Manuel Pellegrini gave young Declan Rice a start in the Hammers’ opening game of the season against Liverpool. The youngster is obviously talented, but found the going tough, and was substituted at half time. Here is an example where Liverpool’s tactics see Rice being pulled out of position- all due to Firmino’s work, and Trent Alexander Arnold unleashing a long pass to the free Naby Keita which eventually sees the Reds score the opening goal of the game [Read more…]
Video Analysis Example Declan Rice defending vs Liverpool 2018 | Trent Alexander-Arnold passing
August 14, 2018 By Leave a Comment
Liverpool 4-0 West Ham 2018- Hammers put to the sword at Anfield
August 14, 2018 By Leave a Comment
If Manuel Pellegrini needed an idea of the enormous task that lies in front of him as he seeks to rebuild this club, he got it on the opening day of the season at Anfield. There was a mild air of optimism among the travelling fans, with the Hammers among the top five spenders domestically in this transfer market. Five of the ten signings made by Pellegrini this summer- Lukasz Fabianski in goal, Ryan Fredericks at right back, Fabian Balbuena at CB, Jack Wilshere in the centre of the park and club record signing Felipe Anderson on the left side of midfield, were given their league debuts for the club in this game.
West Ham effectively lined up in a 4-2-3-1 position, with Arthur Masuaku at LB, Declan Rice and skipper Mark Noble sitting deeper in midfield and Marko Arnautovic on his own upfront. Liverpool were in a 4-3-3, with the trio of Naby Keita, Gini Wijnaldum and James Milner in midfield behind their attacking triumvirate of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah. [Read more…]
Hammers sign Andriy Yarmolenko
July 11, 2018 By Leave a Comment
The signings continue to come in at the London Stadium! After Jack Wilshere, the Hammers have now completed the signing of Andriy Yarmolenko. The Ukrainian international moves from German Bundesliga outfit Borussia Dortmund and has signed a four year deal with the club. The transfer fee was not revealed, but is rumoured to be somewhere around the 17-18 million pound mark.
Yarmolenko is Ukraine’s second highest scorer of all time (35 goals in 77 games), only behind the legendary Andriy Shevchenko.
Yarmolenko announced on his social media page that the life of the footballer “had thrown him another challenge” which he had “decided to accept” [Read more…]
Wilshere to West Ham | Hammers confirm 4th signing under Pellegrini
July 9, 2018 By Leave a Comment
West Ham United have confirmed the signing of midfielder Jack Wilshere on a free transfer. The 26 year old, who supported the Hammers as a boy, was a free agent after leaving Arsenal at the end of the 2017/18 season. Wilshere, who was with the Gunners for 17 years, was told by new manager Unai Emery that he did not feature prominently in the latter’s plans for the upcoming season.
Wilshere was linked with a switch to Fenerbahce (apparently a deal that offered more money), but a late intervention from new West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini, plus the chance to continue staying in London, saw the deal swing the Hammers’ way.
What is the length of Wilshere’s West Ham contract?
He has signed a three year contract till the end of the 2020/21 season [Read more…]
West Ham players at World Cup- Hernandez out in Round of 16
July 5, 2018 By Leave a Comment
It’s been a somewhat disappointing World Cup for West Ham’s stars. Hopes were high that Manuel Lanzini and Argentina could go far in the tournament, but the playmaker suffered a knee injury that ruled him out of the tournament.
That effectively left three West Ham players at the WC- Mexico’s Javier Hernandez, Senegal’s Cheikhou Kouyate and Portugal’s Joao Mario [Read more…]
