Forum | General Discussion

"You can't believe everything you see and hear can you?" sang Lou Reed on his 'Last Great American Whale' song from his 1988 New York album, he continued "My mother said she saw him in Chinatown, but you can't always trust your mother".

Hammers fans are used to disinformation, although the same can be said for most football supporters.

Usually a convenient 'mouth piece' is used to deliver a club's missive, especially when the proverbial has hit the fan, so when Irons legend Mark Noble inferred that David Moyes is one of the main reasons he is returning to the club as director of football scepticism was bound to appear with the truth being much like stories surrounding the Whale in Reed's scathing observation of the American way, especially New York's.

Mark Noble was a loyal servant to the club as man and boy, frequently rejecting the opportunity to move to other clubs although some would say he was a big fish in a small pond during his tenure with West Ham and didn't want to test what could have been troubled waters elsewhere. Irrespective of his motivation Noble deserved all the accolades he received ahead of his retirement and more!

Unfortunately 'Marky' looks as if he is walking into a PR ambush as the club look to pacify it's supporters ahead of what might be a very ugly 2nd half of this season's Premier League.

Words can easily be manipulated and misconstrued if their is mischief in the air. Mark Noble is a wealthy man as a result of some canny property investments during the course of his career and as such has no need to cow tow to the Board, but we are of the opinion that his undoubted love of the club might just be his undoing!

It is abundantly clear that the Board see 'Nobs' as an ideal buffer between them and the club's fans, all the talk of Director of Football is probably smoke and mirrors! There is a distinct possibility that the retired midfielder might find himself as caretaker manager in the not too distant future as opposed to being Director of football, of course he doesn't need the money, but he IS liable to the emotional blackmail that his tenure with the club could invoke.

Hopefully Mark Noble will NOT be put in that position, but you can't Betway against it can you? - Ed

Now that the World Cup is drawing to it's conclusion with the final between Argentina and France to be held at 3PM GMT, focus will invariably shift to players' domestic responsibilities. Most people have been pleasantly surprised with how WELL the Cup has gone in what is after all a Pariah State that has a dreadful human liberty and human rights reputation, perhaps the Legacy of the Qatar World Cup of 2022 will be that tolerance is NOT a one way street.

As a retired journalist who worked for many large organisations it is difficult to 'forgive' Qatar for some of their sins, but looking closer to home there are plenty of examples of despicable behaviour carried our by the very Governments that criticised the Qatari's so vehemently! It hasn't been a bad cup for Hammers payers' either with the club being well represented right up to the final and the third place play off, injuries appear to have been kept to a minimum and no one was on the receiving end of a total gubbing.

When the dust has settled it will be plain to see that Aguard is a top, but injury prone player, so he will fit in at West Ham easily! Declan Rice's value will go up even more and the club might as well start seriously looking for his replacement, perhaps even from within the Moroccan squad? David Sullivan always liked a 'world cup' brucy bonus purchase in the past, fortunately the cable ties applied to his cheque writing hand are still holding strong which enables real professionals to get on with the job as opposed to 'inspired' amateurs.

Hammers only representation in the final will be the Argentine manager Lionel Scaloni, he who broke Hammers fans hearts as a result of a well meaning but ill timed pass during the 2006 FA Cup final that eventually led to the Steven Gerrard 'wonder strike' that fuelled a generation of smug scouse bastards. Lionel will be in demand, but would he want to come back to England? Would he be able to cope with the hustle and bustle of the premier League and how would his family feel about swapping Buenos Aires for Barking?

If David Moyes doesn't get his act together, we may well find out a bit sooner than expected! - Ed

No, the Hammers manager hasn't gone for some Pubic restyling while he is away with his managerial cronies on their Footie 'observational' Jolly, he is currently 'lapping it up' with 'Den' Haag, Ancelloti and ironically the manager the club might look to replace Moyes with, Tomas Tuchel.

In his absence, Rob Newman has quietly been getting things done as can be seen by the arrival of Luizao for his medical ahead of his pre-signed three-and-a-half year deal transfer from Sao Paulo, the talented 20-year-old central defender was pursued by Benfica, Sporting, Porto, Fulham, Wolves, Juventus and the Red Bull group, however he chose The Queen Elizabeth Stadium as his destination.

The fact that Luizao chose West Ham ahead of all the other clubs is testimony as to how effectively Newman can operate when given a clear path, in fact Luizao is not the only Sao Paulo player West Ham United hope to sign in the January transfer window. Exploratory talks have also been held with the Brazilian giants over a deal for midfielder Pablo Maia, who is also 20, although The Irons and Sao Paulo are yet to agree the structure of any potential move with Hammers preferring a loan to buy deal and Sao Paulo wanting a straight cash deal as they are currently going through a bit of a fiscal crisis.

Luizao's deal is still subject to a work permit approval, however there is apparently not an issue involved there, IF Hammers can tie up a deal for Pablo Maia as well it can be viewed as an excellent bit of business to bring in such highly rated players at such a young age. Moyes 'having another Brazilian' does pose one question though, if he is unwilling to give many of Hammers youth team a first team try out due to the results driven constraints of the Premier League, how on earth will he be able to integrate not one but two more young players into the team?

It is believed that Moyes has more confidence in young players coming from South America being able to be integrated into the first team than domestic youth because the players "have to grow up much quicker" due to the fact they are NOT molly coddled by clubs and have to 'fight much harder from an early age to make it to the professional ranks.

Moyes has his critics, as do all managers and perhaps he does deserve more time to turn things round, but he had better be prepared for a bumpy ride when the season restarts... a nice away game live on Amazon Prime against Arsenal who of course are managed by his old captain and confident, the grinning Hyeana Arteta!