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Alan 11:25 Sun Oct 31
Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

BBC

Newcastle are interested in Real Madrid and Germany's 31-year-old midfielder Toni Kroos. (El Nacional - in Spanish)

The Magpies aren't concerned by Aaron Ramsey's wage demands as they consider signing the 30-year-old Wales midfielder from Juventus in January. (Tuttosport, via Mirror)

Newcastle want Ajax boss Erik ten Hag to be the club's new manager but face a struggle to convince him to move. (Mirror)

Liverpool are considering a move for Real Madrid and Serbia striker Luka Jovic, 23. (Fichajes - in Spanish)

Liverpool will let German goalkeeper Loris Karius, 28, leave for free in January - he has not played for the club since 2018. (Mirror)

Tottenham face competition from Bayern Munich to sign Nantes forward Randal Kolo Muani at the end of the season. The French forward, 22, is out of contract in the summer. (Foot Mercato - in French)

Donny van de Beek's Manchester United team-mates encouraged the Netherlands midfielder, 24, to change agent in a bid to force a move away from Old Trafford. Conversations have taken place with Everton and Wolves over a loan deal. (Mail)

Liverpool are keen on Leicester and England winger Harvey Barnes, 23. (Fichajes - in Spanish)

Tottenham have joined Leeds in the race to sign Espanyol's Spanish striker Raul de Tomas, 27. (Sport Witness, via TEAMtalk)

Manchester City's 19-year-old star James McAtee is being closely followed by Manchester United and Liverpool, with the English midfielder yet to sign a new contract at the club. (Sun)

Crystal Palace will cut short striker Jean-Philippe Mateta's loan deal in January. The 24-year-old Frenchman is on loan until the end of the season from Mainz but is not in manager Patrick Vieira's plans. (Sun)

Antonio Conte does not want to take charge of a team mid-season. The former Chelsea and Inter boss has been linked with the manager's job at Manchester United and Newcastle United. (Todofichajes - in Spanish)

Newcastle United's owners reportedly face a struggle in trying to convince Ajax boss Erik ten Hag to join the club due to their current position in the Premier League. (Mirror)

Derby want to sell Scotland keeper David Marshall, 36, in the January transfer window. (Sun)






Planet Football

Seven former West Ham players we can’t believe are still playing in 2021

Their bubbles are currently flying high but West Ham United have signed plenty of players over the years as they’ve looked to escape mediocrity.

Gaining a reputation for wastefulness in the transfer market, it has seemed like West Ham would take a punt on anybody.

But, while former heroes like Dimitri Payet and Marko Arnautovic continue to shine, there are plenty of others whose continued involvement in the game came as a surprise to us.

We’ve identified seven former Hammers who are surprisingly still carrying on their professional careers in 2021.

Jermain Defoe

He’s not the most popular figure in east London but Defoe’s sheer longevity must be applauded.

Breaking into the first team during the early 2000s, the diminutive Defoe established himself as one of the best young strikers in English football and was West Ham’s top scorer in the 2001-02 season.

But the club were relegated a year later and he submitted a transfer request just days afterwards. The forward stayed for half a season in Division One but was sent off an incredible three times before leaving for Tottenham in January 2004.

Now 39, Defoe is still a registered player at Rangers and scored seven goals in their title-winning 2020-21 campaign.

Alessandro Diamanti

Something of a cult hero in a desperately poor Hammers side, Diamanti was effectively a karaoke version of Paolo Di Canio.

Possessing tricks, flicks and a penchant for the unpredictable, the Italian forward only spent a year at Upton Park but helped West Ham avoid relegation under Gianfranco Zola.

Diamanti scored the winning penalty as Italy beat England at Euro 2012 and briefly returned to the Premier League with Watford before settling down in Australia with Western United.

The 38-year-old made 11 appearances without scoring last season but remains an A-League player.

Freddie Sears

The 2007-08 season was one where West Ham eschewed tradition and sat in 10th for what felt like the entire year – safe to say that the campaign was not marked by many memorable moments.

One exception was seeing 17-year-old Sears score the winner against Blackburn on his club debut. After hitting the post at Everton in his next outing, big things were expected of the young striker.

But his time at West Ham never quite lived up to that promise and Sears only scored one more goal before leaving for Colchester in 2012.

After impressing enough to earn a move to Championship side Ipswich, the 31-year-old returned to League Two side Colchester in 2021.

Roy Carroll

Most famous for his role in that Pedro Mendes ghost goal, Carroll joined West Ham after promotion in 2005 and made 35 appearances across two seasons.

But the Northern Ireland goalkeeper suffered with alcohol and gambling problems at Upton Park and was released in 2007.

After time with Rangers, Derby, Odense, OFI Crete, Olympiacos, Notts County and Linfield, Carroll’s career looked to be over after a serious knee injury during his time in Northern Ireland.

But the 43-year-old recovered and, after a brief period playing for junior side FC Mindwell, he returned to the Irish League to sign for Dungannon Swifts in January 2021.

Modibo Maiga

Maiga was pretty crap, but scoring winning goals against Chelsea and Tottenham aren’t the worst way to secure your West Ham legacy.

Having somehow stuck around until the Slaven Bilic era, even more eyebrows were raised when Maiga was sold for £6million to Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr in 2015.

Despite being 34, Maiga still plays in Saudi Arabia – for Hajer – and remains part of the Mali national team.

Luis Jimenez

Jimenez looked an ideal signing for a young side led by Zola back in 2009. Aged 25 and a regular in the Chile national team, the attacking midfielder looked a canny addition when he arrived on loan from Inter Milan.

The reality was much different – 11 appearances and one goal later, Jimenez had his loan terminated early and was never seen on English soil again.

Despite flopping at West Ham, the 37-year-old is still going strong and plays for Palestino in his native Chile.

Remarkably, he also became Chile’s oldest ever goalscorer after netting against Bolivia in March 2021 at the age of 36 years and 282 days.

Calum Davenport

Davenport hasn’t played league football for more than a decade, but he recently ended a spell out of the game by joining Tavistock AFC.

“The way he came across, it was all about giving back to the game, he lives in the Tavistock area and he knows we are trying to drag ourselves out of this Western League,” manager Stuart Henderson said upon signing the centre-back, who made his full debut for Tavistock in August 2021.

The defender had two spells at West Ham – a brief loan move in 2004 followed by a permanent move in January 2007 – but never played for the club again after being stabbed in the legs in 2009.





Telegraph

It's official - West Ham have made set pieces sexy again

Can anyone stop David Moyes' high-flying set-piece supremos?

By Thom Gibbs, Senior Sports Writer


Angelo Ogbonna's header secured all three points for West Ham against Everton Credit: GETTY IMAGES

In the era of pressing triggers, split forwards and defensive mid-blocks the humble set piece is a tactical relic. At West Ham though, there is no sniffiness about them.

Unlike another United thought to lack coaching, David Moyes’s side ooze well-drilled dependability. The team in the former Olympic Park have quietly pitched up in the Champions League places and knocked Manchester City out of the League Cup this week. The oddest part was that it did not seem particularly surprising. West Ham’s new reliability is never more apparent than when looking at their set plays.

No team scored more than their 16 goals from set pieces in the Premier League last season, and the trend has continued in recent weeks after a slower start to 2021/22.

Angelo Ogbonna’s header from Jarrod Bowen’s corner at Everton two weekends ago has opened the floodgates, since then there were two more, from a corner and wide free kick, against Genk in the Europa League, then Michail Antonio’s winner against Tottenham last weekend. Four of West Ham’s last five goals have come from set pieces.

How Hammers' movement undid Everton


Such prowess must surely be the result of hours of work on the training ground? Not so, says Moyes. “Do we spend lots and lots of time working on set pieces? No, we don’t.”

Unlike Aston Villa, Manchester United and Arsenal West Ham do not have a specialist set-piece coach. Moyes is keen to flag up the work of his coaches Paul Nevin and Kevin Nolan to whom he delegates responsibility for corners and free kicks in training. But if it is not endless preparation in the land of the cones and plastic wall dummies, then what is their secret?

“First of all, you have to have people who are brave and willing to go and head the ball. Another part which is probably as important if not more important is the deliveries, which need to have consistency and reliability.”

Moyes certainly has that in Aaron Cresswell, who he rates as one of the best corner-takers he has worked with. He and Jarrod Bowen have perfected teasing deliveries from out wide and theirs is a squad with plenty of targets, tall players with aerial prowess.

To the untrained eye there is little special about their recent goals from set pieces. Take Antonio’s winner against Spurs, which he prodded in from a subtle out-swinging delivery from Cresswell on the left.

On first inspection it looked like nothing more complicated than a decent cross being attacked by several large men. Predictably, there is a bit more going on than that.

“One thing they do really well is what's known as framing the goal,” says Stuart Reid, head of set pieces for Spezia in Serie A.

This means arranging the attacking players in line with the expected path of the ball, so that if the delivery is slightly under or over-hit there will still be plenty of options to attack the ball and potentially have a chance.

Reid points out that if you pause videos of West Ham at the moment attacking contact is made from set pieces there will generally be several players who are candidates to apply a finishing touch.

Against Spurs Tomas Soucek missed the ball but Antonio was in the ideal area behind him, and the beneficiary of some dozy Tottenham defending.

“They've got their players perfectly staggered, in line with the delivery of the ball,” says Reid. “That means despite Soucek missing it, who I believe is the intended target, Antonio is perfectly positioned behind to follow in.”
'They're doing the basics very, very well'

Ogbonna’s Everton header was a little more tricksy. Declan Rice made a curving run towards the front post, the area Bowen was aiming to deliver the ball.

His movement distracted the Everton defence, put another attacking body close to the intended target for the corner and freed up space for several team-mates to run into at the back post. Once again, had the ball been over-hit and Ogbonna not made contact several others might have done.

Some of West Ham’s prowess in such situations is down to old-fashioned methods, like winning personal battles with physicality. “It is not groundbreaking coaching, it is good set-piece coaching,” says Reid.

“The routines aren’t hugely unique or quirky, but they’re well-coached and they’re doing the basics very, very well.”

Against Genk Craig Dawson ran from deep and simply out-jumped two defenders. He actually steered the ball in with his shoulder, but such was the pace of the corner and height of his leap it was enough to open the scoring.

Can West Ham be stopped? One thing unlikely to help is the much-mourned tradition of stationing defenders on the posts. “If you have players on the posts, then there's a chance you can stop a goal,” says Reid. “But ideally, you want to stop the shot from happening in the first place.

“If you have players on the posts, there's no guarantee that they're actually going to be able to stop it and I've seen countless times when they are players on posts and the ball still goes into the top corner anyway.”



Fichajes

Two Premier League clubs try to convince Guido Rodríguez

Guido Rodríguez's great performance with Real Betis has aroused the interest of some Premier League clubs.



Guido Rodríguez's great performance at Real Betis has not gone unnoticed and several Premier League clubs have taken an interest in the Argentine player.

Guido Rodríguez arrived at Real Betis in January 2020, when the Verdiblanco club paid 3 million euros to close the signing of him. Just a season and a half later, Guido Rodríguez has become an irreplaceable pillar in Manuel Pellegrini's plans.

Real Betis is doing things very well. They have started the 2021/22 season in a fantastic way, and for this reason several of their players are being sought after by the best clubs in Europe.

Despite having a contract with Real Betis until June 2024, several Premier League clubs have shown their interest in acquiring the signing of the Argentine player. The Real Betis board of directors is aware of the importance of Guido Rodríguez, so they will not let him leave for an amount that is not enough.

The amount that Real Betis would demand would not be less than 30 million euros.

The two clubs interested in Guido Rodríguez

-West Ham United: The London team is one of those who has been interested in the Real Betis player. The 'hammers' are immersed in the fight for European places in the Premier League, in addition to playing the Europa League. They are practically in the same sporting situation as Real Betis.

-Arsenal: Guido Rodríguez would have been a direct request from Arteta. The young Spanish coach wants the Argentine to sign for the ‘gunners’, and the board has already made public their desire to sign the midfielder.




The Hard Tackle

Aston Villa vs West Ham United Preview: Probable Lineups, Prediction, Tactics, Team News & Key Stats

West Ham United will look to make it three Premier League wins in a row when they visit Villa Park on Sunday to face an out-of-form Aston Villa.

Aston Villa are enduring a pretty underwhelming campaign thus far compared to the high expectations at the start of the season following an exciting transfer window that saw them bringing in the likes of Emiliano Buendia, Leon Bailey, and Danny Ings.

Dean Smith’s side have lost three of their previous four Premier League games, against Tottenham, Wolves, and Arsenal, surrendering eight goals in the process. Villa struggled to compete against the Gunners in their last league encounter, trailing by three goals on the hour mark until Jacob Ramsey grabbed a late consolation.

The defeat at Emirates has left the Villans 13th in the league standings with 10 points after three wins, one draw, and five losses. They will be hoping to get back on track against West Ham. The hosts have an incredibly tough run of fixtures in December, facing Manchester City, Leicester City, Liverpool and Chelsea. Hence they need to pick up as many points as they can to keep them in good stead.

West Ham, meanwhile, have been fantastic this season, competing on all three fronts in the Premier League, Carabao Cup, and Europa League. The Hammers advanced to the cup quarterfinals after defeating Manchester City on penalties on a memorable Wednesday night.

In the Premier League, the Irons recorded successive 1-0 victories over Everton and Tottenham Hotspur. They have won five and drawn two from the nine games played so far for a total of 17 points, putting them in fourth place in the table. Ahead of their upcoming clash against Aston Villa, The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both sides.

Team News & Tactics

Aston Villa

Aston Villa boss Dean Smith has confirmed the availability of star goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez after returning from Argentina owing to a personal issue involving his father’s health. He trained with the group on Friday, having already done some training at the national team’s facilities while in Argentina. He is expected to start in goal against West Ham.

Villa are keeping a close eye on Leon Bailey’s fitness as he waits for his first Premier League start, while Keinan Davis is back in training after successfully recovering from a long-term injury. Morgan Sanson and Jaden Philogene-Bidace are doubts due to illness. Smith could revert back to a 4-3-3 formation widely used last season after recent disappointing results.

Summer loan arrival Axel Tuanzebe has appeared rusty when afforded an opportunity to impress. Hence, Ezri Konsa and Tyrone Mings should retain their places at the heart of the Aston Villa backline despite looking shaky in recent weeks. The central defensive duo will be hoping to keep West Ham striker Michail Antonio at bay.

Matt Targett will play as the left-back, with Matty Cash slotting in at right-back. Both will be given the green light to surge forward during counter-attacks and put some good balls into the box for their strikers. Jacob Ramsey’s strong showing off the bench against Arsenal may earn him a starting spot in Villa midfield alongside Douglas Luiz and John McGinn.

Emiliano Buendia will be pushing to start, but the inconsistent start to his Villa career means he has to contend with a place on the bench. Ollie Watkins will operate out wide on the left flank, while Leon Bailey will try to impress with his flashy skills on the right side.

Danny Ings will lead the line through the middle for the West Midlands club. Smith will hope that his frontline can pose problems for West Ham’s centre-halves on the counter-attack with pace to burn.

Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Martinez; Cash, Mings, Konsa, Targett; McGinn, Luiz, Ramsey; Bailey, Ings, Watkins



West Ham United

The Hammers’ boss David Moyes’ has no fresh injury concerns after their frantic victory in midweek. Declan Rice and Michail Antonio will return to the West Ham lineup after being rested for the Carabao Cup penalty shoot-out victory over Manchester City. Vladimir Coufal has recovered from a groin injury, while Alex Kral has returned from his period in self-isolation.

David Moyes will use his customary 4-2-3-1 system and could make several personnel changes. Lukasz Fabiański is a certainty between the sticks for the Hammers despite the midweek heroics from Alphonse Areola. Kurt Zouma and Angelo Ogbonna will operate as the centre-halves as they look to keep things solid at the back.

Ben Johnson will feature as a conservative right-back once more ahead of Vlamidir Coufal, while Aaron Cresswell will want to put in a strong performance at left-back. Moyes will urge his full-backs to push forward and join the attack to provide an outlet.

Tomas Soucek and Rice should form the midfield double-pivot as they try to impose their dominance in the middle of the park. Rice will be pulling the strings and doing the defensive work, while Soucek will support Rice and try to notch a goal with his late runs into the box.

The talented trio of Pablo Fornals, Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen will function as a three-man attack just behind the main striker. Bowen will act as a direct wide-man focusing majorly on releasing a shot on goal. Fornals is a hard-working presser and will operate in slightly deeper areas. Michail Antonio is an automatic starter at the top, leading the charge for West Ham.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Fabianski; Johnson, Ogbonna, Zouma, Cresswell; Rice, Soucek; Bowen, Benrahma, Fornals; Antonio



Key Stats

West Ham are undefeated in this fixture since May 2015 (W3 D3), with the Irons also winning both the league clashes last season.
West Ham won this corresponding fixture 3-1 last term and will be looking to pick up successive away league victories against Villa for the first time since a three-game winning streak between 1965 and 1967.
The Villans have lost each of their last three games in the Premier League; the last time they had a longer winless stretch in the league was back in February/March 2020 (4).
The Hammers are in a good run of form on the road and are unbeaten in the past seven away league games.
Michail Antonio has a good track record against Aston Villa. West Ham have not lost a single of the five Premier League games against Villa in which Antonio has featured. He has been directly involved in 4 goals in 5 appearances vs Villa (1G 3A).

Player to Watch

Michail Antonio

The 30-year-old has had an incredible transformation at London Stadium over the last couple of years. He has evolved from a utility player to West Ham’s star striker. Antonio is currently third in the Premier League goalscoring charts this season with six goals, only behind Mohamed Salah and Jamie Vardy.

He has directly contributed to 11 goals from 10 appearances for the Irons this campaign (7G 4A). Prolific finishing and putting the ball into the back of the net is second nature to him, but he also plays a massively important job in Moyes’ system. He provides them with a focal point to operate and sustain attacks. He can run in behind, or with his muscular build, he can hold the ball up and torment defences.

Antonio is a complete package, a skilful dribbler with an extraordinary leap, a powerful target-man with the agility and pace of a winger, the lungs and endurance of a full-back, and the devious off-the-ball movement of a marksman. His all-around play allows the likes of Jarrod Bowen and Said Benrahma to flourish alongside him.

Prediction
Aston Villa 2-2 West Ham United

West Ham are flying high at the moment and brimming with confidence after eliminating both Manchester clubs to progress to the quarterfinals of the Carabao Cup. Their exploits in Europe have also been mighty impressive, having won all three of their Europa League group stage matches this season, sitting atop in Group H with nine points.

It would not be a surprise to see the Hammers record a statement victory to signify that they will now better be taken as a real contender for a top-four spot. But this one could prove to be a competitive, tightly-contested affair with Dean Smith expecting a positive reaction from his players after three losses on the bounce. The Hard Tackle, thus, predicts a 2-2 share of the spoils from an entertaining contest on Sunday.

Razzman 6:18 Sun Oct 31
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Cheers Al

Irish Hammer 4:20 Sun Oct 31
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Thanks Alan, hugely appreciate you everyday

DukeofDevo 2:50 Sun Oct 31
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Super read as always! Thanks

bill green 2:30 Sun Oct 31
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Mex Martillo 12:34 Sun Oct 31

Mex Martillo 12:34 Sun Oct 31
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

With Kind Regards 11:58 Sun Oct 31

With Kind Regards 11:58 Sun Oct 31
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Thanks Alan 11:39 Sun Oct 31

Thanks Alan 11:39 Sun Oct 31
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

The Stoat 11:29 Sun Oct 31

The Stoat 11:29 Sun Oct 31
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Thanks Alan