FM12 - Come On You Irons!

[Grover]

26/11/11 – npower Championship Match Day #19
West Ham United 2 – 0 Middlesbrough
Goals: West Ham: Cole (5), Piquionne (34)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 14/7, Boro 7/2
Possession: West Ham 56/44
Cautions: West Ham: Lansbury (Y 18), Reid (Y 48) Boro: Thompson (R 22), Letsholonyane (Y 60), McDonald (Y 75)
Man of the Match: Carlton Cole

Form: Green 7.2, Faubert 7.8, Reid 7.2, Wilson 7.1, Ilunga 8.1, Nolan 6.9, Diop 7.2, Lansbury 6.3, Baldock 6.8, Piquionne 7.6, Cole 8.2

Notes:
Boro's Kevin Thompson was sent off for a vicious tackle on Sam Baldock.

29/11/11 – Awards
Faubert Named
Julien Faubert was selected in the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

[Grover]

30/11/11 – Carling Cup (quarter-final)
West Ham United 0 – 2 Wolverhampton Wanderers
Goals: Wolves: Doyle (37), Kightly (53)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 4/1, Wolves 11/3
Possession: Wolves 51/49
Cautions: West Ham: Collins (Y 42) Sears (Y 73) Wolves: Henry (Y 28)
Man of the Match: Kevin Doyle

Form: Green 6.7, Demel 6.5, Faye (off 71) 6.8, Tomkins 6.7, Aldrete 6.9, Noble 6.8, Collison 6.6, Anakoglou 6.8, Baldock 6.4, Piquionne (off 71) 5.7, Cole 5.0, Wilson (on 71) 6.8, Sears (on 71) 6.4

Notes:
- Abdoulaye Faye was taken off injured (71)
- It certainly didn't seem as if we had 49% of the possession. We had to lose eventually and of course it would happen on national television. Beats a loss in the league though.

Injuries Hurt West Ham
West Ham United will be without Frederic Piquionne for 3-4 weeks after twisting his ankle in the loss to Wolves.

Worse news however, as Abdoulaye Faye will miss 2-3 months and will visit a specialist for a hip injury.

Leicester Shock City
Leicester City have shocked Manchester City by winning 3-0 at King Power Stadium in their Carling Cup quarter-final clash.

Elsewhere, Millwall defeated Bolton 2-1 at The Den.

[bbgunn]

Great dynasty you have here. Keep it up!

You mentioned the depth chart as a new feature in FM12. Is it something you set up yourself, or is it a part of the Ass Man team report? If it's the latter, then that is very useful, but if it's the former, it seems like a lot of work. I do that with a piece of paper next to my computer anyway.

[Grover]

Originally Posted by bbgunn

Great dynasty you have here. Keep it up!

You mentioned the depth chart as a new feature in FM12. Is it something you set up yourself, or is it a part of the Ass Man team report? If it's the latter, then that is very useful, but if it's the former, it seems like a lot of work. I do that with a piece of paper next to my computer anyway.

Thanks!

You can get a depth chart based on the opinion of any member of your coaching staff!

[Grover]

01/12/11 – November In Review
Training Report
Papa Bouba Diop (attacking), Henri Lansbury (strength) and Danny Wilson (aerobic) have impressed McDonald and Lamb.

Among the youth players, George Moncur (aerobic), Kenzer Lee (aerobic) and Jake Larkins (GK – handling) have been impressing Drake and Lamb.

Board Confidence
To summarize, the board is pleased with Kafka's leading of the team. This has been underlined by the fans' delight at West Ham's convincing 5-0 victory over Barnsley. Despite the positives, West Ham's 2-0 loss to Wolves cannot be ignored and the fans have voiced their discontent. Although a loss of £3.37m was recorded last month, the club are in a secure financial position overall.

West Ham Player Stats


npower Championship Stats


npower Championship Table

[bbgunn]

What is "HG" in the player stats graphic above?

[Grover]

Originally Posted by bbgunn

What is "HG" in the player stats graphic above?

Homegrown. Meaning they've trained at the club/England at least 3 years between 15-21 (maybe 15-18)

[Grover]

03/12/11 – npower Championship Match Day #20
West Ham United 5 – 0 Doncaster Rovers
Goals: West Ham: Cole (11, 36, 64), Nolan (19), Baldock (90)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 21/9, Donny 4/1
Possession: West Ham 58/42
Cautions: West Ham: Ilunga (Y 58), Donny: Chimbonda (Y 72)
Man of the Match: Carlton Cole

Form: Green 7.1, Faubert 7.7, Wilson 7.7, Tomkins 8.2, Ilunga 7.6, Noble 7.6, Diop (off 18) 6.8, Lansbury 8.9, Nolan 6.9, Baldock 8.1, Cole 9.4, Collison (on 18) 7.0

Notes:
- Due to the injury to Piquionne and Macheda recovering from food poisoning, we've gone with a 4-3-1-2 in this match, with Kevin Nolan playing AMC as a trequarista.

05/12/11 – FA Cup Draw
Hammers Get Coventry
West Ham United will face Coventry City in the third round of the FA Cup. The match will be played on 7th January, 2012.

06/12/11 – Awards
Duo Named
Henri Lansbury and Carlton Cole were selected in the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

Euro 2012 Group Stages Drawn
Group A: Ukraine, Serbia, Norway, Greece
Group B: England, Poland, Bosnia, Croatia
Group C: Russia, Spain, France, Germany – GROUP OF DEATH – wow, this will be a tough one
Group D: Turkey, Sweden, Italy, Holland

Group matches begin on 12/06/12

[Grover]

10/12/11 – npower Championship Match Day #21
Blackpool 0 – 1 West Ham United
Goals: West Ham: Noble (41)
Shots/On Target: Blackpool 6/2, West Ham 13/3
Possession: Blackpool 53/47
Cautions: West Ham: Demel (Y 64), Noble (Y 68)
Man of the Match: Danny Wilson

Form: Green 6.8, Demel (off 79) 7.1, Wilson 7.8, Tomkins 7.4, Aldrete 7.5, Noble 7.3, Collison 6.9, Anakoglou 6.9, Nolan 6.9, Baldock 6.7, Cole 6.7

Notes:
- Our 4-3-1-2 formation certainly struggled a bit against Blackpool's 4-5-1. We seemed to match their width pretty well, but for some reason we were outmatched in midfield.
- We may need to look at bringing in another forward on a short-term loan, or find someone that can be molded from a young age to get back to a 4-3-3. I don't believe that Sears or anyone on the reserves will have the quality to play regularly.
- Julien Faubert (on 79) did not play long enough to earn a rating.
- This was our 8th win on the trot in the Championship.

Demel Knock
Guy Demel is expected to miss 5-7 days with a bruised rib. He could be back in time for Burnley, but will probably rest.

[Grover]

17/12/11 – npower Championship Match Day #22
West Ham United 2 – 0 Burnley
Goals: West Ham: Tomkins (12, 54)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 25/7, Burnley 8/4
Possession: West Ham 55/45
Man of the Match: James Tomkins

Form: Green 6.9, Faubert 7.3, Wilson 7.6, Tomkins 9.2, Aldrete 7.9, Noble 6.9, Collison 6.9, Anakoglou (off 77) 8.5, Baldock 6.8, Cole (off 69) 6.1, Macheda 6.8, Sears (on 69) 6.7

Notes:
- Coming into the match, West Ham is unbeaten in 21, Burnley in 13.
- Burnley had two former Hammers youth products in their starting XI: forward Zavon Hines and midfielder Junior Stanislas.
- James Tomkins' first goal was a crazy pinball affair that was sent in from Anakoglou, bounced off a Burnley player, back to Macheda, who shot and a sliding Tomkins sent it in.
- Carlton Cole came in alone on goal (43) and rocketed a shot off the crossbar. Cole again came in alone from the left (53) and shot wayward. Cole had a free header attempt (59) hit the bottom of the left upright. I subbed Cole out for Sears (69) because Carlton was having a brutal match.
- Danny Wilson has been nothing short of excellent in the absence of Abdoulaye Faye.
- Our best player this year and bargain signing, Dimitris Anakoglou was injured and had to be replaced (77). His replacement, Henri Lansbury was not on long enough to earn a rating.

19/12/11 – Injury Update
Dimitris Anakoglou is fine after picking up a knock against Burnley, he will miss no further time.

Jack Collison has sustained a thigh strain while miskicking a ball in training. He will miss around two weeks while he recovers.

20/12/11 – Awards
Duo Named
Adrian Aldrete and James Tomkins were selected to the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

25/12/11 – Injury Update
Frederic Piquionne has resumed full training after recovering from a twisted ankle.

[Grover]

26/12/11 – npower Championship Match Day #23
West Ham United 0 – 1 Leicester City
Goals: Leicester: Nugent (60)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 12/2, Leicester 8/1
Possession: West Ham 55/45
Cautions: West Ham: Tomkins (Y 8), Leicester: Beckford (Y 13), Fernandes (Y 45), Tunchev (R 66), Pantsil (Y 72)
Man of the Match: Michael Lumb (8.0)

Form: Green 6.7, Demel 6.8, Wilson 7.2, Tomkins 7.0, Aldrete 7.0, Noble 7.1, Diop 6.7, Anakoglou 6.8, Baldock 6.7, Cole (off 70) 6.5, Macheda 6.6, Sears (on 70) 6.5

Notes:
- This marks the halfway point of the npower Championship season.
- Leicester possess an excellent midfield trio of Gelson Fernandes, Andy King and Michael Johnson.
- Former Hammer John Pantsil is Leicester's starting right fullback.
- Leicester City hands West Ham it's first loss of the npower Championship season.
- If the current pace holds, we are on pace for 124 points.

[Grover]

31/12/11 – npower Championship Match Day #24
West Ham United 3 – 0 Coventry City
Goals: West Ham: Noble (6), Tomkins (39), Macheda (60)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 13/9, Coventry 8/1
Possession: West Ham 55/45
Man of the Match: James Tomkins

Form: Green 6.9, Demel 7.2, Wilson 7.3, Tomkins 8.4, Aldrete 7.8, Noble 7.7, Diop 7.2, Anakoglou 8.4, Baldock 6.9, Macheda 7.7, Cole 6.9

[Grover]

01/01/12 – December In Review
Training Report
Henri Lansbury (tactics), Sam Baldock (aerobic) and Sam Cowler (tactics) have been impressing Hendon and Winsper in training, but there have been concerns about Frederic Piquionne (ball control) and Julien Faubert (tactics)

Board Confidence
To summarize, the board is pleased with Kafka's leading of the team. The capture of Danny Wilson, who the fans to be an extremely good player, has been particularly pleasing. Despite the positives, the 2-0 defeat to Wolves is still a sticking negative point. The club lost £2.43m in December, but is still in a secure financial situation.

Messi Wins All
Little Leo Messi has won the Balon d'Or and the World Player of the Year awards.

West Ham Player Stats


npower Championship Player Stats


npower Championship Table

[Grover]

02/01/12 – npower Championship Match Day #25
West Ham United 3 – 0 Millwall
Goals: West Ham: Tomkins (11), Wilson (63), Macheda (70)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 15/3, Millwall 4/0
Possession: West Ham 51/49
Cautions: West Ham: Macheda (68) Millwall: Stewart (Y 34), N'Guessan (Y 50), Feeney (Y 56)
Man of the Match: Henri Lansbury

Form: Green 6.9, Faubert 7.4, Wilson 8.4, Tomkins (off 55) 7.7, Ilunga 7.3, Nolan 6.9, O'Brien 7.3, Lansbury 9.0, Piquionne 6.9, Sears (off 45) 6.6, Cole 6.9, Reid (on 55) 6.9, Macheda (on 45) 7.2

Notes:
- Freddie Sears came off injured at the half.
- James Tomkins came off injured (55).
- Lansbury came off injured (90+1)

Injury Update
Henri Lansbury is set to miss four months after tearing his calf muscle in the dying minutes in the match against Millwall.

James Tomkins is set to miss up to two months with strained knee ligaments after turning awkwardly during the match with Millwall.

Ouch.

Jack Collison has returned to full training following his thigh strain.

Lansbury Loan Terminated
Due to his long-term injury, the loan of Henri Lansbury has been terminated and the player will return to Arsenal immediately.

In 9 appearances Lansbury posted a 7.71 rating with 6 assists. We thank him for his contribution to West Ham United.

03/01/12 – Awards
Duo Named
Adrian Aldrete and James Tomkins have been selected to the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

06/01/12 – Player Signing
Whelan Joins Hammers
West Ham United have secured the loan signing of Stoke midfielder Glenn Whelan for the remainder of the season.

[Grover]

07/01/12 – FA Cup (third round)
Coventry City 0 – 6 West Ham United
Goals: West Ham: Cole (6, 23, 32, 45+2), Collison (41), Piquionne (51)
Shots/On Target: Coventry 13/3, West Ham 17/9
Possession: Coventry 55/45
Man of the Match: Carlton Cole

Form: Green 7.4, Demel 8.4, Wilson 8.1, Reid 8.4, Aldrete 8.8, Noble 8.3, Collison 8.9, Anakoglou 7.5, Piquionne 9.4, Baldock 7.2, Cole 9.8

Notes:
- Carlton Cole's 23rd minute goal was his 50th as a West Ham player.
- Cole's 4th goal of the match was his 20th of the season.
- In three matches with Coventry City, West Ham have outscored them 13-1.
- West Ham have been given £67,500 for their victory.

09/01/12 – FA Cup Draw
West Ham will travel to St James' Park on 28th January to face Premier League side Newcastle in the FA Cup fourth round. Newcastle currently sit 13th in the Premier League.

[Grover]

14/01/12 – npower Championship Match Day #26
Crystal Palace 1 – 2 West Ham United
Goals: Palace: Pedroza (29), West Ham: Baldock (37), Wilson (60)
Shots/On Target: Palace 10/3, West Ham 17/4
Possession: West Ham 54/46
Cautions: Palace: Pedroza (Y 88) West Ham: Collison (Y 62), Wilson (Y 78)
Man of the Match: Danny Wilson

Form: Green 6.8, Faubert 6.9, Wilson 8.1, Reid 7.0, Aldrete 6.9, Noble 7.1, Collison 6.9, Anakoglou 7.1, Baldock 7.2, Macheda 6.9, Cole 6.8

Notes:
- Pedroza's goal was the result of poor communication in defense between Wilson and Reid. Wilson had the ball, Reid collided with him leaving Pedroza there to poach home the goal.
- We are absolutely deadly on near and far post headers from corner set pieces. Faye, Tomkins and Wilson have all had a knack for coming up with the goals in these situations.

18/01/12 – FIFA Rankings
FIFA World Top Ten
1. Spain
2. Holland
3. England
4. Germany
5. Uruguay
6. Italy
7. Greece
8. Argentina
9. Chile
10. Sweden

19/01/12 – Player Movement
Callum McNaughton will join Blue Square Premier side Newport County on loan for three months.

[Grover]

21/01/12 – npower Championship Match Day #27
Brighton & Hove Albion 0 – 5 West Ham United
Goals: West Ham: Noble (3), Reid (19), Wilson (47), Cole (64), Macheda (73)
Shots/On Target: Brighton 6/1, West Ham 15/10
Possession: 50/50
Man of the Match: Dimitris Anakoglou

Form: Green 7.0, Faubert 8.5, Wilson 8.8, Reid 9.1, Aldrete 7.8, Noble 8.8, Collison 7.3, Anakoglou 9.3, Baldock (off 64) 7.0, Macheda 8.3, Cole 9.2, Piquionne (on 64) 6.9

Notes:
- With matches being a week apart lately, it's given me the chance to play a more static starting XI from game to game.
- Mark Noble's goal was a brilliant 30 yard blast into the top right corner of goal. Unstoppable.
- Winston Reid's goal was his first ever for the club. The defender scored on a near post header from a Dimitris Anakoglou corner.
- Yes, Danny Wilson's goal was also off a corner, far post header.
- Sam Baldock had to come off injured (64).
- Anakoglou's third assist of the match was his 20th of the year in all competitions.

Baldock Injury
Sam Baldock will miss up to three weeks after twisting his knee in the victory over Brighton.

22/01/12 – Player News
Burton Sign Brown
West Ham United have agreed to sell fullback Jordan Brown to League 2 side Burton for £8,000. Otto Kafka said he thought the player had no future with the club and was out of contract in June anyway.

24/01/12 – Awards
SIX Hammers Named
Wow! A team record six Hammers have been named to the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven. Congratulations to Adrian Aldrete, Danny Wilson, Winston Reid, Julien Faubert, Dimitris Anakoglou and Carlton Cole. The entire back four!

Demel On Duty
The reason Guy Demel has not featured recently is because he is with the Ivory Coast as they prepare to play in the 2012 African Cup of Nations.

Fulham Bid Rebuffed
West Ham United have rejected a £4.5m + future incentives bid from Fulham for Jack Collison. The offer included £3.9m of the fee spread out over 42 months.

Note: If a club is going to make a serious offer for one of my better players, all of the cash had better be up front.

Carling Cup Final Set
Arsenal will face Wolverhampton in the Carling Cup final at Wembley Stadium.

26/01/12 – Player News
Vose On Loan
Dominic Vose is going out on loan once again, this time to Preston North End until the end of the season. Otto Kafka believes Vose needs more playing time and will not get it in the congested Hammers midfield.

27/01/12 – Contracts
Collison Signs
Jack Collison has been rewarded for his fine play with a new 3 year contract worth an estimated £3m. This is the second time this season West Ham have worked to sign a player long term after a Premier League club has shown interest. Kafka pulled the same move after teams were looking at James Tomkins in the summer.

[Grover]

28/01/12 – FA Cup (fourth round)
Newcastle United 0 – 0 West Ham United
Shots/On Target: Newcastle: 15/4, West Ham 8/1
Possession: Newcastle 53/47
Cautions: Newcastle: S. Taylor (Y 90+1)
Man of the Match: Rob Green

Form: Green 7.3, Faubert 6.8, Wilson 6.9, Reid 6.9, Aldrete 6.1, Noble 6.9, Collison 6.9, Anakoglou 6.9, Piquionne 5.8, Macheda (off 62) 6.0, Cole 6.8, Sears (on 62) 6.4

Notes:
- Former Hammer Demba Ba was in the starting XI for Newcastle.
- Carlton Cole had a goal taken back for a foul pushing Newcastle keeper Tim Krul in the back (4)
- A hard fought draw earns us a replay in a fortnight at The Boleyn Ground. A match like this gives me hope with this squad in the Premier League should we win promotion.

29/01/12 – TV Coverage
The West Ham vs. Newcastle FA Cup fourth round replay has been chosen for television coverage. West Ham will receive around £140,000 in television money for the match.

30/01/12 – FA Cup Draw
West Ham or Newcastle will host either Hull City or Wigan in the fifth round of the FA Cup.

[Grover]

31/01/12 – npower Championship Match Day #28
West Ham United 2 – 0 Birmingham City
Goals: West Ham: Macheda (7), Piquionne (90+2)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 20/7, Brum 7/1
Possession: West Ham 54/46
Cautions: West Ham: Aldrete (Y 65), Cole (Y 82)
Man of the Match: Frederic Piquionne

Form: Green 6.9, Faubert 7.0, Wilson 7.6, Reid 7.3, Aldrete 7.9, Noble 6.9, Collison 7.0, Anakoglou (off 45) 6.9, Piquionne 8.2, Macheda 7.5, Cole 6.9, Whelan (on 45) 6.9

Notes:
- Federico Macheda's 7th minute goal was his 10th of the season.
- Dimitris Anakoglou was taken off at the half due to a knock. Glenn Whelan replaced him, making his Hammers debut.

Anakoglou Blow
Dimitris Anakoglou will miss two weeks with a damaged elbow.

Hammers Receive Dosh
West Ham have received £50,000 from Brescia as part of the Fabio Daprela transfer deal. The player has made 15 appearances for the Italian club.

[Grover]

01/02/12 – January In Review
Training Report
Of the senior players, Robert Green (tactics), Danny Wilson (strength) and Oliver Lee (tactics) have been impressing Hendon and Lamb, while Herita Ilunga (aerobic), Joey O'Brien (ball control) and Callum Driver (aerobic) failed to impress.

Among the youth players, Elliot Lee (tactics), Robert Hall (tactics) and Taylor Miles (tactics) have impressed Drake and Gibson.

Board Confidence
To summarize, the board is pleased with Otto Kafka's leading of the team. The capture of Danny Wilson has been the highlight while the fans were disappointed with the 1-0 loss to Leicester City. The club recorded a loss of £3.95m last month.

West Ham Player Stats


npower Championship Player Stats


npower Championship Table

[Grover]

03/02/12 – Injury News
Abdoulaye Faye has returned to full training following his hip injury. The defender had missed two months with the injury.

John Carew has also returned to full training after missing three months with a torn calf muscle.

We are tickled pink.

04/02/12 – npower Championship Match Day #29
Cardiff City 0 – 2 West Ham United
Goals: West Ham: Collison (8), Macheda (41)
Shots/On Target: Cardiff 9/4, West Ham 15/8
Possession: 50/50
Cautions: Cardiff: Mcnaughton (Y 75) West Ham: Reid (R 63)
Man of the Match: Guy Demel

Form: Green 7.1, Piquionne (off 63) 6.9, Wilson 7.7, Demel 8.1, Aldrete 7.3, Noble 7.3, Noble 6.9, Collison 7.5, Nolan 7.8, Reid (off 63) 6.9, Macheda 7.8, Cole 6.8, Faubert (on 63) 6.3

Notes:
- Winston Reid was given a straight red for pulling down the last man.

Reid Suspended
West Ham defender Winston Reid has been suspended for one match after being sent off against Cardiff. The player has accepted his warning.

07/02/11 – Awards, News
Demel Named
Guy Demel was named to the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

Baldock Returns
Sam Baldock has returned to full training following two weeks out with a twisted knee.

[Grover]

08/02/12 – FA Cup (fourth round replay)
West Ham United 0 – 1 Newcastle United
Goals: Newcastle: Jonas (89)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 8/4, Newcastle: 14/3
Possession: 50/50
Cautions: West Ham: Noble (Y 34), Faye (Y 42), Ilunga (Y 50) Newcastle: Best (Y 31), Tiote (Y 32), Gai (Y 39), Jara (Y 45), Jonas (Y 72), Kucher (Y 79)
Man of the Match: Jonas

Form: Green 6.8, Demel 6.8, Faye 7.0, Wilson 6.7, Ilunga 6.9, Noble (off 62) 5.9, Collison 6.7, Whelan 6.6, Piquionne 6.9, Macheda (off 62) 6.5, Cole 6.4, Carew (on 62) 6.4, Nolan (on 62) 6.5

Notes:
- Weather for the match is gusty with heavy snow. Fantastic.
- Carlton Cole was in on goal (5) and hit the right upright.
- Demba Ba had a shot go off the right upright as well. (52).
- Hard fought match, can't have too many complaints about the loss. Newcastle were full blooded in their challenges, lucky nobody picked up an injury.

[Grover]

11/02/12 – npower Championship Match Day #30
West Ham United 2 – 1 Watford
Goals: West Ham: O'Brien (17), Macheda (43) Watford: Iwelumo (89)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 26/11, Watford 5/3
Possession: West Ham 58/42
Cautions: West Ham: Reid (Y 45+3), Nolan (Y 62)
Man of the Match: Joey O'Brien

Form: Green 6.8, Faubert 6.9, Reid 7.1, Wilson 7.0, Ilunga 7.2, Nolan 6.9, Diop 7.8, O'Brien 8.3, Sears 6.8, Macheda 7.4, Cole 6.8

Notes:
Joey O'Brien's goal was his first for West Ham, and a terrific 35 yard strike at that.

12/02/12 – Injury News
Dimitris Anakoglou has returned to full training after missing 12 days with a damaged elbow. Anakoglou has been a creative force for the club, with one goal and 20 assists.

[Grover]

14/02/12 – Awards, News, npower Championship Match Day #31
O'Brien Named
Joey O'Brien has been named to the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

Hall On Loan
Youth forward Robert Hall will join League 2 side Shrewsbury Town on a two month long loan.

Ipswich Town 0 – 1 West Ham United
Goals: West Ham: Cole (46)
Shots/On Target: Ipswich 9/1, West Ham 11/4
Possession: West Ham 52/48
Cautions: Ipswich: Delaney (Y 83) West Ham: Collison (Y 45+2), Noble (Y 70), Reid (Y 84)
Man of the Match: Winston Reid

Form: Green 6.8, Demel 7.3, Reid 7.5, Wilson 7.1, Aldrete 7.1, Noble 6.9, Collison (off 45) 6.6, Whelan 7.0, Baldock 6.9, Cole 7.2, Carew 6.8, Diop (on 45) 6.9

Notes:
- Jack Collison came off at halftime with a knock.
- Carlton Cole scored 45 seconds into the second half.

15/02/12 – Injury News
James Tomkins has begun full training following his return from strained knee ligaments.

We're getting healthy...

[Grover]

18/02/12 – npower Championship Match Day #32
West Ham United 0 – 1 Derby County
Goals: Derby: Hendrick (26)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 15/12, Derby 7/2
Possession: West Ham 54/46
Cautions: West Ham: Faubert (Y 75)
Man of the Match: Danny Wilson

Form: Green 6.9, Faubert 6.8, Faye 7.0, Wilson 7.6, Ilunga 7.0, Nolan 6.6, Collison 7.0, Anakoglou (off 53) 6.6, Piquionne 6.8, Cole 6.6, Macheda 6.6, Noble (on 53) 6.8

Notes:
- Federico Macheda had a goal disallowed (43) when Carlton Cole was adjudged to have fouled a player in the Derby box.
- Dimitris Anakoglou had to come off injured (53)
- I have no idea how Derby's keeper didn't earn man of the match for his performance. He stopped everything in his path.

FA Cup Surprise
Bolton Wanderers surprised Manchester United, beating them 3-1 at the Reebok in the fifth round of the FA Cup.

23/02/12 – Call-Ups
Seven Hammers have been called up for international matches on 29th February.
Guy Demel (Ivory Coast), Papa Bouba Diop (Senegal), Adrian Aldrete (Mexico), Rob Green (England), John Carew (Norway), Jack Collison (Wales) and Winston Reid (New Zealand).

[Grover]

25/02/12 – npower Championship Match Day #33
West Ham United 2 – 0 Hull City
Goals: West Ham: Noble (46), Cole (50)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 25/4, Hull 8/3
Possession: West Ham 52/48
Cautions: West Ham: Piquionne (Y 12), Nolan (Y 43), Macheda (Y 59), Aldrete (Y 76) Hull: Kilbane (Y 70)
Man of the Match: Mark Noble

Form: Green 6.9, Demel 7.3, Faye 7.1, Wilson 7.4, Aldrete 7.2, Nolan 6.9, Collison 7.0, Noble 8.8, Piquionne 6.7, Cole 7.3, Macheda 6.0

Notes:
Mark Noble's goal came just 25 seconds into the second half.

26/02/11 – Carling Cup Final
Arsenal have lost to Wolverhampton in the Carling Cup final 1-0.

West Ham have paid out £10,000 to be shared among the squad on a pro-rata basis after reaching the Carling Cup quarter-final.

29/02/12 – Awards
Guy Demel and Mark Noble were selected to the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

[Grover]

01/03/12 – February In Review
Training Report
Among the senior players, Carlton Cole (aerobic), Danny Wilson (tactics) and Peter Kurucz (GK – handling) have impressed Margetson and Winsper.

Board Confidence
The club is pleased with Kafka's leading of the team. The capture of Federico Macheda has been particularly pleasing, while the club's fans were disappointed with the 1-0 defeat to Newcastle in the FA Cup. The club lost £2.24m last month.

West Ham Player Stats


npower Championship Player Stats


npower Championship Table

[Grover]

03/03/12 – npower Championship Match Day #34
Bristol City 2 – 2 West Ham United
Goals: Bristol: Pitman (pen 49), Clarkson (90+3) West Ham: Piquionne (5), Carew (20)
Shots/On Target: Bristol 9/5, West Ham 21/8
Possession: West Ham 53/47
Cautions: Bristol: Addo (Y 82) West Ham: Faye (Y 71), Cole (Y 72), Anakoglou (Y 81)
Man of the Match: Jack Collison

Forms: Green 6.9, Demel 7.0, Faye 6.2, Tomkins 7.2, Aldrete 7.2, Noble 6.7, Collison 7.7, Anakoglou 7.0, Piquionne 7.3, Cole 6.8, Carew 7.3

Notes:
- After Carew's goal “West Ham look good for promotion from this performance.” Not any of the other performances were we've dropped 10 points all year though?
- Mark Noble conceded a penalty when he brought Eric Addo down inside the box.
- Devastating equalizer from Clarkson in the dying throes of this match.

[Grover]

06/03/12 – npower Championship Match Day #35
Peterborough 0 – 1 West Ham United
Goals: West Ham: Macheda (45)
Shots/On Target: Posh 10/5, West Ham 8/1
Possession: Posh 55/45
Cautions: West Ham: Nolan (Y 28), Faubert (R 35)
Man of the Match: Herita Ilunga

Form: Green 7.5, Cole 6.2 (off 35) Faye 7.0, Wilson 7.4, Ilunga 7.6, Nolan 6.9, Diop 6.9, Whelan 6.9, Sears 6.9, Faubert (off 35) 6.3, Macheda 7.3, Demel (on 35) 6.8

Notes:
- Julien Faubert was given a straight red for pulling back the last man. (35)
- A very good win down a man for over half the match. Grinding out a result after that hard luck draw was just the tonic we needed.

Faubert Suspended
Julien Faubert has earned a one match ban after his sending off against Peterborough. He has accepted his warning

Playoff Spot Clinched
West Ham have secured themselves a spot in the npower Championship playoffs with their victory. This means if the club were to lose their remaining 11 games, they could finish no worse than 6th.

[Grover]

10/03/12 – npower Championship Match Day #36
West Ham United 2 – 0 Reading
Goals: West Ham: Collison (17), Faye (67)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 16/8, Reading 6/1
Possession: West Ham 55/45
Cautions: West Ham: Wilson (Y 88), Reading: Mellis (Y 12)
Man of the Match: Abdoulaye Faye

Form: Green 6.9, Reid 6.9, Faye 8.3, Wilson 7.2, Aldrete 7.4, Noble 6.9, Collison 7.5, Anakoglou 7.3, Piquionne 7.4, Cole 6.8, Macheda 6.9

Macheda Knock
Federico Macheda has sustained a damaged elbow after following awkwardly during the match with Reading and will miss up to two weeks.

13/03/12 – Youth Signed
West Ham have signed a number of youth team candidates, including Nick Stacey, Gary Donegan, Nicky Powell, Hayri Koybasi, Peter Bodie, Miguel Martin, Phil Goodacre, George Lansbury, Steve Holland, James Simpson, Daryl Hornby, Ian Moore and Craig Healy.

Nick Stacey is being considered one of the better players to come through the system in years, but is a right winger. We will work to turn him into a central midfielder. The 15 year old has 4* potential and bags of physical skills, but is very, very weak mentally at the moment.

14/03/12 – FIFA Rankings
FIFA World Top Ten
1. Spain
2. Holland
3. England
4. Germany
5. Uruguay
6. Italy
7. Greece
8. Argentina
9. Sweden
10. Chile

[Grover]

17/03/12 – npower Championship Match Day #37
Barnsley 0 – 5 West Ham United
Goals: West Ham: Faye (11), Cole (19, 67, 86), Collison (42)
Shots/On Target: Barnsley 3/1, West Ham 17/11
Possession: 50/50
Cautions: Barnsley: Magnusson (Y 17, Y/R 31) West Ham: Collison (Y 38), Demel (Y 81)
Man of the Match: Carlton Cole

Form: Green 6.9, Demel 8.4, Faye 8.7, Tomkins 8.7, Aldrete 8.5, Noble 8.4, Collison 8.3, Anakoglou 9.1, Piquionne 7.5, Cole 9.6, Carew 7.9

Notes:
Barnsley's Peter Magnusson was sent off for his second caution (31)
Carlton Cole achieved his second hat trick of the year. It could have been his fourth, as he missed penalties in two separate games this year while sitting on a hat trick.

HAMMERS WIN PROMOTION
West Ham United have won promotion to the Premier League. The fans of the club are overjoyed with Otto Kafka and his players as the club have secured promotion from the npower Championship. A spokesman for the official supporters' club stated that Kafka was the sort of manager that thrived on the pressure that chasing success entails.

In a statement released to the press after the match, the West Ham board revealed that they always expected the team to gain promotion and is pleased that the moment has finally arrived. The board have stated that they believed Kafka would deliver and were pleased that they were not let down.

Swindon manager and West Ham favorite Paolo Di Canio has stated his own pleasure at witnessing the Hammer secure their promotion. Di Canio believes that nothing can faze the Hammers boss and is sure the club is now in safe hands.

19/03/12 - News
Drake and Hampson Stay
After being offered contracts from Bolton and Everton respectively, West Ham have re-signed youth coach Peter Drake and scout Jimmy Hampson through 30 June, 2015.

Quintet Named
James Tomkins, Abdoulaye Faye, Guy Demel, Dimitris Anakoglou and Carlton Cole have been selected to the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

[Grover]

20/03/12 – npower Championship Match Day #38
West Ham United 1 – 1 Portsmouth
Goals: West Ham: Nolan (60) Portsmouth: Bozovic (90+2)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 12/4, Portsmouth 4/1
Possession: West Ham 53/47
Cautions: Portsmouth: De la Cruz (Y 22)
Man of the Match: Vladimir Bozovic (7.5)

Form: Boffin 6.8, Faubert 7.0, Faye 6.7, Wilson 6.6, Ilunga 6.8, Nolan 7.2, Diop 7.0, Whelan 6.8, Baldock 6.8, Cole 6.6, Sears 6.4

Notes:
Another late, late goal to drop two points. Mental fatigue? This certainly was not our first choice team, but still should have won.

HAMMERS WIN NPOWER CHAMPIONSHIP
Three days after securing automatic promotion, West Ham United have won the npower Championship with eight matches remaining on the schedule. This is West Ham's first silverware since 1981.

More of the same statements as there was on winning promotion from the board, fans and Paolo Di Canio.

A bigger challenge lies ahead.

[Grover]

24/03/12 – npower Championship Match Day #39
Leeds United 1 – 1 West Ham United
Goals: Leeds: Becchio (11) West Ham: Anakoglou (56)
Shots/On Target: Leeds 9/3, West Ham 16/8
Possession: Leeds 53/47
Cautions: West Ham: Collison (Y 34)
Man of the Match: Dimitris Anakoglou

Form: Boffin 6.8, Demel 6.9, Faye 7.1, Tomkins 6.8, Aldrete 7.0, Noble 6.7, Collison 6.5, Anakoglou 7.6, Piquionne 6.8, Cole 5.9, Carew 6.7

Notes:
- Bit of a post-championship hangover?

[Grover]

31/03/12 – npower Championship Match Day #40, Contract Issues
West Ham United 3 – 0 Nottingham Forest
Goals: West Ham: Faye (18, 28), Cole (53)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 17/9, Forest 4/2
Possession: West Ham 58/42
Cautions: West Ham: Noble (Y 32), Faye (Y 79), Collison (Y 80) Forest: Greening (Y 45+2)
Man of the Match: Abdoulaye Faye

Form: Boffin 6.9, Demel 7.4, Faye 9.1, Tomkins 7.6, Aldrete 7.5, Noble 6.9, Collison 7.1, Anakoglou 9.0, Cole 7.7, Piquionne 6.9, Baldock 6.9

Contracts Expiring – Decisions to Make
We have a number of first team contracts expiring on 30th June. Most of these players are willing to re-sign right now, however, they want substantial pay raises in addition to salary hikes for promotion. I am afraid I am going to have to let most of these players go and it's going to be a bit of a building process to start life in the Premier League once again. I will look at maybe trying to keep some of these players as we get closer to the end of June, but it most likely will not happen.

I have decided that we will not be manually scouting for players. Instead I will rely on my scouts and staff for finding players to give the game a more realistic feel. The only players I will scout out myself are those that are loan or transfer listed and those that are out of contract.

The following first team members have their contracts expiring on 30th June:
John Carew, Robert Green, Julien Faubert, Abdoulaye Faye, Papa Bouba Diop, Ruud Boffin and Joey O'Brien.

Five of those players have played important roles for the club. It's looking likely I will need to find two forwards, three defenders, two keepers, two midfielders and two fullbacks in the summer. This is counting those players who will depart because of loans ending: Danny Wilson, Federico Macheda and Glenn Whelan.

We are going to have a VERY interesting summer period at West Ham.

[Grover]

01/04/12 – March In Review
Training Report
Among the senior plaayers, Mark Noble (tactics), Demitris Anakoglou (tactics) and Adrian Aldrete (aerobic) have been impressing Hendon and Lamb on the training field, while Rob Green (aerobic) has disappointed.

Board Confidence
The board is very pleased with Kafka's overall leadership of the team. This has been underlined by the fact that they believe his leadership has led to some good performances from Abdoulaye Faye. The club lost £3.21m last month.

West Ham Player Stats


npower Championship Player Stats


npower Championship Table

[Grover]

07/04/12 – npower Championship Match Day #41
Middlesbrough 1 – 2 West Ham United
Goals: Boro: Emnes (31) West Ham: Carew (35), Anakoglou (68)
Shots/On Target: Boro 9/5, West Ham 17/6
Possession: West Ham 52/48
Cautions: Boro: Thomson (Y 67), Williams (Y 74) West Ham: Demel (Y 50)
Man of the Match: Dimitris Anakoglou

Form: Boffin 6.9, Demel 7.2, Faye 7.4, Tomkins 6.9, Aldrete 6.9, Noble 6.9, Collison 6.9, Anakoglou 7.6, Piquionne 6.8, Piquionne 6.8, Cole 6.9, Carew 7.2

Notes:
Dimitris Ankoglou has been named man of the match 7 times this season.

Taylor Released
We have released left midfielder Matty Taylor by mutual termination, paying a fee of £900,000. Taylor was on a £25,000 per week salary and repeated attempts to sell the player failed.

Hammers Set Record
West Ham United have set a new record for the number of points accrued in a season in the npower Championship, with their total currently sitting at 107. The previous record was Reading's 106.

[Grover]

09/04/12 – npower Championship Match Day #42
West Ham United 4 – 1 Southampton
Goals: West Ham: Whelan (11), Baldock (45), Macheda (pen 48, 82) Soton: Mputu (8)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 16/4, Soton 7/1
Possession: West Ham 63/37
Cautions: Soton: Gentsoglou (Y 52)
Man of the Match: Federico Macheda

Form: Boffin 7.2, Faubert 7.5, Wilson 8.1, Tomkins 7.3, Ilunga 7.1, Nolan 6.9, Diop 7.1, Whelan 7.8, Baldock 8.2, Macheda 8.6, Sears 6.9

Notes:
- Whelan's goal was his first as a Hammer.

[Grover]

14/04/12 – npower Championship Match Day #43
Doncaster Rovers 1 – 4 West Ham United
Goals: Donny: Sharp (45) West Ham: Baldock (34, 79), Sears (38), Noble (40)
Shots/On Target: Donny 12/5, West Ham 16/6
Possession: West Ham 56/44
Man of the Match: Dimitris Anakoglou

Forms: Boffin 7.4, Demel 7.0, Wilson 7.4, Tomkins 7.7, Aldrete 7.1, Noble 8.0, Collison 6.9, Anakoglou 9.0, Baldock 8.8, Cole 6.8, Sears 8.3

Notes:
- Danny Wilson had a goal from a corner disallowed after James Tomkins was called for a push.
- Freddie Sears' goal was his first of the season.
- Donny's Billy Sharp had a goal ruled offside (55)
- This was Dimitris Anakoglou's 8th man of the match award.

Playoffs Update
Bristol City and Reading have secured playoff spots.

15/04/12 – FA Cup
Liverpool was face-off against rival Everton in the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium.

16/04/12 – Awards
Anakoglou Honored
Once again Dimitris Anakoglou has been named to the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

[Grover]

17/04/12 – npower Championship Match Day #44
West Ham United 1 – 0 Blackpool
Goals: West Ham: Cole (89)
Shots/On Target: West Ham 19/5, Blackpool 6/1
Possession: West Ham 52/48
Cautions: West Ham: Ilunga (Y 15), Reid (Y 44) Blackpool: Bjarnason (Y 72)
Man of the Match: Carlton Cole

Form: Boffin 6.9, Reid 7.1, Wilson 7.2, Tomkins (off 58) 6.8, Ilunga 6.9, Nolan 6.8, Diop 7.1, Whelan 6.9, Baldock 6.7, Cole 8.3, Sears 6.8

Notes:
James Tomkins had to come off injured (58)

Coventry Down
Coventry City have been relegated to League 1.

Tomkins Injured
James Tomkins sustained a sprained ankle and will miss the rest of the season and be out for 5-6 weeks.

19/04/12 – FIFA Rankings
FIFA World Top Ten
1. Spain
2. England
3. Holland
4. Italy
5. Uruguay
6. Germany
7. Greece
8. Argentina
9. Sweden
10. Chile

[Grover]

21/04/12 – npower Championship Match Day #45
Burnley 2 – 2 West Ham United
Goals: Burnley: Bartley (59), Treacy (76) West Ham: Baldock (17), Wilson (64)
Shots/On Target: Burnley 22/9, West Ham 10/5
Possession: Burnley 54/46
Cautions: Burnley: Tierney (Y 28), Eckersley (Y 63), Mee (Y 83), West Ham: Noble (Y 9), Anakoglou (Y 57), Piquionne (Y 81)
Man of the Match: Danny Wilson

Form: Boffin 7.8, Demel 6.9, Wilson 8.2, Faye 6.7, Aldrete 6.7, Noble 6.9, Collison 7.4, Anakoglou 7.0, Baldock (off 45+2) 7.2, Cole 6.9, Sears 6.5, Piquionne (on 45+2) 6.3

Notes:
- Sam Baldock was taken off injured (45+2)

Promotion, Playoffs, Relegation
Reading have clinched second place in the npower Championship and have earned automatic promotion along with West Ham to the Premier League.

Nottingham Forest have secured a playoff spot.

Leeds United have been relegated to League 1.

Baldock Inury
Sam Baldock will miss 5-8 days after stubbing his toe. Seriously?

25/04/12 -Awards
Boffin Named
Ruud Boffin has been named to the npower Championship Team of the Week first eleven.

[Grover]

29/04/12 – npower Championship Match Day #46 – The Final Day
Leicester City 1 – 0 West Ham United
Goals: Leicester: John (63)
Shots/On Target: Leicester 9/2, West Ham 16/5
Possession: West Ham 53/47
Cautions: West Ham: Demel (Y 56), Collison (R 57)
Man of the Match: Joshua John (7.8)

Form: Boffin 6.7, Demel 6.0, Wilson 7.2, Faye 7.0, Aldrete 6.8, Baldock (off 61) 6.6, Noble 6.8, Anakoglou 6.9, Cole 5.6, Collison (off 61) 6.8, Sears 6.8, Nolan (on 61) 6.7

Notes:
Hats off to Leicester City. They beat us twice this year, the only club we didn't earn a single point off of.

Collison Suspended
Jack Collison has been suspended for one match and has been warned by the team for his sending off.

Pompey In Playoffs
Portsmouth have secured the final playoff spot.

Playoff matches will be:
3. Leicester City v. 6. Portsmouth
4. Bristol City v. 5. Nottingham Forest

Barnsley Down
Barnsley have been relegated to League 1.

Cash Money
West Ham have been awarded £50,000 for their final position in the league.

[Grover]

01/05/12 – April In Review
Training Report
Mark Noble (tactics), Danny Wilson (tactics) and Sam Cowler (aerobics) have impressed Hendon and Lamb.

Board Confidence
The board is very pleased with the overall leadership from Otto Kafka. The fans believe the signing of Glenn Whelan to be extremely good and are very pleased. The club lost £5.21m last month.

The club finishes the season with a balance of £84,210. Barely in the black. Through the course of the season, the club lost £21.1M

West Ham Player Stats – Final


npower Championship Player Stats – Final


npower Championship Table - Final

[Grover]

05/05/12 – FA Cup Final
Liverpool win the FA Cup final. After a 0-0 deadlock through 120 minutes, the match went to penalties where Leighton Baines and Tim Cahill missed for Everton. Liverpool made all four of their penalties, with Jamie Carragher netting the winner.

06/05/12 – News
Jack Collison has been handed a further two match ban for his sending off against Leicester and will be ineligible for the club's first three Premier League Matches.

Yearly Training
The following players have trained well and shown signs of progression over the past season:
Sam Baldock, Dimitris Anakoglou and Federico Macheda have improved significantly as footballers.
Danny Wilson has improved remarkably.

Squad End of Season Break
The West Ham squad are now on vacation and will return for training on 25th June 2012.

07/05/12 – Leicester, Bristol City to Playoff Final
Dammit. Leicester City have advanced to the playoff final by defeating Portsmouth 5-2 on aggregate after a stunning 4-0 victory in the return leg at the Walkers Stadium.

I feel like Leicester being in the Prem would be six points I would lose.

Bristol City advanced to the final to face Leicester after a 4-1 victory over Nottingham Forest, giving them a 7-3 aggregate victory.

10/05/12 – News
Hands Off Baldock
Reading have been told that Sam Baldock is not for sale as both clubs try to gear up for life in the Premier League.

17/05/12 – FIFA Rankings
FIFA World Top Ten
1. Spain.
2. England
3. Holland
4. Italy
5. Uruguay
6. Greece
7. Germany
8. Argentina
9. Sweden
10.Chile

19/05/12 – Playoff Final
Leicester City have won promotion to the Premier League with a 2-0 victory over Bristol City.

I am very, very disappointed in Bristol City.

Squad Payout
We have paid out £1.5m to be shared among the squad on a pro-rata basis for winning the npower Championship.

We are now financially in the red.

I smell a very small transfer budget.

20/05/12 – npower Championship Awards
Player of the Year: Dimitris Anakoglou, West Ham United – 33 appearances, 3 goals, 28 assists, 7.72 rating.
Young Player of the Year: John Bostock, Millwall, 30 appearances, 8 goals, 7.08 rating
Manager of the Year: Brian McDermott, Reading
Top Goalscorer: Billy Sharp, Doncaster Rovers 29 goals
Team of the Year:
GK: Rob Green – West Ham
DL: Michael Lumb – Leicester City
DC: Curtis Davies – Birmingham City
DC: Bongani Khumalo – Reading
DR: John Pantsil – Leicester City
ML: Paul Gallagher – Leicester City
MC: Fernando Belluschi – Birmingham City
MC: Dimitris Anakoglou – West Ham
MR: Robert Snodgrass – Leeds United
ST: Billy Sharp – Doncaster Rovers
ST: Carlton Cole – West Ham

24/05/12 – First Cap!
Dimitris Anakoglou has earned his first senior cap with Greece.

We're very excited at West Ham and taking a lot of the credit for this youngster's development.

27/05/12 – On A Shoestring
We will be operating on a shoestring budget in our first season back in the Premier League. The board has given us a payroll budget of £575,000 per week and a transfer budget of just £1.8m.

Because of this, I'll be instituting a weekly wage cap of £30,000 per week on any player coming in. I will not be re-signing any of the players who's contracts are up on 30th June, meaning we will be scouring free transfers on 1st July. We will also be looking at those available for loan.

The next season or two are going to be about consolidation and turning at profit while staying the Premier League. We'll be grinding it out until we can get comfortable.

28/05/12 – Daprela Fee
West Ham have been paid £50,000 by Brescia as Fabio Daprela has now appeared in 20 league matches for the Italian side.

31/05/12 – Loan Ends
Pablo Barrera's loan with Zaragoza has ended. The winger is on £35,000 per week and will be offered out to clubs for £1m as there is no place for him in the team.

02/06/12 – Boffin Ups
Due to the tight salary considerations at West Ham, and his strong performances through the last month of the season, we have re-signed Ruud Boffin to a 4 year, £1.5m deal.

Three Called
Robert Green (England), Dimitris Anakoglou (Greece) and John Carew (Norway) have all been recalled to participate in Euro 2012.

04/06/12 – Barrera Out
Pablo Barrera will join Wolfsburg on 1st July 2012 for £1m.



Note: I have made a couple of player signings. Two will be revealed on 09/06/12 and one will be revealed on 01/07/12.

[Alf]

woot !

[Grover]

09/06/12 – Transfer Window Open
The English transfer window has opened and West Ham have already started in.

Youngster Atkin Signs
West Ham have snapped up young striker James Atkin from Wycombe on a free transfer. Because the player was in Wycombe's youth system, West Ham have paid a compensation fee of £120,000. Atkin has said the opportunity to move to the newly promoted club was too good to turn down and he was looking forward to the new challenge.



Hammers Add Friedrich
West Ham United have snapped up German centre-back Arne Friedrich on a free transfer. The ex-German international had been without a club for a while and is said to have welcomed the opportunity to get back into football.



Euro 2012
Group B
England 0 – 1 Poland

Not a good start for the Englishmen.

10/06/12 – News, Euro 2012
Spence Signs New Deal
West Ham youngster Jordan Spence has signed a long term contract that will keep him with the club through 2016. The fullback is expected to be Guy Demel's cover on the right side.

Group B
Croatia 0 – 0 Bosnia & Herz.

Group D
Sweden 2 – 1 Turkey
Holland 0 – 1 Italy

11/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group A
Serbia 1 – 2 Ukraine
Greece 2 – 0 Norway

12/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group C
France 2 – 1 Germany
Spain 3 – 2 Russia

[Grover]

13/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group B
Bosnia & Herz 0 – 4 England

14/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group B
Poland 3 – 0 Croatia

15/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group D
Turkey 2 – 0 Holland
Italy 2 – 1 Sweden

16/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group A
Ukraine 3 – 1 Greece
Norway 2 – 1 Serbia

17/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group C
Russia 1 – 1 France
Germany 4 – 3 Spain

18/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group B
England 3 – 2 Croatia
Poland 2 – 3 Bosnia & Herz.

Poland and England qualify for the next round, Poland winning the group.

19/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group A
Greece 4 – 1 Serbia
Norway 1 – 1 Ukraine

Ukraine and Greece qualify for the next round, Ukraine winning the group.

20/06/12 – Euro 2012
Group C
France 2 – 1 Spain
Germany 2 – 2 Russia

France and Germany qualify for the next round, France winning the group.

Group D
Sweden 1 – 2 Holland
Turkey 0 – 5 Italy

Italy and Turkey qualify for the next round, Italy winning the group.

21/06/12 – Losses Announced, Euro 2012
West Ham have released a statement announcing losses of £25m for the last financial year, a staggering 58% of turnover. The club board has indicated that the losses might result in smaller budgets in the coming season. West Ham's revenue for the financial year amounted to £43m. Details of the accounts will be presented to shareholders at the AGM next month.

Euro 2012
England 5 – 3

England advance to the semi-final.

22/06/12 – Euro 2012
Greece 0 – 0 Poland

Greece advances by winning a penalty kicks shootout 4-2.

23/06/12 – Euro 2012, Review
France 2 – 1 Turkey

France advance to the semi-final.

Premier League and npower Championship Review


24/06/12 – West Ham News, Euro 2012
Player of the Year
West Ham's supporter spokesperson, Craig Hart, has announced that Abdoulaye Faye has been voted West Ham's Player of the Year by the fans.

Best Eleven
The West Ham best eleven has been named and is as follows:
Green, Aldrete, Wilson, Faye, Demel, Collison, Noble, Anakoglou, Cole, Macheda, Carew

Contract Changes
James Tomkins, Jack Collison and Adrian Aldrete have had their salaries increased due to the club winning promotion to the Premier League.

TV Rights
West Ham will receive £40m for Premier League television rights over the upcoming season.

Players Promoted
Jake Larkins, Jake Young, Declan Hunt, Paul McCallum, George Moncur, Robert Hall and Dominic Vose have been promoted to the Reserves as they are now too old to play for the U18s next season.

Euro 2012
Germany 2 – 2 Italy

Germany advance to the semi-final after winning the penalty kicks shootout 5-4.

25/06/12 – Title Odds
Manchester City have been made 7-4 favorites to win the Premier League this season.

The rest of the main contenders are priced at:
Manchester United 5-2
Liverpool 3-1
Chelsea 6-1
Arsenal 8-1
Tottenham Hotspur 14-1
West Ham United 2000-1

[Grover]

27/06/12 – Euro 2012
Euro 2012 Semi-Finals
England 2 – 3 Germany (e)

Greece 0 – 2 France

Germany will meet France in the Euro 2012 final. France bested Germany on 12/06/12 in their opening group match.

30/12/06 – Contracts
Danny Wilson, Federico Macheda and Glenn Whelan have returned to their clubs as their loans have ended.

Otto Kafka has accepted a new four year contract from West Ham worth £28,500 per week.

Robert Green, John Carew, Abdoulaye Faye, Julien Faubert, Papa Bouba Diop, Joey O'Brien have all been released after their contracts expired.

01/07/12 – News
Sponsorship
West Ham announce a new additional kit sponsor. The two year deal is estimated to be worth £230,000 per year.

Hammers Sign Gibson
West Ham have snapped up former Manchester United central midfielder Darron Gibson on a free transfer.



Euro 2012 Final
Germany 1 – 3 France

France are the Euro 2012 Champions

Franck Ribery has been named best player.

Wayne Rooney wins the Golden Boot.

The Euro Dream Team is as follows:
GK: Lloris (FRA)
DL: A. Cole (ENG)
DC: Rami (FRA)
DC: Bocchetti (ITA)
DR: Sagna (FRA)
MF: Menez (FRA)
MF: Ribery (FRA)
MF: Rossi (ITA)
MF: Cabaye (FRA)
ST: Rooney (ENG)
ST: Yarmolenko (UKR)

Season Ticket Update
West Ham United have announced the latest figures from ongoing season ticket sales. As of this update, the club has sold 10,050 tickets. The board is looking to sell another 15,600 to bring the total to 25,700.

Noble and Cole Sign New Deals
Mark Noble has committed his future to West Ham, penning a five year deal. Noble stated that his love for the club was the main reason behind singing the new deal.

Carlton Cole has penned a new two year deal, also stating his love for the club was the main reason for staying on board.

And now the search for free transfers begins...

[Grover]

09/07/12 – Player News
Stockdale Joins Hammers
West Ham United have successfully negotiated terms with keeper David Stockdale and have signed the player from Fulham for £775,000. Stockdale revealed that he was very eager to rise to the challenge of moving to such an illustrious club.



10/07/12 – Player News
De Laet Joins On Free
Ritchie De Laet is pleased to have agreed terms with West Ham. The defender spent last season on loan from Manchester United at Norwich City.



11/07/12 – Player News
Acquafresca In
West Ham have signed former Italy U21 international Robert Acquafresca from Genoa for £1.7m. Acquafresca made only 10 appearances for Genoa since joining for £13.25m, costing the club a hefty £1.2m per match.



12/07/12 – Player News
McNaughton Loaned
West Ham's Callum Mcnaughton has agreed to join Mansfield on loan for six months.

13/07/12 – News
Wenger Resigns
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has resigned from his position after many years on the job. The board were quick to pay tribute to their long-serving boss, declaring that while they were sad to see Arsene leave, his announcement had given everyone an opportunity to celebrate one of the club's most faithful servants. Wenger's depature from Emirates Stadium comes as he embarks on a new adventure with BARCELONA, leaving Arsenal with an important decision to make.

[Grover]

15/07/12 – News
Season Ticket Update
West Ham United have announced the latest figures from ongoing season ticket sales. As of this update, the club has solid 15,802 and the board is hoping to sell another 9,900 to bring the total to 25,700.

17/07/12 – News
Reid Up
Winston Reid has been recalled by New Zealand U23 manager Mark Jones for the Olympic Games. The match take place between 26th July and 11th August.

Tafer In
Olympique Lyonnais' Yannis Tafer has negotiated terms with West Ham and will join the English club on a season long loan.



19/07/12 – FIFA Rankings
FIFA World Top Ten
1. Italy
2. England
3. Germany
4. France
5. Spain
6. Uruguay
7. Holland
8. Paraguay
9. Argentina
10. Greece

20/07/12 – News
Arsenal Hire...
Mick McCarthy from Wolves.

Wow. Really? Mick McCarthy? Seriously?

Friendly Coverage
The West Ham vs Manchester United friendly match on 26th July has been chosen for live television coverage. West Ham will receive around £65,000 in television money for the match.

Friendly
Toquay United 0 – 3 West Ham United

23/07/12 – Friendly
Ayr United 0 – 2 West Ham United

26/07/12 – Friendly
West Ham United 3 – 1 Manchester United

We all know this won't happen again

28/07/12 – Friendly, Injury
CD Estudiantes Tecos 1 – 0 West Ham United

Collison Injured
Jack Collison sustained a sprained ankle against Tecos and is expected to miss 5-6 weeks with the injury.

30/07/12 – News
Nolan Named
Kevin Nolan will once again wear the arm band for West Ham this season, with Jack Collison as vice-captain.

01/08/12 – News, Friendly
New Deal
West Ham have announced a new five years sponsorship deal worth £240k per year.

Friendly
West Ham United 1 – 0 Atletico Madric

Noble Knock
Mark Noble will miss 9-12 days after sustaining a gashed leg from a strong challenge during the match with Atletico Madrid.

05/08/12 – News
Season Ticket Update
West Ham United have announced the latest figures from on going season ticket sales. As of this update, the club has sold 23,795 and is looking to sell just shy of another 2,000 to bring the total to 25,700 total.

07/08/12 – News
Vose Joins Brentford
Midfielder Dominic Vose has joined Brentford on a 5 month long loan.

15/08/12 – Carling Cup Draw
Brilliant. West Ham will host Coventry City in the Carling Cup second round.

In three matches last season, we outscored Coventry 13-1.

16/08/12 – Injury
Tafer Knock
Yannis Tafer suffered a damaged foot in training after jumping for a header and will miss 2-3 weeks.

17/08/12 – Depth Chart
The 2012/13 West Ham United depth chart.



Our first season back... begins now. We are predicted to finish in 15th, which I would happily take.

[Grover]

18/08/12 – Premier League Match Day #1
West Brom-Albion 0 – 0 West Ham United
Shots/On Target: West Brom 17/4, West Ham 12/3
Possession: West Brom 52/48
Cautions: West Ham: Tomkins (Y 59)
Man of the Match: David Stockdale

Form: Stockdale 8.3, Demel (off 75) 6.9, Friedrich 7.3, Tomkins 8.0, Aldrete 7.0, Noble (off 65) 6.0, Gibson 6.8, Anakoglou 7.1, Piquionne (off 65) 6.7, Acquafresca 6.6, Cole 6.9, Nolan (on 65) 6.7, Baldock (on 65) 6.5

Notes:
- Early on the central defenders are being pulled wide by WBA.
- Mark Noble and Darron Gibson love to shoot from distance.
- Robert Acquafresca had a goal deemed offside (it was) on 8 minutes.
- Anakoglou's corner taking is excellent. We're going to need to get goals off of them like we did in the Championship.
- The entire team started to fatigue badly toward the last 20 minutes of the match, West Brom spent the majority of this time in our third and on the attack.
- David Stockdale was immense. And nothing short of it.
- Winston Reid came on for Guy Demel and did not play long enough to garner a rating.