Friday 29 July 2016

Could Jenkinson Return to West Ham?

This time last year they were touted as England's future at full back


What a difference a year makes! This time last Summer West Ham were trying to tie down the impressive Carl Jenkinson to either a full transfer or further loan period. Fees as high as £12 were quoted for the right back's permanent services and the Hammers finally opted for a season long extension of his loan.

Then it went wrong, horribly wrong. Jenks suffered a drop in form and a series of blunders led to James Tomkins being pushed to right back to shore up a misfiring defence. Jenkinson's confidence was visibly effected and just as Superslav was gently re-introducing him to the action disaster struck.

The unfortunate Jenkinson tore his cruciate ligament against Man City in January and was shipped back to Arsenal for treatment. After a six month lay off he is scheduled to return in the coming weeks, but what next for the 24 year old?

Arsenal's resources at right back contrast sharply with West Ham as they have the impressive Hector Bellerin and a host of understudies including Matthieu Debuchy and Callum Chambers. Is there really room at the Emirates for Jenkinson?

Meanwhile, West Ham need a right back (or two!). There seems to be a possible meeting of needs. Jenkinson certainly wouldn't command the crazy transfer fees being suggested this time last year. It's also worth remembering how impressive Jenks was in his first season at West Ham - so much so that he was on the verge of an England call up. Pacey, solid and disciplined in defence, he was a real threat going forward.  

It's also worth noting that West Ham sent him a very public best wishes for the coming season greeting just a few weeks ago. Sam Byram looks ready to step up but, as last night's action demonstrated, may find himself shifted to left back to fill in for the injured Aaron Cresswell. Could Jenkinson provide a solution to West Ham's full back problem?

 

Five Positives to take from Domzale Defeat

Cheer up lads!

Competitive football in July is a strange delight. It takes our attentions away from the tiresome transfer merry-go-round while providing an opportunity to run the eye over new signings and younger talent coming through. However, as last night's disappointing performance against Slovenian 'giants' NK Domzale demonstrated, it can also expose our lack of game sharpness and sap confidence.

Despite the obvious negatives from a game where we never got out of second gear, there were some definite positives to take from what was a revealing encounter:

1. Sofiane Feghouli will be a huge addition. Although he drifted out of things as we lost our way in the second half, before that he looked very lively and assured on the ball. He is clearly blessed with a tasty first touch that makes space for everyone around him and preseason has shown that he knows what to do with the ball when given the chance. No doubt every Hammers fan is looking forward to seeing him link up with Mr Payet as one senses they are very likely to 'click'.

2. The Michail Antonio 'experiment' MUST now be abandoned. Aside from it's stunning failure, it's only a matter of time until another club senses that he is being misused at West Ham and swoops with an offer to play him in his proper position. He simply doesn't think like a defender, both positionally and in terms of his tackling as he innately tries to win the ball rather than block progress. After Domzale's second goal he looked lost - neither fish nor fowl he looked fearful of attacking but still out of position in defence. Byram looked better at RB when he moved there but we are very thin on full backs for a side with major aspirations. Mr Bilic's case for funds to sort out the full back positions was certainly strengthened by last night's proceedings.

3. Enner Valencia needs a fresh start at a new club. He may well still be banging them in for Ecuador but he has failed to deliver during his time at West Ham. Last night he again looked out of sorts and after his first few efforts floundered you could sense his head dropped. It's Matt Jarvis syndrome all over again - nice guy but it's time to move on and make space in the squad for a more consistently incisive talent.

4. Given that the game was only aired on BT Sport it seems unlikely that top striking talent from across Europe and beyond will have observed the shambolic performance. We lost and deservedly so as we failed to create a single decent scoring opportunity and we gifted a soft penalty as compensation for an even softer one given earlier to Domzale. Strikers need service to shine and there was scant evidence that any new recruit could have done better than Andy Carroll last night. On a positive note, once again we were reminded how useful the big man is in defending set pieces as he cleared more than half of Domzale's sixteen corner kicks! Yes, sixteen!!!

5. Adrian is a truly top keeper. His double save at the end of last night's game kept West Ham firmly in the tie. A 3-1 lead would have put Domzale in a envious position, especially as we seem to concede goals for fun right now. At 2-1 we won't have to chase the game too much and are surely still favourites to progress. Last night's result will make next week's Olympic Stadium debut all the more exciting and meaningful. Rather than some tame affair with a foregone conclusion, we will surely see a strong side get stuck in to Domzale. It'll be a chance to test our ability to recreate the Boleyn atmosphere - a challenge we are all looking forward to.

That's more like it!
 

Thursday 28 July 2016

It's a long way to Tipperary...Hammers Ready for Season's Opener

"It's a long way to Tipperary" ...errrr, actually it's not if you happen to already live there! Ask West Ham's newest supporters club - DergHammers - who are located in the Lough Derg region, overlooking the beautiful Shannon. Yes, it's a long way from East London, but with the ease of access to the Olympic Stadium from Stansted, the crew plan to increase their annual trips this year.

Formed in 2012 as part of the VERYWESTHAM 'thing', membership is currently running at 15. With SuperSlav's troops ready to truly set the Premiership alight this season, we can expect a flood of new members to join the hardened veterans who have laughed the laughs and endured the pain for many's a half-decade!

Tonight's game should clear the cobwebs, and while many folk whinge that participation in the Europa league makes for a supershort Summer, let's face it - we are all getting twitchy and are keen to get going again. Moreover, last year's Premiership opener against the Gooners of Middle Arse demonstrated the merits of a competitive pre-season!

Moreover, it'll be a great chance to get a look at some of the kids.....here's hoping Lewis Page, Josh Cullen and the lads get some game time.

Wednesday 27 July 2016

Hammers find Full back solution for Europa League Clash

Time to put the toys away lads!

West Ham's preseason has been far from impressive with a series of embarrassing results out stateside followed by a thumping from Rubin Kazan. Things got even worse during a disastrous win over German second tier side Karlsruher CS in which defensive star Aaron Cresswell sustained a serious knee injury. As it stands, West Ham keep thumping on about a 50M striker, have bought two wide attacking players (Tore, Feghouli) but have no experienced full backs. Having conceded a whopping ten goals in five preseason fixtures, the Hammers need to tighten up their defence!

It will be fascinating to see how Bilic handles the full back crisis against Slovenian side NK Domzale tomorrow night. Despite Cressy's injury, Stephen Hendrie remains on loan at Blackburn which reflects poorly upon his progress to date, while Lewis Page, who has just turned 20, will be hoping to build on his experiences in last season's Europa League. Meanwhile, Sam Byram has been looking excellent in preseason and will hopefully prevent a return to the folly of playing Michail Antonio out of position at right back.

In midfield, it looks like it's game over for Diego Poyet who is not in the Europa League squad for the trip to Slovenia. With Obiang, Nordtveit, Cullen, etc all queuing up for berths it may be time for Diego to move elsewhere. Its a pity as its hard to see what he has done wrong when he's had the (rare) opportunity to shine. As for Josh Cullen, many are predicting that this season will see him push further up the ranks and into the first team proper. Tomorrow night should provide a platform for him to shine.

On the up side of things, Andy Carroll's latest injury scare seems behind him and he looks ready to get stuck into early season action alongside the impressive young Ashley Fletcher. words is that the pair took time out to share some quality time fishing whilst in Austria on preseason. I guess you could say that they are well perched to take their plaice at the top table.

Kick off is at 19:45 and its live on BT Sports....Here we go again!!!
 

Cards and Cads: Red Dawn Awaits as Referees Prepare for New Season

You're a right Card!!!
When you talk to fans who have strayed from the game there are common themes as to why they have lost interest. Chief among them is the cheating culture among players but a close second comes the growing celebrity of the match referee. Too often key games become all about the personal preferences of wannabe school headmasters.

And so the governing body (IFAB) for setting the rules of the game (yes there is another separate quango to add to the chaos!) have announced 85 new law changes in an effort to promote fair play.....and improve the footballing experience, no doubt. More rules to deal with the rules that are already wrecking our game methinks...

These include a whole heap of new opportunities to dish out red cards! Even better, referees no longer have to wait until kick off to get stuck in - they can now dole out cards from the moment that the pitch inspection is concluded!

That should provide an excellent opportunity for Clattenspanner and his gang of dweebs to enact their revenge of the nerds fantasy from even before kick off. A look at last years cards table shows that Mike Dean won the much coveted Reddest Ref award with a whopping 12 dismissals, while Cranky Keith Stroud took the prize for most cards overall at 202 in 45 games!



The Hammers will need to be extra careful as last season was no Allardycian fair play heaven as Bilic's boys picked up a table-topping five red cards! (ED: Actually, Chelsea got six if you include Jose Mourinho's red at West Ham:-])

However, our referees will need to up their game if they want to compete on the international stage. Take Turkey, where last season's clash between Galatasarray and Trabonzspor ended in total farce as referee Bitnel sent off four Trabonzspor players, including Salih Dursun for mocking the referee by showing him the red card after the trigger happy ref dropped the card on the ground in his excitement!

After the match Dursun explained: "It was an injustice to play seven players against 12 players (he clearly felt that referee was helping Galatasaray). I showed the red card to the referee in order for Galatasaray to be 11 players"!


Dursun follows the example set by Paul Gascoigne who in 1995 jokingly handed back a mislaid yellow card to the referee during a match against Hibernian. Referee Dougie Smith failed to see the funny side of Gazza latest prank and duly yellow carded the card! What a cad!

Cards and Cads: Red Dawn Awaits as Referees Prepare for New Season

You're a right Card!!!
When you talk to fans who have strayed from the game there are common themes as to why they have lost interest. Chief among them is the cheating culture among players but a close second comes the growing celebrity of the match referee. Too often key games become all about the personal preferences of wannabe school headmasters.

And so the governing body (IFAB) for setting the rules of the game (yes there is another separate quango to add to the chaos!) have announced 85 new law changes in an effort to promote fair play.....and improve the footballing experience, no doubt. More rules to deal with the rules that are already wrecking our game methinks...

These include a whole heap of new opportunities to dish out red cards! Even better, referees no longer have to wait until kick off to get stuck in - they can now dole out cards from the moment that the pitch inspection is concluded!

That should provide an excellent opportunity for Clattenspanner and his gang of dweebs to enact their revenge of the nerds fantasy from even before kick off. A look at last years cards table shows that Mike Dean won the much coveted Reddest Ref award with a whopping 12 dismissals, while Cranky Keith Stroud took the prize for most cards overall at 202 in 45 games!



The Hammers will need to be extra careful as last season was no Allardycian fair play heaven as Bilic's boys picked up a table-topping five red cards! (ED: Actually, Chelsea got six if you include Jose Mourinho's red at West Ham:-])

However, our referees will need to up their game if they want to compete on the international stage. Take Turkey, where last season's clash between Galatasarray and Trabonzspor ended in total farce as referee Bitnel sent off four Trabonzspor players, including Salih Dursun for mocking the referee by showing him the red card after the trigger happy ref dropped the card on the ground in his excitement!

After the match Dursun explained: "It was an injustice to play seven players against 12 players (he clearly felt that referee was helping Galatasaray). I showed the red card to the referee in order for Galatasaray to be 11 players"!


Dursun follows the example set by Paul Gascoigne who in 1995 jokingly handed back a mislaid yellow card to the referee during a match against Hibernian. Referee Dougie Smith failed to see the funny side of Gazza latest prank and duly yellow carded the card! What a cad!

Saturday 23 July 2016

Is This the Right Back West Ham are Seeking?

Yes, I do look a bit like Jack Bauer...

The absence of the talented Matthias Ginter from Borussia Dortmund's preseason tour has raised speculation that the versatile 22 year old is on his way out of the Bundesliga and on his way to England. Although the club chairman is quoted as saying that Ginter would be staying at the club for next season, it is widely rumoured that West Ham have tabled a £10 million offer.

Long courted by Arsene Wenger, Ginter has established himself as one of the bnest rising talents in German football and will surely be seeking plenty of first team football wherever he plays next season. That is something that Arsenal cannot in any way guarantee, while Slaven Bilic's Hammers have a large space in that position after the twin departures of James Tomkins and Joey O'Brien.

Ginter can also play at centre back or midfield, but the majority of his experience with Dortmund and the German national side has been as a right back. Blessed with good positional sense, Ginter has a remarkable disciplinary record along with a capacity to get forward and contribute to attack.

Sam Byram would undoubtedly relish the competition.

Striking Legend to Return to West Ham



As July progresses the silly speculation reaches a ridiculous peak as boredom levels reach new highs. At this stage many Hammers fans are gagging for a signing.....any signing....to ease their craving for contentment that our rise as a major club will continue. However, unlike the desperate shoppers who panic buy in the last ten minutes before the shops close, we need to observe caution. There is very little real value out there until the final few days of the transfer window when people settle for what's realistic rather than aspirational.

The Carlos Bacca transfer saga should be viewed as uplifting. Our board refuse to be manipulated and are once again proving that they are canny negotiators. There's still plenty of time to snap up suitable replacements for Valencia and Sakho, neither of whom have actually departed yet and both of whom are more than decent enough to keep at the club if that's how it pans out.

Bacca is 29 and Colombian. The really big clubs would need to create space for him in terms of Non-EU squad places, not to mention his remarkable wage demands. This is a big move for him. He deserves time and space to get it right. We don't want an unhappy and expensive squad member.

As for Gomez and Zaza, did they really look that good in the Euros? Personally, I hope Sakho stays as he potentially has it all if he can get his head sorted.

Nine years ago today we snapped up Freddy Ljungberg from Arsenal....he cost us more than a million a goal. Let that be a reminder that it pays to be patient. As the wise old saying goes......slowly, slowly catchy monkey.

If all else fails we could always re-sign Carlton Cole....seriously, it's only a season or two since that was the most realistic plan B...how things are changing!

Thursday 21 July 2016

Three Irons on the Shirt!!!

Allardici.....Last man standing

Sam for Engerland....such a notion would have been bonkers any time until two weeks ago but now it seems the FA are about to lurch from one extreme to another - from the laissez-faire formations of Hammers-hating Roy Hodgson to the defensive fascism of Big Sam!

Sam has never won nought, mostly cos you've got to attack to win! It really is a measure of the lack of British managerial talent on offer than Allardyce now looks odds on to become the England boss.

One definite positive is that the embargo upon West Ham players getting the call up for England is surely over - great news for Nobes, Cressy and Antonio.

What's the bets that Tonks also breaks back into the reckoning....Grrrrrrr!

Sunday 17 July 2016

Fans Seek Clarity on Olympic Stadium Opener




Calls are being made for West Ham to clarify their plans for the first game at the Olympic Stadium. Many fans purchased tickets for the clash with Juventus on August 7th in the belief that they would witness history being made with the first game at the Olympic Stadium.

However, the Hammers involvement in the Europa cup has apparently scuppered those plans as the Hammers' first fixture at their new Stratford home could well now be a third qualifying round clash against either Shakhtyor Soligorsk of Belarus or Slovenian side Domzale. 

This fixture is also shrouded in uncertainty as the home leg is scheduled for July 28 but the club have made requested Uefa to switch the order of the tie so that they might play the second leg at home thus ensuring that the Olympic Stadium is ready. Apparently preliminary discussion indicate that both Shakhtyor and Domzale are agreable in principle to such a switch, but the final decision must be approved by UEFA.

A club statement to guide fans would surely be in order as many will really want to be present for the Olympic stadium opener?

The first Premier League fixture at the stadium will be against Bournemouth on Sunday, August 21.

Friday 15 July 2016

Shocking Payet Revelation Emerges


...and p*$$d off with being manipulated by the media!

Dimitri Payet's stunning performances for France at Euro 2016 provided Hammers fans with an ideal opportunity to lord it over our rivals, especially as their stars mostly floundered when given a chance to shine on the big stage.

However, our amusement was tempered by the creeping realisation that his displays were attracting considerable attention from Europe's elite clubs, with inevitable concerns that at 29 he might be tempted to seitch despite his 5 year contract at the Hammers.

As a result, the recent interview in the Sun where Dimi is attributed with quotes reassuring fans of his 100% commitment to stay and lead the team through its first year at the Olympic stadium provided a real sense of relief for the Bubbles faithful.

However, it seems that the issue is far from settled as reports now emerging suggest that his agent, Jacques-Oliver August, has dismissed the comments as mere fabrication!

Someone is telling porkies...

Wednesday 13 July 2016

Oi....Where's Our Right Back?



As the Summer transfer rumour mill turns over it's apparent that the newest entrant to the privileged clubs gang is being linked with exorbitant bids for just about every potentially available striker on the planet! Lacazette, Bacca, Van Persie, Carlton Cole....the list is endless! However, one thing which seems lost in all of this is that the Hammers are light at right back.

Last season saw the departure of Carl Jenkinson through injury (and poor form) and the arrival of young Sam Byram was viewed as an ideal longer term solution. Byram out in a series of solid performances after his arrival but clearly has quite a bit to learn yet before he can secure a starting place in the defence of a side that has series Premiership and European aspirations.

James Tomkins loyally provided tremendous cover at right back but has now (astonishingly?) departed much to the chagrin of many diehard hard fans. Michail Antonio also put in some decent shifts but quite frankly, he is a super attacking threat and is wasted at right back where he also lacks the positional sense to be relied upon in big matches.

So far there hasn't been a peep about the right back berth apart from some silly rumours that Byram might switch to join the other dozen or so right backs currently on the books at Arsenal?.......hmmmm.

 

Saturday 9 July 2016

At Last: it's Claret and Chew-Bacca!!!

He's virtually unmarkable!

All the evidence points towards West Ham finally capturing the big money striker we have been promised. Various reports, including a David Gold tweet and a Slaven Bilic Daily Mail piece, suggest that the 29 year old Colombian ace is on his way in a 30 million move from AC Milan.

With rumours of a 140k per week salary, the Hammers will be expecting that he maintain his impressive strike rate in the top flight which, at 54% suggests that he may be that elusive 20+ goal per season hitman to lead Bilic's troops into Europe.

It seems equally likely that he will be nicknamed after everybody's favourite Star Wars character as he chews his way through Premiership defences!


Wednesday 6 July 2016

Reid Injured. Hammers up the spout.

Balls! I hadn't thought that might happen...

Ok, just kidding. As far as we know, Winston is actually fine. But just consider...what if? After James Tomkins' departure can you imagine how devastating this news would be? Some might write this off as doom-mongering, but the fact is that Reid's competitive style comes at a price - and there is no denying that he has had extended absences in each of the last few seasons. This is a highly predictable scenario...Ogbonna plus ANOther.

Which brings me to another observation; if Leicester can do it, there's got to be a chance that West ham can too! Be honest, Hammers fans really think a top four finish is on the cards next year, while many secretly fantasize that we might emulate Leicester's achievement.

However, all it takes is one bad month for results and any such hopes will be dashed. Ginge is well matured now, so unless we bring in another centre back we will have relatively untested kids lining out alongside Ogbonna. Hardly Champions League stuff is it?

Ogbonna had a good season last year. After a shaky start, he settled in. Amongst his undoubted strengths are his calmness in possession and sure footedness on the ground. He is pretty average in the air such that either of the superskinny Reece's would come under considerable physical pressure if twinned with Ogbonna. Hmmm.

As for Tonks, its a real pity we couldn't accomodate his needs. A club with our aspirations should have three centre backs who are at the peak of their careers. Ginge is a star but he's on the down curve. Let's hope the Reece's are as good as Slav surely believes.

Unfortunately, this decision looks likely to come back to bite us in the ass.

Monday 4 July 2016

Where's Sakho?



The departure of James Tomkins emphasises that no player is indispensable, especially under a dynamic regime like that of Bilic and Co. at West Ham. It's hard to see what Tomkins did wrong last year but never the less he found himself surplus to requirements. As the mainstay of the squad get stuck into their preseason preparations in Seattle, our Euro 2016 heroes have been given special leave to continue their efforts (Payet, Collins) or recover from their exploits (Randolph, Ogbonna). Similarly, Enner Valencia has been busy with the Copa America.

The coverage of the tour is fascinating - with lots of shots of our players embracing the bosom of Auntie Samantha. However, closer examination reveals that the absentees are not all on International duty.  There have been lots of stories that Diafra Sakho might not remain at West Ham next year, with Sunderland leading the pack of wannabe suitors. These have been viewed as mere speculation but the Senegalese appears absent from preseason duty when one might expect him to be chomping at the bit to get into pole striking position ahead of the arrival of some high profile striking sensation as promised all Summer by the board. 

Let's hope Sakho doesn't depart. Dispensing with the misfiring Emenike and the likely departure of the injury-prone Enner Valencia would surely create adequate space for two new high profile striking recruits. However, no matter who arrives, there can be little doubting that Diafra has a certain 'edge' to his play that unsettles opponents and creates space for Payet and Lanzini. Bilic is a stickler for discipline and no doubt Sakho's much publicised personal issues of last season will not have helped his cause, but he is no Amalfitano!

Last year, we managed our transfers pretty well - with most turning out to be really successful. However, if there was one area where we waited too long to bring in new talent and were thus a little light it was up front. Jelavic was a squad boosting filler that didn't work out and Emenike proved little better. If Saks really is to leave, let's get reinforcements in first this time?


 

Oh No! IT'S TRUE, he's really leaving after all...


That should silence that creepy Icelandic chant thing...
The major discussion point of last weekend was, for once, not whether Dimitri Payet will leave West Ham after the Euros, but rather, that academy graduate James Tomkins might be off to Crystal Palace. This time last year such a move would have been laughably unlikely, but wind on a year that has seen the arrival of the impressive Angelo Ogbonna coupled with the further development of the Reece's, and suddenly Tonks departure is not so crazy an idea. 

The level of debate has been intense, with those in favour citing that Tomkins' distribution when coming out of defence is not sleek enough for Bilic's set up. Conversely, many others (VWH included) still regard Tonks as our best centre back after Winston Reid. Undoubtedly, his versatility as a makeshift right back is an asset but seems to have gone against him under Bilic.

 However, with James Collins well into his thirties, one would think that three experienced centre backs are a mandatory requirement in these days of soft suspensions and high speed injuries. Campaigns in the two seasons prior to Slaven's arrival were both derailed by our lack of adequate cover at centre back that left a gaping hole in our defence that was only partially plugged by the arrival of Roger 'the relegator' Johnson. Can anyone erase the painful trauma of the back to back 6-goal concessions to Man City and Nottingham's Florist?

Initially the rumours sounded as daft as those that suggested he was heading to rejoin Big Slam at Slumberland, but his visible omission from the US trip raised eyebrows and now there are reports this morning that he is on his way for a medical after the agreement of a £12 million deal. For those that see us as a family club that emphasises blending incoming stars with our home grown talent, this has to be seen as a disappointing moment. For those avaricious types who view £12 million as good money, the purpose of the OS move is to end our history of selling off our best talent. In that regard, Tonks has been the best graduate from our academy since Noble before him.

Meanwhile, on the Payet front, despite a relatively quiet night by his standards last night, he demonstrated his two-footedness with a stunning strike with his lesser (?) left foot in a 5-2 mauling of Iceland. The latest display will only serve to further energise the interests of Europe's top clubs and as Tomkins departure highlights, at the right price we are still as selling club! 





 

Sunday 3 July 2016

West Ham Legend in Shock Bid for England Manager


Please ground, swallow us whole...NOW!!!
Whenever things get very heated about West Ham players selection issues for England two words come to mind.....Dean & Ashton.

Deano's sensational strike in the Mark Noble testimonial earlier this year served to remind Hammers fans just how much we missed out on when the striking ace sustained what turned out to be a career-ending injury whilst on international duty.



Fcuk, we got off lightly missing that crapshoot!
Wind forward to the last two big tournaments -  and it's hard no to wonder if we are not considerably better with our players not involved in the confidence-wrecking car crash that is England's international squad. Comparing the English team's demeanour in France with that of our visibly rested and refreshed Hammers team landing in Seattle does make a visible point.

As the speculation grows regarding Wicked Woy's successor, maybe Slaven should slap a ban on his players being exposed to the trauma of team-England!

Wise one he is, Mr Julian
 

As for the new manager....at VERYWESTHAM we are starting a campaign to install Julian Dicks as new national team manager - whatever else, the team won't bow out with a mere whimper like in their last two tournaments, and let's face it, after dealing with West Ham's Ladies team he's got just as much experience as some of the suggested candidates.

Go Dicksy!



 

Saturday 2 July 2016

Bilic's First Major Mistake...and what a howler!


Two Basildon Boyz getting Ready for another season
Since his arrival at West Ham, Slaven Bilic can seem to do no wrong. Having smashed the record books and ended a variety of irritating runs of bad results against the likes of Arsenal, Everton and Liverpool, Bilic has cleverly built a talented and loyal squad. For the first time in many many years, west Ham fans believe that their side is never beaten until the final whistle sounds and have enjoyed brave comebacks from two goals down on a number of occasions last season.

In all of this there have been some stand out heroes - Dimitri Payet as the obvious first choice, but the whole squad have been selfless in their commitment to the cause and perhaps none more than James Tomkins. The versatile Tonks was willing to shift to right back during the Hammers time of need last season but must surely feel that he can regain his starting berth at centre back next season.

Tonks playing for our U18s in 2004

All of which makes the rumours of a £10 million switch to Crystal Palace hard to fathom. Tomkins is West Ham through and through, having been at the club as a boy and graduating through our academy system. For anybody watching last year, he was really unlucky to get displaced from centre back and watched patiently as the Reid-Ogbonna partnership blossomed. With Ginge now coming to the twilight of his Hammers career, Tomkins has an obvious role to play as we face the demands of a long season in Europe.

However, repeated reports suggest that Tomkins is on his way to Selhurst Park and has not travelled with the squad on their USA trip. Let's hope the rumours are just talk.....otherwise, it's hard not to think that Slaven is about to make a massive mistake!

 

Wonderful Welsh Wizards Weave Widiculous Win


Wales truly set the Euros alight last night with a scintillating performance against a hapless Belgium. In the latest victory for team over individual, the Welsh simply out fought and outplayed Lukaku, Hazard, De Bruyne et al, scoring three sensational goals in a 3-1 drubbing.

Even better, James 'Ginger Pele' Collins came on to grab a piece of the action and highlighting the considerable depth to this Welsh squad. Chris Coleman does not share Wicked Woy's WestHamoPhobia and was more than happy to bring on the experienced centre half to shore up the defence for the final few minutes.

Wales have stolen a march on England in terms of Hammers selection with a one-nil victory caused by Hodgson's refusal to include any of Noble, Antonio, Cresswell or Carroll - any and all of whom would have been a useful addition during the desperate second half scenes as a gutless England surrendered to a determined Icelandic side.

For Wales, the one down point was the booking of Aaron Ramsay who will miss the semi final against Portugal. With Bale in better form than Ronaldo, it's nip and tuck between the teams across the rest of the park and wales will go into the encounter with every right to expect a result.

Dragons, Dragons, Dragons...