Redknapp steals Carr’s thunder- again

Harry Redknapp has warned West Ham not to expect their latest batch of youngsters to eclipse the achievements of his own ‘golden generation’ at Upton Park.

The east Londoners have reinvigorated their reputation for developing native talent by introducing James Tomkins, Freddie Sears, Jack Collison and Junior Stanislas to their first-team squad this season, but Redknapp insists they could never match the quality of the academy graduates developed during his seven-year tenure.

Redknapp oversaw the blooding of Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard, Michael Carrick, Joe Cole, Jermain Defoe and Glen Johnson before leaving in 2001, with all six since establishing themselves as England regulars. The Tottenham manager has the chance to gauge the merits of Gianfranco Zola’s class of 2009 at close quarters today when the Italian brings them to White Hart Lane, but he doubts whether they can hope to enjoy the same levels of success as their predecessors.

“I’ve been asked whether West Ham’s current crop could compare with the ones I had and my answer was ‘no chance’,” said Redknapp. “They have good kids at West Ham now but the fact that we produced six top players was a freak occurrence. They were all world-class players and you can’t get carried away and say it’s going to happen again. The six are all internationals and a couple are among the best players in the world.

“It was an incredible group and you’ll never get that again. Only the great Manchester United generation in the 1990s could compare to that – the likes of David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt and the Neville brothers.

“It’s a misconception that West Ham is a great production line of young players. It was a club that produced youngsters a long time ago – it used to be a conveyor belt in the days of Bobby Moore, Frank Lampard Snr and, later on, Trevor Brooking, but they had gone 11 or 12 years without producing a player before I took over there in 1994.”

So Geoff Pike, Paul Allen, Tony Cottee, Alvin Martin, Alan Dickens, Bobby Barnes, Steve Potts, George Parris, Paul Ince or Kieron Richardson were not West Ham products of the Tony Carr school ? Two of those played in Cup Finals as winners, six of them played regularly in the ’85 season when we were only 4 points from being First Division champions and Ince, whatever you think of him, played for Man Utd, Inter Milan, Liverpool and England so not too shabby.

Carr looks back on progress

West Ham United academy chief Tony Carr is proud of the local element that has come through their youth system.

Today’s Premier League clubs scour the world for new talent but Carr told The Sun: “With the odd exception, such as Michael Carrick, virtually all our players have come from east London and the Essex area.

“We have a good system in place but people like Jimmy Hampson have to take credit for spotting the players in the first place.

“Obviously some of the lads who came through are playing elsewhere. One part of me regrets these lads left West Ham but circumstances dictated that. I look at them and I’m proud that the club played some part in their development.

“Rio (Ferdinand) was always an incredibly jovial lad. If something funny was going on in the dressing room, Rio was normally at the centre of it. When it came to football, he always worked very hard. Class player.

“I still call Frank Lampard young Frank, even though he’s nearly 31.

“Even in the youth team, Frank took his football very, very seriously. He was almost in a rush to get out of the youth side and into the first- team, which is no bad thing.

“Joe Cole had to deal with an incredible amount of expectation from an early age. Some players may have struggled with it but Joe is such a lovely, down-to-earth lad and dealt with the pressure well.

“In many respects, Michael Carrick benefited from Joe getting all the attention and was able to develop at his own pace.”

Carr also admitted he’s sorry they lost John Terry to Chelsea.

“John Terry was with us for four years and stayed until he was 14 before he left to go to Chelsea.

“He was a local lad and it was a shame he moved on. I always knew he was going to be a top player.”

James Tomkins

Over the previous 5 matches, West Ham United have conceded the singular goal. Over that period this is the least amount of goals conceded by a Premier League club. This coincides with James Tomkins coming in for James Collins.

I remember making an earlier post wanting him to play ahead of Collins, who in spite of being a good centre-half sometimes makes elementary errors. He also has more pace which adds balance to a defence which includes Lucas Neill and Matthew Upson, who for all their qualities, are not the fastest defenders.

Personally I’ve been surprised that Tomkins hasn’t received more plaudits for his efforts, several of my friends weren’t even aware of him, yet he has quietly gone about his job with utter efficiency.

Often it’s defenders who throw themselves in front of shots and make last-ditch tackles that receive all the praise, such as John Terry. Yet if they read the game well and have some pace, they needn’t get into that position in the first place. Perhaps why Tomkins hasn’t been receiving rave reviews from the media.

However, I think he has been excellent and that it is totally ridiculous how he features only for the England U20′s. Wen you have Steven Taylor and David Wheater leaking goals for their respective clubs starting together in central defence for the U21′s, I wonder how Tomkins hasn’t at least earnt his place in that squad.

To take it further, I genuinely believe he has to be a contender for the senior England squad should this form continue. Sound crazy? Perhaps, but remember that since his inclusion in the team West Ham have conceded fewer goals in that time than any other Premier League club.

Had someone like Joleon Lescott shown Tomkins’ form of late, I believe people would be calling for him to get into that England squad and perhaps even given further responsibility within that unit.

Having just turned 20, and being a West Ham fan, we all have a lot to look forward to as Tomkins continues his rise as a Premier League centre-half.

England U20′s- review of the three Hammers involved

James Tomkins- Typically excellent at the back, but then I consider Tomkins much too good for this level. Should definately be starting for the U21′s after his recent performances for West Ham, particularly with the likes of Steven Taylor and David Wheater doing so instead of him. Further showed his technical prowess for a central defender through taking some impressive free-kicks for the side. Some very good clearances and polished defending before his half-time withdrawal. (8)

Freddie Sears- Clearly lacking in confidence. Linked the play well when in possession but was rarely in the game, and aside from a few blocked shots and his role in England’s second goal, Sears looked largely disinterested and at times anonymous. Needs to go on loan to get some goals, playing time and confidence. (5)

Junior Stanislas- Came on as a substitute with over half-an-hour remaining in the game, and looked lively whilst being offered little support from an England team defending their lead. Created two great chances for Daniel Sturridge and did well at keeping possession, roaming into spaces and causing problems. (7)

Overall it was quite an easy win for England against an uncharacteristically disorganised Italian team, who conceded two early goals and proceeded to cause themselves plenty of problems for the rest of the game, with poor marking and a distinct lack of quality.

The match further confirms Tomkins’ impressive rise by showing he is far too qualified for that level, Stanislas’ future promise and further uncertainty over the ability of Freddie Sears.

Obama set to visit Upton Park!

UNITED STATES President Barack Obama is to make a secret visit to Upton Park to meet manager Gianfranco Zola and some of the West Ham players, the Recorder understands.

The newly-elected President is in London this week for the G20 summit, and as it is being held just up the road at the ExCel Centre in Docklands, he has decided to take time out from the world’s economic woes to visit the Green Street club.

President Obama’s allegiance to the Hammers became public knowledge during his election campaign, when it was revealed that he had relations in Kent who supported the East end club.

On a visit to his half-sister Auma back in 2003, Obama actually attended a game at Upton Park.

On his election as Pres-ident, West Ham invited him to pay the club a visit on his next trip to Britain and it appears that he will take up that offer this week.

A West Ham insider told the Recorder: “We have all been told that the President is coming and some of his enormous bodyguards have been down to look around the stadium for security purposes.

“We have all been sworn to secrecy, but this sort of thing always gets out, and we are not sure exactly when he is going to arrive anyway. We’ve been told to keep the kettle on just in case.”

The President will be shown round the stadium by US international Jonathan Spe-ctor, who, like Obama, hails from Chicago.

He will also be shown around the club shop, although in the current economic climate, he will apparently only be offered a 10 per cent discount on anything he wishes to purchase.

Interesting article in The Guardian

West Ham settle for quick sign-off on Tevez

Matt Scott

Deloitte auditors told West Ham United that they would not sign off the club’s accounts unless a settlement was reached with Sheffield United over the Carlos Tevez affair.

Until a fortnight ago the Hammers were operating under threat of a £45m legal action from Sheffield United. That followed a tribunal verdict that West Ham’s illegal use of Tevez had led to the Blades’ relegation from the Premier League in 2007.

The magnitude of the potential liability spooked the auditors who told West Ham’s directors that greater financial certainty would be required before they could confirm the business as a going concern.

Failure to sign off the accounts would have presented enormous problems for the Hammers, who kept their lenders at bay only with the January sales of Craig Bellamy, Matthew Etherington and Hayden Mullins, raising nearly £20m.

It was a close thing. The registration deadline for their accounts was to be today but the club were able to shorten their accounting period by 48 hours, a change that paradoxically defers the filing deadline by three months.

In the meantime the Hammers agreed to a £26.5m settlement with Sheffield United, the payment schedule of which is comfortably affordable for West Ham and thus provides the accountants with the certainty they demanded.

This pretty much sums up what we all thought ourselves; though accepting guilt in the Tevez saga was wrong in my eyes, it was done to enhance the chances of selling the club.

Watch Stanislas get a hat-trick

Three sumptuous finishes against Chelsea in a 4-2 win for the reserves;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sAf_vVD5iw&feature=player_embedded

Carlton Cole injured playing for England

It was his big moment. On for the injured Heskey early on into the game, England were playing flowing football against a poor Slovakia side. There would be chances created for the West Ham United striker.

Then, typically, Cole gets what looks like a groin injury, coming off barely 10 minutes after he’d entered the field of play.

Cole is crucial to the Hammers. Evidence of this has been in our last two games, particularly against West Brom, where we lacked his height and physical presence.

Above all the replacements are just so poor. Sears is no target man, nor is Di Michele, while Diego Tristan has been substandard whenever playing for the Irons.

My only hope now is that Kieron Dyer can stay fit (a rather thin straw to clutch on to for the rest of the season!) so that he will make up for Cole’s physical presence with his raw pace and agility. I’m hoping for the rest of the season, considering Cole’s injury, the team to be along these lines;

Green

Neill Tomkins Upson Ilunga

Kovac

Noble Parker Collison

Dyer Savio

The pace and trickery up front would cause serious problems, and without height (unless in the case of Diego Tristan, patently not good enough) I feel it is important we play to other physical strengths. As with Bellamy earlier in the season, this speed should help with our playing football on the ground.

They would also be able to drift wide comfortably when necessary, adding something different to a narrow system.

Aside from that, Carlton has shown in the past he is a quick healer. With a week before the Sunderland match, here’s all fingers crossed…….

Kovac has his word on Craig Bellamy!

Radoslav Kovac is confident of turning his loan move from Spartak Moscow to West Ham into a permanent deal in the summer. Currently on loan at Upton Park until the end of the season the defensive midfielder has impressed since settling to the pace of the Premier League.

After waiting patiently for his opportunity the 29-year-old has now started the club’s last five games with the Hammers losing just once. Having slotted in nicely alongside Scott Parker in the Hammers midfield the Czech Republic international is eager to prolong his stay at the club.

“When I spoke with the club’s chairman, he told me that they would be willing to have me stay,” he told deniksport.cz. “But the clause is not the most convenient one so I hope we will come to an agreement somehow in the summer. “West Ham’s stadium Upton Park has the capacity of 35,000 and is always sold-out. I love it.

“Moreover, I am satisfied with the staff and my team-mates. Training sessions are great so it is just a pity that I am here only on loan.” With seventh place likely to be enough to secure Uefa Cup, or the Uefa Europa League football as it will be called next season, the eighth placed Hammers face a realistic chance of playing on the continent next year.

But Kovac is quick to play down the possibility, insisting that other teams around them will be favourites to finish above them. “We will see. If we can stay where we are now, it will have been great,” he added. “We must go from one match to another as we don’t have as strong a team as the top clubs or Tottenham, who will surely go upwards. “Eight rounds later we will see where we are. But it is clear that it will be a difficult time. (Gianfranco) Zola said ahead of the Blackburn game that if we would make 12 points out of the remaining eight games, we might be in the Uefa Cup.”

 The former Sparta Prague ace has also been impressed with manager Gianfranco Zola’s footballing ideology, with free flowing football at a premium under the little Italian. “He wants us to keep the ball and loves short passes,” he highlighted. “Our striker Carlton Cole is very helpful in this aspect. He is amazing as he can keep the ball at his feet.

“He has been out through suspension for the last two games and we are looking forward to seeing him back. With him we will be stronger.”

Kovac also stated that the club is in a better place without striker Craig Bellamy who left for Manchester City in January. The midfielder never played with the Welshman for the Hammers and states that he is only going off what his team-mates have told him. “They are glad he is not in the team. They say he is a maniac,” he explained. “He shouted at everyone who did not pass the ball to him in training, it was crazy. His departure has been a positive thing for the players.”

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_5099970,00.html

West Ham tracking Galway winger

Galway and Republic of Ireland Under-21 winger Jay O’Shea is being tracked by West Ham United.

The Daily Star says Hammers boss Gianfranco Zola is having O’Shea tracked after receiving glowing reports from his Ireland-based scouts.