West Ham United: Are Hammers Nailed On For Safety?

2012/2013: 10th

Transfer(s) In: Stuart Downing (Liverpool, £5 Million), Andy Carroll (Liverpool, £15 Million), Adrian (Atletico Madrid, Free), Razvan Rat (Shakhtar Donetsk, Free), Danny Whitehead (Stockport, Undisc)

Transfer(s) Out: Carlton Cole, Gary O'Neil, Frederic Piquionne (Released)

Transfers Review:

                                              Big Sam has been active in this transfer window, bringing in several new faces, a couple of which are truly impressive captures. If we look at my West Ham season review from last season, we can see that I suggested the area that they most needed to strengthen was in central defence. However, West Ham have done exactly opposite, choosing to sign more attack minded players. Andy Carroll was a signing that we all knew was on the horizon at the end of the last season. After a successful loan spell at Upton Park, the tall Geordie was always likely to go where he was wanted. The more impressive signing is that of Stuart Downing for a fee of just £5 Million. Having said publicly that he felt Downing was priced out of their league, Allardyce must have performed well in the negotiations, as he got his man. After a much more encouraging season last campaign, the formed England winger has a chance to carry that form into his new club.

                                               Other than raiding Liverpool, the Hammers have brought in an attacking midfield in the shape of Atletico Madrid's Adrian. He looks a prospect, with an eye for goal, as well for a pass, and I am certain he will chip in with a goal or two this season. At the back, one of the earliest signings of the summer was Shakhtar Donetsk's experienced wing back Razvan Rat. Having experienced World Cups with Romania, as well as Champions League and Europa League football, he will be a valuable asset to West Ham, both on the field and off it.

                                               Another transfer area that Big Sam will be pleased with is that fact that they have managed to retain their core squad from last season. The impressive Matt Jarvis remains with club, as does the defensive duo of James Collins and James Tomkins. This will allow the Hammers to build upon their relatively comfortable season from last time around, and they will hope to consolidate and push on this time around.

Pre-Season:

                                                West Ham have had a pre-season that has been undertaken mostly in the British Isles. Starting with a trip to Ireland to play Cork City Foras, a game that the East London club won emphatically. Goals from Diarra, Cole, Taylor, McCallum, Noble and Morrison left the scoreline at a comfortable 6-2. 3 games against lower league English opposition followed in July, with the Hammers seeing off Boreham Wood 3-0 before beating Bournemouth by 2 goals to 0, and finishing the mini-tour off with a 2-1 success over Colchester. The games in July came thick and fast, and the Hammers finished their unbeaten month with the best result yet. A trip to Germany to face Hamburg resulted in a 3-1 success, setting them up nicely for their tour of Portugal in August.

                                                 That tour, however, did not start as successfully. Against Champions League opposition in the form of Braga, the Hammers tried valiantly, but eventually had to succumb to a 1-0 defeat, ending their 100% pre-season record. Just one match remained in West Ham's preparations for the new season, against Portuguese top division side Pacos Ferreira. Allardyce's side will be pleased to have ended in the manner they did, with a 2-1 success. This will give them confidence going into the opening weekend of the season.

Key Players:

                                                 Jussi Jaaskelainen was, in my opinion, the club's best player last time around, and the Hammers will need the veteran keeper to be at his best again this term. He led the league in terms of shots stopped, and the ex-Bolton man seems to like the East End, as he is playing some of his best football. His reflexes are superb, and his understanding and anticipation make him one of the most respected goalkeepers in the league.

                                                  Sam Allardyce has spoken at length about how expects this to be the breakthrough season for youth prospect Ravel Morrison. After several troubles at Manchester United, including run-ins with the police, Big Sam insists that the young man has changed his mindset, and is now able to deal with the pressure of the Premier League. He clearly has talent, but whether he will simply become another Mario Balotelli is yet to be seen. It will certainly be a interesting watch though.

Key Fixture Dates:

24/08/2013: Newcastle vs West Ham United
15/09/2013: Southampton vs West Ham United
02/11/2013: West Ham United vs Aston Villa
30/11/2013: West Ham United vs Fulham
14/12/2013: West Ham United vs Sunderland
01/01/2014: Fulham vs West Ham United
18/01/2014: West Ham United vs Newcastle
08/02/2014: Aston Villa vs West Ham United
22/02/2014: West Ham United vs Southampton
29/03/2014: Sunderland vs West Ham United

Top Goalscorer:

                                                   After he bedded in so quickly at the Hammers last time around, I think that this year could see Andy Carroll back to his Newcastle form that saw Liverpool pay £35 Million for his services. The Hammers' style of play suits the big powerful striker, and we will see him terrorise defences in the air lots this season. Not many of his goals will be the pretty kind, but they all count!

Prediction:

                                                   Threats of the 'Second Season Syndrome' will always be ever present, and I feel this will have an effect on the Hammers this season. However, they have the squad to deal with the pressure, and after a couple of worrying times in the season, I am certain that they will finish in a very comfortable mid-table position. They may not hit the heights of a top-10 finish, but I am sure that they will be safe from the drop, which I am sure will please Hammers' fans.

West Ham United 2013/2014: 13th

West Ham United: Keeping Their Heads Whilst All Around Them Lose Theirs

2012/2013 Season Review:

                In their first season back in the Premier League after the briefest of stays in the Championship, Sam Allardyce’s side were looking to consolidate themselves as a Premier League team once again. In order to do so, the former Bolton, Blackburn and Newcastle manager made several signings that he hoped would propel his side up the table. Matt Jarvis was bought from Wolves for a reported £10 million, as well as Mohamed Diame, Jussi Jaaskelainen and Modibo Maiga. The most notable acquisition in the summer was certainly the loan signing of £35 million Liverpool striker Andy Carroll. All of these enabled the Hammers to start the season with a victory, a 1-0 home success over Aston Villa. Though a disappointing first away game resulted in a 3-0 defeat at Swansea, West Ham quickly collected themselves to remain unbeaten in the league throughout September.

                Whilst they suffered a disappointing exit of the Capital One Cup via a hammering at home to Wigan, they were settling in well in the Premier League. 3 wins out of 4 in October extended the Hammers unbeaten run to 6 games, and moved them well clear of the dreaded relegation zone, and into the top 10. Whilst they did eventually slip up in an away defeat at the DW Stadium, I am certain that had you offered the East London side’s fans a top ten place by the end of October, the majority would have bitten your hand off! Further strong form continued through November, though they did suffer consecutive away defeats away at Tottenham, Manchester United and Chelsea, before a home defeat against Liverpool. None of these should be considered particularly, surprising, but they did have a considerable effect on the Hammers’ momentum.

                December as a month was comfortably their most challenging one so far, collecting only one point, and losing away at Reading at the end of it. As the Premier League was beginning to become ever more competitive and congested, there were fears that continuation of this form could leave West Ham in danger of relegation by the end of the season. A home win on New Year’s Day gave Hammers’ fans some relief, though once again a poor run of results followed. An exit of the FA Cup to Manchester United was followed by two further defeats, including a morale-sapping hammering at the Emirates. February once again started more promisingly, with a victory over Swansea, but as was the story of the mid-season, they lost the remaining two league games.

                That pattern finally ended in March, where the Hammers won two of their three league games, accumulating vital points to solidify their position. May would prove most pivotal in that achievement, with the Hammers going the first four games unbeaten, including draws against Liverpool and Manchester United, and a win against Wigan that all but ensured their survival in the Premier League. Their next target was then to achieve a top ten finish in their first season back in the top flight, an objective completed with the final day 4-2 victory over relegated Reading.

                Overall, an exceptionally successful season, with West Ham (the 3^rd promoted side) being the top finishers of all the three promoted last year. A top ten finish is more than many fans would have dreamt of, and will bring in valuable cash to spend on players that can push them further up the table. Whilst I would issue a word of caution to firstly consolidate before looking any further up the table, I see no reason why West Ham cannot achieve this aim.

 

Player of the Season: Kevin Nolan – The fact that a midfielder is the club’s top scorer tells you one of two things: either the forwards have had a nightmare season, or the midfielder has had a superb one. Fortunately for West Ham, it is the latter. The former Bolton and Newcastle man clearly enjoys working under Sam Allardyce, and has been producing consistently excellent displays throughout this season, including his first Premier League hat-trick. Nolan’s strength, determination and leadership have enabled West Ham to do more than just survive this season, and he will be key to any future success.

 

Game of the Season: West Ham 4-1 Southampton – A difficult one, as unlike many of their counterparts, West Ham were exceptionally consistent in their performances, rather than having several atrocious ones and a few outstanding. So perhaps it is best to select the one with the largest margin of victory, and one where they comprehensively outplayed their opponents. After a fairly weak first half, Allardyce’s words at the break obviously had the desired effect, as the Hammers scored twice in the opening 5 minutes of the second half. Adam Lallana’s reply briefly had West Ham worried, but subsequent goals from Noble and Maiga ensured the three points for West Ham.

 

Summer Transfer Targets (What I Think They Need): Having made their intentions to re-sign Andy Carroll, but this time permanently, and having made the initial signing of Razvan Rat from Shakhtar, perhaps the only area that requires any attention is in the centre of the defence. Other than that, most areas of the squad have been performing to their maximum, and therefore reinforcements are not required. Perhaps Aston Villa’s Matt Lowton could be a potential target this summer.

 

Transfer Gossip Links:

In:

Razvan Rat (Shakhtar Donetsk, RB, Free), Nikica Jelavic (Everton, ST), Alpaslan Ozturk (Beerschot, CB), Maynor Figueroa (Wigan Athletic, CB), Peter Crouch (Stoke City, ST), Nathan Redmond (Birmingham City, RW), Andy Carroll (Liverpool, ST), Lamine Sane (Bordeaux, CM), Wilfried Bony (Vitesse Arnhem, ST)

Out:

Carlton Cole (Released, ST)