en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/764958 Comments by BromleyTim http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/05/18/gold-sullivans-ten-point-plan/#IDComment76027823 I seem to remember they made lots of noises about big signings in their Birmingham days which never somehow materialised. They did a bit of this in the last few days of the last transfer window with Van Nistelroy and Keane being touted. My view is they will tell the fans what they want to hear in order to get support. Let's wait and see how much gets delivered and who we let go in order to get new players in. As for our next manager the main qualification seems to be survival for the next few years whilst the debt reduces and keep the fans from rebellion Tue, 18 May 2010 15:57:56 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/05/18/gold-sullivans-ten-point-plan/#IDComment76027823 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/05/04/mark-noble-renaissance-man/#IDComment72320093 The problem with Noble is he lacks consistency. Some days he looks great , on other days he is very poor. Unfortunately you can say that for most of the team. Parker was the only consistent midfield player this season. We seem to have a lot of one dimentional players. Diamanti is good going forward but the opposite at defending and lacks stamina. Kovac is reasonable defensively but can't pass beyond 10 yards consistently. Behrami will run and pass all day but will never score more than 4 goals a season. We need midfielders who can do defending and attacking. Noble ironically can do both but you never know which day he will do it on! It's all very frustrating and that's why apart from Parker and collison who I think deserves more time , I personally wouldn't mind if we lost some of them provided we get more rounded players. I'd particularly like a wide player who could cross the ball and work back. Rant over! Tue, 4 May 2010 08:06:48 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/05/04/mark-noble-renaissance-man/#IDComment72320093 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/04/29/zolas-cryptic-comment-and-who-is-calling-the-shots-on-transfer-policy/#IDComment71269213 Good blog SJ. I think we have to conclude that the relationship with the board and Zola has broken down and all we are waiting for is to see whether Zola jumps or gets pushed Thu, 29 Apr 2010 10:19:42 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/04/29/zolas-cryptic-comment-and-who-is-calling-the-shots-on-transfer-policy/#IDComment71269213 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/25/nanis-exit-pro-or-contra/#IDComment58647785 Sadly I have to agree with your view. I think we are about to expierience a period where anyone who is considered over priced by Sullivan will be removed. That will include managers , players et al. We are going to buy cheap imports recommended by Silkman's scouting network and hope the academy continues to produce premiership players. The management will be happy to survive in the premiership whilst they get the books straight. I just hope we do not have to suffer a manager who subjects us to watching the dross we had with Curbs. Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:37:38 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/25/nanis-exit-pro-or-contra/#IDComment58647785 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/16/the-paraguayan-messi-ashton-new-investment-and-the-champions-league-play-offs/#IDComment57079318 I wonder who discovered and tracked the Paraguayan. Is it the reason Nani is still here? On a slightly different note it seems Birmingham are threatening legal action against our joint chairman. Tue, 16 Feb 2010 13:56:00 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/16/the-paraguayan-messi-ashton-new-investment-and-the-champions-league-play-offs/#IDComment57079318 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/11/no-sweat/#IDComment56324667 Tom , I think you are spot on to talk about the better balance. Up front Mido worked hard and while he is a bit limited it allowed Cole to shine. Behrami at RM allowed Faubert to overlap and he got more dangerous crosses in last night than in a long time. The left was less balanced with Ilunga struggling first half . Spector did OK but he isn't a natural at crossing from the left. Diamanti equally hasn't got Behrami's speed or stamina. That said Diamante has to play right now because we lack any real goal threat from midfield without him. I think Daprella is a better option than Spector going forward but we need to be careful as Diamante is not the fastest at covering an attacking left back. Who would be a manager!! Thu, 11 Feb 2010 11:06:20 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/11/no-sweat/#IDComment56324667 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/10/you-never-know-what-you-have-till-its-gone/#IDComment56169498 Fishy , I think a lot depends on Birmingham's state of mind. They have reached 37 points they may just be thinking they are already safe for this season. Let's hope so. Being midweek they may not have too many fans there . My worry is Sullivan has stirred them up - I hope not! An early goal for us would help. Surely Bowyer cannot score against us again. COYI Wed, 10 Feb 2010 12:01:42 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/10/you-never-know-what-you-have-till-its-gone/#IDComment56169498 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/10/you-never-know-what-you-have-till-its-gone/#IDComment56162387 It looks like the penny has dropped for Sullivan. On Sky Sports he is saying he will give Zola 100% support and will not be doing any more interviews until the end of the season. I doubt that will happen but the contrition is welcome. Wed, 10 Feb 2010 10:40:14 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/10/you-never-know-what-you-have-till-its-gone/#IDComment56162387 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/10/you-never-know-what-you-have-till-its-gone/#IDComment56159517 Frankie I wouldn't be too upset with your suggestion but I would like to see a 4-4-2 relatively early in order to crank up some pressure. Birmingham have one of the best defensive records and outside of Cole the only goal threat looks like Diamanti from free kicks. Wed, 10 Feb 2010 10:07:01 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/10/you-never-know-what-you-have-till-its-gone/#IDComment56159517 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/10/you-never-know-what-you-have-till-its-gone/#IDComment56156781 It's difficult not to like Zola and the football he try's to get the team playing. I think both Cole and Upson to name but two have improved on an individual basis because of him. After Curb's turgid reign he has been a breath of fresh air. I felt under Curbs we were very effective but very negative and I didn't always look forward to attending home games. Blackburn was dire but most of the other home games have been entertaining. I didn't think Zola should get appointed because he was too unproven. Now we have him I hope he proves me wrong and we can play winning and entertaining football. It's not his fault he got offered the job or that he is over paid. Sullivan needs to keep his thoughts inside the club for now and deal with the issues he can affect rather than show his frustration at those he can't. COYI Wed, 10 Feb 2010 09:35:19 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/10/you-never-know-what-you-have-till-its-gone/#IDComment56156781 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/09/zipping-it/#IDComment56041571 Sullivan is clearly working to a plan. He isn't just spouting off he clearly is trying to remove people from the club. The obvious candidates on the administration side are Zola , Clarke , Nani, the doctors and fitness teams. On the playing side Dyer , Upson , Parker and Green. As previous writers have said if Zola goes , so do a number of the players. So having had this massive clearout what is he going to do next? Can we look forward to a team full of £2m transfer fee , £15k maximum a week unknown journeymen to supplement the academy players?. Is the next four years about trying to be 17th?. If so , I predict that the current stadium is more than ample for our needs. There is no point in spending money on examining the Olympic stadium. I was surprised when we went to Birmingham a couple of seasons back that they couldn't fill a small stadium for the first home game back in the EPL. Now I can see why! Happy days! Tue, 9 Feb 2010 17:38:26 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/09/zipping-it/#IDComment56041571 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/09/are-gold-sullivan-pinning-their-hopes-on-the-academy/#IDComment56003006 I'm all for transparency but I don't think this continual public utterance is constructive. Actions need to be taken to reduce the debts , I can accept that. However these continuous public statements can only dent the morale which the two Dave's say was already low. I say if you can get players and administrators to reduce their wages then let's concentrate on thanking those that do , rather than picking on those who want to stick to their legitimate rights. Tue, 9 Feb 2010 11:13:34 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/09/are-gold-sullivan-pinning-their-hopes-on-the-academy/#IDComment56003006 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/07/lets-avoid-jerking-our-knees/#IDComment55770906 I cannot believe how negative everyone's got. Their is a big game on Wednesday ( and many to come ) . I do hope that this does not carry into the ground. This is the time , when the players need us most. If you cannot be positive and are going to turn on the team if we concede a goal this will become a self fulfilling phropecy of doom. It's time to show complete support.. Sun, 7 Feb 2010 19:27:01 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/07/lets-avoid-jerking-our-knees/#IDComment55770906 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/02/from-famine-to-feast/#IDComment54995986 The french guy I work with is a big St Ettienne fan and he rates Ilan very highly. Tue, 2 Feb 2010 09:40:01 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/02/from-famine-to-feast/#IDComment54995986 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/02/from-famine-to-feast/#IDComment54991686 Assuming we stay up and I feel confident we will , the summer is going to be a very hectic window. It looks like Upson will not extend his contract so he will be sold. We then need to re-shape our defence with a full back and a center half. It's also possible that the two will Daves cash in on Green if he will not extend. I understand he only has to pay back the two remaining years on his contract to get a free. Finally , I'm hoping that we will look for a younger top class striker to support Cole on a longer term basis. McCarthy has had a record of running out of goals in his second year at teams in the past and at 32 his pace is not going to get him there like it used to. Tue, 2 Feb 2010 08:50:55 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/02/02/from-famine-to-feast/#IDComment54991686 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/29/fernandes-talks/#IDComment54383820 I don't know but I suspect you do not get that rich by not being your own man. I think he will need a lot of persuading to come into a partnership with the two Dave's. However given time and common interest it should be possible for them to work together. However I think he will need time to get used to a partnership rather than ownership . The hope is he feels so strongly for the hammers that he doesn't do what the two Dave's did and go somewhere else. With Karren so actively involved , it might feel a little crowded for Tony. Fri, 29 Jan 2010 17:36:37 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/29/fernandes-talks/#IDComment54383820 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/29/duxbury-quits/#IDComment54351791 How long before Dux puts in a constructive dismissal claim? Fri, 29 Jan 2010 12:58:34 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/29/duxbury-quits/#IDComment54351791 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/20/could-we-buy-10-of-west-ham/#IDComment53008879 Well said Headmaster!. Whilst the idea is great , I think we would face too many difficult issues which might mean we would have to spend much of our created pot of money on professional advisers. I do like the idea though of backing the club and helping the cashflow. Maybe it would be more helpful if we paid for season tickets in advance. Based on Sullivan's comments yesterday that the Bellamy fee owed by City was discounted from £10.5m to £9M in order to get cashflow there could be a win win for early payment for those who are able to purchase 2010/11 and 2011/12 now. At least they could pay back the loans they took out on the back of the anticipation we will be buying these! Wed, 20 Jan 2010 15:18:18 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/20/could-we-buy-10-of-west-ham/#IDComment53008879 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/20/the-need-for-transparency-and-clarification/#IDComment52918436 Green was the lowest paid player on the pitch 18 months ago , so as he never signed a new contract not sure it would be aimed at him. With the number of youngsters or low wages in premiership terms it can only be aimed at our older players. However apart from Upson and Green they are all on decent length contracts. So I just cannot see what he was trying to say. I hope the seeming need for publicity does not damage the morale. I do worry what Sullivan will say next. Gold seems quieter but then there is Brady who has been known to have digs at us in the past. The jury is still out! Wed, 20 Jan 2010 09:00:05 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/20/the-need-for-transparency-and-clarification/#IDComment52918436 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/20/the-need-for-transparency-and-clarification/#IDComment52916223 Agree. I thought it badly judged and not sure what it achieved. Is he suggesting Upson takes a pay cut?. If so why would Upson extend his contract?. It would be better aimed at Duxbury if his golden handcuffs are true. I thought football CEO's got paid danger money because the job was precarious but a £2m pay off seems steep. Wed, 20 Jan 2010 08:39:11 +0000 http://www.westhamtillidie.com/2010/01/20/the-need-for-transparency-and-clarification/#IDComment52916223