On this day - 18 April
WHUFC.com
Anniversary
Dylan Tombides
8 March 1994 - 18 April 2014
Dylan Tombides sadly lost his brave three-year battle with testicular cancer a year ago today. A hugely popular figure among his team-mates, coaches, backroom staff, supporters and opponents alike, the Australia U23 international was loved and respected throughout the football community for his talent, his smile and his spirit. Dylan Tombides was born in the city of Perth in Western Australia. As a youngster, he played football before moving with his family to Hong Kong. The amiable Australian joined West Ham United at the age of 15 after being spotted playing youth football in Hong Kong and his family moved with him to London to help him fulfil his ambition of playing professional football.
After impressing at Under-18 and reserve-team levels, Tombides was included in the first-team squad for the first time when he was named as an unused substitute for the Barclays Premier League home fixture with Sunderland on 22 May 2011. The same month, he was named Academy Player of the Year.
Tombides appeared and scored for Australia at the FIFA U17 World Cup in Mexico in June 2011. Illness curtailed the striker's progress during the 2011/12 season, but his first-team debut arrived as a late substitute in the 4-1 home Capital One Cup third-round defeat by Wigan Athletic on 25 September 2012.
Tombides represented Australia in the U22 AFC Championship where he helped the Socceroos reach the quarter-finals before they were defeated 2-1 by Saudi Arabia. The DT38 Foundation, which aims to raise awareness support and awareness for testicular cancer, was launched last month - visit the website here.
Classic match
Orient 0-2 West Ham United
Division Two
18 April 1981
The Hammers' march to the Division Two title continued unabated as they completed a league double over fellow east Londoners Orient on this day 34 years ago. West Ham had topped the table ever since November and this victory over the O's was the third in a run of five straight wins. Jimmy Neighbour and Geoff Pike - a league ever-present that season - were the goalscorers as the visitors notched a 25th maximum-point haul of the campaign. John Lyall's side would go on to claim the title by a huge 13-point margin in the era of two points for a win, having dropped only 18 points all season.
Complete record - 18 April
1923 Notts County 2-0 West Ham United (Division Two)
1925 West Ham United 4-1 Everton (Division One)
1927 West Ham United 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur (Division One)
1930 West Ham United 1-0 Sheffield United (Division One)
1931 Manchester City 1-1 West Ham United (Division One)
1936 West Ham United 1-3 Charlton Athletic (Division Two)
1938 Plymouth Argyle 2-1 West Ham United (Division Two)
1949 Leicester City 1-1 West Ham United (Division Two)
1953 Sheffield United 3-1 West Ham United (Division Two)
1956 Nottingham Forest 0-0 West Ham United (Division Two)
1959 West Ham United 1-1 Preston North End (Division One)
1960 Manchester United 5-3 West Ham United (Division One)
1961 Burnley 2-2 West Ham United (Division One)
1981 Orient 0-2 West Ham United (Division Two)
1987 Leicester City 2-0 West Ham United (Division One)
1992 Manchester City 2-0 West Ham United (Division One)
1998 West Ham United 2-1 Blackburn Rovers (Premier League)
2007 West Ham United 1-4 Chelsea (Premier League)
2009 Aston Villa 1-1 West Ham United (Premier League)
Played 19, Won 4, Drawn 6, Lost 9, Scored 23, Conceded 33
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Potts proud despite Norwich setback
WHUFC.com
Steve Potts could be forgiven for wondering what he has done to deserve the misfortune that has befallen his Development Squad this season. On Friday, the Hammers' second-string looked on course for a morale-boosting Barclays U21 Premier League victory over Norwich City at Rush Green. Jordan Brown had fired the home side into a deserved lead with a peach of a goal five minutes after half-time, but after missing a host of chances, West Ham were made to pay as the Canaries scored twice within the final six minutes to steal a 2-1 victory. "We easily should have won the game," said Potts, with a wry smile. "In the first half, we came in nil-nil and said to them to keep doing what they had been doing. "We got a very good goal and it was just a case of getting the second. We had some fantastic openings but didn't quite make the most of those opportunities and we got punished for making two mistakes. "It's harsh, but this is the level we are playing at. If you make mistakes, you get punished and that's what happened. It was a harsh, harsh lesson for the boys to take home."
Brown could have had a hat-trick, hitting the crossbar and seeing two shots saved by Mark Bunn, while Djair Parfitt-Williams also rattled the goalframe and saw his own long-ranger turned aside. The Hammers forced at least a dozen corners, too, but only had Brown's 25-yard curler to show for their efforts before full-backs Reece Hall-Johnson and Michee Efete broke the hosts' hearts late on. "We are a young team and I said to them I was more than happy with what I saw out there and that I would rather have our group of players than Norwich's on that performance," Potts continued. "But result-wise, you've got to finish games off and that's what we failed to do. "We made a mistake for the first one, then made another one a minute or two later rather than keeping it tight after going 1-1. We certainly shouldn't throw the game away, but we managed to do that."
On a pair of more positive notes, Potts' son Dan made his return after nearly three months out with a knee injury, while Brown caught the eye with his strength, running and ability to work the goalkeeper. "Dan has trained solid for ten days and had a good run out," the coach said. "He's been unlucky – he broke a bone in his foot earlier in the season and was out for six or eight weeks, then had to nurse a problem with his knee which eventually needed surgery. Hopefully that's all OK now and he looked OK out there. "I was very pleased with Jordan. We mentioned it to him in midweek and he did exactly what we wanted, like most of the players did."
Finally, Potts said the Club was still mourning the passing of Dylan Tombides, a year on from losing the young striker to cancer. As the father of a son in Dan – one of Dylan's closest friends – who recovered from a life-threatening bout of Leukaemia as a schoolboy, Potts knows first-hand just what an effect the disease can have on families. With that in mind, he backed the work being done by the DT38 Foundation – the testicular cancer awareness charity founded by the Tombides family in Dylan's memory. "It was a hard one for Dylan's family to take and for the Club to take, and especially the young lads around him," he recalled. "My Dan was good friends with Dylan, like everyone else was in his age-group because they were close. "As a person, Dylan was a top boy and as a player who knows what he could have achieved because he was a real talent. "It's fantastic cause to raise awareness and money, because to finally find a cure would be fantastic. I know the survival rates are improving but to get it even higher would be fantastic."
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Chadwell Chatter - Carl Jenkinson
WHUFc.com
Hello everyone,
We head to Manchester City on Sunday and we have to get over the sucker punch we were hit with in stoppage time last weekend. Up to then we had defended so well for the whole game and then to concede so late was hugely disappointing. I don't know what to say really, it was a massive blow to us because we thought we were going to take the three points as did everyone else, but it was not to be - hopefully Sunday will be our day. It is bizarre why we keep conceding late goals. Of course it is massively frustrating and you start to question when things are going to start going our way. We have been in those positions and we haven't managed to hold on, so it is about time we started. It would be very disappointing after the season that we have had if we don't come in the top ten. There was so much optimism around the place, but it is not really happening for us at the moment, but we have six games left and it is massive, we want to finish as high as we can. We would love to get eighth spot we just have to take each game as it comes, but we are just not getting the results at the moment. Rest assured, we are all determined to turn that around, starting with Sunday's game. See you all there!
Carl
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Scorer Brown setting goals
WHUFC.com
Jordan Brown is a handful. The striker signed from Arsenal at the age of 16 has transformed himself from a skinny schoolboy into a goal-getting all-round centre forward. Now 18, Brown showcased his talents in Friday's 2-1 Barclays U21 Premier League defeat by Norwich City at Rush Green, smashing in an unstoppable 25-yard shot, hitting the crossbar and seeing two more well-struck efforts saved by the Canaries goalkeeper. On another night, the frontman could have taken the match ball home with him, but neither a hat-trick nor a victory came his way. "I felt we were on top with all the chances we created," he observed. "We kept it tight all game but then a couple of mistakes at the end cost us dear. "On another night I think I would have had two or three goals, but it wasn't to be. I kept it going but I just need to tidy up on a few things and keep improving. Of course the aim is to score goals and keep hitting the target, which I felt I did."
After seeing two efforts turned aside by Norwich goalkeeper Mark Bunn, another kiss the crossbar and two more fly narrowly wide, Brown finally found the net five minutes after half-time. When it arrived, the goal was something special, with the teenager collecting 25 yards out before hammering the ball high into the top right-hand corner. "I wouldn't say it's the best finish I've scored, but it was a good goal. It got a slight deflection, but they all count!" he smiled, before admitting that the Club's youngsters need to learn how to close games out. "We have had a young team, but we're all good players and I think we'll all learn from this hard phase we've been going through and eventually the results will come because our performances are getting better. "Personally, I'm trying to improve every day and adapt to U21 football. Even though I got a look-in last season, it was hard for me, so I'm trying to work on my game and improve so I can be a shining light at this level."
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Man City v West Ham
KO 13:30
17 April 2015
Last updated at 13:28
By Martin Fisher
Match of the Day commentator
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
Venue: Etihad Stadium Date: Sunday, 19 April
TEAM NEWS
Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany could miss the rest of the season with the thigh injury he sustained during the defeat at Manchester United. Dedryck Boyata is fit but City are without Wilfried Bony, Gael Clichy, James Milner and Stevan Jovetic.
West Ham striker Carlton Cole could replace Diafra Sakho, whose season may have been ended by a thigh strain. Enner Valencia is fit despite picking up a minor foot problem on his return from a toe injury last weekend.
MATCH PREVIEW
West Ham's last visit to the Etihad was a truly joyous occasion… for Manchester City. It was the final day of last season and goals from Samir Nasri and Vincent Kompany earned the result required for City to be crowned Premier League champions. Manuel Pellegrini was celebrated as a genius. How things have changed. Eleven months on and the Chilean appears to be a dead man walking. He might have been excused another early exit from the Champions League and poor showings in the domestic cups, but their alarming slide in the Premier League has probably done for him.
Lawro's prediction "Manchester City are struggling badly at the moment and it is almost like some of their players have downed tools. I don't think some of them are too bothered, and I think part of the reason for that is the money that they are on." Just four wins from their last 12 league outings means his side begin the weekend a massive 12 points adrift of champions-elect Chelsea. It's easily the club's worst season in recent years - true they were trophy-less in 2012-13 but they did finish runners-up in the league and the FA Cup. Even so, Roberto Mancini was dismissed so how can Pellegrini survive after what he's overseen this term? Being out-thought and outplayed at Old Trafford last weekend will only damage his cause. That defeat leaves City in the sights of Liverpool and Southampton for the final Champions League qualifying place. Failing to clinch fourth spot would be unforgivable. The good news is that West Ham shouldn't pose too much of a problem, especially as they'll be without top scorer Diafra Sakho with a thigh injury which might even have ended his season prematurely.
The Hammers have won only one of their last 10 top-flight games and their last success on the road came on 2 December at West Brom.
Back then, they were in the top four themselves but those memories have faded and instead the murmurings over the future of Sam Allardyce at the Boleyn Ground are getting louder again. His contract expires in the summer and although he wants to extend his stay it appears that his enthusiasm is not shared by those upstairs who call the shots. Allardyce and Pellegrini are very different men but right now they have a lot in common and whatever happens on the pitch this weekend won't make a scrap of difference to their futures.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Manchester City have won their last six home games against West Ham in all competitions.
Victory would see the Hammers claim their first league double against City since the 1962-63 season - when they won both fixtures 6-1.
Manchester City
City have won their last three Premier League home games, scoring a total of 10 unanswered goals.
However, they have lost five league games in 2015, one more than in the whole of 2014.
They could lose three successive league games for the first time since October-November 2008.
Sergio Aguero has failed to score a Premier League goal from open play at the Etihad Stadium since 2 November. His only strike since then was a penalty against Newcastle on 21 February.
West Ham United
The Hammers have won just one of their last 10 league matches (D4, L5).
They have lost a league-high seven points to goals scored in or after the 90th minute this season.
West Ham's next away win will be their 250th in the top flight.
They are the only Premier League side yet to score a penalty this season - with Mark Noble missing their only spot-kick against Tottenham on the opening day.
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Injured Dafra Sakho may miss remainder of season
BBC.co.uk
West Ham and Senegal striker Diafra Sakho may not play again this season because of a thigh injury. The 25-year-old, who has scored 12 goals for the English Premier League club since joining in the summer, limped off against Stoke last weekend. "We think maybe towards the end of the season (he could be back), but maybe not," said boss Sam Allardyce. "You have to be very careful with a thigh strain, so that he does not suffer a recurrence." Although Allardyce admitted Sakho's absence leaves the club "very short in goalscoring options" he insisted he will not rush the player back. "If he is fit, he is fit. We would say 100% fit, and not want to risk him if he was 95%.
"We would give him that time to be absolutely certain, which would mean we would have to be at least four or five days training with the rest of the squad before he was available."
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City face injury crisis ahead of Hammers visit
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 17th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
Manchester City are missing five key players as they prepare for Sunday's clash with West Ham United at the Etihad Stadium. City boss Manuel Pellegrini, speaking the the assembled press pack at the club's Football Academy has ruled Wilfried Bony, Gael Clichy, Stevan Jovetic, Vincent Kompany and James Milner out of contention for this weekend's match, which takes place at 1.30pm on Sunday lunchtime.
"Clichy has a groin problem, while Jovetic and Bony are recovering," he said. "Vincent is injured – it's very difficult to know [how long he'll be out]. He has a muscle injury – we don't know how many weeks. You don't know if he will be fit before the end of the season. "We are thinking about the next game against West Ham on Sunday - and that's the only thing on our minds."
West Ham go into the game harbouring injury problems of their own, with James Tomkins, Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho all unlike to play again this season. That means that Sam Allardyce is likey to start with the soon-to-depart Carlton Cole alongside Enner Valencia this weekend, should he choose to emulate the two-striker system that beat City 2-1 at the Boleyn earlier in the season.
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Devonshire departs, seeking new challenge
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 17th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
Alan Devonshire has parted company witrh Brantree Town after four years with the North-Essex club.
The 59-year-old former Hammers winger has left the Vanarama Conference Premier side with immediate effect after he turned down the club's offer on a new contract extension, citing interest from elsewhere as the reason.
Chairman Lee Harding told the local Times: "We had a lengthy chat with Alan on Saturday and advised him that we would like him to remain with us for a fifth year. Alan advised that he had been approached by third parties for next season and was not prepared to sign as he felt that he wanted to speak with them.
"We agreed to give him until Thursday evening to consider our offer, but he was still not prepared to sign. The board have therefore decided to ask Mark Sansom to act in a caretaker role for Saturday's trip to Wrexham and at home to Altrincham a week on Saturday.
"On behalf of all of us, I'd like to thank Alan for his efforts over the four seasons he was with us, more so this season when a number of injuries have made the job difficult. But now the board look forward to a new era and new challenges."
Devonshire joined Braintree in 2011 following spells with Maidenhead and Hampton & Richmond Borough. Fellow former Hammer Julian Dicks was a regular at the Iron's Cressing Road ground during his tenure.
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Allardyce: 'nervous' players have let themselves down
KUMb.com
Filed: Friday, 17th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce has criticised his squad for dropping points at crucial stages, accusing them of "letting themselves down". Allardyce, speaking ahead of West Ham's trip to Manchester City this weekend castigated his team for conceding once again in the closing stages of a match, allowing Stoke to earn a point at the Boleyn last weekend.
"The motivation for the players should be that they've let themselves down by not achieving the results that they should have done, from the positions we've been in," he told reporters this morning. "We want to get the feel good factor back by winning a few games and getting the confidence back up.
"Late goals have been terrible for our results recently. Stoke was probably one of our weaker performances but we were still 30 seconds away from winning it. We need to make sure we don't show the type of nerves that we did, because we looked exceedingly nervous.
"We have had a good season but we've thrown away a lot of points. At the moment we want to reach the 50 point mark or higher, that will make sure we finish higher than we have done in the three years we've been back."
The late, late show: how we threw it all away
16 Aug: Tottenham (h) 0-1: Eric Dier scores in the last minute to secure a 1-0 win for rivals Tottenham.
30 Aug: Southampton (h) 1-3: Graziano Pelle's 83rd minute strike confirms Southmapton's 3-1 win at the Boleyn.
6 Jan: Everton (a) 1-1: Romelu Lukaku scores from an offside position in the 90th minute to earn Everton a point.
13 Jan: Everton (h) 2-2 aet: Kevin Mirallas popped up in the 82nd minute to score and necessitate extra time.
31 Jan: Liverpool (a) 0-2: Daniel Sturridge secures a win for the hosts with an 80th-minute effort.
8 Feb: Man Utd (h) 1-1: Despite having led for much of the second half Daley Blind's 90th-minute equaliser costs West Ham two points.
22 Feb: Tottenham (a) 2-2: Two up with ten to play, goals from Rose and a Kane penalty three minutes into added-on time earn Spurs a draw.
14 Mar: Arsenal (a) 0-3: Still in the game at 0-1, West Ham conceded in the 81st and 84 minute and suffer a 0-3 reversal
4 Apr: Leicester (a) 1-2: Andy King's 86th-minute effort is enough to win the game for the Foxes
11 Apr: Stoke (h) 1-1: A Marko Arnautovic equaliser in the fifth minute of added-on time costs West Ham two points
Total points lost by above scenarios: 10
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Calling Carlton Cole
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 17th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce has revealed that he expects Carlton Cole to play a big role between now and the end of the season.
With Andy Carroll definitely out for the rest of the campaign and Diafra Sakho unlikely to return due to a thigh injury sustained against Stoke last weekend, Allardyce's options in attack are limited somewhat.
And that means the big striker, whose nine-year association with West Ham is set to end this summer when his latest 18-month contract expires is expected to play a prominent role in the remaining few matches.
"We're missing Diafra Sakho and obviously Andy Carroll and James Tomkins," Allardyce told the press at his pre-match press conference this morning. "That leaves us a bit short of goal scoring options as Sakho and Carroll are our two top scorers this season.
"I'm expecting Carlton Cole to come in and play a big role for us in the next few games, hopefully he can deliver what we know he is capable of."
Cole himself admitted earlier this week that he is unlikely to extend his stay at the club, which would have seen him enjoy a testimonial season in the club's final season at the Boleyn Ground.
"I am trying my best to make myself a presence in the team, which has been hard for me this year," he told the Mail. "I felt in the last 12-13 games I could have played a bigger part, but the manager chose to go with someone else so whenever I do get my chance I do do my best.
'I was on the brink of going to West Brom but that didn't work out - hopefully something else works out in the future. I have got a few things lined up, just in case. I have been playing in the Premier League for 10 years so I have a lot to offer a team who wants to take me - or if I stay at West Ham, I have a lot to offer them."
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Sam Allardyce to take no risks with Diafra Sakho
Last Updated: 17/04/15 5:54pm
SSN
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce reveals he's not going to risk picking Diafra Sakho until he's one hundred percent fit. Sam Allardyce will be without Diafra Sakho for the Super Sunday game against Manchester City - and the West Ham manager admits the striker may have kicked his last ball in anger this season. The Senegal striker, who is West Ham's top scorer this season with 12 goals, was forced off during last week's 1-1 draw with Stoke City with a thigh strain and Allardyce is wary of exacerbating the problem. Allardyce told Sky Sports News HQ: "He may be back before the end of the season he may not, we will just have to be very careful with his thigh strain and make sure we do not get a recurrence. We will not be risking him at 95% fitness - we would have to be sure there was no problem before we risked him.
"It leaves us short in goal-scoring options because Andy Carroll and Sakho are our two leading scorers this season. I'm expecting Carlton Cole will come in and play a big role." Allardyce admits he is baffled by City's recent slump in form but acknowledges it will be a hard to get something out of this weekend's game. He said: "I'm very surprised that City have lost four away games on the trot. That's a huge shock to everyone in football because of the huge amount of talent that they have in their squad. "But like ourselves they just don't seem to be able to find a way to win at the moment. I watched them play against Crystal Place and Palace had to defend brilliantly after they went ahead and City are normally exceptionally good at breaking down defences, but they have not been able to manage it "At home they are normally very good and we know how tough it is going to be and how hard it is to get something there. But they are struggling in terms of results. "We want to hit the 50-point mark or better. That will ensure we finish higher in the Premier League than we have done since promotion."
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Manchester City v West Ham preview: Vincent Kompany and Wilfried Bony out
Last Updated: 17/04/15 4:25pm
SSN
Manchester City host West Ham in a Super Sunday clash they'll be desperate to win after back-to-back defeats have seen their Champions League status come under serious pressure. Manuel Pellegrini's side were beaten at Crystal Palace before their 4-2 thumping at the hands of Manchester United last weekend. It hasn't been too long since City were considered the only side capable of challenging Chelsea for the Premier League title, but they are now sitting precariously in fourth, looking over their shoulder at Liverpool just four points behind.
West Ham beat City 2-1 at Upton Park in October, a result that took them to fourth, but a rapid decline in the second half of the season - winning just one of their last 10 games - has seen them drop into mid-table obscurity. Defender Kompany (groin) could miss the rest of the season while Bony (ankle/knee) faces at least another week on the sidelines. Midfielder James Milner (knee), defender Gael Clichy (groin) and striker Stevan Jovetic are also ruled out this weekend.
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce will be without striker Diafra Sakho because of a thigh strain, but Enner Valencia is available after a minor foot problem picked up on his return from injury against Stoke last weekend. Man City have lost two league matches in April this season already – they have not lost three PL games in a single month since November 2008. West Ham defeated Man City 2-1 in the Premier League earlier this season – they have never won both games against them in a single PL campaign. Man City have outrun their opponents only six times in the Premier League this season, fewer than any other side. If the season had started on Boxing Day then Man City would be ninth, 17 points behind leaders Arsenal.
Merson's prediction
Manchester City have to win. They cannot afford another slip up. It's a cup final for Manuel Pellegrini and his side. It's all gone pear shaped for the champions but they have to turn it around here. And I think they will.
Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini says he's unsure if Vincent Kompany will play again this season
West Ham are the perfect opposition at the moment. Sam Allardyce's men are on a bad run themselves, having just won one of their last 11 matches. However, they are in no danger of relegation and will not trouble the European places, so if City cannot pick up three points here there will be serious questions to answer for Pellegrini and his squad.
PAUL PREDICTS: 2-0 (16-1 with Sky Bet)
Betting
Manchester City are odds-on with Sky Bet to end their two-match losing run with victory over 11/1 shots West Ham on Super Sunday. But after successive defeats to Manchester United and Crystal Palace pressure is mounting on Manuel Pellegrini who is now 8/11 to be the next Premier League manager to leave and 1/6 not to be at the Etihad at the start of next season.
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce reveals he's not going to risk picking Diafra Sakho until he's one hundred percent fit Despite their dip in form City remain huge favourites to secure a top four finish. West Ham won the corresponding fixture 2-1, a 28/1 shot this time and are 5/2 to win or draw in the double chance market. Diafra Sakho, who scored the winner at Upton Park, is 7/2 to net in 90 minutes, while City's Sergio Aguero is as short as 4/6 to net in a home win for Pellegrini's men.
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West Ham and Burnley battling for bonus 'Fair Play' Europa League spot
Last Updated: 17/04/15 5:14pm
SSN
Despite a poor run of late, West Ham are still in the hunt for a European spot. West Ham and Burnley are in pole position to qualify for the Europa League this season via the Fair Play Table.
How? What? Why?
Relax. We have all the answers as we break down the process which means the Premier League is likely to receive a bonus place in next year's Europa League and why West Ham and Burnley are leading the race...
What is the Premier League Fair Play Table?
The Premier League Fair Play table factors in much more than just the amount of red and yellow cards picked up by a team. Positive play, respect towards opponents, respect towards match officials and the behaviour of staff in the dugout are all taken into consideration.
How and who calculates these factors?
Every Premier League game is watched by a referee's assessor who works alongside a Premier League match delegate and he marks each team on all the above mentioned factors. The respect towards officials and opponents categories are marked out of seven, with the behaviour of officials marked out of six. Teams can score a maximum of 10 points for positive play, where attacking tactics and efforts against time-wasting are considered.
How can a team qualify for the Europa League through the Premier League Fair Play Table?
Each UEFA registered league has their own Fair Play Table and the three leagues with the highest combined points total at the end of the campaign gain an extra qualification spot for the Europa League.
The Premier League currently sits third behind the Republic of Ireland and Netherlands.
Which clubs are top of the Premier League Fair Play Table?
At present (last points calculated on March 31), West Ham sit first in the Premier League rankings with 999 points - eight ahead of second-placed Burnley. They are in turn followed by Liverpool (990), Manchester City (986) and Southampton (977) – all of whom look certain to qualify for European football anyway, leaving the top two to battle it out.
Which teams are bottom of the Premier League Fair Play Table?
Sunderland are bottom of the latest standings, with Hull and Aston Villa only scoring marginally better. However, title favourites Chelsea are bottom of the pile when it comes to the individual rankings for attitude towards referees and linesmen and second-worst to Sunderland for the behaviour of their staff during matches.
Have any Premier League teams qualified through these means before?
Yes, Fulham's good behaviour in 2010/11 paid off as they qualified for the following season's Europa League via the Fair Play route. The Cottagers finished ahead of Blackpool by just 0.01 points.
Chelsea topped the Fair Play Table, with Tottenham second and Manchester United third, but as they had all qualified for Europe, Fulham, in fourth, got the spot.
One of the downsides of getting into Europe by this backdoor method is the team in question has to take part in the first qualifying round, which takes place at the start of July.
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JUST HOW GOOD ARE WE?
By Iain Dale 17 Apr 2015 at 14:12
West Ham till I Die
Guest Post by Littlefork
So just how good are we?
Bianca has had the whinge, guest poster VoR has looked at who we should keep at the club and there has been so much posted about our changing fortunes- 4th at Christmas and now struggling to hold a mid table spot.
But have we actually found our right level in the PL given the players we have? At the end of this piece I ask the serious question, player by player, how many of them would displace their counterpart in any of the teams above us in the league?
I have spouted my own views on why our 4th place at Xmas was such a false position and I'll quickly repeat them:
a) the fixture Gods were incredibly kind to us
b) our new players hit the ground running and seemed to find form very quickly
c) the usual "top teams" were incredibly slow out of the blocks
d) we had the "surprise" factor, teams hadn't worked us out and
e) all of our wins (Liverpool and Citeh excepted) were against teams in the bottom third of the table.
So that's why we were flying high. Our expectations had been exceeded, there was a great feeling of optimism—would we at worst qualify for the Europa league? This was the best football we had seen from a West Ham team for decades and we were winning games.
And then come Boxing Day the results started to go away from us. Performances seemed to drop, teams had worked out how to stop Downing at the tip of that shiny new diamond and then we picked up a string of injuries. And when players lost form they couldn't really be displaced in the side by other fringe players "just as good". We couldn't play a solid 90 minutes of good football. Clean sheets were a thing of last season, consigned to the archives. Players got twitchy when we went ahead in a game and started defending deeper and deeper and now we expect to concede in the 90+ minute of a game; and I am sure the players expect it too.
Some will say it's all the manager's fault, and to be sure the buck does stop with him. But does it tell the whole story? A manager can only work within the confines of the budget he has. For PL success you need to have a squad of excellent players…that's 25 top players who can all come into the team at any time and keep the run going, with no tailing off in performance or results. Squad rotation is vitally important when fixtures pile up because of cup runs etc. It's also important to keep players fresh and competitive.
So, of our squad of 25 players how many of them would get regular first team playing time elsewhere in the teams above us? In fact you only have to really ask that question about our regular 13 of Adrian, Creswell, Collins/Tomkins, Reid, Jenkinson, Kouyate, Song, Nolan/Noble, Downing, Sakho, Valencia. There's no point in looking at those who keep our bench warm…..Jussi, JOB, Demel, Jarvis, Cole, Nene, Amalfitano.
I doubt that many of our entire squad would get regular outings. A look at the OPTA rankings quickly shows how we are doing. Only Tonks is in the top 20, Noble's in the 90s, Collins is higher than Reid. But ignoring the stats and going with what we see and feel in our hearts what would we say?
Adrian…. Threw his gloves down and blasted in his "shoot out" penalty. Became a Boleyn hero. But which top team keeper do we honestly think he could keep on the bench?
Cresswell…has been outstanding for us this year, in his first PL season. But he's still learning and I don't think any top team would give him the playing time he needs to continue his development.
Collins….we all love Ginge, the total commitment to the cause. Those shuddering block tackles. Gets a lot of playing time with us because of injuries. I think a top team might possibly use him as CB back up.
Tomkins..Our highest placed OPTA stats individual who is the most likely to get regular playing time in a club above us.
Reid….I really thought I'd be saying he'd be another nailed on certainty to keep a current top team CB on the bench. But now I am not so sure, what do you think?
Jenkinson….really like the lad, hope he stays with us, but like Cresswell he's still learning and he would not be a first team regular in a higher placed team.
Kouyate….YES! Thank goodness he's tied down for a few years. A real powerhouse of a player, full of energy and getting better all the time.
Song…Without doubt he would hold down a regular place in a top PL team and with better players around him he would show even more. I have been "wowed' and disappointed with him in equal measure.
Nolan…a good captain, has put in some good performances for us but his time has been and gone. He would not feature in a top team.
Noble…a true "hammer" and we love him for that. With so much midfield skill in bucket loads in the teams above us, I am afraid Mark would not get much regular time either.
Sakho….too early to judge in my opinion. Blistering pace and not short of confidence. Good in the air and high work rate. If he moved to a top team now he'd be on the bench a fair bit.
Valencia…would he secure a number one spot straight away with any team above us? Chelsea are alleged to have made noises about him but he wouldn't be their number one striker.
What do you say about Andy Carroll? Does his style "fit" with the best teams in the PL? Would his injury record consign him to the bench or physio table too much?
So, looking at our 25 man squad as a whole, is it any wonder that we are mid table team at best? We have very few players indeed (maybe 3 or 4?) who would get regular first team exposure in a team above us in the premier league.
The Sullivans are aware of how much steady building they need to do. It has to be a 5 year plan at least to grow the squad into something strong and talented enough to compete with the top 6 clubs.
When you look at the players we have and compare them with their counterparts in the teams above us, then it puts our expected season end position into perspective. A different manager might be able to extract more in terms of performance from the team, given that a team is supposed to be stronger than its constituent parts.
The future looks promising, but let's not kid ourselves. The rebuilding work has only just begun.
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West Ham boss Sam Allardyce challenges Carlton Cole to get Hammers firing again
12:22, 17 April 2015 By Adrian Kajumba
The Irons striker is set for a run in the side following the injuries of Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho, who are both out for the season
The Mirror
Sam Allardyce has challenged striker Carlton Cole to deliver the goods to get West Ham firing again. Cole, 31, is set for a run in the Hammers side with fellow strikers Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho out injured. West Ham face out-of-form Manchester City on Sunday, having won just one of their last 10 league games. Hammers boss Sam Allardyce said: "I'm expecting that Carlton will come and play a big role for us in the next few games and hopefully he can deliver what we know he can." England striker Carroll is out for the rest of the campaign with a knee injury. And Allardyce confirmed 12-goal top scorer Sakho's season could also be over due to a thigh injury suffered against Stoke last week, as revealed by Mirror Sport on Monday. Allardyce said: "Maybe he will just be back towards the end of the season maybe not. "We will just have to be very careful with his thigh strain and make sure he doesn't get a reoccurrence. "If he is fit he is fit. We wouldn't be risking him at 95 per cent we will give him that extra time to be absolutely certain. "That would mean he would have to complete at least four or five days training with the squad before he was available for selection." But Enner Valencia's recovery after being forced off against Stoke with a foot injury was some good news for Allardyce. He said: "Valencia has recovered. It was more just a stamp on his foot and just a bit of bone bruising. "Him and Carlton are our strike force so those two guys have to perform to their very best and provide the goals we need to win a game."
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DG: "I think we should take Euro chance"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 17, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
David Gold believes the club owes it to the fans to take part in the early Europa Cup if they gain a spot via the Fair Play League.
Although there is no obligation to do so and and a club may refuse to take part. DG believes it's an adventure the club needs to take.
The co-chairman told ClaretandHugh exclusively: "It has to be given great consideration for the sake of the fans. They want a taste of Europe and if we can provide it via the Fair Play League I think we will do so if we get the chance."
"It does mean an early return, much travelling and there's no real financial return involved early on but if we have a chance of reaching the later stages of the Europa League I think we will probably vote to take it. I think the fans would expect that.
"Obviously we will need to protect players like Andy Carroll who have been injured but I think we can put out teams capable of winning those early games."
Co chairman David Sullivan is also in favour of taking part.
Three spots are given to federations that finish above a certain level in Uefa's Fair Play table. The top three federations automatically receive a Fair Play entry if their rating is at least 8.0. The berth goes to the highest-placed team in the Fair Play table of that country's top league that has not already qualified for Europe.
The Hammers are currently on top of the Premier league Fair Play Table with an average of 8.3.
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Allardyce to rely on Cole!
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 17, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Sam Allardyce has declared he expects Carlton Cole to finish the season on a high!
With Diafra Sakho possibly missing until the end of the campaign it seems that Cole is bang in the frame for a run of games.
The Senegal striker is believed to have torn a thigh muscle meaning that Cole will almost certainly get the nod for Manchester city (away) this weekend and beyond.
Enner Valencia is likely to partner Cole in attack at at the weekend with Allardyce saying: "Sakho has a thigh problem. He'll be out until maybe the end of the season.
"Hopefully it will be 3-4 weeks but you never know. Even if he's 95% fit, we wouldn't risk him. Only if he was 100%."With Sahko out, we are a little short in the goal-scoring department.
"So, I am expecting Carlton to play a big role for us in the next few games and he can deliver for us against Man City."
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Irons set to free-up £10m in wages
Posted by Sean Whetstone on April 17, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
The Hammers are set to free up around £10 million this summer as various long term players head for the exit door. Jussi Jaaskelainen, Carlton Cole and Guy Demel are all out of contractand are unlikely to remain Irons beyond June 30th June when their contracts end.
Kevin Nolan could well be on his way too despite having another year on his deal whilst James Collins could be offered a new contract.
Loanees Alex Song, Nene and Carl Jenkinson are also at the end of their loan periods at the end of May and will automatically return to their parent clubs.
Jussi, Cole, Demel, Nene and Song are the most likely outbound players – releasing around £200,000 per week off the wage bill or £10m plus per year. These wages will be re-invested in summer signings. Likely signings are a goalkeeper as backup for Adrian, Carl Jenkinson on a permanent deal, a striker to replace Cole, a utility defender player to replace Demel and a versatile midfielder to replace Nene.
The Hammers are extremely unlikely to look for a central defender after Reid signed a six year contract and this is likely to save a significant multi million transfer fee that would otherwise been spent this summer on his replacement.
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DG gets tough on Olympic Stadium move
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 17, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
David Gold has told Hammers fans the majority want the move to the Olympic Stadium. DG is blitzed by tweets all day every day from Hammers fans but his dry sense of humour often puts the mouthiest of them well in their place. However, when questioned about the Olympic Stadium move he got deadly serious and declared: "All the figures suggest that the majority of fans want to go to the new "World Iconic Stadium" in Stratford dg When told that more Hammers fans want to stay at Upton Park, Gold hit back hard saying: "Since when has 1 per cent been a majority? dg"
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Sullivan sounds a warning
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 17, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
David Sullivan has declared that our end of season challenge could make the difference of adding a player or two to the squad in the summer.
He said: "The weekend's draw with Stoke City was disappointing and frustrating in equal measure, particularly after Aaron Cresswell had got us off our feet with that magnificent free-kick.
"However, we have six matches left to play and must give our all in those games to ensure we pick up as many points as possible."
He told the official site: "The prize money for each finishing place could be the difference between signing a new player in the summer and improving the squad, so every point we gain is potentially vital.
"On that front, I can assure you we are already casting our scouting and recruitment far and wide in the hunt for talent to make us better next season.
"Targets are being identified and you can expect us to be doing plenty of exciting business in the transfer market this summer, as we did last year."
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We need decisions, we need change- get it done!
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 16, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
ClaretandHugh's New York based blogger Scott Alsweiler is a lifelong Iron and east-end boy.
He has followed the entire Hammers season and still still flies the Hammers flag outside his home.
Here's his view from across the pond!
It's been a bit of a roller coaster season.
High hopes dashed against the rocks of tactical errors and a second half of the campaign made up of poor substitutions and lacklustre effort.
You could argue, of course, that with us it's always up and down, and that it's part of being a Hammer. And it's generally been true over the years that we've had our dreams fade and die with a kind of monotonous regularity.
This season felt different. With the Davids taking a stronger role as owners, including buying in some great talent, and giving clear direction to the manager regarding expectations, a lot of us – myself included – had a sense that maybe this time it could be different. And for a while, it was.
Then the rot set in. We reverted to old methods. Long balls to a target man, getting one on the board and trying to defend that single goal, breaking up our beautifully performing midfield diamond to accommodate the return of Carroll (and the inclusion of Nolan).
It all fell apart. It's no secret that we're one of the worst performing sides in the league since Christmas. Although we're in no danger of relegation, as it stands we seem poised to slide further down the table which will lose us potential income, and have a negative impact on both fan and player morale.
Sam has to go. That much is obvious. I'd prefer to have him put on gardening leave tomorrow, but that seems unlikely.
We should be grateful to him. He brought us up from the Championship, and steadied us (if barely) in the EPL. But we're going nowhere, and we're a club with both history and ambition. Everyone seems to have their personal favourite to replace him, and there are some who would still prefer he stay until we're safely ensconced in our new home.
A fair number of names have been passed around but for me only two of them really stand out as a decent possibility – and I doubt Rafa will be looking our way. Throwing a couple of quid on Bielsa getting the job seems like a reasonable bet.
We also have to resist the temptation to start selling. Yes, there are definitely players who are surplus to requirements (Cole, Nolan, Demel, Jussi, and probably Jarvis and maybe Carroll as well), but let's not unload those new signings who have done so well for us.
There's a lot of talk about Valencia being Chelsea-bound. I'd hate to see that happen. Although he hasn't been a prolific scorer, his work rate is phenomenal. His partnership with Sakho earlier in the season was poetry to watch. It's a shame though, that Nene hasn't had a decent look in.
With us looking to be down to one striker for a few weeks, you would hope he'll finally get a shot, in tandem with Valencia, but I have a sinking feeling about his chances with Sam at the helm. I hope I'm proven wrong, but I suspect we'll see Cole playing as first choice instead.
Our midfield still needs work. Alex Song, despite a great start, has failed to impress in the latter half of the season. On his current form, he'll be lucky to get the sort of offer he wants. But I do think he has the raw ability if he can pull himself out of his present slump.
Downing too, so strong when at the tip of the diamond, seems lost at the moment. What Amalfitano needs to do to get a start with the present management is beyond me. He richly deserves to be in the starting lineup. New management could well see him return to his stunning early season form. Mark Noble, such a stalwart both on and off the field, seems oddly out of sorts recently as well.
Never the quickest man on the field, but always a resolute worker. Kevin Nolan is, no doubt, seeing out his last season with us. I rather hope so, but I am also cognisant of the great service he has given us since 2011. He's attracted a lot of venom but we should always remember the work he's put in for us previously.
Our defence actually looks good. I'd like to see Collins re-signed – big Ginge has had a very good season, and the addition of another centre-back. We probably also need more cover for the fullbacks. Cresswell has been outstanding, and we badly need to get Jenks under contract, but an injury to either can lead us down a rough road.
In short, if we're to move forward next season, we need to spend and bolster the squad in almost every position. If we fail to do so, we hinder our push forward into the new stadium. We need to replace our current manager – sooner rather than later.
I firmly believe that the lack of a definite and public decision in the midst of so much speculation is bad for morale in the squad, which in turn affects each and every game we play. Get it done; get it done quickly. And move on towards planning for next season. Especially as we may have a shot at Europe via Fair Play.
COYI and let us know your thoughts on how you would bolster the squad.
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Good-Guy Diafra Sakho Reveals Sacrifices Made for West Ham Move in Heartwarming Interview
By Liam Wheeler
on16 Apr 2015
It is no secret that Premier League footballers often come with certain labels attached. The money, the arrogance, the fast cars and countless girls; it all seems too familiar. Yet just when you are starting to lose faith over what really matters to our on-pitch idols in the game we all know and love, a real gem pops up and shows us what it is really all about.
In a heartwarming interview with the Express, West Ham United's £3.5m striker Diafra Sakho has completely opened up about his move to the Premier League, including the sacrifices made, the family left behind, and why big money isn't his motivation. Sakho's lifestyle is now the polar-opposite of his childhood experiences in Senegal. The striker recalls how he found it so difficult to leave his young daughter behind after seeing so little of his own father during his childhood years: "Of course my daughter misses me and I miss her," Sakho said. "But we are on Skype all of the time and I try to chat to her. We are still both adapting – both her and me – to the situation. She is not that far away and she does come to visit frequently, which makes me very happy of course. "But when I lived with my mother when I was growing up, my father did exactly the same thing. He went off to earn money for the family. "My dad was away from home all the time. He was a bus driver between Senegal and Guinea-Bissau. I effectively grew up without my father. "My dad would come back once a month or two but as a family we accepted it and it did not mean he did not love us. On the contrary, he did all of this because he did love us. That was the path that he showed us. He helped us a huge amount and we were always grateful for that. "Nevertheless, there were mornings when we would wake up and there would not be any food to eat. When I was growing up and my mum did not have any money, I would often tell her that I had eaten with friends to make her feel better. I did not want to see her cry. But we knew that better days would lie ahead – perhaps when dad came back home with more money.
Sakho's childhood experiences have at least allowed the 25-year-old to gain some perspective of what is important in the world, and even as a Premier League footballer whose name is now known around the world, Sakho maintains that his primary motivation is to support his family back home and to put food on their table: "Now at least I can give my mother the life that she was not able to give to me when I was growing up, I am trying to make her happy now. "Unfortunately, my dad passed away at the age of 53 and that was the example he has left me. Now he is not here, I feel that responsibility for the family. "I have two brothers and a sister, my mother and my daughter to support. Obviously the choice to come to West Ham was both sporting and financial and I am just happy I am able to support the family by doing this."
While today's generation simulate the majority of their sporting experiences on the Xbox One or PlayStation 4, Sakho fondly recalls how his early footballing memories involve kicking a ball of socks around dusty streets: "When I was growing up we used to make a ball out of socks, rolling them up together and playing with that," Sakho said. "It was great. We were just happy to play. "Now, whenever I go back to Senegal, I enjoy giving people footballs and boots, and also donating kit to local clubs."
A clear family man, Sakho admits he is proud of what he has achieved, but the forward, who has struck 12 times in 26 games for the Hammers, reiterated that materialism is far from his motivation: Money is no longer the objective. The aim is for me to make sure there is food on the table morning, afternoon and night. Of course, everybody wants more money. When you have 50, you want 100; when you have 100, you want 200. "But as I came from a family with nothing, that sort of thing just is not important. I am able to provide for my family and I am very proud that I am able to look after them and that is what really motivates me."
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Saturday, April 18
Friday, April 17
Daily WHUFC News - 17th April 2015
From the Boardroom: David Sullivan
WHUFC.com
First of all, I would like to thank each and every West Ham United supporter
for their kind messages of condolence following the sad passing of my
mother. The have all lifted our spirits during a difficult week.
The job of running this fantastic football club goes on, though, and we are
fast approaching another set of important landmarks in the history of West
Ham United. With a memorable final season at the Boleyn Ground and the
momentous move to our world-class new Stadium to look forward to, there are
plenty of reasons for us to get excited as Hammers supporters.
On Friday at 5pm, we have the deadline for current Season Ticket Holders to
pay a £75 deposit to renew their seat for next season - the final season at
the Boleyn. I am pleased to report that the vast majority of Season Ticket
Holders have already made sure they will be here for a special campaign, so
if you haven't renewed yet, please make sure you do because the deadline
cannot be extended.
That is because this weekend, any remaining Season Tickets for 2015/16 will
go on sale to the friends and family members nominated by current Season
Ticket Holders, with each being given the chance to bring two additional
fans along to each match.
Existing Season Ticket Holders will also have an opportunity to relocate to
a new seat, should you fancy a different view of the game.
Finally on the ticket front, Academy Members will have a special window next
Tuesday when they can add their names to the Priority list for Season
Tickets for the first season in Stratford.
On the playing side, we would all have rather results had been better in
recent weeks.
Last weekend's draw with Stoke City was disappointing and frustrating in
equal measure, particularly after Aaron Cresswell had got us off our feet
with that magnificent free-kick.
However, we have six matches left to play and must give our all in those
games to ensure we pick up as many points as possible.
The prize money for each finishing place could be the difference between
signing a new player in the summer and improving the squad, so every point
we gain is potentially vital.
On that front, I can assure you we are already casting our scouting and
recruitment far and wide in the hunt for talent to make us better next
season.
Targets are being identified and you can expect us to be doing plenty of
exciting business in the transfer market this summer, as we did last year.
Finally, I would like to wish everyone travelling to Manchester City on
Sunday a safe trip. Let's hope we can achieve a fantastic double over the
champions.
Come on you Irons!
David Sullivan
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Burke targeting win over Canaries
WHUFC.com
Development Squad defender Reece Burke said he is delighted to be back
playing after a while out on the sidelines with an ankle injury.
The 18-year-old has been a key member for the Development Squad, making a
total of 12 starts this season as well as five appearances for the U18s.
Having returned to action in the narrow 3-2 loss away to Manchester United
on Tuesday 7 April, Burke is now looking ahead to the Dev Squad's next game
– against Norwich City on Friday 17 April at Rush Green."Obviously being
injured is not the best time. I love playing so it was frustrating. Your
first game back is always tough but away at Manchester United was about as
hard as it gets. To come through it OK and play the full game was very
pleasing. Hopefully I can stay fit for the rest of the season. "I rolled my
ankle so there was a little bit of ligament damage which meant I was out for
a few weeks, thankfully it's fully healed. "It was good to play against
some of the Manchester United first team players. Despite losing, I thought
we did well."
Having lost 1-0 to Friday's opponents Norwich in the reverse fixture – a
game that hinged on Lewis Page's controversial red card early on - Burke is
keen to avenge the defeat on Friday evening. "Every team we've played this
season has been good. I'm just hoping we can get a win, we haven't won for a
while. I thought we did well against Manchester United and hopefully we can
put in another good performance. "It's nice to play at Rush Green, for me I
don't feel like it makes too much of a difference. For other players it
might make them feel more comfortable, I'm not sure."
Following Friday night's game, the Dev Squad have just four games left of
their league campaign, including tough games against Manchester City at the
Boleyn Ground on Friday 24 April and away at title chasing Chelsea.
Looking back on a successful season, which saw Burke make his first team
debut in the League Cup, he assessed: "I think my season has been alright.
I've picked up a few injuries now and then which is annoying. I think I've
improved and hopefully I'll continue to do that. "We've got quite a few
centre backs at the moment, as much as we're all friends, you have to try
and do better than them. I think competition for places is good for everyone
because it pushes you to do your best. That competitiveness drives you on."
The Development Squad play Norwich City on Friday 17 April at Rush Green,
kick off is 7pm. Admission is FREE for all Season Ticket olders and U16s, £3
for all other fans.
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Busy Boleyn Ground Open Weekend expected
WHUFC.com
West Ham United are expecting a busy weekend at the Boleyn Ground as Season
Ticket Holders look to snap up remaining seats for the Hammers' final season
at the Boleyn Ground.
As of 9am on Saturday 18 April, all Season Ticket Holders who have renewed
for the 2015/16 campaign are invited to purchase up to two additional Season
Tickets or to relocate their current seat.
Supporters wishing to do so can either visit the Ticket Office in person at
the Boleyn Ground or call the Stadium Ticket Office on 0871 529 1966.*
Given the unprecedented interest in seeing the final season at the Boleyn
Ground, demand for additional Season Tickets is expected to be exceptionally
high and requests will be dealt with on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Ticket Office will be open from 9am until 5pm on Saturday and from 10am
until 4pm on Sunday. All ten windows of the Betway Stand Ticket Office will
be in use throughout, as will the five windows in the East Stand Ticket
Office.
Supporters planning to attend the Open Weekend in person are strongly
advised to check the Club's website and Social Media channels before they
travel to ensure that additional Season Tickets are still available.
Should Season Tickets remain following the weekend, they will then be made
available to supporters on the final season waiting list.
Supporters will be contacted in order of priority on the waiting list and
should therefore ensure they are contactable throughout Monday 20 April.
Anyone wishing to join the waiting list can still do so by visiting the Box
Office here.
The final season at the Boleyn Ground is one that no Hammers fan will want
to miss, and a Season Ticket is the only way to guarantee your seat for West
Ham's very last game at the Club's home of more than a century.
Crucially, all 2015/16 Season Ticket Holders will also receive priority
status when it comes to selecting seats at the new Stadium, with the
opportunity to choose seats at our New Stadium Reservation Centre in
Westfield Stratford City.
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Swansea City: Garry Monk dismisses West Ham link
BBC.co.uk
Swansea City manager Garry Monk has distanced himself from reports linking
him to West Ham. Monk has been touted as a potential successor to current
Hammers boss Sam Allardyce, whose contract expires at the end of the season.
In his first full term in charge of Swansea, Monk has led the club to a
record-equalling 47 Premier League points with six games left. "West Ham
have a fantastic manager in place," said Monk. "For them to be looking
elsewhere - if they are - I think they've already got the manager there
who's had a fantastic season. "I look at that type of speculation as a
compliment to the way myself and the team have worked this season, showing
we're progressing and going in the right direction."
Monk succeeded Michael Laudrup as Swansea's manager in February 2014, and
his impressive first full campaign at the helm has reportedly attracted
interest from other clubs. West Ham enjoyed an excellent start to the season
and, although they are still comfortably positioned in ninth place, their
manager Allardyce has yet to agree a new contract with the club.
Swansea's rise to eighth place in the Premier League table has also seen
them linked to some high-profile players. Marseille and Ghana forward Andre
Ayew and Schalke left-back Christian Fuchs have been linked to the Welsh
club. Both players are out of contract and, although Monk has highlighted
striker and left-back as two areas of his team he would like to strengthen,
the Swans boss would not be drawn on speculation regarding the pair. "We're
constantly getting linked - you could probably name 20, 30, 40 players that
we're supposedly linked to," said Monk. "We reflect on the history and where
we've been in recent seasons and, to have our name thrown into the hat among
other big names in world football, it's a massive progression. "We're
talking to the recruitment side of it [the club] and analysing players, of
course we are. At this moment in time, that speculation will come but it's
not where I'm at."
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West Ham consider rejecting European spot
Kumb.COM
Filed: Thursday, 16th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
West Ham may be on course to qualify for Europe via the Fair Play League -
but it is by no means certain that the club would accept an invitation to
enter. Ireland, the Netherlands and England were leading the pack in the
most recently published UEFA Respect Fair Play table. With West Ham
neck-and-neck with Burnley at the top of the English division, the Hammers
are poised to land a spot in UEFA's second tier competition. But despite it
being nine years since the Hammers last qualified for Europe - during Alan
Pardew's tenure as runners-up to Liverpool in the 2006 FA Cup Final - West
Ham are seriously considering pulling out this time around, should they be
invited to compete. The cause of considerable concern at the club is the
first qualifying round's start date of 2 July. In order to enter, the
Hammers would need to recall the first team squad from their summer break at
least a fortnight earlier than usual which, it is feared, could result in
problems with injury and fatigue as the season progresses. An additional
problem is the sheer number of games required to qualify for the Europa
League proper; with three qualifying rounds and a play-off to navigate, West
Ham will have to play no less than EIGHT matches before September to win a
place in the group phase.
Additionally, all events planned for the Boleyn Ground this summer -
including a number of charity events - would have to be cancelled, as the
pitch would need to be ready to host home games far earlier than usual. The
indecision over Europe has also played havoc with the club's pre-season
plans. So far little to no information has been released by West Ham with
view to their summer programme, which will not be determined until a
decision on the Europa League has been made.
UEFA Fair Play League: how it works
The three nations finishing atop UEFA's Fair Play League, which covers every
European nation and began in 1995, are each allocated one space in the
preliminary stage of the Europa League. Teams are adjudged on several
criteria, including but not exclusive to the number of yellow and red cards
received. Other factors include positive play, respect to the opponents and
referee plus the behaviour of the team's officials and supporters.
The first qualifying round begins on 2 July, whilst last season included
teams from luminary football nations such as Kazakhstan (FC Kairat),
Lithuania (FK Atlantas) and the Faroe Islands (Víkingur).
Should West Ham qualify for the Europa League via the Fair Play route, they
will become one of the last clubs to do so. Starting from the 2016/17
season, clubs winning their respective Fair Play tables will be rewarded not
with a place in UEFA's competition, but with a financial bonus.
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Monk plays down West Ham rumours
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 16th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
Swansea boss Garry Monk has played down speculation linking him with a move
to West Ham United this summer.
The carefully-coiffured 36-year-old was linked with Sam Allardyce's job by
the Daily Star yesterday - a surprise to most monitoring the situation
closely, but still enough for Monk to comment this morning during his
pre-match press conference.
When asked about the link, Monk explained: "West Ham have a fantastic
manager in place. For them to be looking elsewhere - if they are - I think
they've already got the manager there who's had a fantastic season.
"I look at that type of speculation as a compliment to the way myself and
the team have worked this season, showing we're progressing and going in the
right direction."
Born in Bedford in 1979, the former centre half enjoyed an unspectacular
playing career with the likes of Torquay and Barnsley before moving on to
Swansea, where he spent a decade.
He is one of a handful of players - including Hammers legend and this week's
KUMB Podcast guest Tony Cottee - to have featured in all four professionals
levels in England.
Monk was placed in temporary charge at the Liberty Stadium in February 2014
following the sacking of Michael Laudrup, since when he has guided the Swans
into the top ten of the Premier League.
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BALOTELLI BARGAIN
By Iain Dale 16 Apr 2015 at 16:01
Guest Post by Jim Stuart
West Ham Till I Die
I'm aware this is a seemingly random post, but the season is winding down,
West Ham continue to concede goals after 90 minutes, there are no English
teams left in Europe, and no senior International football in the summer.
Thus I have arrived at the conclusion West Ham should sign Mario Balotelli
in the summer.
Realistically would Liverpool accept an offer of £8m, so they recoup half of
their original investment. He took a wage cut to join Liverpool, and to
escape I'm sure he would be able to be convinced to take another.
Despite his obvious talent, Mario admittedly does often come across
slovenly, walking around the pitch, getting obviously frustrated when things
don't go his way, and sailing dangerously close to red cards. But the talent
remains. He is a difficult beast to tame, lets not pretend, but he is
capable of the spectacular. The reason I think he could really kick on at
West Ham as opposed to any of his former clubs is because of our biggest
asset, our fans.
If we at West Ham feel a connection to a player, feel he is special, we make
him feel special. Why is it Carlos Tevez is still happy to reminisce about
his West Ham days, despite only scoring 7 goals, in a relegation dog fight.
He received the adoration of every West Ham fan, for 90 minutes a match,
even before he scored a single goal 'One Carlos Tevez' was bellowed down
from the stands. I know Liverpool are supposed to be excellent fans, the Kop
laa di da di daa. But I genuinely believe at West Ham, we the fans are the
most capable at appreciating a player that gives everything for us, just ask
Di Canio's tattoo, or Julian Dicks to name but a few.
I think Mario Balotelli has similar traits to the aforementioned players, if
he felt the connection with us, I think he would wear his heart on his
sleeve and really play for the colours, and be excellent. But hey, that's
just my end of season feelings, I can't see it happening and many may
disagree. I'd get him on my shirt though.
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THE LATE LATE NO-SHOW
By Bianca Westwood 16 Apr 2015 at 08:02
West Ham Till I Die
Ok. It's time to have a bit of a moan up. I've kept quiet for a few weeks, a
busy Easter football schedule put paid to any public airing of gripes but to
be honest, I wasn't in the mood to state the bleeding obvious. Plus, my mum
always used to say "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at
all." And yet, I couldn't avoid it forever, I had to write something sooner
or later, so here it is, my first proper whinge of the season…
It was an oh-so-familiar story against Stoke. Unfortunately it's become a
bit of a broken record. Start strong, get on top, a magical goal, sit back,
try to conserve the lead, fail miserably, concede. Repeat to fade.
What on earth is going on? Why are we capitulating like this? Where has the
dynamism and creativity from earlier on in the season disappeared to? It's
like chalk and flamin' cheese.
It has been a gradual decline of sorts, but now the "could have won/should
have won/deserved a point" performances have made way for what I like to
call origami football. We've folded. Again and again and again.
There are a few reasons given, injury setbacks, late season fatigue, lack of
Premier League experience from some of our signings, but really these are
all issues that every team in the league has to face. It's just not good
enough. We all know it. From the stands, to the dressing room, to the
boardroom to the manager's office and back again.
I don't get to see many of the games live so I'm no authority on the full
ninety minutes but from what I've seen on the box and heard from other fans
is that, for the most part, the desire has gone. That all-consuming urgency
and hunger to win has left the building.
You can be forgiven for dropping points to the likes of Palace or Leicester.
They're fighting for their survival. But Stoke? They've got just as much (or
as little) to play for as we have, and yet they dominated in virtually every
area of the pitch, they won their personal battles, they never gave up.
Arnautovic epitomised what it looks like to fight for every ball, to face
disappointment and perceived injustice and to keep going. Twice he had goals
denied him for offside, one of those perhaps debatable, but when he got a
final opportunity, deep into stoppage time, he wanted that goal badly, and
he made it happen with every fibre and sinew of his body.
And it showed.
We've thrown away a total of seven points on four separate occasions so far
this year, which would have only seen us a place higher in the table but the
mood around West Ham would definitely have been brighter. James Collins says
we're not streetwise. Well it's time to toughen up. Go hood. This is not the
way this season is supposed to end.
Our determination seems to have vanished into the abyss. We're living in a
state of limbo and after what promised to be an incredibly exciting season
it appears to be petering out into nothingness. I know we've got nothing to
play for now. Nothing but pride. But that's ok. Why not go for it? Go out on
a high! Why not take the game to teams, grasp it by the short and curlies,
make our opponents work harder for their chances? Sitting back and inviting
pressure on has never been a strong part of anyone's game…let alone ours.
Sam Allardyce says he's bewildered as to why we can't kill teams off or at
least see games out. He's not the only one. I just don't understand why we
aren't throwing everything forward, attacking at pace, getting balls into
the box, putting a decent shift in…right to the final whistle. Some players
have gone AWOL, some lack purpose, and some have simply surrendered. I'm not
saying they don't care…I know that they do, but it seems like they have lost
their energy for battle. They've given up. They're over it. I don't think
they're mentally getting out the passports, suitcases and sunscreen but they
do appear to be MIA.
It can't be helpful to have the manager's job debated and picked apart at
every opportunity by all and sundry either. It has to have an effect. It
feels like the long goodbye for Sam Allardyce which seems a tad unfair. Even
Carlton Cole admitted midweek that the gaffer is in the dark about his
future. He may be Marmite but Big Sam does deserve better than this. From
all concerned. Maybe he's thrown in the towel himself, but knowing him as we
do, it's unlikely he would favour such an anti-climatic exit. It looks
increasingly likely that he will not have his contract renewed in the
summer. Surely it would have been done but now. If only to silence the
nay-sayers and provide some security for our players.
But no announcement is forthcoming. It's a shame that the man who helped
rebuild our club now faces such a sorry and indifferent ending.
I don't know what the answer is, but if he's not going then why not sign
something now, and if he is, for pity's sake people, let's give the guy a
decent send off. On and off the pitch!
I don't expect much at the Etihad, unless the West Ham team of early-season
turns up. Then we have the daunting prospect of two teams fighting for their
lives. Points would have been nailed on a few months ago. Now I just don't
know.
Might be a good time to stay quiet…some things are best left unsaid.
Come On You Irons!!!
B x
Ps – it's #FootballShirtFriday this week. Give £2 in aid of the Bobby Moore
Fund and wear yours with pride…
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Hammers refuse to give up on Benitez
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 16, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are continuing to keep an eye on Rafa Benitez's situation following
the shock news that Jurgen Klopp interests Napoli. The Hammers are aware the
former Liverpool boss is keen on a move back to the north west but should
Jurgen Klopp take over at Roma ,the Irons reckon they still have an outside
chance of taking Benitez to Upton Park. It has been suggested that Rafa may
be fancied by Manchester City as a caretaker boss should they fire Manuel
Pellegrini ahead of a move for Pep Guardiola in a year's time. But a top
Upton Park source who watches this site closely has since been in touch
with us and said: "Don't rule Rafa out – we haven't! Yes he's a longshot
but the Klopp development may have helped us rather than hindered things.
"We know Rafa wants the north west where his family is based but it's not a
given that Manchester City will take him so we have some sort of chance."
Klopp – as reported on the site earlier – was very much a wanted man by
Napoli who spoke to him last year. Club president Aurelio De Lauretiis said;
"At the time I appointed Rafa I spoke to Jurgen. "He was under contract to
Dortmund until 2016 which is why we couldn't sign him as manager then."
Klopp said: "It would be a joy to work at a stadium where Diego Maradona was
such a star." And that has given the Irons hope that they have a real chance
with Benitez and could be ready to push out the financial boat seriously to
get him if the opportunity arises.
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Klopp out of Irons frame
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 16, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Much admired Jurgen Klopp – whose decision to walk away from Borussia
Dortmund and the end of the season to immediately excite West Ham fans – is
being linked with Naples.
And that will again send a wave of possibilities across the latest
managerial merry-go-round speculation given that current boss Rafa Benitez
is being discussed by some hopeful Irons as a new Boleyn boss.
rafa_a_2494019bBut the Hammers may be left out in the cold in their hunt for
a mega managerial name with both men having their eyes fastened in north
western giants should they make a move to the Premier League.
Having revealed that he will leave Dortmund , Klopp was immediately linked
with Napoli where preseident Aurelio De Lauretiis admitted; "At the time I
appointed Rafa, I spoke to Klopp.
"He told me he was under contract with Dortmund until 2016 which is why we
couldn't sign him as manager then."
Klopp himself is keen on the Premier League but is reported as saying of
Napoli: "It would be a joy to work at a stadium where Diego Maradona was
such a star ."
Benitez is lined up for further contract talks with De Lauretiis in a few
weeks time but like Klopp fancies a move to the north west if that falls
through.
And Klopp added: "If my English gets better and better and I understand
people from Liverpool and Manchester, then maybe if someone asks me I will
come to England."
Meanwhile polls on ClaretandHugh and West Ham World show that many fans want
a change at the Irons managerial helm.
Benitez – despite him being an unlikely arrival – heads the WHW poll with
Slaven Bilic, Klopp and Marcelo Bielsa filling the next three places.
Current boss Allardyce is in eighth position.
Meanwhile on this site – where we have listed those who we believe are more
readily available – Bielsa leads, followed by Bilic with Allardyce in third
place ahead of David Moyes, Eddie Howe and Roberto Di Matteo.
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Irons kill Valencia/Chelsea chit chat
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 16, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Enner Valencia is this morning again being reported as a Chelsea target as a
replacement for Oscar. This tale of course first emerged in December and
despite it attracting yards of coverage was eventually found to be baseless.
A West Ham senior source said then – and has repeated again during an early
morning call from this website – "The agents seem to be warming up a little
early this spring! "In January there was a huge amount of talk in the
background but at no stage was there anything close to an offer. "Until
somebody puts something on the table there's nothing to talk about. You can
never rule anything out of in until that happens but Enner is a highly
valued West Ham player, "As has been made clear by David Sullivan himself
the club is looking to strengthen up front , not be getting into selling."
The story this morning claims that Chelsea are keen on the Ecuadorian along
with Aaron Cresswell but our source said: "We have made it clear Aaron is
locked into a long term deal with an improvement in the pipeline. "Enner too
has no get outs whatsoever in his deal. Everything is entirely in our hands
and we are building for the future and Olympic Stadium era."
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Jenkinson says he has no divine right to start
By Thomas Hallett
Posted on April 16, 2015
www.squawka.com
Carl Jenkinson says he had no divine right to start at West Ham this season
upon his arrival on loan from Arsenal during the summer, but is thankful for
the increase in playing opportunities, via TalkSport. In an interview with
TalkSport, the right-back expressed his desire to get away from the Emirates
so as to secure regular first-team football, having just seen Arsenal secure
deals for Mathieu Debuchy and Calum Chambers. Jenkinson, who arrived in
north London from Charlton in 2011, has played a bit-part role for much of
his time with Arsenal, but has quickly become an important part of the setup
at West Ham this season. The player is quoted as saying: "I wanted to get
into the team here as soon as possible, but just because I came from Arsenal
doesn't mean I have a divine right. "West Ham are a big team, so I had to
work to get in. The main person you want to impress is the manager, but if
you can get the fans and team-mates onside, then that's great – and I think
I've done that."
West Ham enjoyed a very good campaign under Sam Allardyce up until a few
weeks ago, where their unlikely challenge for a Champions League place in
the league table fell away. The team are currently ninth in the league on 43
points. Jenkinson wins an average of 39 percent of his duels. Jenkinson is
unlikely to have a future at Arsenal, certainly next season. Having already
signed Debuchy and Chambers from Newcastle and Southampton respectively,
Arsene Wenger has also overseen the development of Hector Bellerin, who has
worked his way ahead of Chambers in the pecking order. Jenkinson has made 26
league appearances for West Ham this season, averaging five defensive
actions per game.
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Tony Carr explains why Noble and Tomkins contracts are great for West Ham's
future
HITC
Billy Hawkins
Tony Carr is delighted with West Ham United securing Mark Noble and James
Tomkins to long-term contracts. Speaking to the official West Ham website,
Carr has explained why West Ham securing Noble and Tomkins to long-term
contracts hints at a great future for the club.
The director of youth development said: "I'm delighted that Mark Noble and
James Tomkins have signed new long-term contracts. It is fantastic for the
club and the fans and it just shows how the club is growing. "Not long ago
we were producing the players but finding it hard to keep them so it's great
to see them commit their futures to the club."
Midfielder Noble and defender Tomkins both agreed new long-term deals
earlier this season, having progressed through the Hammers academy and into
consistent first-team players. Noble especially is a key figure in Sam
Allardyce's side, and is current vice-captain with very real hopes of
securing an England call-up. The 27-year-old has passed the 300-game mark,
and his career in East London does not look to be ending any time soon.
Tomkins is one year younger than Noble, and his role in the team is more
rotational than the midfielder, due to the ability of the centre-backs ahead
of him. However, he always impresses when called upon, and there is no
denying that his career can still reach new heights.
Carr has developed the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard and Joe Cole,
only to see them move onto bigger clubs to further their careers. To tie
Noble and Tomkins down suggests that the Hammers have become a more
respectable club to stay with in search of success, and the upcoming move to
the Olympic Stadium furthers this opinion even more.
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
http://www.avast.com
WHUFC.com
First of all, I would like to thank each and every West Ham United supporter
for their kind messages of condolence following the sad passing of my
mother. The have all lifted our spirits during a difficult week.
The job of running this fantastic football club goes on, though, and we are
fast approaching another set of important landmarks in the history of West
Ham United. With a memorable final season at the Boleyn Ground and the
momentous move to our world-class new Stadium to look forward to, there are
plenty of reasons for us to get excited as Hammers supporters.
On Friday at 5pm, we have the deadline for current Season Ticket Holders to
pay a £75 deposit to renew their seat for next season - the final season at
the Boleyn. I am pleased to report that the vast majority of Season Ticket
Holders have already made sure they will be here for a special campaign, so
if you haven't renewed yet, please make sure you do because the deadline
cannot be extended.
That is because this weekend, any remaining Season Tickets for 2015/16 will
go on sale to the friends and family members nominated by current Season
Ticket Holders, with each being given the chance to bring two additional
fans along to each match.
Existing Season Ticket Holders will also have an opportunity to relocate to
a new seat, should you fancy a different view of the game.
Finally on the ticket front, Academy Members will have a special window next
Tuesday when they can add their names to the Priority list for Season
Tickets for the first season in Stratford.
On the playing side, we would all have rather results had been better in
recent weeks.
Last weekend's draw with Stoke City was disappointing and frustrating in
equal measure, particularly after Aaron Cresswell had got us off our feet
with that magnificent free-kick.
However, we have six matches left to play and must give our all in those
games to ensure we pick up as many points as possible.
The prize money for each finishing place could be the difference between
signing a new player in the summer and improving the squad, so every point
we gain is potentially vital.
On that front, I can assure you we are already casting our scouting and
recruitment far and wide in the hunt for talent to make us better next
season.
Targets are being identified and you can expect us to be doing plenty of
exciting business in the transfer market this summer, as we did last year.
Finally, I would like to wish everyone travelling to Manchester City on
Sunday a safe trip. Let's hope we can achieve a fantastic double over the
champions.
Come on you Irons!
David Sullivan
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Burke targeting win over Canaries
WHUFC.com
Development Squad defender Reece Burke said he is delighted to be back
playing after a while out on the sidelines with an ankle injury.
The 18-year-old has been a key member for the Development Squad, making a
total of 12 starts this season as well as five appearances for the U18s.
Having returned to action in the narrow 3-2 loss away to Manchester United
on Tuesday 7 April, Burke is now looking ahead to the Dev Squad's next game
– against Norwich City on Friday 17 April at Rush Green."Obviously being
injured is not the best time. I love playing so it was frustrating. Your
first game back is always tough but away at Manchester United was about as
hard as it gets. To come through it OK and play the full game was very
pleasing. Hopefully I can stay fit for the rest of the season. "I rolled my
ankle so there was a little bit of ligament damage which meant I was out for
a few weeks, thankfully it's fully healed. "It was good to play against
some of the Manchester United first team players. Despite losing, I thought
we did well."
Having lost 1-0 to Friday's opponents Norwich in the reverse fixture – a
game that hinged on Lewis Page's controversial red card early on - Burke is
keen to avenge the defeat on Friday evening. "Every team we've played this
season has been good. I'm just hoping we can get a win, we haven't won for a
while. I thought we did well against Manchester United and hopefully we can
put in another good performance. "It's nice to play at Rush Green, for me I
don't feel like it makes too much of a difference. For other players it
might make them feel more comfortable, I'm not sure."
Following Friday night's game, the Dev Squad have just four games left of
their league campaign, including tough games against Manchester City at the
Boleyn Ground on Friday 24 April and away at title chasing Chelsea.
Looking back on a successful season, which saw Burke make his first team
debut in the League Cup, he assessed: "I think my season has been alright.
I've picked up a few injuries now and then which is annoying. I think I've
improved and hopefully I'll continue to do that. "We've got quite a few
centre backs at the moment, as much as we're all friends, you have to try
and do better than them. I think competition for places is good for everyone
because it pushes you to do your best. That competitiveness drives you on."
The Development Squad play Norwich City on Friday 17 April at Rush Green,
kick off is 7pm. Admission is FREE for all Season Ticket olders and U16s, £3
for all other fans.
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Busy Boleyn Ground Open Weekend expected
WHUFC.com
West Ham United are expecting a busy weekend at the Boleyn Ground as Season
Ticket Holders look to snap up remaining seats for the Hammers' final season
at the Boleyn Ground.
As of 9am on Saturday 18 April, all Season Ticket Holders who have renewed
for the 2015/16 campaign are invited to purchase up to two additional Season
Tickets or to relocate their current seat.
Supporters wishing to do so can either visit the Ticket Office in person at
the Boleyn Ground or call the Stadium Ticket Office on 0871 529 1966.*
Given the unprecedented interest in seeing the final season at the Boleyn
Ground, demand for additional Season Tickets is expected to be exceptionally
high and requests will be dealt with on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Ticket Office will be open from 9am until 5pm on Saturday and from 10am
until 4pm on Sunday. All ten windows of the Betway Stand Ticket Office will
be in use throughout, as will the five windows in the East Stand Ticket
Office.
Supporters planning to attend the Open Weekend in person are strongly
advised to check the Club's website and Social Media channels before they
travel to ensure that additional Season Tickets are still available.
Should Season Tickets remain following the weekend, they will then be made
available to supporters on the final season waiting list.
Supporters will be contacted in order of priority on the waiting list and
should therefore ensure they are contactable throughout Monday 20 April.
Anyone wishing to join the waiting list can still do so by visiting the Box
Office here.
The final season at the Boleyn Ground is one that no Hammers fan will want
to miss, and a Season Ticket is the only way to guarantee your seat for West
Ham's very last game at the Club's home of more than a century.
Crucially, all 2015/16 Season Ticket Holders will also receive priority
status when it comes to selecting seats at the new Stadium, with the
opportunity to choose seats at our New Stadium Reservation Centre in
Westfield Stratford City.
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Swansea City: Garry Monk dismisses West Ham link
BBC.co.uk
Swansea City manager Garry Monk has distanced himself from reports linking
him to West Ham. Monk has been touted as a potential successor to current
Hammers boss Sam Allardyce, whose contract expires at the end of the season.
In his first full term in charge of Swansea, Monk has led the club to a
record-equalling 47 Premier League points with six games left. "West Ham
have a fantastic manager in place," said Monk. "For them to be looking
elsewhere - if they are - I think they've already got the manager there
who's had a fantastic season. "I look at that type of speculation as a
compliment to the way myself and the team have worked this season, showing
we're progressing and going in the right direction."
Monk succeeded Michael Laudrup as Swansea's manager in February 2014, and
his impressive first full campaign at the helm has reportedly attracted
interest from other clubs. West Ham enjoyed an excellent start to the season
and, although they are still comfortably positioned in ninth place, their
manager Allardyce has yet to agree a new contract with the club.
Swansea's rise to eighth place in the Premier League table has also seen
them linked to some high-profile players. Marseille and Ghana forward Andre
Ayew and Schalke left-back Christian Fuchs have been linked to the Welsh
club. Both players are out of contract and, although Monk has highlighted
striker and left-back as two areas of his team he would like to strengthen,
the Swans boss would not be drawn on speculation regarding the pair. "We're
constantly getting linked - you could probably name 20, 30, 40 players that
we're supposedly linked to," said Monk. "We reflect on the history and where
we've been in recent seasons and, to have our name thrown into the hat among
other big names in world football, it's a massive progression. "We're
talking to the recruitment side of it [the club] and analysing players, of
course we are. At this moment in time, that speculation will come but it's
not where I'm at."
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West Ham consider rejecting European spot
Kumb.COM
Filed: Thursday, 16th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
West Ham may be on course to qualify for Europe via the Fair Play League -
but it is by no means certain that the club would accept an invitation to
enter. Ireland, the Netherlands and England were leading the pack in the
most recently published UEFA Respect Fair Play table. With West Ham
neck-and-neck with Burnley at the top of the English division, the Hammers
are poised to land a spot in UEFA's second tier competition. But despite it
being nine years since the Hammers last qualified for Europe - during Alan
Pardew's tenure as runners-up to Liverpool in the 2006 FA Cup Final - West
Ham are seriously considering pulling out this time around, should they be
invited to compete. The cause of considerable concern at the club is the
first qualifying round's start date of 2 July. In order to enter, the
Hammers would need to recall the first team squad from their summer break at
least a fortnight earlier than usual which, it is feared, could result in
problems with injury and fatigue as the season progresses. An additional
problem is the sheer number of games required to qualify for the Europa
League proper; with three qualifying rounds and a play-off to navigate, West
Ham will have to play no less than EIGHT matches before September to win a
place in the group phase.
Additionally, all events planned for the Boleyn Ground this summer -
including a number of charity events - would have to be cancelled, as the
pitch would need to be ready to host home games far earlier than usual. The
indecision over Europe has also played havoc with the club's pre-season
plans. So far little to no information has been released by West Ham with
view to their summer programme, which will not be determined until a
decision on the Europa League has been made.
UEFA Fair Play League: how it works
The three nations finishing atop UEFA's Fair Play League, which covers every
European nation and began in 1995, are each allocated one space in the
preliminary stage of the Europa League. Teams are adjudged on several
criteria, including but not exclusive to the number of yellow and red cards
received. Other factors include positive play, respect to the opponents and
referee plus the behaviour of the team's officials and supporters.
The first qualifying round begins on 2 July, whilst last season included
teams from luminary football nations such as Kazakhstan (FC Kairat),
Lithuania (FK Atlantas) and the Faroe Islands (Víkingur).
Should West Ham qualify for the Europa League via the Fair Play route, they
will become one of the last clubs to do so. Starting from the 2016/17
season, clubs winning their respective Fair Play tables will be rewarded not
with a place in UEFA's competition, but with a financial bonus.
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Monk plays down West Ham rumours
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 16th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
Swansea boss Garry Monk has played down speculation linking him with a move
to West Ham United this summer.
The carefully-coiffured 36-year-old was linked with Sam Allardyce's job by
the Daily Star yesterday - a surprise to most monitoring the situation
closely, but still enough for Monk to comment this morning during his
pre-match press conference.
When asked about the link, Monk explained: "West Ham have a fantastic
manager in place. For them to be looking elsewhere - if they are - I think
they've already got the manager there who's had a fantastic season.
"I look at that type of speculation as a compliment to the way myself and
the team have worked this season, showing we're progressing and going in the
right direction."
Born in Bedford in 1979, the former centre half enjoyed an unspectacular
playing career with the likes of Torquay and Barnsley before moving on to
Swansea, where he spent a decade.
He is one of a handful of players - including Hammers legend and this week's
KUMB Podcast guest Tony Cottee - to have featured in all four professionals
levels in England.
Monk was placed in temporary charge at the Liberty Stadium in February 2014
following the sacking of Michael Laudrup, since when he has guided the Swans
into the top ten of the Premier League.
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BALOTELLI BARGAIN
By Iain Dale 16 Apr 2015 at 16:01
Guest Post by Jim Stuart
West Ham Till I Die
I'm aware this is a seemingly random post, but the season is winding down,
West Ham continue to concede goals after 90 minutes, there are no English
teams left in Europe, and no senior International football in the summer.
Thus I have arrived at the conclusion West Ham should sign Mario Balotelli
in the summer.
Realistically would Liverpool accept an offer of £8m, so they recoup half of
their original investment. He took a wage cut to join Liverpool, and to
escape I'm sure he would be able to be convinced to take another.
Despite his obvious talent, Mario admittedly does often come across
slovenly, walking around the pitch, getting obviously frustrated when things
don't go his way, and sailing dangerously close to red cards. But the talent
remains. He is a difficult beast to tame, lets not pretend, but he is
capable of the spectacular. The reason I think he could really kick on at
West Ham as opposed to any of his former clubs is because of our biggest
asset, our fans.
If we at West Ham feel a connection to a player, feel he is special, we make
him feel special. Why is it Carlos Tevez is still happy to reminisce about
his West Ham days, despite only scoring 7 goals, in a relegation dog fight.
He received the adoration of every West Ham fan, for 90 minutes a match,
even before he scored a single goal 'One Carlos Tevez' was bellowed down
from the stands. I know Liverpool are supposed to be excellent fans, the Kop
laa di da di daa. But I genuinely believe at West Ham, we the fans are the
most capable at appreciating a player that gives everything for us, just ask
Di Canio's tattoo, or Julian Dicks to name but a few.
I think Mario Balotelli has similar traits to the aforementioned players, if
he felt the connection with us, I think he would wear his heart on his
sleeve and really play for the colours, and be excellent. But hey, that's
just my end of season feelings, I can't see it happening and many may
disagree. I'd get him on my shirt though.
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THE LATE LATE NO-SHOW
By Bianca Westwood 16 Apr 2015 at 08:02
West Ham Till I Die
Ok. It's time to have a bit of a moan up. I've kept quiet for a few weeks, a
busy Easter football schedule put paid to any public airing of gripes but to
be honest, I wasn't in the mood to state the bleeding obvious. Plus, my mum
always used to say "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at
all." And yet, I couldn't avoid it forever, I had to write something sooner
or later, so here it is, my first proper whinge of the season…
It was an oh-so-familiar story against Stoke. Unfortunately it's become a
bit of a broken record. Start strong, get on top, a magical goal, sit back,
try to conserve the lead, fail miserably, concede. Repeat to fade.
What on earth is going on? Why are we capitulating like this? Where has the
dynamism and creativity from earlier on in the season disappeared to? It's
like chalk and flamin' cheese.
It has been a gradual decline of sorts, but now the "could have won/should
have won/deserved a point" performances have made way for what I like to
call origami football. We've folded. Again and again and again.
There are a few reasons given, injury setbacks, late season fatigue, lack of
Premier League experience from some of our signings, but really these are
all issues that every team in the league has to face. It's just not good
enough. We all know it. From the stands, to the dressing room, to the
boardroom to the manager's office and back again.
I don't get to see many of the games live so I'm no authority on the full
ninety minutes but from what I've seen on the box and heard from other fans
is that, for the most part, the desire has gone. That all-consuming urgency
and hunger to win has left the building.
You can be forgiven for dropping points to the likes of Palace or Leicester.
They're fighting for their survival. But Stoke? They've got just as much (or
as little) to play for as we have, and yet they dominated in virtually every
area of the pitch, they won their personal battles, they never gave up.
Arnautovic epitomised what it looks like to fight for every ball, to face
disappointment and perceived injustice and to keep going. Twice he had goals
denied him for offside, one of those perhaps debatable, but when he got a
final opportunity, deep into stoppage time, he wanted that goal badly, and
he made it happen with every fibre and sinew of his body.
And it showed.
We've thrown away a total of seven points on four separate occasions so far
this year, which would have only seen us a place higher in the table but the
mood around West Ham would definitely have been brighter. James Collins says
we're not streetwise. Well it's time to toughen up. Go hood. This is not the
way this season is supposed to end.
Our determination seems to have vanished into the abyss. We're living in a
state of limbo and after what promised to be an incredibly exciting season
it appears to be petering out into nothingness. I know we've got nothing to
play for now. Nothing but pride. But that's ok. Why not go for it? Go out on
a high! Why not take the game to teams, grasp it by the short and curlies,
make our opponents work harder for their chances? Sitting back and inviting
pressure on has never been a strong part of anyone's game…let alone ours.
Sam Allardyce says he's bewildered as to why we can't kill teams off or at
least see games out. He's not the only one. I just don't understand why we
aren't throwing everything forward, attacking at pace, getting balls into
the box, putting a decent shift in…right to the final whistle. Some players
have gone AWOL, some lack purpose, and some have simply surrendered. I'm not
saying they don't care…I know that they do, but it seems like they have lost
their energy for battle. They've given up. They're over it. I don't think
they're mentally getting out the passports, suitcases and sunscreen but they
do appear to be MIA.
It can't be helpful to have the manager's job debated and picked apart at
every opportunity by all and sundry either. It has to have an effect. It
feels like the long goodbye for Sam Allardyce which seems a tad unfair. Even
Carlton Cole admitted midweek that the gaffer is in the dark about his
future. He may be Marmite but Big Sam does deserve better than this. From
all concerned. Maybe he's thrown in the towel himself, but knowing him as we
do, it's unlikely he would favour such an anti-climatic exit. It looks
increasingly likely that he will not have his contract renewed in the
summer. Surely it would have been done but now. If only to silence the
nay-sayers and provide some security for our players.
But no announcement is forthcoming. It's a shame that the man who helped
rebuild our club now faces such a sorry and indifferent ending.
I don't know what the answer is, but if he's not going then why not sign
something now, and if he is, for pity's sake people, let's give the guy a
decent send off. On and off the pitch!
I don't expect much at the Etihad, unless the West Ham team of early-season
turns up. Then we have the daunting prospect of two teams fighting for their
lives. Points would have been nailed on a few months ago. Now I just don't
know.
Might be a good time to stay quiet…some things are best left unsaid.
Come On You Irons!!!
B x
Ps – it's #FootballShirtFriday this week. Give £2 in aid of the Bobby Moore
Fund and wear yours with pride…
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Hammers refuse to give up on Benitez
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 16, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are continuing to keep an eye on Rafa Benitez's situation following
the shock news that Jurgen Klopp interests Napoli. The Hammers are aware the
former Liverpool boss is keen on a move back to the north west but should
Jurgen Klopp take over at Roma ,the Irons reckon they still have an outside
chance of taking Benitez to Upton Park. It has been suggested that Rafa may
be fancied by Manchester City as a caretaker boss should they fire Manuel
Pellegrini ahead of a move for Pep Guardiola in a year's time. But a top
Upton Park source who watches this site closely has since been in touch
with us and said: "Don't rule Rafa out – we haven't! Yes he's a longshot
but the Klopp development may have helped us rather than hindered things.
"We know Rafa wants the north west where his family is based but it's not a
given that Manchester City will take him so we have some sort of chance."
Klopp – as reported on the site earlier – was very much a wanted man by
Napoli who spoke to him last year. Club president Aurelio De Lauretiis said;
"At the time I appointed Rafa I spoke to Jurgen. "He was under contract to
Dortmund until 2016 which is why we couldn't sign him as manager then."
Klopp said: "It would be a joy to work at a stadium where Diego Maradona was
such a star." And that has given the Irons hope that they have a real chance
with Benitez and could be ready to push out the financial boat seriously to
get him if the opportunity arises.
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Klopp out of Irons frame
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 16, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Much admired Jurgen Klopp – whose decision to walk away from Borussia
Dortmund and the end of the season to immediately excite West Ham fans – is
being linked with Naples.
And that will again send a wave of possibilities across the latest
managerial merry-go-round speculation given that current boss Rafa Benitez
is being discussed by some hopeful Irons as a new Boleyn boss.
rafa_a_2494019bBut the Hammers may be left out in the cold in their hunt for
a mega managerial name with both men having their eyes fastened in north
western giants should they make a move to the Premier League.
Having revealed that he will leave Dortmund , Klopp was immediately linked
with Napoli where preseident Aurelio De Lauretiis admitted; "At the time I
appointed Rafa, I spoke to Klopp.
"He told me he was under contract with Dortmund until 2016 which is why we
couldn't sign him as manager then."
Klopp himself is keen on the Premier League but is reported as saying of
Napoli: "It would be a joy to work at a stadium where Diego Maradona was
such a star ."
Benitez is lined up for further contract talks with De Lauretiis in a few
weeks time but like Klopp fancies a move to the north west if that falls
through.
And Klopp added: "If my English gets better and better and I understand
people from Liverpool and Manchester, then maybe if someone asks me I will
come to England."
Meanwhile polls on ClaretandHugh and West Ham World show that many fans want
a change at the Irons managerial helm.
Benitez – despite him being an unlikely arrival – heads the WHW poll with
Slaven Bilic, Klopp and Marcelo Bielsa filling the next three places.
Current boss Allardyce is in eighth position.
Meanwhile on this site – where we have listed those who we believe are more
readily available – Bielsa leads, followed by Bilic with Allardyce in third
place ahead of David Moyes, Eddie Howe and Roberto Di Matteo.
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Irons kill Valencia/Chelsea chit chat
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 16, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
Enner Valencia is this morning again being reported as a Chelsea target as a
replacement for Oscar. This tale of course first emerged in December and
despite it attracting yards of coverage was eventually found to be baseless.
A West Ham senior source said then – and has repeated again during an early
morning call from this website – "The agents seem to be warming up a little
early this spring! "In January there was a huge amount of talk in the
background but at no stage was there anything close to an offer. "Until
somebody puts something on the table there's nothing to talk about. You can
never rule anything out of in until that happens but Enner is a highly
valued West Ham player, "As has been made clear by David Sullivan himself
the club is looking to strengthen up front , not be getting into selling."
The story this morning claims that Chelsea are keen on the Ecuadorian along
with Aaron Cresswell but our source said: "We have made it clear Aaron is
locked into a long term deal with an improvement in the pipeline. "Enner too
has no get outs whatsoever in his deal. Everything is entirely in our hands
and we are building for the future and Olympic Stadium era."
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Jenkinson says he has no divine right to start
By Thomas Hallett
Posted on April 16, 2015
www.squawka.com
Carl Jenkinson says he had no divine right to start at West Ham this season
upon his arrival on loan from Arsenal during the summer, but is thankful for
the increase in playing opportunities, via TalkSport. In an interview with
TalkSport, the right-back expressed his desire to get away from the Emirates
so as to secure regular first-team football, having just seen Arsenal secure
deals for Mathieu Debuchy and Calum Chambers. Jenkinson, who arrived in
north London from Charlton in 2011, has played a bit-part role for much of
his time with Arsenal, but has quickly become an important part of the setup
at West Ham this season. The player is quoted as saying: "I wanted to get
into the team here as soon as possible, but just because I came from Arsenal
doesn't mean I have a divine right. "West Ham are a big team, so I had to
work to get in. The main person you want to impress is the manager, but if
you can get the fans and team-mates onside, then that's great – and I think
I've done that."
West Ham enjoyed a very good campaign under Sam Allardyce up until a few
weeks ago, where their unlikely challenge for a Champions League place in
the league table fell away. The team are currently ninth in the league on 43
points. Jenkinson wins an average of 39 percent of his duels. Jenkinson is
unlikely to have a future at Arsenal, certainly next season. Having already
signed Debuchy and Chambers from Newcastle and Southampton respectively,
Arsene Wenger has also overseen the development of Hector Bellerin, who has
worked his way ahead of Chambers in the pecking order. Jenkinson has made 26
league appearances for West Ham this season, averaging five defensive
actions per game.
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Tony Carr explains why Noble and Tomkins contracts are great for West Ham's
future
HITC
Billy Hawkins
Tony Carr is delighted with West Ham United securing Mark Noble and James
Tomkins to long-term contracts. Speaking to the official West Ham website,
Carr has explained why West Ham securing Noble and Tomkins to long-term
contracts hints at a great future for the club.
The director of youth development said: "I'm delighted that Mark Noble and
James Tomkins have signed new long-term contracts. It is fantastic for the
club and the fans and it just shows how the club is growing. "Not long ago
we were producing the players but finding it hard to keep them so it's great
to see them commit their futures to the club."
Midfielder Noble and defender Tomkins both agreed new long-term deals
earlier this season, having progressed through the Hammers academy and into
consistent first-team players. Noble especially is a key figure in Sam
Allardyce's side, and is current vice-captain with very real hopes of
securing an England call-up. The 27-year-old has passed the 300-game mark,
and his career in East London does not look to be ending any time soon.
Tomkins is one year younger than Noble, and his role in the team is more
rotational than the midfielder, due to the ability of the centre-backs ahead
of him. However, he always impresses when called upon, and there is no
denying that his career can still reach new heights.
Carr has developed the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard and Joe Cole,
only to see them move onto bigger clubs to further their careers. To tie
Noble and Tomkins down suggests that the Hammers have become a more
respectable club to stay with in search of success, and the upcoming move to
the Olympic Stadium furthers this opinion even more.
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
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Thursday, April 16
Daily WHUFC News - 16th April 2015
Reid expecting strong final six games
WHUFC.com
Winston Reid said he is expecting his side to produce a better performance
than the one against Stoke City when they travel to play current champions
Manchester City on Sunday 19 April. Despite not playing to their best, the
Hammers were just seconds away from taking the three points after Aaron
Cresswell's arrowed free kick had put them ahead in the seventh minute.
However, it was not to be as Stoke's Marko Arnautovic equalised with a fine
solo goal in the fifth minute of injury time. Speaking ahead of the tough
time trip to the Etihad, Winston Reid said in his latest column for
Fanbookz: "Sometimes, especially lately, we haven't been concentrating
fully and in the last ten minutes we've been conceding unnecessary amounts
of points, which is extremely disappointing. "Obviously the performances
recently have not been reflective of what we are capable of, as we showed in
the first half of the season. From the outside, people might think that
we're already on holiday, but we've tried to maintain the effort on the
training pitch and in games. "The run we've been on in the past 15 games,
we've only gained 12 points from - which, considering where we were before,
is not good enough so our season's gone from being fairly high up in the
table to a mid-table season."
With six league game left of the season, Reid is targeting a strong finish,
for his team as well as personally after missing a month through injury. The
New Zealand international made his return to action against Leicester City
having picked up an injury in the game against Chelsea on 4 March. Speaking
about his return from the sidelines, the commanding centre-back said: "I've
had a couple of games since returning, against Leicester and Stoke, and the
injury was just one of those things that had to be managed within the time
period that it took to get me fit again. "I wanted to make sure I was fit
for the last six games of the campaign and make sure I can participate fully
within those matches. "I don't want to lose out any more time through
injury, as I've picked up a few annoying little injuries over the course of
the season which I accept is part of the toughness and number of games you
play, but hopefully I'll stay fit for the next few weeks."
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From the Treatment Room
WHUFC.com
We are firstly pleased to confirm that Enner Valencia completed an
individual training session on Wednesday morning, after suffering a foot
injury in Saturday's draw with Stoke City. Enner has a good chance of being
available for selection for the trip to Manchester City on Sunday.
Diafra Sakho, Andy Carroll, James Tomkins and Doneil Henry are all
continuing with their rehabilitation as planned and are progressing as we
would expect at this stage.
Stijn Vandenbroucke
Head of Medical and Sports Science
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Former Player Blog - Julian Dicks
WHUFC.com
As a player, Julian Dicks made 326 appearances in a claret and blue shirt,
scoring an impressive 65 goals. The four time Hammer of the Year is
currently in charge on the West Ham United Ladies team who are set to face
Charlton Athletic in the London FA Capital Women's Cup Final on Wednesday 6
May. Speaking exclusively to www.whufc.com, Dicks discussed the Ladies' 1-0
win over league leaders Cardiff City, Aaron Cresswell's goal against Stoke
City and the best free kick he ever scored…
Last weekend we beat Cardiff City 1-0 thanks to a 93rd minute goal by Vicky
Kinsman. We worked hard but if I'm honest we were lucky to win. That's
football sometimes, if you're keeping clean sheets you always give
yourselves a chance. We worked hard but our quality wasn't quite there.
Having said that, we've got seven points out of nine from the top teams.
Two weeks ago, we had a team meeting, a very honest chat about where we are
and what we want to achieve because I felt we were better than our
performances.
We won our first game back 2-1 away at Cardiff City, which was a fantastic
result. The following Tuesday we played Charlton who are a good side, we
were pretty poor but a point is a point.
Since our talk we've improved and we've only lost game in the last six. Some
we didn't deserve to win but that's football. We've played really well in
some games and lost so you have to take the rough with the smooth.
This weekend we play Lewes. Earlier in the season we beat them 1-0 but I'm
expecting a lot more because we could've played much better. Our work rate
was good but the quality let us down. Football is about keeping the ball and
we struggled to do that.
Overall, I've really enjoyed the season, there's times where I want to tear
my hair out and times where I want to bury my head. But that's football,
that happened throughout my career. I'm very passionate, I kick every ball
and the girls are probably sick of my voice. They are a good group, there
are no egos in the side which is a good thing.
On a different note, I thought Aaron Cresswell's goal against Stoke City was
a fantastic strike. It reminded me of the strike I put away against
Nottingham Forest, but mine was further out!
Cresswell's free kick was a great hit, to get it up and down the wall and
reverse it to the far corner was fantastic, it's just a shame it wasn't the
winning goal. I haven't had the chance to watch the men's team this season,
but from what I have seen I think he is a very good player.
He's still pretty young, hopefully he can go on leaps and bounds and keep on
improving. He's a very good player and I hope he builds on it.
As for my best free kick? My free kick against Nottingham Forest was a
special goal because we were chasing them at the top of the table.
There was another one going back a long time against Peter Shilton, I
remember hitting it from about 25 yards. Because it was against Peter
Shilton it was special but all my goals stand out for different reasons.
I used to practise free kicks a lot after training, I used to absolute
batter whoever was in goal, they'd be out there for as long as I wanted.
Sometimes I'd stay out there for an hour after training. Back then we didn't
have mannequins so I used some of the apprentices for the wall, they weren't
too happy!
When Lou Macari was here, he'd have me hitting balls from all over the
place, even the centre circle. For me it wasn't about bending them, it was
about putting my foot through it and testing how hard the wall was!
All the best,
Julian
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The Big Interview - Cheikhou Kouyate
WHUFC.com
There was a change of scenery for West Ham United powerhouse Cheikhou
Kouyate this week, as he swapped Chadwell Heath for London City Airport to
surprise Season Ticket Holder Gavin Bayer. The Senegal midfielder was keen
to remind Hammers fans just how important they are to the playing staff and
took great delight in thanking a gobsmacked Bayer for renewing his seat in
the Bobby Moore Stand.
All in a day's work for the 25-year-old, who is now setting his sights on
Sunday's Barclays Premier League showdown with Manchester City. Fresh from
their derby defeat at Old Trafford, Kouyate says beware the wounded animal,
though he admits if ever there is a good time to take on Manuel Pellegrini's
men, this is likely it.
Cheikhou, we've come down here to meet a supporter this afternoon and
clearly he was shocked…
CK: "We came to surprise him and thank him because the supporters are really
important to us and Gavin has renewed his Season Ticket for next season. So
we came here to thank him and to show that the supporters are really
important for the Club but also for us, the players. I enjoyed coming here
to say thank you and hand over his gift."
Next season, of course, is going to be particularly special, with it being
the last at the Boleyn Ground…
CK: "Next season is the last one at Upton Park, after that we're off to the
Olympic Stadium, so next season will really be special. We hope the
supporters will come in their numbers, to really try with us to get into the
top six or seven and try to grab a European place. The players are
important, but the supporters are also really important for the Club."
You'd imagine it's going to be tough to get tickets next season…
CK: "Upton Park is legendary, that's where West Ham has grown up and they've
played a lot of games there. The atmosphere there is top phenomenal, a lot
of people are going to miss it, even me who's not been there so long, it's
as if I've been playing there for years. But we'll see next year how it
goes."
Manchester City on Sunday, it's obviously going to be difficult, but
anything's possible…
CK: "Anything's possible in football, but we mustn't forget who we're up
against. They're a wounded animal, because they need points, so they have to
wake themselves up to win.
"We need the points as well, because we want to remain in the top ten. It's
not going to be easy because we'll be up against one of the best teams in
the country and last year's champions of England. If we're going to get
anything there, we have to enjoy it and really play as a team and work as a
team.
We've beaten them once already this season, does that boost confidence?
CK: "It's not going to be easy. It's away from home and they'll be out to
win, because they've played three or four matches, I think, without winning.
A team like Manchester City can't afford to make mistakes, so for us it's a
good time to catch them. It's a good time to face them. But we mustn't
underestimate them, there's life in them yet."
You'll be going head to head with Yaya Toure, a formidable battle…
CK: "Yaya is a role model of mine, an idol. I dreamed of being like him when
I was younger. He has played for top clubs and given great performances. For
three, four years, he was the best African player.
"He's a top man who is ready to help, ready to help all the African players.
For me it's always a pleasure to come up against him on the pitch. It's
always special when I play against him. I've played against him for Senegal
against the Ivory Coast and we've generally lost, I think we drew the once.
Hopefully Sunday will be the day for West Ham."
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Tony Cottee: 'it's Bilic for me'
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 14th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
Hammers legend Tony Cottee has revealed his choice should West Ham choose to
replace Sam Allardyce with a foreign manager.
Allardyce - whose contract is up at the end of this season - is highly
unlikely to be offered a new deal by the club, who have already begun to
look into alternative options.
The Board's number one choice appears to be Real Sociedad manager David
Moyes, who is contracted to the La Liga club until the summer of 2016.
However should the club fail to lure the former Everton boss back to
England, Cottee is unequivocal in his backing for one man - his former
colleague, Slaven Bilic.
"If we decide we're going to go down the foreign route, I would have Slaven
as my number one choice," said Cottee, speaking on the latest episode of the
KUMB West Ham Podcast.
"I was a team mate of his back in the 90s and he's a great lad. What I liked
about him was his British mentality when he arrived. He mucked in with the
lads, he spoke fantastic English and he had a drink and a fag at the back of
the bus with everybody else, as you did at the time!
"He's a real character and an excellent player. I really got on well with
Slaven and if there's to be a foreign manager coming in I'd like them to
understand what it means to be part of West Ham United Football Club.
With Slaven you'll get that and someone with passion who's proved himself;
he was brilliant as Croatia manager and is doing well at Besiktas."
Whilst he may be banging the drum for Bilic, Cottee was also receptive to
the possibility of Moyes returning to the Premier League for the first time
since leaving Manchester United. "I don't see it as a bad thing if we go for
David," he said.
"I keep coming back to the business side of things. I know football is
football, but from a business point of view we must retain our Premier
League status. If we get someone like David Moyes, who assures of of that, I
don't see that as too much of an issue.
"I like David Moyes as a person and I like what he did at Everton. He did a
really good job, he built the club with some good young players and made
some really good signings from lower league clubs. So, I don't have a
problem with Moyes coming."
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WHO WE KEEP IS AS IMPORTANT AS WHO WE BUY
By Iain Dale 15 Apr 2015 at 08:19
West Ham till I Die
Guest Post by Voice of Reason
We are getting very close to that time when the Silly Season Transfer Window
creaks open, agents feed the media unfounded rumours, the media invent
stories to fill space and fans start to express their, sometimes
unrealistic, expectations of who their club should, could or will buy.
As fans we will all probably have our own "shopping list" of players who
will improve the team and getting Jenkinson permanently, more central
defensive cover, a creative midfielder and maybe another striker would be on
mine, so I'd go for Matt Hummels, Eden Hazard and Christiano Ronaldo – yeah,
right!
Within the next few weeks we will probably know if we have another year or
two of Sam Allardyce or a new manager and this decision will surely have an
impact of who we might see come in – unless David Sullivan has decided that,
as well as being majority owner and joint chairman, he will now take on the
role of Director of Football.
However, I believe that it is just as important that we hang on to the key
members of the squad that we have if we are to move forward. A couple of
players – Tomkins, Noble – have recently signed long-term contracts and Reid
has also sorted out his immediate future. Any bids we get for these, plus
players such as Downing, Adrian and Collins would probably be from mid to
lower ranking clubs and we should be able to resist them. Fringe players
like Jarvis, Cole, O'Brien and Demel would free up space on the wage bill
were they to leave and that will be necessary to enable the club to bring in
any new players and meet FFP requirements. And, of course, we would all love
to see one of the youngsters breaking through.
But I think that we have three players who it is essential we keep, although
bids from the so-called "bigger" clubs (those who can afford to lash out
£20million plus) may prove harder to resist.
Firstly, there is the danger that a large bid for Cresswell, Sakho or
Kouyate may be seen as attractive by the club from a business standpoint
and, secondly, if a big club wants to double a players wages and offer
European football it can, as has been seen numerous times in the past, make
it impossible to keep a player if he really wants to go.
I didn't give any credence to the stories recently that Chelsea were
prepared to pay £30million for Enner Valencia and don't think anyone would
ever offer that sort of money for him during this window.
However, of the spendthrift clubs in the Premier League, Chelsea are
reported to be interested in Aaron Cresswell, as back up in case Felipe Luis
leaves (not good career development for Cresswell in my view) and the Man
City story may have some legs as they are shaky at the back and need to
increase their home-grown player quantity for the Champions League.
Liverpool also don't have a left back of Cresswell's quality and he is a
better left back – in my opinion – than Danny Rose at Tottenham.
Watching City fold to United yesterday it is easy to see how Kouyate could
improve their squad also, as he could with both Liverpool and Tottenham. If
Chelsea had Kouyate alongside Matic and moved Fabregas forward it could be
scary.
Diafra Sakho will always attract attention as long as he is scoring goals as
putting it in the onion bag is still the most valuable commodity in
football. Most of the big boys are pretty strong on the striker front but
Liverpool could use another decent one as they really only have Sturridge
who's injury record is iffy (Ballotelli will surely leave and Rodgers
doesn't seem to want to play Lambert) and Tottenham, apart from Kane, seem a
bit thin up front.
This, of course, doesn't take into account any big foreign club coming on
for any one of these three as well, with Sakho and Kouyate being the more
likely targets. It will be interesting to see if there are any serious bids
for these three key players and how determined the owners are to keep them
if they are confronted with a hefty bid. Also, how badly would the players
want to stay if they knew there was a substantial pay increase on the table.
Time alone will tell, but I believe it is crucial we do everything we can to
keep these three.
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Chelsea ready for Oscar transfer as they eye West Ham's Enner Valencia in
summer window
22:30, 15 April 2015 By Darren Lewis
The Hammer's pace and work-rate have impressed while the Brazilian doesn't
put in the sort of shift Mourinho wants and is among the Prem's most subbed
players
The Mirror
Jose Mourinho is finally set to axe Oscar this summer - and reignite
Chelsea's interest in West Ham forward Enner Valencia. Attacking midfielder
Oscar, bought for £25million in summer 2012 when Roberto di Matteo was
manager, has fallen down the pecking order after initially impressing when
he arrived from Internacional in his Brazilian homeland. The 23-year-old is
among the most substituted players in the Premier League this season, after
failing to maintain the work-rate Mourinho demands of his players. Oscar has
not started or finished a full 90 minutes in any competition since the end
of January. Italian champions Juventus are interested in him, with Valencia
being lined up by the Blues after impressing for West Ham since his £12m
arrival from Mexican side Pachuca last July.
Valencia - linked with the champions-elect Chelsea in the winter window -
has scored five goals, but has also impressed with his versatility, pace and
work-rate. Defiant West Ham have already insisted they will do all they can
to keep the 25-year-old Ecuador international. They have vowed to hold on to
ALL of their top stars this summer, with Chelsea and Manchester City also
keen on left-back Aaron Cresswell The Irons are well aware, however, that
they face a battle to avoid being asset-stripped at the end of the season.
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Cheikhou Kouyate insists West Ham players want Sam Allardyce to keep his job
as Hammers boss
16:35, 15 April 2015 By Adrian Kajumba
Allardyce looks unlikely to renew his contract with the Hammers at the end
of the current season but the players are doing all they can to keep him at
the club
The Mirror
Cheikhou Kouyate insists boss Sam Allardyce is the man for West Ham and the
players are fighting to keep him in a job. Allardyce's Upton Park future is
in doubt with his contract up this summer. A 2015 slump has dented his
chances of getting an extension when talks take place at the end of the
season while West Ham are also eyeing up possible successors including Real
Sociedad's David Moyes and Napoli's Rafa Benitez. But midfielder Kouyate,
who joined last summer from Anderlecht, said: "Football can be very
difficult sometimes to get the results you need but the players are all
fighting for the manager. "Sam has been a father for me. He wanted me at
West Ham and said he would make me a big player at West Ham and I could
continue my dream. "I signed for the club and that has happened. I love this
guy. He is very happy and is a big trainer."
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Tottenham transfers: West Ham risk seeing rivals gazump them for Basel
centre-back Fabian Schar
22:30, 14 April 2015 By Darren Lewis
Hammers have opened the door by putting player moves on hold until they know
who their manager will be next season PLUS: Spurs eye German starlet
The Mirror
Tottenham are ready to hijack neighbours West Ham's move for Basel defender
Fabian Schar - as the Hammers have put transfers on hold until they resolve
their managerial situation. West Ham have been keen on the talented
23-year-old for some time. The Swiss centre-back's contract expires this
summer - although he does have a one-year option, triggered if certain
clauses are met. Schar has Champions League and Europa League experience,
and has 12 caps for his country, including two appearances at the World Cup
finals last summer. The Irons, however, have yet to decide on whether Sam
Allardyce will remain as their manager beyond this season and are do not
want to commit themselves on transfers until that issue has been resolved.
Big Sam's contract expires in the summer and former Everton and Manchester
United manager David Moyes, now at Spain's Real Sociedad, has been linked
with his job - along with Marseille coach Marcelo Bielsa.
West Ham are unlikely to sign players until Allardyce's future is resolved
Napoli's ex-Liverpool and Chelsea coach Rafa Benitez has also been in the
frame, although it's said the Spaniard would prefer a club higher up the
Premier League table than the ninth-placed Hammers.
Spurs are monitoring the Schar situation, with their Champions League hopes
fading this season because of their poor defending.
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Liverpool and Chelsea old boy Raul Meireles eyeing a Premier League return
22:30, 14 April 2015 By Darren Witcoop
Midfielder who had a year at both Anfield and Stamford Bridge wants to leave
Turkish side Fenerbahce - West Ham and Everton will be sounded out
The Mirror
Raul Meireles has set his sights on a Premier League return. Meireles, who
spent two years with Liverpool and Chelsea, is eyeing a move back from
Fenerbahce. The Portuguese midfielder, 32, has a year left on his current
deal in Turkey but wants out now. He has instructed his super-agent Jorge
Mendes - the most powerful deal-maker in football - to fix him up back in
England. West Ham and Everton - known admirers of Meireles - will be among
the clubs sounded out.
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Moyes has a stand out record with youth!
Posted by Sean Whetstone on April 14, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
David Moyes may or may not become the next Hammers boss but what is not in
question is his successful blooding of young players. He nurtured two
England superstars by giving them their professional starts and while some
Hammers fans see him as a Sam Allardyce clone – a boring replacement sghould
that be the case, history shows he has an eye for talented youth. Both Wayne
Rooney and Ross Barkley had their professional debuts under Moyes during his
Everton reign. Only last year Moyes revealed: "Let me tell you a story about
Wayne. We were training at Everton's old training ground, at Bellefield, and
Wayne would train with us every day and he'd be kicking the balls
everywhere. I'd be shouting at him: 'Wayne!' But he just wanted to kick
them. "Then we had a game one day and Wayne had the ball close to the byline
and he chipped the goalie. All the staff were watching and you could see
them all look up the line at each other."They all had the same look on their
face: 'Did you see that? Did that really happen?' "Everyone turned and
looked. No-one shouted 'What a goal!' Maybe everyone was wondering whether
he really mean it. But he did. From that moment we were all thinking: 'Wow,
what a player. What a player we have'."
Moyes joined Everton from Preston North End in April 2002 giving Wayne
Rooney his first professional debut later that year, he sold Wayne to
Manchester United two years later for a record £25.6m when Rooney was just
18. Ross Barkley also had his debut in 2010 at Everton under Moyes before
suffering a broken leg. Moyes was reported ready to pay £20m to buy Barkley
during his short stint as Manchester United manager. Moyes and Allardyce
differ greatly in their approach to youth development and should the
appointment happen the youth issue is one that looks as if it will fall into
very good hands.
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The hidden West Ham tax
Posted by Sean Whetstone on April 15, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
With Friday's 5pm deadline of £75 season ticket deposits fast approaching
many season ticket holders will be taking to the West Ham Ticket office
hotline over the next few days. The West Ham 0871 529 1966 number is
regarded as a premium rate number with West Ham sharing revenue with a
telecoms provider based on the length of time you remain on the phone. While
the pricing starts at 10 pence per minute from a BT land line it can cost as
much as 41p per minute from a mobile phone and 0871 numbers are never
included as part of your monthly call package. This has left some Hammers
fan facing an unexpected bill of more than £4 for each 10 minute call to the
Ticket office at the end of the month. In 2013 the Government outlawed
companies using these premium rate numbers for post sales, customer services
or complaints but West Ham have stuck firm in their continued use of these
numbers and claims a loop hole that they are used for sales transactions
only.
While many ticket transactions can be now be done online through the website
there remains certain processes that can only be achieved by ringing the
premium rate number. For example if you want to use any Epurse credits to
pay for a ticket or the £75 deposit you need to call the premium rate number
to achieve this.
Claret and Hugh calls on West Ham to stop ripping off their season ticket
holders and loyal customers by charging up to 41p to buy tickets and instead
change their number to a London geographical number which would be free to
call in most people's monthly mobile call allowance.
From the 1st July Ofcom is forcing companies such as West Ham to clearly
advertise the cost of these calls and the service charge West Ham will make
from it's customers calling them.
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Changing tunes and sound of silence on Sam
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 15, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
The strident sound of changing tunes is becoming almost deafening across the
West Ham world. For it appears that even among those who a few weeks ago
doubted the stories of a managerial change the message that this may be the
last few weeks of Sam's controversial reign is now beginning to penetrate.
In the interests of professionalism and good taste I won't name any of them
but we too have had a change of heart in one particular direction – more of
that later .
Sufficient to say one – seemingly a long term supporter – wrote that "he is
highly unlikely to be offered a new deal by the club, who have already begun
to look into alternative options."
A little late on parade, they add that David Moyes appears to be the
preferred choice by the board – well yes!
A second long term supporter – and a guy for whom we have some real respect
over here at ClaretandHugh – writes that whilst he has always supported Sam,
he found Saturday very hard to take and is now much more open to change.
A veil of silence, meanwhile, has been drawn over things elsewhere. On the
official site the regular comments in the "From the Boardroom" haven't
appeared this week.
David Gold's look ahead at the Stoke City match remains in place with no
further updates from board level.
Over here our chief pundit and analyst Leroy Rosenior wrote last night that
Sam would surely have been told by now about his position by any other
manager who may have been approached and watching the carryings-on from a
distance had not been a pretty sight.
And before anyone accuses us of becoming holier than thou we too have had a
change of tune!
We cannot believe that so much uncertainty surrounding the manager is a good
thing at any time and that it has dominated the minds of fans for far too
long.
The sound of silence from the boardroom has become deafening and we reckon
the time has come for a clear statement from on high.
It can say much or little but as season ticket deposit time arrives on
Friday we believe the position should be made as clear as the club can
possibly make it.
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Hammers solve a big problem
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 15, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are planning to blood Reece Oxford next season after an initial
Championship loan deal after the club reinforced its central defensive
situation. Following Winston Reid's decision to sign a new deal, the club
will also offer James Collins a new deal following the new contract agreed
with James Tomkins. And they will also allow Doniel Henry to go out on loan
– probably to Blackburn – once he is fully recovered from injury with the
player being seen as a massive future prospect. The club has cooled on Basel
defender Fabian Scher who was believed to be a target at around £9 million.
However, ClaretandHugh was told at the start of that piece of speculation
there was little more than a 10 per cent chance of the Swiss international
joining the club and that he was just one of several defenders they were
looking at. All of that preceded the Reid decision to commit to a new six
year deal in the east end and earlier yesterday we were told: "We are now
looking at the right back and central striking position. "Winston's decision
to sign saved the club a big problem in that area and we can look to
strengthen elsewhere. We're looking decent in that position"
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Time for Nene
Posted by bubbles fanzine on April 15, 2015 in News Agenda, Whispers
By Richard Oses
Claret & Hugh
founder of Bubbles Fanzine which can be found at
https://www.facebook.com/bubblesfanzine?fref=ts
Richard's views – like those of all other bloggers – are his own and are not
do not necessarily reflect those of ClaretandHugh
Nene has to play our next game. As simple as that!
In fact, being that Diafra Sakho is likely to miss the rest of the season,
Enner Valencia (should he return as expected) will be leading the line on
his own and one can only assume Nolan will be sat behind him.
What I would love to see is Downing sat behind Valencia and Nene on the
wing, the pace and creative play that trio would bring to our attack would
be streets ahead of what we have seen playing one upfront so far this
season.
It is a frustrating head scratcher as to why a former PSG winger is finding
himself even behind the likes of Nolan and Cole, especially in games where
some magic skill, a nippy runner and a seasoned finisher would have made the
required difference and perhaps helped convert draws into wins.
There are some who have voiced their Sam isn't keen on the Nene signing
therefore will not play him opinion – who knows but it's difficult to come
up with alternative theories.
Performances are poor, the players' confidence is fragile which may well be
due to the uncertainty surrounding the manager's own future. The fans are
fed up and the club has nothing to play for except more money and pride.
Get Nene on the pitch to add a touch of class to our misfiring front line
and we may just see the team scoring the required amount of goals in
remaining games to actually seal all three points and put some smiles back
on the faces of our fans.
Sam wouldn't even need to tweak the formation too much either, but one
simple addition to the starting XI to inject some pace and flare could make
a small change return huge results for the good of the team.
Not only that, but Big Sam can bow out with some dignity at the end of the
season which he surely deserves like any other human being.
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Leroy: "No secrets in football – Sam will know"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 14, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
This managerial situation at West Ham is doing nobody any good and hasn't
been well handled at all.
Football is a tiny village where it's impossible to keep a secret and the
idea that Sam Allardyce won't have heard if someone else is approached over
his job is crazy. He will know.
sam-allardyce_1712364cBet your life away that were a boss to be approached
via an agent he would have got in touch with Sam to let him know the score.
It goes with the territory.
Sam's agent will have been on the case with other clubs. I'm certain of that
and he will never be out of work.I would reckon he is at the top or close to
the top of the wanted list at several clubs.
My own view is that given a contract hasn't been handed to him by now –
regardless of this stuff about only doing the deed at the end of each season
– means that the owners are on the case trying to find a new manager.
We hear the names Moyes and Bielsa. No doubt there are others but David
Sullivan and David Gold won't appoint until they are 100 per cent sure they
have the right man.
Only if they don't find him can we expect them to turn back and offer Sam
another deal but it may well be by then that he has another job anyway and
tells them 'thanks but no thanks.'
He could of course tell them to shove it even if he hasn't got another
position lined up but if it were me I wouldn't.
It's a bit of a blow to the ego to only be offered a contract because they
can't find anyone else but West Ham United is a great club with fabulous
young players coming through like Cressie, Sak and Cheik Kouyate.
Nobody would walk away from that in a hurry but of course he may not get
that chance because it seems to me that the circumstances show conclusively
they are gonna get themselves a new man.
That's their call but like I say it's all been badly handled with leaden
feet. The story has been running for months and has become a distraction to
everything else that's been going on and has possibly finally affected the
performances.
It's all too late now to do anything about that but it's not been great to
watch.
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West Ham release new image of 'The Academy' ahead of their move to the
Olympic Stadium
Evening Standard
CHARLIE DORIS
Published: 15 April 2015 Updated: 18:38, 15 April 2015
West Ham United have released a fresh image of their new supporter's bar
which will feature in their new home at the Olympic Stadium.
Pictures of 'The Academy' were released shortly after the club confirmed
that the high demand for corporate hospitality ahead of their move to
Stratford had forced them to build an additional state of the art companion
lounge.
Similar to the Hammers original supporters' bar 'The Boleyn', the club's
newest lounge promises fans a memorable match day experience, a gourmet meal
and a perfect view of West Ham's Premier League campaign.
Although the club will cut ties with its historic home when they make their
move across East London in 2016, 'The Academy' will pay homage to the club's
past and its famous academy with portraits celebrating Hammers legends and
current stars like Mark Noble.
The West Ham captain spoke of his excitement for the new development and
said that the new bar will give young players coming through an added
incentive to achieve at the club.
Noble stated "As a player, I am already dreaming of creating memories at
West Ham's new Stadium on the pitch, but the idea that Academy graduates
like me will also be honoured with a dedicated space is a big thrill, it
makes you proud."
West Ham Academy manager Terry Westley also spoke of his determination to
continue the club's tradition of developing world-class talent after
visiting the new site with his current crop of young stars.
"You look back at Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst, Martin Peters, Trevor Brooking
and then I think of the Ferdinands, Lampard, Cole, Defoe, Carrick. That is
what this lot have got to do, that is now the task.
Members of 'The Academy' will be entitled to entry to every Premier League
home game, three cup games, priority for cup semi-finals and finals and a
dedicated VIP entrance to the stadium.
Current Hammers season ticket holders will have the opportunity to gain
membership to 'The Academy' from the club's Reservation Centre in May 2015.
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WHUFC.com
Winston Reid said he is expecting his side to produce a better performance
than the one against Stoke City when they travel to play current champions
Manchester City on Sunday 19 April. Despite not playing to their best, the
Hammers were just seconds away from taking the three points after Aaron
Cresswell's arrowed free kick had put them ahead in the seventh minute.
However, it was not to be as Stoke's Marko Arnautovic equalised with a fine
solo goal in the fifth minute of injury time. Speaking ahead of the tough
time trip to the Etihad, Winston Reid said in his latest column for
Fanbookz: "Sometimes, especially lately, we haven't been concentrating
fully and in the last ten minutes we've been conceding unnecessary amounts
of points, which is extremely disappointing. "Obviously the performances
recently have not been reflective of what we are capable of, as we showed in
the first half of the season. From the outside, people might think that
we're already on holiday, but we've tried to maintain the effort on the
training pitch and in games. "The run we've been on in the past 15 games,
we've only gained 12 points from - which, considering where we were before,
is not good enough so our season's gone from being fairly high up in the
table to a mid-table season."
With six league game left of the season, Reid is targeting a strong finish,
for his team as well as personally after missing a month through injury. The
New Zealand international made his return to action against Leicester City
having picked up an injury in the game against Chelsea on 4 March. Speaking
about his return from the sidelines, the commanding centre-back said: "I've
had a couple of games since returning, against Leicester and Stoke, and the
injury was just one of those things that had to be managed within the time
period that it took to get me fit again. "I wanted to make sure I was fit
for the last six games of the campaign and make sure I can participate fully
within those matches. "I don't want to lose out any more time through
injury, as I've picked up a few annoying little injuries over the course of
the season which I accept is part of the toughness and number of games you
play, but hopefully I'll stay fit for the next few weeks."
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From the Treatment Room
WHUFC.com
We are firstly pleased to confirm that Enner Valencia completed an
individual training session on Wednesday morning, after suffering a foot
injury in Saturday's draw with Stoke City. Enner has a good chance of being
available for selection for the trip to Manchester City on Sunday.
Diafra Sakho, Andy Carroll, James Tomkins and Doneil Henry are all
continuing with their rehabilitation as planned and are progressing as we
would expect at this stage.
Stijn Vandenbroucke
Head of Medical and Sports Science
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Former Player Blog - Julian Dicks
WHUFC.com
As a player, Julian Dicks made 326 appearances in a claret and blue shirt,
scoring an impressive 65 goals. The four time Hammer of the Year is
currently in charge on the West Ham United Ladies team who are set to face
Charlton Athletic in the London FA Capital Women's Cup Final on Wednesday 6
May. Speaking exclusively to www.whufc.com, Dicks discussed the Ladies' 1-0
win over league leaders Cardiff City, Aaron Cresswell's goal against Stoke
City and the best free kick he ever scored…
Last weekend we beat Cardiff City 1-0 thanks to a 93rd minute goal by Vicky
Kinsman. We worked hard but if I'm honest we were lucky to win. That's
football sometimes, if you're keeping clean sheets you always give
yourselves a chance. We worked hard but our quality wasn't quite there.
Having said that, we've got seven points out of nine from the top teams.
Two weeks ago, we had a team meeting, a very honest chat about where we are
and what we want to achieve because I felt we were better than our
performances.
We won our first game back 2-1 away at Cardiff City, which was a fantastic
result. The following Tuesday we played Charlton who are a good side, we
were pretty poor but a point is a point.
Since our talk we've improved and we've only lost game in the last six. Some
we didn't deserve to win but that's football. We've played really well in
some games and lost so you have to take the rough with the smooth.
This weekend we play Lewes. Earlier in the season we beat them 1-0 but I'm
expecting a lot more because we could've played much better. Our work rate
was good but the quality let us down. Football is about keeping the ball and
we struggled to do that.
Overall, I've really enjoyed the season, there's times where I want to tear
my hair out and times where I want to bury my head. But that's football,
that happened throughout my career. I'm very passionate, I kick every ball
and the girls are probably sick of my voice. They are a good group, there
are no egos in the side which is a good thing.
On a different note, I thought Aaron Cresswell's goal against Stoke City was
a fantastic strike. It reminded me of the strike I put away against
Nottingham Forest, but mine was further out!
Cresswell's free kick was a great hit, to get it up and down the wall and
reverse it to the far corner was fantastic, it's just a shame it wasn't the
winning goal. I haven't had the chance to watch the men's team this season,
but from what I have seen I think he is a very good player.
He's still pretty young, hopefully he can go on leaps and bounds and keep on
improving. He's a very good player and I hope he builds on it.
As for my best free kick? My free kick against Nottingham Forest was a
special goal because we were chasing them at the top of the table.
There was another one going back a long time against Peter Shilton, I
remember hitting it from about 25 yards. Because it was against Peter
Shilton it was special but all my goals stand out for different reasons.
I used to practise free kicks a lot after training, I used to absolute
batter whoever was in goal, they'd be out there for as long as I wanted.
Sometimes I'd stay out there for an hour after training. Back then we didn't
have mannequins so I used some of the apprentices for the wall, they weren't
too happy!
When Lou Macari was here, he'd have me hitting balls from all over the
place, even the centre circle. For me it wasn't about bending them, it was
about putting my foot through it and testing how hard the wall was!
All the best,
Julian
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The Big Interview - Cheikhou Kouyate
WHUFC.com
There was a change of scenery for West Ham United powerhouse Cheikhou
Kouyate this week, as he swapped Chadwell Heath for London City Airport to
surprise Season Ticket Holder Gavin Bayer. The Senegal midfielder was keen
to remind Hammers fans just how important they are to the playing staff and
took great delight in thanking a gobsmacked Bayer for renewing his seat in
the Bobby Moore Stand.
All in a day's work for the 25-year-old, who is now setting his sights on
Sunday's Barclays Premier League showdown with Manchester City. Fresh from
their derby defeat at Old Trafford, Kouyate says beware the wounded animal,
though he admits if ever there is a good time to take on Manuel Pellegrini's
men, this is likely it.
Cheikhou, we've come down here to meet a supporter this afternoon and
clearly he was shocked…
CK: "We came to surprise him and thank him because the supporters are really
important to us and Gavin has renewed his Season Ticket for next season. So
we came here to thank him and to show that the supporters are really
important for the Club but also for us, the players. I enjoyed coming here
to say thank you and hand over his gift."
Next season, of course, is going to be particularly special, with it being
the last at the Boleyn Ground…
CK: "Next season is the last one at Upton Park, after that we're off to the
Olympic Stadium, so next season will really be special. We hope the
supporters will come in their numbers, to really try with us to get into the
top six or seven and try to grab a European place. The players are
important, but the supporters are also really important for the Club."
You'd imagine it's going to be tough to get tickets next season…
CK: "Upton Park is legendary, that's where West Ham has grown up and they've
played a lot of games there. The atmosphere there is top phenomenal, a lot
of people are going to miss it, even me who's not been there so long, it's
as if I've been playing there for years. But we'll see next year how it
goes."
Manchester City on Sunday, it's obviously going to be difficult, but
anything's possible…
CK: "Anything's possible in football, but we mustn't forget who we're up
against. They're a wounded animal, because they need points, so they have to
wake themselves up to win.
"We need the points as well, because we want to remain in the top ten. It's
not going to be easy because we'll be up against one of the best teams in
the country and last year's champions of England. If we're going to get
anything there, we have to enjoy it and really play as a team and work as a
team.
We've beaten them once already this season, does that boost confidence?
CK: "It's not going to be easy. It's away from home and they'll be out to
win, because they've played three or four matches, I think, without winning.
A team like Manchester City can't afford to make mistakes, so for us it's a
good time to catch them. It's a good time to face them. But we mustn't
underestimate them, there's life in them yet."
You'll be going head to head with Yaya Toure, a formidable battle…
CK: "Yaya is a role model of mine, an idol. I dreamed of being like him when
I was younger. He has played for top clubs and given great performances. For
three, four years, he was the best African player.
"He's a top man who is ready to help, ready to help all the African players.
For me it's always a pleasure to come up against him on the pitch. It's
always special when I play against him. I've played against him for Senegal
against the Ivory Coast and we've generally lost, I think we drew the once.
Hopefully Sunday will be the day for West Ham."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Tony Cottee: 'it's Bilic for me'
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 14th April 2015
By: Staff Writer
Hammers legend Tony Cottee has revealed his choice should West Ham choose to
replace Sam Allardyce with a foreign manager.
Allardyce - whose contract is up at the end of this season - is highly
unlikely to be offered a new deal by the club, who have already begun to
look into alternative options.
The Board's number one choice appears to be Real Sociedad manager David
Moyes, who is contracted to the La Liga club until the summer of 2016.
However should the club fail to lure the former Everton boss back to
England, Cottee is unequivocal in his backing for one man - his former
colleague, Slaven Bilic.
"If we decide we're going to go down the foreign route, I would have Slaven
as my number one choice," said Cottee, speaking on the latest episode of the
KUMB West Ham Podcast.
"I was a team mate of his back in the 90s and he's a great lad. What I liked
about him was his British mentality when he arrived. He mucked in with the
lads, he spoke fantastic English and he had a drink and a fag at the back of
the bus with everybody else, as you did at the time!
"He's a real character and an excellent player. I really got on well with
Slaven and if there's to be a foreign manager coming in I'd like them to
understand what it means to be part of West Ham United Football Club.
With Slaven you'll get that and someone with passion who's proved himself;
he was brilliant as Croatia manager and is doing well at Besiktas."
Whilst he may be banging the drum for Bilic, Cottee was also receptive to
the possibility of Moyes returning to the Premier League for the first time
since leaving Manchester United. "I don't see it as a bad thing if we go for
David," he said.
"I keep coming back to the business side of things. I know football is
football, but from a business point of view we must retain our Premier
League status. If we get someone like David Moyes, who assures of of that, I
don't see that as too much of an issue.
"I like David Moyes as a person and I like what he did at Everton. He did a
really good job, he built the club with some good young players and made
some really good signings from lower league clubs. So, I don't have a
problem with Moyes coming."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
WHO WE KEEP IS AS IMPORTANT AS WHO WE BUY
By Iain Dale 15 Apr 2015 at 08:19
West Ham till I Die
Guest Post by Voice of Reason
We are getting very close to that time when the Silly Season Transfer Window
creaks open, agents feed the media unfounded rumours, the media invent
stories to fill space and fans start to express their, sometimes
unrealistic, expectations of who their club should, could or will buy.
As fans we will all probably have our own "shopping list" of players who
will improve the team and getting Jenkinson permanently, more central
defensive cover, a creative midfielder and maybe another striker would be on
mine, so I'd go for Matt Hummels, Eden Hazard and Christiano Ronaldo – yeah,
right!
Within the next few weeks we will probably know if we have another year or
two of Sam Allardyce or a new manager and this decision will surely have an
impact of who we might see come in – unless David Sullivan has decided that,
as well as being majority owner and joint chairman, he will now take on the
role of Director of Football.
However, I believe that it is just as important that we hang on to the key
members of the squad that we have if we are to move forward. A couple of
players – Tomkins, Noble – have recently signed long-term contracts and Reid
has also sorted out his immediate future. Any bids we get for these, plus
players such as Downing, Adrian and Collins would probably be from mid to
lower ranking clubs and we should be able to resist them. Fringe players
like Jarvis, Cole, O'Brien and Demel would free up space on the wage bill
were they to leave and that will be necessary to enable the club to bring in
any new players and meet FFP requirements. And, of course, we would all love
to see one of the youngsters breaking through.
But I think that we have three players who it is essential we keep, although
bids from the so-called "bigger" clubs (those who can afford to lash out
£20million plus) may prove harder to resist.
Firstly, there is the danger that a large bid for Cresswell, Sakho or
Kouyate may be seen as attractive by the club from a business standpoint
and, secondly, if a big club wants to double a players wages and offer
European football it can, as has been seen numerous times in the past, make
it impossible to keep a player if he really wants to go.
I didn't give any credence to the stories recently that Chelsea were
prepared to pay £30million for Enner Valencia and don't think anyone would
ever offer that sort of money for him during this window.
However, of the spendthrift clubs in the Premier League, Chelsea are
reported to be interested in Aaron Cresswell, as back up in case Felipe Luis
leaves (not good career development for Cresswell in my view) and the Man
City story may have some legs as they are shaky at the back and need to
increase their home-grown player quantity for the Champions League.
Liverpool also don't have a left back of Cresswell's quality and he is a
better left back – in my opinion – than Danny Rose at Tottenham.
Watching City fold to United yesterday it is easy to see how Kouyate could
improve their squad also, as he could with both Liverpool and Tottenham. If
Chelsea had Kouyate alongside Matic and moved Fabregas forward it could be
scary.
Diafra Sakho will always attract attention as long as he is scoring goals as
putting it in the onion bag is still the most valuable commodity in
football. Most of the big boys are pretty strong on the striker front but
Liverpool could use another decent one as they really only have Sturridge
who's injury record is iffy (Ballotelli will surely leave and Rodgers
doesn't seem to want to play Lambert) and Tottenham, apart from Kane, seem a
bit thin up front.
This, of course, doesn't take into account any big foreign club coming on
for any one of these three as well, with Sakho and Kouyate being the more
likely targets. It will be interesting to see if there are any serious bids
for these three key players and how determined the owners are to keep them
if they are confronted with a hefty bid. Also, how badly would the players
want to stay if they knew there was a substantial pay increase on the table.
Time alone will tell, but I believe it is crucial we do everything we can to
keep these three.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Chelsea ready for Oscar transfer as they eye West Ham's Enner Valencia in
summer window
22:30, 15 April 2015 By Darren Lewis
The Hammer's pace and work-rate have impressed while the Brazilian doesn't
put in the sort of shift Mourinho wants and is among the Prem's most subbed
players
The Mirror
Jose Mourinho is finally set to axe Oscar this summer - and reignite
Chelsea's interest in West Ham forward Enner Valencia. Attacking midfielder
Oscar, bought for £25million in summer 2012 when Roberto di Matteo was
manager, has fallen down the pecking order after initially impressing when
he arrived from Internacional in his Brazilian homeland. The 23-year-old is
among the most substituted players in the Premier League this season, after
failing to maintain the work-rate Mourinho demands of his players. Oscar has
not started or finished a full 90 minutes in any competition since the end
of January. Italian champions Juventus are interested in him, with Valencia
being lined up by the Blues after impressing for West Ham since his £12m
arrival from Mexican side Pachuca last July.
Valencia - linked with the champions-elect Chelsea in the winter window -
has scored five goals, but has also impressed with his versatility, pace and
work-rate. Defiant West Ham have already insisted they will do all they can
to keep the 25-year-old Ecuador international. They have vowed to hold on to
ALL of their top stars this summer, with Chelsea and Manchester City also
keen on left-back Aaron Cresswell The Irons are well aware, however, that
they face a battle to avoid being asset-stripped at the end of the season.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Cheikhou Kouyate insists West Ham players want Sam Allardyce to keep his job
as Hammers boss
16:35, 15 April 2015 By Adrian Kajumba
Allardyce looks unlikely to renew his contract with the Hammers at the end
of the current season but the players are doing all they can to keep him at
the club
The Mirror
Cheikhou Kouyate insists boss Sam Allardyce is the man for West Ham and the
players are fighting to keep him in a job. Allardyce's Upton Park future is
in doubt with his contract up this summer. A 2015 slump has dented his
chances of getting an extension when talks take place at the end of the
season while West Ham are also eyeing up possible successors including Real
Sociedad's David Moyes and Napoli's Rafa Benitez. But midfielder Kouyate,
who joined last summer from Anderlecht, said: "Football can be very
difficult sometimes to get the results you need but the players are all
fighting for the manager. "Sam has been a father for me. He wanted me at
West Ham and said he would make me a big player at West Ham and I could
continue my dream. "I signed for the club and that has happened. I love this
guy. He is very happy and is a big trainer."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Tottenham transfers: West Ham risk seeing rivals gazump them for Basel
centre-back Fabian Schar
22:30, 14 April 2015 By Darren Lewis
Hammers have opened the door by putting player moves on hold until they know
who their manager will be next season PLUS: Spurs eye German starlet
The Mirror
Tottenham are ready to hijack neighbours West Ham's move for Basel defender
Fabian Schar - as the Hammers have put transfers on hold until they resolve
their managerial situation. West Ham have been keen on the talented
23-year-old for some time. The Swiss centre-back's contract expires this
summer - although he does have a one-year option, triggered if certain
clauses are met. Schar has Champions League and Europa League experience,
and has 12 caps for his country, including two appearances at the World Cup
finals last summer. The Irons, however, have yet to decide on whether Sam
Allardyce will remain as their manager beyond this season and are do not
want to commit themselves on transfers until that issue has been resolved.
Big Sam's contract expires in the summer and former Everton and Manchester
United manager David Moyes, now at Spain's Real Sociedad, has been linked
with his job - along with Marseille coach Marcelo Bielsa.
West Ham are unlikely to sign players until Allardyce's future is resolved
Napoli's ex-Liverpool and Chelsea coach Rafa Benitez has also been in the
frame, although it's said the Spaniard would prefer a club higher up the
Premier League table than the ninth-placed Hammers.
Spurs are monitoring the Schar situation, with their Champions League hopes
fading this season because of their poor defending.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Liverpool and Chelsea old boy Raul Meireles eyeing a Premier League return
22:30, 14 April 2015 By Darren Witcoop
Midfielder who had a year at both Anfield and Stamford Bridge wants to leave
Turkish side Fenerbahce - West Ham and Everton will be sounded out
The Mirror
Raul Meireles has set his sights on a Premier League return. Meireles, who
spent two years with Liverpool and Chelsea, is eyeing a move back from
Fenerbahce. The Portuguese midfielder, 32, has a year left on his current
deal in Turkey but wants out now. He has instructed his super-agent Jorge
Mendes - the most powerful deal-maker in football - to fix him up back in
England. West Ham and Everton - known admirers of Meireles - will be among
the clubs sounded out.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Moyes has a stand out record with youth!
Posted by Sean Whetstone on April 14, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
David Moyes may or may not become the next Hammers boss but what is not in
question is his successful blooding of young players. He nurtured two
England superstars by giving them their professional starts and while some
Hammers fans see him as a Sam Allardyce clone – a boring replacement sghould
that be the case, history shows he has an eye for talented youth. Both Wayne
Rooney and Ross Barkley had their professional debuts under Moyes during his
Everton reign. Only last year Moyes revealed: "Let me tell you a story about
Wayne. We were training at Everton's old training ground, at Bellefield, and
Wayne would train with us every day and he'd be kicking the balls
everywhere. I'd be shouting at him: 'Wayne!' But he just wanted to kick
them. "Then we had a game one day and Wayne had the ball close to the byline
and he chipped the goalie. All the staff were watching and you could see
them all look up the line at each other."They all had the same look on their
face: 'Did you see that? Did that really happen?' "Everyone turned and
looked. No-one shouted 'What a goal!' Maybe everyone was wondering whether
he really mean it. But he did. From that moment we were all thinking: 'Wow,
what a player. What a player we have'."
Moyes joined Everton from Preston North End in April 2002 giving Wayne
Rooney his first professional debut later that year, he sold Wayne to
Manchester United two years later for a record £25.6m when Rooney was just
18. Ross Barkley also had his debut in 2010 at Everton under Moyes before
suffering a broken leg. Moyes was reported ready to pay £20m to buy Barkley
during his short stint as Manchester United manager. Moyes and Allardyce
differ greatly in their approach to youth development and should the
appointment happen the youth issue is one that looks as if it will fall into
very good hands.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
The hidden West Ham tax
Posted by Sean Whetstone on April 15, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
With Friday's 5pm deadline of £75 season ticket deposits fast approaching
many season ticket holders will be taking to the West Ham Ticket office
hotline over the next few days. The West Ham 0871 529 1966 number is
regarded as a premium rate number with West Ham sharing revenue with a
telecoms provider based on the length of time you remain on the phone. While
the pricing starts at 10 pence per minute from a BT land line it can cost as
much as 41p per minute from a mobile phone and 0871 numbers are never
included as part of your monthly call package. This has left some Hammers
fan facing an unexpected bill of more than £4 for each 10 minute call to the
Ticket office at the end of the month. In 2013 the Government outlawed
companies using these premium rate numbers for post sales, customer services
or complaints but West Ham have stuck firm in their continued use of these
numbers and claims a loop hole that they are used for sales transactions
only.
While many ticket transactions can be now be done online through the website
there remains certain processes that can only be achieved by ringing the
premium rate number. For example if you want to use any Epurse credits to
pay for a ticket or the £75 deposit you need to call the premium rate number
to achieve this.
Claret and Hugh calls on West Ham to stop ripping off their season ticket
holders and loyal customers by charging up to 41p to buy tickets and instead
change their number to a London geographical number which would be free to
call in most people's monthly mobile call allowance.
From the 1st July Ofcom is forcing companies such as West Ham to clearly
advertise the cost of these calls and the service charge West Ham will make
from it's customers calling them.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Changing tunes and sound of silence on Sam
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 15, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
The strident sound of changing tunes is becoming almost deafening across the
West Ham world. For it appears that even among those who a few weeks ago
doubted the stories of a managerial change the message that this may be the
last few weeks of Sam's controversial reign is now beginning to penetrate.
In the interests of professionalism and good taste I won't name any of them
but we too have had a change of heart in one particular direction – more of
that later .
Sufficient to say one – seemingly a long term supporter – wrote that "he is
highly unlikely to be offered a new deal by the club, who have already begun
to look into alternative options."
A little late on parade, they add that David Moyes appears to be the
preferred choice by the board – well yes!
A second long term supporter – and a guy for whom we have some real respect
over here at ClaretandHugh – writes that whilst he has always supported Sam,
he found Saturday very hard to take and is now much more open to change.
A veil of silence, meanwhile, has been drawn over things elsewhere. On the
official site the regular comments in the "From the Boardroom" haven't
appeared this week.
David Gold's look ahead at the Stoke City match remains in place with no
further updates from board level.
Over here our chief pundit and analyst Leroy Rosenior wrote last night that
Sam would surely have been told by now about his position by any other
manager who may have been approached and watching the carryings-on from a
distance had not been a pretty sight.
And before anyone accuses us of becoming holier than thou we too have had a
change of tune!
We cannot believe that so much uncertainty surrounding the manager is a good
thing at any time and that it has dominated the minds of fans for far too
long.
The sound of silence from the boardroom has become deafening and we reckon
the time has come for a clear statement from on high.
It can say much or little but as season ticket deposit time arrives on
Friday we believe the position should be made as clear as the club can
possibly make it.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Hammers solve a big problem
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 15, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
West Ham are planning to blood Reece Oxford next season after an initial
Championship loan deal after the club reinforced its central defensive
situation. Following Winston Reid's decision to sign a new deal, the club
will also offer James Collins a new deal following the new contract agreed
with James Tomkins. And they will also allow Doniel Henry to go out on loan
– probably to Blackburn – once he is fully recovered from injury with the
player being seen as a massive future prospect. The club has cooled on Basel
defender Fabian Scher who was believed to be a target at around £9 million.
However, ClaretandHugh was told at the start of that piece of speculation
there was little more than a 10 per cent chance of the Swiss international
joining the club and that he was just one of several defenders they were
looking at. All of that preceded the Reid decision to commit to a new six
year deal in the east end and earlier yesterday we were told: "We are now
looking at the right back and central striking position. "Winston's decision
to sign saved the club a big problem in that area and we can look to
strengthen elsewhere. We're looking decent in that position"
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Time for Nene
Posted by bubbles fanzine on April 15, 2015 in News Agenda, Whispers
By Richard Oses
Claret & Hugh
founder of Bubbles Fanzine which can be found at
https://www.facebook.com/bubblesfanzine?fref=ts
Richard's views – like those of all other bloggers – are his own and are not
do not necessarily reflect those of ClaretandHugh
Nene has to play our next game. As simple as that!
In fact, being that Diafra Sakho is likely to miss the rest of the season,
Enner Valencia (should he return as expected) will be leading the line on
his own and one can only assume Nolan will be sat behind him.
What I would love to see is Downing sat behind Valencia and Nene on the
wing, the pace and creative play that trio would bring to our attack would
be streets ahead of what we have seen playing one upfront so far this
season.
It is a frustrating head scratcher as to why a former PSG winger is finding
himself even behind the likes of Nolan and Cole, especially in games where
some magic skill, a nippy runner and a seasoned finisher would have made the
required difference and perhaps helped convert draws into wins.
There are some who have voiced their Sam isn't keen on the Nene signing
therefore will not play him opinion – who knows but it's difficult to come
up with alternative theories.
Performances are poor, the players' confidence is fragile which may well be
due to the uncertainty surrounding the manager's own future. The fans are
fed up and the club has nothing to play for except more money and pride.
Get Nene on the pitch to add a touch of class to our misfiring front line
and we may just see the team scoring the required amount of goals in
remaining games to actually seal all three points and put some smiles back
on the faces of our fans.
Sam wouldn't even need to tweak the formation too much either, but one
simple addition to the starting XI to inject some pace and flare could make
a small change return huge results for the good of the team.
Not only that, but Big Sam can bow out with some dignity at the end of the
season which he surely deserves like any other human being.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Leroy: "No secrets in football – Sam will know"
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on April 14, 2015 in Whispers
Claret & Hugh
This managerial situation at West Ham is doing nobody any good and hasn't
been well handled at all.
Football is a tiny village where it's impossible to keep a secret and the
idea that Sam Allardyce won't have heard if someone else is approached over
his job is crazy. He will know.
sam-allardyce_1712364cBet your life away that were a boss to be approached
via an agent he would have got in touch with Sam to let him know the score.
It goes with the territory.
Sam's agent will have been on the case with other clubs. I'm certain of that
and he will never be out of work.I would reckon he is at the top or close to
the top of the wanted list at several clubs.
My own view is that given a contract hasn't been handed to him by now –
regardless of this stuff about only doing the deed at the end of each season
– means that the owners are on the case trying to find a new manager.
We hear the names Moyes and Bielsa. No doubt there are others but David
Sullivan and David Gold won't appoint until they are 100 per cent sure they
have the right man.
Only if they don't find him can we expect them to turn back and offer Sam
another deal but it may well be by then that he has another job anyway and
tells them 'thanks but no thanks.'
He could of course tell them to shove it even if he hasn't got another
position lined up but if it were me I wouldn't.
It's a bit of a blow to the ego to only be offered a contract because they
can't find anyone else but West Ham United is a great club with fabulous
young players coming through like Cressie, Sak and Cheik Kouyate.
Nobody would walk away from that in a hurry but of course he may not get
that chance because it seems to me that the circumstances show conclusively
they are gonna get themselves a new man.
That's their call but like I say it's all been badly handled with leaden
feet. The story has been running for months and has become a distraction to
everything else that's been going on and has possibly finally affected the
performances.
It's all too late now to do anything about that but it's not been great to
watch.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham release new image of 'The Academy' ahead of their move to the
Olympic Stadium
Evening Standard
CHARLIE DORIS
Published: 15 April 2015 Updated: 18:38, 15 April 2015
West Ham United have released a fresh image of their new supporter's bar
which will feature in their new home at the Olympic Stadium.
Pictures of 'The Academy' were released shortly after the club confirmed
that the high demand for corporate hospitality ahead of their move to
Stratford had forced them to build an additional state of the art companion
lounge.
Similar to the Hammers original supporters' bar 'The Boleyn', the club's
newest lounge promises fans a memorable match day experience, a gourmet meal
and a perfect view of West Ham's Premier League campaign.
Although the club will cut ties with its historic home when they make their
move across East London in 2016, 'The Academy' will pay homage to the club's
past and its famous academy with portraits celebrating Hammers legends and
current stars like Mark Noble.
The West Ham captain spoke of his excitement for the new development and
said that the new bar will give young players coming through an added
incentive to achieve at the club.
Noble stated "As a player, I am already dreaming of creating memories at
West Ham's new Stadium on the pitch, but the idea that Academy graduates
like me will also be honoured with a dedicated space is a big thrill, it
makes you proud."
West Ham Academy manager Terry Westley also spoke of his determination to
continue the club's tradition of developing world-class talent after
visiting the new site with his current crop of young stars.
"You look back at Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst, Martin Peters, Trevor Brooking
and then I think of the Ferdinands, Lampard, Cole, Defoe, Carrick. That is
what this lot have got to do, that is now the task.
Members of 'The Academy' will be entitled to entry to every Premier League
home game, three cup games, priority for cup semi-finals and finals and a
dedicated VIP entrance to the stadium.
Current Hammers season ticket holders will have the opportunity to gain
membership to 'The Academy' from the club's Reservation Centre in May 2015.
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