the
ground was in ruins a couple of hours later along, probably, with the latest
marketing push. One or two people working in the media department should
surely remember the oldest cliche in football: "It's a results game." Good
try but no cigar!
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sullivan stages a Song loan fee only 'steal'
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 30, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
ClaretandHugh has been told tonight that Alex Song will join West Ham under
a deal which sees Barcelona pay his wages in full whilst getting a £3
million loan fee from us for the season. Song was introduced to the West Ham
faithful this afternoon in the one bright spot of our day before we watched
the team crash to a 3-1 defeat by Southampton. The arrival of Song will
tighten things up considerably and give us a hard-to-beat look although
questions are already being raised as to who will make way for the former
Arsenal player in our midfield. Barca have been keen to move Song on for
some months as he doesn't fit their style and both us and Spurs were
interested. But we have been told that when it became clear that the Spanish
giants made it clear they would pay his wages in full the player opted for
the Hammers rather than his old north London rivals. Manager Sam Allardyce
is a big fan of the player's fearsome midfield qualities and led the race to
get him although co-chairman David Sullivan takes the plaudits for arranging
the financials. A source told us exclusively: "There's a few transfer dramas
at Barcelona with an embargo on the horizon. Song was definitely one of
those whom they wanted to allow out given they have the likes of Neymar in
there. "But my understanding is that we got him for just the £3 million loan
fee with Barca paying his wages."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
---
This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active.
http://www.avast.com
WHUFc.com
Southampton fight back from a goal down to triumph 3-1 at the Boleyn Ground
on Saturday afternoon
30.08.2014
Barclays Premier League
West Ham United 1-3 Southampton
Southampton came from behind at the Boleyn Ground on Saturday to consign
West Ham United to a second home Barclays Premier League defeat in as many
outings. It had all started so well for Sam Allardyce's men, with Mark
Noble finding the bottom corner from distance after 27 minutes. But Morgan
Schneiderlin curled home on the stroke of half-time and then converted a
well-worked short corner to complete the turnaround midway through the
second period. Ronald Koeman's side were rewarded for a fluent second-half
display with a late third courtesy of Graziano Pelle, a goal that leaves the
Hammers still searching for a first home point of the new campaign. The
afternoon had earlier begun with the unveiling of former Arsenal midfielder
Alex Song, who has signed on a season-long loan from FC Barcelona. As for
more matters on the pitch, Allardyce reverted to the XI that did the
business with such style at Crystal Palace last weekend. The Hammers then
had an early sniff of goal, as Carlton Cole's header dropped towards Ricardo
Vaz Te, but skipped off the turf and through to Fraser Forster. A succession
of Saints corners followed, with the second resulting in a Hammers
breakaway. Cheikhou Kouyate released Stewart Downing down the right, whose
cross-field ball was aimed at Mauro Zarate, but cut out en route.
Following a sedate opening, West Ham were within inches of opening the
scoring midway through the half. Downing's free-kick ricocheted off several
a leg and fell invitingly to Vaz Te, whose side-footer hit the inside of
Forster's left leg and somehow squeezed past his right-hand upright. But Big
Sam's men would not have to wait much longer for the opener, as Noble made
amends for his penalty mishap against Tottenham Hotspur with a 27th-minute
strike here. Zarate stole possession in the Saints' half, fed Noble and his
25-yard strike flicked off Maya Yoshida and past the left hand of Forster.
In response, Aaron Cresswell was perfectly placed to block Pelle's header on
the line, before Dusan Tadic's centre fell to Steven Davis on the edge of
the box, but he blasted way over the top. The Saints, however, drew level on
the stroke of half-time, as a left-wing free-kick came all the way through
to France midfielder Schneiderlin at the far post. Though Joey O'Brien did
superbly well to block the midfielder's first effort, Schneiderlin steadied
himself and bent the rebound left-footed into the far corner.
Buoyed by their leveller, the Saints raced out of the traps after the
interval and Adrian had to fling himself to his left to divert Shane Long's
low drive around the post. At the other end, a typically energetic Kouyate
went haring down the right and his low ball across the face of goal fizzed
just beyond Cole. But back came the visitors, with Adrian unable to hold
Tadic's left-foot volley from the left-edge of the box. The resulting corner
flicked off the head of Noble and through to Schneiderlin who, from no more
than eight yards, side-footed over the bar. Moments later and Koeman's men
did indeed have the ball in the back of the net, but the linesman came to
the Hammers' rescue, chalking off Pelle's close-range effort from a James
Ward-Prowse dead ball. A second scare in a matter of minutes prompted Big
Sam to shuffle his pack, with Mohamed Diame and Ravel Morrison introduced
for Vaz Te and Zarate. But the double switch would not stem the tide, as
Southampton completed the turnaround on 68 minutes. A short corner caught
the Hammers unaware and Ward-Prowse's near-post delivery enabled
Schneiderlin to tuck home.
West Ham were soon undone by another smart set-piece, when Pelle was set
free on the right edge of the box, only for Adrian to deny the No19 on this
occasion. But the Hammers' reprieve was short-lived. Nathaniel Clyne burst
beyond Diame on the right and once Adrian had merely parried his centre,
Pelle was on hand to fire high into an ungaurded net and settle the contest.
West Ham United: Adrian, O'Brien, Tomkins, Reid, Cresswell, Noble, Kouyate,
Downing, Zarate (Morrison 57), Vaz Te (Diame 58), Cole (Valencia 79)
Subs: Jaaskelainen, Sakho, Demel, Poyet
Goal: Noble 27
Booked: Cresswell, O'Brien
Southampton: Forster, Clyne, Yoshida, Schneiderlin, Fonte, Long (Ramirez
66), Davis, Tadic, Ward-Prowse (Cork 71), Pelle, Bertrand
Subs: Davis, Gardos, Wanyama, Cork, Mayuka, Hooiveld
Goals: Schneiderlin 45, 68, Pelle 83
Booked: Pelle
Referee: Mike Dean
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sam slams set play setbacks
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce said West Ham United had gifted Southampton a 3-1 Barclays
Premier League victory
30.08.2014
Sam Allardyce said West Ham United only had themselves to blame for their
3-1 Barclays Premier League defeat by Southampton. The Hammers took a
first-half lead through Mark Noble's deflected effort before two set play
goals from Morgan Schneiderlin allowed the Saints to turn the game on its
head either side of half-time. Southampton frontman Graziano Pelle
emphatically netted a third seven minutes from full-time to complete a
deserved away win and an afternoon to forget for the home side. Speaking to
West Ham TV, Big Sam could not hide his disappointment and frustration at a
performance that nobody of a Claret and Blue persuasion could have
predicted. "I think we were in a pretty confident [going into the game] and
if that spilled into some over-confidence, I don't know," he began. "Tthe
bottom line was under-performance from the team and if you don't perform to
your best in the Barclays Premier League, you get punished.
"That was the big problem - lack of movement, lack of ball retention, simple
passes going astray, the team not being patient and waiting to get into the
opposition half and continually giving the ball back to them, so they could
break and create more and more attacks against us. "Our normal resilience in
defensive areas from open play meant they initially didn't have any shots on
target on our goal, but then we went on to concede from a set play. People
could say we were unlucky because there was a great block in there, but our
starting positions were all wrong and we only ran through them on the field
on Friday at Upton Park. People weren't taking responsibility for taking the
right starting position and it ultimately accumulated into them scoring just
before half-time.
"While we weren't playing well, we could have come in at 1-0 and even at 1-1
I said to the lads 'If you don't start doing this then you will not get
anything from this game'. I made a couple of substitutions to try to rectify
at least getting possession of the ball and keeping it, but we didn't get
too much better. "We then conceded the second goal off a corner, which was
just suicidal from our point of view. We haven't played well, but we could
have battled and got a well-earned point when we hadn't deserved it because
Southampton were better than us. To give it to Southampton off two set plays
was massively disappointing, even though the second goal shouldn't have been
a corner. I am 100 per cent certain it should have been a goal kick. "Our
switch-off time after the corner was awarded was really poor for their short
corner. Players forgot they had to get out there and we paid a heavy price
for that."
When asked if he could put his finger on why West Ham under-performed so
markedly, the manager admitted there was more than one aspect of their
display that left him perplexed. "None of the players performed to their
best, excepted Cheikh Kouyate who went about his job pretty well, but he had
no help from the rest of his mates," he continued. "There wasn't enough
energy, team commitment when the opposition had it or quality and movement
when we had the ball.
"We needed to show some resilience, grit and determination to make sure
Southampton didn't score, but we've gifted them two set play goals. If, with
their good passing and movement, they had rapped one in the top corner like
the third goal, then you can say they've played really well there. But when
you don't do your job right from set pieces, you ulitimately pay a heavy
price at this level. "It's a real blow and hopefully a real wake-up call for
the players for the fact that they cannot do anything but hit 100 per cent
of their game every time they turn out in the Barclays Premier League,
because that's what's needed from this squad to get a result."
One positive on an otherwise miserable afternoon was the unveiling of new
signing Alex Song moments before kick-off. The Cameroon international has
joined on a season-long loan from Barcelona and Big Sam expects the African
to bring both quality and leadership to the Hammers ranks. "I hope he adds
some leadership, because he is a very experienced man who has played for
Arsenal and Barcelona in the Champions League," said the manager. "We are so
pleased that the the Co-Chairmen have worked so hard to get him into the
squad. "It should make us better so I hope he can get straight in there and
inspire us to play more like we did against Crystal Palace and Tottenham and
less like we did against Southampton. "He is a massively talented player,
but the others have to play their best to play with him and he will
definitely add something to us. "The big responsibility for us is that we
need to support the players who have come to us from abroad and have fitted
in quite well. We needed Carl Jenkinson, James Collins, Andy Carroll and
Matt Jarvis back in the squad and, if all four were fit, probably all four
would have played. Maybe that stood out, that we've been caught a little
short of numbers at the moment."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Tonks disappointed with Saints display
WHUFc.com
James Tomkins was frustrated with West Ham United's 3-1 defeat to
Southampton
30.08.2014
James Tomkins admitted Saturday's performance against Southampton was one to
forget after West Ham United failed to build on last weekend's win over
Crystal Palace. Mark Noble fired the Hammers into a first half lead on their
return to the Boleyn Ground, but a Morgan Schneiderlin double and Graziano
Pelle's late goal consigned them to defeat. Tomkins was especially annoyed
to concede two goals from set pieces and he says the Londoners will have to
work hard on the training pitch to ensure it does not happen again. "The
only positive from the game is Nobes' goal," he admitted. "We never really
got going and didn't deserve to win on Saturday. "We should have gone on
from our goal. They had a lot of possession, but I didn't think they were
going to score, but then they've got one from a set play which was
frustrating from our point of view. "We work hard on them, so to let in
another one in the second half is very disappointing. We're going to have
pick ourselves up, because we've got two weeks to get it right for the next
game. "To go from such a high last Saturday and go into today's game with
such confidence, we felt we could win the game, but maybe we thought it
would be easier than it was and they played really well. "We wanted to go
into the international break with a positive and it hasn't worked out that
way. We'll be disappointed for the next couple of days, but we can't lie on
that and we'll have the chance to work on what we did wrong on Saturday."
The Hammers completed their eighth summer signing on the day of the game,
loaning Alex Song from Barcelona for the season, and Tomkins is looking
forward to working with the midfielder. "Alex comes with a great record,
playing for Arsenal and Barcelona," he added. "It's a good signing and it
shows what the club's trying to do here. "Hopefully he can settle in
quickly."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Hammers go for a Song
WHUFc.com
West Ham United have snapped up Cameroon midfielder Alex Song on a
season-long loan deal
30.08.2014
West Ham United are delighted to confirm they have beaten off interest from
some of Europe's biggest clubs to complete the signing of Barcelona
midfielder Alex Song on a season-long loan deal. Song, 26, has spent the
last two seasons at the Nou Camp following his £15million move from Arsenal
in the summer of 2012, playing 39 La Liga matches and winning the title in
2012/13. The Cameroon international, who can also play at centre-back, is
delighted to be returning to London with the Hammers and cannot wait to face
the challenge of Barclays Premier League football again. Song said: "I'm
very happy to be here and very happy to see the guys and the fans today and
to start to do my job for West Ham United. I think this is very important
for me to be coming back to London to West Ham United, which is a club with
ambition to build a new stadium and become a big club. I am very excited to
be part of this project. "For me, when I was in Spain, I always said that if
I was to leave one day I would return to the Premier League. It was a very
hard decision, because when you have options of a lot of clubs who are
playing in the Champions League, but at the end of the day I chose West Ham
because I wanted to come to the Premier League. This is a league which has
given me a lot and I didn't finish what I wanted to achieve here. "For my
family too, it was very important, because my children and my wife wanted to
come back to England. This is an opportunity to do that with West Ham and I
just took it. I am very happy to be here and very proud to be part of the
project at this club."
Song revealed that a long discussion with manager Sam Allardyce about the
Hammers' ambition to rise to the next level convinced him that this is the
right club for him. "When I spoke to the manager, he gave me very good
advice," he continued. "I had a very good chat with him and that's why I am
coming here. We have to do better than last season. I think the club has
very good ambition and I hope we can maybe catch the European positions,
because that would be very good for the club. "I want to be part of that and
that's why I came here. The manager knows what he wants and I know what he
wants and that's why I want to help the team. I want to be part of what the
club wants to achieve this year. "I need some games to be ready and get my
fitness back. When I am 100 per cent, I will bring the experience and I will
make the fans happy, I am sure. I am lucky to be back in London, back in
England and with West Ham. I am looking forward to showing everyone what I
can do. "West Ham is looking to be a very, very big Club in the future. The
Club has a great project and it is a very big project with very big
ambition. I think it's great for the fans that the Club wants to be one of
the biggest in England. That's why I chose to come here."
Born in Douala, Cameroon, Song started his professional career in France
with Bastia on the island of Corsica, where he quickly progressed to the
first team, making his debut as a 16-year-old in the 2003/04 campaign. After
32 Ligue 1 appearances by the age of 17, he earned a move to Arsenal,
initially on loan, before signing a permanent contract with the Gunners in
summer 2006. Despite still being a teenager, Song appeared in the Barclays
Premier League and UEFA Champions League during his debut Arsenal season
and, after returning from a loan spell at Charlton Athletic in 2007,
established himself in Arsene Wenger's side. In October 2010, he scored a
late Barclays Premier League winner against the Hammers at the Emirates -
one of ten goals he netted for the Gunners. By the time he moved on to
Barcelona in 2012, Song had made 138 Premier League appearances for the
Gunners - 206 in all competitions - and was a League Cup runner-up in 2011.
With Barcelona, in addition to his La Liga winners' medal, Song also won the
Supercopa Espana in 2013 and was part of the Barca squad which lost to Real
Madrid in the Copa del Rey final last term.
Internationally, Song has been capped 47 times by Cameroon, finishing second
in the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations and featuring in the last two FIFA World
Cup finals. The midfielder becomes the third Cameroonian to play for the
Hammers, following cousin and namesake Rigobert and the late Marc-Vivien
Foe.
He is West Ham's eighth summer capture, following the arrivals of Mauro
Zarate, Cheikhou Kouyate, Enner Valencia, Diafra Sakho, Carl Jenkinson,
Aaron Cresswell and Diego Poyet.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Alex Song joins West Ham United on loan from Barcelona
BBC.co.uk
West Ham have signed former Arsenal midfielder Alex Song on a season-long
loan deal from Barcelona. The 26-year-old Cameroon international, wearing a
Hammers shirt, was introduced to home fans before Saturday's Premier League
game against Southampton. "I think the club has very good ambition and I
hope we can maybe catch the European positions," he said. Song joined
Barcelona in 2012 from Arsenal for about £15m with an 80m euros (£63m)
release clause. He played 206 times for the Gunners between 2005 and 2012
and has made 39 appearances since moving to the Nou Camp. The Hammers
indicated they fought off interest from "some of Europe's biggest clubs" to
seal the deal. And Song said he was impressed by the ambitions of the London
club, which will move from the Boleyn Ground to the Olympic Stadium in time
for the 2016-17 season. "I need some games to be ready and get my fitness
back," he said.
"When I am 100%, I will bring the experience and I will make the fans happy,
I am sure. I am lucky to be back in London, back in England and with West
Ham. I am looking forward to showing everyone what I can do. "West Ham is
looking to be a very, very big club in the future. The club has a great
project and it is a very big project with very big ambition."
Song is West Ham's eighth summer signing, following the arrivals of Mauro
Zarate, Cheikhou Kouyate, Enner Valencia, Diafra Sakho, Carl Jenkinson,
Aaron Cresswell and Diego Poyet.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Allardyce on......Southampton
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 30th August 2014
By: Staff Writer No.2
A disappointed Sam Allardyce gives his thoughts on today's poor performance
against Southampton...
Sam the players seemed to lose their way in the second half – too many
players not on song?
Yeah – you're spot on there. I don't think we were that good in the first
half, to be honest with you. Compared to what we expected and what we were
like in the last two games here against Tottenham and last week against
Crystal Palace, we had a massive under-performance across the board today,
which was a massive blow to us. A massive disappointment to everybody,
particularly at home again.
Two home games. Two defeats. This can't happen it can't carry on. Yes,
against Tottenham a good performance but we still got beat when we should
have won. We didn't even get a point. Today we could have scraped a point.
As good as Southampton were – and we must give them credit – up to the
second goal there were no shots or openings created in open play.
We practice set plays on a regular basis and set them out on the analysis
board. Our defending of set plays was a massive massive disappointment.
Letting them score from two was unacceptable – even though we know the
second goal was a goal kick and not a corner. You can't allow it to punish
you like we allowed it to punish us. We started to get a bit desperate then
and you don't get anything when you're desperate.
Sam do the players play with a bit of pressure here that they don't get
anywhere else?
Well we didn't against Tottenham. I think everyone was looking forward to a
continuation of the good performances. After the result at Palace there's
nothing in the performance today that I can be pleased about. For a long
time our resilience in open play was pretty good. But why do all that hard
work only to give it away on two set pieces? Massively disappointing.
Perhaps it's a reality check here. The new players have seen the ups and
downs and what the Premier League can do to you if you're not 100% and
you're not on top of your game. Certainly a lot of our players were not on
top of their game.
You were screaming at the players before their first goal?
Yes – to get across at the back they had 3 v 1. The players didn't look over
their shoulders to shuffle over. We nearly got away from it with a massive
block from Joey O'Brien but it fell to the spare man again who put it away.
We were 1-0 up but I can't argue that Southampton weren't the better team
today
What do you think Alex Song can bring?
I'm hoping he can bring a bit of leadership. Out on the pitch the lads are
not opening their mouths enough. They all talk about what they should do
before the game and in training. They all talk in the dressing room but when
they get out on the pitch they stop talking to each other. The communication
is zero.
Somebody's got to get a grip and say "it's a short corner – there are two
out there". Somebody needs to say "there's three against one at the back
here." It doesn't appear to me that anyone is taking the responsibility.
Having spoken to [Song] he looks like a bit of a leader to me. He'll go out
there and kick a few backsides on the pitch. That's what we need. Somebody
needs to kick a few backsides on the field and get them motivated.
Will you be bringing any more in before the deadline?
I don't know. We had a massive boost, a massive uplift when I met Alex after
all the hard work put in by David Sullivan, recruitment and everyone to
bring this fantastic player to the club. The big let down is that he arrives
on the pitch and it should have lifted everybody, especially the players
that played today and the players haven't performed. I didn't expect a
performance like this especially after the two we've just given.
He will make us better. Hopefully with the return of Carl Jenkinson, James
Collins, Matt Jarvis and eventually Kevin Nolan and Andy Carroll we'll be
more of a force to be reckoned with.
Mark Noble is looking at playing for Ireland now. What would you advise him
to do?
Play. Go play international football. He's clearly not going to get an
opportunity here so if he gets the opportunity through parentage to play for
Ireland he should go – international football is fantastic.
Have you spoken to him about it?
No – I didn't realise he had an Irish parent – not with that cockney accent!
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham sign Barcelona midfielder Alex Song on season-long loan
Last Updated: 30/08/14 3:50pm
SSN
West Ham have completed the signing of Barcelona midfielder Alex Song on a
season-long loan deal. The 26-year-old Cameroon international struggled to
hold down a regular place at the Nou Camp following a move from Arsenal in
2012 and returns to the Premier League with the Hammers. He was paraded at
Upton Park ahead of the clash with Southampton on Saturday afternoon. Clubs
throughout Europe were put on alert when it emerged Song would be allowed to
leave Barcelona - with West Ham having won the race to sign him on a
temporary basis despite reported interest from the likes of Napoli and
Galatasaray. Song revealed it was a conversation with Hammers boss Sam
Allardyce that led to his decision to move to east London and he is
targeting European qualification.
"When I spoke to the manager, he gave me very good advice," he told
whufc.com. "I had a very good chat with him and that's why I am coming here.
We have to do better than last season. I think the club has very good
ambition and I hope we can maybe catch the European positions, because that
would be very good for the club. "West Ham is looking to be a very, very big
club in the future. The club has a great project and it is a very big
project with very big ambition.
"I think it's great for the fans that the club wants to be one of the
biggest in England. That's why I chose to come here. I always said that if I
was to leave (Barcelona) one day I would return to the Premier League. "It
was a very hard decision when you have options of a lot of clubs who are
playing in the Champions League, but at the end of the day I chose West Ham
because I wanted to come to the Premier League."
Song, who won one La Liga title during his spell in Spain, is likely to be
West Ham's final summer signing - taking the total of new recruits to eight.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham 1-3 Southampton: Morgan Schneiderlin double sees Saints take the
points
By Chris Harvey. Last Updated: 30/08/14 7:00pm
SSN
Two goals from Morgan Schneiderlin and a late Graziano Pelle strike saw
Southampton come from behind to beat West Ham 3-1 at Upton Park. Frenchman
Schneiderlin, who handed in a transfer request earlier in the summer, twice
profited from some sloppy Hammers defending to put the visitors on their way
to three points they thoroughly deserved.
MATCH FACTS
Man of the match - Dusan Tadic. There were a few in Saints colours who could
lay a claim for man of the match but Serb Tadic showed great quality and
tormented the Hammers defence throughout.
Save of the match: Fraser Forster was a virtual spectator in the second half
but in the first he made a wonderful block with his boot to deflect Ricardo
Vaz Te's close-range effort behind
Goal of the match: Saints were inventive throughout but their short corner
routine which allowed Schneiderlin to score his second was a gem
Talking point: Just what did Ronald Koeman say to his side at half-time to
trigger the transformation as Saints swept the home team aside?
The midfielder curled in a sweet left-footer on the stroke of half-time to
cancel out Mark Noble's deflected effort then put the visitors ahead on 69
minutes when the Hammers fell asleep at a corner, allowing him to turn in
James Ward-Prowse's cross at the near post. The points were made safe seven
minutes from time when Pelle got his reward for a fine centre-forward
display, smashing in from close range after Adrian could only parry
Nathaniel Clyne's cross into his path. The third goal sparked a rush to the
exits for the home fans, following a second home defeat in the space of a
week for manager Sam Allardyce whose team were knocked out of the Capital
One Cup on penalties by Sheffield United. Southampton, who won at Millwall
in the cup, started brightly as Pelle and Shane Long, a £12million signing
from Hull, stretched the Hammers' defence.
West Ham paraded new loan signing Alex Song, the former Arsenal man joining
from Barcelona, before kick-off, but took time to get into any sort of
passing rhythm against the well-organised Saints. It was 20 minutes before
the home side were able to create an opening. Southampton boss Ronald Koeman
says his side's late 1st half equaliser against West Ham gave his side the
believe to go on and win the game 3-1. A free-kick from Stewart Downing was
only half cleared, with the ball dropping back to the far post through a
crowded six-yard box where Ricardo Vaz Te turned it goalwards. However,
Saints goalkeeper Fraser Forster somehow made a reaction save with his leg
at point-blank range to push the ball wide across the face of goal. There
was, though, little the former Celtic number one could do a few moments
later to prevent West Ham taking the lead in the 27th minute. Noble robbed
Schneiderlin and drove towards the edge of the Saints penalty area. He let
fly from 25 yards, with the ball deflecting off the boot of Maya Yoshida and
into the far corner, just out of Forster's reach.
Southampton looked to make a quick response, with a deep cross from the left
glanced down by Pelle, which Aaron Cresswell guided off the line. To their
credit, the visitors continued to stay composed despite now having to chase
the match, with West Ham dropping an extra man into a packed midfield to
compensate. Pelle missed his kick when Serbian midfielder Dusan Tadic found
space on the left for another dangerous cross into the West Ham penalty
area, which Winston Reid gratefully cleared. West Ham boss Sam Allardyce
said his side were second best in their 3-1 defeat against Southampton.
Schneiderlin showed the Italian how it should be done when he equalised on
the stroke of half-time. A free-kick on the left touchline was floated in by
Tadic and flicked on to the far post, where Schneiderlin drilled it back
goalwards. Although Joey O'Brien made a brave block, Schneiderlin latched
onto the rebound and curled it inside the far post.
Saints went close to taking the lead at the start of the second half when a
shot by Long at the edge of the penalty area was turned behind by Adrian.
Tadic then had the West Ham goalkeeper scrambling down to his right with a
low shot from 18 yards, and Schneiderlin crashed the ball over from 10 yards
following the corner. Saints had the ball in the net again when Pelle
converted a free-kick from Ward-Prowse at the far post, but was one of three
players ruled offside - although the decision was a tight one. Allardyce had
seen enough, and made a double change on the hour, as Ravel Morrison and
Mohamed Diame replaced Mauro Zarate and Vaz Te. It was no surprise when
Schneiderlin put the Saints ahead midway through the second half. A short
corner caught West Ham asleep, with a cross from Ward-Prowse flicked home at
the near post by the French midfielder, who wheeled away to celebrate in
front of the away fans behind the goal.
West Ham needed inspiration from somewhere, and £12million Ecuador forward
Enner Valencia was sent on with 11 minutes left, replacing the ineffective
Carlton Cole. However, Southampton made sure of the victory in the 83rd
minute when Pelle smashed home after Adrian had palmed out a cross from
Clyne. The boos rang out around the Boleyn Ground at full-time from those
disgruntled fans who had stayed on.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham 'not good enough' in 3-1 defeat to Southampton
Last Updated: 30/08/14 7:16pm
SSN
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce said his side were second best in their 3-1
defeat against Southampton. West Ham boss Sam Allardyce said his team were
"not good enough" in their 3-1 home defeat to Southampton. The Hammers had
led at Upton Park through Mark Noble's deflected effort, but France
midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin scored twice before Graziano Pelle's maiden
Premier League goal rounded off a fine away day for Saints. A penalty
shoot-out defeat to Sheffield United in midweek saw the Hammers knocked out
of the Capital One Cup at their first hurdle and Allardyce's side were not
at the races once again.
"We weren't good enough," Allardyce said. "Southampton taught us a lesson,
we weren't sharp enough and didn't retain the ball as well as they did,
close down as well as they did and gifted them two goals. "As much as they
were in control and on top of the game, we've lost two very stupid goals
from set-pieces."
One bright point for West Ham was the pre-match announcement that they have
signed Barcelona midfielder Alex Song on loan. The former Arsenal man will
spend the remainder of the campaign at Upton Park and Allardyce wants to see
the Cameroon international "kick a few backside s". "I hope he can bring a
bit of leadership as well as his quality play," Allardyce said. "The lads
are not opening their mouth enough. They all talk about what they should do
before the game in the dressing room and in training, but when they go out
on the pitch they don't talk to each other. It is clear that their
communication is zero. "Somebody has got to get a grip and open their mouth.
If it is a short corner get someone out there. It is not difficult for
someone to look around and organise the team. It doesn't appear that anyone
is analysing what the situation is and not have the desperate defending that
we had. "Having spoken to him he looks a leader to me and will kick a few
backsides on the field. If they are not playing as well as they should do he
will get them motivated."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Season ticket anyone? Good try but no cigar
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 30, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
The West Ham media department must have believed it was a great day to
produce a sales pitch for 2015-16 season tickets. A nice little win at
Palace had kept the feelgood factor going all week with the Capital One Cup
match result almost being overlooked as we headed for today's game. There
was all the Alex Song hype going on and a planned introduction to the fans
for about 2.50. So at 2.35 this little offering appeared in our e-mail
in-trays: 'Get on the 2015-16 season ticket waiting list!' 'Perfect timing'
were presumably the buzzwords.
Unfortunately, however, Mr Allardyce's latest attempt to win a match at the
ground was in ruins a couple of hours later along, probably, with the latest
marketing push. One or two people working in the media department should
surely remember the oldest cliche in football: "It's a results game." Good
try but no cigar!
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Sullivan stages a Song loan fee only 'steal'
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on August 30, 2014 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
ClaretandHugh has been told tonight that Alex Song will join West Ham under
a deal which sees Barcelona pay his wages in full whilst getting a £3
million loan fee from us for the season. Song was introduced to the West Ham
faithful this afternoon in the one bright spot of our day before we watched
the team crash to a 3-1 defeat by Southampton. The arrival of Song will
tighten things up considerably and give us a hard-to-beat look although
questions are already being raised as to who will make way for the former
Arsenal player in our midfield. Barca have been keen to move Song on for
some months as he doesn't fit their style and both us and Spurs were
interested. But we have been told that when it became clear that the Spanish
giants made it clear they would pay his wages in full the player opted for
the Hammers rather than his old north London rivals. Manager Sam Allardyce
is a big fan of the player's fearsome midfield qualities and led the race to
get him although co-chairman David Sullivan takes the plaudits for arranging
the financials. A source told us exclusively: "There's a few transfer dramas
at Barcelona with an embargo on the horizon. Song was definitely one of
those whom they wanted to allow out given they have the likes of Neymar in
there. "But my understanding is that we got him for just the £3 million loan
fee with Barca paying his wages."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
---
This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active.
http://www.avast.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
