Au revoir Faubert!

So this week has seen the departure of a number of players, one of which was Julien Faubert.

In all honesty it's no surprise that he's left because the first half of the season aside, he's hardly been a key player or even a first team player during his time at Upton Park.

Will it be a move we come to regret though? Earlier this season when we were short on centre halves, the decision to sell Day Costa was looking to be a regrettable one and I hope we don't look back on this in the same way.

I think it's probably the best move for all involved as he's seeking first team football and to be blunt, he wouldn't be my first choice right back or winger. Or even second for that matter. He would provide good cover and his versatility in that he can play anywhere down the right is a useful asset to use but if he wants first team football and he's not regarded a starting player at the club then it does appear to be a good move for all involved, especially as he was a big earner!

I do think we need another right back though as both Joey O'Brien and Demel have their weaknesses but maybe Jordan Spence will get his chance in the first team, at long last it has to be said!

Let me know what you think about Julien's departure by leaving a comment or follow me on twitter @WHUThruAndThru

COME ON YOU IRONS!

The drama of the summer transfer window is under way!

It's been 9 happy days since we saw off Blackpool to take our place in the Premier League and there's already talk of transfers to bolster our squad for the challenge ahead, exciting times!

We've already been linked with a couple strikers with Baldock - said to be on his way to Ipswich on loan - and Maynard already branded failures by the tabloids which is unfair to say the least but that's a whole other story on its own!

On the plus side, the strikers we're being linked with are fresh, exciting young players rather than another John Carew. We've been linked with Nigerian international Akpala, currently playing for Brugge, who has already stated how flattered he is by interest from the Premier League.  Also on Big Sam's radar is young Herenveen forward Bas Dost who boasts an incredible goalscoring record in Holland with a £7m bid reportedly already on the table.

Michael Owen is also available on a free after Sir Alex Ferguson revealed he would not be renewing the veteran's contract and former hammer Tony Cottee has already endorsed a possible move to East London. Would he be a decent signing? There's talk of him signing on a pay-as-you-play contract wherever he may be playing next season and on that basis I think he could be a very handy player to have at our disposal. If we were only to pay him for every game he plays, it's a no win situation. It's hardly risking the bank - depending on how much how much we pay him per game - so even if he flops and/or spends the entire season in the treatment room, we'd have nothing to lose!

I love the summer transfer window and I remember how excited I was this time 7 years ago as we attempted to build a team fit for the Premiership as it all added towards the build up to the season!

If Big Sam could build a team capable of achieving anything close to what Pardew's men did in our debut season back in the top tier of English football that year, we're in for a cracking season!

COME ON YOU IRONS!

Season review

What a season. We've experienced so many different emotions this season and what a rollercoaster it's been.

I think it's a season that will live long in the memory and thanks to that famous Wembley win on Saturday, for all the right reasons. We were 4 points clear at the top off the table and yet following a run of draws - five in a row at home - we ended the season 2 points outside the automatic promotion places and 3 off top spot. Despite this we managed to rally the troops and finish the season on a high winning 5 in a row, most importantly all 3 of our play off games culminating in a 2-1 victory over Blackpool at the national stadium.

But what have we learned? Here's a few things I think we can take away from this incredible season:

It seems we've had the perfect mix between youth and experience this season with hammer of the year Mark Noble playing alongside the exoerienced Kevin Nolan proving an impressive central midfield partnership. Faye has also been a good partner at the back with either Reid or Tomkins playing a vital role and despite him leaving I'm thankful for his efforts this season.

Players who have been forgotten recently have been unlikely heroes in the latter stages in the season, particularly Gary O'Neil and Jack Collison in my opinion. I've never hidden the fact that Gary O'Neil is not exactly my favourite player but he's definitely proved me wrong! He's scored vital goals against Blackpool and Peterborough and really asserted himself in the starting 11. It's a completely different story with Collison though, he was just about proving himself in the first team when he suffered a horrific injury that kept him on the sidelines all last season. He's come back strong this season but hadn't really cemented his place on Big Sam's team sheet until late in the season by scoring a venomous volley, proving to be the winner against Leicester and at the time, keeping our automatic promotion hopes alive. He then followed that up with a brace in the first quarter of our play off semi-final in Cardiff.

We've seen James Tomkins establish himself in the first team, being one of the first names on the team sheet every week and I couldn't be more confident of his ability to ply his trade in the Premiership. I think he'll go on to be a club legend if he carries on the way he is because he's already a fan favourite and he's only in his early twenties.

Kevin Nolan has really taken the club to his heart too. I wasn't entirely convinced of his commitment at the start of the season but he's shown real passion since and really wears his heart on his sleeve and I think he's a brilliant character for Mark Noble to be working alongside.

Carlton Cole is Mr West Ham. He really loves the club and I'm so happy for him to have got a goal at Wembley because if anyone deserves to prove their critics wrong, it's him.

They are just a few of the main lessons we can take away from this season, if you can think of any more leave a comment or tweet me!

COME ON YOU IRONS!

What did we learn against Blackpool?

So, we did it! We're back in the big time and Allardyce must take a huge amount of the credit. But what can we take from this as we prepare for life back in the big boys league?

After a slow start, we gradually came into the game as it was clear Allardyce wanted to keep the game to a slow tempo to try to counter the way Blackpool play. Which, to be completely honest, didn't really work too well! They missed at least 3 clear cut opportunities that were probably, in truth, better than the chance that Tom Ince did take shortly after half time.

We were under the cosh for the majority of the second half yet we hung in there and eventually got our reward when our newest talisman, RVT smashed the ball into the roof of the net after a little touch from Carlton Cole. Here are a few things I think we learned from the experience.

1. Our support showed we belong in the Premier League
Blackpool's turnout was, to be blunt, a disgrace. They returned thousands upon thousands of unsold tickets yet only 500 more were allocated to West Ham. If every single unsold ticket went to our fans they would sell in no time. We could've taken 50,000 to Wembley and still had fans who were disappointed not to get hold of a ticket! Our support was incredible yesterday and I feel so lucky to have been a part of it!

2. The players never give up
Our win yesterday was our first and only late winner of the season which is a strange statistic! We've salvaged draws late on against Leeds, Birmingham and Watford but Vaz Te's strike was our only late winner and it's good to see that fighting spirit that seemed to be lacking earlier in the season.

3. We have some of the most loyal players in English football
The spine of our team in Green, Tomkins, Noble and Cole have been vital in returning to the Premiership and I don't think we would have done it without them. Green has been the most consistent he's ever been, Noble and Tomkins have shown why they belong in the top tier of English football and Cole has been outstanding, showing the sort of form towards the end of the season that had clubs as high profile as Liverpool interested in him not so long ago.

4. Vaz Te has been a revelation
I said as soon as I saw him play for Barnsley at Upton Park in December that we should try to sign him in January and I love being right! He's scored so many important goals since he arrived in east London and his work rate is admirable. He seems to be really happy at West Ham which probably has a lot to do with the fact that he's worked under Big Sam before and I hope we keep hold of him for a very long time.

5. Allardyce was the right man for the job
In all honesty, those of you who have complained about him all season - and I'll admit I did at times! - do you really think anyone else could have done a much better job? 3 more points would have won us the league and even with the disappointment of not going up automatically, he managed to galvanize the team and succeed in the play-offs and although we were favorites to win the league as we had the best team in the league, the club was in a right state last summer and had a losing mentality. He's turned that around and did it so quickly and I'll always be thankful for the job he's done, even if he does leave when his contract expires next summer.

COME IN YOU IRONS!

Ming games or fuss over nothing?

A picture has recently been released on the internet of a new West Ham kit for next season featuring Barclay's Premier League badges on the sleeves. This has kicked up quite a fuss among the Blackpool fans and staff with the latter acusing the club of being disrespectful. Are the staff at WHU playing mind games or is everyone overreacting to a fan made shirt?

Even Ian Evatt of Blackpool has responded, calling the club disrespectful and accusing them of jumping the gun. Any West Ham fan would know however, that unless there's a huge buildup, countdown and release date, the 'new' shirt is a fake. It's quite a big deal in English football, a new kit, and it's something I know I look forward to when it comes around.

Of course I understand their frustration, we're not promoted yet and the last thing we want is to get complacent as Blackpool are a very dangerous attacking outfit. However, you'd think that people closely linked to the club such as Evatt would have the common sense to know that it's just not true. Unless he had seen it on the official site there is no reason to assume that it was an official picture, in my opinion.

It just seems like a big fuss over nothing to be honest and it's tainting the build up to the most prestigious match in English football. I'm sure the game will be played in the right spirits between 2 teams who want to play decent football and have no fierce rivalry between them and I hope that is the case rather than causing tension and hostility through petty rumours like this one!

COME ON YOU IRONS!

Are the play-offs really a lottery?

Because of the unpredictability of the play-offs, they're usually referred to as a lottery. Are they really, though?

Obviously they are unpredictable and it's an unusual season if there isn't an upset somewhere in the football league play-offs, but I think it's down to the pressure more than anything.

Dagenham and Redbridge surprised everyone when they finished 7th on the final day of the 2009/10 season and were promoted as play-off winners beating Rotherham 3-2 at the national stadium. But was that lucky? I don't think so, I think it was mostly down to their fine end of season form and confidence having reached the play-offs - something no one expected them to do!

The same could be said about our opponents next Saturday. They were favourites to go down 2 years ago yet they were promoted to the Premier League via the play-offs, only to be relegated by the Champions at Old Trafford on the final day last year. They pulled off a mighty shock by beating Nottingham Forest emphatically in the semi-finals and came from behind twice to beat Cardiff 3-2 in the final.

I don't think the play-offs really are a 'lottery', they're different from anything else in English football - especially in the Championship given how much is at stake. To win a play-off campaign, no matter what level you're playing at requires consistency, confidence and experience. Something we have plenty of at the moment!

We only have one player left from our last play-off success in our very own Mark Noble, but Sam Allardyce has a good record in the play-offs and we have players who have not only played at the highest level but have been promoted from the Championship at some point in their career.

So we have some good omens and we all know we have what it takes (touch wood!) to win at Wembley next Saturday, but will they be able to hold their nerve and deliver one last time? Even though we missed out on automatic promotion I have really enjoyed this season and I think overall it's been a very good season, which will obviously be better of we're celebrating next weekend!

COME ON YOU IRONS!

Collison 50/50 for a Wembley appearance

You may have read/heard that Jack Collison is currently 50/50 to be fit for Wembley. This will be a massive boost going into what is surely most of the players' biggest game of their career and maybe even the biggest some of the will ever play in.

Jack has been one of our best players towards the end of the season scoring 3 in his last 4 games - most notable his brace in the first leg of our 5-0 aggregate semi-final play-off win against Cardiff. And that says a lot considering the fine form we've shown in those last 4 games, winning all four and scoring 9 while conceding just 2.

I'll be gutted for him if he doesn't get to play as he deserves a lot of credit in us getting to the final in the first place. Although his absence would me a blow, it has come at a good time really because apart from his injury and McCartney not starting the last few games having come back from injury, we aren't missing any other key players which will be vital going into such a big game.

I think the biggest challenge in the final will be to fend off complacency. We beat Blackpool 8-1 in the 2 games during the regular season which will give the players huge confidence. I just hope not too much. When Blackpool beat Cardiff in the final 2 years ago, they did so having had a poor record against them during the regulation season and as we all know, form counts for nothing in a game of this magnitude, a team's ability to rise to the occasion does!

I think we will have too much for Blackpool and will be celebrating a return to the top flight on 19th May as they've conceded the most goals in all of the top 10 teams this season due to the risky, attacking nature of their play. Our defence seem to be rock solid now that Demel is finding some form and fitness at right back and once George McCartney starts making the first 11 again that will give Matty Taylor a chance to move forward more and terrify their full backs!

COME ON YOU IRONS!

Lessons learned from the Cardiff game

After a more than convincing performance and scoreline - that could have easily been double what it was - what can the players take away from their performance in the second leg?

Gary O'Neil is coming good at the right time
I'll admit, I've not really been too impressed with he midfielder until very recently. When he was signed we had the likes of Scott Parker and Mark Noble in central midfield as well as Tomas Hitzlsperger just about to return from a lengthy injury and so, in my opinion, he was a somewhat unnecessary signing. He seems determined to prove me wrong! His performance was first class yesterday - man of the match in my opinion - and all that was missing was a goal! His improvised volley that crashed against the crossbar was a stroke of genius and his curling effort that would have flew into the top corner but for Marshall was brilliantly executed. I don't often admit that I'm wrong but in this case I am quite happy to!

Rob Green might well be staying after all
There has been a lot of speculation recently regarding Green's future, many implying that a move to Spurs is on the cards. However, his celebrations when we scored were not that of a player who's about to depart for our bitter rivals! If we fail to go up and he subsequently moves on to a bigger team, fair play to him because he's much better than the second tier of English football and many in his position would've been seeking an immediate exit route following relegation. I really hope he does stay as he's been a constant key player for us over the years and has shown tremendous commitment following relegation.

Carlton Cole doesn't get the credit he deserves
Everyone was full of praise for the big man after the 2-0 victory in Wales in the first leg as he terrified the Cardiff defence all evening and held up the ball brilliantly despite seeming to play on with a slight knock. He was just as good yesterday and his work rate and commitment to the hammers has been there for all to see this season. I really do think he's underrated among West Ham fans, when he has an off game or two, he gets nothing but abuse but then when he plays well - as he has done in the last quarter of the season - everyone loves him again and I think it's fair to say that more often than not he puts a good shift in and is a valuable asset to the team.

The home 'hoodoo' is definitely broken!
Following our run of 5 consecutive home draws - including 1-1 scorelines against relegated Doncaster - there was a lot of pressure on the players and staff to break the 'hoodoo' and get that illusive first win at home since February. We did that in some style with a 6-0 hammering of Bright & Hove Albion with Ricardo Vaz Te scoring a memorable hat-trick - including his athletic overhead kick that was later voted goal of the season by West Ham fans - and followed that up with a 2-1 victory over Hull City on the final day of the regular season meaning we went into the play-offs in fine form. Having seen the performance from the players and the ever-present backing from the Upton Park faithful in the 3-0 win against Cardiff and our third consecutive home win, I think it's safe to say the home 'hoodoo' has been put to bed, for now at least!

Sam Allardyce deserves a lot of credit
That's right I said it! Yes, with the team we've got we should have probably won the league - or at least gone up automatically but you have to give credit where it's due. We finished the season with a points tally that would see you promoted automatically in 4/5 seasons and despite this disappointment we have progressed to the play-off final at Wembley with a record 5-0 aggregate score against Cardiff, who are by the way a decent team on their day! We've also been playing a very attractive style of football in our current good run of form and as a result the fans couldn't be happier. It looked like our season might just be falling apart when we drew 5 games on the trot at home and started to lose ground on the top 2 but we've definitely revived our season in some style! A win at Wembley would cap an outstanding first season for Allardyce and considering the mess we were in when he came in last summer!

COME ON YOU IRONS!

Just one more hurdle!

What a season this is turning out to be! I said before the end of the season that even though we looked like missing out on the top 2 I was full of confidence for the play-offs because we were playing extremely well as the season drew to close, and the mighty hammers aren't disappointing are they!?

I thought we'd either sit back for most of the game and not take too many chances having done more than half the job in Wales or that we'd be a bit nervy at the start of the game. How wrong was I? We were brilliant from start to finish and got off to a flier when Kevin Nolan popped up with possibly the most important tap in he'll ever score shortly after Cardiff had a half hearted penalty appeal turned down.

Just minutes later Gary O'Neil nearly added a brilliant second when his improvised volley hit the crossbar and went behind. Ricardo Vaz Te did make it 2 shortly before half time though when he hammered past Marshall in the Cardiff goal following an incisive through ball from Guy Demel.

The atmosphere was rocking from start to finish with 'Que sera sera' ringing around Upton Park as early as Kevin Nolan's opener in the 15th minute. In the second half it looked like the aim was to coast to the final whistle and not risk injury to key players for what was an almost guaranteed trip to Wembley. Obviously no one told Nicky Maynard, who replaced the brilliant Carlton Cole, as he fired into the top corner from 18 yards after Lansbury brilliantly sent him through on goal on the stroke of the 90 minute mark.

Wembley will be rocking on 19th May when we will face either Blackpool or Birmingham, who play their second leg at St. Andrews on Wednesday with the Seasiders leading 1-0 from the first leg thanks to a deflected effort from Matt Ince. I would much rather play Blackpool in the final because we turned them over both home and away - with the 4-1 victory at Bloomfield Road being voted our performance of the season.

However, if we are to face Birmingham the atmosphere will be a strange one and may even be a bit fiery given that David Gold and David Sullivan have a lot of history with the second city club.

We're now just 90 minutes away from a return to the Premier League and with 6 wins and 2 draws in our last 8 games we will surely be favourites regardless of who we face at the national stadium.

COME ON YOU IRONS!

Julien Faubert; stick or twist?

In just a few weeks Julien Faubert's contract expires with West Ham and there's already talk of him leaving with a return to France looking very likely.

Should Gold and Sullivan offer him a new contract though? Well in my opinion that will depend on whether or not we are promoted come 19th May. If we don't go up, I think he'll be a useful squad player for our Championship campaign next season as there are a lot more games - 8 extra league games as well as entering the Carling Cup at an earlier stage.

But if we do win the play-offs and achieve promotion, unfortunately I don't think he's good enough to be in a West Ham first team that could stay there.

His West Ham career did look as though it was over at the end of last season as he hardly played under Avram Grant. This season has been a slight improvement, though as far as his involvement in the first team goes as he's played a lot more games and put in a few impressive displays, scoring one goal.

My gut feeling is that he will leave regardless when his contract expires and return to France in search of consistent first team football. He has already stated that he not only wants just that but also how he wants to play at a higher level than the second tier of English football.

As I said before I do think that he would be a really important squad player next season should we fail in the play-offs because he's very versatile and will offer a but more strength in depth but it's looking more and more likely that he will leave, no matter what happens in that respect.

Do you think we should at least offer him a new contract in the summer?

COME ON YOU IRONS!

Que Sera Sera...

The first leg of our play-off semi final is edging closer and closer and I don't think I've ever known Hammers fans to be so expectant and optimistic having suffered disappointment so recently (and I mean that in a good way, I'm not saying we're all normally pessimistic defeatists!).

The demand for tickets for the home leg this coming bank holiday Monday has been incredible and you'll probably be lucky to get any - in the lower price bands anyway - when they go on general sale 9am tomorrow morning.

We go into the play-offs having taken 14 points from a possible 18 in our last 6 games so we are most certainly hitting form at the right time and with an almost fully fit squad, we couldn't be any better prepared for what lies ahead than we are now. The players will be buzzing with confidence - while most teams would have been deflated in our situation, having missed out on automatic promotion - having overcome the 'home hoodoo' with excellent wins at the Boleyn against Brighton & Hove Albion and more recently, Hull City on the final day of the season.

The away leg will be an extremely tough challenge because Cardiff are among the play-off quartet for the third time running and will surely want to give their fans something to cheer about having failed at the previous two attempts. However, I believe that if we can get a draw in Cardiff, we will be huge favourites going into the second leg with the home advantage in front of what promises to be a buzzing and electrifying atmosphere in East London on Monday afternoon.

COME ON YOU IRONS!

The Academy of Football continues to produce

It's something we pride ourselves on at West Ham; our incredible production line that is The Academy of Football - which continues to produce quality young talent year in year out.

Mark Noble - our longest serving player and the only one remaining from our previous play-off winning team - was named Hammer of The Year last night and deservedly so, followed closely by fellow academy graduate James Tomkins.

The pair have been ever present in the squad this season and it's no surprise that the two were also named in the PFA Championship team of the year. Mark Noble has racked up a tally of 9 goals during this campaign - the most he's ever scored in a season - largely thanks to his impressive 100% success rate from the spot scoring all 8 penalties presented to him, many of which proved decisive in earning us all three points in tough games.

Despite being a centre back, James Tomkins has also scored his fair share of goals, mostly from set pieces as his towering presence at the back post is first class and when he doesn't find the back of the net himself, he very often helps one of his team-mates do so with his knock-downs and pull backs from such set pieces.

The pair have been reliable and consistent to say the least this season and being voted the top 2 players by the fans will surely boost their already sky high confidence. Mark Noble has been something of a fan favourite since making his debut at Chelsea in a cup tie during the 2004/05 season and James Tomkins is certainly following his team-mate's example. I have absolutely no doubt that Tomkins has the ability to be a top quality player at the highest level so the fact that he recently signed a 5 year contract is fantastic news and he has also stated his desire to play in the Barclay's Premier League with West Ham.

I, and I imagine every other West Ham fan, hope that they both stay with us for a long, long time as both have already shown incredible commitment to the hammers in their short but bright careers so far.

They haven't been the only academy graduates to have made a name for themselves this season though, as Danny Potts made his debut at the tender age of just 17 in the 1-0 home victory over Barnsley in December having only signed a professional contract the night before. The young full-back was called into action when Abdoulaye Faye was injured in the warm up forcing the players' player of the year George McCartney to move into the middle of defence allowing young Potts to slot in at left-back. The American had an outstanding game in front of the Upton Park faithful under the lights and caused uproar among a 30,000+ crowd when Kevin Nolan was named man of the match as many thought the youngster deserved the acclaim more having kept his cool when under pressure where many young players would have crumbled.

Overall, although Big Sam is often criticised for overlooking youth, I think it has been a very good season for the development of our young players - who are potentially the future of our great football club - as Rob Hall has also looked sharp when he's featured this season. Let's hope our seemingly endless production of young, exiting talents carries on because if we can keep hold of most of them, the future most certainly looks bright!

COME ON YOU IRONS!