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  • Ere Wig Ho!

    nevillenixon's picture
    Submitted by nevillenixon on Thu, 16/09/2021 - 15:27

    It's been a long long time, but the West Ham bandwagon is back on the road, a fresh lick of paint and a new ticket was all that was needed to fire up the Atkins transport coach that had been mothballed for forty years!
    Those who are old enough to remember will have conveniently forgotten some of the poorer excursions and will choose only to remember the great European nights of old.

    It is rather fitting that 'old school' David Moyes should be in charge of the Irons for theDinamo Zagreb fixture this afternoon, whether his approach will be old school is another matter entirely, will he start all his new boys? Or will he elect caution as part of his game mode?

    We'll find out pretty soon because the team sheets will be available in around an hour and a half, Mark Noble has been mooted as a surprise starter, the idea being that his experience of big match occasions will offset his waning abilities to perform at elite level.

    For once the stress element involved in watching West Ham due to the fact that the Dinamo game is one of six in the group, this means any bad results can be overcome eventually, of course it would be preferable to gain a victory in Zagreb, but even a draw would be OK against what is the strongest team in the group, apart from West Ham that is! - ED Team sheets to follow at 16:45 hrs

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  • the devil and the deep blue sea

    mcbikeman's picture
    Submitted by mcbikeman on Thu, 16/09/2021 - 11:25

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    So its finally arrived the day we start our European adventure and already i see little quotes of how tough it will be on the squad need to rotate because of the fixture congestion..well excuse me but we all new that and the club had all summer long to do something about it so whatever side we put out tonight i do not want to hear any whinging from the club because we play Manure twice in a matter of days as to why we put this side out or that side out.....our best chance of getting the holy grail of champions league footy is this competition so i do not want Moyes and co to start thinking lets play weaker side here strongest available sunday then another for tuesday....Play the game in front of you not the one after that.....winning and losing is part of the game as fans we know that and every fan of every club accepts it so lets give it a go and stop leaking players tired/sore legs/travel/times/etc etc.....all i ask as a fan is whoever pulls on a West Ham shirt gives it there all for the game they are playing and not hold back because they have another game 3 days later.....

  • Haller Scores Four!

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    Submitted by nevillenixon on Wed, 15/09/2021 - 22:32

    Wouldn't you Adam & Eve it? Hammers reject Sebasien Haller embarked on a one man demolition of Sporting Lisbon on their home patch by scoring FOUR goals in Ajax's 5-1 victory. Having lost £25 Million in the sale of the Frenchman to the Dutch club west Ham will at least be grateful there is a 25% sell on clause in Haller's contract.

    Haller is a case of what might have been, devoid of confidence he was a fish out of water, he is now playing like the £45 Million player he was supposed to be when he was signed by Pellegrini. What conclusion to draw is difficult, Haller is definitely NOT the first player to arrive at a club for big money and then fail miserably, only to join another club and prosper.

    Seeing Haller hitting the heights is especially painful when contemplating Hammers lack of ANY striker for Sunday's Ronaldo media love fest! - Ed

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  • The Stats Say It All

    Submitted by Louis Nixon on Wed, 15/09/2021 - 12:39

    During the summer transfer window much attention was paid to West Ham United's search for a striker, a search that ultimately proved to be unsuccessful. However although the need for a striker was blatantly obvious, the need for strengthening the defence was equally as important, to that purpose David Moyes signed Kurt Zouma from Chelsea in a bid to stop the club leaking goals.

    Only two teams have scored more goals in the Barclays Premier League this season, but only one other in the top ten has conceded more! Hammers have 'got away with it so far due to a kind fixture list, now that is all about to change. Although he performed no worse than any of the other players during Hammers lack lustre outing to Southampton, Craig Dawson looks a shadow of the player he was last season. As we have mentioned before, maybe his lack of pace has been found out by opposing players who now know all they have to do is run at him at speed.

    The cards are already poorly stacked for David Moyes ahead of Sunday's clash with 'Ronaldo' United, losing your only striker is bad enough, but having to face the 'Portugeezer' with Dawson as one of the centre backs is a frightening proposition.

    Moyes has to play Zouma instead of Dawson for the League fixture, but he has to decide who plays on Thursday against Dinamo Zagreb. The home team would rather fancy themselves against Dawson as opposed to Zouma, but asking Zouma to play Thursday and then on Sunday might be perfectly acceptable to the player, but is it wise?

    Defeat against Zagreb wouldn't be the end of the World, it wouldn't be ideal, but there would still be a good chance of redemption during the remaining five group games, whereas getting tonked by the visitors on Sunday would have a massively detrimental impact.

    Of course there is every chance Manchester could go on and win Sunday' fixture irrespective of who plays for The Irons, but the nature of the game whatever the result will dictate how Hammers season is going to progress. The Southampton game aside, scoring hasn't been a problem, defending has, sort the leaky defence and the rest will take care of itself. - LN

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  • Was It Just A Flash In The Pan?

    nevillenixon's picture
    Submitted by nevillenixon on Wed, 15/09/2021 - 09:31

    Thursday evening's fixture against Dinamo Zagreb will provide a firm indication as to whether West Ham have 'turned the corner' or are still the underperforming mismanaged 'sleeping giant' they always have been since the glory days of the sixties.

    Fans who think Zagreb are going to be a walkover might wish to remember it was Zagreb who tonked 'Tottingham' last season, they are by far the strongest competition in Hammers Europa League group and will be backed by a boisterous home crowd at what will be a packed Stadion Maksimir.

    The breathalyzer checks made on supporters on entry might go some way to curb the enthusiasm of the home crowd, but only a spirited away performance from the Irons will quieten the home fans properly. Irrespective of which team David Moyes selects, the players will definitely know they have been in a game after 90 minutes of what will probably be a fiercely contested tie.

    West Ham have dropped four points in their first four Barclays Premier League games, not bad but not good either, the Europa Cup fixture swiftly followed by the Manchester United double header and the game against Leeds, will show more clearly if last season's success was merely a flash in the pan, or the beginning of something quite special that can be built on for the future.

    West Ham fans have spent far too long dwelling on the past because there appeared to be no future, well there is one now and we are about to discover just how much of one there is! -Ed

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  • Report: Irons Cup Line Up

    nevillenixon's picture
    Submitted by nevillenixon on Tue, 14/09/2021 - 12:10

    With two games against Manchester United fast approaching on the horizon after Hammers fixture against Dinamo Zagreb this Thursday, much attention will be given to David Moyes' team selection, Whoever is 'in' on the night might not necessarily be 'in' for Sunday's Barclays Premier League clash, likewise those who play on Sunday will more than likely NOT play on Wednesday's relatively meaningless Moose Cup fixture.

    The selection equation is further complicated by Mikey Antonio's 'brainless' sending off at 'Stephens' gate'. (The defender of that name knows!) Were Antonio to be available for the League game he might have been reserved for then, but as he has picked up a one match ban his role may be reversed, he CAN play against Zagreb and then sit out the League game before playing in the Moose Cup.

    It would mean Moyes playing a much stronger team for the 'useless' Cup than he would have, normally he would have kept Antonio out, at least for the bulk of the game but he might as well make use of a valuable asset. However Moyes might elect to keep Antonio's hamstrings rested until the League game against Leeds on the 25th.

    Nikola Vlasic has big boots to fill, fans will be disappointed if they are expecting Antonio 2:0 from the Croatian national player, he has similar qualities but is more provider than finisher, an aspect of his game that will doubtless be honed by Chicken Kiev and Psycho in the future.

    Antonio's red managed to disrupt the plans that had already been laid out for the next FOUR fixtures, silly boy! His absence will possibly have a season changing effect even this early on and as such he should be fined a week's wages with the money going to a good charity. - LN

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  • Hope Tinged With Regret

    nevillenixon's picture
    Submitted by nevillenixon on Tue, 14/09/2021 - 09:45

    Expectation and hope are there in equal measure for ALL fans ahead of the beginning of each and every season, with some hopes being more realistic than others, but all least fans can dream of what might have be, instead of remembering what might have been.

    At the beginning of last season if you had offered anyone associated with West Ham in ANY capacity a sixth place finish they would have snapped your hand off, however ultimately missing out of a Champions League place by a meagre two points and inferior goal difference still left many thinking about what might have been. This reality being borne home by the fact that tonight is Champions League night on TV, Hammers fans will have to wait until Thursday to see their team.

    Nevertheless, qualifying for a group stage place in the 'poor man's' competition the Europa League Cup was still an astonishing achievement, ask supporters of London rivals Tottenham how it feels to be in the even poorer man's cup, the aptly named Conference Cup.

    If it is bad for that North London club's fans who will at least be able to follow their team in Europe, spare a thought for those 'poor souls' over at the Emirates. For many many years their fans gloated over their lesser London rivals, and despite their slow fall from grace still felt it their right to feature in 'each and every' Champions League competition.

    Of course Arsenal will be able to concentrate on their league travails without the 'distraction' of European competition, Hammers on the other hand are going into unknown territory with a 'waffer' thin squad and might end up only playing the six extra games that are a prerequisite of the Group stage.

    If viewed most optimistically, West Ham would only have to play an additional three games after the group stage to bein the final, which has the 'carrott of all time' awaiting the winners, proper Champions League qualification. Realistically Hammers don't have a hope in hell of finishing in the top four of the Barclays Premier League this time round, even a top six finish will be virtually impossible to achieve, therefore the only two viable competitions to pursue out of the four are the Europa League and the FA Cup.

    The Littlewood's Cup or Moose Cup or whatever it is called nowadays, is about as relevant as the old Intertoto or Johnsons Paint Trophy Cups, there is of course the kudos of winning a cup and fans having a day out at Wembley and it is a trophy West Ham have never won in any of it's guises, but it's not worth the effort, particularly as the scheduled fixture is an away visit to Manchester United three days after the League game at the London Dome.

    Both the FA Cup and the Europa League offer the club a vaguely realistic chance of being in Europe again next season, forget the League and the Moose Cup. So long as the club can finish mid table and tries to do well in both the Europa and FA Cups, fans will have no reason to complain, in fact they should really enjoy and embrace the European experience even if it does only last six games!

    As a young man, the memory of Dinamo Tiblisi arriving at the Boleyn and blowing the `irons out of the water' should gave scarred this writer, it didn't, it only made him wish to see his team compete again at such a level, it's been a long long time a coming! -m Ed

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  • Croat Conundrum For Moyes?

    nevillenixon's picture
    Submitted by nevillenixon on Mon, 13/09/2021 - 18:28

    Hammers manager David Moyes has had to 'juggle' a team on limited resources consistently throughout his career, with the one obvious exception. He now finds himself having to do a balancing act as well, somehow through luck and good judgment he managed to get his team to a lofty sixth place in the Barclays Premier League.

    The rewards for such a stirling performance unfortunately being a bit of a poisoned chalice, his tiny squad have to negotiate a minimum of an extra six very competitive games, some of which are going to be very testing to say the least. The club did back their manager with the funding to bring in most of his transfer targets, but it should be remembered that his 'shopping list' had been drawn up under the auspices of a financial crisis and was therefore tempered down enormously from what it would have been pre Covid.

    Realistically Dinamo Zagreb are the team to fear in the Iron's Europa League group, so getting of to a good start will be essential if Hammers are to make meaningful progress in the competition. Moyes has to play a strong team, but at the same time he has to be mindful of Sunday's league game against top of the league Manchester United and the Ronaldo love fest!

    Getting 'gubbed' at home would be profoundly bad for the morale of fans and players alike, so Moyes MUST start Zouma against the Mancs, but will he keep his powder dry by retaining Craig Dawson at the back? By his own admission 'Les' would admit that he has failed to scale the heights that he achieved last season, his performances thus far have been a polar opposite to those previously, which were mostly superb.

    Whether time has caught up with Craig, or maybe his lack of pace has been noted by opponents, nobody knows? But he can't complain if he is dropped, it is a question of when and not if, and that when will need to be decided by a manager who will be caught between a rock and a hard place as he 'massages' his team selections. - Ed

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  • Antonio Injury Scare

    nevillenixon's picture
    Submitted by nevillenixon on Mon, 13/09/2021 - 13:08

    As if being sent off for a 2nd bookable offence in the closing stages of the game against Southampton wasn't bad enough, many fans were extremely concerned to see Michail Antonio in obvious distress following some 'dark arts' defending by the Saints back line prior to his sending off.

    Hammers only recognised striker was clearly in some form of distress as a result of a less than gentle elbow in the lower back region, contact that saw Antonio clutching at what at first seemed like his dreaded hamstrings. However following tests, Big Mikey has been given the all clear to play in the Europa cup tie away to Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday.

    Had Antonio not been sent off against Southampton, there is every likelihood that he would not have played against Zagreb in order to keep him fit for the game against Manchester United this coming Sunday. Nikola Vlasic would probably have been used as a false No 9 against Zagreb, but given Antonio's unavailability for the weekend fixture David Moyes may well decide to 'save' Vlasic for then, instead utilising Antonio's power and pace in what will be a very tricky fixture, against the hardest of all Hammers group opponents.

    Saturday's lack lustre performance clearly illustrated how players are affected by International fixtures, hopefully Moyes and his coaching staff will manage the players better than their International colleagues have done in the past. Whichever way you look at it, many West Ham players face a gruelling schedule of games over the next couple of months, injuries and more topically suspensions, will play a major part in how well the club can progress in multiple competitions. -Ed

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  • Dreadful-Crikey Mikey!

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    Submitted by nevillenixon on Sat, 11/09/2021 - 18:36

    Two points lost or one point gained? Irrespective of that question, a major talking point is how will Hammers cope without Mikey Antonio for the game against Manchester United? The Hammers striker picked up a 2nd yellow card in the closing minutes of what was a dreadful game. The 2nd yellow was harsh as there was no actual contact, however there was supposedly intent and therefore the 'conviction' stood! Antonio's 1st yellow was a bit amateurish, he could have been more professional in his tussle with the Saint's defender which earned both players a booking.

    This was a poor West Ham performance, there is no other way of describing it, the team looked as if it comprised of a group of individuals who had all just returned from playing three International matches on the spin with only one day's recovery and one day's training, which it mostly did.

    Hammers did give it a go, but players like Tomas Soucek didn't perform to their usual high standards, fortunately skipper Declan Rice was still alert enough to make a goal line clearance near the end of the match which would have given the home team the victory they deserved. Hammers started the 2nd half well enough and initially looked as if they would overpower Southampton, but as the game drew on it was the home team who were in the ascendancy, hitting the post as well as having the ball cleared off the line.

    Prior to Antonio's dismissal, new signing Nikola Vlasic replaced a very 'off' Said Benrahma who was incredibly ineffectual. Much is expected of Vlasic and he looked pretty good while he was on the pitch, he is going to get thrown in at the deep end against a rampant Manchester United team featuring Ronaldo in all his pomp!

    Schadenfreude Boy

    However, there are agendas and there are serious agendas, for one particular player the need to prove a point goes a lot further than maybe for some others who want to do the same. The player who could well be described as someone with a 'serious' agenda is Nikola Vlasic, his previous time in the Barclays Premier League was miserable and he was 'bounced out' without really being given a fair crack of the whip.

    David Moyes prophetically mentioned that he would be seeking goals from all areas, not just from Mikey Antonio, well it seems he is going to have a chance to test the water against the club that sacked him who now sit at the top of the League.

    A bad day at the office whichever way you look at it, Antonio's red card was just the topping of a rancid pie! Hopefully the lack lustre performance was just down to jet travel and tiredness, unfortunately those same players who looked so devoid of energy are now going to have to jet off to Zagreb to play Thursday evening's Europa league fixture. They then return in order to face Manchester United on the Sunday and then again on the Wednesday in the Moose Cup before playing away to Leeds United on the Saturday.

    The fixtures don't stop there, the following Thursday Hammers are at home to Rapid Vienna followed by another home game on the Sunday against Brentford, then the players are back on International duty again! When they return they will play three games in a week. Ed

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