Two teams at the centre of managerial controversy but while the waters at West Ham have stilled, waves are still crashing over St James’ Park. So can a fixture that historically favours the men in black and white offer a beacon of light to guide the Toon back to normality?

(more…)

West meets West for the first time in three years and it’ll be West Ham who’ll have the higher hopes here. Only one game in the last eight meetings between these two across any and all competitions has ended with victory for the home side. But when you consider all the recent antics and upheaval for the Hammers over the past week or so, perhaps it would be a surprise to hear Shirley Bassey belting out a couple of lines from History Repeating!

(more…)

One week passes and we have two very different West Ham performances. From a cracking start against Wigan to a crushing blow against Man City, it feels like Hammer fans are set for another rollercoaster of a season. But their ride could take a turn for the better as they welcome Blackburn to Upton Park this weekend.

(more…)

Alan Curbishley’s injuries woes of last season seem to have followed him into the 2008/09 one. Having seen much of last season from the stands, Craig Bellamy finally looked set to make his mark in a Hammers jersey…only to limp off in pre-season with a hamstring strain. The Welsh striker will now reclaim his stadium seat until mid-September. And the injury train doesn’t stop there with Anton Ferdinand looking doubtful for the opening game with a hamstring problem of his own.

(more…)

And the answer is…Anton Ferdinand. Rio’s less successful brother has continued to struggle to impress his manager, Alan Curbishley, who is now happy to sell the defender for around the £5m mark as he begins his wage cut cull.

(more…)

Press reports claim that Alan Curbishley is set to sell first team stars Dean Ashton and Anton Ferdinand to finance the signings of both Andrew Johnson and Steven Taylor. If this Premier League transfer merry-go-round does occur, then don’t expect poor old Curbs already low popularity rating to be boosted amongst the Hammers faithful.

(more…)

West Ham’s peroxide haired striker Dean Ashton is rumoured to be a summer transfer target for Tottenham. As Dimitar Berbatov looks set to depart to a side that would offer him Champions League football, Ashton could be a realistic replacement for the Bulgarian sulker at the Lane.

(more…)

Even with Martin O’Neill’s words of warning to Everton and David Moyes, there is no denying Villa had a very big slip up right at the wrong time last weekend. Not only did they lose touch with the Toffees, they also lost their goal difference advantage. On the plus side, they now know exactly what they have to do here - produce nothing short of a win.

(more…)

On paper this fixture looks a certain Premier 10 ‘home banker’ but when you consider that United have lost their last 3 matches against the Hammers this Premier 10 match takes on a whole different light. It’s also worth considering that the East Londoners have won on 3 of their last 6 trips to the Theatre of Dreams in all competitions. Is it squeaky bum time for the Red Devils? You’d better believe it!

(more…)

King Kev’s Toon revival is building more momentum week on week so it’s a shame really that their season is nearing its end. The Hammers on the other hand have been waiting for the season to finish for weeks now as they have little to play for compared to their usual exciting end of season finales. On paper this Premier 10 match looks relatively even, however, Newcastle’s recent form and head to head superiority should give them the edge.

(more…)