West Ham United Blog

Another discount for West Ham gifts...

I've been busy getting you people more money off various websites, the latest to add to the list is one of my favourites, Getting Personal.  Getting Personal have a wide range of football related gifts, including West Ham newspaper book with glorious newspaper memories of the past, football mugs, personalised calendars and more.  Great for Christmas gifts.

The discount is £5 off if you spend £40 or more, which is pretty reasonable to me.  Enter promotion code westham at the checkout and you must use either of the links below for it to work;

To check out the West Ham newspaper, click here

To go to the site and see the Getting Personal range, click here

Former West Ham manager arrested

Former Hammers manager Harry Redknapp has been by police as part of an investigation into corruption in football.  The matter apparently relates to a money laundering trail going back to a transfer four years ago while Harry was manager of Porstmouth.  We also understand that former West Ham executive Peter Storrie has also been arrested.  Full report can be viewed here

Comments are closed for this post as the matter is still under investigation.

Bet On Chelsea v West Ham

Following Sunday's game against Spurs, this Saturday sees the Hammers involved in another local derby when we visit Chelsea at lunch time.  Whilst Spurs have taken over as our number one London rivals, there is still a great deal of aminosity between the two clubs, which inspite of the lunchtime kick off should still see a decent atmosphere.

Chelsea face Rosenborg tonight and hopefully Terry and Drogba can pick up a knock that will see them out of Saturday's game.  Not having a game midweek is an advantage for us and will give the recovering legs a few more days to get back into form.  As for the team, not too many changes, the only things to consider could be Collins for Gabbidon, Parker for Noble and Deano for LBM.  Of those, the one I'd most like to see is Deano for LBM.  LBM frustrates me and one mazy run a game does not do it for me.  Dean Ashton is a much more potent threat up front but it remains to be seen if he and Carlton Goal can play together, they may be slightly too similar, but I reckon Deano could play off Cole, who would play central with Dean making runs in from just behind him.

Chelsea are a good team no 2 ways about it and this will be a tough game.  But I think they will be surprised by our resilience and we will give a good account of ourselves.  With England's number one in goal and 3 of our back 4 performing strongly, we should be no pushover.  Call me insane, but I fancy us for this one, we'll do them 2-0 and Coral will give you 33-1 for that for good measure.  Again, I've got a free £10 bet offer with them, just click the image below and come on you Irons!

West Ham 1 Tottenham Hotspur 1 - report and ratings

To be honest, I’m glad it’s over.  There is no other game for the Hammers that winds me up and makes me feel so passionate as this one against our biggest rivals.  Mind you, we haven’t played Sheffield United again yet, so maybe that will change.  The performance was adequate considering the team which was one of recovering players (Noble, Mullins, Macca) and a stable few.  I always think playing badly/okay and not losing is a sign of a strong team and that is what we are doing at the moment.  For Tottenham, putting my prejudice aside, I think they showed they have enough to be a strong team in the league, but they still carry defensive frailties.  They need to turn this promise into actual form, then people might start to respect them.  It’s the fact that there fans seem to think they have already won the Premier league that winds everyone up.  And for me, Keane’s behaviour was a disgrace and he should have been booked immediately and it was offside so was academic anyway.  I like Keane and think he is a great player but he acted like a muppet yesterday.

I don’t do this every week but feel like doing player ratings for this one.  So let’s go;

Green – 8 – poor mistake to let Spurs back in but see LBM’s report, great penalty save and looked safe despite error.
Macca – 6.5 – Not his best performance but pretty decent, had a bit of trouble with Lennon’s pace
Upson – 7 – Another solid game from Matt
Gabbidon – 5 – seemed to be carrying an injury and just does not look like someone who is enjoying playing at the moment
Neil – 6 - Getting better and the penalty decision was harsh
Etherington – 5 - a disappointing game from Matt,struggled to get into the game at all and didn’t really create much.  Possibly because Macca was pre-occupied with Lennon, they weren't working as well together going forward.
Mullins – 7 – a good game from the mysterious one, some good tackles and passes, nice one Hayden
Noble – 5.5 – hard to be hard on the little fella, and you can see he was trying but am expecting more from him when fully fit
Solano – 7 – I love the boy from Peru, great set piece taker and set up the goal, top man
Cole – 8 – my man of the match, worked hard, made life difficult for the defenders and scored, can’t ask much more
Boa-Morte – 5 - gave away a pointless free kick for their goal, just does not do it for me at all

On the subs, great to see Deano back, he will need time to get back into shape and sharpness, give him a few more weeks to get back into it.  Scott Parker is an interesting character, can’t quite see if I will warm to him but can’t really judge the fella from the football he has played, needs more time.

So there we go, I’m happy with a draw against a side on the up and with us getting everyone back to fitness.  Now bring on Chelsea!

Bet on West Ham v Tottenham Hotspur

Well, I'm just back from Wembley, feeling totally gutted though also pleased that the Mclaren era (or should that be error) looks like it will be over when I wake up in the morning.  My first England game at the new Wembley and have to say the atmosphere was fantastic, specially pre-match and when we got the equaliser.  I've also got to say I'm fairly pleased Rob Green was not thrown in for such a match, even though I do think he should be England's number one, to give a full competitive debut to someone in a game of such importance was madness, even if it meant Paul Robinson was in goal.

Which nicely leads me on to Sunday's game, where I am hoping we will stick quite a few past Mr Robinson and his band of merry men.  Were we playing Spurs a few weeks ago, this would have 3 points written over it, unfortunately, they seem to be finding a little bit of rhythm under Ramos and I expect they are on something of an upward curve now.  That's not to say we won't be, our last game was sticking 5 past Derby so we have every right to fancy ourselves for this one, which as a North Londoner growing up with a lot of Spurs mates, means more to me than any other fixture this season.

So, where will it go?  It will be frenetic, passionate, probably swing back and forth like last year, but I am fancying a 2-1 win here.  Injury wise we've had Parker and Ashton get through a reserve match as well as Mullins and Noble back in full training, whilst hoping no one is rushed, these players could all have a part to play.   Assuming they are fit, here is my team of choice - Green, McCartney (again assuming and praying fitness) Upson, Gabbidon, Neil, Etherington, Noble, Parker, Solano, Asthon, Cole.  LBM, Mullins, Spector, Camara and Egg on the bench.  And for those of you who are wondering who Egg is, you've not noticed the likeness between Richard Wright and Egg from This Life?!  Man for man that team beats Spurs every day of the week, so let's do it Hammers.

Coral will give you 8-1 for 2-1, I also fancy Matty to get a goal so add that to your list as well.  If you fancy a punt click the image below, where you can take advantage of a £10 free bet as well.

Anton Ferdinand trial jury reaches verdict

Anton Ferdinand has been cleared of any wrong doing at Snaresbrook Crown Court Today.  He was cleared of Assault occasioning actual bodily harm, affray and common assault and public order offences.  The case arose after an incident outside Faces nightclub in Essex last year.

The Judge in the trial said "This was an unfortunate incident for you....which is now at an end" he added "You can now leave without a stain on your character arising from it".  Brother and former Hammer Rio Ferdinand was in court to hear the verdict.

And now Anton, you can get back to Upton Park and knuckle down please....

Sunday Transfer Gossip

Well, with January not  so far away and the wheeling and dealing due to commence soon, there is speculation building as to who will be making their way to Upton Park.  Personally, I'm just looking forward to Sky Sports News and the bloke with the three mobile phones again on deadline night, it was hilarious!

Anyway, paper talk seems to be pretty confident we'll be bringing in Nicky Shorey and Giles Barnes come Jan time.  The perspective on the Shorey story has certainly changed since August.  George McCartney has been one of our best players this season and it would be incredibly harsh for him to be second string to Shorey, who granted is a very decent player.  The recent injury to McCartney shows we need some cover there, but will both players be happy to rotate?  It's not like we are in the Champions League is it?

Giles Barnes did not overwhelm me when we thrashed Derby but by all accounts he could be good, seems a bit Jermaine Penant/Kieran Richardson to me ie can put in some good performances but tends to flatter to deceive.  It would also then give us 4 options on the right - Solano (my first choice), Boa-Morte, Ljungberg and Barnes.  Wonder if LBM will be off in Jan as well?  I think he is dispensable myself.

We're also supposedly tracking a Liverpool reserve centre half called Jack Hobbs.  As long as he is better than Neil Mellor, then it will be fine!

Top 5 players so far this season

Interesting post on the KUMB forum about the top 5 players so far this season.  It will be interesting to post on this now and review a couple of times throughout the season.  So here are my top 5, be good to see what you think.

1.  Robert Green - a real rock in the goal for us and could easily have been England's saviour had Steve McClown not kept his Paul Robinson tinted spectacles on.  Also seems like a down to earth bloke, which is becoming increasingly rare in the Premiership these days.

2.  George McCartney - a real revelation this season with some great performances, solid at the back and an excellent crosser of the ball going forward.  We will certainly miss him while he is injured.

3.  Matthew Etherington - some great performances this season, looking fitter and hungrier than ever.  Adding goals to his box of tricks has been important too.

4.  Lee Bowyer - a player it can be hard to warm to sometimes but some excellent performances, the kind of which we hoped for when he first joined us under the Roeder era.  Promised to come back and show what the fuss is about and is finally doing so.

5.  Carlton Cole - yes, I am being serious.  For his attitude, application and goals over the past few weeks.  It's not been easy for the lad after the boo-boys really unsettled him but his past few performances have been crucial for us, setting up assists and making a real nuiscance of himself.

Those who came close were Matthew Upson and Craig Bellamy but right now on form, these are my top 5 Hammers.  Who are yours?

Addendum:  Thanks for all your comments so far, keep them coming.  Realised I missed out Solano on the 'almost' list, my money is on him making it for next time, maybe just not enough games yet?  Long term readers of the blog will know I just can't make my mind up about Hayden Mullins and that lack of consistency means he is not a contender for me.

10% discount on West Ham gifts

I hope you enjoyed the post below on West Ham Christmas gifts, I've now got you all a 10% off offer as well, so if you were thinking of Bonzo mug, now there is no excuse not to act on it.  To get the discount you must use the link provided in here, otherwise they won't know you've come from West Ham Blog.

So, just click here and in the checkout add in the discount code westham and 10% will be taken off...

Cheers and enjoy....

West Ham Christmas Gifts

Bit of a slow week with the International games (come on Israel!) so thought I'd share this with you.  I Found a great website for Hammers gifts, either treat yourself or to get for the Hammers fans in your life.  These guys have a selection of pictures that you can either get as framed pictures or made into a jigsaw, mug or t-shirt.  Below are a few examples, including West Ham greats Moore and Bonds.

These and more are available from here

They also do classic West Ham newspaper moments which are available framed.  Again, these go through the ages, from the Cup Winner's Cup to the Play off Final victory.  Some images below...

Like I say, great for a Christmas gift or just wind up the Spurs fans in the office with it!  Available from here