Forum | General Discussion

Reading and listening to some of the 'gungho' comments made ahead of West Ham's match against Fulham you would think the game had already been won! How very far from the truth can that be? Just because Hammers have managed to win three matches on the spin why on earth do fans and pundits think Craven Cottage is going to be an easy place to play at? Fulham, like West Ham, spent big in the summer and then endured a truly miserable start to the season, unlike West Ham Fulham panicked and decided to part company with their manager replacing him with a steady pair of hands in the form of Claudio Ranieri.

Both Ranieri and Pellegrini have both won the Premier League albeit in entirely different circumstances, since arriving at the Cottage Ranieri has overseen a mini revival particularly at home where they have achieved a win and a draw since he took over. Pellegrini of course has overseen a dramatic turn of fortune at West Ham, but traditionally this is the point where the club falls at the first hurdle of realistic achievement as another false dawn emerges. however Manuel Pellegrini, despite his age, is a proper manager not a chancer from the lowe divisions or an inherrant wheeker dealer risk taker, he is an old school officienado who has been there and done it.

Manuel Pellegrini will in no way underestimate the 'boomerang effect' that a new manager can have when arriving at a club, and in Claudio Ranieri he has a fellow 'old school warrior'. This match is crucial for both clubs for different reasons, Fulham have the chance to build upon a solid start for the 'Tinkerman', West Ham have the chance to 'aim for the stars instead of the moon'. Caution must be the order of the day, as Ranieri pointed out, Hammers last three victories were 3-0, 3-1, and 3-2, so the differential is there for him to motivate his team with, as he inferred during his pre-match pressie.

Will Hammers crash and burn? If the team can avoid complacency there is every chance of progressing further up the table, but this is West Ham after all. -Ed

Having been taught a painful lesson with regards their recruitment due to 'Wheelgate', it is only natural that Manuel Pelegrini and Mario Husillos are recalcitrant when discussing possible new arrivals at the club. However Pellegrini was at pains to confirm Hammers LACK of interest in signing Yaya Toure, Toure was a pivotal member of Pellegrini’s title winning Manchester City side and is a free agent after leaving Olympiakos by mutual agreement on Tuesday after only three months and just five appearances.

Pellegrini said: “I spoke with Yaya, yes, at the beginning of the season. I have always said he is a great player but I don’t know what happened with him in Greece. At this moment we are just thinking about the next game, I don’t want to talk until the end of December about which players we are going to need in the window, it is not a priority because we already have players in that position.”

Signing old past it players looking for a final pay day was a bit of a trait at West Ham United for ages, the need to 'bulk up' the squad, literally in the case of Benni Mccarthy, meant numbers not quality were the order of the day. The massive influx of television money has changed all that, not just for West Ham but also a host of other Premier League clubs who are now able to match bids from what were the 'elite' clubs in the League who had all the spending power. This of course doesn't mean that anyone can compete with Manchester City or their lower placed rivals Manchester United or indeed Chelsea and Arsenal, but the gulf that once existed is now far narrower than it used to be.

'Big clubs'are invariably charged more for players than those who are not as well known or well resourced, the premium is as much as double in certain situations. An old United fan who is a friend of this site, whilst lamenting the 'miserable one's' effect on his club, repeatedly mentioned how much over the odds Manchester United paid for their star players and that if they had been purchased by West Ham for example the premium would have been halved. Hence Marko Arnoutovic to United stories always begin with a £50 Million price tag for a player who cost less than half that, similarly Issa Diop would have cost much more than the £22 Million West Ham paid for him and heaven knows what Felipe Anderson's price would have been.

For the time being West Ham can enjoy the situation, however clubs are now taking note of what Pellegrini and Husillos are putting together at the London Stadium, so expect quoted prices for players to rise commensurately with success attained on the pitch. The most important fact is that the club is no longer a small club, and whether universally liked or not, the move to the London Stadium from the Boleyn Ground has massively upped West Ham United's profile both domestically and abroad.

The only thing that will stop players wanting to come to the club from abroad in the future will be Brexit and what it is doing to the value of the pound! - Ed

Rafael Benitez v Manuel Pellegrini: Would Rafa thrive once again if given the spending power of West Ham United?

After their recent 3-0 defeat to West Ham United at St James Park, Newcastle United boss Rafael Benitez insisted that the Hammers spending power was the difference between the two sides.

West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini was backed with over £90m worth of talent in the summer, whereas Benitez spent a modest £17m on new additions.

It’s evident that Benitez will need to bring in new recruits in the January transfer window if Newcastle are to avoid a relegation battle, but that all depends on the board.

At the start of the season, both clubs were languishing at the bottom of the table but Benitez and Pellegrini have both overseen an upturn in fortunes in recent times.

Both managers have strong pedigrees and although Pellegrini has the upper hand in terms of spending currently, it would be interesting to see how Benitez would compare against the Chilean if given similar funds.

Here, we take a look at how both managers shape up and determine whether Benitez would revive Newcastle if provided equal spending power.

What their records say

Benitez and Pellegrini both crafted their trade in Spain’s top flight, and the duo became highly sought-after property with their exploits at Valencia and Villarreal respectively.

Benitez is still the only manager in world football to win the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA World Club Cup.

The former Liverpool boss won two La Liga titles whilst at Valencia, before a successful stint at Anfield before entertaining Inter Milan, Napoli and Real Madrid.

Despite being dismissed from the San Siro and Bernabeu, Benitez did manage to win the Supercoppa Italiana and Club World Cup for Inter whilst he lifted the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa for a second time with Napoli.

Pellegrini shot into the limelight after guiding Villarreal to a Champions League semi-final in 2006, narrowly losing out to Arsenal.

‘The yellow submarine’ also stopped Real Madrid and Barcelona’s dominance when they finished second in the 2007/08 campaign.

His consistent record at Villarreal generated interest from Real, with Los Blancos swooping to get their man in 2009.

Pellegrini’s time at the Bernabeu was short lived and although he managed 96 points – a Madrid record at the time – it wasn’t enough to win the title and he was swiftly removed.

A much more successful stint at Malaga followed where he led them to third in the league and to the quarter-finals of the Champions League the following campaign.
Manchester City were next for Pellegrini and the oil-rich club tasted success in the Chilean’s first season, guiding them to a second Premier League title.

Who’s most reputable?

Both managers have exceeded expectations at some point in their careers as well as underperformed, but Benitez and Pellegrini will always be regarded as world class managers.

Their CV’s are very impressive and both have certainly left their mark whilst managing in England, leaving West Ham and Newcastle fans more than optimistic Pellegrini and Benitez can move both clubs forward.

With that in mind, Benitez has been shackled in his task to bring the glory days back to St James’ Park. Mike Ashley’s tenure has always been scrutinised by the Geordie faithful and despite the lack of funds Benitez is provided, he continues to get the best out of what he has to work with.

From Pellegrini’s perspective, it’s been the polar opposite in terms of being able to identify and purchase players of high quality.

Kevin de Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Fernandinho are just three signings that Pellegrini purchased whilst City boss, for a total of £161m.

The likes of Issa Diop, Andriy Yarmolenko and Felipe Anderson have joined Pellegrini at the London Stadium this season with the latter making a really good impression; his best performance coming in the recent 3-0 win over Newcastle.

Benitez has purchased high-calibre players in previous jobs but since taking over Newcastle in 2016, it has meant the Spaniard has had a shoe-string budget to work on but has done so with great results. Even if Newcastle are priced at 4/1 in the Premier League relegation odds.

It would be interesting to see how Pellegrini would fare if provided similar circumstances as Benitez, with the likelihood he’d potentially struggle at first but could mirror the former Liverpool boss’ work.

In comparison, Pellegrini and Benitez are seemingly on par with each other when it comes to reputation, trophy’s won and man management skills.

However, with Rafa’s inability to fine-tune a squad of his own at Newcastle, it begs the question why he didn’t force through a switch to east London in the summer, where he certainly would have thrived again if given the funds of Pellegrini.

There is always something unnerving and yet satisfying for supporters when a long serving player says that they want to end their career at the club, in Hammers case it is Captain Mark Noble. Noble debuted in 2004 as a 17 year old and has gone on to play around 450 games for the club, the option to extend his contract keeping him at the club until 2021 has been taken up, it is also envisaged that his services will be retained in a coaching capacity once he has hung up his boots for good.

Noble is something of a rarity being a 'one club' man, it is unlikely that there will be many more players of the same ilk in the future, in fact it will be unheard of! Noble's renaisance as a player has come about as a result of Manuel Pelegrini recognising the need for a leader on the pitch, having been dropped by Slaven Billic, David Moyes and initially by Pellegrini Noble's comeback has been nothing short of 'Furyesque' as he has seen off the opposition on numerous occasions. Playing alongside the magnificent Declan Rice, Noble has reinvented himself as a midfield destroyer, the fact that Issa Diop and The General are there to pick up the pieces means that Noble does not get caught out of position and is therefore less likely to lunge in.

Noble himself will admit he has lost the odd yard, but it matters not so long as he has young legs around him to cover for his lack of pace, his passion and influence offset his flaws as a player and he does tend to make a habit of playing better when he has class players around him, it happened when Payet was at the club and it appears to be happeneing now as a result of him playing alongside Felipe Anderson, among others. Noble replacements have come and gone in the past but inevitably he will have less of an influence on games as his age catches up with him, after all not every one can have Pablo Zabaleta's genes!

The duration of Noble's contract may have some fans thinking that it s a rather generous gesture from the club, however his wages which are believed to be £50,000 per week are not high compared with what is the norm nowadays and he does have a good footballing brain, sometimes his intelligence isn't noticed because it is disguised by his Canning Town accent with people just assuming he is a dumb footballer, that is far from the case and once he finally retires he will shine in a coaching capacity as well as being an entertaining studio guest for the broadcasters.

Mark Noble, a dying breed. - Ed