With the season drawing to an end, transfer rumours abound despite the window not opening for months! Having endured a spectacularly disappointing season most West Ham fans are essentially looking for two things, survival in the short term and progress in the future. Assuming the primary objective of Premier League survival is achieved, which is by no means guaranteed it is widely accepted that wholesale changes need to be made which might even involve replacing Slaven Billic as manager with Lazio coach Simone Inzaghi. Inzaghi being the latest in a long list of potential replacement managers to be 'trawled' out by the media along with other drivel that includes the lining up of recruiting John Terry from Chelsea and Vincent Kompany from Manchester City, both were great players in their day but are both are approaching the end of their career, one has a terrible injury record and the other is a potentially terrible public relations nightmare and someone who has 'history' with West Ham fans.
Jose Mourinho has made a career out of employing 'mature' players and getting the best out of them, but they have always been utilised in teams that have genuine pace to compensate for the lack of theirs! It is highly unlikely that this business plan would work at the London Stadium or whatever it is eventually named, Hammers just do not have enough money to afford the luxury of injury prone players with potential, that category of player is absolutely well catered for already!
Slaven Billic, or who ever is in control next season could do well to take a leaf out of Alex Ferguson's book by USING THE YOUTH PLAYERS! It is the only way West Ham can possibly hope to bridge the gap to the top clubs, only from within can a club generate players and consequently potential huge sell on fees, West Ham had it once but squandered a generation of superb players including Rio Ferdinand, Michael Carrick, Frank Lampard, Joe Cole, Glen Johnstone and Jermain Defoe.
Back to the future? It might be the only way, but signing old players on huge money seems to be the favoured way at West Ham, that is of course if you believe everything you see and hear, especially those paragons of virtue Sky Sports! - Ed
Comments
Spot on, Nev.
So what you're saying is that Mourinho will be our next manager.
Inzaghi? It's unbelievable
Inzaghi? It's unbelievable that we could even consider such an inexperienced manager. We will deserve to get relegated if we follow a bad summer transfer window with another and then appoint a novice in real terms.
Youth
I think there are some fundamental issues with our so called young talent. We seem to over hype these kids but none are really breaking through or that Slav doesn't have any confidence in giving them a try. I'm of the opinion that they cant be any worse than what we already have playing! You are right that Fergy played the kids but every year he bought a tried and tested player (maybe even the best from the previous season) from the Prem, usually a striker dating right back to Cantona, York, Berbatov, Young, Rooney and our very own Tevez. Its a simple formulation not rocket science, bring in proven players, risk the odd overseas player and blood the youngsters... Simples!
Apparently, according to a an
Apparently, according to a an article I read, bilic doesn't use his youth players at any of his clubs.
Players
Players at the end of their carirera, young and inexperienced coaches, it is true that they are only speculation, I foresee another bloody transfer window
you forgot penny-pinching chairmen
and retractable seating
The bit that sticks in my
The bit that sticks in my throat is that we take far too many punts both on and off the pitch and now there is a bigger gap between us and spuds than I can ever remember ( IMO.) than there ever has been both on and off the pitch, and that's after our board is/was saying they are taking us forward! It all sickens me at the moment.