Forum | General Discussion

Hammers recent recruitment drive, instigated by ex-Everton super scout Tony Henry, has seen a distinct shift in emphasis, no longer are the club looking for ageing 'cheap' stop gaps, instead the key word is youth. Of course this does not mean a hell for leather throw them in at the deep end approach, rather a let's integrate youth with players who are at the top of their game and peak of fitness, that way the knowledge and wisdom of the senior players can be passed on directly, there is no substitute for experience.
The early return to the club of Martin Samuelson and impending arrivals of Havard Nordveidt from Borussia Monchengladbach,Toni Martinez from Valencia and youngster Domingos Quina, stolen from under Chelsea'a nose, are clear indications that West Ham are moving forward and are no longer a selling club, that is not to say high value players won't be moved on if the price is right, but it does mean should one of the high profile players leave that they will be replaced with a player who has equal or superior ability. This leads appropiately to the Enner Valencia situation, many fans believe West Ham paid over the odds for Ecuadorian striker who has failed to re-kindle the electric form he showed when first paired in attack with Diafra Sakho. The club would be looking to re-coup the £12 Million they paid for him, with a move to China being the most likely option as it is unclear as to whether any Barclays Premier League or European club would be prepared to facilitate the move although Dutch website Online Wedden think Anderlecht might be interested. Piece by piece Slaven Billic's team jigsaw is coming to fruition, very soon the team will be comprised of HIS players and will perform accordingly, West Ham have enjoyed a meteoric upturn in fortunes since the Croat's arrival and look set to achieve or at least equal the best ever points tally since the Premier League's inception, with more goals and more away wins attainable as well.
Proper European football beckons, earned by merit, not by some strange back door Euro clause and of course this time there will be time to prepare properly, those fans at the Boleyn for the first of the qualification matches last summer would hardly dream of what would be achieved during the year, there was a sense that something special was going to unfold as a packed Boleyn greeted the as yet untried Super Slav as he walked out on the pitch. some people said be careful what you wish for, well it appears a lot of people actually have got what they dreamed of instead. - Ed