West Ham United Thread

[KungFooSing]

I only saw glimpses of the 2nd match, and the few times I did, Dyer looked pretty good, the first match however was another story.
Jiminez looked sublime, he will be in the upper echolon of Premier League PLayers this year IMO. His first touch is amazing and as you pointed out Embers, his dead ball skills are something which should cause problems for many sides.
What frustrated me a little was Scott Parkers unwillingness to carry the ball, he showed through the middle and latter parts of the season he has the ability to run with it. Why at the start of seasons does he feel the need to pass sideways and backwards immediately when given possession? It would be OK if he actually made some forward movement, but he passes and stops, often putting pressure on his passee whos not always expecting it. Run Scotty Run!

And then theres Faubert. God we need a new RB if Neill doesnt resign.

 

[Embers]

WTF?

He would have had a hattrick in the 2nd game if it wasn't for the incompetent linesman.

Don't tell me you watched the game Embers, but neither did I. I got my reports from KUMB and they all said Dyer was very good in the second match.

Hes got good skills, great finishing. This we already knew. His alarming lack of pace and turning circle of a Jeep is what I took away from the game. EPL quality sides wont let him get that free and unfortunately he no longer has the pace to get by anyone. Has to be a CM and not a RW I feel.

 

[davey_magik]

Very happy with that result (2-0 away over Wolves, Nobes and Matty scoring) because I was worried we'd lose that one. Sets us up nicely for the Yids at the Boleyn on Aug 23.

 

[Embers]

Hopefully one of Gudjohnsenn, Toni or Chamankh is in by then. We only need 1 at this point. 2 would be nice but id like to think Ashton might actually kick a football in the next 4 or so weeks for us.

Mark Noble was brilliant. So underrated around the place its ridiculous. Brilliant goal. His pass to Cole in the first to set him one on one with the keeper was sensational (unfortunately the same instance Cole twisted his ankle) and really strung the midfield together. Dyer looked alot more energetic and up for it then I was expecting. Moving a bit better too. Faubert crossing was brilliant but gets caught ball watching at times. I think he will improve moreso when Behrami returns. Happy to have Jules at RB for the season though with J.Spec as cover. Green the awesome as ususal

Parker and Collison were the only downside, both had stinkers. Parkers looks short of fitness and i guess the fact Wolves constantly played down our right side meant Collison didnt see much of the ball. Should of scored when he rounded the keeper. Weak effort that one.

Main thing ill take is the sexy gameplan Zola and Clarke have working and Nobles sensational game

 

[moomba]

id like to think Ashton might actually kick a football in the next 4 or so weeks for us.

FWIW, Micky Quinn was saying on the radio that he has heard a rumour that Ashton is crocked again, and it could be the end for him.

 

[Embers]

FWIW, Micky Quinn was saying on the radio that he has heard a rumour that Ashton is crocked again, and it could be the end for him.

Hes still doing fitness work with the physios ie. hes not in full training yet so it wouldnt surprise me if it was true. I think if hes not back by mid September then something fishys going on. From what I gathered he still doesnt have full strength back in his ankle. That sounds like another round of surgery to me.

Surely the FA have to reimburse us with 10 mill +. There negligence was the entire reason for this injury. Broke his ankle playing ****ing kick to kick. A disgrace . Typical FA scum though. How much have we given them and how much have they taken from us. What a bunch of ****sticks

 

[davey_magik]

Whilst I would have enjoyed Freddie scoring, suck it up Warnock .

http://www.101greatgoals.com/freddie-sears-vs-bristol-city-the-goal-that-never-was/33540/

 

[Embers]

Anyone read this pile of s**t from the Mirror

Gianfranco Zola’s spectacular reign as West Ham boss could be about to end.

The Hammers manager will not sanction the sale of his key players before the transfer window closes at the end of this month.

Icelandic owners Straumur have demanded the immediate sale of key men like Carlton Cole, Mark Noble, Matthew Upson, Robert Green and Scott Parker to meet mounting debts.

Zola and chief executive Scott Duxbury are embroiled in a war with the board.

Duxbury is seen as a particular problem because he is so closely aligned to Zola and the project of mixing home-grown players with some big-name internationals.

The pair are pushing hard for new strikers and are totally opposed to the sale of star men.

Straumur, the financially stricken parent company, are happy to raise funds by selling key members of the playing staff before sanctioning a takeover of the Premier League club to generate much-needed funding for their business.

A Middle East consortium withdrew its interest in the club after discovering what Straumur intended to do. A spokesman for that consortium said last night: “The club are in a state of complete disarray.

“The key personnel at the club like Zola, Duxbury and coach Steve Clarke appear to be at war with the board.

“Our interest in the club came to an abrupt end when we discovered what Straumur were intending to do.”

Zola’s future, and that of his close ally Duxbury, remain in the melting pot.

Boardroom battles at Upton Park have reached breaking point and show no sign of subsiding.

Zola and Duxbury have maintained that they can generate enough cash by selling fringe players including midfielders Nigel Quashie, Luis Boa Morte and Julien Faubert, and even injured striker Dean Ashton.

But the asset management group, who bought the club in June, is in the middle of a restructuring process and has demands to meet from several creditors.

And they insist the sale of key players in the West Ham squad is non-negotiable and will go ahead regardless of the consequences.

The news will undoubtedly come as a stunning blow to Hammers fans just a day after they got their Premier League season under way with a 2-0 victory at Wolves.

The sale of key personnel could see West Ham fighting for survival this season and lead to fears about their immediate Premier League future.

Zola was seen as a high-risk appointment when he was handed the job last September.

He had no managerial experience, but the fact that he persuaded his old friend Steve Clarke to leave Chelsea and be his assistant was critical to the move.

Zola has won over the Hammers’ players with his deep knowledge of the game.

Clarke provides the experience, coaching and tactical nous.

As a unit, they have made an impressive start to their West Ham careers.

Their team has played in the attractive manner expected by Hammers’ supporters.

Deadset the most *ed thing ive ever read. Let me point out the flaws in this article

1. We spent 2.5 mill nothing short of 18 hours before this article was printed and had a 5 mill pound bid rejected for another. Hardly reeks of desperation

2. Is anyone *ed enough to wait for the last week to sell all their stock. Anyone?

3. Raising 50 mill by selling those players would be like pissing on a bushfire for Straumur. There debt levels are around 2 billion which would mean 50 mill equates to what 1% of wiping off their debts. Not to mention West Ham is less than 5% of there total assets.

4. Straumures representative comment 18 hours before that article is written
Non-Executive Chairman Andrew Bernhardt said: "As I said earlier in the summer, the club is on a sound financial footing and Straumur creditor meetings have no bearing on the operations of West Ham United. This remains unchanged.

"We fully support Scott and Gianfranco and endorse their continued efforts in strengthening the squad as quickly as possible, with a new striker their top priority. We are looking forward to a great season."

They are sourcing the article from a failed bid from a Middle Eastern consortium obviously trying there hardest to drive the price of the club down. Anyone who wants to do this can get ****ed and buy Milwall for all i care

 

[davey_magik]

Speaking of Millwall, I assume you all realise who we're playing in the Carling Cup?

 

[Embers]

Speaking of Millwall, I assume you all realise who we're playing in the Carling Cup?

If Zak Whitebread is sold before the game we are gonna annihilate them . Will be a good money spinner for the club anyway. Packed to the rafters it will be

 

[davey_magik]

We'll have Sp*rs and the scum both at home in the same week. Both should be sellouts.

 

[davey_magik]

FFS.

Why can we never beat a team managed by twitcher? All the match did was show the difference in quality between the two teams, especially when Spector slipped over.

Coles goal was incredible though. Goal of the season easily.

 

[Warsaw]

Twas pretty special Cole.

 

[DBAH0]

Spector shouldn't play LB again, give Daprela a game.

Thought we deserved a draw and defended well for the most part, but the link-up play b/w Cole and the rest of the midfielders needs to improve, and they need to make better runs into the box.

 

[KungFooSing]

Spector should never start, anywhere again.

CC's goal was an absolute blinder, early clubhouse leader for goal of the year I would have thought.

We are really missing a deadly striker with crisp finishing. For all of Coles good work, we really need that bloke next to him whos going to take advantage of anything in the box. The number of solid chances we've created this year has been great, but we need the finisher to go with them

Anyone know where we are at with signing a new striker? I think the Moroccan is gone, and Luca Toni looks unlikely. I believe we are still after Gudjohnssen?

 

[Embers]

Why not Upson at left back? Would of been better than Spector anyway. Looked like a lost puppy at left back.

Some more bad news in that Jack Collisons dad died at the age of 46. Hopefully the club give him a few weeks off to come to terms with it.

God I hope we sign Pandev. I know we wont but god I hope we do

 

[chickawah]

Why not Upson at left back? Would of been better than Spector anyway. Looked like a lost puppy at left back.

Some more bad news in that Jack Collisons dad died at the age of 46. Hopefully the club give him a few weeks off to come to terms with it.

God I hope we sign Pandev. I know we wont but god I hope we do

Could very well explain why Jack has looked somewhat out of sorts so far this season. Unless it was an unexpected death that is. Very sad news anyway, condolences to the Collison family, Jack's my favourite current Hammer.

Pandev would be a very good signing.

Also, anyone know when Behrami is expected back?

EDIT: **** me, just read more about Collison's dad, died in a motorcycle accident on his way to watch Jack play against Spurs. So sad.

 

[KungFooSing]

Geez, are there any strikers we aren't talking to?

Pandev would be a great signing. Chamakh is still a possibility according to GZ, then theres Diamanti who by reports is our prime focus.
It seems the Pandev signing is done....

 

[moomba]

Diamanti heading to London for a medical according to SSN.

 

[Subaru Impreza]

west ham fans need to watch their diet, all the pictures i have seen on the news show rather rotund men running around in a state of undress.

perhaps Gillian McKeith could do a show ?

 

[Embers]

Have a look at some Millwall fans Subaru. God didnt just beat them with the ugly stick he jammed it up there ass. Talks of us playing our next Carling Cup game in a empty stadium. Meh, could be worse. If were playing a Blackpool or something the stadium would be 3/4 empty anyway.

Diamanti should be a Hammer by this time tomorrow. Really dont think Chamakh is coming. Dont want him to come in all honesty. Pulis was in the stands watching the game yesterday so he must still be keen on Jimmy Collins. Villa are out of the running. They want Dunne. Everton are still a chance but Stoke seem the best bet at this stage.

All fit and firing by the end of September so far we should look like

Green
Faubert Upson Tomkins Ilunga
Behrami Parker Noble
Jiminez Colezilla Diamanti

Bench: Kurucz Gabbidon Spector Kovac Collison Stanislas Dyer

Take Spector of the bench and put in a backup to Colezilla. Dont think we need to spend 7 mill on Chamakh or 50k a week on Gudjohnsenn to warm the pine. We can find a cheaper option elsewhere. We have been linked with Marko Pantelic from Hertha BSC who would be available on a free. Someone like that and maybe 2 or so mill on another backup ie. Andy Carrol type

 

[Drugs Are Bad Mackay?]

All fit and firing by the end of September so far we should look like

Green
Faubert Upson Tomkins Ilunga
Behrami Parker Noble
Jiminez Colezilla Diamanti

Bench: Kurucz Gabbidon Spector Kovac Collison Stanislas Dyer

Sorry for the Fantasy PL question but is Tomkins likely to play soon?

 

[KungFooSing]

Yep, the minute Collins out the door (any moment), Tomkins will be in.

I havn't seen much of Diamanti at all, but what I've seen of him on utube, he wouldn't look out of place next to Eduardo as part of an Olympic Synchronised Diving formation. His playing ability looks class, very energetic and skillful.

 

[Embers]

Our next signing is totally dependant on us selling a player. Hopefully James Collins. If Jimmy doesnt go its gonna mean a Diego Tristan type raid to get in a Colezilla backup.

At this stage quite simply. Collins ****s off to Villa/Everton/Fulham/wherever and we will be able to sign Gudjohnsenn or Chamakh. Collins stays, we sell no one than Marko Pantelic on a free transfer. 30 year old on a 3 year contract .

Hopefully Collins can find a new home. We need that extra 5 mill more than we need him

 

[Embers]

In the end no new striker to back up Cole but IMO its not the end of the world. SURELY Ashton has to return in some shape or form before January and until then the squad should cope. For now

Green
Faubert Upson Tomkins Ilunga
Parker Noble
Jiminez Collison Diamanti
Cole

Bench: Kurucz Gabbidon Kovac Stanislas Dyer Nouble Hines

Behrami to be back by the end of the month too. Will leave a strong bench IMO

Ilunga is back for Wigan thank god. If Cole got injured id just do this

Dyer Noble Kovac Collison
Jiminez Diamanti

Whose to say we couldnt just play a 4-4-2 with 2 small men upfront. Jiminez has actually looked okay at times with his back towards goal. For aerial support bring Kovac in for Parker and just lump the ball up to him in the midfield.

Nouble should be good for 10 mins of the bench, same goes for Hines. Contrary to popular beleif amongst fans we arnt getting relegated, we are still on our way to a top 10 finish and by seasons end we will have a new owner if the world hasnt completely lost there mind. Who the **** would buy Portsmouth before us?