Return Bellamy - in one piece!

After seeing Bellamy enjoying himself and looking really good in his 20 minutes against Fulham, hopes were rising in this part of the West Ham community.

What an addition he would be if he could be a regular starter.

The way he "corrected" Cole (for not leaving the ball to Etherington and running into the box) told us something about his position in the team. Carlton looked like a dog just yelled at by his master. The puppy wasn't even considering yapping back!

Now it's time for Wales to give him yet a premature 180 minutes of competitive football.

We've had this scenario before and I don't like it.

It's not that I don't like players that want to do their best for their country, but i do think the club should have a slightly more restrictive policy in these matters.

After being sidelined for this long most players need to be eased back into the game.

Craig had such an injury laced last campaign, only playing 9 full games for us, meaning his body just isn't used to the tough schedule of an international playing in the premiership.

This is an injury layoff in the making!

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The Fulham game - focus on Hérita N'Kongolo Ilunga

When McCartney was sold and all we seemed to have for cover was a Neill out of position many of us were upset.

Some days after the deadline we seemed to at least have someone reminiscent of a left back in the squad. I for one was hoping, but not really believing, that Hérita Ilunga would be the solution.
However, after watching Neill totally bomb as left back it was obvious that Ilunga or the free transfer recruit Alberto López would have to be the one to fill McCartneys position, almost no matter what.

Before the Fulham game Zola had played them both in that position. Ilunga against Newcastle and López against Watford.
Unfortunately I couldn't see the Watford game, but to many López was considered the man of the match.

I still think López will have a very hard time getting into the starting lineup for some time, because Ilunga played an almost immaculate game against Fulham.

OK, his totally disasterous throw in that almost left Zamora free in the box wasn't beautiful and maybe some other small mistakes were also there, but still...
Not only did he look solid defensively, he produced some very accurate and creative passes when possible. In my view he also chose the right moments to deliver the attacking passes, and didn't hesitate to play the simple ball when needed.
He also seem very comfortable on the ball even under pressure.

The way he quickly got over Johnsons headless studs-in-ankle assault was also appealing - do we have a hard man here?

Maybe he was not pushing forward as much as Konchesky or McCartney would have, but did overlap a few times.
I hope that this is enough for Zola because I haven't been so relaxed when watching a West Ham left back in a very long time.

It will be very interesting to see how he will work out against opponents with lots of pace, and if he does well, we should jump at the fist chance of making his move permanent.
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The Fulham game - First Touch and 4-3-3

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The game against Fulham had three phases/faces.

1. The home team is pumped, full of confidence and determination, and not yet tired
2. The home team has done its best, starting to get a bit tired and the away team is no longer “shell shocked”.
3. The home team scores and get some hopes back while the away team is getting nervous.

A pretty ordinary premiership scenario especially if the home team is something of an underdog.
Why am I dwelling on such a trivial matter then?

Because I think that it tell us a lot about what we may be seeing against stronger sides!

During that first phase we had little or no possession and when we did get the ball we treated it like it was red hot.
Fulham didn’t give our players much time before being all over them, and this pressure made our West Ham players either deliver a panic pass or see the ball getting stolen.

Two things were more obvious than other in this initial part of the game.

First, the first touch of many of our players is below par.
This is quite disastrous when being under pressure. The time between the first touch and when the ball is actually under control must be next to nothing since it won’t be long before you are being tackled (this is the "wellcome to Premiere League" situation we love when foreign players firts get this treatment). If that first vital moment is used by waiting for the ball to come down from the beautiful arc it’s doing after a poor fist touch, there will be no time left to decide what to do with it. This was obvious again and again.
Several players suffer from this but for a playmaker and a target player, both getting lots of passes, and must be expected to be under a lot of pressure, this is more obvious as well as more punishing than for other players.

Secondly, the 4-3-3 system, played as “firmly” as it did against Fulham showed its worst side during this period. We were simply outnumbered in the midfield giving their mid 4 an easy task of hunting our midfielders down, not giving them much of a chance to do anything useful with the ball.
This also strongly auguments the first touch problem since in this system there will always be an enemy midfielder close by and your fellow midfielders will be covered or under pressure themselves, leaving you few options and little time.
It also makes it quite hard to get the ball back when you lose it (and if the referee doesn’t allow the kind of tackles Parker is famous for, those three midfield players are in for a very difficult time).
Against a Fulham team without luck you may get away with it, but against better teams we will not.
Teams contesting for a top 10 place will have better skill on the ball and better pace and stamina in the midfield than Fulham does and that’s bad news.

After 7 minutes of the game I was certain that the 433 would, voluntarily or not, in effect turn into 451. This is the beauty – or the trap – with this system, depending on what players you have in the team and the ability of these players to adopt to a situation.
Well, that didn’t happen. The midfield (i.e. Parker) didn’t get much help from Etherington or Di Michele. Who were obviously ordered not to fall back no matter what.

After 35 minutes, and 6 or 7 very good Fulham chances (most blown by Zamora, reminding us why we sometimes had doubts about him), the 433 system started to be right for the situation.
Our midfielders started to have the time they needed to do something useful with the ball since the Fulham players were getting tired, and Etheringtons position and activity started to pay off. Now he was in a more offensive starting position, than he would have been if he had fallen back to that 451 position, when starting his raids, making them more effective.


What is the moral of this then?
Given the players in our team, I think this system must be more flexible if it is to be successful. This may evolve as the players get more accustomed to it, maybe giving it a future. Otherwise we will be butchered by sides with a good midfield!
It also emphasizes the need for a playmaker with a slightly defensive inclination (Parker again), since it will be hard to fit a Mullins type player in it, but if Parker is sidelined Noble is not yet ready.
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New kid in town - Walter Lopez

Walter Alberto López Gasco, born on October 15 1985 in Montevideo Uruguay.

López joined West Ham as a free agent on September 5 after impressing in training and in a behind doors game. It was rumoured that several European clubs were interested, but we all know what that can be worth…

He started out playing for Montevidean club “Racing” in 2003 and after a stint in San Martin of Argentina in 2004 joined Uruguayan side River Plate between 2004-2007.
After signing for Spanish “Xerez CD” in January of 2007 he left for Mexican "UAG Tecos" in august the same year, playing only one full game and appearing in two more before heading back to his native River Plate. He has also been capped 3 times by his national team.

He seems to be signed as a defender but has played on the left side both as defender and in the midfield for his previous teams. His style of playing has been described as quick and technical. He is also called “physical” by some and “not very physical” by others, but this may well depend on the surroundings. Let’s see what side he will show in West Ham.

His first start for West Ham was in the substandard League Cup game against Watford where he was one of the best, if not the best, player in Claret and Blue.

However, he has not figured in any reserve game, bar that behind doors that got him the contract, which I find a little odd.

He faces competition for the left back spot by Ilunga and (God forbid) Neill. Let’s hope that at least one of Ilunga and López turn out to be solid.
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Getting on with it allright

The genie is out of the bottle, the avalanche is moving, it's snowballing... chose any idiom you like but we are just witnessing the start of something that could be totally crippling for English football.

Now its time for the Sheffield players to smell blood and rear their ..... heads in this never ending legal farce.

According to Daily Mail at least ten of the players who were relegated with Sheffield United have taken the first step in launching their own multi-million pound legal action against West Ham for suffering financially following SU's relegation.

If FA does not understand what is about to happen and nip this ugly sprout in the bud, the PL will be decided in the courts rather than on the pitch from now on.

If a Club already fined for an offence need to go through what we are, can you imagine the aftermath to the Reading ghost goal if it ends up hurting Watford in some way?

Please FA, put your foot down quickly before it's out of control!
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Timing is everything! Sponsor update.

One would think most companies would love to come in as sponsors of our Club at this point since there is no shortage of media coverage.

Now some players have understood the importance of keeping us in the public eye and taken steps of their own to ensure a good sponsor deal.
The latest addition is a '24-year-old driver was spoken to and arrested on suspicion of driving with excess alcohol. He was taken to a central London police station and later bailed.'

Even though it would be below my dignity to print a name, I can’t withhold that Carlton Coles mother is said to be very upset.

Where is Anton when we really need him?

New Team Captain!

West Ham have apparently hired high profile solicitor Maurice Watkins as leader of our legal side in the quest of getting the Court of Arbitration for Sport to rectify the verdict of the of the Football Association Arbitration Hearing in the continuous story of Sheffield and Tevez.

Watkins have represented players and clubs before FIFA and UEFA tribunals and overseen countless big-money transfers during his time at Old Trafford as well as represented players and clubs at the Court of Arbitration for Sports and international and league compensation tribunals.

According to “Wiki” Maurice currently occupies these positions:

* Director of Manchester United Football Club Limited
* Company Secretary for MUTV (Manchester United Television)
* Director of the British Association for Sport and Law (Former President & Chairman)
* Member of the FA Legal Working party
* FA representative on the Association of European Union Premier Professional Leagues (EPFL)
* Member of Working Group for Financial Matters of the FIFA Task Force "For the Good of the Game"
* Member of the FIFA Decision of the Dispute Resolution Chamber
* Non-Executive Director for the Rugby Football League
* Regional Chairman for Coutts Bank
* Trustee of the Professional Footballers Pension Scheme
* Appeal Chairman of the New Children’s Hospital Appeal
* Governor of Manchester Grammar School (!)

- and he famously defended a certain famous French “flip-up collar” player (not the only thing flipped with this remarkable personality) after his almost as famous flying kick on a somewhat less famous Crystal Palace supporter in ’95.

Looking at this list it seems lik he knows his way around European sports law and authorities, have a busy schedule and a split personality - and doesn't come cheap! However, a person that know these territories will be extremely important for the outcome.

Having Watkins “on loan” from ManUre could be the most important signing since Steve Clarke, and Watkins team could play as an important part of the Club future as any we field on a pitch.

As this is still a rumor, I am afraid that it may be a bit too good to be true. But if it is, I am very pleased that he will be in our colours during the CAS (and presumably "FA damages") hearings.

Edit: 2009-09-26 CAS says that the appeal cannot be heard without the agreement of Sheffield United. My money is on SU not agreeing - wanna bet?
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Lame "Dux"?

Scott Duxbury's future as Chief Executive Officer of West Ham United may not be under official review by the Club, but I have a feeling things are piling up on him and I wonder how long he will be enjoying our pond.

The main issue now, of course, is that he reportedly spoke with both of his tongues at the same time – one to representatives of Kia Joorabchian and one to the PL, not quite saying the same thing to both parties.

One can argue that the whole board must have known about this and Duxbury was just the messenger. That would make him something of a scapegoat.
Regardless, if Duxbury in a future negotiation tries to reassure a possible business partner that all is under control, will he have the credibility needed in those situations? Will he, for instance, be the one sent forward to broker the new sponsorship deal?

He seems to have (had?) the ear and trust of BG but i fear that BG will have to do more reassuring than he cares to in situations that may be important to the Club future. And then, if a chief executive cannot be handed the big issues, what good is he?

When the dust settles after the Tevez/Sheffield affair and his inside information will no longer be able to hurt the Club/board/owner, Scott Duxbury may have outstayed his welcome at the Club, at least as CEO.

One for the future - Jack Jeffrey - update

Yet another young shortish striker 5'8" (173).
Born in Gravesham August 1989, he joined our academy in 2004.
A regular in the reserve team before going on loan to conference side Cambridge the last part of the 07-08 campaign, starting 4 out of 10 games there.
This preseason Jack played in a behind closed doors against Norwich scoring twice and he grabbed one earlier in the pre season against Tilbury.
Now he is on his way to the O's on a one month loan to get some more first team experience.
It isn't easy at the moment for young strikers to break through into the first team with Bellamy, Ashton, Cole, Sears and now David Di Michele in the club, not to forget Zavon Hines who will also try to catch the eye of the new coach and manager.
As for his playing style Jack is a hard working player that reminds people of a young Tony Cottee! Now that doesn't sound bad for the future does it?

Update:
Mid September he took off to the O's on a one month loan to get some first team experience but suffered a knee injury in training and only played one game, as a sub, before returning home.
Now the loan deal with Leyton O's is back on after returning to fitness.
Better luck this time Jack!
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Money for nothing

People try to make us buy all sorts of stuff we don't need. I buy quite a few of them myself actually, but here is an offer I can refuse.

Through the official site you can subscribe to news directly to the mobile. Or at least what the site considers being news. This is usually what is already distributed by news bureaus for a day or two and has been on West Ham forums for a bit more than that.

Imagine subscribing to this fine service for £3 a month, getting a beep in the mobile and receiving the breaking news that the club is considering what to do about the FA arbitration…
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Let's just get on with it!

So we may be paying Sheffield £30m for having Carlos in our side even though we didn’t own his contract – or something.
This must be the longest running agony in club history...

Can you believe that a year and a half after that game, the game we all will remember as the game when the hired gun – the player having absolutely nothing to lose - showed more heart than any other player on the field (with the possible exception of Mark Noble) we are still talking about this?

The issue of whether the contract was OK or not have been discussed back and forth by all possible instances and a fair share of lawyers have made a decent living out of it.All I can say is I’m incredibly bored with this story even though the money side of the game is one that interests me. But this has just been going on for too long! To have a £30m axe hovering over your neck for almost a year and a half is just too much.

I’ve gotten to the point that I want to say: OK get on with it, even if it kills me, get on with it.

But it won’t kill us. Bruise us – yes, but not kill us. Our club is run by businessmen, and I say it again – that does have some up sides. We will not have to worry about whether the people in charge have planned for this outcome. This comes as no surprise to anybody involved in the club and will not really change anything in the short run. I cannot see that there will be a need for any panic actions. Everything we’ve hailed this last week will be allowed to go on.All we really have to worry about is when the club will find the money to take it to the next level. Obviously, £30m could bring in some serious players to any club (unless you are Tottenham…), and could be a big building block for taking that next step regardless if the money would be spent on strengthening the squad or propelling the stadium project.

But given all the facts – wouldn’t you do it again? Wasn’t it worth it to have Tevez in our side? Wasn’t it worth it to experience “The Great Escape”? I’d spend a couple of million of the clubs money just to re-live that last game of the 06-07 season, at least compared to millions used to sign Nigel Quashie.I rather have an economic whipping – even this size of a whipping – compared to the ultra insecure life in the championship with a lot of talent very possibly drained from the team.

OK, there are some things that I regret with the whole Masherano and Tevez business and that is that we had managers that were handed a once in a lifetime opportunity - and blew it! The fact that Masherano was hardly played at all and Tevez got in the team after almost half a season is just incomprehensible. Well, that part of the story is also quite old to so I should get on with it I suppose.

If I got it right, we can either appeal and take the case to the Court of Arbitration Of Sports or we can pay. Our board will now decide if we take this further.

£30m (if this is the amount set by the "damages hearing" of the Football Association arbitration hearing) is a lot of money, but the CA(O)S (love that acronym!) have, as far as I understand, a record of not wanting to rectify much.

Edit: 2009-09-23 BBC tells us the Damage Hearing will probably not issue any decision until the beginning of next year. Will this uncertainty never end?

Edit: 2009-09-24 West Ham has officially stated they will appeal to CAS

Edit: 2009-09-26 CAS says that the appeal cannot be heard without the agreement of Sheffield United. My money is on SU not agreeing - wanna bet?

Steve Clarke – gold in the other bowl of the balance

I love the appointment of Steve Clarke as first team coach!
It must be the best signing the club has made in years and maybe one of the best “value for money” signings of any club this year. It would have been a great coup even before Zola’s arrival but now it’s pure genius.

One can argue that few people have had the opportunity to witness the change in the English game as closely as Clarke, both as player and coach at the top level. This experience will be invaluable to Zola.

Knowing where Zola comes from is also important. He will know exactly what Zola has missed during the years in the provinces and will get him up to speed and “fine tune” him on the demands of the modern club game at senior level.
Also, being highly rated and respected by the players (as rumour has it especially by the English contingent) during his coaching period, should be perfect for reassuring players possibly worried about the new reign, that there is one with the managers ear that is not all vision but knows how to get stuff sorted.

His tactical side may also be very important. His reputation as a defensive coach seem to ascertain that he can balance the attacking mind of Gianfranco, making sure that Zola will not go astray trying to initiate the “exiting game” he wants the team to play.

Another facet of the gem is that he must have great contacts with promising Chelsea players not given a chance of first team football due to the “buy expensive” strategy in place at Stamford bridge. Those contacts may be as valuable as Kia’s and Nanis for recruiting exciting young talent.
The fact that he worked closely with the overrated but decent “Special One” will not be something I will hold against him either ;-)

Chances are that we will not understand his impact since the number 2 spot doesn’t get the recognition it deserves but I think that "under" Zola, Clarke could be the most important and influential number 2 in the premiership.
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One for the future - Jordan Spence

Now here is something a bit special. If half of the reports about this prodigy is true he will be a force to be reckoned with in the very near future!

A 6 foot+ (189) full back Jordan “Spencer” Spence born 1990-05-24 signed his first Academy contract on the pitch in front of the Upton Park crowd in the spring of 2006 and turned full time pro July last year. Despite his young age he’s got quite a CV.

After captaining the England U16 team he lead the national U17 squad in the European finals as well as the World Cup quarter-finals in 2007. He scored the game winning goal when his side famously defeated Brazil (can you imagine that feeling?) - the first England team to do so in a World Cup game.

Following the success in the U17 he graduated to the England U19 squad - at the age of 17!
After this proof of his capabilities maybe the fact that Academy Director Tony Carr regard him as “certainly one for the future” doesn’t surprise anybody.

A reserve team regular last season, Jordan was taken on the USA tour with the first team this summer, which was a clear statement of the clubs ambitions with him.

Having played along James Tomkins in the central defence of the reserves for some time I have a strong feeling that this duo could be the fundament of a, finally, solid West Ham defence for years to come.

Jordan seem very mature and incredibly verbal for a young footballer. Just take a look at the video where he talks about the defeat against Spain in the UEFA U17 Championship Finals! CLICK HERE He's only 17 in this clip!

His first full squad appearance was away against Man C this season. Allthough he never got to play in the game, this squad place combined with the fact that he has not been sent off to a lower league club yet indicate that for Jordan Spence and West Ham the future is not far away.

On Nov 25 a 8 match loan deal with Leyton Orient was presented. Jordan is on his way to the O's to get some league action and experience!

Metamorphosis

Remember the super hero Metamorphos? No? I can't blame you, the comic sucked but he stuck in my mind for one reason - he could totally change appearance in a split second. Pretty much as in The Incredible Hulk something huge could grow out of something quite ordinary. My problem as a 7 year old was - where do these new “qualities” come from?

West Ham will supposedly be going through a metamorphosis under new manager Zola and I find myself with the same confused feeling today.
His comment ”I only know one way to play: on the floor, attacking football, the way things should be done”, although slightly modified by the nervous official site into “Attacking football will dominate his philosophy” implicates a rather big change. But this metamorphosis, were will the new qualities come from?

I have a hard time accepting that a few desperate last minute signings and a new manager will transform this team to one capable of playing football with flair.

Someone may want to tell Mr Zola that there is a slight risk that Parker and Noble in central midfield will not suddenly start to produce brilliant attacking passes. We’ve seen them try, and there is a potential here but unfortunately they have not been able to do that very consistently.
On the wings Faubert and Ethers have on occasion tried to speed up the game, but charging along the flanks and curving into the box is probably not what Zola had in mind when he talked about “football on the floor”. For an on the floor passing game, they both unfortunately haven’t shown enough skill neither on the ball or when passing it. I do have hopes that Faubert will prove me wrong but Ethers passing, especially that last pass, will never be very good.
Also with Neill on the left back we have double problems. He is neither fast enough to overlap in attack, creating more options for a playmaker, nor is he fast enough to keep up with the other teams winger on the way back. Walter Lopez may be the aswer to this, but we are still to see him play.
Behrami seems to me to be better equipped for the offensive part of the game, at least in way of wanting to go forward, but seem almost as slow as Neill.
The moral here is that we’ll better not be playing teams that are good on the break since our wingers (and central midfield as well) will most likely keep losing the ball while our team is pushing up and we don’t have pace enough in the team to keep up on the return.

Do we have the qualities in the team to play the way Zola wants to? I doubt it.
But let’s hope that Zola can find a way to transform the players, maybe giving them the trust and confidence they need to attack, so we don’t have to stay the Bruce Banner of English football.
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Zola!

Gianfranco Zola was born in Sardinia on the 5th of July 1966, only a couple of days after West Ham was the first, and so far only, club team to win the World Cup (admittedly with a little help from some squad players).
As a player he was an excellent play maker and delivered some magnificent free-kicks. He was technical gifted and known for his technique and skills. He earned his first professional contract when he, as an 18 year old, signed for the Sardinian club Nuorese in 1984. In 1987 he left them and went to Torres where he played for a couple of years before he joined Napoli in Serie A in 1989.
”I learned everything from Diego. I used to spy on him every time he trained and learned how to curl a free-kick just like him.”
When joining Napoli he got one of the world greatest players ever as a team mate and Zola made the best of it even though he was perceived as the great ones understudy when winning the title in 1990. In 1991 he went on to help Napoli winning the Italian Super Cup and later that year he made the first of 35 appearances for the Italian national team. He scored 10 goals during the process.
In 1993 he went from Napoli to Parma where he played together with the infamous Tomas Brolin amongst others. They won the UEFA-cup and the Italian Cup and became runners up in the league before joining...

Wait a minute, something happened there and it appears that Zola went in to a black hole for seven long seasons. Some rumours says that he was very succesful during those years and that he was voted the best player ever to play for that team.
After that unfortunate spell he went back to Italy to play for Cagliari in 2003. He played there for two seasons before retiring without thinking about going in to management.

2 years ago he was lured into management by his former team mate Pierluigi Casiraghi who had become manager for the Italian under-21 team. The pair led their team to the olympics where they reached the quarter finale where the Belgian team became to strong and they lost by 3 goals to 2. Now it seems like he´s the new West Ham manager.
If you go by his statements it sounds like a manager who knows how to play the West Ham way.
”I only know one way to play: on the floor, attacking football, the way things should be done. I want to excite people, that is why we play, isn´t it? This is a new era, a new chapter for me. I was an offensive player, who only knew one way to play. That is how my teams will always play.”
This could be interpreted in a couple of ways depending on what you like to think about him. Is he tactical inept manager or is he just a PR genius who tells us what we, as West Ham fans, like to hear? Time will tell...

Disregard the "posted by" note below, all credit for this post goes to Dicks!