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Alan 11:42 Mon Nov 29
Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

BBC

Real Madrid's Croat midfielder Luka Modric, 36, is open to the idea of linking up with Manchester City when he becomes a free agent next summer. (SuperDeporte - in Spanish)

Newcastle are in a race with Roma to sign Hoffenheim's Austrian midfielder Florian Grillitsch, 26, in January. (Sun)

Bayern Munich and Barcelona are both interested in signing French defender Boubacar Kamara, 22, from Marseille. (Footmercato's Santi Aouna on Twitter)

French forward Ousmane Dembele has rejected Barcelona's latest contract extension offer and the 24-year-old looks almost certain to become a free agent. (Sport - in Spanish)

Arsenal have again been named as one of the clubs wanting to sign Raheem Sterling in January. England winger Sterling, 26, has expressed his desire to leave Manchester City for more first-team football. (Transfer Window Podcast, via Express)

Fulham are making a big push for Angers midfielder Angelo Fulgini, 25, and could meet the £18m price for the Ivory Coast-born player. (Sun)

Manchester City are said to have no intention of selling Spanish striker Ferran Torres, 21, for less than 70m euros (£59m). (Marca - in Spanish)

If Torres moves to Barcelona, it could open the door for RB Leipzig's 23-year-old Spanish midfielder Dani Olmo, 23, to make a switch to Etihad Stadium. (El Nacional - in Catalan)

Former Aston Villa striker Kevin Phillips believes his old club should sell Dutch winger Anwar El Ghazi, 26, instead of Burkina Faso forward Bertrand Traore, 26, in January. (Football Insider)

Southampton are interested in signing Blackburn Rovers and Chile striker Ben Brereton Diaz. Sevilla have been leading the race to sign the 22-year-old so far. (Sun)





Sky Paper Talk

daily express

New Tottenham boss Antonio Conte and director of football Fabio Paratici have reportedly earmarked Fiorentina hitman Dusan Vlahovic as the 'ideal heir' to Harry Kane.
Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric is reportedly open to a Premier League return - but he has ruled out joining Newcastle or his former club Tottenham.

daily mail

Liverpool are considering signing Porto winger Luis Diaz in January.
Daniel Sturridge's career at Perth Glory took an unexpected turn as the ex-England forward pulled out of his side's game against Western United after suffering cramp from the four-hour flight to the match.

daily mirror

Anthony Martial has emerged as a January target for Barcelona as they look to add to their attacking options for the second half of the season.
Andreas Pereira was left heartbroken on Saturday after his error cost Flamengo dearly in the final of the Copa Libertadores, but he had the support of former Manchester United teammate Memphis Depay after the game.
Mohamed Elneny's father has played down talk that his son's contract with Arsenal, which expires at the end of the season, was about to be terminated early.
Reports in Italy have hinted that Juventus will allow Dejan Kulusevski, who has been a target for Arsenal, leave in January as he is unhappy at his amount of playing time.

the guardian

Rangers fans who held up play for 10 minutes by pelting the Livingston goalkeeper Max Stryjek with snowballs on Sunday have been criticised by the Livingston manager David Martindale.

the sun

Newcastle United want to beat Jose Mourinho's Roma to sign Austrian star Florian Grillitsch in the window.

the times

England fear the spread of the new Covid variant will lead to far tighter restrictions for the players and their families during the Ashes.








Guardian

Manchester City beat snow and West Ham with Fernandinho goal

Jamie Jackson at the Etihad Stadium

This was a muted affair in which Manchester City kept West Ham on a long lead and twice pounced expertly via Ilkay Gündogan and Fernandinho to claim the points. The strikes were flashes of high quality from the champions whose control, once they settled, will please Pep Guardiola and though Manuel Lanzini scored in the 95th minute the result was never in doubt.

Gündogan’s finish came just after the half-hour and from this juncture City were hardly troubled by David Moyes’s men until the very end. As the congested winter schedule begins there was also an economy of effort that should be welcomed by a manager whose squad was depleted for a 13th Premier League game of the campaign that ended with his team in second place.

Injury ruled out Phil Foden and Jack Grealish, as Guardiola named only eight replacements for a meeting with the side three points and one position behind them and which was decorated by a light dusting of snow at kick-off.

If the opening half would end close to a white-out due to the conditions, City’s feather-like defence was first exposed by Michail Antonio who shrugged a tentative Rúben Días aside, moved into the area along the left, and crossed but no teammate could finish.

Seeing this, Kyle Walker decided direct action at the other end might wake City with a shot that beat Lukasz Fabianski but not the goalkeeper’s right post. Next was a sequence of pinpoint precision that involved Walker, Gündogan and Gabriel Jesus, before the latter’s radar proved awry when trying to return the ball to Gündogan near goal.

By now the snow was falling constantly and when Antonio next received it was along the right and this time Aymeric Laporte, preferred to John Stones, was bullied by the No 9 and City were grateful to escape.

Both rearguards needed to tighten. At City’s first corner Laporte was allowed to rise highest and head marginally over by a sleepy defence. Moments later, another warning: this time Riyad Mahrez skipped in and drilled home, but it was ruled offside.

The pace of the contest had hardly nudged above a trot and was pocked by heavy touches and a clogged midfield. Saïd Benrahma and Gündogan each took aim from 20 yards out with no success and, later, Raheem Sterling’s curler concerned Fabianski who was happy to see the ball sail wide.

The Hammers’ forward forays were more sporadic than their hosts yet seemed, at this point, to always threaten. Aaron Cresswell’s attempt to beat Ederson directly from a free-kick was deflected out for a corner. Cresswell and Declan Rice worked the set piece, but up went the flag when the ball was crossed.

City, who had been in a slumber, finally jolted into life. Mahrez fielded a long ball on the right, cut inside and fed a lurking Gündogan who could hardly miss from inches out. Ben Johnson, exposed here by Mahrez, saved his side when those in blue next attacked, blocking Jesus’s shot off the line with Fabianski beaten.

As the interval approached the pitch markings were becoming tricky to see. Mahrez, too, might have had his vision blighted when smacking a shot off the left post but as the second half commenced the snow had abated and the pitch cleared, following an extended break.

This benefited City, who were coasting, and was underlined by an early corner that pinned their visitors back. The Hammers, as the second half went on, continued to be pummelled by some percussive passing. Better from them was a move that had Johnson hitting in a cross that Laporte steered out for a corner.

It remained, though, a canter for City. Antonio broke but ceded possession – West Ham did this too much – and suddenly Sterling was skating clear, clipping the ball over for Jesus who should have doubled the lead. The team from east London, who lost last week at Wolves, were being toyed with in a manner which informed them of their status.

Rice, though, did keep Ederson honest with a 30-yard piledriver the Brazilian punched away before Gündogan, at the other end, had Fabianski sliding on the turf to keep the deficit to one.

The keeper could do nothing about Fernandinho’s late second. On as a substitute, the midfielder sealed the win with a slide-rule finish, while Lanzini’s classy goal – he hit the top corner – was consolation only.

Rodri, composed throughout, said afterwards: “It was a very difficult day because of the weather conditions but it is always difficult against this team. We were lucky to get this first goal because in the first half we couldn’t play much. In the second we dominated and could have scored more.”

He was correct and with this victory City made it five in a-row in all competitions, for the first time this season. In the corresponding week of last season they began a 28-game unbeaten sequence, 21 of which were victories, that ran until March. For their rivals, this win may be ominous.




Telegraph

Manchester City see off West Ham and heavy snow for a solid win with Ilkay Gundogan leading the way

James Ducker

The snow was falling and temperature plummeting but this is the time of year when Manchester City like to turn up the heat on their rivals.

For all their technical flair and pretty patterns, there is nothing fair weather about Pep Guardiola’s players. Winter invariably brings out their relentless streak and the challenge for the rest has often been to try to keep pace with this beautifully oiled machine.

A 2-0 defeat to Tottenham around this time last year proved the catalyst for an unbeaten 28-game run in all competitions and we may come to reflect on the surprise loss at home to Crystal Palace at the end of last month as being a similar springboard this term.

West Ham United have aspirations of Champions League football but they were mostly kept at a safe distance on an afternoon when City again made light of the absences of Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish to record a fifth successive win in all competitions.

The smart money would still be on a three-horse title race come the onset of spring but both Chelsea and Liverpool will be acutely aware of City’s ability to turn the screw and embark on dizzying winning runs. December’s fixtures are appetising as well, although Guardiola is not getting carried away. “What we have done in the past is the past,” the City manager said. “The only thing is to celebrate this, recover well and go to Birmingham on Wednesday to play Aston Villa. The rest is fantasy, normally if you have the wrong thoughts in your mind it create problems in the team.”

City had to wait until the brink of stoppage time for a second, with Fernandinho stroking home a lovely finish from the edge of the penalty area from Ilkay Gundogan’s square pass shortly after coming on to eventually double the advantage given to them by Gundogan in the first half.

It was a good job for Guardiola, too, because Manuel Lanzini cracked home a sumptuous volley with almost the last kick of the game and, in doing so, robbed Ederson of the chance of a 100th clean sheet as a City goalkeeper. A point, in truth, would have greatly flattered West Ham, who started well and were good in moments but lacked the quality going forward to hurt their opponents.

Perhaps they had one eye on the visit of Brighton on Wednesday, particularly after Thursday’s trip to Vienna in the Europa League, but the game was gradually taken away from them after Gundogan scored and there never felt like much chance of a repeat of their heroics in the 3-2 win against Liverpool a few weeks earlier. David Moyes said he wants more from his forward players. Asked if he was worried about the form of some of them, the West Ham manager said: “Yes I am and I have told them. We are needing to be better in those areas we’re getting opportunities. If we want to be in the top area we have got to have players who take opportunities. Our attacking play could be much cleaner with the chances we create.”

A classic it was not, which was unsurprising given the conditions. Guardiola hailed the ground staff as the “men of the match” after they did such a superb job clearing the pitch of snow during an extended half-time interval. For a while, with the pitch markings difficult to make out and visibility worsening, you feared the game may be under threat but the conditions brightened after the interval.

Raheem Sterling continues to edge back to form, Bernardo Silva and Joao Cancelo remain as menacing as ever, West Ham’s attempts to smother the ever improving Rodri did not yield too much success, and Gundogan’s willingness to ghost from that second line is a lesson for any midfielder. The German has an innate sense of goal and he was on the right position to turn home the ball from inside the six-yard box after Riyad Mahrez’s shot had deflected off the foot of Aaron Cresswell into his path.

Credit must first go to Cancelo, though, and a gorgeous 45-yard pass into Mahrez’s feet from one of those central positions City’s nominal left-back loves to take up.

Most teams would be crippled by the loss of players like De Bruyne, Foden and Grealish but, operating almost in a 4-2-4 with Gabriel Jesus and Sterling pinned wide, West Ham struggled to button down Gundogan and Bernardo, who were joined time and again in the middle by the roving Cancelo. There is no disgrace in that. Paris Saint-Germain found it just as difficult on Wednesday. The quiet elevation in Rodri’s game has also given City that platform at the base of midfield from which to build that Fernandinho once provided.

Jesus could have had a couple of goals but he was denied in either half by outstanding goal-line clearances from Ben Johnson and Cresswell, the latter having to be substituted after slamming his lower back into a post in the process. Mahrez and Bernardo also had goals disallowed for City.

West Ham started well enough. Michail Antonio drew a free-kick on the right edge of the penalty area after being taken down by Aymeric Laporte and also hit the side netting after wriggling free on the byline and Said Benrahma had a shot saved but they could not sustain it and Lanzini’s stunning finish was too little, too late.




OS

In-form West Ham United U18s best Burnley U18s in Premier League Cup

Burnley U18s 0-3 West Ham United U18s
U18 Premier League Cup

West Ham United U18s made it four games unbeaten in all competitions with a commendable 3-0 win away at Burnley on Saturday morning, bringing their U18 Premier League Cup campaign to a close.

Played at the Lancashire FA County Ground due to the inclement conditions, the Hammers – who had already been eliminated from their group due to defeats against Arsenal and Everton – finished with a flourish with a convincing performance against the Clarets.

The result was not enough to take West Ham off the bottom of their group, with only the group winners guaranteed to qualify, but did eliminate their opponents and keep the young Hammers’ recent run of strong performances going.

Kevin Keen made three changes to the team who drew 2-2 at Arsenal the previous week in U18 Premier League South, Asher Falase recalled to the starting XI with wide player Isaac Evans receiving a first start of the season, and goalkeeper Mason Terry just his second.

With both teams sporting Rainbow Laces in support of the titular campaign, the Hammers got off to the brighter start, left-back Regan Clayton fizzing an effort from distance over the bar.

Inside quarter of an hour, West Ham led. Forward Gideon Kodua did well to retain possession out wide, feeding Divin Mubama who – carrying the ball across the pitch to make room for the shot on his trusty left foot – fired a low effort across the goalkeeper from 25 yards into the bottom corner for his sixth goal in his last eight Academy games.

The 17-year-old almost had another with an effort from the edge of the box which whistled narrowly over the bar, before goalkeeper Terry held Sean Etaluku’s drive from distance well to keep Burnley at bay.

Just shy of the half-an-hour mark, the Hammers doubled their lead. A brilliant team goal saw the visitors play the ball out from the back to feed midfielder George Earthy, who drew the attentions of the Burnley defence with a run towards the box before laying off for right-back Junior Robinson.

The No2’s pinpoint first-time cross found Kodua running into the centre of the box, and the No10 made no mistake with his finish, putting his side in a strong position for the three points.

Burnley went close prior to half-time, with Terry producing two excellent stops to deny Tremaine Eastmond and Etaluku – the latter having broken beyond the backline – and Mubama responded with an effort which curled narrowly wide for West Ham.

Into the second half and, with the Lancashire side well on top, the Hammers did superbly well to keep their opponents at bay, with Burnley’s Dane McCullough flashing an effort past Terry’s upright with ten minutes to go.

Then, as the game approached injury time, Kodua showed quality and persistence to run down the right-hand channel, fire a shot goalwards and – having seen it saved by the Burnley ‘keeper – follow up with his left foot to bury the ball in the unguarded net.

With three clean sheets in their last four games against some high-quality opposition, the young Hammers appear to be hitting their stride at an important point of the season.

“It was a really good team performance,” U18s assistant coach Gerard Prenderville told whufc.com.

“We travelled up Friday, stayed overnight and attacked it on Saturday, so our preparation was really good. On the day, I thought the whole team – from No1 to No11 – played particularly well. We scored three different goals, but three good goals.”

While focusing his praise on the collective performance, Prenderville was pleased to see brace goalscorer and first-year Scholar Kodua pick up another two goals and an assist, the 17-year-old now having been involved in eight goals in eleven U18s appearances.

The assistant coach was also pleased to see goalkeeper Terry, on his second start of the campaign, pick up a clean sheet.

“Gideon’s done really well this year,” Prenderville noted. “I’ve coached him through the age groups – U14s, U15s and U16s, and now as an U18 – and he’s worked really hard on his hold-up play and finishing skills and final end product.

“He’s such a good lad and he comes into the training ground every day with a smile on his face, always ready to work, so it’s not a surprise he’s started to add goals to his game.

“Mason came into the team and made some big saves in some tough conditions. Burnley were always a threat from set pieces and created some chances, but Mason made four or five big saves and claimed some corners.

“To keep a clean sheet is a real plus for the team. From No1 to No11, our boys were excellent.

“It has been a nice little run for us, but this team don’t rest on their laurels. We’ll go again this week, working hard on the training pitch and showing a real togetherness.

“The boys are really receptive and continue to play with the style that Kevin Keen and Mark Phillips are bringing to the team, so we’ll just go again and, touch wood, have another good week of training in preparation for the games coming up.”

West Ham United U18s: Terry; Robinson, Casey, Tarima, Clayton, Evans (Jones 69), Falase, Earthy, Orford, Kodua, Mubama
Subs: Woods

Goals: Mubama 13, Kodua 28, 90+1

Booked: Terry




Sport Witness

West Ham look well placed for signing – Meeting held, Hammers can push forward for deal

Last week West Ham held a virtual meeting with agents representing Arthur Cabral, with the Brazilian potentially leaving FC Basel in the January transfer window.

It came after earlier claims that the Hammers had ‘authorised intermediaries’ to find out about the player’s situation at Basel. At the same time, a report came from Switzerland, explaining just what a a bargain Cabral could be, with it thought he’ll be available for €20m or less in the winter market.

That sounds a great deal, especially when it’s considered he’s scored 25 times already this season, and added eight assists. At just 23-years-of-age, the striker is also a player who could grow in value in the coming seasons.

At the weekend, Goal Italia reported they’d been informed Barcelona, prompted by West Ham’s action, are now willing to pay €15m for the South American.

That isn’t backed up in Monday’s edition of Catalan newspaper Sport, who simply present Cabral as an option and cover his impressive figures, with much more attention being given to Ferran Torres, and Anthony Martial also pushed forward more than the Basel man.

Without Barcelona moving forward, West Ham look well placed for the signing, and there’s nothing stopping them moving forward to speak to Basel ahead of January.


Cabral

plankton 11:14 Tue Nov 30
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

There's a couple of very good headers in that video reel, but to be fair, there was also some abysmal goalkeeping, too :) He'd find PL defences very different too. Some of the defending is terrible.....

irisiris95 5:46 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

I saw this Cabral back in August vs Hammarby (Sweden) in the Europa League playoff. Looked useful but this was early in the season for Basel so they gave a muted performance.

If memory serves me right I think he came off the bench 2nd half. He looked fast & technical though & was close to scoring straight away.
Did score a penalty and cupped his ear to the home support so cocky little f***er LOL

Moncurs Putting Iron 5:19 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

Vexed 12:09 Mon Nov 29

He does. A proper beast with skill and a delicate touch thrown in.

Mind you I liked Hallers show reel but it didn't show him strolling around all sullen and indifferent unless attacking in hte final third. :-)

ted fenton 3:48 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

Thanks Alan 12:09 Mon Nov 29

JackRussel 2:16 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

Is there a new transfer coming? Cool! I wonder how it will affect the game of both teams...

BillyJenningsBoots 1:18 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

Vexed - agreed really knows where the goal is... what are the chances that he would come to us though?

Texas Iron 12:54 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

CHEERS...

Irish Hammer 12:42 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

THank you Alan. Really appreciate your efforts everyday

Thanks Alan 12:09 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

bill green 11:59 Mon Nov 29

Vexed 12:09 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

Fucking hell, Cabral looks the business.

Cheers Al

bill green 11:59 Mon Nov 29
Re: Monday newspapers ( includes West Ham)

Thanks Alan