Forum | General Discussion

The December list of televised games has just been released, and it appears those with an Amazon Prime membership will be quids in! Two of West Ham United's fixtures in December are being broadcast on Amazon Prime, which will come as a welcome relief to those who cannot stand the sound of Alan Smith's voice, and to a lesser extent the patronising tones of Glen Hoddle.

Unless they withdraw their usual offer, you can 'trial' Prime without charge for one month, which would include the fixtures against both Crystal Palace and Southampton, The offer is obviously not applicable to those who availed themselves of the free months trial back in the first stages of lock down, but it's worth giving it a go just in case, you can also take out a one month subscription that would still work out a lot cheaper than their Now TV counterparts.

December's broadcast coverage is as follows: West Ham vs Manchester United | December 5, 5.30pm | Sky Sports. Leeds United vs West Ham | December 11, 8pm | Sky Sports West Ham vs Crystal Palace | December 16, 8pm | Amazon Prime Video
Chelsea vs West Ham | December 21, 8pm | Sky Sports. West Ham vs Brighton | December 27, 2.15pm | Sky Sports. Southampton vs West Ham | December 29, 6pm | Amazon Prime Video.

Ahead of a very limited return to live matches season ticket holders may have noticed reimbursment payments arriving in their bank accounts or credited to their bank cards, the board must be smarting, but they are 'infinitely more wealthier than thou!' - Ed

Having seen his team perform well, if not spectacularly, in the absence of 'star' forward Michail Antonio, Hammers manager David Moyes is only too aware that the season is not yet a quarter through, and that a long hard winter of congestive fixtures awaits.

Therefore the need to keep Antonio 'for the long term' is dependant on using the big man sparingly, at his age Big Mich's hamstrings 'ain't gonna get better', the result of which means he has to be wrapped up in cotton wool for periods before he bursts back on the scene, only to be injured again, usually his nemesis, his hamstrings.

The 'hammies' will always persist due to Antonio's explosive pace and power, exertions that place an enormous strain on his body, particularly his huge thighs that he uses to help bully and terrify opposition defenders. Moyes understands the demands Antonio's no hold barred style of play inflicts on his body and accepts injuries are part of the parcel and knows that Hammers cannot be a 'one trick pony'.

Moyes pragmatic assessment of the task ahead of him to get "West Ham where they should be" includes clever asset management, the club's under achieving stars will either shape up or ship out under a Moyes regime that has pundits raving, you can contact 22bet Uganda here to check out the odds of achieving European qualification, many firmly believe so early in this topsy turvy season, that the Irons under Moyes' firm hand are genuine top six of the Barclays Premier League contenders.

Having overcome one of the most difficult sequence of starts ever handed to a team in the top flight, West Ham are now at the cross roads, build on some impressive results, or burn up at the hands of opposition fighting for the same place at the 'top table'? This Monday evening's game against 'high flying' Aston Villa is a case in point, both teams are doing better than expected, bearing in mind the other thing they have in common, except playing in Claret and Blue, was a dangerous flirtation with relegation last season, despite both teams having spent an absolute fortune on players!

Villa's hopes of maintaining their momentum have taken a bit of a battering due to Chelsea loanee, Ross Barkley, having picked a dreaded hamstring injury, sounds familiar, doesn't it? Yet another injury sustained as clubs strive to feed their economic masters, the TV broadcasters, who to all intents and purposes, seem hell bent on producing a generation of well paid, gifted cripples! - Ed

RIP Diego Maradona 1960-2020 who can now thank god in person, a great football player despite his demons!

Sunday's away victory over Sheffield United was just as seminal as the 3-3 draw away to Tottenham, it showed a riseilient team that goes about it's business in a quietly confident manner. A team forged by David Moyes which is as much about his remption as it is for an underachiening squad finally being given the direction and motivation they sorely needed.

This season, above all others, represents the genuine opportunity for one of maybe TEN teams to do a 'Leicester', and win the Barclays Premier League against all odds. Now we are not in any way suggesting the Irons could win the league, but there is more than a decent chance they can make an impact, the steady progress the team is making is not without notice from the pundits either, many of whom retain a soft spot for West Ham and for David Moyes who they felt was dealt harshly during his time as manager by the then biggest club in the World, Manchester United.

If Moyes can maintain the club's current progress there is no reason that West Ham cannot be there or there abouts come the end of the season, and therein lies the irony. The last time West Ham were able to challenge for the league title was in the 1986-1987 season, due to a Mersyside conspiracy and a ridiculously congested end to the season the club finished third,

During that season there was a disagreement between the FA and the broadcasters which meant the only way you could see West Ham was at live games! The Touts had a field day, memories of rushing to the ground straight from the recording studio are still engraved somewhere. Even though we were 'wedged up' we couldn't even steal a ticket for some games, in the end resulting to jumpng over the wall straight in to the Chicken Run.

So, the club's most successful season was never seen by the masses, and so it is with some regret we focus on on a part of David Moyes' post match presser. "I really wish the West Ham supporters were here to see it because when they come back I think they'll see a lot of improvement," he said. "They'll see players who have moved on and got better. The one thing about the team is that is has great energy and commitment. They're all trying to do their job. All we'll try to do is keep building and getting better - we're not going to get carried away with what we're doing, but let's be fair, winning away is really important. I think we can keep going and keep moving up the table."

So it seems fitting to close by referencing the fans who aren't there to witness what could be a spectacular season, but also thinking about those who will never be able to attend again. - Ed

Long suffering Hammers supporters, old and young, are only too aware of their team's propensity of giving clubs below them a helping hand when it comes to 'breaking their duck', this 'act of genorosity' is usually preceeded on the back of a couple of decent results against 'top' opposition!

If football clubs are guilty of being previous offenders, then West Ham would rank highest or there abouts when it comes to repeatedly being gubbed by teams that the 'pundits' feel should have been easily dealt with, and you know, the annoying thing is that they are correct in their appraisal.

David Moyes is not a typical 'arty farty' Hammers manager, he neither covets publicity nor shies away from it, he comes across as dour, sometimes humourless, but he is on a mission. Having been sent to the top of olympus, only to be discarded from it's heights, Moyes has been of a journey of redemption, the course of which has not been smooth to put it mildly, ill conceived spells in charge of Santander and then Sunderland did little to enhance his reputation.

Finally, arriving at the Bowl of Misery in the middle of a relegation crisis, Moyes was able to be re-born, however the Gods had a little caveat for him to overcome in the form of the 'preening' Manuel Pellegrini, who's services were sought instead of the ex Preston, Everton and Manchester United manager.

Having watched from near and afar Pellegrini squandering vast amounts of money on 'luxury' and also inept players, (Pablo Fornals, Issa Diop and Fabian Bulbuena excluded), Moyes bided his time before the inevitable call came to rescue the club from relegation AGAIN! This task Moyes achieved despite all the odds and was finally rewarded with a 'worthy' contract, albeit a relatively short term one.

Now that Moyes is fully in charge and has a back room staff he believes in, he has made his intentions known that he wants to build something special and turn West Ham United in to the team that they should have been for years. Part of that process is to dismantle the 'flaky' outcomes of matches in the past that the club should have won but frittered away, usually against clubs occupying lower league positions, or giant killers in the Cups.

If David Moyes can get his squad to finally believe in themselves, and not fold like pansies when put under pressure, then he will have gone a long way down the torturous football manager's road to redemption, a wounded and desperate Sheffield United await, usually the type of prime candidates to give the Irons a kicking, especially bearing in mind the teams respective Barclays Premier League positions

Sunday's game against Sheffield will most definitely NOT be pretty, but it is one of those seminal games, in a similar way to the Spurs game, that can have a massive impact on how the season unfolds, 'powder puff Hammers, or men of steel, if the latter turn up then a well earned point or even more could be on the cards, if the former turn up, the Irons will be 'toast' to have along with a strong brew! - Ed