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  • Declan & Ronaldo Transfers?

    nevillenixon's picture
    Submitted by nevillenixon on Mon, 12/07/2021 - 11:21

    When Christiano Ronaldo was at the height of his pomp during his time at Manchester United, their then manager, Alex Ferguson had a running battle with Real Madrid over their 'tapping up' of the Portuguese maestro. Ferguson famously described the Real Madrid board as "gangsters" and that he would not countenance doing any business with them, however they eventually got their man, despite Manchester United's enormous financial resources.

    Real didn't get Ronaldo straight away, the on off transfer of Ronaldo took a couple of seasons, but eventually the Spanish giants, bankrolled by their government, were able to prise the player away from Old Trafford using a combination of vast wages and a high transfer fee.

    The £80 Million paid by Real was the record for any player transferred from the domestic league to elsewhere at the time (2009). Ronaldo went on to prove his worth and is still a player in demand despite being 36 years old. The salient point we are trying to raise is that Declan Rice WILL move from West Ham, it is not a question of if, it is a question of when!

    Declan Rice and the club both have time on their hands, Declan is still young and hopefully has at least another ten years of op level football in him, the club have their prized asset signed up for another three years with an option to extend another year, so apparently there is no panic from 'Gnome towers'. However, it is obvious that Declan Rice's stock has risen even higher following his appearances during the Euro's, it is only a matter of time before the really big clubs start to circle.

    The fact is every player has his price, IRRESPECTIVE of who the player is signed to, football is big business where sentiment is a very expensive luxury, the type of luxury West Ham cannot afford. When a big offer comes in, as yet there haven't been any, the club would be bereft of their due diligence if they didn't listen to offers in excess of £100 Million.

    Yes the club will more than likely never get hold of another player of Declan's calibre, that is why he is worth so much, but if the money gained from the sale really is invested in the squad as opposed to paying off debts then the animosity of fans would be tempered by the knowledge that David Moyes would use the funds very carefully, IF they are made available to him.

    If however Rice is sold and the money squirrelled away, then the deep chasm that already exists between the board and fans will become permanently irreparable. It is unpleasant to have to face the reality of modern day football, it is the beast that has been created by public demand, and it is what it is for including the good and the bad, Hopefully Declan will grace the London Stadium for at least one more season, possibly two at the most. Instead of getting on his back for wanting to get paid the top dollar he is entitled to as one if the best midfielders in the World, fans should just enjoy and savor his Rolls Royce performances for West Ham while they can.- Ed

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  • Dec's Despair-Sub Plot

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    Submitted by nevillenixon on Mon, 12/07/2021 - 08:23


    Firstly we would churlish to criticise Gareth Southgate's management of an England team that nearly won their first International tournament final for 55 years, the team, the coaching staff and the manager took their country to within touching distance of greatness only to fall at the last hurdle on penalties.

    However, as like many other Hammers fans, our viewing of the England games had a special significance due to the presence of the club's talisman, Declan Rice. Declan was superb against Italy, probably playing his best game of the tournament against the Azzurri, he and midfield partner Dominic Kalvin Phillips bossed the midfield, particularly in the first half of the game.

    So it came as rather a surprise when Declan was subbed off in the closing stages of normal time to be replaced by Jordan Henderson, unfortunately from virtually the moment he came on the Liverpool captain had a mare of a game and really was as bad as Rice had been good. Perhaps it is just an idle thought, but the cohesion the team had in the middle of the park began to disintegrate, leaving England to hang on for penalties, and we all know how that ended!
    Southgate then compounded his rare mistake when he allowed his own personal demon, the memory of past penalty shoot-outs pain, to cloud his previously impeccable judgement.

    As a result, the England manager thought too much, and brought on two players, who had hardly kicked a ball during the game, to take two of the crucial penalties. On another day it could have worked out well, especially as the usually erratic Jordan Pickford played one of the games of his life and did NOT deserve to be on the losing side of a penalty shoot out, having saved TWO of Italy's five penalties.

    The conclusion? Close, but not close enough, would different substitutions have altered the result? Possibly, we will never know, but there is a groundswell of opinion, that Southgate's safety mode back fired badly, maybe Dec had an injury, he did get clattered early on in the second half, but seemed to have run it off, however, having been recipients of the same player returning from International duty injured because he was made to play on after having picked up an injury, the club will be happy.

    Hammers fans should perhaps be grateful that Declan Rice has emerged physically unharmed, the mental side of it will take a while, however like all great players, the Hammers midfield maestro will learn from the experience and use it as motivation for the future.

    Now the Euro's are out the way, fans will be looking at the club's recruitment with much closer scrutiny than before, hopefully there are several rabbits to be pulled out of hats before the fat lady sings. - Ed

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  • Confusion Or Clarity Over Anderson Exit?

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    Submitted by nevillenixon on Fri, 09/07/2021 - 09:54

    In footballing parlance, David Moyes 'never fancied' Felipe Anderson, a talented 'luxury' player brought to West Ham at great expense as part of 'Pellegreedy's' master plan to take the club 'to the next level'. Unfortunately that next level was to virtually bankrupt the club, at the same time as nearly getting it relegated, that certainly would have been another level, but not the one the fans or owners had anticipated.

    Lazio, the club that 'skinned' Hammers €38 million for Anderson's services, have reportedly reached an agreement with West Ham United over the transfer of the Brazilian winger back to themselves. The winger will return to the Stadio Olimpico ahead of the 2021-22 season to work with Maurizio Sarri at the Aquile.

    Sky Sport Italia reports the Biancocelesti have reached an agreement with the Hammers over a €3m transfer, a figure that Lazio will not pay because it’s the equivalent of the remaining payment never received after the move to London in July 2018, except that is NOT correct.

    The deal being brokered is for Lazio to pay the €3 Million to West Ham IN ADDITION to the €7 Million still owed, there will also be a 50 per cent sell on fee of any future re-sale of the player. The 28-year-old spent last season on loan with FC Porto but returns to the club where he got his real breakthrough in European football. While in Rome, the Brazilian scored 34 goals and contributed 39 assists in 177 competitive games after he arrived from Santos in July 2013 for a reported €7.5m.

    There are those who will view this bit of business as typical West Ham, there cannot be many more clubs to have had their fingers so severely burned so badly in the transfer market can there? It is to be hoped that David Moyes and his new head of recruitment can change all that, they will, IF allowed to do so by you know who. -Ed

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  • Dumb & Dumber-Irons After Braithwaite?

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    Submitted by nevillenixon on Fri, 09/07/2021 - 08:52

    Well it is the silly season, so we would be neglecting our duties in not mentioning players 'linked' with West Ham, but some of the reports are at best stale, whereas others are down right dumb. The 2020/1 Euros have thrown up the names of new targets, as some players have shone during their appearances in the competition, many have become unrecognisable from the players that their domestic fans see.

    It often happens this way, there are some players who shine under the spotlight, but then wilt when confronted with week in week out competitive football, especially the frenetically paced Barclays Premier League! Many players get signed on the back of a good International competition appearances, but then fail to live up to their 'star' billing.

    So when referencing names that have been 'thrown up' by events of the last few, enjoyable weeks, we should also mention the names that have been regurgitated! A prime example being Barcelona's Martin Braithwaite, or to be more precise, ex-Middlesbough, Esberj, Bordeaux and Leganes 'star', who has 'shone' at the Euro's while playing for Denmark, apparently Hammers are 'desperately' waiting to see if he wants to leave the Nou Camp and come to the London Stadium.

    Some reports are dumb, some even dumber, why on this God's planet would David Moyes even countenance the signing of a past it 30 year old player currently on massive wages? Incidentally, is he really 30 years old? He looks older than Harry Redknapp!

    Apparently 'cash strapped' Barca have made offloading Braithwaite a priority, and why wouldn't they? With no personal mailice aimed at the player, who is probably a really decent human being, he epitomises exactly the type of player Hammers SHOULDN'T be signing, does the club never learn?

    Hopefully these 'rumours' are just that, little more than 'tittle tattle to fill column inches that haven't been occupied by the Euros, at least that's what we hope. David Moyes would need to be sedated and held under armed guard to allow such an acquisition, a move that would undoubtedly have been sanctioned by the Hammers hierarchy in the past, accompanied by the statement. "We have signed a player with great potential from the famous FC Barcelona" would be the spin, whereas "We have signed a past it has been who has spent more time out on loan for most of his lengthy career than with his parent clubs" would be the reality.

    Unless Moyes as lost the plot,Braithwaite will NOT be turning up at the London Stadium, if he does, there might be a few more season tickets available for those on the waitng list! Now is the time for the club to move forward, it may not be spectacular, but it might just be honest, the club don't need has beens. - Ed

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  • Ground Hog Day Or A New Dawn?

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    Submitted by nevillenixon on Thu, 08/07/2021 - 09:02

    The clamour and anxiety most football fans have before the beginning of each new season invariably relates to the incomings and outgoings at their clubs, West Ham's acquisition of senior players have been conspicuous by their absence recently, so what's going on?

    Well, this approaching season will be unique as a result of fans returning to Stadiums, but the financial fall out of the Covid Pandemic will linger on and on! One element of the 'uniqueness' is the fact that there is no need to 'fabricate' potential new signings in order to sell season tickets, it may well be different the season after next, but for the impending one fans are generally happy just to be able to see their club 'live' again.

    Usually the Hammers spin machine is in full flight about now, rumours of the club signing this player and that abound, invariably for the purported bids to eventually be ejected for being too low ball, with the club saying "we tried sign xxxxx, unfortunately the club wouldn't accept our offer", or that "the player has decided he doesn't want to come to the club".

    Regarding the latter, why in the past would a player want to come to West Ham other than for an inflated wage? The club's scatter gun approach to it's signings in addition to it's disparate and desperate transfer dealings has been a laughing stock for years, even before the GSB take over.

    Finally there is someone determined and brave enough to try and change the endemic culture at West Ham, David Moyes, firmly ensconced with a new three year contract, has made modernising the club's 'archaic' recruitment a key element of his plans to take the club forward on a more professional basis.

    So fans used to hearing a whole bunch of spin, obscured by smoke and mirrors, will initially be very disappointed by the club's lack of signings, in the past the board have 'capitulated' under fan pressure, and brought in any old dud that was relatively cheap to acquire. Essentially signings just for the sake of it, quantity instead of quality, Moyes wants to turn that ethos on it's head.

    Of course fans will get really frustrated, but with the exception of the signing of Jordan Hugill, all Moyes' transfer acquisitions have been superb, and so in Moyes fans must trust. An example of 'fan clamour' and reality is Blackburn's Adam Armstrong. As recently as 4 weeks ago fans were furious that Hammers wouldn't stump up the £25 million being asked for the Prolific lower league striker, his club are NOW listening to clubs willing to negotiate a fee of around £10 Million!

    In the past Hammers signings have generally been all show and no go, the same every season, promises, promises and then ultimately disappointment. Perhaps because of the massive take up in season ticket renewals, fans might for once get told the truth and be genuinely surprised at sudden arrivals, a new dawn, instead of ground hog day! - Ed

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  • Ings deal rumoured to be true

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    Submitted by mcbikeman on Wed, 07/07/2021 - 19:10

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    I hope this is not true....he is a top class striker lethal in the premier league those are facts you cannot deny and at 28 yrs old you think yes this is a good man to get.......BUT he is suffering more and more injuries now and we do not need a player like that on big money because he would easily be on £85thousand a week and that ink will barely be dry before he gets a "knock" in training and is out for a year!! so as much as i like the player he injury record in recent times should get us to steer clear imo

  • On Tour in Canning Town!

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    Submitted by boogerscaravan on Wed, 07/07/2021 - 15:35

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    Well would you believe it? Work takes me to Canning Town tomorrow, then a quick trip to Stratford via the 241 bus from Russell St, or a tube from Canning Town. Then on to Canturbury before returning home. A long day, give me a wave if you see me. I'll have a newspaper under my arm!!!

  • Hammers More Shtick Than Schick?

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    Submitted by nevillenixon on Tue, 06/07/2021 - 08:40


    Money bags Everton, how much their fans must have fantasised about hearing that back in the days when they didn't have two coins to rub together, are 'pursuing' Patrik Schick and just about everyone else who has a pulse, as well as the need for an even fatter bank account than all the other hugely paid performers in the Barclays Premier league.

    'No money bags' West Ham had expressed an interest in acquiring the Czech International last year, but little came from it, hardly surprising given the vast amount of players Hammers have been 'linked' with on a revolving door basis at the London Stadium.

    Shtick (Yiddish: שטיק‎) is a comic theme or gimmick, and is an accurate description of Hammers previous transfer dealings, something David Moyes has vowed to change now he has a 'proper' contract at the club. It will no doubt irk Moyes that his former club is so flush with cash now that they can look to bid £35 Million for the Bayer Leverkusen striker. The proposed move for the 25 year old Schick is in addition to the Toffees other acquisition targets, not instead of!
    Rafa Benitez wants to bring the Leverkusen striker to Goodison Park this summer, but Schick is not a priority for Benitez, he has other areas that are more in need of strengthening, Schick would just be additional window dressing for Farhad Moshiri, Everton's owner who is desperate for success having been let down badly by Carlo Ancelotti's 'defection' to Real Madrid.

    Hammers know all about managers 'dropping their pants' as soon as the Spanish giants come calling, Ancelotti's replacement at Everton, Rafa Benitez, ditched the Irons to go and manage Real Madrid, despite having 'shaken hands' on becoming the next West Ham manager.

    Everton's need for an additional striker is not that urgent, whereas Hammers, who 'got away with it' last season, are desperate to add to their ranks, the club's long-standing search for a striker is threatening to take on a 'Status Quo' farewell tour repetitiveness!

    Partik Schick is the real deal, he could slot in to the West Ham set up really easily, his Czech International team mates, Tomas Soucek and Vlad the impaler Coufal, would be able to make him feel right at home. Schik is a big lad who won't be bullied by the physicality of the Barclays Premier league, nor would he worry about the frenetic pace of the play.

    Schick is about as close to a 'Moyes' type of player as is possible, he is the right age, has the correct temperament, is very mobile and can hold the ball up well. He is around 6'3" tall and is good with his head and with both feet, absolutely ideal for both Moyes and West Ham, Schick is about as opposite to Sebastien Haller as is possible.

    Schick 'only' scored 23 goals and registered five assists over the past two seasons in the Bundesliga, but those statistics don't do the player justice, his presence and hold up play mean he 'attracts' defenders around him like moths to a light, freeing up the rest of the strike force to g about their business.

    The Czech Republic player has really impressed at EURO 2020 this summer, five goals in five games will surely have made him an attractive proposition to many teams, and here in lies the problem. It would take an offer of £35-38 Million to sign him, around the same money the club spent on Felipe Anderson!

    Schick ticks all the boxes, so let's see if the Irons hierarchy ARE serious about backing their manager, or if all their chat is 'Shtick' rather than about players like Schick! - Ed

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  • Free Agents & PWP For Irons

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    Submitted by nevillenixon on Mon, 05/07/2021 - 09:38

    PWP? Players with potential, essentially youth players with future potential or mavericks who need 'converting'. Irrespective of the spin emanating from the London Stadium, it is clear for anyone to see that West Ham are broke, the club doesn't have a pot to p**s in.

    So why are West Ham so broke and yet other teams are not? David Gold & David Sullivan are both wealthy men, ON PAPER, but their wealth is tied up in long term property portfolios and retail business outlets, neither of which can be liquefied easily without huge financial penalties. The Irons owners whilst relatively wealthy are complete paupers compared to the owners of say, Man City, Everton, Leicester City and others who DO have access to liquefied funding.

    Every Barclays Premier League club begins the season with a business plan, with careful planning for acquisitions and player amortisation traded against income. Obviously the bulk of monies received by clubs is from TV broadcasting, but the rest comes from sponsorship and match day revenue.

    As tenants of one of the three biggest stadiums in the league, West Ham should have been able to 'kick on' after moving from the club's much beloved Boleyn Ground to the London Stadium, but the Covid-19 pandemic has put the mockers on what should have been a tremendous time for the club, a renaissance leading to European involvement.

    Well, the club achieved reaching European competition, for the first time in many fans' lifetimes, but the financial impact of the pandemic has hit the club harder than most, due to the reliance of the projected match day live income having to be completely written off!

    It's not just West Ham, London's fourth placed team, Tottenham, are in an even worse position, their business plan for 'white shark lane' was entirely based and dependant on a round full year's revenue incorporating major league baseball etc. If Hammers have caught a clod, the Spurs have just caught pneumonia, and are desperately trying to avoid it becoming pleurisy!

    Next season is going to be tough, fans will see other clubs having their 'Pellegrini' period and wonder why West Ham are not 'indulging' similarly, perhaps they should remember that in the height of Pellegrini's profligacies the press and just about everyone else were calling Hammers 'money bags West Ham! It is true, we kid you not, look back at the archives from that time and you will find that was the case.

    It will take Hammers, under the full guidance of David Moyes, a full season to right some of the wrongs, and then maybe have a full run at the season without having to keep paying for past mistakes, so when it comes to 'exotic' signings we suggest that you don't hold your breath.

    As far as we can see, the Irons biggest transfer concern should be retaining Declan Rice, at least for one more season, after that it will probably be impossible to keep him, UNLESS Hammers invest in strengthening the squad in order to move forward. -Ed

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