Norwich 0-0 West Ham
Norwich's start to the season had seen them claiming just 2 points from their first 3 matches and going into their match with West Ham they'd have fancied themselves to have a decent chance at claiming all 3 points. Likewise West Ham, who had claimed 6 points from their first 3 games will have also seen this as a winnable game.
Early on it seemed as if the fans were in for a treat with both teams looking really threatening. The best early chance fell to West Ham after some excellent work by Ricardo Vaz Te and later in the half the West Ham penalty area became a pinball table. Sadly however the key talking point of the first half was a hugely controversial decision by Chris Foy who rules that a foul by James Collins was committed just outside the penalty area.
Despite the first half being thoroughly watchable the game failed to continue in the same vein in the second half and sort of petered out after the 60 minute mark with both teams looking increasingly happy to have a point. Despite this Norwich did have a few good chances late after youngster Harry Kane came on to the pitch but sadly he failed to really find his shooting boots and hit several very tame efforts.
Whilst the second half was disappointing the worst part about it was the fact that neither of West Ham's wide men could find a good ball with Vaz Te repeatedly messing up and either miss hitting crosses or just shooting mindlessly. A real disappointing display by the Portuguese attacker.
With 3 draws from their first 4 games Norwich are becoming difficult to defeat but they really seem to lack any type of attacking threat. Harry Kane looked like the most promising threat for the home team but his shots had no power or sting on them and they otherwise looked terrible up front. Defensively Norwich are tough, much more so than they showed on the opening day of the season, but they need to add goals sooner rather than later.
West Ham showed plenty of promise through parts of the game but with no Andy Carroll they lacked a focal point of their attacks.
Showing posts with label Kevin Nolan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kevin Nolan. Show all posts
Saturday, 15 September 2012
Thursday, 13 September 2012
Premier League Week 4-Preview and prediction (Norwich v West Ham)
With the recent international games the Premier League has been on a bit of a hiatus though returns this weekend as Norwich host West Ham in the early kick off. Whilst it's not a headline game it will likely be seen as a huge 6 pointer with both teams expected to be battling relegation and one that is almost certainly worth some interest from football fans.
Whilst expectation at Norwich was low, following the loss of manager Paul Lambert (who went to Villa) it's fair to say that the Canaries haven't actually done that badly. Whilst they were slaughtered on the opening day (losing 5-0 at Fulham) they have held their own with both QPR and most recently Tottenham (drawing both of those games 1-1) as they have earned both their first home and away points of the season.
Despite having conceded 7 goals so far this season Norwich's big problem seems to be up front where they lack a true goal scorer, instead having an attack built up of various threats as opposed to an out and out threat. The likes of Grant Holt will bag goals but will struggle to find the target on a regular basis however Robert Snodgrass (who looked sensational in his last match for the club) will create chances for the attacking line.
With Chris Hughton looking to hit the ground running following the internationals Norwich could pose a threat here, but only if they can get in the goals against a West Ham team that look unwilling to give many away (with only Swansea having scored against West Ham this season). This is the problem, Norwich can't score and West Ham don't really concede, in Norwich win it'll only be by a single goal.
Last year Norwich were very average at home, but they were an average team. Their Premier League position of 12th overall was a solid mid-table finish and their home form was reflective of that with 27 home points from their 19 home games (surprisingly the same as Liverpool).
Last time out (a fortnight ago!) West Ham looked excellent in defeating Fulham 3-0 with the Fulham defensive lining looking completely unable to cope with the West Ham attack. Sadly however the forefront of that attack was Andy Carroll who will be absent (due to injury) from this game leaving the West Ham attack looking like a bit of a rag-tag collection. Whilst Kevin Nolan will get goals he's not a pure goal scorer, Ricardo Vaz Te has goals in him but seems to lack Premier League class and Carlton Cole is a joke even amongst West Ham fans. The loss of Carroll (after just 1 game) is genuinely huge.
At the back West Ham have been solid conceding just 3 goals so far this season (in 3 Premier League games) though notably all 3 goals came in their only previous away fixture. This is a stark contract to their form last season where defensively they were rock solid away from home (conceding just 22 away goals in 23 games) and slightly less secure at home (29 goals conceded). If we were to look at last season's numbers however we'd have to favour West Ham here on the back of 13 away wins however was that in the championship, not in the Premier League.
Whilst there is Premier League quality running through the West Ham squad there are questions about the depth of the squad and the absence of Carroll really does bring that issue up. Players like Nolan, Matt Jarvis and Yossi Benayoun can all grab goals and show sparks of something extra but the squad looks like it's only ever going to be 2 injuries away from a crisis.
Kick-Off: 12:45
Prediction: 1-1
Expected Line Ups:
Norwich-Ruddy, Bassong, Garrido, R.Martin, Barnett, Johnson, Howson, Snodgrass, Holt, Morrison (4-4-2)
West Ham-
Jääskeläinen, Demel, Reid, Collins, Tomkins, Diamé, Benayoun, Nolan, Vaz Te, Taylor, Cole (4-3-3)
Notes:Norwich have the same amount of points (2) as they had after the same amount of games (3) last season.
West Ham have only lost 2 of their last 24 competitive fixtures (one of those being their 3-0 loss to Swansea)
Players to watch out for-
Norwich:
Robert Snodgrass-Talented Scot Robert Snodgrass looked very out of sorts on the opening day of the season though has looked like the key to everything Norwich have done in their most recent Premier League matches. He looks like he's going to be the driving force going forward for the Canaries and whilst he may not be an out and out goalscorer himself he will create chances for others as well as bagging a fair few himself. He really is the key to the attack.
John Ruddy-Goalkeeper John Rudd started the season with a nightmare at Fulham however he has been very good since then. Whilst he hasn't kept a clean sheet this season he's a very under-rated keeper and is doing a fine job behind a weak defense. He may not have a lot to do here, but he will need to keep his concentration.
West Ham:
Kevin Nolan-The West Ham Captain is their key player and most of what they do goes through him. Nolan is the driving force behind West Ham so the Norwich defense and Midfield will look to keep Nolan from exerting his force on the game. Whilst he's the West Ham Midfield general he's also a threat in front of goal and has already bagged himself some goals this season and will be high on confidence going into this match.
Matt Jarvis-The former Wolves Winger Matt Jarvis has that level of of class that sees him not only able to open up the defense but also create a shed load of chances. Whilst Andy Carroll will be missing Jarvis will be able to look up and find either Carlton Cole or Kevin Nolan in the penalty area giving him some solid targets to aim for in attack.
Whilst expectation at Norwich was low, following the loss of manager Paul Lambert (who went to Villa) it's fair to say that the Canaries haven't actually done that badly. Whilst they were slaughtered on the opening day (losing 5-0 at Fulham) they have held their own with both QPR and most recently Tottenham (drawing both of those games 1-1) as they have earned both their first home and away points of the season.
Despite having conceded 7 goals so far this season Norwich's big problem seems to be up front where they lack a true goal scorer, instead having an attack built up of various threats as opposed to an out and out threat. The likes of Grant Holt will bag goals but will struggle to find the target on a regular basis however Robert Snodgrass (who looked sensational in his last match for the club) will create chances for the attacking line.
With Chris Hughton looking to hit the ground running following the internationals Norwich could pose a threat here, but only if they can get in the goals against a West Ham team that look unwilling to give many away (with only Swansea having scored against West Ham this season). This is the problem, Norwich can't score and West Ham don't really concede, in Norwich win it'll only be by a single goal.
Last year Norwich were very average at home, but they were an average team. Their Premier League position of 12th overall was a solid mid-table finish and their home form was reflective of that with 27 home points from their 19 home games (surprisingly the same as Liverpool).
Last time out (a fortnight ago!) West Ham looked excellent in defeating Fulham 3-0 with the Fulham defensive lining looking completely unable to cope with the West Ham attack. Sadly however the forefront of that attack was Andy Carroll who will be absent (due to injury) from this game leaving the West Ham attack looking like a bit of a rag-tag collection. Whilst Kevin Nolan will get goals he's not a pure goal scorer, Ricardo Vaz Te has goals in him but seems to lack Premier League class and Carlton Cole is a joke even amongst West Ham fans. The loss of Carroll (after just 1 game) is genuinely huge.
At the back West Ham have been solid conceding just 3 goals so far this season (in 3 Premier League games) though notably all 3 goals came in their only previous away fixture. This is a stark contract to their form last season where defensively they were rock solid away from home (conceding just 22 away goals in 23 games) and slightly less secure at home (29 goals conceded). If we were to look at last season's numbers however we'd have to favour West Ham here on the back of 13 away wins however was that in the championship, not in the Premier League.
Whilst there is Premier League quality running through the West Ham squad there are questions about the depth of the squad and the absence of Carroll really does bring that issue up. Players like Nolan, Matt Jarvis and Yossi Benayoun can all grab goals and show sparks of something extra but the squad looks like it's only ever going to be 2 injuries away from a crisis.
Kick-Off: 12:45
Prediction: 1-1
Expected Line Ups:
Norwich-Ruddy, Bassong, Garrido, R.Martin, Barnett, Johnson, Howson, Snodgrass, Holt, Morrison (4-4-2)
West Ham-
Jääskeläinen, Demel, Reid, Collins, Tomkins, Diamé, Benayoun, Nolan, Vaz Te, Taylor, Cole (4-3-3)
Notes:Norwich have the same amount of points (2) as they had after the same amount of games (3) last season.
West Ham have only lost 2 of their last 24 competitive fixtures (one of those being their 3-0 loss to Swansea)
Players to watch out for-
Norwich:
Robert Snodgrass-Talented Scot Robert Snodgrass looked very out of sorts on the opening day of the season though has looked like the key to everything Norwich have done in their most recent Premier League matches. He looks like he's going to be the driving force going forward for the Canaries and whilst he may not be an out and out goalscorer himself he will create chances for others as well as bagging a fair few himself. He really is the key to the attack.
John Ruddy-Goalkeeper John Rudd started the season with a nightmare at Fulham however he has been very good since then. Whilst he hasn't kept a clean sheet this season he's a very under-rated keeper and is doing a fine job behind a weak defense. He may not have a lot to do here, but he will need to keep his concentration.
West Ham:
Kevin Nolan-The West Ham Captain is their key player and most of what they do goes through him. Nolan is the driving force behind West Ham so the Norwich defense and Midfield will look to keep Nolan from exerting his force on the game. Whilst he's the West Ham Midfield general he's also a threat in front of goal and has already bagged himself some goals this season and will be high on confidence going into this match.
Matt Jarvis-The former Wolves Winger Matt Jarvis has that level of of class that sees him not only able to open up the defense but also create a shed load of chances. Whilst Andy Carroll will be missing Jarvis will be able to look up and find either Carlton Cole or Kevin Nolan in the penalty area giving him some solid targets to aim for in attack.
Saturday, 1 September 2012
Premier League Week 3-Write up West Ham v Fulham
West Ham 3-0 Fulham
What a difference a week makes. Just a week ago West Ham were humiliated by Swansea 3-0 though this weekend, with new loan signing Andy Carroll up top, West Ham looked a completely different side.
Going into this match up the sub story was that of two strikers. Andy Carroll who had joined West Ham from Liverpool on loan for the rest of the season and Dimitar Berbatov who had been signed by Fulham from Manchester United, though only one of them started and only one of him had any real say in the match.
Whilst Carroll may have been a £30+ million flop at Liverpool he made an immediate impact for West Ham setting up Kevin Nolan inside a minute as the Hammer's took an early lead. It wasn't long until Carroll was involved again...and again. Through out the first half West Ham kept hitting it up and Carroll kept winning the ball time and time again as he frustrated and irritated a Fulham defense that looked petrified.
It was due to the clear fear in the Fulham defense that West Ham netted their second goal. After a cross was cut out for a Hammer corner the Fulham defense were at 6's and 7's and Winston Reid charged through the area to net a thunderbolt header to dobule the lead with less than half an hour gone. By then it seemed as if West Ham were in control and just over 10 minutes later they secured the 3 points after the ball was have cleared to Matt Taylor who's shot just seemed to split the Fulham defense.
Despite having the 3 points in the bag West Ham didn't have the perfect afternoon as both Andy Carroll and Guy Demel limped off in the second half, however Carroll seemed to be taken off more a precautionary messaure than anything too serious. For Big Sam it wasn't just the performance of Carroll that will have pleased him but the whole squad. Kevin Nolan's role in the team was again crucial to the Hammers positives, and he's now netted his second of the season and Ricardo Vaz Te looked exceptional. With both Matt Jarvis and Yossi Benayoun expected to be in the West Ham squad for their next match we may well see West Ham looking more and more like a team that have the quality to stay up.
Fulham's Martin Jol will certainly be very unhappy at his side who didn't look like a side who opened their Premier League season with a 5-0 win. They looked terrified at the back and up front they looked toothless barring the occassional flash from Damien Duff and second half substitute Dimitar Berbatov (who aside from one or two moments was anonymous). The few positives that Jol can take from the game are that Keiran Richardson looked pretty creative and Steve Sidwell never gave up on the match despite being out numbered and out played in the middle. A poor performance and a poor result for Fulham.
What a difference a week makes. Just a week ago West Ham were humiliated by Swansea 3-0 though this weekend, with new loan signing Andy Carroll up top, West Ham looked a completely different side.
Going into this match up the sub story was that of two strikers. Andy Carroll who had joined West Ham from Liverpool on loan for the rest of the season and Dimitar Berbatov who had been signed by Fulham from Manchester United, though only one of them started and only one of him had any real say in the match.
Whilst Carroll may have been a £30+ million flop at Liverpool he made an immediate impact for West Ham setting up Kevin Nolan inside a minute as the Hammer's took an early lead. It wasn't long until Carroll was involved again...and again. Through out the first half West Ham kept hitting it up and Carroll kept winning the ball time and time again as he frustrated and irritated a Fulham defense that looked petrified.
It was due to the clear fear in the Fulham defense that West Ham netted their second goal. After a cross was cut out for a Hammer corner the Fulham defense were at 6's and 7's and Winston Reid charged through the area to net a thunderbolt header to dobule the lead with less than half an hour gone. By then it seemed as if West Ham were in control and just over 10 minutes later they secured the 3 points after the ball was have cleared to Matt Taylor who's shot just seemed to split the Fulham defense.
Despite having the 3 points in the bag West Ham didn't have the perfect afternoon as both Andy Carroll and Guy Demel limped off in the second half, however Carroll seemed to be taken off more a precautionary messaure than anything too serious. For Big Sam it wasn't just the performance of Carroll that will have pleased him but the whole squad. Kevin Nolan's role in the team was again crucial to the Hammers positives, and he's now netted his second of the season and Ricardo Vaz Te looked exceptional. With both Matt Jarvis and Yossi Benayoun expected to be in the West Ham squad for their next match we may well see West Ham looking more and more like a team that have the quality to stay up.
Fulham's Martin Jol will certainly be very unhappy at his side who didn't look like a side who opened their Premier League season with a 5-0 win. They looked terrified at the back and up front they looked toothless barring the occassional flash from Damien Duff and second half substitute Dimitar Berbatov (who aside from one or two moments was anonymous). The few positives that Jol can take from the game are that Keiran Richardson looked pretty creative and Steve Sidwell never gave up on the match despite being out numbered and out played in the middle. A poor performance and a poor result for Fulham.
Friday, 31 August 2012
Premier League Week 3-Preview and prediction (West Ham v Fulham)
For the second week running the newly promoted West Ham will get the weekend off to a start featuring in Saturday's early kick off as they host fellow London rivals Fulham. Despite both teams winning their opening league fixtures, both lost last time out and will be looking to get back on the winning path at the others expense.
West Ham's opening day victory over Aston Villa seems to have flattered to deceive with Villa taking a 3-1 drubbing last weekend to Everton whilst the Hammers were rolled over by Michael Laudrup's exceptional Swansea team. Despite the loss to Swansea however West Ham did show some promise, especially from set pieces where they came close a number of times and they do appear to have goals in them.
Having won 2-0 in a mid-week League Cup match (against Crewe) West Ham may go into this match with some momentum however it appears one of those goal scorers, Nicky Maynard, is on his way out (expected to go to Cardiff). Though hopefully, regardless of whether Maynard moves or not West Ham will have rebuilt some of their confidence or Big Sam may find his players really doubting themselves, especially in front of goal.
With Matt Jarvis having made his Premier League debut for the Hammers and looking excellent it does appear that West Ham will create chances, but the bigger question is have they got someone to finish the chances? It seems as though this is biggest issue with the Hammers and although they scored freely in the Championship last year (81 goals, 2nd most) with Ricardo Vaz Te and Carlton Cole they do appear to be struggling this season. Vaz Te, an excellent Championship player, has struggled to score in the Premier League in the past and Cole's Premier League record is around 1 goal in every 5 appearances.
Despite having a number of Premier League level players they really do lack an out and out Premier League goalscorer, something that could really comeback to haunt them. It's the same problem that saw West Ham relegated 2 years ago when they scored a mere 43 Premier League goals (the 3rd worst) with their top League scorer being Demba Ba with just 7 goals. In fact West Ham's attack was so toothless that only 4 players scored 5 or more goals in their 38 League games.
Whilst West Ham are struggling for goals Fulham on the other hand are one of the Premier League's highest scoring teams with 7 goals from their 2 games far. They opened their league season with an excellent 5-0 over Norwich and were unlucky not to steal a point in their 3-2 loss to Manchester United weekend. Whilst they did lose in midweek (1-0 to Sheffield Wednesday) in the League Cup Martin Jol's intention will be for a successful Premier League campaign, not a League Cup one.
Like West Ham it doesn't appear that Fulham are done with the transfer market and whilst they have recently lost Mousa Dembele (selling him to Tottenham) it appears as if Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov is on his way to raven Cottage. Rumours are also circulating that Keiran Richardson could also join Fulham before the transfer window closes in just over a day. If Jol can secure both of these signings than it will be a major coup for the Dutchman.
Despite selling Dembele (who gave Manchester United a headache last weekend) Fulham have a really promising team. Not only is Damien Duff looking close to his best but Mladen Petric looks deadly in front of goal and Alexander Kačaniklić looks like a very shrewd signing. Fulham could be a handful for anyone in the Premier League.
Going into this match both teams will be wanting to show they are a good team though out of the two only Fulham appear to be a good team, I'll be expecting an away win.
Kick-Off: 12:45
Prediction: 0-2
Expected Line Ups:
West Ham-
Jääskeläinen, Demel, Reid, Collins, McCartney, Diamé, Noble, Nolan, Vaz Te, Taylor, Cole (4-3-3)
Fulham-
Schwarzer, Hangeland, Hughes, Kelly, Briggs, Duff, Diarra, Kacaniklic, Sidwell, Petric, Ruiz (4-4-2)
Notes:The summer signings haven't yet finished for either team and it looks likely that Andy Carroll will be loaned to West Ham for the season whilst Dimitar Berbatov is set to sign for Fulham (note this preview is being written on Thursday) however it's unlikely either will be registered in time to play.
West Ham have only lost 2 of their last 23 competitive fixtures (one of those being their 3-0 loss to Swansea)
Fulham have only beaten West Ham once at Upton Park in the Premier League
Players to watch out for-
West Ham:
Kevin Nolan-The West Ham Captain is their key player and most of what they do goes through him. Nolan is the driving force behind West Ham so the Fulham defense and Midfield will look to keep Nolan from exerting his force on the game. Whilst he's the West Ham Midfield general he's also a threat in front of goal and acts not only as a poacher but also as a solid threat in the air meaning that he will need to be marked well at set pieces.
Ricardo Vaz Te-The Portuguese forward was one of, if not the, Player of the Season for West Ham after signing from Barnsley mid way through the season. His goal record for the club is tremendous and his work rate is through the roof, he will always pose a threat to defenses and he will be looking to open his scoring sooner rather than later for the season.
Fulham:
Mladen Petric-The new Striker Mladen Petric has looked a star since signing for Fulham and with 2 goals already this he looks like an excellent threat. He gave the Manchester United defense a head ache at times last time out and was unlucky not to have scored past David De Gea. Expect the West Ham defense to be given a real nightmare against him.
Damien Duff-The Irish Winger retired from international football at the start of the new season though has proven that there is still life in the old dog with a goal in both Premier League games that he has played in so far, giving him the same return as he had in the entire of last season. Duff will give the Hammers fits if he gets the ball.
West Ham's opening day victory over Aston Villa seems to have flattered to deceive with Villa taking a 3-1 drubbing last weekend to Everton whilst the Hammers were rolled over by Michael Laudrup's exceptional Swansea team. Despite the loss to Swansea however West Ham did show some promise, especially from set pieces where they came close a number of times and they do appear to have goals in them.
Having won 2-0 in a mid-week League Cup match (against Crewe) West Ham may go into this match with some momentum however it appears one of those goal scorers, Nicky Maynard, is on his way out (expected to go to Cardiff). Though hopefully, regardless of whether Maynard moves or not West Ham will have rebuilt some of their confidence or Big Sam may find his players really doubting themselves, especially in front of goal.
With Matt Jarvis having made his Premier League debut for the Hammers and looking excellent it does appear that West Ham will create chances, but the bigger question is have they got someone to finish the chances? It seems as though this is biggest issue with the Hammers and although they scored freely in the Championship last year (81 goals, 2nd most) with Ricardo Vaz Te and Carlton Cole they do appear to be struggling this season. Vaz Te, an excellent Championship player, has struggled to score in the Premier League in the past and Cole's Premier League record is around 1 goal in every 5 appearances.
Despite having a number of Premier League level players they really do lack an out and out Premier League goalscorer, something that could really comeback to haunt them. It's the same problem that saw West Ham relegated 2 years ago when they scored a mere 43 Premier League goals (the 3rd worst) with their top League scorer being Demba Ba with just 7 goals. In fact West Ham's attack was so toothless that only 4 players scored 5 or more goals in their 38 League games.
Whilst West Ham are struggling for goals Fulham on the other hand are one of the Premier League's highest scoring teams with 7 goals from their 2 games far. They opened their league season with an excellent 5-0 over Norwich and were unlucky not to steal a point in their 3-2 loss to Manchester United weekend. Whilst they did lose in midweek (1-0 to Sheffield Wednesday) in the League Cup Martin Jol's intention will be for a successful Premier League campaign, not a League Cup one.
Like West Ham it doesn't appear that Fulham are done with the transfer market and whilst they have recently lost Mousa Dembele (selling him to Tottenham) it appears as if Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov is on his way to raven Cottage. Rumours are also circulating that Keiran Richardson could also join Fulham before the transfer window closes in just over a day. If Jol can secure both of these signings than it will be a major coup for the Dutchman.
Despite selling Dembele (who gave Manchester United a headache last weekend) Fulham have a really promising team. Not only is Damien Duff looking close to his best but Mladen Petric looks deadly in front of goal and Alexander Kačaniklić looks like a very shrewd signing. Fulham could be a handful for anyone in the Premier League.
Going into this match both teams will be wanting to show they are a good team though out of the two only Fulham appear to be a good team, I'll be expecting an away win.
Kick-Off: 12:45
Prediction: 0-2
Expected Line Ups:
West Ham-
Jääskeläinen, Demel, Reid, Collins, McCartney, Diamé, Noble, Nolan, Vaz Te, Taylor, Cole (4-3-3)
Fulham-
Schwarzer, Hangeland, Hughes, Kelly, Briggs, Duff, Diarra, Kacaniklic, Sidwell, Petric, Ruiz (4-4-2)
Notes:The summer signings haven't yet finished for either team and it looks likely that Andy Carroll will be loaned to West Ham for the season whilst Dimitar Berbatov is set to sign for Fulham (note this preview is being written on Thursday) however it's unlikely either will be registered in time to play.
West Ham have only lost 2 of their last 23 competitive fixtures (one of those being their 3-0 loss to Swansea)
Fulham have only beaten West Ham once at Upton Park in the Premier League
Players to watch out for-
West Ham:
Kevin Nolan-The West Ham Captain is their key player and most of what they do goes through him. Nolan is the driving force behind West Ham so the Fulham defense and Midfield will look to keep Nolan from exerting his force on the game. Whilst he's the West Ham Midfield general he's also a threat in front of goal and acts not only as a poacher but also as a solid threat in the air meaning that he will need to be marked well at set pieces.
Ricardo Vaz Te-The Portuguese forward was one of, if not the, Player of the Season for West Ham after signing from Barnsley mid way through the season. His goal record for the club is tremendous and his work rate is through the roof, he will always pose a threat to defenses and he will be looking to open his scoring sooner rather than later for the season.
Fulham:
Mladen Petric-The new Striker Mladen Petric has looked a star since signing for Fulham and with 2 goals already this he looks like an excellent threat. He gave the Manchester United defense a head ache at times last time out and was unlucky not to have scored past David De Gea. Expect the West Ham defense to be given a real nightmare against him.
Damien Duff-The Irish Winger retired from international football at the start of the new season though has proven that there is still life in the old dog with a goal in both Premier League games that he has played in so far, giving him the same return as he had in the entire of last season. Duff will give the Hammers fits if he gets the ball.
Friday, 24 August 2012
Premier League Week 2-Preview and prediction (Swansea v West Ham)
Our first game of Week 2 is the early kick off on Saturday which sees Swansea hosting the Hammers as both teams put their 100% winning records on the line in what looks to be a really interesting match up. A win for either team could take them to the top of the table for an hour and this is likely to active as an incentive with both teams wanting to get the season off to a start.
On the opening day Swansea were the surprise package as they secure an unexpected 5-0 away win against QPR, the influence of new manager Michael Laudrup and Spanish attacker Michu were immediately felt by the fans. Whilst that was an unexpected victory for the Swans it will have raised expectation for a team that lost not only it's manager (Brendon Rodger) but also it's talisman (Joe Allen) over summer. Many had expected Swansea to take a while to settle under the new manager in Laudrup but he needed little time to introduce himself to the Premier League with his team looking sensational.
Finishing 11th in the Premier League last season, Swansea were a solid team enough team to not get dragged into the relegation battle though their home form did leave something to be desired with the club securing just 31 points in 19 games at home. Whilst they were hard to beat at home the Swans didn't win at home regularly enough with 8 wins, 7 draws and 4 losses however defensively they were incredibly with just 18 goals conceded at the Liberty Stadium (the 8th best home defense, just 1 goal behind tied 4th) and an amazing 8 home clean sheets. Defensively they were brilliant. Offensively however Swansea struggled a bit scoring just 27 home goals (11th most) and with Scott Sinclair wanting away, Gylfi Sigurdsson gone and Joe Allen sold to Liverpool it may be fair to say that goals weren't expected this season. Despite they the club seem to have signed an out and out goal scorer in Michu and Nathan Dyer and Danny Graham have plenty of goals in them too, so goals shouldn't be too much of a problem this year.
Despite making a number of signings, many of which are available, Laudrup will not have Ki Sung-Yueng available due to the lateness of his signing and he will also not have Itay Shechter who who has been signed on loan. He will however have Michu and Jonathan de Guzman both available with Chico Flores doubtful, however Flores is likely to be replaced by fellow new boy Kyle Bartley. They should, even with one or two players missing, still have an enterprising line up.
On the other side of the pitch we have the newly promoted West Ham may not have been hugely exciting in securing a 1-0 victory over Aston Villa last week but they did pick up the all important 3 points. With Sam Allardyce in charge and a team full of proven Premier League players it was surprising to me that so many folk were tipping the Hammers for relegation because on paper they are probably a solid "lower mid table" team that should survive even if they don't really do anything great. With the likes of Jussi Jääskeläinen, Kevin Nolan, Mark Noble, Jack Collison and recent signing Matt Jarvis they have very well known Premier League quality and with Ricardo Vaz Te they have an exceptionally hard working attacker.
Last season West Ham finished 3rd in the Championship before gaining promotion via the play-offs. It was away from home that West Ham were at their best with some West Ham fans wishing they could play away every week. In 23 away matches West Ham secured 45 points, winning 13 away matches and drawing 6 to give them the best away record in the league. Their quality away from home was just in results but their overall performance having the tied best away defensive record (22 goals against)and the second best attacking record (40 goals for). If they can keep this sort of away form in the Premier League they could be a real threat though it's unlikely they can prove to be this effective away in the top flight.
Sam Allardyce has brought in some notable Premier League level names including Jääskeläinen, Collinson and Jarvis however his squad still appears thin on the ground. The players Allardyce has got are talented and are mostly proven at this level however the question is "has he got enough of them?" Whilst it might not be a huge problem this early in the season it's almost certainly going to be a problem unless Allardyce can bring in some more signings just to shore up the squad. With a near full team available "Big Sam" may view this as a chance to pick up at least a point.
With Swansea playing at home in the Premier League for the first time under Laudrup I expect the Swans to pick up the 3 points. This is unlikely to be as impressive as the performance against QPR but another excellent showing for the Swans.
Kick-Off: 12:45
Prediction: 2-0
Expected Line Ups:
Swansea-
Vorm, Rangel, Williams, Tate, Taylor, Michu, Guzman, Britton, Dyer, Routledge, Graham (4-4-2)
West Ham-
Jääskeläinen, Demel, Reid, Collins, McCartney, Diamé, Noble, Nolan, Vaz Te, Taylor, Cole (4-3-3)
Notes:As mentioned above Swansea's new signing Ki Sung-yeung is unavailable due to completing his move too late for the game
West Ham new signing Matt Jarvis is expected to start on the bench after completing his move from Wolves
West Ham's away record was mentioned above but amazingly they are on a 10 game unbeaten run, however they have lose their last 4 Away Premier League fixtures.
Players to watch out for-
Swansea:
Michu-The attack minded Midfielder made a quick start to his Premier League career by scoring inside 10 minutes and adding another in the same game as he made his mark on the league. Expect him to again be a goal threat and whether he bags another one or not he'll be a threat. Expect West Ham to try and keep him out of the game and if they do it's likely he'll tie up two players.
Nathan Dyer-Like Michu, Dyer started the Premier League season in style bagging himself a brace against QPR, expect him to once again be a threat as he tries to out perform what he managed last season (5 league goals and 6 in total). With pace and real threat towards goal, Dyer will keep the Hammers defense on their toes with or with the ball.
West Ham:
Kevin Nolan-The West Ham Captain is their key player and most of what they do goes through him. Nolan is the driving force behind West Ham so the Swansea defense and Midfield will look to keep Nolan from exerting his force on the game. Whilst he's the West Ham Midfield general he's also a threat in front of goal and acts not only as a poacher but also as a solid threat in the air meaning that he will need to be marked well at set pieces.
Ricardo Vaz Te-The Portuguese forward was one of, if not the, Player of the Season for West Ham after signing from Barnsley mid way through the season. His goal record for the club is tremendous and his work rate is through the roof, he will always pose a threat to defenses and he will be looking to open his scoring sooner rather than later for the season. If Swansea let him have the ball he could well net one here.
On the opening day Swansea were the surprise package as they secure an unexpected 5-0 away win against QPR, the influence of new manager Michael Laudrup and Spanish attacker Michu were immediately felt by the fans. Whilst that was an unexpected victory for the Swans it will have raised expectation for a team that lost not only it's manager (Brendon Rodger) but also it's talisman (Joe Allen) over summer. Many had expected Swansea to take a while to settle under the new manager in Laudrup but he needed little time to introduce himself to the Premier League with his team looking sensational.
Finishing 11th in the Premier League last season, Swansea were a solid team enough team to not get dragged into the relegation battle though their home form did leave something to be desired with the club securing just 31 points in 19 games at home. Whilst they were hard to beat at home the Swans didn't win at home regularly enough with 8 wins, 7 draws and 4 losses however defensively they were incredibly with just 18 goals conceded at the Liberty Stadium (the 8th best home defense, just 1 goal behind tied 4th) and an amazing 8 home clean sheets. Defensively they were brilliant. Offensively however Swansea struggled a bit scoring just 27 home goals (11th most) and with Scott Sinclair wanting away, Gylfi Sigurdsson gone and Joe Allen sold to Liverpool it may be fair to say that goals weren't expected this season. Despite they the club seem to have signed an out and out goal scorer in Michu and Nathan Dyer and Danny Graham have plenty of goals in them too, so goals shouldn't be too much of a problem this year.
Despite making a number of signings, many of which are available, Laudrup will not have Ki Sung-Yueng available due to the lateness of his signing and he will also not have Itay Shechter who who has been signed on loan. He will however have Michu and Jonathan de Guzman both available with Chico Flores doubtful, however Flores is likely to be replaced by fellow new boy Kyle Bartley. They should, even with one or two players missing, still have an enterprising line up.
On the other side of the pitch we have the newly promoted West Ham may not have been hugely exciting in securing a 1-0 victory over Aston Villa last week but they did pick up the all important 3 points. With Sam Allardyce in charge and a team full of proven Premier League players it was surprising to me that so many folk were tipping the Hammers for relegation because on paper they are probably a solid "lower mid table" team that should survive even if they don't really do anything great. With the likes of Jussi Jääskeläinen, Kevin Nolan, Mark Noble, Jack Collison and recent signing Matt Jarvis they have very well known Premier League quality and with Ricardo Vaz Te they have an exceptionally hard working attacker.
Last season West Ham finished 3rd in the Championship before gaining promotion via the play-offs. It was away from home that West Ham were at their best with some West Ham fans wishing they could play away every week. In 23 away matches West Ham secured 45 points, winning 13 away matches and drawing 6 to give them the best away record in the league. Their quality away from home was just in results but their overall performance having the tied best away defensive record (22 goals against)and the second best attacking record (40 goals for). If they can keep this sort of away form in the Premier League they could be a real threat though it's unlikely they can prove to be this effective away in the top flight.
Sam Allardyce has brought in some notable Premier League level names including Jääskeläinen, Collinson and Jarvis however his squad still appears thin on the ground. The players Allardyce has got are talented and are mostly proven at this level however the question is "has he got enough of them?" Whilst it might not be a huge problem this early in the season it's almost certainly going to be a problem unless Allardyce can bring in some more signings just to shore up the squad. With a near full team available "Big Sam" may view this as a chance to pick up at least a point.
With Swansea playing at home in the Premier League for the first time under Laudrup I expect the Swans to pick up the 3 points. This is unlikely to be as impressive as the performance against QPR but another excellent showing for the Swans.
Kick-Off: 12:45
Prediction: 2-0
Expected Line Ups:
Swansea-
Vorm, Rangel, Williams, Tate, Taylor, Michu, Guzman, Britton, Dyer, Routledge, Graham (4-4-2)
West Ham-
Jääskeläinen, Demel, Reid, Collins, McCartney, Diamé, Noble, Nolan, Vaz Te, Taylor, Cole (4-3-3)
Notes:As mentioned above Swansea's new signing Ki Sung-yeung is unavailable due to completing his move too late for the game
West Ham new signing Matt Jarvis is expected to start on the bench after completing his move from Wolves
West Ham's away record was mentioned above but amazingly they are on a 10 game unbeaten run, however they have lose their last 4 Away Premier League fixtures.
Players to watch out for-
Swansea:
Michu-The attack minded Midfielder made a quick start to his Premier League career by scoring inside 10 minutes and adding another in the same game as he made his mark on the league. Expect him to again be a goal threat and whether he bags another one or not he'll be a threat. Expect West Ham to try and keep him out of the game and if they do it's likely he'll tie up two players.
Nathan Dyer-Like Michu, Dyer started the Premier League season in style bagging himself a brace against QPR, expect him to once again be a threat as he tries to out perform what he managed last season (5 league goals and 6 in total). With pace and real threat towards goal, Dyer will keep the Hammers defense on their toes with or with the ball.
West Ham:
Kevin Nolan-The West Ham Captain is their key player and most of what they do goes through him. Nolan is the driving force behind West Ham so the Swansea defense and Midfield will look to keep Nolan from exerting his force on the game. Whilst he's the West Ham Midfield general he's also a threat in front of goal and acts not only as a poacher but also as a solid threat in the air meaning that he will need to be marked well at set pieces.
Ricardo Vaz Te-The Portuguese forward was one of, if not the, Player of the Season for West Ham after signing from Barnsley mid way through the season. His goal record for the club is tremendous and his work rate is through the roof, he will always pose a threat to defenses and he will be looking to open his scoring sooner rather than later for the season. If Swansea let him have the ball he could well net one here.
Saturday, 18 August 2012
Premier League Week 1-Write up West Ham v Aston Villa
West Ham 1-0 Aston Villa
Sam Allardyce's West Ham may have been the latest team to earn their Premier League berth having come up through the Play Off Final (where they defeated Cardiff City) though, in the eyes of many they are the promoted team with the best Premier League pedigree having a number of players with Premier League experience as well as "Big Sam" at the helm. In Villa they faced a team that have really failed to gain any continuity in recent seasons with managers being chopped and changed on a regular basis, this was the first game in charge for new manager Paul Lambert, who was brought in to replace Alex McLeish.
The first half was a tedious affair with little to talk about until West Ham's captain Kevin Nolan put the Hammers ahead after a controversial move that saw the linesman flag for offside and then getting over-ruled by the referee. Whilst the referee was right, as the ball had flicked off a Villa defender it didn't make it any easier to swallow for the Villa players.
The goal allowed West Ham to shake the shackles and in the second half they looked the much better team and had several notable chances, though they failed to convert any of them. Thankfully for Hammers fans Villa failed to make them pay for their missed chances and aside from a long range shot by new signing Ron Vlaar Villa posed no threat to Jussi Jaaskelainen goal as West Ham kept a clean sheet.
Sam Allardyce will be proud of his players for picking up the win, and whilst this may not have been the football that West Ham fans want to see they will agree the 3 points are what they needed much than an eye catching performance. With a good core of players, including Nolan, Vaz Te, Noble, Collins and Jaaskelainen it'll be a surprise to me if West Ham do flop. Whilst Sam hasn't brought in many new players (though he did re-sign former player Collins) he hasn't the sort of squad that should have enough experience to keep them up.
Whilst I feel West Ham are good enough to stay up I do have serious worries about Villa who on this performance certainly need to sign at least 1 more player as they simply didn't create enough chances. If you don't create chances you will struggle to score. Whilst they have brought in a number of solid players most of them seem to have been defensive players other than Brett Holmann who didn't look 100% today. The lack of continuity at Villa has to be a worry for fans who will be hoping that Lambert can turn the teams fortunes around after last years relegation battle.
Sam Allardyce's West Ham may have been the latest team to earn their Premier League berth having come up through the Play Off Final (where they defeated Cardiff City) though, in the eyes of many they are the promoted team with the best Premier League pedigree having a number of players with Premier League experience as well as "Big Sam" at the helm. In Villa they faced a team that have really failed to gain any continuity in recent seasons with managers being chopped and changed on a regular basis, this was the first game in charge for new manager Paul Lambert, who was brought in to replace Alex McLeish.
The first half was a tedious affair with little to talk about until West Ham's captain Kevin Nolan put the Hammers ahead after a controversial move that saw the linesman flag for offside and then getting over-ruled by the referee. Whilst the referee was right, as the ball had flicked off a Villa defender it didn't make it any easier to swallow for the Villa players.
The goal allowed West Ham to shake the shackles and in the second half they looked the much better team and had several notable chances, though they failed to convert any of them. Thankfully for Hammers fans Villa failed to make them pay for their missed chances and aside from a long range shot by new signing Ron Vlaar Villa posed no threat to Jussi Jaaskelainen goal as West Ham kept a clean sheet.
Sam Allardyce will be proud of his players for picking up the win, and whilst this may not have been the football that West Ham fans want to see they will agree the 3 points are what they needed much than an eye catching performance. With a good core of players, including Nolan, Vaz Te, Noble, Collins and Jaaskelainen it'll be a surprise to me if West Ham do flop. Whilst Sam hasn't brought in many new players (though he did re-sign former player Collins) he hasn't the sort of squad that should have enough experience to keep them up.
Whilst I feel West Ham are good enough to stay up I do have serious worries about Villa who on this performance certainly need to sign at least 1 more player as they simply didn't create enough chances. If you don't create chances you will struggle to score. Whilst they have brought in a number of solid players most of them seem to have been defensive players other than Brett Holmann who didn't look 100% today. The lack of continuity at Villa has to be a worry for fans who will be hoping that Lambert can turn the teams fortunes around after last years relegation battle.
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