Archive for the ‘Injuries’ Category

The Hammers will entertain Middlesbrough at Upton Park in the FA Cup Fifth Round challenge in this all Premiership cup tie.

Revived West Ham are enjoying a great spell under Zola despite last weekends result and we currently sit perched eighth, just 11 points from fifth place Arsenal and potential European tournament qualification for next season.

Middlesbrough however really need to get their game going if they want to survive the Premiership this season. Quagmired at the very bottom of the table with just 22 points which they share with West Brom Albion, but with a superior goal difference, Middlesbrough are two points from safety, where currently Stoke City is at 17th place.

Boro fans need not be forlorn, as there is a long way to go until May but a few decent results would come in quite handy.

West Ham will give late fitness tests for Valon Behrami and James Tomkins who are both suffering hamstring injuries which also kept them away from midweek international matches. Czech midfielder Radoslav Kovac could make his debut and Kieron Dyer has been having tests on a muscle injury.

Middlesbrough have selection complications of their own, as they will be without Marlon King. Marvin Emnes or Tuncay are most likely going to replace him at Upton Park. Good news for Boro is that David Wheater is set to return for Chris Riggott who is out with medial ligament injury in a shuffled, makeshift defence which the Hammers will no doubt set to exploit. .

Before the match, West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola has told the Hammers website:

“My job here is not finished and I always focus on the short term. I want to improve this team and to give something more. I have not given enough. I do not like planning long-term, and always like to stick to the present. I do not know what the future holds. If you asked me seven months ago if I would be a manager I would have said no.”

Meanwhile, Middlesbrough manager Gareth Southgate was quoted saying by the BBC:

“In recent years the cup games have helped build a platform to improve form in the league and start climbing the table. You want to win something as a player and as a club. If we get past this one, we are only a couple of games away from a trip to Wembley and that always gives a lift to a club”.

COYI Prediction West Ham United 2-1 Boro

Live Links for the match HERE

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I would rarely have anything good to say about John Terry as a Chelsea player but as an England player today i have nothing but pride and respect for the guy.

After missing 2 crucial games for England through a back problem he made it his personal gaol not to miss the game against Germany tonight in Berlin.

Such was his patriotism John Terry put himself through a fitness test in his own back garden to make sure he was ready to take on Germany tonight and only 5 days after suffering an injury playing for Chelsea against WBA, Terry was certain he had damaged a bone due to so much pain but later to be given the all clear from his doctor, John Terry said:

“On Saturday, I was thinking I had broken a bone in my foot, what with having the experience of doing it against Arsenal last year and knowing what the pain feels like.

“I was really worried that night because I was desperate to play for England, especially after missing the two games last month.

“We booked a scan for 8am in the morning, but I was woken up at 6.30am by my kids (he has two-year-old twins) and I decided to do my own fitness test with them in the garden while it was pouring down with rain.

“I went for a little jog and I was fine. I phoned the doctor and told him I didn’t need the scan. I was thinking of going back to bed, but he told me to have it anyway just to make sure. I was delighted to get the all-clear afterwards.”

Capello has warned England absentees that avoiding friendlies could cost them their regular places as England players.

Premier Managers Benitez and Wenger has slammed the England game as waste of time due to it being months before the next England international.

John Terry sees this match as a stepping stone for the fellow Lions Scott Parker from West Ham United, Shaun Wright-Phillips, and Glen Johnson for whom he has great admiration, Terry said:

“I have stayed in touch with them and have enjoyed seeing them do well. Scott has done great at West Ham, Johnno at Portsmouth and Shaun at Manchester City.

“I was sad to see them go, but they have all benefited from playing regularly elsewhere.”

My hat goes off to John Terry and his cubs playing against England’s auld Enemy Germany, a win for England would bring shame to England’s absentees and pride to the faithful and the patriots.

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Walcott adds to England’s and Arsenal’s injury problems after he dislocated his shoulder in a tackle against Scott Parker near the end of Tuesday nights training session at the Olympic Stadium.

Walcott was rushed to hospital where his shoulder was put back into place.

Theo Walcott will fly home to London where Arsenal Medics will assess how bad the injury is and could be sidelined for up to 10 weeks.

Capello told the media:

“Our priority is Theo and making him as comfortable as possible before he returns to England,” said Capello. “We’re all very disappointed, but the most important thing is for Theo to travel home and make a quick recovery.”

Walcott’s place will more than likely be given to Shaun Wright-Phillips, West Ham United’s Scott Parker played well during training but is yet to find out if he plays on Wednesday Evening.

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Hansa, the holding company of English football club West Ham, requested a moratorium (permitting temporary suspension of payments) yesterday. Björgólfur Gudmundsson, former majority owner and chairman of Iceland’s Landsbanki bank, is the majority owner of Hansa.

According to Ásgeir Fridgeirsson, vice-chairman of the board of West Ham and spokesperson for Gudmundsson, the moratorium was requested to secure the interest of the football club’s owners and of their loan granters, Fréttabladid reports.

Fridgeirsson said it is highly likely that Hansa’s assets will cover all debts and that the moratorium will be extended. He did not want to reveal any specific amounts. The moratorium is expected to speed up the sale of West Ham.

“West Ham is one of the company’s [Hansa’s] assets and the owner is looking at all possibilities in regards to sale,” Fridgeirsson said.

Source Iceland Review Online
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Zola has admitted to the Telegraph that he is not worried about 4 losses in a row, all that matters is that the players are playing well and need a win to bring back the confidence of scoring goals.

He said to the Telegraph:

“I know what the situation is and I’m not worried. I know how the team is playing and that gives me enough confidence to keep on smiling. You go through times like these where it’s not easy with four bad results. Of course I worry. I have my moments but they are overcome straight away.

“I always had the belief that results will come through playing good football, although in the last four games we have not won any points. I trust what we’re doing and we’ll be OK soon.”

I am pleased that he still has confidence in the team but as a commentor SAM H said, is the 4-3-3 system working? some key players out injured make the 4-3-3 system quite weak.

We must beat Boro today not only beat them we need a good result, we have only scored 1 goal in the last 4 games.

Zola added:

“This team are not playing as if they are going to have problems with relegation,” he said. “We’re playing well. We just need some confidence which will come through results.

Nothing will annoy fans more than watching Spurs climb the league ladder and eventually be above us, so C’Mon Zola get our team back to winning ways.

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Robert Green has pulled out of the England squad and may be out of Sunday’s game for West Ham United against Hull City due to a slight knee injury.

Green was not involved in England’s 5-1 win over Kazakhstan on Saturday, where David James played and Scott Carson was on the bench.

This post was submitted by FatBoy Hammer.

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Kevin Keen

Kevin Keen is spoilt for choice and will have 23 players to choose from on Saturday when he takes on WBA at the Hawthorns.

Alan Curbishley’s only dream was to have a fully fit squad but Keen is the man to fulfill that dream.

Just six players remain unavailable for selection with three of them - James Collins, James Tomkins and Jack Collison - close to first-team comebacks.

Craig Bellamy is 100% fit now and will more than likely feature in this Saturdays game.

Zola, is to take over the squad on Monday and lets hope from then on we may see a dazzling new kind of West Ham team playing quality fast moving football.

This post was submitted by Mike DiAntoni - Using Write for COYI.

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Alan Curbishley has decided to allow Craig Bellamy to play for Wales… just 24 hours after telling Wales to forget about their skipper playing in next week’s World Cup qualifiers.

Curbishley said Bellamy was will not be eligible due to his fitness to take John Toshack’s team into its opening match against Azerbaijan and was shocked that Toshack had named the Hammers striker in the Welsh squad.

But Curbishley backtracked on that tough talking yesterday when he hinted Wales could have Bellamy provided they were “sensible” about it.

Curbishley said there was even a chance hamstring injury victim Bellamy would be back in action for West Ham against Blackburn this weekend … a week ahead of schedule.

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We were lead to to believe in the summer by experts that were sent in that they think they had identified the problem for all the injuries. Yet despite this and having all summer to rectify as much of this as possible the injuries continue.

A friend of mine who worked in the physiotherapy department at the hammers sometime ago reckons the problem lies with the surface at the training ground, I disagree, my belief is it lies with the medical staff that Curbishley has with him, and training methods. Not all the players at our club were brought in as injury prone, yet even those with a good injury record are now getting regularly crocked.

This is not an excuse for team performances as Curbs often states, it’s just a situation that should have been addressed and dealt with in the summer, and by the looks of it, it hasn’t.

This post was submitted by Dave Hall.

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I’m normally a quite patient guy, but after reading about Curbishley bringing Ben Thatcher to our club on trial my patience is wearing thin.

Here is another player who has a temperament and topped with a past severe knee injury. What is Curbs thinking by even contemplating having this guy at our ground-haven’t we got enough of these problems going on already.

I’m not normally a Curbishley basher, but after this I am wondering what Read more What is he thinking?

This post was submitted by Dave Hall.

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