West Ham United

Ernie Gregory

2012-01-23T07:54:00.001Z

Sorry to hear about the death of Ernie Gregory. Jim O'Halloran tells an interesting story about Gregory and Ted Hufton: "When I was a kid in the fifties Ernie Gregory was my hero. I waited outside the stadium after a match to get Ernie's signature . He had an old man with him and he said "You don't want my autograph son, you want his." Who is he?" I asked. "Ted Hufton the greatest goalie ever" said Ernie. It meant nothing to me and I persisted after Ernie's signature but he refused. Having never seen Hufton, in my books Ernie was the bees knees."

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHgregoryE.htm

John Charles: West Ham United

2011-07-05T06:35:00.002+01:00

A talented full-back he played for West Ham Boys and in 1960 they reached the English Schools Cup Final. Charles also played for Essex Boys. Charles was spotted by Ernie Gregory and joined West Ham United after leaving school. He was one of the first black players recruited by the club. Ted Fenton was the manager at the time: "When I was taken on the ground staff, Ted told me that I would get called a few names, but to keep kicking them."

John Charles won five Youth caps for England, the first black player to represent England at any level. At the age of nineteen he captained the West Ham team that beat Liverpool 6-5 in the 1963 Youth Cup. The first black player to lead a first-class side to a major trophy.

Ron Greenwood gave John Charles his first-team debut on 4th May 1963. West Ham United lost to Blackburn Rovers 1-0. He did not make the team the following season but he did get to play against Liverpool on 15th September, 1965. It was not until the 1965-66 season that Charles became a regular in the side. This included the semi-final of the European Cup winners' Cup, against Borussia Dortmund. Greenwood described Charles as "a prince of a player; he was a good, strong, straightforward competitor whose influence was significant". His colleague, Brian Dear, argued: "John Charles was a great teammate who always gave 100 per cent."

When he broke into the team there were very few black players in the Football League. John Charles recalls: "I never remember any real racism, certainly not from other players at West Ham or our crowd. Maybe some players respond to it too quickly and become a target when everyone knows it winds them up. If they'd just keep playing they would stop... The idea that West Ham fans are racist is rubbish! They didn't ask if you were black or white; they asked if you were West Ham."

Charles argues that Ron Greenwood "was a great coach". However, he added: "I was never one of Ron's boys... I think a good manager gets to know the boys who they've got. He'll mix with them. The more you mix with them the more you know... Greenwood was a bit careful, maybe sly even. For instance, he'd just leave you out and not tell you. I hardly ever spoke to him, as it happens, no one did really. People did have a go at Greenwood every now and then. I think him and Bobby had their rows."

Another problem was that Greenwood was unaware of the drinking culture at the club. John Charles, Bobby Moore, Johnny Byrne, John Cushley, John Charles, Harry Redknapp and Brian Dear were all heavy drinkers. Charles admits: "We were always on the piss. We went from the club to the pub. I was part of a hard-drinking crowd... Everyone liked a drink... You didn't even think about it. It was second nature."

Moore claimed alcohol helped him unwind but admitted that some West Ham players drank too much: "Ron Greenwood said he felt we were getting a team of nice lads together. I sat and wondered who the hell had ever won anything in football with eleven nice people. But in the next room John Cushley and John Charles, two of the nice boys, were falling off their beds drunk at three in the afternoon."

In the 1968-69 season Charles suffered a series of injuries. He was limited to just five games in 1969-70 season. At the age of 26 he decided to give up football: "I kept getting this hamstring problem." During his career he made 118 appearances for the club. His father-in-law had his own green-grocery business. "At West Ham, I was earning £65 a week. My first week as a barrow boy, I got £200. I started with Carol's dad. Once I got into that lark, I really loved it. I became my own governor."

His business eventually got into trouble: "I soon had stalls all over Kent, but then they started to open the supermarkets and we went skint... I was an alcoholic and in the end I had a breakdown. I was so bad, once, in hospital, I dreamed I was eating my sister in a sandwich!"

John Charles came out of hospital just before his 50th birthday, saying that the "idea of ever touching a drink again was frightening". He later became strong enough to get a job at a local supermarket. When a fellow worker discovered who he was he said: "Where I was born in East Ham, you're a hero amongst all the black kids."

In October 2001, Charles, a heavy smoker, was diagnosed with cancer. He died on 17th August 2002. Brian Dear said at his funeral: "Football is surely indebted to him as he undoubtedly paved the way for his black brothers who now enjoy the fame, riches and adulation, which he most certainly helped make possible."

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHcharlesJ2.htm

Ron Greenwood

2011-07-05T06:28:00.001+01:00

Charles Korr, the author of West Ham United: The Making of a Football Club (1986) has argued that the appointment of Ron Greenwood was a break with the past: "When supporters think of managers it is usually in terms of the success of the club. There is little else upon which to judge them. West Ham had been different in this respect because its pre-Greenwood managers had been with the club for so long in some capacity that supporters could identify with them. The manager at West Ham was something much more than a transitory employee. Greenwood's employment changed all those perceptions. He was not 'an old boy', and he made no attempt to add affections that would give the impressions that he was part of West Ham tradition."

Bobby Moore was pleased with the appointment. He told Geoff Hurst: "I've played under Ron at England Under-23 level. Things are going to change around here, this chap is incredible on the game." Moore informed his close friend, Jeff Powell: "Ron told me one of his major reasons for coming to West Ham was that he knew he had me there to start building his team around." Greenwood rated Moore very highly: "He was exceptional on the training ground, a coach's dream. Whatever you asked him to do, he could do it. Football came easy to him. It wasn't a question of teaching him, merely a question of honing his considerable abilities... I used him at West Ham as a sweeper, which was then an unknown position. He played loose behind the defence and he thrived there."

Ivan Ponting has argued: "Now began the most productive phase of his career. Immediately he felt rapport with the most wholesome of clubs, which had a close-knit family atmosphere, a comforting bedrock of East London support and a playing staff oozing with potential, much of which had yet to be realised. It was the perfect setting for a man of Greenwood's ability and outlook, and he set about moulding the Hammers into a formidable, if somewhat inconsistent force. That entailed a little shrewd dealing on the transfer market but, more importantly, making the most of the talent already at his disposal."

Greenwood sold Noel Cantwell to Manchester United and made Phil Woosnam captain. He also purchased the extremely talented Johnny Byrne for £65,000. He played him alongside Geoff Hurst. As Bobby Moore pointed out: "Greenwood turned Geoff Hurst from a bit of a cart-horse at wing-half into a truly great forward. None of us thought Geoff was going to make the switch... Playing up alongside Budgie must have helped. That man was magic." Greenwood also gave Martin Peters his debut. Moore claimed that: "He was virtually a complete player. In addition to all his talent he had vision and awareness and a perfect sense of timing."

In Greenwood's first full season, West Ham United finished in 8th place. At the beginning of the 1962-63 season Greenwood sold Woosnam to Aston Villa and made Moore captain. Greenwood argued: "I made him captain because he was such a natural leader and had everyone's respect... He was desperate to succeed and was a good captain because he didn't ask anybody to do anything he couldn't do."

Ron Greenwood alerted Walter Winterbottom, the England manager, to the rapid progress of his protégé. Winterbottom decided to take Moore to the 1962 World Cup in Chile. The football journalist, Ken Jones, who worked for the Daily Mirror wrote: "'Uncapped, pedestrian, not up to much in the air, suspect stamina. How could England select the 21-year-old Moore for the 1962 World Cup finals?" Moore made his début on 20th May 1962 in England's final pre-tournament friendly against Peru in Lima. England won 4-0 and as Moore pointed out: "Walter was pleased with the defensive performance and kept virtually the same team for all four matches in that World Cup."

Greenwood slowly built a good team round Bobby Moore. This included Jim Standen, John Bond, Jack Burkett, Ken Brown, Eddie Bovington, Ronnie Boyce, Peter Brabrook, Johnny Byrne, Geoff Hurst, Martin Peters and John Sissons. Greenwood explained: "When I first went to West Ham they employed inside-forwards and wing-halves, but eventually we changed our system to a flat back four to encourage Bobby to play - he was the lynchpin. We set standards because we had players capable of it.... Our full-backs would push up and get forward. In fact, they were more attacking than some present-day wingers... At the back, Bobby could read along the line and cover the whole area. Everyone was tight going forward and Bobby played loose, free, behind everyone else, and the team could go forward with the confidence Bobby was always behind them, reading anything coming through, mopping up. It was a joy to watch him play."

Despite this, West Ham again struggled in the Football League in the 1963-64 season, finishing in 14th place. However, they were much better in the FA Cup and beat Charlton Athletic (3-0), Leyton Orient (3-0), Swindon Town (3-1), Burnley (3-2) and Manchester United (3-1) to get to the final at Wembley Stadium against Preston North End. Moore later recalled: "We were playing against Preston North End, a Second Division side. We'd been magic in the semi-final against Manchester United. Wembley should have belonged to West Ham. We won and it was good to win the first major honour. Apart from that it was a wash-out. We played badly. We spluttered. We didn't fulfill anything we had promised ourselves. Most of us felt let down. We were lucky to beat Preston, and bloody lucky Preston were no better than they were."

The score was 2-2 as the game approached the 90th minute. John Bond pointed out that both sides were extremely tired: "Tiredness and cramp was creeping in for some of the players on the lush Wembley turf. Extra time looked on when Geoff Hurst took the Preston defence on again, stumbled and recovered before sweeping the ball to Peter Brabrook on the right wing. Peter floated a great ball over the Preston defence; and then it all went into slow motion. As the ball floated across, everyone seemed to stop and watch it. Everyone except Ronnie Boyce that is, who came racing in unmarked to head past Kelly."

Ron Greenwood had won his first trophy and he was determined that it would be the first of many. As winners of the FA Cup West Ham entered the European Cup Winners' Cup. Played over two legs, victories against La Gantoise (2-1), Sparta Prague (3-2), Lausanne (6-4), Real Zaragoza (3-2) resulted in a final against TSV 1860 München at Wembley Stadium on 19th March, 1965.

West Ham won 2-0 with Alan Sealey scoring both goals. Ron Greenwood, later recalled: "Everything we believed in came true in that match." He added that it was Moore's greatest game under his management. Bobby Moore commented: "We benefited from the experience of the previous year and took part in what many people believe was one of the best matches ever played at the old stadium. There was a lot of good football and we played really well against a good side with a lot of good players."

West Ham's victory made them only the second British club to win a European trophy. Bobby Moore commented: "It was probably one of the greatest nights for a celebration the East End had known since VE Night. In West Ham, Plaistow, Bow, Ilford and Barking the pubs were packed and you could not travel very far without hearing people singing the West Ham national anthem. It was a night to remember all right... Everybody seemed to think it had been one of the finest games of football they had ever seen."

At the end of the 1965-66 season Don Revie, the manager of Leeds United, attempted to buy Bobby Moore, who wanted to leave the club. Moore, whose contract with West Ham came to an end on 30th June, 1966. Moore, who refused to sign a new contract, went to see Greenwood about the move: "There was no way we could negotiate. West Ham said they would not let me go in any circumstances. Ron and I had it out for hours. Finally we agreed to let it ride until after the World Cup."

The 1966 FIFA World Cup was held in Britain. Moore joined the England team for pre-tournament training at the beginning of July. However, under Football Association rules, a non-contracted player could not play for England. When Alf Ramsey heard about this, he ordered Moore back to Upton Park to sign a new contract with West Ham.

After their World Cup victory, Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters returned to West Ham United expecting to have a great season. As well as the three World Cup winners, the team included several talented individuals, Johnny Byrne, Peter Brabrook, Ken Brown, Ronnie Boyce, Harry Redknapp, John Sissons, Jim Standen, Dennis Burnett, Eddie Bovington, Jack Burkett and John Charles. The club also had a manager, Ron Greenwood, who was considered to be one of the best coaches in the country. However, West Ham could only finish in 16th place and were knocked out by Swindon Town in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup. Moore recalled that: "When we got back they had smashed in the windows of my sports shop opposite the ground. I couldn't be angry. It was as hard for us to understand how a team with three World Cup-winning players kept getting it wrong."

In an interview he gave to Jeff Powell, Moore admitted that if "you looked at a few of the individuals and felt there might have been room for improvement." Moore named Jim Standen, Ken Brown and Jack Burkett as players who fell into that category. "If you wanted to be really critical you could find better goalkeepers than Jim Standen... Ken Brown was far from being everyone's ideal at centre half... Jackie Burkett at left back was a very limited player."

Moore was also critical of John Sissons who never developed into the player he thought he could be: "He (Sissons) scored a goal in the FA Cup Final and was still only nineteen when he played in our European Final. At the time he would have been in my squad for the 1966 World Cup. But he never got any better... I'm sure there were many times in those five or six years when Ron made up his mind to leave John out of the side. Then you would see him Monday to Friday in training, up front in the road runs, fastest in the sprints, drilling them into the net with that left foot in five-a-sides, showing you ball skills which demanded a place in the team. Come the Saturday afternoon, nothing. John Sissons was non-existent. He was a thoroughbred who never matured."

Bobby Moore thought that a major problem was that Greenwood could not communicate his ideas to most of the West Ham players: "Ron talked about the game at such a high level that sometimes he went straight over the head of the average player... Some days I believe there were only a couple of us who understood a word he was on about. He never seemed to realise that he should have been talking down to more than half the team... Ron needed to work with the best, the elite players."

Ron Greenwood accused Moore of undermining his authority. Greenwood called Moore into his office and complained: "I know you take in what I'm saying, but will you please also look as if you're listening. How else can I make the rest pay attention." Moore told a friend: "Ron asked me why I didn't go to him any more, to ask about the game. He took it as a sign that I was turning against him... Although he respected me, he didn't like me."

Moore claimed that the main reason why he did not talk to Greenwood about the players was because he did not want his team-mates to think he was being disloyal to them: "Perhaps I should have been a go-between. Perhaps it would have helped when things started to go wrong. But I looked on myself as one of thirty professionals, one of the chaps. I didn't want the people I had to play with thinking I was picking the team. Budgie (Byrne) was much closer to Ron, always in and out of his office. But he had a bubbling personality and could get away with it. Nobody would accuse Budgie of getting them dropped."

John Charles argues that Ron Greenwood "was a great coach". However, he added: "I was never one of Ron's boys... I think a good manager gets to know the boys who they've got. He'll mix with them. The more you mix with them the more you know... Greenwood was a bit careful, maybe sly even. For instance, he'd just leave you out and not tell you. I hardly ever spoke to him, as it happens, no one did really. People did have a go at Greenwood every now and then. I think him and Bobby had their rows."

In his autobiography, Bobby Moore argued that: "When we won the two cups Ron had a good team because he had a majority of good players. We could have gone on to dominate the game for a period, the way Leeds did later." Moore complained that Greenwood did not know how to motivate players: "The lads would come in the dressing room with their heads down and he would say we would talk about it on Monday. Why wait? Tell me what I did wrong. Tell another one he can't bloody play. Tell that player he bottled it. He knew, alright. No man never saw so much in a game as Ron Greenwood. But motivation was not his strength. Some games I would love to have done it. Perhaps he wanted me to. But I didn't see it as my job. Not even as captain. It wasn't up to me to slag another player, and God knows I played with enough who weren't good enough."

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHgreenwood.htm

Sam Allardyce and the West Ham Way

2011-07-01T05:41:00.000+01:00

In the press conference that he gave on 21st June, Sam Allardyce asked the question: “When did West Ham play the West Ham way?” He then went on to say “The West Ham way is about winning football matches and the enjoyment of winning. I’m in the game to play winning football and entertain the public, and that’s what I do."

It is possible to date the beginning of the West Ham way of playing football. On 16th March 1961 the chairman of the club stated: "For some time, Mr Fenton had been working under quite a strain and it was agreed that he should go on sick leave. For the time being, we shall carry on by making certain adjustments in our internal administration." The Ilford Recorder added that: "The Upton Park club are proud of their tradition of never having sacked a manager." This was untrue as Syd King had been dismissed in 1933. Ted Fenton had also been sacked and was replaced by Ron Greenwood.

Malcolm Allison later claimed that "Ted Fenton got the sack. They were rebuilding the stand and he was pinching some bricks and paint. Putting it in the back of the car. One of the directors caught him." Ken Tucker thought he had been dismissed because he had negotiated a reduction in the price of equipment, but was only passing on a percentage of the savings to the club. However, Andy Smillie believes that Fenton was a victim of "player power".

Fenton was an old fashioned manager who had been undermined by Allison's ideas on how the game should be played. Allison had made a tremendous impact on the young players at the club. This was especially true of the 20 year old Bobby Moore, who had grown disillusioned with the tactics employed by Fenton: "He wanted us to hit long through balls from the half way line. We became the world's best hitters of long through balls to nobody from the half way line."

Charles Korr, the author of “West Ham United: The Making of a Football Club” (1986) has argued that the appointment of Greenwood was a break with the past: "When supporters think of managers it is usually in terms of the success of the club. There is little else upon which to judge them. West Ham had been different in this respect because its pre-Greenwood managers had been with the club for so long in some capacity that supporters could identify with them. The manager at West Ham was something much more than a transitory employee. Greenwood's employment changed all those perceptions. He was not 'an old boy', and he made no attempt to add affections that would give the impressions that he was part of West Ham tradition."

It is not generally known but Greenwood, who was assistant manager of Arsenal, initially rejected the post. He told one journalist that he was not interested in the job because "If they can get rid of one manager they can get rid of another." He changed his mind when he discovered that Ted Fenton was only the third manager in over 60 years. The other attraction was the quality of West Ham's young players. In fact, Greenwood's first trophy came when West Ham beat Liverpool 6-5 in the 1963 Youth Cup. The score-line reflects the success and problems of the tactics used by Greenwood.

Moore, who had played under Ron Greenwood for the England Youth team, was pleased with the appointment. He told Geoff Hurst: "I've played under Ron at England Under-23 level. Things are going to change around here, this chap is incredible on the game." Moore informed his close friend, Jeff Powell: "Ron told me one of his major reasons for coming to West Ham was that he knew he had me there to start building his team around." Greenwood rated Moore very highly: "He was exceptional on the training ground, a coach's dream. Whatever you asked him to do, he could do it. Football came easy to him. It wasn't a question of teaching him, merely a question of honing his considerable abilities... I used him at West Ham as a sweeper, which was then an unknown position. He played loose behind the defence and he thrived there."

Greenwood sold Noel Cantwell to Manchester United and made Phil Woosnam captain. He also purchased the extremely talented Johnny Byrne for £65,000. In Greenwood's first full season, West Ham United finished in 8th place. At the beginning of the 1962-63 season, Greenwood sold Woosnam to Aston Villa and made Moore captain. Greenwood argued: "I made him captain because he was such a natural leader and had everyone's respect... He was desperate to succeed and was a good captain because he didn't ask anybody to do anything he couldn't do."

Over the next couple of years Greenwood built a good team round Bobby Moore. This included Jim Standen, John Bond, Jack Burkett, Ken Brown, Eddie Bovington, Ronnie Boyce, Peter Brabrook, Johnny Byrne, Geoff Hurst, Martin Peters and John Sissons. Greenwood explained: "When I first went to West Ham they employed inside-forwards and wing-halves, but eventually we changed our system to a flat back four to encourage Bobby to play - he was the lynchpin. We set standards because we had players capable of it.... Our full-backs would push up and get forward. In fact, they were more attacking than some present-day wingers... At the back, Bobby could read along the line and cover the whole area. Everyone was tight going forward and Bobby played loose, free, behind everyone else, and the team could go forward with the confidence Bobby was always behind them, reading anything coming through, mopping up. It was a joy to watch him play."

Despite this, West Ham again struggled in the Football League in the 1963-64 season, finishing in 14th place. However, they were much better in the FA Cup and beat Charlton Athletic (3-0), Leyton Orient (3-0), Swindon Town (3-1), Burnley (3-2) and Manchester United (3-1) to get to the final at Wembley Stadium against Preston North End. Moore later recalled: "We were playing against Preston North End, a Second Division side. We'd been magic in the semi-final against Manchester United. Wembley should have belonged to West Ham. We won and it was good to win the first major honour. Apart from that it was a wash-out. We played badly. We spluttered. We didn't fulfill anything we had promised ourselves. Most of us felt let down. We were lucky to beat Preston, and bloody lucky Preston were no better than they were."

Greenwood had won his first trophy and he was determined that it would be the first of many. As winners of the FA Cup West Ham entered the European Cup Winners' Cup. Played over two legs, victories against La Gantoise (2-1), Sparta Prague (3-2), Lausanne (6-4), Real Zaragoza (3-2) resulted in a final against TSV 1860 München at Wembley Stadium on 19th March, 1965. West Ham won 2-0 with Alan Sealey scoring both goals.

West Ham's victory made them only the second British club to win a European trophy. Bobby Moore commented: "It was probably one of the greatest nights for a celebration the East End had known since VE Night. In West Ham, Plaistow, Bow, Ilford and Barking the pubs were packed and you could not travel very far without hearing people singing the West Ham national anthem. It was a night to remember all right... Everybody seemed to think it had been one of the finest games of football they had ever seen."

Greenwood later commented: "Everything we believed in came true in that match." I was at the game and it was truly a fantastic performance. You can find out yourself just how good it was as the match against TSV 1860 München is available on DVD.

Greenwood was now considered the most exciting coach in the country and was invited to become technical adviser to the Football Association during the 1966 World Cup. His coaching methods were given a boast when three of his players, Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters, played vital roles in the England’s World Cup victory.

Moore, Hurst and Peters returned to West Ham expecting to have a great season. As well as the three World Cup winners, the team included several talented individuals, such as Johnny Byrne, Peter Brabrook, Ken Brown, Ronnie Boyce, Harry Redknapp and John Sissons,. They also had a reliable goalkeeper in Jim Standen. However, West Ham could only finish in 16th place and were knocked out by Swindon Town in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup.

Moore thought that a major problem was that Greenwood could not communicate his ideas to most of the West Ham players: "Ron talked about the game at such a high level that sometimes he went straight over the head of the average player... Some days I believe there were only a couple of us who understood a word he was on about. He never seemed to realise that he should have been talking down to more than half the team... Ron needed to work with the best, the elite players."

Ron Greenwood accused Moore of undermining his authority. Greenwood called Moore into his office and complained: "I know you take in what I'm saying, but will you please also look as if you're listening. How else can I make the rest pay attention." Moore told a friend: "Ron asked me why I didn't go to him any more, to ask about the game. He took it as a sign that I was turning against him... Although he respected me, he didn't like me."

Moore claimed that the main reason why he did not talk to Greenwood about the players was because he did not want his team-mates to think he was being disloyal to them: "Perhaps I should have been a go-between. Perhaps it would have helped when things started to go wrong. But I looked on myself as one of thirty professionals, one of the chaps. I didn't want the people I had to play with thinking I was picking the team. Budgie (Byrne) was much closer to Ron, always in and out of his office. But he had a bubbling personality and could get away with it. Nobody would accuse Budgie of getting them dropped."

In his autobiography, Moore argued that: "When we won the two cups Ron had a good team because he had a majority of good players. We could have gone on to dominate the game for a period, the way Leeds did later." Moore complained that Greenwood did not know how to motivate players: "The lads would come in the dressing room with their heads down and he would say we would talk about it on Monday. Why wait? Tell me what I did wrong. Tell another one he can't bloody play. Tell that player he bottled it. He knew, alright. No man never saw so much in a game as Ron Greenwood. But motivation was not his strength. Some games I would love to have done it. Perhaps he wanted me to. But I didn't see it as my job. Not even as captain. It wasn't up to me to slag another player, and God knows I played with enough who weren't good enough."

In 1967 Moore did go to see Greenwood about the team. He argued that the team needed more steel in defence. Moore suggested that the club should sign Maurice Setters: "I begged Ron to sign Maurice. He was tough and could play a bit and we needed to be harder at the back." Greenwood refused claiming that he was "too much of a rebel". Instead, he bought John Cushley from Celtic. Greenwood told Moore, "A nice boy. Been to college."

Cushley was also considered to be a hard player: "Ron knew in his heart that we needed someone to do some kicking... Ron tried to close his eyes to it. In John Cushley he was buying a compromise which satisfied his conscience. A nice lad who could get stuck in... He couldn't expect everyone to be like me and win by intelligence." However, soon after joining West Ham, Greenwood told Cushley after one game: "John, I've bought you to be tough but sometimes you've got to take it easy." Cushley told Moore: "I'm playing it too hard. The manager doesn't like me."

Bobby Moore argues that the same thing happened when Greenwood bought Alan Stephenson from Crystal Palace. Moore heard Greenwood saying to Stephenson: "Alan, you can't get stuck in like that all the time. Sometimes you've got to read it, hold off, use your brain." Moore commented that "Ron was looking for perfection, but it was another centre-half spoiled."

Jeff Powell has argued that Greenwood was right to try to maintain this approach to football: "Those principles guided Greenwood through his coaching and management and won him the respect and admiration of hundreds of people deeply involved in the game. The flowing, open football which Greenwood's beliefs demanded of West Ham also earned him the gratitude of tens of thousands of football-loving spectators who relished watching his team. At times West Ham stood alone against the violence, brutality and intimidation which, in the late Sixties and early Seventies, threatened to bludgeon all the enchantment out of English football."

Geoff Hurst has conceded that some critics, including Brian Clough, "felt that a West Ham team with Hurst, Moore and Peters should have had greater success." Hurst claims that: "What few understand outside West Ham was that Greenwood cared more about football's finer values than about winning for winning's sake. He was a man of principle and he cared about the sport in a way that many would not understand in the modern game."

In 1967 Greenwood purchased Billy Bonds from Charlton Athletic. Three of the talented local young players, Trevor Brooking, Frank Lampard and Brian Dear had also become regulars in the first team. However, West Ham could only finish in 12th place in the First Division and were knocked out of the FA Cup in the 4th Round against Huddersfield Town. Greenwood persevered with these youngsters and the following season they finished in 8th place.

It looked like Greenwood was building a team that might recapture the success of the mid-60s. However, the 1969-70 season was a disaster, with West Ham only narrowly escaping relegation. They also lost in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup to Middlesbrough. Moore blamed Greenwood for not bringing in the right players. Geoff Hurst was more supportive of Greenwood: "He liked young players with open minds. He challenged them to learn. I took up the challenge them to learn. I took up the challenge. So did others. It was no coincidence that Bobby Moore, Martin Peters and I were among those who flourished in the environment he created at West Ham... Some, of course, ignored the opportunities he presented. There were other talented youngsters at the club, such as Johnny Sissons, Brian Dear and Trevor Dawkins who may have made it to the very top of the profession had they applied themselves more diligently."

Another problem was that Greenwood was unaware of the drinking culture at the club. Bobby Moore, Johnny Byrne, John Cushley, John Charles, Harry Redknapp and Brian Dear were all heavy drinkers. The situation was made even worse with the arrival of Jimmy Greaves in 1970. Trevor Brooking believed that before he left the club, Byrne caused serious problems for Greenwood. "Johnny Byrne was a delightful fellow whom it was impossible to dislike... but he was very undisciplined, particularly when it came to drinking."

Bobby Moore, was one of Byrne's drinking companions. He admitted that Byrne damaged his career with his excessive alcohol consumption. However, he felt his own drinking never had an impact on his performance on the pitch. "When I first started out as a young professional I wouldn't dream of taking a drink after Thursday." This changed when Byrne arrived at the club. Moore claimed alcohol helped him unwind but admitted that some West Ham players drank too much: "Ron Greenwood said he felt we were getting a team of nice lads together. I sat and wondered who the hell had ever won anything in football with eleven nice people. But in the next room John Cushley and John Charles, two of the nice boys, were falling off their beds drunk at three in the afternoon."

The problem was that as captain, Bobby Moore was setting a terrible example to the young players at the club. Geoff Hurst pointed out: "He (Greenwood) wanted players to accept responsibility for themselves. But there are risks involved... Players let him down. Some let him down spectacularly, none more so than Bobby Moore." Harry Redknapp admitted much later about the drinking habits of the players: "Did we have some nights out or what? There's a few that I couldn't repeat." After one bad performance the players were banned from going out while in a Stoke hotel. "We used to like going out in Stoke because there were a couple of good clubs, so some of us sneaked out the window at the back of the hotel, ran across the motorway and found some cabs. We had a good time and came back about four in the morning. Climbing over a fence to sneak back in, Bobby slipped and a spike went into his leg... When we got home we had to report back in the afternoon and Bobby turned up saying he had tripped in the garden and landed on a fence. But Bobby was out for three weeks before he landed on a spike while out on the booze in Stoke."

By 1970 Martin Peters had given up of winning major honours with West Ham and was transferred to Tottenham Hotspur. As Trevor Brooking pointed out in his autobiography: "When Martin left West Ham in March 1970, the fee of £200,000, which included a valuation of £54,000 for Jimmy Greaves, was a British transfer record. Tottenham gained an international midfield player who was still in his prime whereas West Ham obtained the services of a once-great player who no longer had a zest for the game."

Despite bringing in Jimmy Greaves and Tommy Taylor from Leyton Orient the club finished in 20th place in 1970-71 season. West Ham also lost 4-0 to Blackpool in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup. Bobby Moore later recalled: "We were totally outplayed... They were steamed up to have a go and West Ham were never in it. We were left once again with the feeling of utter disappointment at being beaten by a team from lower down the League. Our position in the First Division didn't mean much at the time and everything that season hinged on a good Cup run. But those results had become a regular occurrence."

On the Monday following the game, it was discovered that Bobby Moore, Jimmy Greaves and Brian Dear were out drinking the night before the game. Moore explained: "People will throw up their hands in horror at the thought of professional sportsman going for a drink the night before a game. But it was hardly a diabolical liberty. In fact we thought very little about it. We were in bed by one-thirty and got up about ten o'clock the next morning. That's a good night's sleep by anyone's standards.... The problem was not the drinking. It was the result."

When the story appeared in the newspapers, Moore went to see Ron Greenwood about what had happened: "I've come to apologise. We know we did wrong but it wasn't done with any ill intent. All we can do now is apologise." Greenwood replied: "You've hurt me. Let me down. I don't want to talk about it any more. It will be dealt with in due course." The punishment was a two week suspension for Moore, Greaves and Dear, plus a fine of a week's wages, in Moore's case £200.

This brought an end to the project started by Greenwood and Moore in 1961. Moore remained until leaving for Fulham half-way through the 1973-74 season. West Ham finished in 18th place and Greenwood was kicked upstairs. John Lyall took over as manager and despite winning the FA Cup in 1975, against a Fulham side led by Bobby Moore, the Hammers continued to do badly in the league for the rest of the 1970s.

There is no doubt that the Hammers experienced success playing the “West Ham Way” during the early period of Ron Greenwood’s reign. But in truth it was all over by 1965. Although his attacking policy brought plenty of goals, he never discovered a way of stopping the opposition from scoring. In the 1964-65 season West Ham scored 82 goals in 42 games. This was not far behind Manchester United, the winners of the league that year. However, the champion let in only 39 where as we suffered 71 goals against and therefore finished half-way down the table.

Geoff Hurst has suggested that: "The style of play he developed may not have been conducive to the nine-month slog of the league championship race, some of the football West Ham played in his time was the most attractive and memorable in the world. The Upton Park loyalists appreciated the way we played and, most tellingly, came back year after year because they knew they would see a good game of football. West Ham had a well-deserved reputation for high-quality attacking football and Ron was responsible for that."

Hurst maybe right about the quality of the football but is clearly wrong to suggest that it led to large attendances. During the 1964-65 season, which ended with West Ham won the FA Cup, they had an average home attendance of only 24,704. The following season, when the club won the European Cup Winners' Cup, it was only 24,826. Remember, this was a ground that at this time had a capacity of over 40,000.

A significant point is that at the beginning of both seasons the club had little difficulty in getting well over 30,000 for games. However, once it became clear that West Ham would not be challenging for league honours, the attendance figures went into rapid decline. Sam Allardyce is clearly right when he says that the fans want a winning team: “The West Ham way is about winning football matches and the enjoyment of winning. I’m in the game to play winning football and entertain the public, and that’s what I do.” He then added that to do that he needed “to instill a bit of discipline, magic and creativity." Greenwood was good at the “magic and creativity” but was a complete failure when it came to “discipline”. Let us hope that Sam Allardyce is the man who can bring all three virtues and maybe he will succeed, where Greenwood ultimately failed.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHmooreB2.htm

Malcolm Allison and Bobby Moore

2011-06-30T07:24:00.001+01:00

Malcolm Allison and Bobby Moore

Malcolm Allison was Bobby Moore's first coach. Allison later recalled: "He was very inquisitive. Even then I had spotted his awareness for the game, his ability to recognise things so easily. He had a clever memory and he was very bright. Allison told Moore: "You can read the game, you know what to do... Be in control of yourself. Take control of everything around you. Look big. Think big. Tell people what to do. Be in command." Noel Cantwell was one of the senior players at the club at the time: "Bobby didn't have exceptional ability as an apprentice, although he was always immaculate. He never said very much but was a great listener and a dedicated trainer, always very curious, inquisitive guy who wanted answers. He fastened on to Malcolm Allison and myself because we talked football all the time."

Eddie Lewis was a member of the West Ham squad during this period. He observed the help that Allison gave to Moore: "The man deserves a great deal of credit for bringing on the likes of Bobby Moore. As a kid, Bobby was slow, he couldn't head a ball and he couldn't tackle, but such was Malcolm's dedication he was able to help Bobby to become the player he was."

Allison told the manager, Ted Fenton: "I said that Bobby Moore was going to be a very big player indeed. Everything about his approach was right. He was ready to listen. You could see that already he was seeking perfection." However, Fenton was not convinced, nor was Moore, who at this time believed he was the least talented of the small group of school kids that had been invited to train with West Ham. Moore later recalled: "I was ordinary. I was lucky to be there. and every time I looked at one of the other lads I knew it. Every one of them had played for Essex or London, and at least been for trials with England Schoolboys. I had nothing. All around me were players with unbelievable ability. They were the same age as me and I was looking up at them and wishing I was that good, that skilful... "The first time I got a representative game I played for Essex over-15s because they needed a makeshift centre forward. I kept lumbering down the middle until our keeper hit a big up-and-under clearance which their keeper caught as I bundled him into the net... The referee was weak and gave the goal for Essex. Everyone knew it was a joke. Most of all, the lads who knew they were better than me."

On 16th September, 1957, Malcolm Allison was taken ill after a game against Sheffield United. Doctors discovered he was suffering from tuberculosis and he had to have a lung removed. Noel Cantwell became the new captain. That season West Ham United won the Second Division championship. The authors of The Essential History of West Ham United point out that Allison was the main reason the club had won promotion: "A footballing visionary who in six short years would revolutionise the club's archaic regime and transform training, coaching techniques and tactics to secure promotion to the first division in 1958".

Allison returned to the club and played several games for the reserves but with only one lung he struggled with his fitness. West Ham had an injury crisis for its home game against Manchester United on 8th September 1958. Malcolm Pyke, Bill Lansdowne and Andy Nelson were all injured. The manager, Ted Fenton asked Noel Cantwell who he should select for the game. Cantwell told Brian Belton, the author of Days of Iron: The Story of West Ham United in the Fifties (1999): "The game against Manchester United was on a Monday night. Fenton called me into the office asking who should play left-half, Allison or Moore. He didn't really want the burden of the decision."

Cantwell added in another interview for the book, Moore than a Legend (1997): "Malcolm came out of hospital and trained while Bobby was cruising along in the reserves. Malcolm was ready for the United game but the vacancy was for a left-half. Malcolm was more of a stopper and it needed someone more mobile. When Ted asked me who to pick, it was a hard decision. The sorcerer or his apprentice?" Cantwell eventually selected Moore over Allison.

Bobby Moore later talked about this decision to Jeff Powell for this book, Bobby Moore: The Life and Times of a Sporting Hero (1997): "The Allison connection could only be dredged up from the bottom of a long, long glass. Even then, Moore probed gingerly at the memory". Eventually Moore told him: " After three or four matches they were top of the First Division, due to play Manchester United on the Monday night, and they had run out of left halves. Billy Lansdowne, Andy Nelson, all of them were unfit. It's got to be me or Malcolm. I'd been a professional for two and a half months and Malcolm had taught me everything I knew. For all the money in the world I wanted to play. For all the money in the world I wanted Malcolm to play because he'd worked like a bastard for this one game in the First Division."

Moore added: "It somehow had to be that when I walked into the dressing room and found out I was playing, Malcolm was the first person I saw. I was embarrassed to look at him. He said Well done. I hope you do well. I knew he meant it but I knew how he felt. For a moment I wanted to push the shirt at him and say Go on, Malcolm. It's yours. Have your game. I can't stop you. Go on, Malcolm. My time will come. But he walked out and I thought maybe my time wouldn't come again. Maybe this would be my only chance. I thought: you've got to be lucky to get the chance, and when the chance comes you've got to be good enough to take it. I went out and played the way Malcolm had always told me to play."

Malcolm Musgrove was a member of the West Ham side that played against Manchester United: "He played in the game as though he'd been in the side for years. I was a lot older than Bobby at the time and I was still a novice, nervous as hell. At the kickoff Bobby stood in the left-half position just looking round. He had an unbelievable temperament. Lots of players have ability, but they haven't got the temperament to make them go even further, as far as they might want to go - Bobby had that temperament."

Moore did a good job marking Ernie Taylor and West Ham won the game 3-2. After the game Malcolm Allison stormed into the dressing-room and confronted Noel Cantwell about the advice he had given Ted Fenton. Cantwell later commented: "How he got to know I had influenced Ted's decision for Bobby to play, I'll never know. I didn't say any more. It was an embarrassing position for me and it soured the night, although I had answered Ted's question with the right choice for the particular match. Later, Malcolm admitted I was right to choose Bobby."

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHmooreB2.htm

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHallisonM.htm

Winston Reid, Jordan Spence and Mathew Fry

2011-02-13T12:27:00.001Z

Jamie O’Hara gave an interesting interview to the Guardian about the problems of young players given their chance at premier league clubs. He was complaining about how he was not given a real opportunity at Spurs. He had joined the club as a teenager and was a star of the youth team. He argues that it does not matter how well you perform at this level because manager’s give preference to young players they buy. O’Hara rightly argues that managers do that as they need to justify the money they have spent on bringing players in. If they buy them they feel they have to play them, otherwise fans will question their judgment concerning young talent.

I thought about this interview while watching Winston Reid’s appalling performance against WBA yesterday. Reid was purchased by Avram Grant from Midtjylland in the Denmark league in August 2010. Reid (22) had lived in Denmark since a kid but when he realized he was not going to make the Danish team he offered to play for New Zealand, where the standards are much lower. In fact, New Zealand’s manager, Ricki Herbert, put him in his team without seeing him play. Apparently, Grant was impressed with Reid performance in the World Cup game against Slovakia (his goal secured a draw and gave New Zealand's first ever point in a World Cup finals match).

It has been clear that even Grant now realizes Reid is a very limited player and only played him yesterday because of injuries to Matthew Upson, James Tomkins and Danny Gabbidon. However, Grant also has two very talented central defenders at the club. Jordan Spence (20) has captained the English team at every level he has played (U16, U17, U18, U19). He also has had two successful loan periods at Leyton Orient and Scunthorpe United. Mathew Fry is also 20 years old and is currently on loan at Charlton Athletic. Does Grant prefer Reid to Spence because he is trying to develop a reputation for being a good judge of a player? If so, it is not working.

Carlton Cole’s interview after the game was interesting. He credited the speech given by Scott Parker at half-time for explaining the team’s dramatic recovery. He failed to mention the role played by Grant in the 3-3 draw. This is not the first time that Cole has given interviews that have criticized Grant and I suspect it will result in him being dropped for the game against Burnley.

Martin O'Neill: Manager of West Ham

2011-01-15T09:24:00.000Z

I believe Martin O'Neill will become manager of West Ham over the next few days. I know his friends have been telling the press that he is not interested in the job. On Thursday night Paddy Power had him at 20-1 to become the next manager. Last night so much money was taken on his appointment he was at 2-1. Clearly, the negotiators and their selected friends are making some holiday money.

Hérita N'Kongolo Ilunga

2011-01-01T12:27:00.002Z

According to Wikipedia, Hérita N'Kongolo Ilunga was born in Kinshasa on 25th February 1982. I wonder if the Congo record births of its citizens? Rumour has it he is really 38 rather than 28 years old. I must say, that since he signed his four year contract with West Ham in April 2009 he looks and plays like someone at the very end of their career. One wag has suggested he should be carbon dated? Is it possible to work out accurately how old someone is?

Malcolm Allison (1927-2010)

2010-11-02T18:24:00.000Z

You can find my tribute to Malcolm Allison here:

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHallisonM.htm

West Ham v Spurs

2010-09-28T08:03:00.001+01:00

The game against Spurs on Saturday was one of West Ham best performances over the last few years. Definitely better than anything Zola ever achieved. The first signs of change took place after West Ham gave Chelsea a two-goal lead. Although there was no coming back, they showed some good battling qualities. The same was true against Stoke. They are also a team with a fair amount of skill. This combination will get West Ham results against the very best. They were even more impressive against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in the Carling Cup. This was a competition that Sunderland desperately wanted to win and therefore played their first-team whereas Avram Grant brought in several reserves.

I watched the Spurs game live via the internet. The Upton Park crowd really appreciated this new combination of strength and skill. There does not seem a weak link in the team, (except for maybe Boa Morte). We also have Thomas Hitzlsperger to come into the team. All his new signings look like good acquisitions. Both Pablo Barrera and Victor Obinna look to be players with an excellent future.

Kieron Dyer seems to have recaptured the form he showed that made him an England international. Although he went off suffering from “dizziness” at half-time. I reckon that he was really suffering from shock after surviving as long as 45 minutes without injury.

Allesandro Diamanti

2010-08-27T07:30:00.002+01:00

Allesandro Diamanti has been sold to Serie A side Brescia for a fee of approximately £1.8m.
Another financial disaster as the Italian came from Livorno for £6m. The transfer therefore represents a loss of over £4m on the player, who spent only one year at the Boleyn. I cannot recall a club in the premiership making so many mistakes in such a short-time in the transfer market.

Victor Obinna

2010-08-26T10:38:00.001+01:00

West Ham are expected to complete the signing of Inter Milan winger Victor Obinna, 23, on a free transfer on Thursday.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5taqDmlkGMk

Avram Grant in Denial

2010-08-24T15:23:00.000+01:00

Another very flawed performance on Saturday by West Ham against Bolton. Grant seems to have Zola's problem of not understanding the English language. After the game he said: "We played like a team at the top. I am very happy with the performance. I am very disappointed with the result." If he does not realise we have serious problems in defence he is in denial. A person in denial does not make a very good football manager.

West Ham: 2010-2011

2010-08-20T17:08:00.001+01:00

I only saw the highlights of the Aston Villa game but they were indeed poor. However, I do think that Grant is better than Zola and think we will finish mid-table.

Rob Green: Confidence is unstandably low but think he will come back.

Winston Reid: Thought he was very good in the World Cup. However, he needs to be played in his right position as centre-half.

Danny Gabbidon: Needs to retire.

James Tomkins: Should go out on loan for a year.

Kieron Dyer: It is just a matter of time before he is injured again.

Scott Parker: Our best player but should be sold if the offer is over £10m.

Carlton Cole: With the right service and no injuries this will be his season. I hope they don't sell him.

Jack Collison: Very promising. I hope the injury does not have long-term condequences.

Thomas Hitzlsperger: Looks a class act and a great free transfer. Could be the buy of the season.
Pablo Barrera: Have not seen enough of him to comment.

Luis Boa Morte: Amazed that he was given a new contract. Must have accepted a major pay-cut.

Radoslav Kovac: Moderate. I hope they manage to sell him.

Matthew Upson: I thought his form was poor last season. He had such a poor World Cup that we will not be able to sell him.

Mark Noble: Needs to play in the centre of midfield. A good replacement for Parker.

Benni McCarthy: He is probably the main reason that Zola got the sack. He told Sullivan and Gold that he had to have him. Why did Zola not check out his fitness?

Jonathan Spector: Not good enough for the premiership.

Freddie Sears: Was unimpressive on loan with Crystal Palace. I expect he will go out on loan again.

Julien Faubert: Puts in the odd good cross but will never be good enough at full-back.

Valon Behrami: Like his energy and effort but clearly wants away.

Manuel Da Costa: Promising. Should play instead of Tomkins.

Herita Ilunga: He was good when on loan but now he does not look interested since he was signed. Hopefully, he will eventually return to top form.

Frank Nouble: Very raw. Needs to go out on loan. He might be another Cole in two or three years.

Junior Stanislas: He must do well in training but I have yet to be convinced he can do it in games.

Zavon Hines: This is his second serious knee injury in his short career. Have grave doubts about whether he can come back again. It is a shame as I thought he had great potential.

Jordan Spence: He is highly rated and might breakthrough this year.

Frederic Piquionne: Strange signing. Another Heskey but I am not sure we have the right people to play with him. Surely we cannot afford to have another striker who does not score goals.

Alessandro Diamanti: A class player. However, he does not work hard enough to be a success in the premiership.

Fabio Daprela: Has a lot of potential. In my opinion he should be given a run in the first-team.

Benni McCarthy

2010-08-13T19:45:00.001+01:00

The weight loss regime will continue for five weeks as the Premier League club have finally lost patience with the South African striker, who has struggled for fitness since he moved to Upton Park.

Club chairman David Sullivan told Telegraph Sport: "Benni has a rigorous weight loss programme and if he doesn't lose the weight we will be fining him. We are not being unrealistic. We've given him a target of losing a kilo – 2.2lb – a week. He has to lose five or six more kilos.

"He's training very hard so he must be eating or drinking something very wrong. Short of spending 24 hours a day with him, we have to assume that.

"With the amount of training he is doing his weight should be going down with a normal diet. We are not starving him. It's just don't eat ice cream, don't eat cakes, don't drink wine. Who knows when they go home what they do.

"They say he's lost five kilos but he still looks heavy to me. But we are very optimistic. I can fine him. I can't be unrealistic and say half a stone a week but a kilo a week is a realistic target for a man of his size.

"It's like a jockey turning up overweight. He can't ride a horse can he, and no one is going to pay him? I think we are fully within our rights to say 'you are not honouring your side of the contract'. You expect him to turn up in a state to be a footballer."

McCarthy, 32, is the club's fourth-highest earner and has two years left on his contract having arrived from Blackburn Rovers in January for £2.2 million. His weight problems meant he was left out of South Africa's World Cup squad. It remains to be seen whether he survives the overhaul of the squad Sullivan and new manager Avram Grant are carrying out this summer.

"In a perfect world I would love to have been able to throw every player out, get all the money that was paid for their transfers in a pot and start again," Sullivan said. "I look at some of the money the club has paid for some players and it does not make sense."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/west-ham/7941574/West-Ham-to-fine-Benni-McCarthy-if-striker-does-not-lose-weight.html

Felipe Caicedo

2010-08-13T07:33:00.002+01:00

According to several newspapers, the 21-year-old Manchester City striker Felipe Caicedo is heading to West Ham on a season-long loan, having fallen out of favour under Roberto Mancini. Caicedo, an Ecuadorian, signed when Sven-Goran Eriksson was in charge in 2008. I am surprised that Grant seems to think that he needs another striker. I hope that this does not mean he plans to sell Carlton Cole, who in my opinion is just coming to his prime.

Scott Parker

2010-08-13T07:31:00.000+01:00

Scott Parker is close to signing an improved deal at West Ham so ending speculation that he could move away from Upton Park. David Sullivan told the Evening Standard: "I have promised the fans I will not let Scott Parker go and I will not waver from that. If Scott came to me, said he wanted to move and was prepared to put in a transfer request, I would say, 'I'm terribly sorry, Scott, but I've made a promise to the fans'. I would remind him that it is too late to find a replacement now and ask him for one more year's commitment."

Parker is expected to sign a new five-year deal within the next week. The club will offer the 29-year-old improved terms that will reportedly be worth up to £20m.

Miralem Sulejmani

2010-08-12T18:59:00.000+01:00

West Ham United have been forced to abandon their bid for Ajax's Miralem Sulejmani after he failed to secure a work permit. The Hammers had agreed a deal with the Dutch club to sign Sulejmani, who is Ajax's record signing after they paid Heerenveen more than £13million for his services just two years ago.

However, Sulejmani - a Serbian international - has just eight caps to his name and they have been spread over two years, meaning he did not automatically qualify for a work permit under Premier League criteria.

West Ham appealed the decision, but an independent football panel ruled against Avram Grant's side, who had been hoping to include Sulejmani in their squad ahead of their opening game at Aston Villa this weekend.

Thomas Hitzlsperger

2010-08-12T18:57:00.001+01:00

Thomas Hitzlsperger has picked up a thigh injury, and is now doubtful for his team's season opener. The 28-year-old was injured during Germany's 2-2 draw with Denmark yesterday, and had to be withdrawn after 66 minutes. "I hope it is not that bad because I really want to play at the start of the season," he told reporters. He will undergo medical tests later today, but remains in a fitness race ahead of Saturday's Premier League clash with Aston Villa.

Carlton Cole

2010-08-03T15:39:00.001+01:00

After all the rumours it seems that Carlton Cole will stay at West Ham. Avram Grant is adamant that Cole will not be sold. Yesterday he said: "The new 4-3-3 system has helped him. We also have a team that knows how to play football, so they can pass to him at the right time."

Freddie Sears

2010-08-02T16:58:00.002+01:00

Freddie Sears scored four goals in a game for the reserves last week. Will it be his season this year?

Carlon Cole is also in good form with three goals in four games. I fully expect him to be selected in England's game against Hungary. I think he could create a great partnership with Rooney. Like Heskey he is an unselfish striker which will make things easy for Rooney. Unlike Heskey he also scores goals.

Frank Nouble

2010-07-21T15:08:00.002+01:00

You can see Frank Nouble's two goals for England Under-19s, who beat Austria 3-2 in the European Under-19 Championships at the link below. The 18-year-old Nouble, showed great finishing by scoring both goals from difficult angles. The match against Holland today can be seen on Eurosport at 5.pm

http://www.imscouting.com/global-news-article/West-Hams-Frank-Nouble-scores-twice-for-England-Video/8879/

Len Blavatnik

2010-07-12T08:50:00.002+01:00

It is claimed Russian billionaire Len Blavatnik is poised to make a £30m offer to buy a 35% stake in West Ham. If this goes ahead it is likely that West Ham might have the money to buy Loïc Rémy, a promising young player who made waves at Nice last year. It is even possible that they will have enough money to buy Brazilian wonderkid Neymar, the 18-year-old Santos forward who has been called the next Pele. On the other hand, these might just me false rumours that intend to increase season-ticket sales.

Advertising

2010-06-13T06:41:00.000+01:00

Tony Carr: MBE

2010-06-13T06:30:00.001+01:00

Hammers academy chief Tony Carr was awarded an MBE yesterday for services to football.
The club chairman, David Gold, commented: "I can't tell you how thrilled I am. It is so rare that people working quietly in the background get honoured in football. Here is a proper gentleman of football who has done an amazing job over nearly 40 years and rightly he has been honoured. It is richly deserved. The mere fact that we could win the World Cup with a third of the squad having come through the Academy under him says everything about the work he has done for football in this country."

Gianfranco Zola's Record

2010-05-13T16:20:00.001+01:00

Now he has been sacked I thought it might be worth posting the revised win stats.

Billy Bonds (43.61) 1990–1994
Charlie Paynter (41.25) 1932–1950
Alan Pardew (41.10) 2003–2006
Ted Fenton (39.75) 1950–1961
Alan Curbishley (39.44) 2006–2008
John Lyall (39.12) 1974–1989
Syd King (38.87) 1901–1932
Harry Redknapp (37.00) 1994–2001
Lou Macari (36.84) 1989–1990
Ron Greenwood (35.07) 1961–1974
Glenn Roeder (31.40) 2001–2003
Gianfranco Zola (28.75) 2008–2010

West Ham Managers

2010-03-22T08:15:00.000Z

I thought it might be worth looking at Zola's record as manager of West Ham. His win record in comparison with other recent managers since the formation of the club:

Billy Bonds (43.61) 1990–1994
Charlie Paynter (41.25) 1932–1950
Alan Pardew (41.10) 2003–2006
Ted Fenton (39.75) 1950–1961
Alan Curbishley (39.44) 2006–2008
John Lyall (39.12) 1974–1989
Syd King (38.87) 1901–1932
Harry Redknapp (37.00) 1994–2001
Lou Macari (36.84) 1989–1990
Ron Greenwood (35.07) 1961–1974
Glenn Roeder (31.40) 2001–2003
Gianfranco Zola (29.17) 2008–

It is true that some of the best performing managers spent most of their time in the lower leagues. However, even if you only look at performances in the Premier League, Zola (29.17) is still bottom and the man he replaced, Alan Curbishley, is top (39.44).

Who was the Mole?

2010-02-23T07:27:00.000Z

From Tribal Football:

Portsmouth goalkeeper David James has revealed how a mole inside the West Ham United dressing room influenced their relegation.

Discussing football's relationship with the media in his column for the Observer, James revealed: "At West Ham, the year we went down, we had a mole who kept shooting his mouth off to the press. It put everyone on edge, looking round the changing room, trying to figure out who it was.
"One afternoon we all sat together on the training field and one of the senior players stood up and made a lengthy speech about how we should root out the mole and expose him. It was moving stuff. Little did we know that he was the mole. It still makes me chuckle thinking about what a good performance he put on."

Dean Ashton

2010-02-06T17:26:00.001Z

Dean Ashton interview.

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11685_5919004,00.html

David Gold and David Sullivan

2010-01-19T10:56:00.000Z

It has just been announced that David Gold and David Sullivan have taken control of 50 per cent of West Ham. Sullivan has just given an interview on Sky Sports News where he has stated that he will not sack Zola as manager (one of the rumours being spread via the media over the weekend).

It is good to have two, long-term West Ham fans in charge of the club. However, they clearly do not have the funds to turn us into a top four club. In his interview Sullivan made it clear that he would welcome other wealthy West Ham fans to buy the other 50%. It has been suggested that Tony Fernandes, might be interested in joining Gold and Sullivan in the project. If that happens, we could well be a force to be reckoned with in the future.

Intermarket to Buy West Ham?

2009-12-30T09:50:00.002Z

Daily Telegraph

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/6907501/London-company-to-bid-for-West-Ham.html

David Byrne, Intermarket’s company secretary and one of its two founding directors, said an offer would be lodged at the beginning of next week. “We will be making a bid on Monday,” Byrne told The Daily Telegraph.

He added that he could not reveal any details of the offer – or his backers – as Intermarket had signed a non-disclosure agreement with Rothschild Bank, which has been engaged by West Ham’s owners, CB Holding, to canvas potential investors.

Byrne said that he expected to find out quickly whether Intermarket’s bid was acceptable to CB Holding, whose main shareholder is the Icelandic bank, Straumur.

It is understood that Intermarket values the club at around £100million. However, that includes estimating the debts at £48million — West Ham are adamant they are closer to £38million — and factoring in the costs of outstanding settlements to Sheffield United because of the Carlos Tévez affair and to former manager Alan Curbishley. In essence this means that only around £30million would go to Straumur and the other creditors.

A bid for West Ham was submitted before Christmas by former Birmingham City co-owner David Sullivan which amounted to £46million for a 50 per cent controlling stake. Under the Sullivan plan money would be committed to debt repayment and to sign new players in return for shares, but no cash would go to CB Holding, which had been hoping for an eventual return of around £50million.

Straumur insists that it is under no pressure to sell. However, it has not ruled out doing a deal with either party, or other potential bidders, though it has been annoyed by the tactics used, by the Sullivan bid in particular, to portray the club as being in meltdown and needing to sell all its star players in January.

West Ham will have to sell one of their big-name players to provide the funds for manager Gianfranco Zola to strengthen the squad in the transfer window. The most likely candidate is Matthew Upson who is 30, has 18 months left on his contract and is refusing to sign a new deal.
Upson is also keen to leave to strengthen his hopes of making England’s World Cup squad and is believed to be available for around £12million.

CB Holding has pledged that any funds raised in January through transfers will be made available to Zola in full.

Harry Rednapp and Andriy Shevchenko

2009-11-19T18:13:00.000Z

Harry Redknapp has revealed how he missed out on signing Andriy Shevchenko as West Ham United manager. According to a report in today's Guardian, Redknapp admits he could've signed the former AC Milan and Chelsea striker. "I was at West Ham and Frank Lampard Snr and I were approached by these two villains who said they were doing some business in the Ukraine, and we were so scared of them we agreed to have a look at a couple of these kids. One of them we played against Barnet Reserves and he scored the winner. They said they wanted a million quid for him, and Frank said it was too much - well I’m blaming Frank — and we let him go. His name was Andriy Shevchenko!"

Advertising

2009-11-11T18:01:00.001Z

Intermarket and West Ham United

2009-11-11T17:57:00.000Z

David Byrne, Intermarket's company secretary, and one of its two founding directors claimed on Tuesday that it had signed a non-disclosure agreement with Rothschilds. Byrne said: "Some people were dismissing us as not being serious bidders but we are. We have satisfied them [Rothschilds] that we have proof of funds."

When Intermarket went public with its interest in West Ham several weeks ago, the claim was met with scepticism by sources at CB Holdings, the company that controls the club. They questioned Intermarket's intentions and made it clear that West Ham will not be sold cheaply.

It is understood that Intermarket value the club at £100 million – claiming that includes taking on debts that they estimate at £48 million and also the costs of the Carlos Tévez affair.

It means that the group of creditors who own West Ham would receive just over £30 million, which is far less than they are hoping to recoup and would be unacceptable.

Byrne said that the investors he represents will have the financial backing to improve the club's prospects in the transfer market and improve the squad, backing manager Gianfranco Zola.

"We have definitely got the interested parties with the money needed to do what we need to do and get in some funding to stop West Ham having to sell players and make sure they can strengthen to be able to avoid relegation," he said.

There has also been annoyance that Intermarket have not made public where their proposed funding is coming from but Byrne claimed on Tuesday that the information had now been passed on to Rothschilds.

He added that he represented "a group of investors from institutional level down to high net-worth individuals".

Byrne said: "We are West Ham supporters and are deadly serious and we believe we have satisfied Rothschilds that we are serious. This has been portrayed as an American bid (because of the involvement of a US financier Jim Bowe) but that's not the case. The Intermarket Group is London based."

Signing an NDA does not mean that Intermarket have been granted permission to start due diligence and does not mean that the company has to prove it has funding. There are also, according to sources, other potential bidders and investors who have been appointed along with Standard Bank, and who are trying to access the club's books.

Byrne claimed that he expected to see "official figures" next week which will lay out West Ham's finances and added that Intermarket were keen to try and finalise a deal before a creditors meeting on Dec 11.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/westham/6540103/West-Ham-United-takeover-bid-is-for-real-insist-Intermarket.html

Advertising

2009-11-04T18:14:00.001Z

West Ham v Bournemouth (1929)

2009-10-26T18:12:00.001Z

You can watch film of the 1929 fifth round FA tie between West Ham v Bournemouth at Dean Court (attendance 11,346). The game resulted in a 1-1 draw. Tommy Yews got the goal for the Hammers. He also got one of the goals in the 3-1 victory at Upton Park (attendance 30,217).

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=48808

Unfortunately, West Ham was knocked out in the next round by Portsmouth. Jim Barrett got both goals in the 3-2 defeat.

Gianluca Nani

2009-10-06T08:30:00.002+01:00

News of the World

http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/sport/533001/THE-pound100million-takeover-of-West-Ham-by-David-Gold-and-David-Sullivan-is-back-on.html

Zola has been willing to embrace a new "project" to develop the club's best youngsters but his relationship with West Ham technical director Gianluca Nani has become strained.

Nani is in charge of transfers but Zola was bemused when the club sold Craig Bellamy for £14m to Manchester City last January.

West Ham then quickly shelled out a reported £9m for untried, Ugandan-born German Under-21 international Savio.

Despite a rave billing, Savio flopped and has since been involved in a swap deal with Fiorentina that has brought defender Manuel da Costa to the club in a deal that was worth around £3m.

Neither Zola nor assistant boss Steve Clarke particularly rate Da Costa and were upset that the club sold defender James Collins to Aston Villa for £5m.

That enabled Nani to bring in attacking midfielder Luis Jimenez on loan from Inter Milan and striker Alessandro Diamanti from Livorno.

Zola has not been keen on confrontation but I understand Clarke has had several heated debates with Nani over the logic behind some of the signings.

Zola is cutting an increasingly frustrated figure on the sidelines at Hammers matches these days.
And after Monday's 3-1 defeat at Manchester City, which locked the Hammers into the bottom three with just four points from six games, Zola read the riot act to his players.

He regards today's clash against fellow strugglers Fulham as a match that could shape the club's season.

Zola said: "Preparing for this game is like a cup final for us. At Manchester City on Monday, it was the worst we have played all season. We have to improve."

The manager then vowed to act with a firmer fist. He added: "I am going to be more focused and demanding of the players. I am going to be on top of it until I get it right."

Skipper Matthew Upson is set to return today following a calf injury. Clarke said: "You need all your experienced players. Matthew has been good for us since Gianfranco and myself came to the club."

David Gold and David Sullivan

2009-10-05T17:35:00.000+01:00

From the News of the World:

The £100million takeover of West Ham by David Gold and David Sullivan is back on.

Now the sale of Birmingham City to Chinese tycoon Carson Yeung has been rubber-stamped, Gold and Sullivan have the funds to buy the Hammers.

But the pair will only make a formal move if the Icelandic bankers who own the London club are realistic about the selling price.

The Essex-based pair backed off last month when it was indicated that a £120m cash deal was wanted.

At the time, West Ham's owners were hopeful of creating an auction but no other firm bidders emerged.

The asking price has now dropped to £100m and I understand that takes into account about £50m of debt.

So Gold and Sullivan, who sold Birmingham for £80m, could land the Hammers for in the region of £50m in equity.

CB Holdings, an off-shoot of Straumur - which took over the club after the collapse of another bank, Landsbanki - were holding out for an economic upturnin the hope of increasing the price.

But key creditors in Iceland are now pushing to have their debts settled.

Gold and Sullivan have been biding their time but the pair are now poised to make their move and then radically overhaul the Hammers.

http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/sport/533001/THE-pound100million-takeover-of-West-Ham-by-David-Gold-and-David-Sullivan-is-back-on.html

FIFA

2009-09-22T15:06:00.000+01:00

Zavon Hines: Part 2

2009-09-20T13:13:00.000+01:00

I wrote on my West Ham blog on 2nd August, 2009:

"West Ham's pre-season games have been disappointing so far. The one bright spark is Zavon Hines. Although he only played the last ten minutes in the two games in China, he looked very lively and was impressed by the way he took his goal. (You need to see it in slow motion to realise just how good it was.)... The way Hines moves reminds me of Ian Wright. He seems a confident lad, a vital ingredient if you are going to be a top striker. It would not surprise me if Hines is our breakthrough player this season."

I was very impressed with the way he played yesterday. The reason he caused the Liverpool defence so many problems was his electric acceleration. One can understand why Jamie Carragher thought he had time to clear the ball in the 2nd minute that led to Hines hitting the post. As Stanley Matthews used to say, it is the speed that you have over the first 10 yards that really causes defenders problems. This is why he was fouled so much and Martin Skrtel should have been sent off for his last ditch foul on Hines as he raced through the middle.

Hines’s first touch is very good but he needs to improve his passing and tackling. However, he will not be truly effective until he plays in a 4-4-2 system. His talents will be wasted if has to stay on the wing defending his own full-back.

Guillermo Franco

2009-09-12T08:30:00.002+01:00

Guillermo Franco claims he has signed for West Ham. He did not score for Villarreal in 18 games last season. However, he did score four goals for Mexico in 2009.

Here is the latest goal against Costa Rica:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipMBLCI0rGs

Message from Denmark

2009-09-11T15:37:00.000+01:00

Zavon Hines Update

2009-09-09T14:48:00.002+01:00

On 2nd August 2009 I wrote the following:

West Ham's pre-season games have been disappointing so far. The one bright spark is Zavon Hines. Although he only played the last ten minutes in the two games in China, he looked very lively and was impressed by the way he took his goal. (You need to see it in slow motion to realise just how good it was.)

The Hammers handed him his debut at the start of the 2008/09 season as a 27th minute replacement for Valon Bahrami in a Carling Cup tie at home to Macclesfield. Hines scored the third goal in a 4-1 extra-time win.

Hines signed on loan for Coventry City on 27 March 2008. He scored his first goal in his second game for Coventry City on 1 April 2008 in a 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday. According to the BBC: "Substitute Zavon Hines looked to have snatched victory for the Sky Blues with his sublime left-foot volley late on."

Hines missed much of the 2008–09 season with a knee injury but signed a new contract in March 2009, keeping him at the club until summer 2010.

Hines was born in Jamaica and grew up in the East End of London. On 10 February 2009 Hines was called into the Jamaica team for their friendly international against Nigeria on 11 February 2009. However, he remained on the bench.

The way Hines moves reminds me of Ian Wright. He seems a confident lad, a vital ingredient if you are going to be a top striker. It would not surprise me if Hines is our breakthrough player this season.

Last night he scored a hat-trick against Birmingham City reserves. Hopefully he will be in the first-team on Saturday against Wigan.

Why West Ham fans sing “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles”

2009-09-05T12:15:00.000+01:00

In the Spring 2005 edition of “Soccer History”, John Northcutt published an article on why West Ham fans sing “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles”. He points out that the song was written in 1919 and became a popular hit in the UK in the early 1920s. At the time it was fairly common for football crowds to sing popular songs together. At Upton Park the club employed the Beckton Gas Works Band to play before the game started. One of the songs they played was “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles”. However, the mystery remains, why did the Upton Park crowd adopt the song as its anthem?

John Northcutt spends sometime discussing the most popular theory of why this happened. It is a fascinating idea as it involves a famous painting, a soap advert and a young West Ham player named Will Murray.

In 1886 Sir John Everett Millais, one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, painted a portrait of his five-year old grandson watching a soap bubble he had blown through a clay pipe (erroneously, Northcutt claims it was painted in 1829). The painting caused a sensation as it was completely different from his previous work. It was first exhibited under the title A Child's World in Grosvenor Gallery in London, and was acquired by Sir William Ingram of the Illustrated London News. The painting was reproduced and presented in the magazine as a colour plate, where it was seen by Thomas J. Barratt, managing director of A&F Pears. Barratt purchased the original painting from Ingram for £2,200 which gave him exclusive copyright on the picture. Millais' permission was sought in order to alter the picture by the addition of a bar of Pears Soap, so that it could be used for the purposes of advertising. The painting/advert now became known as “Bubbles”.

Northcutt then goes on to argue that as the Pears Soap Works was based in Canning Town, there would have been a lot of Bubbles posters around the ground at the time the song was popular. Therefore, the fans would therefore have associated the song and the poster together. There are several things wrong with this argument. First of all, Pears was a national company and their posters would be no more likely to have been around the Upton Park ground at that time than any other stadium. More importantly, Pears were no longer using the Millais’ Bubbles painting in the 1920s.

The next stage of the story is even more unconvincing. Northcutt argues: “The West Ham Boys team often played their home games at Upton Park in front of huge crowds and one of the team, Will Murray, having fair curly hair resembled the boy in the advert. He soon gained the nickname Bubbles Murray and whenever he played the crowd would sing I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles, this being the popular song of the day.”

Wikipedia has a slightly different version of this story. It claims that Murray was given the nickname “Bubbles” by his headmaster Cornelius Beal. It goes on to argue that Murray “had an almost uncanny resemblance to the boy in the famous Bubbles painting by Millais used in a Pears soap commercial of the time.”

There is a photograph in existence of Murray in 1921. He looks nothing like the Bubbles painting. Nor could he, as the painting shows a five year old boy, not a teenager. He has dark rather than fair hair. It is fairly curly, but nothing like the original painting or indeed the Pears adverts that were in existence in the early 1920s.

The other important point is that the record books show that Will Murray never played for West Ham first team. His early promise was not fulfilled. However, is it really credible that the Upton Park fans would sing a song about a player who never made it into the first-team?

The club’s historian, John Helliar, added to the story when he wrote an article (17th October, 2009) about the song on the West Ham United’s official website. He follows the claim made by John Northcutt (not referenced) that “Billy Bubbles Murray, so-called because of his distinct and almost uncanny resemblance to the boy in the famous painting by Millais”. He goes on to add some more information on the story. Helliar quotes a letter from a former member of the Beckton Gas Works Band, to the “Pensioners’ Bulletin” in 1983. He recalls that the band “were engaged by the West Ham United Football Club to play for 20 minutes before the kick-off and 10 minutes at the interval.” He added: “We played Bubbles and it very quickly became a favourite with the crowd.” The problem is that the man does not give a date for these performances. It could have been in the early 1920s that would give some support to the story about Murray. However, it could also have been in the 1930s when the promising schoolboy footballer was no longer a topic of conversation at Upton Park.

John Helliar does at least expose the myth that “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles” was sung by West Ham fans before the start of the 1923 Cup Final at Wembley. His research shows that the song adopted at that match was “Till We Meet Again.”

Despite the obvious flaws in the Will Bubbles Murray story it became the official explanation when it featured on BBC television last year. As is often the case with television, the story was told as fact rather than speculation.

John Northcutt, in his original article in “Soccer History”, made it clear that the story might not be true. To emphasise this he put forward two alternative theories. The first involves a FA Cup tie against Swansea Town in 1922. Unlike West Ham historians, Swansea Town have carried out research to show that “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles” was sung at the Vetch Field. He quotes from the Sporting News (8th January, 1921) that the Swansea crowd sung the song before a FA Cup tie against Bury. “Then came the ever popular Bubbles, and the crowd simply yelled. The spectators on the main bank took their cue from the Mumbles end, and there was one tremendous sway, together with the singing, on the part of about 25,000.”

Northcutt speculates that the West Ham crowd might have developed this tradition after hearing the Welsh fans singing this song in the FA cup game played against Swansea in 1921. Well, this story has been dashed in an article that appears in the current edition of Soccer History. Ian Nannestad has studied newspaper reports of the game and according to the Football Post “there was no singing” before the game.

This raises the issue of why West Ham historians such as John Northcutt and John Helliar have not been able to find newspaper reports in the 1920s and 1930s that remark on the fans singing “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles” at Upton Park. If they had found such reports, they would surely have used them in their articles.

Northcutt also includes a third explanation for the singing of Bubbles. He points out that West Ham historian, Brian Belton, has argued that Bubbles was sung as crowds gathered during air raids in shelters and underground stations in the East End during the Second World War. This led to a rise in communal singing by the general public to raise morale. According to Belton, the first time the song was reported to be sung by West Ham fans was during the 1940 League War Cup Final at Wembley. This was a game that the Irons won and maybe the fans took it as a good luck omen. Anyway, that appears to me to be the most logical reason why the fans sing “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles” at Upton Park.

History Repeating Itself

2009-09-05T07:38:00.001+01:00

The philosopher George Santayana once said: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” However, as Aldous Huxley has pointed out: “That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons that history has to teach.”

This is unfortunately true of West Ham. Ever since Arnold Hills decided in 1900 that he was no longer in a position to finance the club he had formed when managing director of the Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding Company, the club has experienced one financial crisis after another. The solution to this problem has been to sell our best players. For example, in 1901, the club sold their star player, Charlie Dove, to bitter rivals, Millwall.

This failed to solve the problem and the directors of West Ham were seriously concerned about the financial situation of the club at the beginning of the 1903-04 season. It had lost £900 in the past two seasons and had an overdraft of £770 and assets of less than £200. The main problem was a fall in season ticket sales (not surprising given their transfer policy). The club was forced to sell to sell their best players. This included Charlie Satterthwaite, who had scored 18 of West Ham's 38 goals that season.

The following season, Syd King, once again had to sell his leading scorer, Billy Grassam, to Manchester United. These sales meant that West Ham could never reach their full potential. However, King was a genius at developing young players and so the club was able to survive.

The 1905 edition of Association Football included the following passage: "It is the proud boast of the West Ham club that they turn out more local players than any other team in the South. The district has been described as a hot-bed of football and it is so. The raw material is found on the marshlands and open spaces round about; and after a season or so, the finished player leaves the East End workshop to better himself, as most ambitious young men will do. In the ranks of other organizations many old West Ham boys have distinguished themselves."

Every time it looked like Syd King and his coach, Charlie Paynter, were beginning to build a successful team they were forced to sell their best players. A good example of this was Danny Shea. Born in Wapping, he was 21 years old and playing football for the Builders Arms pub team in Stratford when he was discovered by Paynter, in 1908.

Shea, a skillful inside-forward, was an immediate success. In his first season in the Southern League he ended up as top scorer with 20 goals. This was followed by 31 (1909-10), 28 (1910-11) and 24 (1911-12). All told he had scored 103 goals in a 166 games. Shea was described as "an artful schemer and delicate dribbler who had the knack of wheeling suddenly when near goal and unleashing a thunderbolt shot."

Blackburn Rovers, who had won the First Division of the Football League title in the 1911-12 season. They struggled for goals the following season and decided to pay a British record transfer fee of £2,000 for Shea. West Ham fans were devastated.

In the 1913-14 season Blackburn once again won the league title. Danny Shea was in great form scoring 27 goals. He also went onto play for England. Everton’s Patsy Gallagher, described Shea as "one of the greatest ball artists who has ever played for England... his manipulation of the ball was bewildering."

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/BLACKBshea.htm

West Ham’s next outstanding talent was Syd Puddefoot. Born in Bow on 17th November 1894 he was educated at Park School in West Ham and played football for Limehouse Town. Puddefoot was signed by West Ham United manager, Syd King, after he saw him play for London Juniors against Surrey Juniors in 1912.

As John Northcutt and Roy Shoesmith point out in their book, West Ham United: An Illustrated History (1994): "The 19-year-old Syd Puddefoot arrived and he found the net on 13 occasions in his first 11 games... He proved he could find the net when opposed by a quality defence, scoring in both games of a replayed cup-tie against Liverpool."

Puddefoot established an FA Cup goal scoring record for the club on 10th January, 1914, when he scored five times in an 8-1 victory over Chesterfield. That season he scored 16 goals in 20 cup and league games.

West Ham United finished in 4th place of the Southern League in the 1914-15 season. Puddefoot was top scorer with 18 goals in 35 league games. This included a hat-trick against Exeter City on 2nd January 1915. The local newspaper reported that: "Some 14 minutes elapsed before Puddefoot, who completely outshone every other forward on the field, opened the scoring for his side and ten minutes later he was again successful in finding the net."

The outbreak of the First World War resulted in the disbandment of the Southern League in 1915. Puddefoot returned to league football in the 1919-20 season and he was once once again top scorer with 26 goals in 43 league and cup games. He continued in good form in the 1920-21 season with 29 goals in 38 league games.

Syd King and Charlie Paynter had managed to build a very good West Ham team that included Jimmy Ruffell, George Kay, Edward Hufton, Jack Tresadern, Vic Watson, Sid Bishop, Richard Leafe, Billy Brown and Jack Young. The team relied heavily on Puddefoot's goals and it was great shock to the fans when King sold him to Falkirk for the British record fee of £5,000 in February 1925.

As the authors of the The Essential History of West Ham United (2000) pointed out that his departure "nearly caused a riot among Hammers fans". However, the club blamed Puddefoot in a statement issued after his transfer: "The departure of Syd Puddefoot came as no surprise to those intimately connected with him. It is an old saying that everyone has one chance in life to improve themselves and Syd Puddefoot is doing the right thing for himself in studying his future. We understand that he will be branching out in commercial circles in Falkirk and when his football days are over he will be assured of a nice little competency."

The truth of the matter was that Puddefoot was very reluctant to move to Scotland to play for Falkirk. However, at this time footballers had little control over these matters. At the time of his departure, it looked like West Ham United would win promotion to the First Division. However, without their top goalscorer, the club lost five of their last seven games and finished in 4th place.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHpuddefoot.htm

Hopefully, Zola and Clarke are as good as King and Paynter and they will continue to build a good team based on local youngsters. If not, we may be seeing the demise of West Ham as a leading club in the country.

Football Skills

2009-09-02T14:28:00.000+01:00

The history of West Ham United colours.

2009-09-02T14:21:00.002+01:00

On 29th June, 1895, Arnold Hills, the managing director of the Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding Company, announced in his newspaper, the Thames Ironworks Gazette, that he intended to establish a football club. The information appeared under the headline: "The importance of co-operation between workers and management". He referred to the industrial dispute that had just taken place and insisted he wanted to "wipe away the bitterness left by the recent strike". Hills added: "Thank God this midsummer madness is passed and gone; inequities and anomalies have been done away with and now, under the Good Fellowship system and Profit Sharing Scheme, every worker knows that his individual and social rights are absolutely secured."

The first match was a friendly against Royal Ordnance on 7th September, 1895. The result was a 1-1 draw. This was followed by victories against Dartford, Manor Park, Streatham and Old St Stephens. Members of the team included Charlie Dove (apprentice riveter), Thomas Freeman (ship's fireman), Johnny Stewart (boilermaker), Walter Parks (clerk), Walter Tranter (boilermaker) James Lindsay (boilermaker), William Chapman (mechanical engineer), George Sage, (boilermaker), George Gresham (ship's plater) and William Chamberlain (foreman blacksmith).

I have been unable to discover any written documents that reveal the colours that the team played in. However, there is a photograph taken in 1895 that shows the team wearing dark shirts and trousers. If we assume that Arnold Hills selected the colours, I would think that they played in dark blue. The reason for this was that these were the colours of Oxford University, the team Hills represented in the varsity match and in the 1877 F.A. Cup Final.

In 1896 Thames Ironworks won the West Ham Charity Cup. A photograph of the team shows that they are still playing in dark shirts. The first detailed description of the kit appeared at the beginning of the 1897-98 season. The strip consisted of Royal Cambridge blue shirts, white shorts, red cap, belt and stockings. According to research by Grant Hole, these kits were probably inherited from Castle Swifts FC, the works side of the Castle Mail Packet Company.

We do know that Castle Swifts, the first football club to be formed in Essex, had gone bankrupt in March 1895, when the chairman of Castle Mail, Donald Currie, decided he was no longer willing to bankroll the club. They did play in light blue shirts, white shorts and red socks. Arnold Hills took over the tenancy of the Swifts’ Hermit Road ground and he also recruited Tom Robinson, Swifts’ former trainer, to work with the Thames Ironworks team.

The Thames Ironworks Gazette commented that the new colours were very impressive: "The contrast supplied by the delightful green turf is very pleasing." One newspaper reporter commented: "A prettier and more distinctive costume than theirs I have never yet seen on a football ground. Light blue shirts, white knickers and scarlet stockings were their colours." However, when the club played a game during a thunder storm in November, 1897, a local newspaper commented that the "Ironworks appeared on the field with brand new white spotless clean knickers and light blue shirts, but before they had been playing long they were like blackamoors".

There are photographs of the Thames Iron Works taken in 1897 and 1899. Although in black and white, they lend support to the idea that the team continued to play in light blue shirts, white shorts and scarlet socks.

Thames Iron Works was renamed West Ham United in September 1900. A team photograph taken that year suggested that the club had retained the light blue colours. According to club historian, John Helliar, on 14th September, 1901, West Ham “took to the field wearing their new colours of light blue jerseys, with a claret band, and white knickers with a red stripe.”

The earliest photograph I have been able to find showing West Ham wearing the current claret and light blue strip was taken on 16th January 1904. The game against Plymouth Argyle took place at the Memorial Grounds.

The team photograph taken at the beginning of the 1904-05 season clearly shows the team wearing claret shirts with light blue sleeves and hoop around the neck. However, it is recorded that on some occasions West Ham did resort to wearing their old “Cambridge blue shirts”.

According to the Historical Kits website, West Ham first began wearing claret and blue shirts in 1899: “There is a story that in the summer of 1899 Bill Dove, a sprinter of national repute who was involved in coaching the Ironworks team, was challenged to a race with four Aston Villa players at a fair in Birmingham. Dove won but the Villa men could not pay the wager so one of them pinched a set of claret and blue shirts from his club (he was responsible for doing the laundry) to settle the bet.”

This seems very unlikely and the author of the article admits that he got this information from Wikipedia. This story also appears in Brian Belton’s “West Ham United Miscellany” (2006). However, I do not find the story convincing. Nor is there any primary evidence of the club wearing these colours until the 1903-04 season.
It has been pointed out that Aston Villa was the most successful club side during this period having won the league title five times in seven years. It has been argued that the Hammers might have adopted Villa’s colours partly to be associated with the success of the club.

What we do know is that the directors of West Ham were seriously concerned about the financial situation of the club at the beginning of the 1903-04 season. It had lost £900 in the past two seasons and had an overdraft of £770 and assets of less than £200. The main problem was a full in season ticket sales. The club was forced to sell to sell their best players. This included Charlie Satterthwaite, who had scored 18 of West Ham's 38 goals that season. Given their perilous situation, did the wealthiest club in England, take pity on the club and donate them a set of claret and blue shirts?

You can see these early photographs on my website on the early history of West Ham United.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WestHamHistory.htm

Tormented

2009-09-01T10:54:00.000+01:00

Open University

2009-09-01T10:51:00.001+01:00

Matthew Upson

2009-08-20T12:18:00.000+01:00

It is becoming increasingly clear that West Ham will not be able to buy a striker without selling one of their star players. Although he is our best defender, I fear we will have to sell Matthew Upson. According to news reports, he is wanted by Manchester City and Aston Villa. No doubt Upson would prefer the higher wages being offered by City but I suspect he will go to Aston Villa for about £12m. This will enable Zola to buy Marouane Chamakh, the 25-year-old Moroccan international. Bordeaux want £7.5m for their striker. It sounds a lot of money but he looks the kind of player who will do well in the premier league.

Daily Mirror's West Ham Archive

2009-08-17T18:32:00.001+01:00

Some good photographs and original newspaper match reports on West Ham:

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/archive/West-Ham-Cup-Kings-Of-Europe-article20005.html

Anthony Edgar

2009-08-02T08:17:00.001+01:00

Anthony Edgar got some rave reviews for his pre-season performance against Kingstonian where he worked well just behind Frank Nouble and Cristian Montano. A London lad he was born on 30th September 1990 and is a cousin of Jermain Defoe.

http://www.whufc.com/page/Youths/0,,12562,00.html

http://www.whufc.com/page/News/0,,12562~1740374,00.html

Zavon Hines

2009-08-02T07:29:00.002+01:00

West Ham's pre-season games have been disappointing so far. The one bright spark is Zavon Hines. Although he only played the last ten minutes in the two games in China, he looked very lively and was impressed by the way he took his goal. (You need to see it in slow motion to realise just how good it was.)

The Hammers handed him his debut at the start of the 2008/09 season as a 27th minute replacement for Valon Bahrami in a Carling Cup tie at home to Macclesfield. Hines scored the third goal in a 4-1 extra-time win.

Hines signed on loan for Coventry City on 27 March 2008. He scored his first goal in his second game for Coventry City on 1 April 2008 in a 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday. According to the BBC: "Substitute Zavon Hines looked to have snatched victory for the Sky Blues with his sublime left-foot volley late on."

Hines missed much of the 2008–09 season with a knee injury but signed a new contract in March 2009, keeping him at the club until summer 2010.

Hines was born in Jamaica and grew up in the East End of London. On 10 February 2009 Hines was called into the Jamaica team for their friendly international against Nigeria on 11 February 2009. However, he remained on the bench.

The way Hines moves reminds me of Ian Wright. He seems a confident lad, a vital ingredient if you are going to be a top striker. It would not surprise me if Hines is our breakthrough player this season.

Birth Date December 27, 1988
Height 5' 10" (1.78m)
Weight 12.2 st (77.6 kg)

http://www.whufc.com/page/PlayerProfilesDetail/0,,12562~43469,00.html

http://www.soccerbase.com/players_details.sd?playerid=48922

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zavon_Hines

History of Football

2009-07-01T16:30:00.001+01:00

Here are some good web pages on the history of football:

http://schools-wikipedia.org/wp/f/Football.htm

http://schools-wikipedia.org/wp/a/Association_football.htm

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Fhistory.htm

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/ENCfootball.htm

Luis Jimenez and Andy Carroll

2009-06-16T05:50:00.000+01:00

The Times is reporting that Luis Jimenez's loan move to West Ham United is in the offing after his application for a work permit was successful, despite the fact the 24-year-old has not played in 75 per cent of Chile's matches in the last two years.

Jimenez has been little more than a fringe player during his two years at Inter and it is largely due to this that Marcelo Bielsa, current Chile coach, has not been selecting the player for international duty. There is also little chance of Jimenez finding any success with the Italian champions because coach Jose Mourinho is preparing to axe a number of fringe players from his squad.

With this in mind, the Chilean is favourable towards a switch that will guarantee him a place in the starting XI every week. West Ham are able to offer this.

Though the Hammers are confident of landing their man, Tottenham Hotspur are also looking to add Jimenez to their squad. Gianluca Nani, West Ham's technical director, has been tracking Jimenez for some time and this may be a crucial factor if and when the player is forced to choose between the two London clubs.

http://goal.com/en/news/9/england/2009/06/15/1325815/inters-luis-jimenez-granted-work-permit-for-west-ham-united-loan-

West Ham United are lining up an offer for Newcastle United's highly-rated target man Andy Carroll, in news that is bound to disappoint Toon fans, who could point to a whole host of players they would rather see leave than the locally-born prospect.

Carroll had been viewed by many observers as having a key role to fulfill for the Magpies, as they look to bounce back from their ignominious relegation to the second tier of English football after a 16-year stay in the Premier League.

English tabloid The Daily Star is reporting that the Hammers, whose financial situation was stabilised somewhat by a takeover last week, are keeping tabs on Carroll though, with manager Gianfranco Zola apparently an admirer.

Newcastle are already looking short on striking options with Mark Viduka and Michael Owen set to be released, and Obafemi Martins, despite his assertions that he will stay, being heavily linked with a move to Arsenal, Aston Villa or Everton.

http://goal.com/en/news/9/england/2009/06/14/1325168/west-ham-set-to-move-for-newcastle-united-striker-andy

Luis Jumenez

2009-06-10T16:25:00.000+01:00

It is argued that Luis Jumenez of Inter-Milan will join West Ham soon. Here he is scoring for Chile against Venezuela:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79Bb436HXEY

West Ham Player Ratings (2008-09)

2009-06-02T11:32:00.002+01:00

Over the past few seasons I have collected the ratings of each West Ham players that have been assessed by 13 national newspapers and football websites, including KUMB. As this reflects the judgments of so many different people it is probably the most objective way of assessing a player’s performance over a long period. It also provides an insight into the performance of people like Zola and Clarke. I will comment on this later but here are the ratings of all those who played for West Ham this season. You can also see the player’s ratings for individual games and previous season’s figures here:

Craig Bellamy (6.93)

Scott Parker (6.86)

James Tomkins (6.69)

Matthew Upson (6.67)

Rob Green (6.66)

James Collins (6.63)

Jack Collison (6.55)

Carlton Cole (6.55)

Dean Ashton (6.46)

Mark Noble (6.37)

Junior Stanislas (6.35)

Freddie Sears (6.35)

Herita Ilunga (6.23)

Calum Davenport (6.23)

Lucas Neill (6.19)

Valon Behrami (6.16)

Radoslav Kovac (6.15)

Matthew Etherington (6.12)

Lee Bowyer (6.10)

Hayden Mullins (6.08)

Jonathan Spector (6.01)

Luis Boa Morte (5.94)

David Di Michele (5.94)

Julien Faubert (5.65)

Diego Tristan (5.54)

Kieron Dyer (5.46)

Savio Nsereko (5.37)

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/2007WHsquad.htm

David Di Michele

2009-05-11T13:54:00.000+01:00

I have never been convinced by Di Michele. He might have been alright at his peak but there is no way that he can be effective in the best league in the world. Zola has done some great things this season but he has a complete blind spot when it comes to his foreign loan signings. Surely it would be better to give some experience to Sears and Hines at this stage of the season. Would Collison and Tomkins have been given an extended run if we had a couple of foreign loan signings in the squad?

This is what Jonathan Northcroft of the Sunday Times had to say about Di Michele yesterday:

"David Di Michele is almost small enough to look Gianfranco Zola straight in the eye but for some time to come he may have trouble doing that. This was a forgettable game that contained a classic football moment - but not of the glorious kind. It was not so much a comedy as a whole six-season sitcom series of errors; first, in trying to accept an Alvaro Arbeloa pass, Jamie Carragher lost his balance inexplicably and swiped fresh air, allowing the ball to run free and Di Michele to collect it and bear down on Jose Reina. Di Michele lured the goalkeeper forward and nicked the ball past him with his right foot. So far so good. Then came the banana skin. The West Ham striker was four yards out, the goal was open and all he had to do was tap the ball in. Instead Di Michele lost co-ordination. His left foot came down in the wrong spot, he stumbled into the ball and it was somehow knocked wide of the goal. An attempt to retrieve the situation, and his pride, ended in further ignominy. Di Michele threw himself on the grass, looking for a penalty. Instead Alan Wiley booked him for simulation - Di Michele deserved punishment for trying to fake being a striker."

West Ham and Rory Delap

2009-05-04T17:44:00.000+01:00

A football commentator at Sky recently said that no team has been able to deal with Rory Delap's long throws this season. It seems to me that West Ham did very well against it on Saturday. In an interview in the Guardian today, Rob Green explained the tactics employed by Zola and Clarke: "Everyone stood up to it and really took on board the information we were given" said Green. The article goes on to say: "The key to combating Stoke's dangerous long throws and set-piece deliveries, Zola and his assistant, Steve Clarke, had told them, was not to crowd the penalty area." Green added: "When we watched the videos, a lot of the time it was two or three of the opposition with one Stoke player, which didn't really make sense, it's better to have a clearer area and someone to head the ball... We went man-to-man and said 'We'll win the ball', and everyone today did that."

Green also gave an interview to John Wragg of the Daily Express: "The advantage of facing a long throw is they can't throw it straight in he net, whereas with a free kick they can. So you can afford to come off your line a little bit more and help the guys out. It's a massive part of Stoke's game. We took it on board what they had and knew what was coming. It was just a case of being organised."

Andy Wilkinson, Stoke's right-back, claimed after the game: "Green was more commanding than the other keepers who have tried to deal with Delap's throws. He came out and claimed a lot of them."

Dick Richards

2009-04-27T12:12:00.003+01:00

Dick Richards was signed by Syd King, the manager of West Ham United for a fee of £300 in 1922. Richards was the club's outside-right in the 1923 FA Cup final against Bolton Wanderers. He was also an important figure in the team that won promotion to the First Division that year. Richards only played in 9 league games in the 1923-24 season before being sold to Fulham. Richards was also a member of the Welsh team that won the Home Championship in 1924.

I recently had an email from Robert Jarvis, whose wife is related to Dick Richards. He is involved in researching her family history and has uncovered Dick's birth and death certificate. It seems that the club and the Football Association have got their facts wrong.

Richard (Dick) Richards was in fact born in Weston Point, Runcorn on 14th January 1892. His father had been tragically drowned in the dock on the Weaver Navigation before he was born. The family later moved to Glyn Ceiriog (the place that the FA says he was born).

Dick Richards died at Salford Royal Infirmary following an accident while working for a electricity company at the age of 43 on 27th January, 1934.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHrichardsD.htm

West Ham player-ratings against Sunderland (4th April, 2009)

2009-04-08T18:59:00.002+01:00

West Ham player-ratings against Sunderland (4th April, 2009)

James Tomkins (7.76)

Junior Stanislas (7.61)

Luis Boa Morte (6.84)

Rob Green (6.84)

Matthew Upson (6.84)

Mark Noble (6.61)

David Di Michele (6.53)

Lucas Neill (6.38)

Herita Ilunga (6.23)

Jonathan Spector (6.15)

Diego Tristan (5.84)

Bondz N'Gala

2009-03-20T07:39:00.000Z

Junior Stanislas has told West Ham United fans that defender Bondz N'Gala will be the next off the development conveyor belt.

The winger told whufc.com: "Bondz will get his chance as well. I've got mine and he will get his so it's all good. It was a good experience for me.

"We're in seventh place and could maybe have played a bit better and picked up a couple more points but, personally, it was a good start for me."

Hammers reserves coach Alex Dyer also said of N'Gala: "I see that hopefully he can go on and play first-team football, hopefully with West Ham but, if not, certainly at a good level of the game. He works hard in training and trains with the first team all the time now and you can see that he's developing. He's comfortable on the ball and he can pass it. You can see that he encourages others to do the best around him and that's why I made him captain."

http://www.tribalfootball.com/bondz-ngala-tipped-be-next-west-ham-conveyor-belt-233486

West Ham v WBA

2009-03-17T14:55:00.001Z

Although the Hammers had been in reasonably good form recently, the omens were not good for the game against WBA. It had been over a year since West Ham had won a game with Carlton Cole in the side. Behrami and Collison, two of our most influencial players in recent months, were both out with long-term injuries.

Even so, after a reasonable start to the season, WBA are now rooted firmly at the bottom of the league, and clearly the worst team in the division. Surely a patched-up West Ham would be able to beat a team that cannot score and has the worst defensive record in the top tier.

The suspensions and injuries gave Zola the opportunity to give a first start to our record signing, Savio Nsereko. Another, relatively untested 19-year-old, Freddie Sears, was also in the line-up. So also was James Tomkins, as James Collins was still unfit to play alongside Matthew Upson. The warm sunshine in the afternoon suggested that maybe it was going to be the first day of Spring for West Ham fans. Unfortunately, the buds failed to blossom and by the end of the game fear, rather than hope, was the overriding emotion.

It was not long before it became clear why Zola had resisted calls to play Savio from the start. He was clearly nervous but even making allowances for this there was little evidence that this was a future premiership star. He was a willing runner but his touch constantly let him down. He got back to help his full-back but his defending was naïve and he was passed very easily. Savio managed a few shots and crosses but I don’t remember any of them reaching their intended target. I know that he is very young but I thought, given the large fee that has been paid for him, he would have shown a lot more potential than he did.

Freddie Sears showed a bit more composure than Savio and looked much more comfortable on the ball than his expensive colleague. However, he never looked a real threat in front of goal and irritatingly was constantly getting caught offside. Mind you, the service he got was appalling.

At the current time, Tomkins looks the best prospect out of this trio of teenagers. I like the way he always seems to have plenty of time to do the things he needs to do as a central defender. The way he reads the game reminds me of a young Bobby Moore. His contribution became even more important after Upson was stretchered off after landing awkwardly in the 29th minute. A promising display but it has to be remembered that Tomkins was facing a forward-line that had only scored 25 goals in 29 games this season.

The main problem was in central midfield where Zola played two holding players, Kovac and Parker. Noble, who is primarily an attacking player, was forced to play wide. He is clearly not happy with this role and he constantly drifted inside to a crowded midfield. Kovac offers nothing going forward and even though Parker did try to add support to the forwards, it is clearly not the strongest part of his game.

Di Michele was awful. He was constantly caught in possession and when he did manage to pass the ball it rarely reached a colleague. He did manage two shots on goal but both were so wide that they went for throw-ins. Di Michele was not alone in this and Carson did not have to make a save all night.

Junior Stanislas replaced Savio in the 68th minute. He was a slight improvement and definitely had less difficulty holding onto the ball. However, his crosses into the centre were wasted as the rest of the forwards treated the WBA box as a no-go area.

Despite showing their complete lack of quality, WBA had the best chances and Green did well to block Morrison’s shot after he casually waltzed through the West Ham defence in the first-half.

In the 70th minute Greening did the same thing but luckily for the Hammers he lifted the ball over the bar. However, the closest WBA came to scoring was when Jonas Olsson’s elbowed Green in the face, leaving Shelton Martis to head against the bar.

After the game the former referee, Graham Poll, described the incident on television: "Olsson comes in with his arm. He is looking, knows where Green is and catches him across the chin. If seen, it is a red card offence. I think it was deliberate." That was my assessment as well and I fully expect retrospective action to be taken against Olsson. Green commented: “He caught me with a good one. Luckily, it was on a sturdy part of my face rather than an eye socket or nose that could have done me some proper damage.” Green is to be commended by his reaction to the challenge. He reminds me of those English goalkeepers in the 1970s who never made a fuss when they were whacked at corners.

With a little bit more ambition WBA could have won the game against a lethargic side that seemed to think they were still playing beach football in Marbella. Let us hope that it is the last time that Zola thinks it is a good idea to take the squad on a mid-season break to the seaside.

Last night’s game showed that what shrewd observers have been saying for sometime. The main starting line-up is not too bad but the quality of the rest of the squad is just not good enough. On this form we have no chance of holding onto 7th place and a few away days to remote European towns and cities.

Player Ratings

Green: Good save from Morrison and as usual commandeered his area with authority. (7)

Neill: Gave the ball away several times when moving forward but was not really troubled defensively. (6)

Tomkins: The way he reads the game reminds me of a young Bobby Moore. (8)

Upson: Was not really troubled before he was stretchered off after landing awkwardly in the 29th minute. (6)

Ilunga: His worse game so far for the club. Rarely got forward and when he did he had difficulty keeping the ball in play. (5)

Noble: Will not reach top form until he is played in central midfield. He is clearly not happy with this wide role and he constantly drifted inside to a crowded midfield. (5)

Kovac: Does not look good enough for this level. As soon as he gets the ball he passes sideways. Would much rather see Noble play in this role. (5)

Parker: Worse game for sometime. Made a few efforts to get forward but nothing came of his advances upfield. He was also slow to get back and showed signs that he is suffering the consequences of a hard season. (5)

Savio: He was clearly nervous but even making allowances for this there was little evidence that this was a future premiership star. (5)

Di Michele: He was constantly caught in possession and when he did manage to pass the ball it rarely reached a colleague. He did manage two shots on goal but both were so wide that they went for throw-ins. (4)

Sears: He never looked a real threat in front of goal and irritatingly was constantly getting caught offside. (5)

Why I am a West Ham fan

2009-03-10T11:53:00.001Z

My father took me to my first football game when I was about six years old. He was born in North Landon and was a passionate Spurs fan. The game was against Arsenal. I stood on a stool at the front and I watched the game through the curved railings that was on the top of the wall.

I only have a few visual memories of the game. I remember Ron Burgess coming up very close to me in order to collect the ball to take a throw-in. He was bald headed and looked very old. This was a time when young men did not shave their heads and few suffered from premature hair loss.

The second image I recall was of the long shorts worn by Jimmy Logie. It must have been a huge disappointment for my father when I told him that I preferred Arsenal’s red shirts to the boring white of his team. He must have been a tolerant dad because I received an Arsenal shirt as a birthday present that year.

It was another couple of years before he took me to White Hart Lane on a regular basis. When they were playing away from home he took me fishing. My older sister still feels angry about how my father took me out every Saturday. However, in those days, it was vitally important for sons to be trained to have the same interests as their fathers. His father would have done the same for him if he had not been killed in the First World War when he was just a child. All three of us, as first born sons, all had the same Christian name.

If you are to believe the theory of “filial imprinting”, or what John Money has accurately called “the lovemap”, I should have become a fan of the Spurs. But it never happened. I suspect the main reason was that as we were living in Chingford at the time, most of my mates supported West Ham.

The second factor was that my father was killed in a road accident in 1956. My father’s brother and my mother’s brother took it in turns to take me to White Hart Lane. However, if my father could not turn me into a fan, my uncles definitely couldn’t.

After the death of my father when I was eleven we moved to Dagenham. This was a place where it was extremely unusual to find a non-Hammers fan. It was the largest council estate in Europe and every boy wanted to play for West Ham. It was seen as our main route to success. It was either playing professional football or working at Fords. The teachers, who had no chance of controlling our behaviour by dangling the possibility of academic success in front of our noses, resorted to using the prospect of fame and success on the football field. I remember on one occasion John O’Rourke being paraded around the school in the kit he wore on his debut for England schoolboys. He also appeared on stage during one school assembly. He followed three boys who were caned in front of the whole school. That sums up the moral message of the school. The choice was between public humiliation or mass adoration. For those without the necessary football skills, this was no choice at all and for most working-class children, schooling was about the lowering of aspirations and the production of factory fodder.

John O’Rourke wanted to play for the Hammers but unfortunately for him he never caught the attention of the West Ham scouts and he was forced to sign for Arsenal. He then moved onto Chelsea but it was not until he reached Luton Town that his career took off (64 goals in 84 games). Then came Middlesbrough, Ipswich Town, Coventry City, Queens Park Rangers and finally Bournemouth, but he never made it to the Hammers.

As soon as I was old enough I used to go to Upton Park on my own. This was a very different experience from attending matches at White Hart Lane. I had found my cultural home. One of the first games I saw was against Manchester United on 8th September 1958. I still remember the pre-match announcement over the tannoy that Bobby Moore would be playing his first game for the club. We were not aware of the drama that had been going on behind the scenes. Billy Lansdowne and Andy Nelson were both injured and the obvious replacement was Malcolm Allison, who had been the club captain until he had been taken ill after a game against Sheffield United in September 1957. Doctors discovered he was suffering from tuberculosis and he had to have a lung removed. Allison returned to the club and played several games for the reserves but with only one lung he struggled with his fitness. The other possibility was a 17 year-old Bobby Moore.

Ted Fenton asked Noel Cantwell who he should select for the game, Allison or Moore. Cantwell, who was very close to Allison, surprisingly, opted for the young untried player. Allison was never to forgive Cantwell for what he considered a betrayal of friendship. Moore recalled in his autobiography: "I'd been a professional for two and a half months and Malcolm had taught me everything I know.... When Malcolm was coaching schoolboys he took a liking to me when I don't think anyone else at West Ham saw anything special in me... I looked up to the man. It's not too strong to say I loved him."

Moore added: “It somehow had to be that when I walked into the dressing room and found out I was playing, Malcolm was the first person I saw. I was embarrassed to look at him… For a moment I wanted to push the shirt to him and say ‘Go on, Malcolm. It’s yours. Have your game. I can’t stop you. Go on, Malcolm. My time will come’.“ But he didn’t, and the beginning of his career brought an end to that of his mentor. Allison was never to play another first-team game for the club.

Moore later confessed: “I went out and played the way Malcolm had always told me to play… Be in control of yourself. Take control of everything around you. Look big. Tell people what to do.” West Ham won the game 3-2 (John Dick, John Smith and Malcolm Musgrave got the goals) and although Moore did not have an outstanding game, he became my first football idol. Partly because of the immaculate way he played but also because he looked like the way we wanted to look, whereas most of the players reminded us of our dads and uncles. I suppose he was like an older brother who was tuned into our teenage culture.

West Ham had just won promotion to the First Division. They had been a Second Division club since the 1931-32 season. Fans were apprehensive about how we would cope as Ted Fenton had constructed a team that played very direct football. This included two fast wingers (Mike Grice and Malcolm Musgrove) and three goalscoring inside forwards (Vic Keeble, John Dick and Billy Dare). The Hammers scored 101 goals in the 1957-58 season with 40% coming from Keeble and Dick.

The only change Ted Fenton made to the format in the First Division was to bring in Phil Woosnam, a creative inside-forward from Leyton Orient, to replace Billy Dare. West Ham had a great season finishing in 6th place. An amazing achievement considering that it was their first season in the top division for over 25 years. Keeble and Dick were once again in great form scoring 47 of the club’s 85 goals.

I was only 14 years old but I was in love for the first-time. In the words of Nick Hornby: “I fell in love with football as I was later to fall in love with women: suddenly, inexplicably, uncritically, giving no thought to the pain or disruption it would bring with it."

In his 1929 novel, The Good Companions, J. B. Priestley explained what it was like to be a football supporter in a working-class area: “It turned you into a member of a new community, all brothers together for an hour and a half, for not only had you escaped from the clanking machinery of this lesser life, from work, wages, rent, doles, sick pay, insurance cards, nagging wives, ailing children, bad bosses, idle workmen, but you had escaped with most of your mates, and your neighbours, with half the town, and there you were, cheering together, thumping one another on the shoulders, swopping judgments, like lords of the earth, having pushed your way through a turnstile into another and altogether more splendid kind of life, hurtling with conflict and yet passionate and beautiful in its Art.”

West Ham good form was not to last. In the 1959-60 season they finished in 14th place. Ted Fenton’s time was coming to an end. After another poor season, Ron Greenwood was brought in as manager. His first signing was Johnny Byrne from Crystal Palace. This was a statement of intent and it heralded the beginning of the West Ham way of playing. The pinnacle of this was winning the European Cup Winners’ Cup on 19th May 1965. I was lucky enough to be in the crowd at Wembley that day. However, for younger members, I would urge you to watch the DVD of the match.

It was one of those occasions where my football pleasure was in the “present”. For most football fans the excitement comes from thoughts of the future. As with gambling, the punter needs the odd success to feed the addiction. In his fascinating book “Those Feet: An Intimate History of English Football”, David Winner helps explain the motivation of a passionate football supporter. “One doesn’t instinctively think of football as a narrative form, but that’s a large part of the game’s appeal: it’s a vast, never-ending unscripted drama. As spectators, we yearn to know what happens next. Every free-kick, corner and penalty has dramatic tensions. To fans, the progress of their team is more involving than any TV soap, and much less predictable.”

David Winner misses out one important aspect of being a football fan. The true fan is far from being a passive observer of the soap opera that we call football. We desperately desire to be the scriptwriter of this drama. We want in some way to shape these events. That is why we are so keen to show our opinions by cheering or booing the manager’s decisions. It is our way of selecting the team. We also try to influence the tactics employed by the manager by posting on this forum. Deep down we hope that Zola and Clarke visit the forum to find out what they need to do to bring success to the club.

However, being a West Ham fan is not just about winning cups or titles. If it was the passion would decline during the long periods of failure. The real pleasure of being a West Ham fan is those moments of beauty you see on the pitch. It was a West Ham fan, Alf Garnett, who once said: “football is a working class ballet.” It was meant to make us laugh but like the best jokes, it reveals a kernel of truth. Football, when played the right way, is a visual treat, a thing of beauty.

Like ballet, the beauty of football is in the movement. This takes many forms. Bobby Moore gracefully moving across the pitch to intercept a pass or Trevor Brooking floating across the Upton Park grass with the ball at his feet and with his head held high looking for an unmarked comrade.

Probably the most wondrous sight of all is when several players combine to create beautiful patterns. That is what happened when Carlton Cole scored the goal at Wigan last Wednesday. It was as good as anything I saw under Ron Greenwood and John Lyall. It has taken an Italian, himself a master of the beautiful game, to give us the kind of football that we have so long craved.

Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson

2009-03-04T15:15:00.001Z

Daily Telegraph

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/westham/4934239/Potential-investors-queue-up-as-West-Ham-fight-to-stave-off-insolvency.html

Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson, the West Ham owner, will ask for an extension from the court of three months and has prepared a series of reports detailing plans to restructure the companies.

It will be argued that the value of Hansa's assets, of which West Ham is a key component, is above the claims of the creditors. The court is not expected to make any decision over Hansa until next week, though club sources maintain that the outcome of the hearing will not force any immediate sale of the club.

West Ham's ownership is complicated but, though Hansa is the holding company, West Ham United Holdings Ltd and West Ham United plc are also within the structure.

West Ham United plc is regarded as the member organisation by the Premier League, meaning that the possibility of a sporting sanction against the team could not be considered in respect of any financial issues relating to the holding company.

Negotiations over prospective takeovers have stepped up in recent weeks and it is understood that the interested parties include an Asian consortium.

However, West Ham have not yet received an acceptable offer, while no group has reached the stage of due diligence.

Gudmundsson was significantly affected by the economic crisis in Iceland, but the club are financially "firewalled" and were true to their pledge during the January transfer window of not selling players in order to finance any Hansa debts.

Indeed, on the pitch, there has been considerable progress under Gianfranco Zola, with European qualification still possible.

West Ham face Wigan on Wednesday in the Premier League, but will be without midfielder Valon Behrami after he was carried off the pitch with an oxygen tank after badly twisting his knee in Sunday's win over Manchester City.

His absence will mean the probable return of Mark Noble after suspension, though James Collins (hamstring), Luis Boa Morte (groin), Kieron Dyer (calf), Danny Gabbidon (stomach/back) and Dean Ashton (ankle) remain sidelined.

With Wigan one place and one point behind West Ham in seventh, the outcome of tonight's match could determine a possible Uefa Cup place for either club.

"A win will consolidate seventh place, which at the moment looks good enough for a Uefa Cup spot," said midfielder Jack Collison. "That is the target the manager, Gianfranco Zola, has set us. We have got 10 or 11 games now until the end of the season and we are going to look to kick on now rather than see the season out."

West Ham v Bolton (John Simkin)

2009-02-23T16:05:00.001Z

It could be argued that fans of West Ham will only be convinced that we are on the right track when we manage to win at Bolton. So far we have never won at the Reebok Stadium and have only beaten Bolton away on one occasion in fifty years. Our last victory was at Burnden Park when Tony Cottee was on the score-sheet. As we were unbeaten away from home since October, and Bolton had only won once in seven games, this seemed to be the game that was going to change the record books.

Optimism grew when it was announced that Cole was fit enough to play. Jonathan Spector came in for the suspended Lucas Neill but there was still no place for our record signing, Nsereko Savio. At the time we were told that the Ugandan-born, German striker was a replacement for Bellamy. It now becomes clear that Zola sees David Di Michele as Cole’s strike-partner with Savio coming on as a wide-midfield player late in the game.

Bolton has one of the best records in the division for scoring in the first fifteen minutes of a game. One would have expected the West Ham team to be prepared for the onslaught. However, they were slow to start and Collison sloppily gave away a free-kick when he brought down Mark Davies in the 10th minute. Green was poorly positioned and Taylor beautifully curled his effort over the wall and just below the cross-bar.

West Ham lost the ball in their next attack and Kevin Davies managed to get his head to a hopeful ball forward. Elmander kept control of the ball up before crossing it across the 18-yard-box. It broke nicely for Davies whose first time strike flew past Green’s outstretched right-hand.

A few minutes later, an attempted sliding-tackle by Collins left the tall central defender writhing in pain. Zola must have realized it was not going to be his day as he watched Collins being stretched off for what appeared to be a bad hamstring injury.

However, from this point on, West Ham dominated the match and had enough chances to win the game comfortably. Bolton kept a high-line based on the position of Cole. A team playing this way is always vulnerable to late runs from other players. Several times Di Michele was caught offside when he failed to time his run properly but in the 35th minute Cole made a clever reverse pass and Noble managed to beat the off-side trap. Noble only had the goalkeeper to beat but inexplicably he decided to square the ball back to a group of players trying to get into the Bolton penalty area. The pass was intercepted but it bounced back to Noble whose attempted lob was knocked over the bar by Jaaskelainen.

A few minutes later Noble hit a superb long pass that enabled Di Michele to beat the off-side trap for a second time. As Di Michele closed in on Jaaskelainen he decided against the easy option of passing the ball past the goalkeeper. Instead he tried to curve it around him with the outside of his foot. However, he got it terribly wrong and the ball sailed well-wide of the far post. It was nearly as bad as his miss against Middlesbrough. In many ways it was even worse because this time he failed to score because he was trying to show off his skills.

At the beginning of the second-half West Ham forced an early corner. Tomkins, who was proving himself an able deputy in both penalty areas, got his head to Noble’s corner. Cole adjusted his jump to send the ball towards the goal but it was cleared from just under the bar by a Bolton defender.

Admirably led by Scott Parker, the Hammers had nearly total control of the midfield. We all know what a great defensive player Parker is but against Bolton he also passed the ball well. It was no real surprise that the terrier midfielder was the instigator of West Ham’s goal. In the 66th minute he ran with the ball out of defence. Cole failed to control the forward pass and it ran loose to Spector on the right-wing. Parker ran past Cole and arrived in the penalty area to knock the full-back’s accurate cross into the net.

Eight minutes later Parker made another penetrating run into the box. He was brought down by Ricardo Gardner but the referee played the advantage rule as the ball ran free to Di Michele who once again faced an open goal. Instead of hitting it first-time he decided to show off his skills by taking the ball around the goalkeeper. He did this successfully but by this time two Bolton defenders were back on the line and his weak shot was easily blocked by Gary Cahill.

Di Michele might have been a great player in his prime. However, he is definitely not a replacement for Bellamy. After the game Zola told Sky that Di Michele had promised to make it up to his manager by scoring two goals in his next game. Given the loyal way that Zola looks after Di Michele, it would not surprise me if the Italian forward is given another chance against Middlesbrough in next weeks cup tie.

I had been hoping that Zola would have brought on Sears at half-time. But he left him on the bench. On the hour mark Zola did at last bring on Savio. However, it was to replace Collison rather than Di Michele. Sears did not enter the fray until the 85th minute. Even so, it was for Spector, and so the young striker again had to play out of position. Sears must be feeling terribly frustrated by the way he is being treated by Zola. At the moment he is not being given a fair chance to show what he can do. I would not be surprised to see him picketing outside Upton Park with a placard saying: “Equal opportunities for English jobs”.

West Ham had 62.3% possession of the ball and their dominance was reflected by their 13 corners and 18 shots on the Bolton goal. However, this is meaningless when you have difficulty in scoring. It is now apparently clear that Zola made a terrible mistake in not replacing Bellamy with a proven goalscorer.

Player Ratings

Green: At fault for the first goal and had little to do after we went 2-0 down (5)

Spector: Far more assured that Neill and provided Parker with an excellent pass for the goal. (7)

Collins: Was taken off after only 15 minutes so it is unfair to give him a rating.

Upson: Bruising battle with Kevin Davies. (6)

Ilunga: Couple of good attacking runs but was caught out of position for the second goal. (6)

Behrami: Spector did not need the kind of protection usually provided for Neill. Fairly quiet game and did not look like he had fully recovered from his injury. (5)

Parker: Probably his best game for the club. A captain who leads from the front, he totally controlled the midfield. We all know what a great defensive player Parker is but against Bolton he also passed the ball well. (9)

Noble: A return to form and a great pass to set-up Di Michele in the 39th minute. However, his decision to pass when put through by Cole was inexplicable. (7)

Collison: Seemed to lose his confidence after giving away the free-kick that led to the first-goal. (6)

Cole: An impressive performance considering he did not train all week. Unfortunately, all the good chances fell to his fellow striker. (7)

Di Michele: Missed the best two chances of the game. He rejected the easy options in order to show off the skills that he has apparently lost. (4)

Substitutes

Nsereko (61 minutes): Couple of nice touches but it is not easy to come on and make an impact. Would like to see what he can do when he starts a game. (6)

Tomkins (16th minute): Never looked in trouble after coming on for the injured Collins. I am sure he will become a regular first-team player next season. (7)

Sears: (85 minutes): Sears must be feeling terribly frustrated by the way he is being treated by Zola. At the moment he is not being given a fair chance to show what he can do.

West Ham v Middlesbrough (John Simkin)

2009-02-16T14:07:00.000Z

In my report on the Arsenal game I argued that the real test will be when Zola is forced to make changes to a team that was performing well. I raised doubts about the quality of the players in the squad who will need to come in if anyone gets injured.

In the game against Middlesbrough, Zola was forced to replace Behrami with Boa Morte. This was a strange decision since he could have called upon Savio. I know he is untried at this level but surely this would have been a better option than Boa Morte, who has shown time and time again that he can no longer deliver the goods in the premier league.

The inclusion of Boa Morte considerably weakened our midfield, as over the last few weeks, Behrami has played a vital role in winning the ball from the opposition. Boa Morte is not only very poor as this task, he consistently gives the ball away and even against a very moderate Middlesbrough side, we found ourselves for long periods without the ball.

To make matters worse, Cole injured his left ankle early in the match and was virtually a passenger before he was eventually taken off in the 33rd minute. Therefore, for most of the game we were without two of our key players.

West Ham started off badly and a mistake by Collison and a poor clearance from Upson led to Johnson shooting just wide. This was followed by a period where the Hammers had difficulty keeping hold of the ball. In the 10th minute Di Michele was easily brushed off the ball by Digard and his cross found Downing, whose shot from 25 yards out flashed wide of Green's left post.

After good work from Collison in the 16th minute, Noble attempted to curl the ball past Jones but it instead went straight to the goalkeeper. A couple of minutes later Noble had a much better effort tipped around the post. The corner led to a second and from that a powerful drive by Collins forced Jones to make another good save.

It seemed it was just a matter of time before the Hammers took the lead but after a Middlesbrough breakaway, O’Neil put in a great cross that just escaped Collins and Downing arrived late to head in at the far post.

With Cole a passenger, it was left to Di Michele to lead the fight-back. In the 24th minute he cleverly flicked the ball over Digard head before volleying from the edge of the box, but it flew just wide of Jones' left post. On occasions like this he looks like a good acquisition, however, for most of the time he struggles to cope with the speed and power of the English game.

Just after the half-hour mark Di Michele was joined by another foreign import that seems well past his sell-by date. It is difficult to see what Diego Tristan has to offer the team. He rarely beat the Middlesbrough central defenders in the air and his first touch is lamentable. He is a ponderous runner with the ball and panics when in sight of the goal.

Despite the weakness of our strikers, the West Ham midfield drove the team forward and in the 38th minute Boa Morte managed to find a teammate with a pass. Noble miss-hit the ball 12 yards out, but a deflection made the save difficult for Jones, who could only push the ball weakly into the path of Collison, who instead of passing it to an unmarked Di Michelle standing in front of the goal, he wildly shot over the bar.

Just before half-time a Middlesbrough free-kick resulted in a quick breakaway. Di Michele’s path was blocked and he carefully teed it up for the late-arriving Tristan. It looked like a certain goal but Tristan visibly panicked and he blasted the ball well over the bar.

James Collins later said: “We were shocking in the first half, terrible, the worst we’ve been for a long time. We’ve been playing so well and to go out and perform like that we were speechless at half-time.”

Scott Parker and Mark Noble both had games where they failed to dominate the midfield. It was Stewart Downing, who abandoned his usual winger’s role on the left, to play just behind Afonso Alves, that was the influential player on the pitch. Despite the fact that we played so badly, we could, and should, have been 3-1 up at the break.

In the 48th minute Zola brought on Sears for Boa Morte. After the game Zola said that: “The first 50 minutes was the worst we have played recently… Their bodies were there, but their minds sometimes weren’t… It was not near our standards. After that we picked up a bit.” I disagree. Unfortunately, the arrival of Sears did not make much difference to the performance of the team.

West Ham increasingly resorted to the long-ball game in the second-half. This was absurd as David Wheater won everything in the air. This is rarely a profitable strategy even when Carlton Cole is in the team. However, with Diego Tristan playing up front, it bordered on the ridiculous. For the first time since the game against Spurs on 8th December, the Hammers began to look desperate.

It was not until the 72nd minute that West Ham created their next chance. Illunga, who was West Ham’s best attacker, overlapped on the left and after reaching the byline he crossed to the unmarked Di Michele, who faced with an open goal, scooped the ball over the bar from eight yards out. It was probably the team’s worse miss of the season.

This was immediately followed by Zola bringing on Savio for the disappointing Noble. Although his passes are not always accurate, Savio does everything at speed and he helps to create a sense of urgency. He is also a great deliverer of crosses and his corners were a marked improvement on those provided by Noble.

In the 81st minute O’Neil used his hand to stop the ball reaching Savio. After the booking of O’Neil, the Ugandan-born, German striker, whipped in a dangerous free-kick that was missed by the big men on the edge of the penalty area and Ilunga, running-in behind, headed home from close-range.

The confidence of the Middlesbrough team seeped away but despite the pressure from the revitalized Hammers, they could only manage one more shot and that was from Sears who fired over from the edge of the box.

After the game, Zola said “Boro were organized and caused as problems. It is a good lesson for us.” He then added: “I am delighted for Ilunga. There are not many full-backs in the league better than him.” There is no doubt that Ilunga is one of the best loan signings of the season. However, on the few occasions we have seen him, Diego Tristan, seems to fall into a very different category altogether.

Player Ratings

Green: Made some excellent saves from Downing and Alves. (7)

Neill: For the first time in several games he was not targeted by the opposition. Benefited by the fact that Downing played in the centre instead of wide left. (6)

Collins: At fault for the goal but was generally solid. (6)

Upson: A poor clearance in the opening minutes led to Johnson shooting just wide. After that, he comfortable dealt with Alves. (6)

Ilunga: His overlapping on the left caused constant problems for the Middlesbrough defence. Capped off a fine performance with the equalizing goal. (8)

Collison: Lively as always but it was a terrible miss in the 38th minute. (6)

Parker: A very quiet afternoon for a player who usually dominates midfield. (5)

Noble: Another disappointing performance from a player who could be carrying an injury. (5)

Boa Morte: Tried hard as usual but is still to achieve the standards he regularly showed at Fulham. His passing was extremely poor. The worst moment was when he was under no pressure at all he passed the ball to the centre of a group of three Middlesbrough players. (4)

Di Michele: Showed some nice touches but is still too easily knocked off the ball. Probable the miss of the season when he blazed over in the 72nd minute. (6)

Cole: Injured early on and it was foolish to keep him on the pitch for so long. (5)

Substitutions:

Tristan (35th): He rarely beat the Middlesbrough central defenders in the air and his first touch is lamentable. He is a ponderous runner with the ball and panics when in sight of the goal. (4)

Sears (49th): Fairly lively but unfortunately none of the real chances came to him. Needs to play from the beginning if he is to show what he can do. (6)

Savio (74th): Despite the injury to Behrami he was left on the bench. He was also ignored when Cole had to come off and he was only given the last 16 minutes to show what he could do. A good dead ball kicker, his corners were a marked improvement on those provided by Noble. Provided the cross for Illunga’s equalizing goal. (7)

Zola’s Management Style: The Importance of Positive Reinforcement

2009-02-10T15:58:00.001Z

It soon became clear that in post-match interviews that Zola is not the sort of manager that criticized his team in public. At first I found this slightly irritating, especially when he insisted that his team had played well, when clearly this had not been the case. In recent weeks this approach has become much more acceptable as Zola post-match comments have mirrored reality.

It is true that most managers do not criticize individual players about their performances. Harry Redknapp’s comments about Darren Bent after the game against Portsmouth was considered to be fairly unusual and received a great deal of attention in the media. With 10 minutes left and the score at 1-1, Bent headed wide from six yards. Redknapp said: "You will never get a better chance to win a match than that. My missus could have scored that one. Bent did not only have part of the goal to aim for, but he had the entire net - and he put it wide. Unbelievable."

It is hard to believe that outburst like this actually improve the performance of a player. Nor did it help the confidence of Hull City players when Phil Brown conducted his half-time team talk against Manchester City on the pitch with the team railing 4-0. He defended himself against his critics by claiming: “It was the right thing to do. There is no doubt about it. I have got no regrets about it whatsoever. If it bruised one or two egos then so be it, although it wasn't intended to be that way... Hopefully, the mentality of the group will be stronger for the experience.” This defence of his “public humiliation” strategy is not helped by the fact that Hull City have not won a game since this incident took place.

Coaching football players is like any form of teaching. The main objective is to improve the performance of the individual. A lot of research has been carried out into discovering the most effective methods of educating young people. These methods fall into two main categories: positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement. Or in football coaching terms, “putting your arm around a player” or “kicking him up the backside”. It is often claimed that good managers know the right-time to use either of these two strategies. However, the research suggests that it is positive reinforcement that is far and away the most effective way of improving the student’s performance.

Of course, all teachers lose their temper and resort to negative reinforcement. They will try to justify this by saying that the students benefit from this behaviour. This is what Harry Redknapp and Phil Brown did after their outbursts. However, in reality, the reason they acted in this way was because they lost control of their emotions. It was relieving frustrations rather than applying logic to solving a problem.

Zola clearly is a believer in positive reinforcement. He concentrates on praising rather than criticizing behaviour. Great teachers treat each student as an individual that they honestly care about. This is clearly Zola’s approach. In a recent interview Jack Collison claimed that the recent improvement in his performances on the pitch is a result of one-on-one tuition from Zola.

Interviews with other players such as Carlton Cole and Matthew Upson reveal that Zola spends a great deal of time building up player’s confidence.

It is no coincidence that everybody who has had any contact with Zola describes him as a “loveable” man. Zola has that fairly unique ability of making people feel good about themselves. That is because he praises rather than criticizes. In his everyday relationships he uses positive rather than negative reinforcement. So many people, especially those suffering from an inferiority complex, are more concerned with putting people down than raising them up.

Zola is not the first football coach/manager to use this approach. The greatest exponent in the use of positive reinforcement was Herbert Chapman. He used his extensive scouting network to identify young players with potential. Chapman would then watch them play and carry out an investigation into their personalities. When he was convinced that they had the necessary requirements he would go in and sign them.

In 1927 Eddie Hapgood was a 19 year-old playing for non-league Kettering Town. In his autobiography, Football Ambassador (1945), Hapgood describes meeting Chapman for the first time: “After a dozen games, Bill Collier, the Kettering manager, called me into his office and introduced me to a chubby man in tweeds, whose spectacles failed to hide the shrewd, appraising look from his blue eyes.”

After he had confirmed that he did not smoke or drink, Chapman signed him for Arsenal. The following day, Chapman told Hapgood he was going to make him the best left-back in England. Like Zola, Chapman and his trainer, Tom Whittaker, went in for one-to-one tuition. Gradually, they built up his confidence until he was the best left-back in the country, illustrated by the fact that he played 30 times for England.

Chapman told everyone he signed that he was going to make them the best player in that position in the country. He even told Whittaker, who was forced to give up the game because of a serious leg injury, that he was going to make him the best trainer in the world.

In May 1929 Chapman signed the 17 year old Cliff Bastin from Exeter City for £2,000. Bastin did not initially want to leave Devon but was persuaded by Chapman's manner: "There was an aura of greatness about Chapman. I was impressed with him straight away. He possessed a cheery self-confidence, which communicated itself to those around him. This power of inspiration and the remarkable gift of foresight, which never seemed to desert him, were his greatest attributes."

As Stephen Studd pointed out in Herbert Chapman: Football Emperor (1981): "He (Chapman) set great store by what he regarded as the dignity of the athlete, treating his players as human beings instead of mere paid servants, which was how most other players were regarded elsewhere."

Chapman also rarely made changes to the team. Even when individual players were in poor form he was reluctant to drop them. According to Chapman it was a matter of confidence and he saw it as his job to build up self-belief in his players. That is why he always criticised supporters if they barracked one of his players. "When they (team changes) are necessary I try to arrange that they cause as little disturbance as possible." Drastic changes only unsettled the players and if the side was not playing well, "the moderate course is always the best".

Jack Lambert was one of the players who was often barracked by the Highbury crowd. Chapman was furious and proposed that barrackers should be thrown out of the ground if they did not respond to an appeal for fairness over the loud-speaker. Lambert, very much like Carlton Cole, and only scored one goal in his first sixteen appearances. However, Chapman refused to lose confidence in him, despite only getting 4 goals in 22 games the following season.

Herbert Chapman gave Lambert another opportunity to show him what he could do by giving him a good run in the 1929-30 season. This time he did well and scored 18 goals in 20 appearances. After that, there was no stopping him and by the time he had left the club he had the excellent record of 109 league and cup goals in 159 appearances.

Chapman was not always successful in persuading the Highbury crowd to lay off his players. He later admitted that Arsenal crowd destroyed the confidence of one young player. The 20 year-old player told Chapman: "I'm no use to anyone in football and I had better get out. The crowd are always getting at me... I hope I shall never kick a ball again." Chapman eventually allowed the young man to leave the club "though it meant sacrificing a player who, I was convinced, had exceptional possibilities of development".

Chapman’s methods brought great success and his teams won the First Division championship six times with two different clubs before he died in 1934 at the early age of 56.

Let us hope that Zola’s methods also brings the same success as achieved by Herbert Chapman.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/ARSENALchapman.htm

West Ham v Manchester United (John Simkin)

2009-02-10T07:39:00.000Z

The newspaper reports of the game against Manchester United will do doubt be dominated by the activities of their aging stars. The 35-year-old Ryan Giggs will rightly be praised for scoring in every Premier League season since the competition's inaugural campaign of 1992-93. Edwin van der Sar will also dominant the headlines with his 13th consecutive clean sheet in the league that sets a new British record.

The hacks will also go on about how the league leaders and arguably the best football team of the world were below their best. This is what they did when the Hammers achieved draws against Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal. It seems to be beyond the logic of these journalists that teams are only as good as they are allowed to be. Despite the fact that they had an attack that included Ronaldo, Giggs, Tevez, Berbatov and Ronaldo, Green only had one save to make.

After the game, Gianfranco Zola said: "It was a close match. Unfortunately for us they have some great players and if you make a mistake they punish you." In truth, the goal followed a series of small errors that resulted in Green being beaten for the first time in 400 minutes.

In the 61st minute a harmless lob forward caused confusion between Collins and Neill and the former gave away a needless corner. Upson headed-out Giggs corner to Noble who tried to set-up a quick counter-attack. He lost the ball to Vidic, and the ball broke to Paul Scholes. Meanwhile, the rest of the defence had moved forward to catch United’s forwards offside. However, Neill walked rather than ran, and he played Giggs on, who gratefully received a delightful cross-field pass from Scholes.

With Neill rooted to the spot, Carlton Cole made a dash for Giggs. Unfortunately, instead of holding-up Giggs, he dived in and he veteran winger coolly side-stepped him and headed for the penalty area. Parker had also sensed the danger and he raced towards Giggs. He anticipated that Giggs would move the ball to his favoured left-foot, however, he saw Parker’s intended tackle and moved to his right. Behrami, who obviously expected Parker to stop Giggs in his tracks, failed to close him down and he was able to send a right-foot shot through a crowd of players and past Green into the bottom corner of the net.

Six small mistakes and two great pieces of skill caused the Hammers to be beaten by a single goal. However, it should not be forgotten that for the game was evenly matched. Upson and Collins restricted Tevez and Berbatov to the odd long-range shot.

Ilunga and Collison ably defended the left-flank and both Ronaldo and Giggs were forced to try their luck on the opposite wing. Here they found Behrami in inspired form and his protection of Neill was outstanding. His importance to the defensive set-up was illustrated when he was replaced by Diego Tristan in the 88th minute. Within sixty seconds Ronaldo took on Neill who stuck out a leg and brought the winger down. Dowd took pity on the hapless full-back and waved away his rightful claim for a penalty.

Carlton Cole posed a constant threat to Ferdinand and Vidic. In the 13th minute Cole ran onto an excellent through-ball from Noble. Ferdinand struggled to match his pace and was forced to hold onto his arm. Cole, unbalanced by Ferdinand’s tug attempted to lob the goalkeeper. This is a difficult thing to do against a tall goalkeeper like Edwin van der Sar and he was able to make a comfortable save. Most observers will claim that Cole should have hit the ball as hard as he could, but with Ferdinand holding onto him he would have found it virtually impossible to get any real power behind the shot.

Cole was even more impressive in the second-half. One moment in particular stands out in my mind. In the 59th minute Cole received the ball 30 years from goal. Even though Vidic had hold of his shirt, Cole was still strong enough to turn the central defender. With Cole heading for the United penalty area, Vidic decided to take a yellow-card by hauling him to the ground.

The problem for Cole is that he received very little support from Di Michele. Although the Italian was neat and tidy and successfully found his teammates with 29 of his 37 passes, he never posed a threat to the United defence. In fact, according to the Guardian’s chalkboard analysis, he only made one successful forward pass throughout the game. The other passes went either sideways or backwards.

According to Kevin McCarra: “The United method is to exhaust teams and then defeat them. There is such confidence in the passing that the opposition's lungs burn as they chase after the ball that is being withheld from them.” That never worked against West Ham who now seem to be one of the fittest teams in the league.

Savio came on for Noble in the 76th minute. One of the problems of bringing him on late is that he tries too hard to impress. Instead of keeping it simple he tries ambitious passes that at the moment are not coming off. As a result four of his fourteen passes did not reach a teammate. Hopefully, he will be given the opportunity to start in the game against Middlesbrough. With Neill playing in Japan for Australia on Wednesday, it might be a good idea to give him a rest for next week’s game.

Green: Good reaction save when Scholes shot that was going wide was diverted by Ronaldo. Had no chance with Giggs’ goal. (7)

Neill: Nearly 25% of his passes went astray but did manage to get two shots on target. (6)

Collins: Managed to get in the way of most things thrown at him (8)

Upson: Along with Collins kept Berbatov and Tevez fairly quiet. (8)

Ilunga: His reputation goes before him and Giggs and Ronaldo spent their time working on Neill’s failings. (7)

Behrami: Another all-action performance who provided excellent cover for Neill. The danger of Ronaldo meant he could make few forages upfield.

Parker: Exemplary game except for the failed tackle against Giggs that led to the goal. (8)

Noble: Lovely pass to Cole offered West Ham best chance of scoring. However, overall, his passing was not up to his normal standard with a 25% failure-rate. (6)

Collison: Doubled-up with Illunga against Giggs and still found time to help the attack. (8)

West Ham United: The Making of a Football Club by Charles P. Korr

2009-02-06T12:15:00.003Z

In 1970, I became an assistant professor of history at the University of Missouri, an institution that was only seven years old at that time. My teaching responsibilities included advanced level and M. A. courses in Tudor-Stuart England and 17th century Europe. One of the many advantages of being in a new, and growing, department was the chance to develop new courses and get away from the traditional syllabus. In 1972, I organized a very successful conference dealing with the role that sports played in contemporary American society. Two things about it stand out in my mind – the range of serious non-sports issues that were discussed and that I got to be Jackie Robinson’s host for two days. It’s a great thrill to see that the heroes of one’s youth can be even better people that one imagines. Three years later, I started teaching a social history of sports course, one of the first taught in any department of history at an American university.

As a result of the conference, I tried to do some serious reading about sports (especially football) in English society and was very disappointed to see how little there was at that time. That’s when I decided to see if I could start research of my own on the subject. I was returning to England in the summer, 1973 and wrote the secretaries of all the London League clubs to ask if I could talk with them about a possible subject for my research. I got invitations to visit all but two clubs and I met with the secretaries of seven of them. My original plan was to do a social history of football in London after 1945. When I realized that was too big a subject, I decided to focus on one club. Since I wanted a club that had a distinctive, recognizable community, I limited the final choice to West Ham United and Charlton.

It’s no exaggeration to say that my career and my life were changed by an afternoon I spent at Upton Park in July, 1973. I was with Eddie Chapman, the club secretary for a couple of hours. The club had a history that would make it a perfect study for me. Eddie was enthusiastic about the idea and convinced Reg Pratt, the chairman, to help me. I ended up with a historian’s treasure trove. I got free access to all of the club’s financial records and the minute books of meetings from 1895 to 1970. When I began the research in 1974, it was the start of a new career, an involvement for me with both the club and football, and the beginning of friendships that last to this day. I have to emphasize that I did not choose West Ham because I was a fan. The dynamic was just the opposite. I became a fan because I got involved with the club and the people around it. I worked at the club for months over three summers before I saw my first match there in 1976. Over the years, I got to know remarkable people like Eddie, John Lyall, Ron Greenwood, Frank O’Farrell, other former players and a number of long time supporters. I interviewed scores of former players, club officials, and journalists.

Over the years, the club has offered me hospitality and I get to a few matches each autumn. One thrill was to attend the 1980 Cup Final and to be able to buy a ticket for my friend and mentor, S. T. Bindoff. It was his second Cup Final, the first one being in 1923. At that match, I sat behind Jimmy Ruffell, the West Ham winger in 1923.

From the time I got involved with the research in football, I had a couple of things that marked me as unusual in the minds of Englishmen and women who learned of my work – I had no background in football and I had an accent that made clear I was “that Yank who wants to write about West Ham.” I’m sure those peculiarities brought me to the attention of other academics who did research in football and other aspects of British and European sports. When I decided to do all my academic research in the field of sport history, there were very few academics involved in it. Thirty years later, the field has a solid academic base, even though some of the academic snobbery towards “it’s only sports” remains.

My West Ham United book was published in 1986 and went through four editions. I had a wonderful publisher in Colin Haycroft at Duckworth, but he made one small mistake. They let the book go out of print in 1994, the year before the centenary of the club when it was boasting that it was the “club with a special history”.

Charles Korr

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_w_h_?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=West+Ham+United%3A+The+Making+of+a+Football+Club&x=18&y=19

Success and Conservatism: The Manager’s Dilemma

2009-02-03T15:03:00.001Z

In his book “The Mackericks English Football When Flair Wore Flares” (1994), Rob Steen suggested that winning the World Cup in 1966 was the worst thing that could have happened to English football because “it established deep in the English footballing consciousness the notion that the functionality of Alf Ramsay’s side was the only way to achieve success”. Steen was making the important point that the problem with success is that it breeds conservatism.

In his brilliant book, “Inverting the Pyramid: A History of Football Tactics” (2008), Jonathan Wilson argues that really great managers in the past never allowed themselves to become conservative football managers. Wilson provides a short-list of these managers that includes two Scotsman, Bill Shankly and Alex Ferguson. It is no coincidence that these two great managers were brought up in working-class areas by parents who were active socialists. They grew up in a tradition that believed in the need for permanent revolution. The same could also be said of Brian Clough, another manager who constantly reminded people of his socialist beliefs.

The main point about great managers is that they are never satisfied with success. This is what gives Ferguson such an advantage over Arsene Wenger, who sticks rigidly to a formula that in the past brought success. Ferguson carefully analyzes every match and even when his club is winning easily, he will still make changes if he observes a weakness in his team. The vast majority of managers cannot do this. They will only replace players when their individual mistakes have resulted in the team dropping points. In other words, the great manager takes pre-emptive action.

There is no doubt that Zola and Clarke have done a great job so far at the club. Since losing to Spurs on 8th December, West Ham’s form has been very consistent, winning six, drawing three and losing only once (rather unluckily against Aston Villa). It has been a tremendous effort when you consider the quality of the players in the team. I would argue that if you studied the squads of all the premiership clubs, West Ham is the most over-achieving side in the league. In the language of an Ofsted inspection, Zola and Clarke are providing “added-value”.

Despite this good run I have observed two serious problems that needed to be addressed in the transfer window. First of all, in every game, the opposition targets Lucas Neill as the team’s weak-link. This could be seen in the game against Arsenal on Saturday. Samir Nasri causing a great deal of panic in the opening stages with his pace down the left flank. Valon Behrami did what he could to help Neill but there is little he can do when the full-back gives the ball away, as he does on numerous occasions. This problem is reflected in the statistics. So far this season Neill has an average rating of 6.10. This is the lowest rating of any first-team regular. There is nothing new in this. Last season Neill had an averaging rating of 6.06, also the worst figure anyone who played over 30 games.

The problem for Zola is that the only squad member who he has so far considered to play at right-back other than Neill, is Julian Faubert, who has an average rating of 5.65 this season. As there has been talk for sometime that Faubert would leave during the transfer window, it is strange that the club has not lined-up anyone to take his place. It seems that the club had been talking to Bryce Moon and Radiu Homei, but Scott Duxbury failed to conclude either deal. As both players have struggled to get in their club’s first-team, it is hard to see how they would have added much to the current squad.

The second problem concerns the first-team pool of players. It has often been said that one way you can accurately judge a team is by looking at the quality on the bench. On Saturday, the West Ham bench consisted of Lastuvka, Lopez, Savio, Boa Morte, Spector, Tristan and Sears. It is hard to think of any other premiership side that has a weaker group of players waiting to be called into the first-team.

I am sure that Zola and Clarke have identified these two problems. The only answer is that West Ham does not have any money to buy or take players on loan. It would seem that they do not think enough of Lopez or Spector to start them in games or even bring them on as substitutes. One possibility is to coach Tomkins to play in this position. Last season Curbishley had Tomkins playing at full-back in a couple of reserve games.

I believe that Zola has already done enough this season to suggest that he has the potential to be extremely successful in this terribly difficult profession. However, he has so far been very lucky with injuries. The quality of the current squad means that Zola has no chance this season to show that he has the potential to reach the standards of managers such as Shankly, Clough and Ferguson.

John Simkin

West Ham v Arsenal (John Simkin)

2009-02-01T16:24:00.000Z

Two years ago, when West Ham became the first visiting team to win at the Emirates, Robert Green was in outstanding form. This time Arsenal only managed three shots on target and two of these were straight at the goalkeeper. The Hammers have now drawn at Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal and Steve Clarke, speaking after the game rightly pointed out that: "It's very important for the players' confidence to come to these places and get a draw. There has been significant progress from October."

However, the game once again highlighted problems that have not been completely solved by the Zola/Clarke regime. As always, the opposition targeted Lucas Neill. Samir Nasri causing a great deal of panic in the opening stages with his pace down the left flank. Valon Behrami did what he could to help Neill but there is little he can do when the full-back gives the ball away in dangerous positions.

Even against a team like Arsenal, Neill loves to go forward and there are times when he can actually deliver a dangerous ball into the opposition half. The problem is that he is extremely slow to get back when the attack breaks-down. The sight of him jogging or walking back to his position during a counter-attack increases my blood-pressure. This is in direct contrast to Illunga, who is just as fast going back as he is going forward.

The other major problem concerns the substitutes. For example, Noble was in poor form and as well as badly directed passes he was rarely able to get forward to support Cole and Di Michele. I suspect that he had not fully recovered from the knock he got on Wednesday and it was no real surprise when he was brought off in the 72nd minute. However, his replacement was Savio, a striker, who had to play in the centre of midfield. As it happens he did a fine job and I felt the team performed better after his introduction, but it does highlight the need for more options on the bench. So far this season we have not had too many injuries to first-team players, but if our luck changes, with the current squad, we are going to struggle to maintain our position in the top half of the league. I know we will have Radoslav Kovac available next week but we still need a couple more defenders, especially a high-quality right-back.

Clarke’s summary of the game was fairly accurate: "It's always difficult when you come here against a team who pass so well, you have to be disciplined and do the right things. Maybe I'm disappointed we didn't do more with the ball, but today was more a defensive performance. We came here with the intention of playing as we have been playing recently and didn't concede too many clear-cut chances which was pleasing.”

What he did not say was that West Ham gave the ball away too much against Arsenal. When this happens against a quality team, it takes you sometime to get the ball back. This is reflected in the stats with the Hammers only achieving a 75.6% pass completion compared to the 81.2% achieved against Hull. The 37% possession figure was also not very impressive.

Clarke was right to point out that it was a good defensive performance and Collins, Upson, Parker, Illunga, Collison and Behrami all had impressive games. Although Green only had to save two shots (Collins headed the other off the line), eleven were blocked by West Ham defenders.

Cole, closely marshaled by Toure and Gallas, had few opportunities but still managed to get two shots on target, which was only one less than the whole of the Arsenal team managed. Di Michele was very disappointing and was unable to hold onto the ball against a tough-tackling midfield. This was to be expected but it would have been very difficult for Zola to have dropped him after his great performance against Hull. Only the really great managers have the confidence to do that sort of thing.

West Ham have shown that they are capable of getting draws away from home against top clubs like Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal. Next Sunday they have the opportunity to prove themselves against the best team in the league. Hopefully, Zola will play Savio alongside Cole in the game against Manchester United. I would also like to see him take a chance in playing Tomkins at right-back but I suspect Zola will opt for incompetence over inexperience.

Player Ratings

Green: Little to do but a poor punch at a corner resulted in Collins having to head the ball of the line. (6)

Neill: Given a torrid time against Samir Nasri. Also gave the ball away several times. (5)

Collins: Put his body in the way of numerous shots on target. Also headed off the line when Green found himself out of his goal. (8)

Upson: Another commanding performance from someone who fully deserves his place in the England squad. (8)

Ilunga: Was not able to go forward as often as normal but rarely looked like he was going to be beaten in defensive positions. (7)

Behrami: Spent most of the match covering for Neill and therefore made very few offensive breaks. One of the most important players in the side at the moment. (8)

Parker: Another inspiring performance from the man who controls everything in the centre of midfield. (8)

Noble: Well below his best. Distribution was poor and he gave very little support to Di Michele and Cole. I suspect he had not recovered from the knock he took against Hull. (6)

Collison: Except for a couple of poor passes in advanced positions, he had another highly promising game. (7)

Cole: Closely marked by Toure and Gallas he had few opportunities but still managed to get two shots on target. (6)

Di Michele: Found it difficult to get in the game and was fairly anonymous until he was taken off near the end. (5)

Julien Faubert

2009-01-31T07:03:00.002Z

The most unlikely story of the year:

BBC Football Website

West Ham midfielder Julien Faubert is on the verge of joining Spanish giants Real Madrid on loan.

The Frenchman has been given permission to talk to Real after struggling to secure a first-team place this season.

Real must pay a £1.5m fee for the loan move, with the option of buying Faubert at the end of the season.

Faubert, 25, joined West Ham in 2007 from Bordeaux for £6.1m, but soon ruptured his Achilles tendon, which kept him out until January 2008.

Madrid have been searching for a right winger during the transfer window had been linked with Jermaine Pennant, Aaron Lennon and Antonio Valencia.

The Hammers signed midfielder Radoslav Kovac on a loan deal on Friday and have also signed striker Savio Nsereko during the transfer window.

West Ham chief executive Scott Duxbury: "I was first contacted by Madrid on Friday and after extensive negotiations, we have agreed in principle a deal that would see them paying us a £1.5m fee to take Julien until the end of the season.

"His long-term future would then be reviewed in the summer, with a significant transfer fee payable should Madrid want to take up their option.

"If Julien does go on loan, then we will look to quickly bring in a replacement.

"Julien has struggled to get into Gianfranco Zola's team this season and, despite the high hopes we had for him when he joined us 18 months ago, he has not had the best of times.

"He had asked the manager about a possible move and we felt it right to let him talk to Real Madrid. If it does not happen, then we will of course welcome Julien back into the squad.

West Ham v Hull (Player Ratings)

2009-01-30T18:01:00.003Z

David Di Michele (8.5)

Carlton Cole (8.00)

Scott Parker (7.6)

Matthew Upson (7.3)

Jack Collison (7.3)

Mark Noble (7.1)

Herita Ilunga (7.0)

James Collins (7.0)

Rob Green (7.0)

Valon Behrami (6.8)

Lucas Neill (6.6)

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WMRhullH.htm

West Ham v Hull (John Simkin)

2009-01-29T15:57:00.006Z

Francis Bacon once said that “hope is a good breakfast, but a bad supper”. After the game Zola and Clarke went into a two-man huddle and had a quiet chat. There was a look of satisfaction on their faces and it would seem that they are gradually producing a team that should provide a diet of success for the long-suffering Upton Park fans.

After the loss of Bellamy we feared the worse as he appeared to be at the heart of what was best about West Ham as an attacking force. On his performances up to then, David Di Michele did not seem to be an adequate replacement for Bellamy. However, in the last three games this Italian has been a revelation. He is clearly a much fitter player than he was when he first came to the club and he is now willing to do his fair share of running-back. The presence of Savio Nsereko on the bench clearly helped to motivate him and he had his best ever game for the club.

Di Michele and Cole caused the Hull defenders problems all night. After the game Phil Brown claimed that “the front two were the difference between the two sides.” Brown might want to believe this but in reality West Ham were better than Hull all over the pitch.

West Ham had three good opportunities to take the lead before Di Michele curled a lovely shot against the post in the 16th minute. Soon afterwards a mazy run by the Italian resulted in him being heavily tackled in the area. Di Michele’s claims for a penalty were turned down but three minutes later Cole was brought down by Ricketts. Cole made the most of the challenge but Howard Webb clearly made the right decision by awarding a penalty.

After going almost a year without a penalty, this was Mark Noble’s fourth spot-kick in as many weeks. The previous three had been successfully directed to the left of the goalkeeper but it seems that Duke had done his homework and was able to get his hand to the ball.

As recent games have shown, West Ham no longer get disheartened when things go against them. The team continued to press forward and first Cole and then Di Michele missed good chances. In the 33rd minute Cole found himself on the edge of the area and tried to curl the ball behind Duke. This time the Hull goalkeeper got a hand to the ball but only managed to push the ball to the feet of Di Michele and at last we had our deserved lead.

The highlight of the first-half took place in the 39th minute when a lovely exchange of passes between Cole and Di Michele ended in a shot from Collison hitting the post. This was followed by Cole escaping the offside trap but his shot rebounded off Duke and spun towards the goal-line before the goalkeeper, racing back, was able to push the ball out for a corner.

In the 51st minute Di Michele fired against the upright but the ball came out straight to Cole who reacted quickly and it was 2-0. Although his finishing still leaves a lot to be desired, Cole was scoring in his fifth consecutive league game, equalling the record previously held by Tony Cottee, who scored in successive games against Sheffield Wednesday, Leicester City, Manchester City, Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United in the 1985-86 season.

Hull made a better job of closing West Ham down in the second-half and in the 57th minute Bullard’s crisp shot was well saved by a fully stretched Robert Green. West Ham continued to make chances and substitutes Faubert and Boa Morte both missed good chances before Savio Nsereko was brought on for Di Michele in the 87th minute. The crowd called out for the team to pass to the youngster, but it was to be Cole in the 3rd minute of stoppage time who was given the final opportunity to increase the margin of victory over Hull. Once again he failed to hit the net but it was another impressive display by this vastly improved player. After the game Cole reflected on these misses and vowed to get better. With the help of Zola and Clarke I am sure he will.

The main concern is not with the first-eleven but the quality of the players on the bench. The idea of bringing on players like Faubert and Boa Morte does not give you too much confidence. In recent weeks they have come on to help hold onto leads but I doubt if they have the ability to win games for us. I note that Junior Stanislas has been recalled from Southend and maybe he will be on the bench in future. There is also the possibility of midfielder Radoslav Kovac, agreeing a loan deal for Spartak Moscow. I believe young James Tomkins can do a good job for us but feel we need more cover at full-back.

This was the ninth game on the trot that Zola’s team have played well. Parker and Noble have developed a great partnership in the centre of midfield and they are ably supported by Behrami and Collison. This has enabled the Hammers to dominate games and even though they did not get victories over Aston Villa and Newcastle, there was no doubting who was the better team on the day. The team is brimming with confidence and they rarely give the ball away.

The real test comes on Saturday. Can they perform at this level against Arsenal? If they can, then, as long as we don’t get too many injuries, we can really compete for a place in the top six.

Green: Very little to do but an excellent save from Bullard in the 5th minute (7)

Neill: As Hull played without wide men he had little to do in defence. Provided some good crosses in the first-half. (6)

Collins: Dealt competently with everything that came to him. (6)

Upson: Was not really tested but his defensive headers were impressive and he played an important part in the second goal. (7)

Ilunga: Never troubled in defence and spent most of the time going forward. (6)

Behrami: Hunted down the Hull midfielders whenever they had the ball. Another very impressive performance by this workaholic. (7)

Parker: At the centre of everything that went on in midfield. He is the player we must not lose in the transfer window. (8)

Collison: A player I love watching. His upright stance reminds me of Brooking. Has the potential to be as good as Carrick. Let us hope we keep this one. (7)

Noble: Developing a great partnership with Parker at the centre of midfield. Poor spot-kick but was unlucky with a delightful chip in the 78th minute. (7)

Di Michele: Hit the post twice and scored a simple tap in. More importantly, he worked hard for the team and provided some good passes to Cole. (8)

Cole: Scored in his fifth consecutive league game and therefore equalled the club record set by Tony Cottee in the 1985-86 season. Although he missed four other good chances, his all round play makes him one of the most difficult strikers to play against in the Premier League. (8)

Carlton Cole

2009-01-29T15:57:00.005Z

The Guardian

Carlton Cole has thanked his manager at West Ham United, Gianfranco Zola, for helping him achieve the best form of his career and win over supporters who had been vocal in their criticism.

The striker's goal in Wednesday's 2-0 victory over Hull City was his 10th of the season and his fifth in five league matches, equalling a club record set by Tony Cottee. Naturally, Cole is in ebullient mood but he admits his success could not have been achieved without Zola's help off the pitch.

"I'm playing with more awareness now," said Cole of the effect of the man he used to play alongside at Chelsea. "That is because the manager has made an effort in trying to make me aware of what's going on around me on the pitch. Because of that I'm now in the best form of my career. I've just got to keep on going. I'm not letting it get to my head – I just need to get in the right positions."

Such is Cole's confidence that he was even able to smile after several glaring misses against Hull. That, he admits, is partly down to the more relaxed atmosphere he finds himself playing in now, specifically at home, where he was regularly the target of abuse from frustrated supporters.

"It's nice to have the fans on my side now," he said. "I've been there when the fans ain't been really great to me and that's been tough. But I have them on my side [now] and they are really helping me out with my goals."

Cole's next chance to score comes tomorrow at Arsenal, where victory would be the Hammers' seventh in eight matches and could take them seventh in the table, just five points off a Uefa Cup spot.

Scott Duxbury

2009-01-27T14:24:00.003Z

Sky Sports

Scott Duxbury:

"The January transfer window is perplexing. You're in the middle of a race and then suddenly you've got to lose some of your players. You should be able to get to the end of the race with the squad you've got - and we're doing well.

We didn't want to lose any players because I think we can achieve something quite special this season. There is a change of philosophy at this football club; I keep referring to the football project, it's a business plan that we stick to [in order] to deliver success.

Part of that is that we need to be aware of our fans expectations, and we need to be aware who our local rivals are. There's a masssive rivalry between ourselves and Tottenham. As I've said, it's nothing against Tottenham but why on earth should we sell any player that would strengthen their team? It just makes no sense to me.

We're competitive, we're in a competitive league. I want to finish above Tottenham year after year and I want to deliver success - so I won't be selling any of our players to our local rivals, it just makes no sense to me."

Savio Nsereko

2009-01-27T11:08:00.001Z

Sky Sports

West Ham United have completed the signing of Brescia striker Savio Nsereko on a four-and-a-half-year deal.

The 19-year-old has moved to England for an undisclosed fee, but it is understood to be a club record transfer in the region of £9million.

West Ham director of football Gianluca Nani revealed on Monday that Savio was expected to move as the Hammers looked for a replacement for Craig Bellamy.

The Wales captain joined Manchester City last week and Nani, who worked with Savio at Brescia, has now landed an ideal alternative.

Savio began his career with 1860 Munich, before he was snapped up by Brescia as a 16-year-old, and he has also represented Germany at youth level.

Subject to international clearance, Savio will make his debut in the Premier League clash against Hull City at Upton Park on Wednesday night.

Scott Parker and Mark Noble

2009-01-26T18:11:00.002Z

Quotes from today's Guardian:

Scott Parker: "Bellers hasn't been on the phone asking me to go up to Manchester and that wouldn't be welcome... Until anyone says any different I see my long-term future at West Ham. I'm playing some really good stuff, I'm in a passing team and it's really pleasing and enjoyable. We've got something really good under the new management. The manager is a really confident person and that's reflected in the way we're playing. We're not scared. Gianfranco Zola's been great for us. I honestly think that, given time, this manager can do something really good with the players we've still got here. We are going to sorely miss Bellers, but we have to forget about Craig now. Other people will come to the fore."

Mark Noble: "I don't think we could do without Scott. He's very important. He gets the play going, makes great tackles and takes responsibility.The gaffer and his staff are fantastic, we work really hard and are much more resilient than before. We've sold a few players but the manager has accepted that and we've pulled together as a team. We're not a massive squad but we are a team."

West Ham v Hartlepool (John Simkin)

2009-01-25T15:18:00.001Z

In the press conference before the game Zola made it clear that he was going to play his first-eleven against Hartlepool as he was “desperate to take West Ham all the way to Wembley.” The fact, that Faubert and Tomkins replaced Neill and Upson is therefore highly significant. Although the manager, who had himself won two FA cup winners’ medals in 1997 and 2000, insisted they players were being rested, it was not hard to deduce that Neill and Upson, who had not played against Barnsley in the previous round, were being prevented from being cup-tied. Zola will have difficulty off-loading Neill but there must be a good chance that a Champions League club will make an offer for Upson before the end of the transfer deadline.

The game also provided another opportunity for Zola to put Faubert in the shop-window. In the second minute Faubert raced down the right-wing and crossed a dangerous ball into the area that a Hartlepool defender deflected on to the crossbar. That was as good as it got for Faubert and for the rest of the game he was more likely to put over a dangerous cross in front of his own goal.

For most of the first-half West Ham made a reasonable job of containing a Hartlepool side that treated the game if it was the cup final itself. In the 8th minute Green missed a cross from a corner and after hitting Michael Mackay, the ball trickled towards the goal-line and Parker had no difficulty clearing it upfield.

The Hammers remained in second-gear and other occasionally appeared to be trying to score a goal. In the 16th minute Collison showed great control before curling a shot narrowly wide of the post. Just afterwards, Cole just failed to get to a cross from Illuga.

The first real alarm came in the 36th minute when Faubert inexplicably headed the ball across his own goal to the feet of Joel Porter, who was obviously taken by surprise by this appalling defending, and showing little composure, blasted the ball wide.

This incident persuaded the Hammers that they probably needed to get a couple of goals if they were to win the game. In an effort to reach Di Michele’s through-pass, Cole collided with the goalkeeper, Arran Lee-Barrett. The Hartlepool team immediately surrounded Cole and got so close to him that it was impossible for him to get off the ground. This reaction guaranteed that Cole got a yellow-card for what was a 50-50 ball.

The booing of Cole by the home-crowd galvanized him into action and in the 40th minute he hit goalkeeper with the ball rather than a boot. Soon afterwards Tomkins shot wide after a free-kick. It was all West Ham now and when a Collison run into the area was blocked, the ball rolled into the path of Behrami and he drove the ball into the net.

In stoppage time of the first-half, Cole attempted to flick the ball on to Di Michele, Nelson reached up and clearly tried to stop the ball with his hand. The referee ruled that the ball was inside the area and gave a penalty. Television replays showed this was a mistake but Noble took advantage of this lucky-break by scoring from the spot.

Hartlepool made a valiant attempt to score in the second-half but they lacked the quality to really trouble the West Ham team and Green only had one decent save to make throughout the game, a header from Gary Liddle in the 61st minute.

Before the game, the Hartlepool manager, Chris Turner, had argued: "In terms of pure football ability, there's often not a lot between many Premier League players and those in League One. The real difference is that Premier League footballers are mentally, and sometimes physically, far stronger, with much better powers of concentration. Quite a few of this Hartlepool team could play for West Ham in the Premier League, no problem – but only on a one-off basis. I think you'd find they wouldn't have the consistency and concentration to do it week-in week-out. Those are the qualities which give top-level players their edge."

The game showed why Turner has never managed at the top level. Not one of their players showed any of the “pure football ability” that is required in the premiership. Although, it has to be admitted that none of them did anything as bad as Faubert’s header across goal.

Scott Parker controlled the middle of the park and Cole, Collison and Noble made the odd penetrating run. Behrami worked manfully protecting the hapless Faubert and after a nervous start Tomkins helped Collins to snuff out any danger in front of goal.

Overall, a very competent performance and once again Zola and Clarke showed they can prepare their players for a match. This is apparently what John Terry and Frank Lampard have said has been missing from Chelsea since Clarke left the club. It was very noticeable that it was Clarke and not Zola who gave the substitutes such detailed instructions before they entered the fray.

Chris Turner was right about one thing. Good premier league players are not only skillful, they are consistent and do not make many mistakes. That appears to be the type of team that Zola and Clarke are building, and I am more optimistic about the club’s fortunes than I have been for 20 years.

Green: Missed one punch and made a reasonable save from Gary Liddle. (6)

Faubert: Another hapless display that will probably guarantee that we are stuck with him to the end of the season. (5)

Collins: Commanding performance from this much improved player. (7)

Tomkins: Started nervously but settled down to play his part in this comfortable victory. (6)

Illunga: Found a lot of space in advanced positions in the first half but failed to provide good enough crosses. (6)

Behrami: Another all action performance from this extremely hard-working player. Was always a threat going forward and still found the time to protect Faubert. (7)

Parker: Completely controlled the mid-field and was the most important player on the pitch, and provided an excellent captain’s performance. (8)

Noble: Did not have to be at his very best today. Looks to be a competent penalty-taker. (6)

Collison: A few nice touches but generally a fairly quiet afternoon. (6)

Cole: Made some good runs and with a little more luck would have scored to keep his run going. Was rightly substituted when Zola made the assessment that the referee might give his robust play a second yellow card. (6)

Di Michele: Too easily knocked off the ball but he did make a couple of good defence splitting passes to Cole. (6)

Substitutes

Boa Morte: Made no impression on the game except for making himself look very foolish during a short-corner routine (64 minutes)

Sears: Held the ball up well and went close with his own chance of a shot. (78 minutes)

Mullins: Helped to close the game down when he was brought on for Di Michele. (75 minutes)

Video Highlights

West Ham United: Daily News Report (7)

2009-01-24T07:43:00.004Z

"Concentration, concentration and more concentration." According to Chris Turner it is the elixir of FA Cup giant-killing and the mantra he has been hammering into his Hartlepool United players as they prepare for the visit of West Ham United on Saturday.

"In terms of pure football ability, there's often not a lot between many Premier League players and those in League One," said the former Manchester United goalkeeper turned Hartlepool caretaker manager. "The real difference is that Premier League footballers are mentally, and sometimes physically, far stronger, with much better powers of concentration.

"Quite a few of this Hartlepool team could play for West Ham in the Premier League, no problem – but only on a one-off basis. I think you'd find they wouldn't have the consistency and concentration to do it week-in week-out. Those are the qualities which give top-level players their edge. A lot in League One can definitely play but are way too inconsistent." (The Guardian)

SEAMUS COLEMAN

Sligo Rovers full-back Seamus Coleman is hopeful of sealing his move to British football very shortly. The right-sided defender is reported as being close to a deal to join West Ham United, though it is believed that several other British clubs, including Everton, Championship sides Burnley, Ipswich Town and Birmingham City, as well as the Scottish Premier League's Celtic, are also keeping close tabs on the promising 20-year-old.

Known as an attacking right-back, the player has won four caps at Under-21 level for the Republic of Ireland, and one at Under-23 level. It is unclear as to what sort of fee Sligo might be able to command for the player, whom they snapped up from amateur outfit St Katherin's of Killybegs after he performed well in a friendly against the League of Ireland side.

Coleman himself was revealing nothing when speaking to Irish media earlier though, and was clearly trying to keep his feet on the ground as speculation mounted about his future. (Goal)

BRYCE MOON

Bryce Moon claims to be a target for West Ham United Football Club.

It was reported earlier this month that Gianfranco Zola was keen on the Panathinaikos defender, and the South African has revealed he is aware of the interest from the Premier League side.

"I know about the interest of West Ham but I have nothing official yet in my hands," Moon told the Greek media. "My agent Mike Makaab is working on it.

“I will hear from him soon. I am a Panathinaikos player now. I don't know what is going to happen in the near future, but now I am focused on Panathinaikos." (Fans FC)

ANTAR YAHIA

West Ham United Football Club are looking to bolster their back four.

Gianfranco Zola may be willing to let Calum Davenport leave Upton Park this month, but he is also keen to sign another defender before the end of the month.

Reports in the Daily Mail suggest the Italian coach has turned his attention to Algerian defender Antar Yahia, who is currently contracted to German club Bochum.

The 25-year-old is an important member of Marcel Koller’s side, but the Hammers hope they can make an offer the Bundesliga club can’t refuse. (Fans FC)

West Ham United: Daily News Report (6)

2009-01-23T16:50:00.004Z

West Ham have turned down an £8m offer from Spurs for Carlton Cole.

That bid came at the start of the January transfer window, but Harry Redknapp is ready to revive his interest after his failure to snap up Craig Bellamy.

Tottenham failed in an attempt to sign Cole last summer after they lost Dimitar Berbatov to Manchester United.

A number of other clubs also asked about Cole in December, which is why the 25-year-old striker was given a new deal until 2013.

Cole has flourished under the guidance of new boss Gianfranco Zola, scoring nine goals this season.

He has also reached England manager Fabio Capello’s radar, although it is considered ‘premature’ by the England camp to suggest that he is in line for next month’s friendly against Spain.

Spurs are desperate to sign new strikers, with Redknapp believed to be ready to use £17m hitman Darren Bent in part-exchange for Cole. (Daily Star )

SAVIO NSEREKO

West Ham United are close to agreeing a deal to sign Brescia's Savio Nsereko for a fee that could total £10m after club executives spent the past two days in Italy holding talks. The club hope to make an announcement soon over the 19-year-old German, who decided to miss training yesterday and is well known to West Ham's technical director, Gianluca Nani, who was previously with the Serie B club, and manager, Gianfranco Zola.

The investment would be a club record for West Ham, beating the £7.5m spent in July 2007 for Craig Bellamy, who was sold earlier this week to Manchester City for £14m. West Ham hope that if they sign Savio it will demonstrate the commitment given to Zola that, beyond a number of fringe players, the proceeds of any sales would be reinvested.

Savio, an Under-19 international, has been interesting other Italian clubs, including Milan and Napoli, but West Ham hope that the size of their bid will prove successful. One of his agents, Dieter Hamann, confirmed that the club were in the race to sign Savio, who can play in a variety of attacking roles and is on a list of potential signings drawn up by Zola, Nani and chief executive Scott Duxbury. (The Independent)

JOE LEDLEY

Cardiff City have reportedly slapped an £8m price tag on skipper Joe Ledley.

Reports emanating from London suggest that is the sum West Ham would need to pay to prise him away from Ninian Park.

The Hammers have money to spend after off-loading Wales captain Craig Bellamy to Manchester City for £14m.

And Ledley, who turns 22 today, is thought to be at the top of Gianfranco Zola’s shopping list.

Bluebirds chairman Peter Ridsdale has denied suggestions in London that there has already been contact between Cardiff and the Hammers.

However, sources within Upton Park insist a deal could still be on and, while they have balked at paying £8m, West Ham are set to proceed with a £7m bid next week. The Bluebirds have already turned down a £6m offer from Stoke for Ledley.

PABLO DANIEL OSVALDO

New Bologna signing Pablo Daniel Osvaldo has claimed he rejected the chance to move to West Ham United.

The 23-year-old former Fiorentina striker was hevaily linked with a move to London earlier this week following the departure of Craig Bellamy but instead completed a move to Serie A strugglers Bologna yesterday.

And in a statement confirming his switch Osvaldo claimed that he opted for a move to the Rossoblù over West Ham - despite having been offered the chance to move to England.

My options were West Ham or Bologna," he told the Italian club's website. “Both were interesting, but I chose Bologna.

“I know that the club and the fans expect a lot from me. I want to show my worth and score a lot to lend the team a hand. Bologna is a great opportunity for me.”

Gianfranco Zola had been tracking the former Italian under-21 star for some time, but Osvaldo becomes the second transfer window target the Hammers have missed out on following Giampaolo Pazzini's move from Fiorentina to Sampdoria last week. (KUMB)

Alan Dawson on Steve Clarke

2009-01-23T11:36:00.004Z

Great article in Goal today by Alan Dawson:

What has been Chelsea's biggest loss this season?

Could it have been the relinquishing of their astonishing home record when Liverpool beat them 1-0 at Stamford Bridge due to a tenth minute Xabi Alonso effort in late October?

What about the 3-1 away defeat against AS Roma in the Champions League, where the Blues always looked second best?

Chelsea were leading London rivals Arsenal for half an hour, only for Dutch forward Robin van Persie to steal a win with two exquisite strikes, so that may come close.

The recent humbling at Old Trafford - when Nemanja Vidic, Wayne Rooney, and Dimitar Berbatov all converted their chances - may top the lot.

If one thinks outside the box then the axing of 15 of Chelsea's scouts could be worthy of mention, but considering the lack of exciting and dynamic youth talent (barring a promising and prolific young striker called Fabio Borini, who joined the club from Bologna in 2007), what exactly did those scouts contribute to the Stamford Bridge outfit? Perhaps we will not know for another few years.

Roman Abramovich has been hit by the credit crunch. Russia's economy has been at least as hard hit as the United Kingdom's, the stock markets and oil prices in Roman's homeland having plummeted, even prompting stories that the Chelsea owner would have to choose between selling his London SW6 club or his £200,000,000 yacht in an attempt to cut his losses.

Yet notwithstanding all of this, what about the loss of the only prominent remnant of the pre-Abramovich era in west London? The middle-man; the go-between; the link between the players and the manager; the good cop to former boss Jose Mourinho's bad cop; the paternal Scot who'll put his arm around you and motivate you to buck up; and the defensively astute tactician, trainer, and coach, who can spot a leaky rearguard and find the perfect prescription. Yes, I'm talking about Steve Clarke.

Clarke, a right-back during his playing days and a Chelsea legend, having accumulated 421 first-team appearances (the fifth highest total in the club's history) left Chelsea to join former Blues team-mate Gianfranco Zola in November - on the other side of London, at West Ham United.

A brief role at Newcastle United as a caretaker manager followed his retirement as a player, before he took on coaching roles at Chelsea's youth set-up. He then worked his way up to the rank of assistant boss in 2004.

The role of the assistant is oft-overlooked, but their contribution is significant, especially when a foreign manager comes into the game who is unaware of or inexperienced in the rigours, the physicality, and the pace of the Premier League. Jose Mourinho relied on Clarke during those early years to wise him up on who was who on the opposition rosters. Even Arsene Wenger had Pat Rice when he first arrived at Arsenal.

Luiz Felipe Scolari could have done with Clarke for a little while longer.

Is it a coincidence that Chelsea have looked increasingly weaker in the weeks that have followed Clarke's departure? Is Chelsea's biggest loss West Ham's biggest gain?

The Blues have been exposed at the back with their inability to stifle set-pieces, their midfield has lacked potency, and the fluency all round has dissipated.

Contrast that with Clarke's arrival at West Ham.

Prior to his appointment at Zola's side, the Hammers had not kept a clean sheet in over 1,500 minutes of football - a record that stretched as far back as February in the previous season. Yet since he arrived at the Boleyn Ground, they have gone on to deny three sides a goal, one of these results being a shut-out at Anfield against then-League leaders Liverpool.

The statistics provide a telling story.

In Clarke's last 17 league games with Chelsea, he helped oversee 11 wins, and six draws.

Since his resignation, the Blues have contested 18 league games, have won ten, drawn five, and lost three.

During the four games that he was present at Chelsea this season, they conceded just twice, which is a ratio of 0.5 per game. Since leaving for the Hammers, Chelsea have conceded at a ratio of 0.6 per game.

Not the most drastic of increases, but combined with the average points gained then the results are more noticeable. With Clarke, Chelsea gained 2.5 points per game, but without him they have only mustered 1.95 points per game.

It could even have been Mourinho's vengeance on the club that fired him that he rang Gianfranco Zola and recommended that the Italian tactician hire Clarke as his assistant as a matter of urgent priority.

We have seen teams suffer defensively in the past due to a backroom changearound. When Carlos Queiroz left Manchester United for the first time, after assisting Sir Alex Ferguson to the title, United then went on to slip out of the top two, handing automatic qualification to the Champions League to Chelsea and Arsenal.

Not only has Steve Clarke left, but after Mourinho's departure, Chelsea also lost Baltemar Brito (an assistant); Rui Faria (a conditioning coach); Silvinho Louro (goalkeeping coach); and finally Andre Villas Boas (chief scout).

With Mourinho, Rui Faria, and Clarke all gone, Chelsea have lost their rigidity, and the rigorous regimes that they imposed seem to have been replaced with routines that are yet to bear fruit. If Scolari is going to achieve anything from this season then he better hope Ray Wilkins - who never really hit it off at QPR - starts to make things tick in the background, while he takes care of the foreground; a task that is also one of the highest order.

http://www.goal.com/en/news/1717/editorial/2009/01/22/1072731/comment-chelseas-biggest-loss-is-west-hams-biggest-gain

West Ham v Fulham (Player Ratings)

2009-01-22T16:59:00.003Z

Carlton Cole (8.3)

Scott Parker (7.3)

Jack Collison (7.2)

Valon Behrami (7.2)

Mark Noble (7.0)

David Di Michele (7.0)

James Collins (6.7)

Matthew Upson (6.7)

Herita Ilunga (6.6)

Lucas Neill (6.6)

Rob Green (6.2)

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WMRfulhamH.htm

West Ham United: Player Ratings

2009-01-22T16:49:00.002Z

I use the ratings from 13 different newspaper and websites to get an average player-rating for every West Ham game. After 22 games this is the current table of West Ham players:

Craig Bellamy (6.93)

Freddie Sears (6.64)

Matthew Upson (6.64)

James Collins (6.61)

Rob Green (6.60)

Scott Parker (6.58)

Dean Ashton (6.46)

Jack Collison (6.43)

Carlton Cole (6.31)

Mark Noble (6.23)

Calum Davenport (6.23)

Herita Ilunga (6.14)

Matthew Etherington (6.12)

Lee Bowyer (6.10)

Valon Behrami (6.09)

Hayden Mullins (6.08)

Lucas Neill (6.07)

David Di Michele (6.04)

Luis Boa Morte (5.76)

Julien Faubert (5.65)

West Ham United Ratings

West Ham United: Daily News Report (5)

2009-01-22T07:52:00.003Z

Fulham and West Ham want to hijack a move by Middlesbrough for Ben Watson.

The Crystal Palace midfielder had been due to seal a switch to Teesside on Thursday after Boro's £2million offer was accepted by the Championship club, but both London sides have now matched that bid.

Watson, 23, had gone to the north-east for a medical and talks over personal terms last night, but is believed to have a preference for staying in the capital. Palace hope to use any transfer fee to fund a bid for Cardiff defender Darren Purse.
Meanwhile, West Ham have asked about Panathinaikos right back Bryce Moon and Bochum's centre half Antar Yahia as manager Gianfranco Zola looks to strengthen his resources in defence.

Brescia winger Savio Nsereko's agent also claims the Hammers are interested in clinching a deal for the 19-year-old.

Midfielder Julien Faubert has confirmed he wants to leave Upton Park and return to France with Lyon. (Daily Mail )

Zola on the January Transfer Window

No one, he knew, was going to pay much attention and, still less, do anything about it, but Gianfranco Zola said it anyway. He said it would be very nice if they got rid of the January transfer window. Then you could judge how well a manager worked with his players, how he could develop a team from the optimism of late summer to the realities of the spring.

He wasn't railing against how money wields such influence in football. Zola is from Sardinia, a place which is well versed in the iniquities of life. This is why quite a number of Sardinians still arm themselves to the teeth when they go about their daily business.

No, Zola was simply saying that if the game has never been so transparently a rich man's world there is still no reason why, without even attempting to close fundamentally the huge divide which, say, separates, the recently colonised Manchester City and his own club, we might still be able to restrict the plutocrats to one spending spree per year. As it works, said Zola, the January window permits the rich clubs to top up their resources, correct mistakes, and wipe out at least some of the effects of injury. It means that his West Ham United lose a player as talented as Craig Bellamy at a pivotal point in a remarkable recovery to eighth place in the Premier League after being locked in the jaws of relegation.

This, Zola further contends, builds in still more imbalance between those with generous resources, as West Ham had, relatively speaking, before the Icelandic economy descended to the value of not much more than a packet of fish fingers, and those who are obliged to live within their own self-generated means. "No one will listen," said Zola with a shrug, "and no one will do anything about it, but it is still true. The January transfer window is only for the rich. For those who are not rich it is just another handicap." (The Independent)

Joe Ledley

Cardiff City's midfielder Joe Ledley has been the topic of much debate during this January transfer window with a host of Premiership clubs interested in the Welshman.

Stoke City were one of the favourites but were told they must increase their previous £6m bid and deceided to look elsewhere, instead swooping for Matty Etherington from West Ham Utd.

The loss of Etherington, possibly Boa Morte and now Craig Bellamy has left the Hammers short of options and given boss Gianfranco Zola some room to maneuver in the transfer market. There has been some (stronger than usual) speculation that Joe Ledley is one name under serious consideration and West Ham could be set to make a bid.

There is no indication that Cardiff City would accept, but with Joe out of contract in the summer, and only preliminary talks over a new deal underway - the Bluebirds would be foolish not to consider bids above £5m. (Cardiff Football)

Julien Faubert

Lyons are expected to complete a deal to sign Julien Faubert from West Ham United this week. The winger has failed to impress since he joined from Bordeaux for £6.1 million in the summer of 2007. Chelsea are looking to sign a winger on loan to replace Joe Cole, who is out for the season. (The Times)

Savio Nsereko and Daniel Pablo Osvaldo

West Ham United are closing in on a record £10m fee to sign Brescia's German striker Savio Nsereko as they move quickly to bolster their squad following the departure yesterday of Craig Bellamy to Manchester City for £14m, with the club vowing never to sell one of their leading players to Tottenham Hotspur ever again.

The scale of the deal for Savio will cause some surprise, given that he is only 19 and is currently playing in Serie B, but he is highly rated by the West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola and technical director Gianluca Nani, who was previously at Brescia. The fee beats the previous club record, of £7.5m, paid for Bellamy in July 2007.

West Ham have also been in talks to take another young striker, 23-year-old Daniel Pablo Osvaldo, on loan from Fiorentina until the end of the season, with an option to acquire the former Italian Under-21 international, who was born in Argentina, for around £7m in the summer. He has worked with Zola previously.

West Ham face competition to sign both players, mainly from Italy, but hope to conclude deals in the next 48 hours. They decided to move for Savio and Osvaldo after also considering Mario Balotelli, who is unsettled at Internazionale, and Giampaolo Pazzini before he moved from Fiorentina to Sampdoria earlier this month. (The Independent)

West Ham v Fulham (Match Reports)

2009-01-21T10:33:00.002Z

BBC Sport: Defensive errors proved costly for Fulham as West Ham eased to victory at Upton Park to go eighth in the table.

Sky Sports: West Ham proved they can cope without Craig Bellamy as they recorded a 3-1 victory over capital rivals Fulham at Upton Park without the striker's services.

Hammers Mad: West Ham United moved above Fulham into eighth place in the Premier League table after comfortably beating Roy Hodgson's side 3-1 at Upton Park.

Hammer's Diary: My three nominations for MOTM would be Valon Behrami, Jack Collison and Carlton Cole.

Daily Telegraph: Fulham’s strength this season has been their resilience but, as manager Roy Hodgson admitted honestly, they produced a full quota of errors in one Sunday afternoon.

The Times: “Who needs Craig Bellamy?” was the question sung with gusto by the Upton Park crowd as West Ham United hit three goals against a defence that, until yesterday, had been one of the most miserly on its travels in the Barclays Premier League.

West Ham v Fulham (John Simkin)

2009-01-19T11:25:00.001Z

Gianfranco Zola appointment as West Ham’s manager caused me and a lot of fans some concern. The historical record shows that top players rarely make great coaches. It is argued that naturally gifted players find it virtually impossible to understand how to coach someone to greatness. What is more, Zola’s only experience was of coaching the Italy Under-21 team.

Zola’s chances of success as a manager were improved dramatically by the appointment of Steve Clarke as his assistant. Insiders at Chelsea had been claiming for sometime that he had made a significant contribution to the club’s achievements under José Mourinho.

Three wins in the first nine games was not a great start and the insistence of selecting players such as Julian Faubert and Luis Boa Morte raised serious questions about his judgement. I also did not agree with his reluctance to play Jack Collison and Freddie Sears. Although I suspect some of his team selection has been influenced by the need to sell players on high-wages.

The turning-point was the game against Chelsea. This saw the emergence of Collison, Noble, Parker and Behrami as a formidable foursome that could ably protected the back-four. These players also have the energy to support Bellamy and Cole when the team has the opportunity to go on to the attack.

On recent form, Fulham unbeaten in their last nine games, gave the Hammers a chance to show how far they have improved since the 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge. The main problem was the absence of Bellamy who has been such a dynamic force in recent weeks. His replacement, David Di Michele, is not the same sort of player, however, Zola could have argued that the kind of skills he does possess, would be useful against a packed midfield that is not known for its hard-tackling.

West Ham kept the ball well in the opening exchanges and was rewarded when in the seventh minute John Pantsil tried to show the Upton Park crowd that he was a skillful full-back who should not have been sold by calmly chesting Neill’s cross back to his goalkeeper. However, the gap between the two players was too wide and Di Michele nipped in to give us an early lead.

With the home side dominating the midfield, Fulham appeared to pose no danger until Paul Konchesky went on a run in the 22nd minute. Lucas Neill, motivated by a knowledge that the full-back had not scored since the FA Cup final against Liverpool, backed off and allowed him to shoot unhindered from 34 yards. It was a beauty and it curled just inside the post.

Despite this set-back, West Ham refused to panic and continued to play their short-passing game from the back. This was sensible because the occasional long clearance up to Cole was being won by the impressive Brede Hangeland.

The second-half was more open and although Fulham attacked more often, they never posed a real threat and Green did not have to make a save. The same could also be said of Mark Schwarzer but it was the Fulham defence that always looked like they would make a mistake that would give the home side an opportunity to score. This is what happened when Konchesky dwelt on the ball on the hour mark and Cole robbed him and headed for goal. A few weeks ago the defender would have allowed Cole to go on and shoot over the bar or into the midriff of the goalkeeper. Given his recent form, Konchesky decided he could not take this risk and brought him down from behind. Noble coolly dispatched the penalty and West Ham had a lead that they never looked like loosing.

Dickson Etuhu was the next Fulham defender to make a serious mistake. He sliced the ball to Collison who provided a nicely weighted pass to Di Michele, who slipped it through to Cole, who applied a confident touch past the goalkeeper.

The newspaper reports on the game will no doubt concentrate on the three mistakes by Fulham defenders that resulted in three goals for the home side. However, this was an impressive performance by the Hammers that gave an in-form Fulham side a lesson in how to play football. All the players seem comfortable on the ball and had no difficulty in finding a teammate with an accurate pass. They also play as a team, each player being fully aware of the role they are playing.

The Upton Park crowd chanted: “Who needs Craig Bellamy?” It is true we did not need him against Fulham but a player of his ability will be required for the rest of the season. We especially need a player who makes Bellamy-type runs in away games. Zola tells us he is going to be given the money for Bellamy to buy new players. Hopefully, he will use it to bring in talented youngsters who have already shown they can do it in the Premiership rather than European players who are past their best.

Robert Green: Had little to do but some would argue that no goalkeeper should be beaten from that distance. (6)

Herita Ilunga: Another assured performance from a player who makes very few mistakes. (7)

Lucas Neill: His distribution was better today but his forays into the opposition half always make me very nervous. His slow jog back to his position is unacceptable and is lucky to retain the faith of Zola. (6)

James Collins: He is developing a very good partnership with Upson. So far his lack of speed is not causing him any real problems. (7)

Matthew Upson: Commanding performance from this talented player. Hopefully, he will not be tempted to join a team playing in the Champions League. (7)

Scott Parker: The quality of the Fulham midfield meant that Parker did not have to be at his very best today. However, it was still a highly competent performance. (7)

Valon Behrami: Another all action performance from a highly valued member of the team. He only just failed to close-down Konchesky for Fulham's goal. (8)

Jack Collison: My man of the match. His promotion to the first-team has been a tremendous difference to the side's performance. Has the ability to go to the very top. West Ham's ambition will be tested by the offers that will come from the top clubs for this highly promising player. (8)

Mark Noble: He gives the midfield a sense of urgency. As with Collison, his youthful energy makes a great deal of difference to our midfield. (8)

Carlton Cole: Kept fairly quiet in the first-half by the impressive Hangeland. However, he proved a real handful in the second-half and showed that he is now full of confidence in front of goal. (8)

David Di Michele: His best game since he joined the club. His style of playing was suited to a packed midfield. However, I am not convinced he has the necessary abilities to be successful in the premiership. (7)

West Ham v Fulham (Gary Loughran)

2009-01-18T15:40:00.005Z

The latest game in a series of improving performances. West Ham gave arguably their best, winning, performance of the season to easily dismiss a hardworking Fulham side 3 - 1.

Fulham came to Upton Park with 3 ex-Hammers in their starting 11. Fortunately for West Ham all of Konchesky, Zamora and Pantsil were woefully off the pace of the game. First Pantsil miscontrolled a hopeful punt into the box to allow Di Michele to nip in and expertly open the scoring. West Ham continued to dominate proceedings and were unlucky to concede an equaliser to a wonder strike from Koncheskey, his first for Fulham.

The second half went much the way of the first until Koncheskey dallied on the ball, which was stolen from him by a determined Cole. As Cole bore down on goal, in an obvious goal scoring opportunity (note to referees everywhere - this was much more than a 'promising attacking move') - he was unceremoniously upended by Koncheskey. The resultant penalty, the first West Ham have been awarded in the Premiership in a year, was cooly slotted home by Noble.

As Fulham tried to get back in the game they lost their shape and West Ham duly punished this when a great move ended with Di Michele sliding a delicate pass to the on rushing Cole to convert. A great, flowing West Ham move.

The whole team deserve acclaim for this performance, the defence was outstanding with Neil and Ilunga looking the perfect complement to the steady Green, Upson and Colins. In midfield Behrami had his best game in Claret and Blue, Collison, Parker and Noble were excellently energetic as they won and kept possession better than at any time this season. Up front Di Michele is still a liability. Despite his goal and some nice touch play his overall game is not solid enough for us at this level.

Which leaves Carlton Cole. Quite often I have lambasted Cole as poor, having no touch, being a weak header of the ball and for primarily not being able to score. However, after recent performances (and especially this one) I am coming around to the belief that Cole might well be a consistent threat for us for years to come. Today he was simply outstanding. He worked hard and unsettled the Fulham defence, he distributed the ball well, he tackled well. Most of all he was a genuine threat as demostrated with some great first touches leading to better goal bound strikes. I am delighted that he is proving so many wrong, most of all me.

If Cole and West Ham continue with such solid hardworking team performances then we should easily find ourselves in the top half of an extremely finely balanced league.

Gary Loughran

Billy Barnes: West Ham’s First Star Player

2009-01-18T10:47:00.004Z

On 29th June, 1895, Arnold Hills, the chairman of the Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company, announced in his newspaper, the Thames Ironworks Gazette, that he intended to establish a football club. Charlie Dove, an apprentice riveter with the Thames Iron Works, was one of those who paid an annual subscription of 2/6 (12.5p) to join the club. Other employees who played in the team included Thomas Freeman (ship's fireman), Johnny Stewart (boilermaker), Walter Parks (clerk), Walter Tranter (boilermaker) James Lindsay (boilermaker), William Chapman (mechanical engineer), George Sage, (boilermaker), George Gresham (ship's plater) and William Chamberlain (foreman blacksmith).

Billy Barnes was only 16 years when the club was formed and was considered too young to play in the first game, a friendly against Royal Ordnance, on 7th September, 1895. However, at the training sessions on the fields in Hermit Road, Canning Town, Barnes showed that he was a talented young winger.

Barnes had been born in London on 20th May, 1879. His father was a foreman at Victoria Dock and his mother had a coffee shop in Silvertown. The family were involved in local politics and William’s brother, Alfred, eventually became the Labour Party MP for East Ham.

It was not long before Barnes had forced himself into the first-team. Thames Ironworks had not yet joined a league but they did take part in the West Ham Charity Cup. The club reached the final against Barking Woodville. The first match ended in a 2-2 draw with Robert Stevenson and Johnny Stewart scoring the goals for the Irons.

The replay took place at the St. Lukes ground at Beckton. Watched by a crowd of 3,000 people, Thomas Freeman and George Sage missed some good opportunities to open the scoring. After 20 minutes, Langford, one of Barking's forwards was forced to go off with a bad injury.

In the second-half Johnny Stewart with his "mazy runs" continued to cause Barking problems. Thomas Freeman was injured and both sides were now down to 10 men. Near the end of the game, William Chamberlain had a shot deflected for a corner. George Sage took the corner and the 17 year old Barnes, fired in a low, fast shot, scoring the only goal in the game.

In 1896 the Thames Iron Works entered the London League. It was not long before clubs in the First Division of the Football League began sending scouts down to the Hermit Road ground to watch the talented Barnes. After considering several offers for his services he eventually signed for Sheffield United in 1899. The team had recently won the FA Cup and the First Division title and was considered to be the best side in the country and included English international players such as William "Fatty" Foulke, Ernest Needham, Walter Bennett and George Hedley.

Sheffield United had a good cup run in the 1901-02 season. They beat Northampton Town (2-0), Bolton Wanderers (2-1), Newcastle United (2-1) and Derby County (1-0) to reach the final of the FA Cup against Southampton. Unfortunately, Barnes was not selected for what became a very dramatic final.

Sheffield took an early lead but Southampton scored a controversial equalizer and the game was drawn. Fatty Foulke, who weighed over twenty stone, was furious that the equalizing goal had been given and after the game he went searching for the referee. The linesman, J. T. Howcroft, described how Frederick Wall, secretary of the Football Association, tried to placate the goalkeeper: "Foulke was exasperated by the goal and claimed it was in his birthday suit outside the dressing room, and I saw F. J. Wall, secretary of the FA, pleading with him to rejoin his colleagues. But Bill was out for blood, and I shouted to Mr. Kirkham to lock his cubicle door. He didn't need telling twice. But what a sight! The thing I'll never forget is Foulke, so tremendous in size, striding along the corridor, without a stitch of clothing."

Billy Barnes was selected to play in the replay. The game was only two minutes old when a massive clearing kick by Foulke reached Jack Hedley and Sheffield United took an early lead. Led by the outstanding Ernest Needham, Sheffield dominated play but Albert Brown managed to score an equalizer. Southampton began to apply pressure but according to the Athletic News, "Foulke was invincible". With ten minutes to go, Needham took a shot that the Southampton goalkeeper, John Robinson, could only block, and Barnes was able to hit the ball into the unguarded net. Sheffield won 2-1 and Barnes had won a cup-winners' medal, the greatest achievement in football at the beginning of the 20th century.

Barnes had found it difficult to settle in Sheffield and at the beginning of the 1902-03 season he returned to the club that had been renamed as West Ham United and were now playing in the Southern League. Unfortunately, a succession of injuries meant he was no longer the player he was when he was a teenager.

Barnes played 54 games for the club before moving onto Luton Town. He also played for Queen’s Park Rangers and Southend United before retiring from the game. He had developed a reputation as someone who thought deeply about the game and was invited to coach the Spanish club Bilbao.

His brother also achieved great success in politics and served in the government of Clement Attlee as Minister of Transport (1945-51).

Billy Barnes died in 1962.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHbarnesW.htm

West Ham United: Daily News Report (4)

2009-01-17T07:07:00.005Z

Several sources are reporting today that Craig Bellamy has effectively gone on strike after refusing to play against Fulham tomorrow.

Bellamy, who was the subject of a bid worth around £10million plus incentives from Tottenham yesterday [Friday] is said to have stormed out of Chadwell Heath on Friday morning after he was told that Spurs' bid had been refused, and that he was therefore denied permission to speak to them with regards to a move.

The Welsh international - who also remains strongly linked with Manchester City - is reported to have refused Scott Duxbury's offer of a two-year contract extension before leaving the ground having told Hammers staff that he would be not be playing in tomorrow's Premier League clash. (KUMB)

Craig Bellamy was in confrontation with West Ham United last night after he was refused permission to talk to Tottenham Hotspur. The Wales forward made a verbal transfer request and said goodbye to staff after a meeting with Scott Duxbury, the chief executive, yesterday. Bellamy, who did not train and cleared some items from his locker at the training ground, has refused to play against Fulham tomorrow.

West Ham have turned down three bids from Tottenham – the latest being an initial £10 million, rising to £12 million – and say that they have offered Bellamy a new long-term deal. If forced to let him go, the East London club would probably prefer to sell him to Manchester City, who have also had three bids turned down. However, the player does not appear to want to move his family again and he may also believe that Mark Hughes, whom he is close to, will not be City manager beyond this season.

West Ham believe that Bellamy, 29, should honour his commitment to play for the club after they helped him through stomach and groin injuries last season. West Ham have serious concerns about Tottenham’s pursuit of Bellamy after a media report said that the player had met a representative of Spurs on Thursday night.

Harry Redknapp, the Tottenham manager, denied tapping up any players, but his club have been criticised by Middlesbrough, for their pursuit of Stewart Downing, and by Sunderland, for their interest in Kenwyne Jones. If proved, it could embarrass Tottenham, who complained about how Liverpool and Manchester United tried to sign Robbie Keane and Dimitar Berbatov respectively in the summer. (The Times )

Craig Bellamy has gone to war with West Ham in a bid to force through a move to rivals Tottenham and is refusing to play in tomorrow’s Premier League game against Fulham.

But the Hammers are furious with Spurs’ pursuit of Bellamy and would prefer to sell the striker to Manchester City.

At the same time as making a world-record bid to sign Brazilian star Kaka from AC Milan, City matched Tottenham’s latest offer of £10million – rising to £12m – for Bellamy that was rejected.

Bellamy, 29, met West Ham chief executive Scott Duxbury yesterday and told him he wanted permission to speak to Spurs.

Duxbury rejected Bellamy’s request and offered him an extension to his contract that would have kept him at Upton Park until he is 35.

Bellamy was also reminded in the clearest possible terms that the Hammers stuck by him through his injury problems and when he was not scoring earlier in the season. But Wales international Bellamy turned down the offer, refused to train with the rest of the squad and is understood to have cleared his locker before leaving the training ground. (Daily Express)

While West Ham have remained true to their pledge not to cash in on their best players during this transfer window, the situation with Bellamy may force their hand and they can expect further bids from both Tottenham and Manchester City. West Ham have also turned down offers for Scott Parker from Manchester City.

Manager Gianfranco Zola also admitted that he had no idea whether Bellamy would be available. "What can I do about it? As far as I am concerned I want to keep him and the club want to keep him," he said. "If a player wants to go it is difficult. At the moment he is a West Ham player and he will stay a West Ham player. I don't know if he will play on Sunday.

"The club wants to keep the player and I want to keep him. It's difficult to keep players who are unhappy at the club but we'll see what happens."

Zola, though, admitted that West Ham were already considering replacements. "If Bellamy goes we will need to replace him and that's why we're looking," he said. "I respect Craig and I am disappointed he doesn't want to stay. He has done very well for me and I hope he stays and if he doesn't then I hope he does as well for someone else as he did for me.

"You need to have players who are committed to what you're doing. I've been told he's still our player and I'm confident he'll change his mind. [The] priority is to keep Bellamy. We have no commitments with anybody so that's most important.

"He is important for us but I am prepared to deal without him. I was hoping to have him until the end of the season. I think highly about him but it's his choice. He knows what he can get here but if he thinks he can't get what he wants here then that's up to him.

"He's a good player and gives us a lot on the pitch. I have no doubt that he is an important player as are many of the others. He's an important piece of a mosaic." (Daily Telegraph)

West Ham have rejected two previous offers from Spurs for Bellamy – a £6m offer on Christmas Eve and a straight swap deal for Darren Bent on Tuesday evening.

They have also declined three previous offers from City – a £15m offer, which would also have included Scott Parker, a bid of £8.5m plus £1m in add-ons and a £9.5m offer that was made on Wednesday. But Spurs manager Harry Redknapp, shocked by his team's defeat away to Wigan Athletic last Sunday, has convinced chairman Daniel Levy that Bellamy is the kind of player who can save the club from the threat of relegation and is likely to offer even more money.

Importantly, Spurs are believed to be prepared to smash their wage structure to land Bellamy who is understood to currently earn around £70,000-a-week at West Ham, more than any Tottenham player.

After his meeting yesterday, Bellamy asked for permission to be excused from training because he was not in a fit state of mind, and this was granted by Zola who is keen to keep the striker, but only if he has a change of heart and wants to stay.

Bellamy, the former Liverpool, Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United, Coventry City and Norwich City striker, arrived at West Ham for £7.5m in 2007 and is regarded as a key player at the club.

Yesterday, Zola said: "What can I do about it? As far as I am concerned I want to keep him – and the club want to keep him. But if a player wants to go, it's difficult. At the moment he is a West Ham player and he will stay a West Ham player. However, I do not know if he will play on Sunday. We will see what happens."

Meanwhile, Redknapp said of Bellamy: "Someone has told me that he wants to come here and play. If we can do a deal, good."

If Bellamy is sold, West Ham will re-invest the funds to find a replacement and are understood to have a list of potential targets in addition to, according to sources in Italy, taking 23-year-old striker Pablo Daniel Osvaldo on loan from Fiorentina. (The Independent )

Pablo Daniel Osvaldo

West Ham United: Daily News Report (3)

2009-01-16T07:28:00.009Z

Newcastle united last night abandoned a seemingly muddled and one-sided attempt to sign West Ham United captain Lucas Neill after the east London club said they were "astonished" by talk of any move.

Just hours after Joe Kinnear, Newcastle's manager, had spoken of taking the Australian full-back on loan until the end of the season, a Newcastle spokesman said: "With regards to Lucas Neill, West Ham United have made it clear he is a player they value as a highly important member of their squad and who they have no desire to sell. Newcastle United respect West Ham's position and will therefore not be pursuing this matter."

This was all news to West Ham, who released a statement on the club's website, saying: "West Ham would like to make it clear that Lucas Neill is a contracted West Ham United player and that we have received no approach from any club for his services, including Newcastle United.

"We are astonished by reports that a Premier League manager has claimed contact with one of our players."

Earlier Kinnear had spoken of the move as if it were well under way. "It would be a loan until the end of the season," he said. "Being happy to match his wages would probably be one of the reasons why we are taking him, or probably one of the reasons why they want to get rid of him."
(The Independent)

West Ham have reacted angrily to Premier League rivals Newcastle's interest in captain Lucas Neill. The defender, 30, is out of contract in June, with Magpies boss Joe Kinnear saying he had spoken to Neill's agent.

A Hammers statement said: "We'd like to make it clear Neill is a contracted player and we've received no approach from any club, including Newcastle.

"We are astonished by reports that a Premier League manager has claimed contact with one of our players."

Neill joined West Ham in January 2007, helping the club avoid relegation that season.

"West Ham have made it clear he is a player they value as an important to of their squad and they have no desire to sell," said a Magpies spokesman.

"Newcastle United respect West Ham's position and will therefore not be pursing this matter." (BBC Sport)

Craig Bellamy

Manchester City are in danger of missing out on Craig Bellamy after it emerged last night that Tottenham have stepped up their interest in the West Ham striker. Spurs are understood to have proposed a £12m deal for Bellamy, below, and that could well be accepted by West Ham, one of whose executives said yesterday that the Wales international will leave if the club is offered 'a substantial amount'.

City, who have had several bids turned down, may now match or even exceed Tottenham's offer in the hope of landing Bellamy but the player favours a move to White Hart Lane.

Officially, none of West Ham's best players are for sale as they seek to trim their squad by offloading the fringe members. Yet the club are conscious Bellamy is keen to move and, although Gianfranco Zola wants a smaller squad, there could be money available for the manager if Bellamy goes. (The Guardian)

Matt Upson

Arsene Wenger is ready to admit a £9m mistake on Matt Upson - and offer Nicklas Bendtner to take the West Ham defender back to Arsenal.

Wenger is desperate for a centre half and midfielder in January and Upson fits the bill even though it would mean an amazing U-turn.

Arsenal boss Wenger sold Upson to Birmingham for just £3m in 2003 and now hard-up West Ham want at least £12m for the England defender.

Wenger, who is also “hopeful“ of signing Andrei Arshavin, does not have limitless funds and may be willing to offer Danish striker Bendtner as a £5 million makeweight in any Upson deal.

Bendtner is a bit-part player at Arsenal and Wenger also has Eduardo coming back from injury and therefore may be willing to let him go to strengthen his central defence which is a major area for concern.

West Ham have knocked back bids from Tottenham and Manchester City for Craig Bellamy and are hoping to survive January without having to sell one of their prize assets of Upson, Robert Green and Scott Parker.

Upson is also reluctant to move to a club without Champions League ambitions and has been holding out to see whether Aston Villa or Arsenal would be interested. (Daily Mirror )

Luis Boa Morte

Luis Boa Morte has rejected the chance to join Hull City after failing to agree personal terms at the KC Stadium.

The Tigers had concurred on a fee with West Ham for the Portuguese international but Phil Brown conceded earlier on Thursday that the deal was close to collapse.

West Ham are eager to offload a number of their fringe players in a bid to reduce both overheads and the size of Gianfranco Zola's squad, but it would appear Boa Morte is to stay at Upton Park for the foreseeable future. (Sky Sports)

Tyler Rix

Tyler Rix, who has played for West Ham's Academy, signed the deal with Universal Music on the turf at Upton Park.

The 16-year-old saxophonist, from London, was discovered by record executives when he took part in BBC2's Classical Star TV talent programme.

Bosses at Universal Classics and Jazz offered him the chance to join a stable which includes Amy Winehouse, Take That and Jamie Cullum.

Tyler had a tough decision of his own to make – whether to pursue football or music.

By the age of 15 he had experienced a string of successes as a footballer.

Snapped up on the day of his trial, he played several times at Upton Park and was prominently featured in Junior Soccer, a coaching guide produced in association with West Ham United.

Tyler said: "I always knew that one day I would have to choose between my music and my football commitments.

"I could never have dreamt of making that choice in such a spectacular way."

"Tyler Rix is a sensational talent," said Dickon Stainer, managing director of Universal Classics and Jazz.

"We're very glad he chose music. It's better than playing at left back."

Tyler began playing the saxophone at the age of nine.

The deal comes at a busy time for Tyler, who is taking his mock GCSE exams.

His debut album, Ascent, is released on February 2. (Daily Telegraph)

West Ham United: Daily News Report (2)

2009-01-15T07:29:00.006Z

West Ham United have rejected two new bids for Craig Bellamy, with Tottenham Hotspur offering Darren Bent in a straight swap deal for the striker on Tuesday evening and then Manchester City upping their offer for the Wales international to £9.5m yesterday afternoon...

However West Ham are adamant that Bellamy is not for sale having already rebuffed three other offers for the 29-year-old. They rejected a bid of £6m from Spurs on Christmas Eve and then had two offers from City which they turned down. The first was a £15m bid, which also included City buying Scott Parker, and the second, which was also immediately rejected, came on Monday morning when City offered £8.5m for Bellamy, plus another £1m if he scored 25 goals in a season or the club won the Champions League. They have since offered £9.5m cash.

City are now set to move on to other targets, with Roque Santa Cruz remaining their number one choice ahead of Bellamy, although they would have liked to buy both players. The Paraguayan is expected to move to Eastlands for £20m from Blackburn Rovers before the end of the month. If West Ham were to receive an offer of £15m for Bellamy they have promised that they will then put it to manager Gianfranco Zola who, ultimately, will decide which players are bought and sold at the club.

West Ham are determined to hold on to their best players and have also rejected overtures to sign Valon Behrami – who was wanted by Roma – and Matthew Upson who has attracted inquiries from several Premier League side, most noticeably his former club Arsenal, Aston Villa and Newcastle United, although no formal bid has been received because all suitors were told the central defender is not for sale.
(The Independent)

Interview with Julien Faubert: "Zola has said he relies on me, but I don't see any opportunities coming... I didn't play against Newcastle and I don't know what he is up to. Right now my agent is discussing with clubs. Playing for a club such as Lyon is my priority to re-launch my international career. But the problem is that my selling price is very high." (Nigel Brown, Sport)

"Sheffield United chairman Kevin McCabe's intriguing silence on the latest twist to the Tevez affair was yesterday followed by the sale of top-scorer James Beattie for less money than the Yorkshire club paid for him seventeen months ago. This afternoon they released a statement confirming that the decision to sell Beattie to Stoke was made because of a need to cut costs, which doesn’t sound like the actions a club confident of landing £30-50 million in compensation would make." The Spoiler

West Ham have rejected a third bid from Manchester City for striker Craig Bellamy... On Monday West Ham turned down an improved £9m offer for the 29-year-old Welshman with the new bid again higher. City are keen to bring both Bellamy and team-mate Scott Parker to Eastlands but have so far failed to land either. (BBC Sport)

Herita Ilunga, the 26-year-old Congo international is currently on a season-long loan at Upton Park from French club Toulouse. At the end of the campaign, West Ham hope to make the switch permanent in a £3 million deal. However, Rafael Benitez has been impressed with how Ilunga has adapted to the pace and physicality of the Premier League. So much so that the Spaniard is reportedly ready to enquire over the terms of Ilung's contract and the possibility of signing him. (Daily Telegraph)

Luis Boa Morte

Luis Boa Morte's proposed £1m move from West Ham to Hull City has fallen through after the forward failed to agree personal terms. (Daily Express )

Gianfranco Zola to replace Luiz Felipe Scolari?

2009-01-14T12:02:00.002Z

Last night Chris Evans suggested on BBC Radio 2 that if Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari is sacked he will be replaced by Gianfranco Zola and Steve Clarke. According to the report the club has been very impressed with what Zola/Clarke have done at West Ham.

One of the first things that Clarke did when he arrived at Upton Park was to improve the fitness of the players. He had noticed that West Ham had a habit of losing goals in the last quarter of games. It is interesting that this is now what is happening at Chelsea.

It is claimed that John Terry and Frank Lampard have complained to Scolari about the quality of the training at Chelsea. They claim that the level of physical preparation for games has declined since the departure of Clarke.

West Ham United: Daily News Report (1)

2009-01-14T10:47:00.004Z

Birmingham could move for West Ham's Calum Davenport after his £3m move to Bolton collapsed. (Daily Mail)

Hull City manager Phil Brown has said he is hopeful of completing the signing of Luis Boa Morte by the end of the week. (BBC)

If Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari is sacked he might be replaced by Gianfranco Zola and Steve Clarke (Chris Evans, BBC)

City are expected to agree a deal to sign Craig Bellamy for about £12m this week after preparing an improved bid for the Wales striker. (The Times)

Manchester City will not allow Valeri Bojinov to be used as a make-weight in any possible deal to sign Craig Bellamy and Scott Parker from West Ham. (Sky Sports, 1215GMT)

Arnold Hills: The Founder of West Ham United

2009-01-13T10:44:00.000Z

In 1880 Arnold Hills joined the board of his father's company, Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding. He initially lived in the East India Dock Road in Canning Town. He became concerned about the living conditions of the local people. Hills commented that "the lack of recreational facilities was one of the worst deprivations in the lives of West Ham residents". He added "the perpetual difficulty of West Ham is its poverty, it is rich only in its population."

Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding occupied 30 acres of land at West Ham on the Essex side of Bow Creek and was London's last surviving major shipbuilding firm.In 1860 it had employed 6,000 men, but by 1895 it was half that number, and was suffering from serious competition from companies based on the River Clyde and in the North East of England.

On the death of his father, Hills became the managing director of the Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding Company. Hills established the Thames Ironworks Gazette in 1895. It was a combination between a local newspaper, popular history magazine and company newsletter.

On 29th June, 1895, Hills announced in his newspaper that he intended to establish a football club. The information appeared under the headline: "The importance of co-operation between workers and management". He referred to the industrial dispute that had just taken place and insisted he wanted to "wipe away the bitterness left by the recent strike". Hills added: "Thank God this midsummer madness is passed and gone; inequities and anomalies have been done away with and now, under the Good Fellowship system and Profit Sharing Scheme, every worker knows that his individual and social rights are absolutely secured."

The article asked workers interested in joining the Thames Iron Works Football Club to contact Francis Payne, a senior clerk at the company. Charlie Dove, an apprentice riveter with the Thames Iron Works, was one of those who paid an annual subscription of 2/6 (12.5p) to join the club. He was joined by about fifty other colleagues in this new venture. Training took place on Tuesday and Thursday nights in a gas-lit schoolroom at Trinity Church School in Barking Road. Training mainly consisted of Army physical training exercises. They also went for runs along the Turnpike Road (Beckton Road).

Other employees who played in the team included Thomas Freeman (ships fireman), Johnny Stewart (boilermaker), Walter Parks (clerk), Walter Tranter (boilermaker) James Lindsay (boilermaker), William Chapman, George Sage, and William Chamberlain.

The club was financed by members' subscriptions and a generous contribution from the Thames Iron Works. It was run by a club committee made up of "clerks, foreman or supervisors at the Ironworks". As over 50 men had joined the club, it was necessary to find enough matches for two teams.

Home games took place at Hermit Road, Canning Town. It had previously been used by Old Castle Swifts, a company club sponsored by Donald Currie, the owner of the Castle Shipping Line. Old Castle Swifts had been the first professional football club in Essex but it went out of business at the end of the 1894-1895 season.

Francis Payne was appointed as club secretary. The local newspaper praised Arnold Hills for forming a football team: "If this example were only followed by other large employers, it would lead to much good feeling."

Robert Stevenson became captain of the team. He was the Thames Ironworks most experienced footballer and had previously played for Woolwich Arsenal. Other players included John Woods, who also played cricket for Essex and George Gresham, who had been a regular scorer with Gainsborough Trinity. However, the star player was the 17 year old William Barnes.

Thames Iron Works pioneered floodlit football. The pitch was surrounded by light bulbs attached to poles. The football was dipped in pails of whitewash to make it easier to see. The first night match took place on 16th December, 1895. It was later reported that "the occasion was a success". It went onto the say that the generator "met the requirements and worked well" and "ten lights each of 2,000 candle power gave a good view to those present".

Their fourth floodlit game was against Barking Woodville. In his book, Iron in the Blood, John Powles quotes a report in the West Ham Herald: "Boys were swarming up over the fences for a free view when I put in an appearance. And what a smart man the Ironworkers have at the gate. He seemed to think my ticket was a real fraud until he had turned it upside down and inside out, and smelled at it for a considerable time. But he graciously passed me at last." The Irons won 6-2 with Charlie Dove getting a hat-trick.

On 20th March, 1896, Thames Iron Works played a night game against the famous West Bromwich Albion. The club committee arranged for the erection of canvas screens round the moat-ringed pitch, and charged the public for watching the game. WBA won 4-2.

By the end of the season the Thames Iron Works had won 30 of its 46 games. The team also defeated Barking to win the West Ham Charity Cup. The 17 year old, William Barnes, scored the only goal in the deciding game.

Hills continued to take a close interest in the fortunes of the club. In 1896 he sent a message to every member of the team: "As an old footballer myself, I would say, get into good condition at the beginning of the season, keep on the ball, play an unselfish game, pay heed to your captain, and whatever the fortunes of the first half of the game, never despair of winning, and never give up doing your very best to the last minute of the match. That is the way to play football, and better still, that is the way to make yourselves men."

Soon after the start of the 1896-97 season Thames Iron Works were evicted from the Hermit Road ground for violating their terms of tenancy by erecting a perimeter fence and charging admission to matches. Arnold Hills arranged to lease a piece of land in Browning Road in East Ham. This was only a temporary measure and after purchasing land at Canning Town, Hills built what became known as the Memorial Grounds. It cost £20,000 to build and was considered to be one of the best stadiums in the country. Hills claimed it could hold 133,000 spectators and applied to hold an FA Cup Final at the Memorial Grounds. This only allowed 16 inches for each person and the Football Association turned the idea down.

As well as a football arena, it also had a cinder running track, tennis courts and an outdoor swimming pool. According to one report, the 100 feet (30.4m) long pool was the largest in England. The Memorial Grounds was opened in June, 1897.

Hills used to organize a New Year party for the children of his employees. For example, this is how a local paper reported the party that brought in 1898. "Professor Anderson gave a few conjuring tricks and the young people were much amused by the comical actions of some of the Thames Ironworks Minstrels. Mr Hills gave a short address, and after nearly two hours had been spent in an enjoyable manner the children were marched out of the hall, each receiving a bun and an orange." The newspaper also reported that members of the Thames Ironworks football team were in attendance.

On 21st June, 1898, a 6,000 ton warship Albion became the first ship to be launched by a member of the royal family at the Thames Iron Works and Shipbuilding Company. The Duke of York, the future George V, and his wife, arrived for the launching ceremony in the early afternoon. Around 30,000 local people also competed to get a good view of this historic event. Over 200 people stood on a workmen's slipway alongside the uncompleted warship. At 2.50 pm the Duchess of York broke a bottle of champagne over the hull of the Albion. The ship entered the water faster than intended. This caused a massive backlash of water like a tidal wave that knocked people standing on the workmen's slipway into Bow Creek.

A total of 38 people died in the accident. This included a brother and sister, Ernest and Kittie Hopkins. Probably the saddest case was of Isabel White. When her body was recovered, her children, Lottie 5, and Queenie 2, were still clinging to her frock.

Arnold Hills was devastated by the accident and arranged to pay all the bereaved families' funeral expenses and personality visited the homes of the victims. Although the coroner criticized the organization of the launch (he recommended that in future accommodation should be provided by specially erected stands) Hills that he "met with no shadow of bitterness, no tone of complaint".

Soon afterwards two other terrible accidents had an impact on the people who lived in the area. An explosion onboard the Manitoba moored in the Albert Dock killed five workmen. This was followed by the loss of the 7,000 ton liner Mohegan on the Cornish coast. An amazing 34 members of the crew who died in the accident lived in West Ham.

It was hoped that the new 1898-1899 season would help take the workers' minds off these terrible events. That season Hills reluctantly accepted the proposal of Francis Payne that the club should recruit some professional players. Although a strong supporter of amateur football he argued it was "necessary to introduce a little ferment of professional experience to leaven the heavy lump". Payne's main argument was that better players would attract larger crowds. With attendances averaging 2,000, the club was being run at a loss and Hills was constantly being asked to subsidize the venture.

Thames Iron Works easily won the Southern League Division 2 in the 1898-1899 season. They obtained 9 points more than their nearest rivals Wolverton and Watford, who tied for second place. Outstanding performers that season included Charlie Dove, Tommy Dunn, Tommy Moore, Henry Hird, George Gresham, Walter Tranter, Jimmy Reid and Roderick McEachrane. The main star was David Lloyd who scored 12 goals in only 11 league appearances.

Arnold Hills, raised doubts about the wisdom of employing highly paid professionals. At the end of the season he wrote: "The committees of several of our clubs, eager for immediate success, are inclined to reinforce their ranks with mercenaries. In our bands and in our football clubs, I find an increasing number of professionals who do not belong to our community but are paid to represent us in their several capacities... Now this is a very simple and effective method of producing popular triumphs. It is only a matter of how we are willing to pay and the weight of our purses can be made the measure of our glory. I have however, not the smallest intention of entering upon a competition of this kind: I desire that our clubs should be spontaneous and cultivated expressions of our internal activity."

In 1899 Francis Payne, the club secretary, was given the task of finding good players for Thames Iron Works first season in the top division of the Southern League. According to one report, Arnold Hills, gave Payne £1,000 to find the best players available.

Payne employed an agent and former professional footballer named Charles Bunyan to obtain a player based in Birmingham. Bunyan missed his appointment with the player targeted by Payne. He then approached another player he thought might be interested in joining the club. However, this player reported Bunyan to the Football Association. The FA held an investigation into the matter and as a result, Bunyan was suspended for two years. Payne was also suspended and the Thames Iron Works was fined £25. George Neil, who had previously played for the Thames Iron Works, became the new secretary/manager.

In 1900 Arnold Hills decided to expand his business interests by acquiring the engineering firm of John Penn & sons. In order to raise new capital to finance the takeover, he decided to make Thames Iron Works a public company. This meant that in future he would be accountable to shareholders. Hills was no longer in a position where he would be allowed to pump company money into the football club.

As a result of this move, the football club was also reorganized. Thames Iron Works FC became West Ham United FC. Lew Bowen, a clerk at the Iron Works, became the new club secretary. Attendances at games, compared to their close rivals, remained disappointing. One reason for this was no nearby railway station. West Ham began to verge on the edge of bankruptcy and by the end of the 1903-04 season the club only had had the money to pay the wages of one professional player, Tommy Allison, during the summer.

Arnold Hills was also having financial problems and was unwilling to re-negotiate a rental agreement to use the Memorial Grounds that was acceptable to West Ham United. The club was forced to find another sponsor. A local brewery agreed to advance them a loan to help them purchase a new ground. A deal was arranged with the Catholic Ecclesiastical Authorities but the Home Office made it clear that they did not approve of the land being used by West Ham United. Syd King went to see Sir Ernest Gray, an influential Member of Parliament. As King later explained, "through his good offices, subject to certain conditions, we were finally allowed to take possession of Boleyn Castle".

In early 1900 Arnold Hills decided to expand his business interests by acquiring the engineering firm of John Penn & sons. In order to raise new capital to finance the takeover, he decided to make Thames Iron Works a public company. This meant that in future he would be accountable to shareholders. Hills was no longer in a position where he would be allowed to pump company money into the football club.

On 7th March, 1900, the West Ham Guardian reported that: "It is announced that the committee of Thames Ironworks FC are to consider some sort reorganization. A proposal is evidently on the table. For one who has it on authority says it will 'if adopted, undoubtedly be to the club's advantage'. This is good news. Supporters are tired of seeing the club so low down as fourth from the bottom".

A few weeks later the West Ham Guardian reported that the football would be sold. "With regard to next season however, a meeting will be called, and the Mayor of West Ham will be asked to preside, at which gathering the locals will be asked to take up 500 £1 shares. If this amount be raised Mr A. F. Hills will add to it another £500, and, in addition, grant the use of the Memorial Grounds. Another condition is that all members of the team must be teetotallers. It is probable too, that the name of the club will be changed to Canning Town." The newspaper was wrong about this and the new club was called West Ham United. The idea that all players should be teetotallers was also dropped.

It was hoped that over 2,000 supporters would buy shares in the new club. The West Ham Guardian urged local people to buy shares: "There is little question that the present question of managing small teams is not the right one. For so many clubs get into debt and finally are snuffed out... A shareholder will have everything to gain, by attending the matches, and inducing others to come with him, therefore it seems to me that the nail has been hit right on the head, and the problem of the football world of management is about to be solved."

Hills announced that anyone who purchased just ten shares would be allowed to join the Board of Directors of the club. Despite this offer, a large number of shares remained unsold and the the finances of the new club remained in a poor state. had trouble selling these shares to supporters.

In September, 1900, The Morning Leader reported: "The prospectus of the new limited liability company, to be known under the title of the West Ham Football Club Company Limited is at hand. The primary object will be to encourage and promote the game of football in West Ham and district, and powers have also been taken by the company authorising them at any time to acquire land and other property."

It was also announced that: "The directors propose to make the following charges, to shareholders only, for season-tickets for the football season 1900/01: admission to ground and open stand, 7s 6d, admission to ground, enclosure and grand stand 10s 6d and 12s 6d respectively.... Mr. A. F. Hills who will most likely to take up £500 worth of shares, is very keen on playing a teetotal eleven next season, and the experiment is worth trying if only to vindicate the rights of football employers to call their own tune after paying the piper."

The capital of West Ham United was £2,000 (4,000 shares at 10s each). Arnold Hills purchased 1,000 shares and remained the major influence at the club. However, he was unable to enforce the idea that all players should be teetotallers.

Hills now concentrated on the Thames Iron Works & Shipbuilding Company. Unfortunately, the business went into decline and between 1904 and 1910, the company only received £1 million of work from the Admiralty. However, the following year, the Thames Iron Works built the world's largest battleship, HMS Thunderer. Hills complained that most of the new orders were going to the northern shipyards of the Tyne and Clyde.

Hills became very ill and developed a wasting disease which left him almost totally paralysed. On 1st January, 1912, Hills attended a protest meeting in Trafalgar Square before visiting the offices of Winston Churchill, the First Lord of the Admiralty. Hills was carried in on a stretcher and the Daily Mail described him as the "invalid builder of Dreadnoughts".

The Thames Iron Works, the last great shipbuilder on the Thames, was closed down on 21st December, 1912. Although he remained in poor health, Hills did live to see West Ham United play against Bolton Wanderers in the F.A. Cup Final in 1923.

Arnold Hills died at his home "Hammerfield" in Penshurst on 7th March, 1927.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WHhillsA.htm

John Simkin

Tevez Case Reopened

2009-01-13T06:50:00.001Z

It seems there is a power struggle between the FA and the League, leading to a reopening of the Tevez case. The immediate victims of this are the West Ham players, closely followed by the fans. Sheffield United, Fulham, Wigan, despite their protestations are not victims in this. I strongly believe that we have been punished enough in this matter. The club has been dragged through all sorts of mud slinging and accusation. Terry Brown and Scott Duxbury should bear the brunt of this. However, I believe that Brown has a clause that he cannot be implicated.

As disgraceful as this is, as difficult as it is to swallow, Brown will remain 'innocent' of all charges. Brown dealt with Joorabchian and his players Mascherano and Tevez behind Pardews back, primarily this is why Pardew never played them. Brown dealt with Joorabchian and his players Mascherano and Tevez in order to sweeten the sale of West Ham to a partner of Joorabchian. Brown then sold to someone else leaving them to pick up the pieces. Brown is still being paid in the region of £1 million a year from West Ham for his non-executive role at the club, allegedly. It is Brown and Duxbury alone who should be in the dock.

I noticed in the wording of the statement initiating the reopening of Tevez's case that the club or an individual might be charged as a result. This leads me to believe that Duxbury will be correctly identified and punished...alone. I am so frustrated that I am infuriated at our treatment in this case. It also reeks of double standards and double or is it triple jeopardy. West Ham United are not allowed to appeal the independent decision that went in Sheffield's favour due to the terms and scope of that inquiry which bound all participants to agree to the ruling without appeal. However, as a result of this inquiry, West Ham United are being tried again by the FA and League. This just doesn't seem fair, right or just.

Some dozy Lord (and I despise nearly all Lords eapecially those preceeded with the word law) deemed Tevez worth at least 3 points to West Ham, the main reason according to the resultant summary that West Ham were found guilty. How is that determined? I know for a fact that Tevez and Mascherano were the main cause of results going against West Ham when they first played. Was this considered? How on earth does someone deem the value of a player in terms of points. It seems so wholly arbitrary that it is ridiculous.

It also seems that a little he said/I said is at play. If Duxbury did indeed rip up and reconsitute the agreement with Tevez for the last 3 games then surely the Premier League sought evidence of this? Duxbury is alleged to have told Joorabchian that the 3rd party agreement still stood. If it didn't why did United pay us £2 million to get Tevez? Some paperwork somewhere must evidence a correct contractual agreement. Somewhere in all this Duxbury is lying.

Furthermore, United do not own Tevez at all. They are negotiating directly with Joorabchian to buy him for longer. This time it would make him United's sole property but would cost £20 million or so. I am not a dim person, yet I fail to see the difference in what Manchester United have with Tevez and what we had!!! I know it boils down to a 'form of words'...but semantics aside, the truth is that United are in all reality in no different a position than West Ham.

The timing of the FA and Leagues decision to reopen this case has 2 huge negative impacts on West Ham. The uncertainty will unsettle any potential bidders for the club. New ownership is something West Ham currently, absolutely need. It also creates further uncertainty for the players, coaches and fans. The outcome of this case seems likely to be known around April/May time, precisley the relegation period at the end of the season. What if we get points deducted as a result?

Despite all this, my optimistic side, says this case is being reopened to draw a line under the affair. To State wholly that everything was correctly done by West Ham for those last 3 games. If not, to then punish Duxbury as an individual. It might also have the added affect of reducing the payout to Sheffield United and any other ambulance chasers looking some compensation, through a weakening of their cases. That is my hope anyway.

Gary Loughran