WHO Poll
Q: 2023/24 Hopes & aspirations for this season
a. As Champions of Europe there's no reason we shouldn't be pushing for a top 7 spot & a run in the Cups
24%
  
b. Last season was a trophy winning one and there's only one way to go after that, I expect a dull mid table bore fest of a season
17%
  
c. Buy some f***ing players or we're in a battle to stay up & that's as good as it gets
18%
  
d. Moyes out
38%
  
e. New season you say, woohoo time to get the new kit and wear it it to the pub for all the big games, the wags down there call me Mr West Ham
3%
  



Alan 2:03 Fri May 3
Friday news (includes West Ham)
BBC

Manchester United are frontrunners to sign Crystal Palace and France Under-21s midfielder Michael Olise, 22. (ESPN)

The Red Devils would be willing to listen to offers of more than £80m for England striker Marcus Rashford, 26, this summer. (Sun)

Juventus are leading the race to sign Manchester United and England forward Mason Greenwood, 22, who is currently on loan at Spanish club Getafe. (i Sport)

Barcelona manager Xavi has told the club he wants Manchester City and Portugal midfielder Bernardo Silva, 29, but Bayern Munich are also interested. (Sport - in Spanish)

Chelsea are considering a move for Poland international and former Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, 34, who now plays for Juventus. (Tutto Juve - in Italian)

Chelsea have joined Newcastle in asking about the situation of former England youth international Tosin Adarabioyo, 26, who will leave Fulham as a free agent this summer. (Fabrizio Romano)

Manchester City were one of the teams who scouted Chelsea's Dutch full-back Ian Maatsen, 22, who is on loan at Borussia Dortmund, on Wednesday. (TBR Football)

Brazil forward Gabriel Jesus, 27, is prepared to fight for his place at Arsenal amid reports of a potential summer exit. (Sun)

Brighton boss Roberto de Zerbi remains on Bayern Munich's manager shortlist after Ralf Rangnick turned down the German club. (Bild - in German)

Leicester City are interested in signing Coventry City's English midfielder Callum O'Hare, 26. (Football Insider)

Celtic are among the teams keeping tabs on Aston Villa and Finland goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo, 22, who has spent the past season on loan at Exeter City. (Sun)

Brighton, Fulham, West Ham and Benfica are monitoring Vitoria de Guimaraes and Portugal winger Jota Silva, who has a £17m release clause. (Rudy Galetti)

Aston Villa and Brazil centre-back Diego Carlos, 31, is one of AC Milan's top transfer targets. (Teamtalk)

Villa want to sign Leicester and Nigeria forward Kelechi Iheanacho, 27, as a back-up for England striker Ollie Watkins, 28. (Football Insider)

Inter Miami have opened negotiations with 36-year-old Benfica and Argentina winger Angel di Maria. (ESPN Argentina - in Spanish)

West Ham technical director Tim Steidten has been barred from the first-team dressing room as he hunts a replacement for manager David Moyes. (Standard)

Bayern Munich are interested in signing 16-year-old Arsenal striker Chido Obi-Martin this summer. (Telegraph - subscription required)




Sky Paper Talk

THE SUN

Chelsea have sent Antonio Conte a lucrative offer to return as boss, according to sensational reports.

Gabriel Jesus is happy at Arsenal and prepared to fight for his place amid reports of a potential summer exit.

Former Arsenal star Jens Lehmann has bought the "Invincibles" branding rights.

Manchester United are rated favourites to land Michael Olise ahead of Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal.

Premier League chiefs have publicly warned the Government that the planned Football Regulator could risk England being booted out of the World Cup.

Dutch club Vitesse have been forced to ask their fans to donate money in order to stay afloat.

The son of the most decorated player in Real Madrid's history, Marcelo, has been handed the "maximum" contract allowed by the club.

Aston Villa are facing a fight to keep young goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo with Celtic interested in signing the Finnish international.

THE TIMES

Aston Villa are pushing for the Premier League to raise the maximum limit of the permitted losses for the final season of its Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR).

Gareth Southgate faces being without at least an entire team's worth of players for England's first Euro 2024 warm-up game as club commitments clash with his preparations.

DAILY MAIL

West Ham technical director Tim Steidten has been informed he is no longer allowed in the first-team dressing room amid the ongoing uncertainty over manager David Moyes' future.

Some Manchester United staff are fuming after the club treated the players' WAGs to a swanky meal at a top restaurant - 24 hours after scrapping FA Cup final perks for the rank and file.

Chelsea are reportedly interested in signing former Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny this summer.

Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis watched on from the stands as Aston Villa took on his second team Olympiakos in the semi-finals of the Europa Conference League.

Tiger Woods will contest the US Open next month despite failing to qualify automatically for the first time since 1992.

THE ATHLETIC

Liverpool insist Nike are responsible for the sharp rise in the cost of the new home shirt.

An attorney representing FIFA in the ongoing antitrust lawsuit filed against it by a New York-based sports promoter said in federal court on Thursday that a rule change that would allow domestic league matches to be played abroad could come "before the end of the year".

Sakina Karchaoui has signed a new contract with Paris Saint-Germain that will keep her at the club until 2028.

West Ham United, Crystal Palace and Wolverhampton Wanderers are in advanced discussions to play in a new pre-season Premier League mini tour in the United States this summer.

Crystal Palace midfielder Will Hughes has triggered a contract extension which will see him remain at the club for a further year.

DAILY TELEGRAPH

The airline portfolio of prospective Everton owners 777 Partners has shrunk twice in a week as Premier League approval continues to evade the Miami investment firm.

Arsenal face a challenge to keep hold of one of their leading academy prospects, Chido Obi-Martin, with English academies bracing themselves for another summer of dual-nationality teenagers opting for new clubs in the European Union.

MCC is investigating a "misappropriation" of funds and the club's treasurer has ordered a review of its financial controls.

SCOTTISH SUN

Former Premier League ref Jon Moss is in the frame to take over from Crawford Allan at Hampden as the new SFA Head of Referee Operations.

Rangers have demanded a five-figure compensation sum from Dundee over the two postponements at rain-hit Dens Park.

DAILY RECORD

Nick Montgomery will pitch Hibs as a permanent transfer destination for loan stars Emiliano Marcondes and Myziane Maolida.

Neil Warnock has reiterated why he left Aberdeen and admits he was shocked to see the club take so long in appointing Jimmy Thelin.

Wanted Josh Doig is in the mix for a shock move to Lazio in the summer just six months after joining Sassuolo in a £5m deal.




The Athletic

West Ham have big calls to make on manager and transfers – it’s no time for mixed messages

By Roshane Thomas

West Ham United received a taste of their own medicine last month when Spartak Moscow enquired about the availability of manager David Moyes.

Moyes’ contract is set to expire at the end of the season and the Russian club viewed the 61-year-old as the ideal replacement for Guille Abascal, who was let go on April 14. Moyes, however, turned down the approach and wants to focus on the rest of the season at West Ham.

His future will soon be decided and he is due to meet majority shareholder David Sullivan after the final game of the campaign against Manchester City. The club have held discussions with Ruben Amorim, the Sporting Lisbon manager, and former Real Madrid and Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Julen Lopetegui about the role.

Former Brighton and Chelsea head coach Graham Potter, Paulo Fonseca (Lille) and Sebastian Hoeness (Stuttgart) also feature on West Ham’s succession shortlist.

Tim Steidten, the technical director, and Sullivan will have a considerable say in the next manager, should Moyes depart. With this in mind, Steidten has been told he cannot enter the club’s first team dressing room or training ground for the rest of the season. It was felt inappropriate for him to be there when there was uncertainty over the managerial search.

It has been a month of mixed messages from the club: from transfer policy to Moyes’ potential successor to players leaving.

Amorim, 39, travelled to London on April 22 for further conversations with West Ham’s representatives. He was previously under consideration at Liverpool, but they have agreed a deal to appoint Feyenoord head coach Arne Slot as Jurgen Klopp’s successor.

Amorim was West Ham’s preferred target, but he apologised to Sporting and their supporters, insisting the timing of his trip to London was inappropriate.

“It was a mistake,” he said. “The trip, the timing was completely wrong. I didn’t think so at the time but it was wrong. It was my fault, I have to accept that and live with it. I didn’t think it was so bad at the time but thinking back on it, it’s very clear.

“I’ve explained this with the players, the staff, but most important now is to carry on. I’m using the conference here to say sorry to the Sporting fans, the staff and above all to say sorry publicly to the players for the mistake that I made.

The Athletic has highlighted how Potter, Lopetegui, Fonseca and Hoeness differ in styles. After the failed move for Amorim, the board are enduring difficulties in identifying who and what they want.

The delay could impact this summer’s recruitment. Coventry City midfielder Callum O’Hare and Hull City centre-back Jacob Greaves are targets from the Championship. Moyes has been a long-term admirer of Fulham defender Tosin Adarabioyo, who will be a free agent this summer. But the defender wants to play European football next season, which West Ham are unlikely to offer.

Steidten and Rob Newman, the head of recruitment, have been tasked with looking at young talents in the South American market. Steidten had success in this region when he worked under Simon Rolfes, the director of sport at Bayer Leverkusen, following the additions of Piero Hincapie and Exequiel Palacios from Argentine sides Talleres and River Plate respectively. Steidten has travelled to Brazil to scout Corinthians forward Wesley Gassova and has previously monitored the development of his team-mate, forward Yuri Alberto.

As for departures, The Athletic reported earlier this week West Ham are hopeful Aaron Cresswell will stay for another season, but fellow full-back Ben Johnson is expected to leave when his contract expires. Cresswell’s deal does not include a one-year option and last summer West Ham rejected Wolves’ £1million offer for the former England international.

The 34-year-old has struggled to dislodge first-choice defender Emerson Palmieri since the Italy international’s arrival from Chelsea in the summer of 2022. Cresswell has made just 15 appearances in all competitions this season.

With West Ham having an ageing squad, keeping Cresswell would block the pathway of promising youngster Ollie Scarles, 18, who impressed on his first-team debut against FCSB in November 2022. As for Johnson, the versatile defender wants assurances over game time and believes he would benefit from a fresh start elsewhere. The 24-year-old has rejected multiple contract offers, having attracted interest from Rangers, Crystal Palace and Championship side Leeds United.

The one-year options in Lukasz Fabianski and Vladimir Coufal’s contracts were activated earlier this season. Defender Angelo Ogbonna is entering the final month of his deal and his future is yet to be determined. Sunderland are frontrunners to sign Divin Mubama when his contract expires this summer. The 19-year-old forward has received limited game time having rejected a contract offer at the start of the season.

Further down the age group, West Ham are at risk of losing Dan Rigge. The 18-year-old, who joined from Manchester City in June 2022, has been linked with moves to Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal. Both clubs have been monitoring the attacking midfielder’s progress. This season Rigge has scored 11 goals and registered six assists across 19 appearances for the under-18s.

There will be much-needed clarity over several important issues soon. Some supporters are delaying renewing their season tickets until they know who will be the manager next season. All eyes will be on West Ham’s handling of the situation.



Crystal Palace, West Ham, Wolves in talks for US pre-season mini tour

By Adam Crafton

West Ham United, Crystal Palace and Wolverhampton Wanderers are in advanced discussions to play in a new pre-season Premier League mini tour in the United States this summer.

Elite Tournaments — an organisation best known for staging youth soccer and lacrosse competitions — are in negotiations with the clubs to host the three-city Premier League event in late July.

Matches will be staged at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Maryland, Everbank Stadium in Jacksonville and a yet-to-be confirmed stadium in Tampa Bay.

Newcastle United and newly-promoted Leicester City had agreed to the proposal but dropped out, with the latter being replaced by Palace.

Last season, a number of England’s top-flight clubs participated in the inaugural Premier League Summer Series, featuring Chelsea, Brighton, Brentford, Newcastle, Fulham, and Aston Villa. The matches were held across Philadelphia, Atlanta, Orlando, New Jersey, and Maryland.

The Athletic reported in February that the 2024 Summer Series was cancelled due to several complications around organising the event, including issues around broadcasting. They are, however, looking at holding the series again in 2025.

With Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Bournemouth already scheduled to tour America this summer, the new series will take that number to 10 Premier League sides playing pre-season games across the Atlantic.

Top clubs in England are prioritising the U.S. due to expected market congestion in 2025 and 2026 with the FIFA Club World Cup and the men’s World Cup.

Pre-season tours are considered crucial for clubs to engage with growing fan bases in key markets. For instance, Arsenal boasts more supporters’ clubs in the U.S. than there are states, and Manchester United connected with over 4,000 supporters through various club-affiliated events last summer.




Replies - Newest Posts First (Show In Chronological Order)

Heavi995 7:42 Sat May 4
Re: Friday news (includes West Ham)
Cheers Alan

Texas Iron 11:37 Fri May 3
Re: Friday news (includes West Ham)
Cheers…

With Kind Regards 6:23 Fri May 3
Re: Friday news (includes West Ham)
Thanks Alan 3:13 Fri May 3

Thanks Alan 3:13 Fri May 3
Re: Friday news (includes West Ham)
Thanks Alan





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