West Ham United Blog

City lights shine too brightly for the Hammers

There was a certain inevitability about the result tonight, I think what we all wondered was how exactly it would manifest.  I don't think many of us were expecting Behrami, Upson, Collison and Dyer all to be out, which certainly wasn't going to help the cause.  No matter what the results, injuries really have not helped us this season.

City are a very good team, and one that spends over £100m more on transfers than us should frankly be beating us at home.  What the Hammers must do, however, is starting winning the bread and butter games, starting at Fulham next week.

Performance wise, no point doing ratings to be honest, everyone was around a 5 or a 6.  I thought Da Costa had a decent debut considering who he was up against.  Jiminez can certainly provide a link between midfield and attack and Diamanti takes an awesome set piece.  We also had further proof that Faubert is a luxury at right back and we need a proper defender in that position.  Strangely, I thought Noble had a better game in terms of his positioning, but again too many attacks broke down due to a poor ball from him.  I'm starting to think he may be turning into Frank Lampard, in terms of needing a move to a different club to kick start his career, it may well be the best thing for both parties in January.

Kovac does not do enough for me, especially when you compare him to someone like De Jong who was awesome and, alongside players like Palacios, have the build to be a tough defensive midfielder.  I need to see more from him before I am convinced.

The plan to counter our fitness seemed to be bring on the young ones on 70 mins, but the game had gone beyond us at that point and I think it's harsh on Hines that he did not get a start.

433 does not really seem to be working for us, though I do understand why Zola thinks it should.  However,Cole really does need someone buzzing around him and either Hines or Diamanti need to take that role.  442 must be the way forward in the short term.

So, I'm not going to pretend to be surprised by the result, it's Sunday that will illustrate what kind of Winter we are in for, let's hope it's a brighter one than in currently feels like.

Manchester City v West Ham Preview

A midweek defeat at Bolton saw West Ham concentrating on the league, at least until the frozen figners of the FA Cup third round come to visit us in January.  By then, we'll also have an idea of what 2010 will bring us.  More results like the last few and it will be a nail biting few months.  But some good results and solid perfomances and we can enjoy the second half of the season rather than fear it.

Of the places you'd want to visit in search of a result, Eastlands is probably not one of those right now.  A cash rich City have bought a very strong team, although arguably their most important signing, Adebayor, finds himself sitting in the stands for this one after raking the face of Robin Van Persie with his studs.  The match may well see the Hammers come up against ex Hammers Carlos Teves and Craig Bellamy.  Whilst Tevez seems to play an almost apologetic game against us, Bellamy will no doubt be aching to get on the scoresheet.

There is huge debate about our team and formation right now, whether we go 442 or 433.  Certainly there are players we are trying to accomodate in the side, such as Diamanti and Hines, as they are the ones looking most likely to get us a goal.  At the same time, a gap between our forward line and the midfield appears to have widened and this is something that must be addressed.  So, how do we do it?

Green

Illunga  Gabbidon Upson Faubert

               Parker

Collison                     Behrami

              Diamanti

Cole                          Hines

Bench: Kurucz, Tomkins, Spector, Nouble, Stanislas, Jimenez and Noble

I think it will be interesting to play Diamanti in a linking position, he works hard, has skill and is not adverse to a long range shot.  The bench allows us to change things around or swap like for like, with Jiminez and Nouble available to mix things up in attack.  I guess the biggest change may be dropping Noble to the bench, but if Behrami is available, I'd like to see him.  If he is not, I'd even drop Diamanti out to the wing and Jiminez as the attacking midfielder.

Key player: Diamanti has gone very close from open play and I reckon he will find himself on the scoresheet

Key Opponent: There's no denying that an on-form Craig Bellamy is a very good player and the boys at the back will have to be lively to him

Prediction: I'll be very happy with a draw here, sadly I can see City edging ahead 3-2 in a tough fought game.  I really hope I'm wrong!

Fancy a bet?  Well, SkyBet don't seem to fancy us,  we are an amazing 7/1 shot, which is a pretty tempting bet.  if you open an account with SkyBet using the link below, they'll give you £10 free when you place a £10 bet, so split a tenner on the Hammers with a tenner on Liverpool at home or another banker, and you could have a pretty good weekend!

Up the Hammers!

West Ham on Facebook

Well, there seems to be a bit of doom and gloom around supporting the Hammers of late, so I thought I'd lighten the mood.  I imagined what would happen if I went into the Facebook pages of the Hammers and their friends, and this is what I found...

Alessandro Diamanti POKED Mark Noble
Mark Noble POKED Alessandro Diamanti
Frankie Zola removed poking from Alessandro Diamanti and Mark Noble

Robert Green joined the group England Goalkeepers
David James, Scott Carson and Paul Robinson left the group England Goalkeepers

James Collins left the group West Ham United
Matthew Upson and Robert Green do not like this
James Tomkins and Manuel Da Costa likes this

Carlton Cole POKED Jermaine Defoe
Jermaine Defoe commented ‘Don’t poke me, just pass to me like you always do lolz.’
Carlton Cole does not like this.

Scott Parker is worried about the crop circles in his garden

Dean Ashton joined the group Pizza Hut 2 for 1 deals
Frankie Zola does not like this

Matthew Upson is selling a pair of Silver Hammers, perfect for your home, must be sold by January

Kevin Davies is looking up West Ham fixtures on the internet
Frankie Zola, Alan Curbishley and Alan Pardew do not like this

Kieron Dyer is fit and raring to go – 1 hour ago
Kieron Dyer is sad :(   - 58 minutes ago

If you want to add your own, feel free!  And remember, keep the faith, IRONS!!!

Bolton v West Ham Match Preview

Just a few quick thoughts on tomorrow nights trip to the Reebok.  I imagine we will rest Upson and Behrami at the very least, and it also gives a chance for some youngsters to have a run out.  Zola remains positive after the defeat against Liverpool, and I see no reason to panic, not even if we get knocked tomorrow night as Bolton has never been a happy hunting ground for us.  But it would do the lads some good to get a good result under the belts.  So, here's my line up to do just that....

Green

Illunga  Gabbidon  Tomkins  Faubert

                       Parker

Stanislas                                 Noble

                      Dyer

Cole                                       Hines

Bench: Kurucz, Diamanti, Spector, Kovac, Nouble, Collison and Jiminez

I like the balance of this team, with possibly the exception of Noble on the right, but I think he needs another game to try and find some true form.  There is a case for giving Carlton a rest and starting with Nouble, but that might just be too much responsibility against an experienced Bolton side.

I reckon we are looking at 2-2 with the Hammers snatching in extra time or on penalties with Green the hero.  Come on you Irons!

Hines shines but Hammers don't see the point

We knew it was going to be tough, but for a good hour, West Ham matched their opponents in the 3-2 home defeat by Liverpool.  After that, a certain cloud of inevitability passed over Upton Park and the Hammers went out with a whimper, not a bang.

One thing that concerned me was the level of fitness we showed.  I noticed it towards the end of the Spurs game as well, but we appear to have less puff than our opponents, although being forced to used subs early on probably didn't help.  But I'd like us to look a bit sharper for 90 minutes.  I understand that both Upson and Behrami's injuries are not overly serious by the way.

Overall, we can't have too much of a problem with the result.  Liverpool have a world class player in Fernando Torres, and frankly none of our players come close to him.  He scored two classy goals and the scousers deserved their win. 

On the plus side for the Hammers, Zavon Hines appeared to come out of his shell and put in a confident perfromance, causing Carragher all sorts of problems with his pace.  Diamanti had a decent debut and shone for the hour he was on.  One thing is for sure, is that the Mark Noble debate will go on.  I thought he was poor, with some wayward passing and neither offering a threat up front or doing enough donkey work at the back.  If Parker is the defensive man, I'd rather see Dyer in a central position as the attacking threat.  Anyway, here are my ratings;

Green - 6 - possibly went down a little early for the first goal but not to blame for the others

Illunga - 6 - rusty on his comeback but showed signs of returning to form towards the end

Upson - 6 - didn't do much wrong whilst on the pitch

Tomkins - 5 - skinned for the first goal, lacked something for me today

Faubert - 6 - did a decent job on the right, a massive improvement on last season

Diamanti - 6 - a lively debut and interesting penatly from our new Italian starlet

Parker - 7 - some crucial last minute tackles, ran himself into the ground

Noble - 5 - like I said, poor effort

Behrami  - 5 - not yet back to the high standards we have seen from Valon but I'm sure he'll be back to true form in time

Hines - 7 - great performance from Baked Beans, lively and a threat, keep your head up young man and you can do well

Cole - 7 - good header for the goal, it wasn't for lack of trying from Carlton but he had no support up front

Zola/Clarke - 6 - although options were limited due to the enforced subs, there was a constant gap between Cole and the midfield.  If anything, Cole could come in deeper and Dyer or Hines could play off the shoulder of the defender, they have the pace to do it.  We just were not going to create much with such a gap between them.

Bolton are up next in the Carling Cup on Tuesday and it would be good to get a result on the road to build the confidence back.

West Ham v Liverpool Match Preview

With 3 of our 4 league games having been played away, it’s nice to get back to Upton Park this Saturday with a tough test against Liverpool.  Having been steamrollered 3-0 by them towards the end of last season in what was possibly our worst performance, it will be good to show that some progress has been made and we get a result.

I’m lead to believe we have a pretty much full squad to pick from, Ashton and LBM being the only exceptions.  This represents an interesting challenge for Zola, especially as firepower is what we have been lacking.  I’d expect Frankie Z to ring the changes for this one.
As for the Pool, after a shaky start, they have found a bit of rhythm and are starting to win games.  They weren’t great in midweek in Europe and hopefully a few legs will be tired.  Either way, we will have to put the shackles on Gerrard and Torres if we are to get anything from this.
So, the starting line up, tough one, let’s go with....

Green

Illunga – Upson – Tomkins – Faubert

Collison – Parker – Noble– Behrami

Diamanti  Cole

Bench: Kurucz, Spector, Gabbidon, Kovac, Nouble, Jiminez and Dyer

Tricky, tricky one and the biggest issue is whether  to play Jiminez or Diamanti.  I chopped and changed it a few times, as Jiminez could keep some of the Liverpool midfield occupied by floating in between the middle of the park and attack.  However, I think the presence of Diamanti will give everyone a lift if nothing else and give us a goal threat against a stubborn Liverpool defence.  You could also include Kovac and ask him to a do a job on Gerrard, but I don’t like him partnering with Parker so Noble gets the edge.  Whether new signing Franco is match fit is another question, hence I’ve left him out for this one.  I’m quite excited about Behrami and Faubert linking up together on the right.

What is interesting is that when we have a fit squad, the youngsters can very quickly find themselves squeezed out.  There’s a case for Hine on the bench.  But Stanislas will find Collison and Dyer in front of him and other up-coming hopefuls such as Payne and N’Gala will have to wait to the physio room gets busy.  But it’s good to see some depth to the squad.

Key Player for the Hammers:   Would love to see DIAMANTI shine on his Upton Park debut

Key Scouser: Stop GERRARD playing and you stop Liverpool playing, let him play and live with the consequences

Prediction:  Tough one this, my heart says 2-0 to the Hammers with Cole and Diamanti getting on the scoresheet, my head says 2-1 to the Reds in a hard fought game.  Either way, hope the Hammers do us proud, come on you Irons!

Don't Panic!

There seems to be quite a bit of negativity surrounding yesterday's result against Wigan.  I didn't go or see the game so am not going to give a full report.  However, rubbish though a 1-0 loss against Wigan is, i'm not panicking. 

We had quite a few key players out, carrying knocks or not quite match fit yesterday.  Among them you can count Illunga, Dyer, Behrami, Diamanti, Collison and Jiminez.  All would have started if ready and all, except probably Dyer, will be back for next week against Liverpool.  The Carlton Cole haters have been out in force following one 'bad' game for us, but the lad was dropped by Capello on Wednesday and has been working his heart out since the start of the season, he can have a bad day at the office.

There were various plusses as well, Hines made his first Premier League start and gave a good account of himself.  Diamanti looked very lively when he joined and Behrami made his comeback.  With this all happening, I'd hope Kovac was back on the bench next week.  He is a squad player for me and not good enough to be starting games.  He never seems to blend well with Parker either.

I think (and hope) we will see a different West Ham next week, with players having a chance to sort themselves out.  We have not got as many points on the board as we would like, but that has not been helped by 3 out 4 games being away from home either.  So, don't panic and keep the faith, the Hammers will be back!

Franco set to march into Upton Park

Word is that West Ham United will sign up former Villareal striker Guillermo Franco in the next 48 hours.  Franco, who represents Mexico at International level, is a free agent and therefore able to join the club outside of the deadline.  He does not seem the most prolific of strikers, but as he will presumably be back up rather than a key player, seems like he will be decent enough.  The deal is likely to be a one year contract with a further option at the end of the season. 

At 6 foot 1 he is quite a big lad and will probably fit in if Cole is absent.  If we do get hold of him, I'm pretty happy with an attacking force of Cole, Diamanti, Hines, Nouble, Franco, with Stanislas, Dyer and Jiminez as other attacking options...

Wigan v West Ham match preview

The Hammers travel to Wigan on Saturday for another North-West away game.  I'd hope for a more open game than the one at Blackburn and am sure it will be, as Sam Allardyce is not involved and I'd like to think Wigan boss Roberto Martinez has a bit more of a football the way it should be played type philosophy.

Having said that, the game up there last year was a very physical affair, with Collison getting badly injured and Parker getting kicked from pillar to post.  However, we won the game with a wonderfully crafted goal and I hope we can repeat that again this season.

Wigan started the season surprising everyone with a 2-0 win at Villa, since then however, they have lost their last four games on the trot including a 4-1 smacking at Blackpool in the Carling Cup, so riding high on confidence they are not.  Their team sheet is not one that really scares you, with the likes of Melchiott and Bramble at the back.  For me, their biggest danger man is N'Zogbia, a decent enough player who can cause trouble out wide.

As for the Hammers, some changes in personnel mean we will all wait with bated breath as to who is in the line up.  After scoring twice for the reserves, new signing Diamanti will be pushing for a start.  I think an early goal will hit the confidence of the Latics and therefore we should go out with an aggresive formation.  So my line up would be;

Green

Spector Upson Tomkins Faubert

Collison Parker Noble

Jiminez

Cole Diamanti

Bench: Kurucz, Gabbidon, Stanislas, Dyer, Behrami, Baked Beans and Kovac

This a strong attacking line up with a good defensive backbone.  It will be interesting once Behrami is back and fully fit to see who will make way for him in midfield and whether Kovac can earn a regular place.  I'd give Diamanti an hours run before given Hines or Dyer a shout in the supporting attacking role.

Key Player: Be interesting to see if Diamanti can shine on his debut...

Key Opponent: keep an eye on N'Zogbia's runs down the flanks

Prediction: This is one the Hammers could and should win.  I'm going for Wigan 1 West Ham 3 with Cole, Parker and Diamanti on the scoresheet.

Come on you Irons!!!

Whilst I was away...

First up, sorry for no updates for the past week or so, actually went off on my holiday and didn't get a chance to update before I left.  Anyway, I had a great time, thanks for asking and am now back catching up on all the Hammers news.  Won't dwell too long on what has occured, but will have a quick look at what happened.

To no one's surprise, James Collins left the club for £5m but only if he could continue playing in claret and blue.  I'll miss the lad, he is a proper old school centre half who will throw his body on the goal-line for you.  Think one of his most memorable performances was against Arsenal at the library when we won 1-0, he really threw himself in front of everything that day.  Although a little slow on the deck ,we will definitely miss him in 'backs to the walls' situations, and our loss is certainly Villa's gain.  Best of luck at Villa Jimmy and I'm pretty sure you'll be given a warm welcome when you return to Upton Park.

Someone whose presenece will be missed slightly less is Savio Nsereko.  I guess time will tell whether we had a raw diamond in our hands who we let go or if it was a deal that should have never happend.  I think the biggest mistake the club made was making him the signing after getting the money for Bellamy - we should have bought someone ready for that level at that stage there and then, it's only with the signing if Diamanti that we have actually got round to doing that.  I just hope Savio can settle down and concentrate on his football.  A Ugandan born German playing in Italy and moving to England is quite alot of upheaval, so hope he finds his rhythm back in Italy.

And finally, a warm welcome to Upton Park to Manuel Da Costa and Mr Ferrari.  I know little about either of these boys apart from what is available on wikipedia, although someone has pointed out, Da Costa's stats on Football Manager aren't too bad!  Let's hope these boys shine through...