Forum | General Discussion

Is it just a coincidence that virtually EVERY West Ham player who receives a new 'enhanced' contract then proceeds to have a 'falling off the cliff' experience with their form? For as long as we can remember there has been a constant stream of players who are offered new contracts in order to fend off unwelcome transfer enquiries, going back as far as Winston Reid, or even further back if you want, to players like Herita Illunga!

Michail Antonio recently signed a contract extension on improved terms, then promptly firmed up his affiliation with the Jamaican National football team by flying across the globe to represent them. Mikey is set to be called up by Jamaica in March to play three games on international duty, these games will come right at the 'killer' stage of the Premier League season.

We mention Premier League, because that is where Antonio wil be picking up his estimated £90,000 per week, playing for West Ham! Before anyone chimes in with the "It is the right of every player to represent their country" chestnut, they should be mindful of the fact that Mikey WASN'T born in Jamaica.

It may indeed be the right of every player to play for their country, but it is also the right of every fan to expect their players to give their ALL for their club! That doesn't include self gratifying 'jollies' that necessitate travelling right across the World to feature in games that are invariably 'dead rubbers'.

Someone needs to sit down with Mikey and explain to him on which side his bread is buttered, he has fulfilled his 'dream' of representing the place of his parent's birth, but enough is enough. Hammers NEED big MIck to be firing on ALL cylinders, something that is absolutely IMPOSSIBLE for a 31 year old to do if he is off gallivanting around chasing trophies that are never going to be won!

A quick notice of 'retirement' from the international arena is all it takes, no one from the Reggae Boyz would begrudge Antonio. However Hammers fans WILL begrudge the striker if he continues to place country above club, especially as he is London born and bred! - LN

The ever spiralling crisis in the Ukraine has meant that the venue for this season's UEFA Champions League final will be moved, but to where? European Football's governing body is assessing the situation before making a final decision but it is set to be looking for a new venue at short notice for the third year running. The past two Champions League finals were played in Portugal because of Covid-19 related issues.

The game is still scheduled to be played on Saturday the 28th of May, which rules Wembley out as a host as the League Two and Championship play-off finals are set to be played at the stadium over that weekend. Other venues in the British capital are being considered as part of "a comprehensive package of sanctions against Russia" to be imposed.

"Hosting games should be a privilege not a right, we consider the final should be taken away from St Petersburg and London stands ready to host the Final," said one spokesperson. UEFA has already postponed the Youth League last 16 tie between Dynamo Kyiv and Sporting Lisbon which was scheduled to be played in the Ukraine capital on the 2nd of March.
London Mayor 'Sadist' Khan was quick to rubber stamp the venue being switched to London in the firm belief that the final would be held at his club Tottingham's brand spanking new stadium, unfortunately he didn't realise that Guns N' Roses are scheduled to play a gig there on Saturday the 28th of May!

Arsenal's Emirates stadium has also been put forward as an alternative venue, but the transport links are considered to be incompatible for fans travelling from across Europe. Of course the final may well feature TWO English teams, as it did last year, so travel will not be such a major issue.

For London venues that leaves just the London Stadium, warts and all! The Stadium might not be entirely fit for purpose, but it DOES have superb transport and infrastructure links, arguably the best in the country. Hosting the Champions League final at Stratford would be a way of 'rubber stamping' the Stadium for future use, ALL extra revenue should be given straight back to the tax payer as well! - Ed

Ben Brereton Diaz, the Chilean international who plays for Blackburn Rovers has picked up an injury that could see him sidelined for the rest of the season. Blackburn are anxiously waiting to see how severe the ankle ligament injury their star player sustained is, but they fear the worst.

Brereton Diaz was at one time top of David Moyes' January transfer list, however Blackburn's outrageous valuation of the player scared of not only the Irons, but a host of other 'interested' Premier League clubs. Brereton Diaz is the 2nd striker wanted by Moyes to have picked up a serious injury since the window closed.

Andrea Belotti is STILL injured, despite originally intending to return at the end of January and is experiencing a current 'injury nightmare'. It does go to show that the grass isn't always greener when it comes to 'high profile' transfers, technically Hammers could have signed either Brereton Diaz or Balotti and still ended up with NO STRIKER!-LN

It would be much easier to jump on the doom and gloom Hammers threads around this morning rather than trying to be positive following this weekend's draw against Newcastle that felt so much like a defeat, but here goes. In our opinion constructive criticism is acceptable even though it may be painful, and there can be no more painful a decision to make as to Tomas Soucek's continued selection, closely followed by the 'Antonio up top' dilemma.

There is NO point in bleating on about the non-existent new arrivals during the January transfer window, it is what it is now, regardless of the cavalier stupidity of the board AND the manager. One thing most people will agree on is that Hammers look just like an under resourced team that has ground to a halt under the strain of competing in too many simultaneous competitions for them to cope with.

Most notably Tomas Soucek AND Vlad Coufal have both looked shadows of their former selves, unfortunately Hammers ONLY striker Mikey Antonio is also going through a lean spell that has seen him playing out of position in order to try and get some service.

Soucek is currently being deployed in a role to which he is NOT suited, that is not to say that he doesn't try his hardest, far from it, but he is just NOT a deep lying defender, his strengths have always been as a marauding attacking midfielder who scares the hell out of opposition defenders due to his late surging runs into the box which invariably cannot be picked up until it is too late.

Playing in such a defensive role has essentially nullified Soucek's ability to influence a game like he did last season, his positional change has been made in order to facilitate Declan Rice's more attacking role this season. It should be remembered that when Tomas resumed his attacking role against Watford, due to Declan Rice being suspended, he scored a goal and looked every ounce of the player he used to be!

Moyes needs to either reverse Dec and Tommy's roles or drop the latter, problem of course being who could replace Soucek as a deep lying midfielder, Alex Kral anybody? It is entirely correct to drop Tommy, he has been less than impressive in a role he was not supposed to be playing, Kral is far more suited to being a defensive' destroyer.

The other bone of contention is Mikey Antonio, recently he has spent more time on his backside than his feet and would definitely benefit from being benched, Hammers coughed up nearly THIRTY MILLION POUNDS to bring Nikola Vlasic to the club, surely NOW is the time to utilise his talents.

Vlasic's physique looks like that of a mixed martial arts fighter, to us he seems like an ideal replacement for Big Mick, let Vlasic start and then bring Mikey on for the last 25 minutes or so of the game. Vlasic deserves to be given a start, hopefully the Boss will do the right thing and start him.

David Moyes is going to HAVE to make some tough calls during the week, even if it means dropping a couple of his 'pet' players! - LN