You are here

Home

Forum | General Discussion

The gunmen's love bullets

darrenharry's picture
Submitted by darrenharry on Fri, 20/07/2018 - 16:05

Forums:

An anagram of Manuel Pellegrini is “Aereil gunmen pill”
Well lets hope we are flying high and shooting down the opposition. Perhaps less reliance on the “pill” but with the mooted return of Payet many women may be well advised to stock up.
‘Tis a strange time to be a hammer, but then, that would suggest there is a normal time?
The older I get the less I care about the past, which is unusual I guess.
The owners have had it all horribly wrong from the start of the move, that’s agreed. Poor managerial selections, poor transfer policy, poor policy making and absolutely no forward planning. Talking aloud far too often, continuing to employee the walking disaster that is Brady, treating fans with disdain. I can’t believe there was a pitch invasion?!
The Burnley game could actually prove to be the nadir. As I watched from my lofty perch, I had a swelling (not that kind, it was far too early) of pride, this was a bit of old West Ham, this was what was needed. Believe me when I tell you the owners lost their bowels that afternoon. When you live your life in a turret and have yes people around you, to have people physically throw coins at you and be that visible with venom and bile, even the hardest souls can reconsider.
And so they have.
£10m a year for a manager is big bucks.
When he was mentioned I didn’t think we’d get him. Because to get him, you need to guarantee a war chest. And we’ve never done that. Ever.
I’m hoping the owners have looked at their own mortality and thought “**k it, why not, let’s have a last hurrah”. They will not be around much longer. So far all they have to celebrate in their time with us is a move. And even that’s debatable. They’ve got cash on the hip, families set up for life. If their genuine interest is football, and they care about publicity through a successful team, its now or never for them.
So, back him they have.
I’ll be honest, I only know about 2 of the signings (Fabpantsski and Wheelchair) but for once, I don’t care, I just wanted to see a chequebook.
I wanted to see the rewards of this TV money, of the £2.5m rent per year. The signings may prove to be rubbish, but you know what? It ‘aint my money and they’ve been stockpiling the clubs cash for years.
Bilic and Moyes were both given loose change.
The gunman has been given the green.
The front line now has pace. We’ve been so bereft of this since Antonio has been out (and even then, lop sided) that Andrew the giant and Prince Filip should provide genuine break option to keep up with Arnie now. Added to Chic Pea, we should carry genuine pace threat and keep teams either pressed back or always with an eye on their shoulder, not playing in front of them continually as we have done for the last 2 years.
Wheelchair is my favourite English midfielder of the last 10 years, since Scholes.
He’s a brilliant player.
But there is a reason why Arsenal have let him go and none of the top 6 were concerned.
Do not kid yourself into thinking because he played 38 games last year he’s fine now. Dig into those 38 odd games. 18 were in the Europa league and 5 in the League cup….not the most robust challenges for our glass ankled fan. When you already have Big ‘Andy on the books, I think this signing is a real gamble – freebie you say? Nah. Signing on fee and £105k per week.
Nothing is free.
I keep my fingers crossed for him but I fear we have been here before.
I assume we’ll see a couple of season long loans. Ideally midfielder and striker for me, areas that still need addressing.
But also, hopefully, we may start to see some of the youngsters.
Nathan Holland has impresses me each time I’ve seen him and he could be an exciting prospect in the Lanzini mould (amazing to think how Lanzini has to come back into this line up).
I hope the gunman is brave enough to blood some youngsters, even for the last 15-20 minutes of games.
Spuds have done this well with Harry Winks, and we definitely need it with a replacement for Noble.
So buckle up boys and girls.
The gunman may well unleash his load.
I, for one, hope to be sprayed with his love bullets.

Mario 'Mad As A Box Of Frogs' Balotelli - The Missing Link?

nevillenixon's picture
Submitted by nevillenixon on Fri, 20/07/2018 - 11:00

Way back in March of this year we ran an article suggesting West Ham United should consider signing Mario 'mad as a box of frogs' Balotelli as he was in the last part of his contract with Patrick Vieira's side Nice, last season he was outstanding scoring 26 goals in 38 appearances for the French side, he had a superb 2017/18 season showing his pace, skill,and finishing ability repeatedly, he eventually signed a one year contract extension on 25.06.2018. However in a typically 'Balotelli' faustian pact, his future was supposed to be in the form of a move to Olympic Marseille that has not now materialised, Balotelli was so confident that the move would go ahead that he didn't turn up for training with Nice, consequently he is now training on his own and faces further 'talks' with newly arrived manager Patrick Vieira.

Balotelli worked alone during a gym session and cut a lonely figure out on the pitch at the club's training base, a statement on the official Nice website read: 'On Tuesday afternoon, Mario Balotelli made his return to the OGC Nice training centre. 'After meeting the Nice staff, the Italian striker took part in an individual session, in the field and then in the hall.'

For all of the club’s summer spending there is still the need for a striker, and Mario Balotelli would fit the bill, West Ham’s transfer business so far can only be described as sensational with the signings of Issa Diop, Jack Wilshere, Andriy Yarmolenko, Felipe Anderson, Ryan Fredericks, Fabian Balbuena and Lukasz Fabianski for a combined outlay exceeding £85.5million. One more striker could be the missing link, Andy Carroll who is in the final year of his six year contract, has done what Big Andy does best ,and that is to get injured just ahead of the beginning of the season ruling himself out for at least three months. With Carroll perpetually side lined, Chicharito then becomes the only out and out striker available and there are doubts as to whether a new dawn can begin for his stop start Hammer's career. That leaves just Jordan Hugill as the other 'senior' striker, plans are already in place to ship him out to the highest bidder so at least one new recruit is essential, that is why Balotelli could be the answer. The Italian knows the Premier League well and would not be overawed by the speed and physical nature of the game here,

Mario Balotelli is more known for his off the pirch antics rather than his goalscoring in English football, but a lot has happened since he left these shores and although he does still get in trouble here and there, overall he’s a much better player than he was. His time in England probably came too early in his career being too immature, too young and too inexperienced to take advantage of the opportunities available to him. Now could be the perfect time to bring him back to the Premier League under the guidance of Manuel Pellegrini who more than most has the presence to 'deal' with certain aspects of the 'Mario Balotelli experience', bringing Balotelli to the club could make the difference between mid table and chasing a top six slot for West Ham next season.

Maverick or Marvel?- Ed

Share

Arnie To Roma Rumours Are Rubbished

nevillenixon's picture
Submitted by nevillenixon on Tue, 17/07/2018 - 12:27

It was inevitable given the club's recent expenditures that rumours would begin to circulate as to how the books would be made to balance, several high profile first teamers have been mentioned as heading toward the exit door of late, the most recent of which is Marko Arnoutovic. It seems that certain media outlets are determined to undermine what has been an astounding transfer window for West Ham United, the 'little old hammers' could not possibly afford to bring in such high calibre players without selling their 'crown jewels' could they?, appears to have been the line of thought.

By mentioning a £50 Million transfer writers know they are guaranteed a bit of coverage, the same fee was mentioned way back when Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho happened to be attending the friendly that Arnoutovic played in just ahead of the FIFA World Cup in Russia, journalists put two and two together and came up with five, well fifty actually. Now Italian giants Roma have supposedly been offered Marko Arnoutovic for you guessed it, £50 Million! Some coincidence that hey?

Why on earth would Manuel Pelegrini want to deprive himself the services of arguably the best player at the club? It makes no sense, Pellegrini himself has already said that he was building a squad not just a team, Arnoutovic is at his peak and the type of player that would thrive under Pellegrini who would have surely sold Arnie on by now if that's what his intention was.

Of course Roma have denied any contact, which is as it should be given there hasn't been any, it should also be relatively obvious by now that Mario Husillos does NOT telegraph his moves in any way shape or form, the Press and media find out after the deals are done and when he wants them to be in the public domain. Club insiders have now indeed confirmed that the story is fake news, we shall probably see quite a lot of it before the window closes.

Sometimes it's hard to create a headline, sometimes it's better to wait for the truth! - Ed

Share

Manuel Pellegrini Experience Financed By Tripp?

nevillenixon's picture
Submitted by nevillenixon on Tue, 17/07/2018 - 08:42

News has reached us that West Ham United's unprecedented spending is due to continue, there are two 'massive' deals that could come to fruition within the next few days that push the club's expenditure towards the £150 Million mark! Hammers fans used to a diet of failed promises and bargain basement buys and loan deals are understandably finding things difficult to take on board, quite frankly the sums being totted around are virtually unbelievable, not since the times of the Icelandics have West Ham been so active at the top end of the transfer market and even then the calibre of players targeted was not as high.

This of course leads us to the question that most fans of the club and fans of other clubs are asking, "where s the money coming from?" News that co-owners David Gold and David Sullivan had taken out a £50 Million short term loan seemed to cover the financial black hole, but the projected future spending has to have been factored in to the equation, so where is the additional funding going to come from? Well, Tripp Smith, a senior managing director of Blackstone and co-founder of the asset management group GSO Capital Partners, became a minority shareholder of West Ham in September last year. The club remained under the control of Sullivan and Gold as Mr Smith acquired his 10 per cent stake from CB Holding, an Icelandic group that gained the shareholding following the collapse of the Icelandic Stramur Investment Bank in 2009. According to documents filed in Companies House, Mr Smith became a new director of West Ham United’s parent company, while the Icelandic director Robert Svanstrom departed the group, the price paid by Tripp Smith still remains unclear.

There is a weird financial anomoly when it comes to buying shares in a company that is sometimes called green labeling in broker slang, essentially the new purchaser of shares can raise the share capital of the company in a positive way to support the company's stability. Incoming investment has to be met pro rata by the other share holders in order to maintain their levels of share holding, if not incremental shares in the company can be 'aggresively' attained, this situation is commonly known as an aggresive take over.

Now we are in no way suggesting Tripp Smith is attempting in any way to take the club over, but his actions may well have triggered the latest spending spree, for example Tripp may have put say £30 Million in to the club for the 10% of shares he purchased from Robert Svanstrom's organisation and at board meetings, to which he is fully entitled to attend, can ask to see that the investment is being used to good effect. We at the Org are of the opinion that measures are already in hand to begin the process of acquiring the London Stadium outright, the Alexander Athletics Stadium in Birmingham is due to have it's capacity increased to 50,000 which will make it the ideal all the year round stadium for track and athletics in the future.

West Ham United, obviously with additional investment on board, will be able to purchase the Stadium and finally make it fit for purpose, which means the tax payer might finally start to get back the money it always should have had and would have had if the stadium had been designed correctly with a view to the future in the first instance.

It will take a few quid though! - Ed

Share

Will Jordan Hugill Still Be A Hammer Against His Old Club?

nevillenixon's picture
Submitted by nevillenixon on Mon, 16/07/2018 - 19:20

West Ham United play Preston North End at Deepdale on Saturday the 21st of July at 3pm, whether this fixture was part of the deal that took Jordan Hugill to the London Stadium from Preston North End for an eye watering £10 Million remains to be seen, neutral observers let alone fans will have quickly worked out who got the best out of that deal. It is not Hugill's fault that he was a 'panic' buy back in the dark days when relegation was an extremely likely possibility, he was purchased with an eye to a mass player exodus in the event of the Irons dropping down in to the Championship.

Fast forward to now and West Ham United are suddenly cool again, the honest hard working Hugill really doesn't fit Manuel Pellegrini's template in any way shape or form despite apparently being a very affable young man. The fee paid for him was extortionate and West Ham will do well to recover even half of what they paid for him, so maybe just maybe El Pel might consider keeping Hugill as a battering ram plan C and getting rid of 'sick note' Andy Carroll.

Perhaps the Hammers medical team can perform a miraculous body conjoining that would give Carroll Hugill's fitness, or perhaps they will both be sold. Either way neither Carroll nor Hugill apppear to have any future at the club, it will just be a case of the getting the best money available from a team that is as blinded now as West Ham were when they purchased both of these players, Carroll in particular with one of the most astonishingly long and generous contracts that has ever been issued to an injury prone player, with the possible exception of the grand Guru of ridiculous contracts Sat Guru Dev Kieron Dyer.

If the club is to continue moving forward on the quite frankly amazing curve it is on, dead beats and dead weights will have to be jettisoned in abundance. These are exciting times for West Ham United and it's supporters and it really is a case of out with the old and in with the new, players will want to come to the London Stadium and it will be up to the board to ensure they do as much as they can to 'West Hamify' the Stadium to build on the incredible success of the transfer window.

Oft criticised, the London Stadium can be a really good venue, on certain occasions last season the atmosphere was amazing, equally there were times, particularly the Burnley game, when things were definitely not good. Much of the bad feeling related to failed player recruitment, not so this season one gets the feeling that future gripes will be more to do with issues like the colour of the pitch limits and the quality of the stewarding and the catering, both of which incidentally showed marked signs of improvement towards the season's end.

Time for a new beginning? - Ed

Share

Old Orgers And New Welcome!

nevillenixon's picture
Submitted by nevillenixon on Mon, 16/07/2018 - 18:41

Forums:

Maybe it is because we haven't paid too much attention that we haven't mentioned that there have been a lot of 'old timers' who have receently been visiting the site again in addition to a fair few new members, is it because West Ham have suddenly started to do things correctly? It seems the club has finally emerged from it's self induced coma, and how nice it is to see fans of other clubs in meltdown at their owner's lack of transfer activity, isn't that a change?

An Exciting And Formidable West Ham On The Cards Under Pellegrini

Submitted by louishammer on Mon, 16/07/2018 - 17:22

The Premier League has seen some major surprises in recent times, as the minnows have proved to be formidable, one of such was Leicester's Premier League triumph some seasons ago. It could be described as a one-off, but such a feat or something close to that might be cooking in East London.

Tottenham Hotspur under the attack-minded Pochettino have apparently broken the London dominance of Chelsea and Arsenal as the torch-bearers in the PL and the Hammers will be looking to dig in under the management of Chilean tactician Manuel Pellegrini.

The Hammers are already a formidable force on paper and would be a decent bet for a place in the top 4 on NetBet Sport based on happenings at the club since the arrival of Pellegrini, with regards to the decent and relatively high profile signings the club have made in the summer transfer window. West Ham will be set up to definitely play exciting and attacking football under Pellegrini next season and the signings they've made thus far gives credence to this school of thought.

Club owner David Sullivan showed the intent of his ambitions for the club in the forthcoming 2018/19 season by securing the signature of Manuel Pellegrini. He has gone further to secure the signature of players who will suit into Pellegrini's style of play at West Ham with the acquisition of the likes of Ryan Fredericks, Lukasz Fabianski, Issa Diop, English midfielder Jack Wilshere, Andriy Yarmolenko and Fabian Balbuena. 

The club then went on to smash its player transfer record recently with the signing of Lazio star man and Brazilian attacking midfielder Felipe Anderson. The Brazilian attacker now 25 has spent 5 years at Lazio and has scored 34 goals in 177 appearances for the club. He arrived on a record £42 million transfer fee. He is one of the stars to watch out for, and will definitely be key to the brand of exciting and attacking football that the Hammers boss will be preparing to deploy in the forthcoming season.

The Hammers will be one club to watch for next season, based on the quality of players they've acquired, as well as the pedigree of the manager who will be at the managerial helm of the club from the 2018/19 football season. They are looking good for a decent showing in the PL next season, and will definitely be a threat to the monopoly of London brilliance in the Premier League by the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, and recently Spurs, whilst providing quality competition for other contenders.

Share

D-Day At Rush Green As World Cup Players Report Back

nevillenixon's picture
Submitted by nevillenixon on Mon, 16/07/2018 - 08:10

Javier Hernandez or Chicharito as he is known to his millions of adoring Mexican fans, will meet up for the first time with newly installed manager Manuel Pellegrini at the Hammers' Rush Green training complex today, with all eyes on the outcome. The ex-Manchester United had made his displeasure well known at being used only as a bit part player despite commanding the club's top wages of £135,000 per week, played out of position by Slaven Billic and then hardly played at all by David Moyes, the diminutive striker will hope to have clear the air talks with Pellegrini ahead of the beginning of this season.

Will Hernandez fit in to the 'new look' West Ham that is currently being assembled at such great cost? Much depends on what is discussed today, clearly paying such a huge weekly wage is pointless unless the player gets game time, it is not as if Hernandez is a young player who needs to be introduced gradually!

There would be no shortage of takers for Hernandez if it is decided that he should move on, and the club would expect to get every bit of the original £16 Million transfer fee they paid to Bayer Leverkusen back in full. The arrival of Andriy Yarmolenko from Borussia Dortmund for £17.5 Million and supposed interest in 25 year old Brazilian forward Bernard who is now a free agent having been on the books of Shakhtar Donetsk, mean the club are looking at alternatives, Benfica are also interested in Bernard who will be able to ask for a large signing on fee in excess of £5 Million and wages to the tune of £5 Million per year.

The wages involved for both players seem obscene but this is the way the market is at present, shift one under used £135,000 per week player for one who receives £100,000 per week and might actually play! The balancing of the books will follow after the balancing of the squad is apparently the mantra adopted by 'El Pel' and the 'Huse' with regards to recruitment, and many Hammers fans are hoping long will it last - Ed

Share

Fair Play To The Board

nevillenixon's picture
Submitted by nevillenixon on Sun, 15/07/2018 - 16:06

Forums:

We at the Org have been some of the most vociferous critics of the club's transfer policy and the over bearing influence the club's hierarchy have had on big decisions that have been made in the past, however it is time to congratulate the board for this year's business. From getting a high profile manager to actually funding a total rebuild of the squad, they have been as good as their word with the further bonus being that they have actually backed off of media soundbites and the like, get the business done and then talk about it!
Conspiracy theorists might say that the continuous circle that was displayed on screen throughout the 'screening' of the friendly against Wycombe on the West Ham you tube channel was actually a subliminal hypnotic message that will have convinced fans that the club have gone on a massive spending spree, only to find out that it has all been an illusion and that the spell had been lifted just as the transfer window shuts!

That £75 Million Transfer Kitty Was Just A Ruse! Spend Continues!

nevillenixon's picture
Submitted by nevillenixon on Sun, 15/07/2018 - 13:12

Some of the definitions of ruse are, a ploy, stratagem, tactic, move, device, scheme, trick, gambit, cunning plan, manoeuvre, contrivance, expedient, dodge, subterfuge, machination, game, wile, smokescreen or red herring. When Manuel Pellegrini was unveiled as West Ham United's new manager he, along with newly appointed head of recruitment Mario Husillos, were ostensibly given a £75 Million 'war chest' that in today's market was more of a transfer kitty. For once Hammers seem to have conducted their player recruitment incredibly well with the sigings of Ryan Fredericks, Lukasz Fabianski, Issa Diop, Jack Wilshere, Andriy Yarmolenko and Fabian Balbuena in addition to the 'marquee' signing of Felipe Anderson that was officially confirmed today (sunday 15.06.2018).

Two immediate points of interest are that (a) David Sullivan and the rest of the West Ham hierarchy kept their mouths shut, eschewing the publicity that they surely craved for finally having started to fulfill their promises made when migrating to the London Stadium, this 'radio silence' must have been difficult to maintain so fair play to them. The second more salient point (b) is that there have been some shrewd manoeuvres carried out with regards to the 'actual' budget available for player transfers, the original £75 Million budget mooted to be available set a bench mark for negotiations, clubs knew what West Ham could or could not afford and therefore conducted their negotiations with the overall budget in mind.

Had West Ham announced that they were giving Manuel Pellegrini £100 Million, clubs would have adjusted their asking prices accordingly, so in what was a simple but very effective ploy Hammers were able to keep the lid on the fact that they had already made contingency plans for a short term loan enabling them to keep spending when it would seem numerically impossible. The short term 'loan' facility will enable the club to hold on to players that Manuel Pellegrini might want to retain, as opposed to having to shift them out in order to balance the books straight away. A further bonus is that West Ham will be able to hold out for the best price possible when selling players during this window, they will also be able to keep some players at the club until the January transfer window when a premium can be obtained by selling to clubs that are in desperate need of reinforcements to avoid relegation.

There are at least two more signings in the pipe line which would mean a total of NINE new players having arrived at the club, the spending will edge towards an eye watering £125 Million by the time all the intended business is complete. What about financial fare play rules many fans will ask? So long as the spend against income ratio is maintained over the course of the financial year there should be no issues, the £50 Million shortfall can be made up with player sales, but who and for how much?

It may be unfair judging a player on just one game, but Robert Snodgrass didn't do himself any favours during the friendly with Wycombe and El Pel's body language seemed to show that he had seen enough. How much could the club get back for a player they spent over £10 Million on 18 Months ago? Well with the ludicrous value of home grown players escalating all of the time a figure of £8 Million shouldn't be too hard to achieve. Cheikou Kouyate is the next name on the chopping block, the Senegal national team captain's place in the centre of the park will come under increased scrutiny especially given the arrival of Isso Diop and Fabian Balbuena. There would be plenty of takers for Kouyate and a fee of £15 Million wouldn't be unattainable, it remains to be seen if Pellegrii 'fancies' Kouyate or not, much depends on what formation the Chilean eventually chooses to use. Michail Antonio is the next 'high' profile first team member who there have been rumours is wanted, in his case Crystal palace have emerged as favourites to sign the mitcham born 'utility' player. Antonio has really suffered with injury, particularly his hamstrings which may put potential suitors off, some of his injuries may have been as a result of having to play as a right back when Slaven Billic was still manager, Antonio used to look dead on his feet half way through the first half! He is though the type player tha Pellegrini likes so he may well decide to retain his services, but if he did want to sell Antonio then a price of £15 Million to £20 Million would not be too extreme.

The above listed player sales would yield £43 Million, just about what it will take to balance the books, but strength in depth has been non existent in the past and if West Ham are finally really going to reach the 'next level' then a careful balancing act will have to be conducted. In the short term West Ham fans should only enjoy the rareified air of a successful transfer window conducted without decption and with plenty of time for the new players to integrate, this can't be West Ham can it? - Ed

Share

Pages

Next Fixture(s)

Subscribe to Forum | General Discussion