An Away Days Rip Off?

Ticket prices are at an all time high now. And with players wages rising, ticket prices are only going to get higher. This spells more misery for away fans who are simply paying too much to watch their team play away.

The Premier League is set to encourage clubs to bring in new incentives to encourage away fans but will not intervene directly over ticket prices.
There have been calls for a cap on the amounts clubs are charging away fans; especially for profile matches such as the Manchester Derby and the Merseyside derby. But the league insists tickets are a matter for individual clubs.

Premier League chiefs are aware of the need for strong away support at grounds in order to maintain the atmosphere of the top flight, one of its strengths compared to others in Italy and Spain.
According to The Premier League, the average away attendance has remained about same (2,200) for the last three seasons. The Premier League will focus on incentives to make clubs consider putting away tickets on sale, and possibly subsiding coach travel. 

News- Martin Olsson

Manager Sam Allardyce has revealed that West Ham are still locked in negotiations with Blackburn Rovers as they look to thrash out a deal for defender Martin Olsson.

Blackburn reportedly rejected the Hammers’ initial £2 million offer for the 24-year-old Sweden international but Allardyce says talks are ongoing with the Championship club.

Allardyce worked with full back Olsson during his time at Ewood Park and admits a left sided defender is his top priority after injuries to Joey O’Brien and George McCartney.
Allardyce was forced to start 18-year-old academy product Dan Potts in Sunday’s 2-2 FA Cup draw with Manchester United having recalled the youngster from loan at Colchester United.
Quizzed on reports that Blackburn are asking for £7 million for Olsson, Allardyce said: "I don’t think that’s true, no, but we have made an enquiry. Ongoing negotiations at the moment."

News- Andy Carroll's Injury Situation

Injured Liverpool loanee Andy Carroll is two weeks away from his West Ham comeback, manager Sam Allardyce has revealed.

 The 24-year-old, who is on a season-long loan at Upton Park, has been sidelined since twisting his knee in West Ham’s 1-0 defeat to Manchester United back in November.

West Ham have bolstered their attacking options with the loan signing of Arsenal striker Marouane Chamakh in Carroll’s absence, but the England star’s return will be a big boost for the Hammers.
Carroll is back in light training as he works towards a return to action before the end of the month.

"It’s a bit difficult to put an actual time on it but I would expect it will be no longer than a couple of weeks now" said the West Ham boss. 
"He’s doing some straight-line running, he’s been doing that for a few days." 
"If he doesn’t feel anything then we’ll progress onto interval running and changes of direction, then introduce the ball, then hopefully come back with the players as soon as possible."
"It could be a few days. It could be a bit longer than that just depending on his progression day by day now."

An Announcement

I'm now back at school after two weeks off. Because of homework and revising etc, the number of articles that I post will go down. Im currently in year 10; a crucial stage at school with my GCSE exams only 12 months away. If I don't do well in my GCSE's, the chances of me fulfilling the ambitions I have in life are zero. I will try and dedicate my weekends to football articles but I have to have a social life aswell. I don't want to rush any articles that I write as I know if I do, the standard of my work will go down.

Thankyou.

West Ham United vs Manchester United: Match Report.

Teams:

West Ham United- Jaaskelainen, Demel, Collins, Tomkins, Potts, Diarra, Nolan, Collison, Joe Cole, Vaz Te, C.Cole.
Subs-  Spiegel, Reid, Jarvis, Taylor, Noble, Spence, Lee.

Manchester United- De Gea, Rafael, Evans, Smalling, Buttner, Vidic, Scholes, Cleverley, Kagawa, Welbeck, Hernandez. 
Subs- Lindegaard, Ferdinand, Valencia, Giggs, Young, Van Persie, Macheda.

In the opening stages of the match, Manchester United dominated. West Ham barely got a touch of the ball in the first 5 minutes. However The Hammers gradually started working their way into the match; Carlton Cole forcing Paul Scholes to clear his header off the line after the 29 year old connected with an in-swinging corner from Jack Collison. After 20 minutes the match was fairly even.

Two minutes later Manchester United struck the first blow. Javier Hernandez setting up Tom Cleverley for the goal. The lead didn't last for long. 

West Ham vs Man United- The teams.

West Ham United team to play Manchester United- Jaaskelainen, Demel, Collins, Tomkins, Potts, Diarra, Nolan, Collison, Joe Cole, Vaz Te, C.Cole.
Subs- Spiegel, Reid, Jarvis, Taylor, Noble, Spence, Lee.

My Big Sam has set out a fairly strong side. Reid, Noble, O'Brien, Jarvis are rested for the game. I'm just going to pray that we get no injuries. Diarra has the chance to prove himself. Its also great to see Joe Cole making his second debut.

Manchester United- De Gea, Rafael, Evans, Smalling, Buttner, Vidic, Scholes, Cleverley, Kagawa, Welbeck, Hernandez. 
Subs- Lindegaard, Ferdinand, Valencia, Giggs, Young, Van Persie, Macheda.

I got 6 out of 11 right! If your wondering what im on about, check my Man United squad prediction by clicking on this link. Ferguson has set out a very strong side. I still stick by my prediction of 3-1. 

West Ham United vs Manchester United: Match Preview

West Ham United vs Manchester United:
Today, West Ham United welcome Manchester United to Upton Park in their third round FA Cup fixture. Here's a little look into the tie.

I will start with the home team, West Ham.

After picking up 4 points out of a possible 15 in December, West Ham started 2013 with a 2-1 win over Norwich. A win today would boost confidence and team morale. It will be interesting to see what kind of side Big Sam puts out. I would like to see a few first team players put in the squad, mixed with our youngsters.


Here's the team that I would like to see West Ham field.

Tomkins isnt getting much game time; neither is O'Neill with Collison coming back. I think Vaz Te will come off the bench in the last half an hour as he is gradually returning from injury. I see today as a chance for our youngsters to show off their talent.

Moving on to the away side...

Manchester United:
Manchester United are currently on a 10 game unbeaten run (ncludes all competitions), their last defeat was a 1-0 loss to Galatasaray at Old Trafford on the 20th November 2012. Since then they've won 7 of their 8 Premier League games. In the 2012-13 Premier League only Everton, Tottenham and Norwich have beaten them and were 21 games into the season. I can see Alex Ferguson setting out a very strong side, with a few reserves in the mix. Here's what I think Manchester United's starting XI will look like.

A mix of youth and experience. In this team, goals can come from all around the pitch. If Manchester United need a goal, I reckon' Van Persie and Valencia will be brought on. Them two players can change a game with one moment of magic. Even with this starting XI, there's quality all over the pitch. 

Match Prediction:
West Ham United 1-3 Manchester United. 
I never get any predictions correct so this is pointless but its still worth putting here incase I get it right ;)

The game is LIVE on ITV1; Kick off is at 17:15. If you are going to the match, I wish you a safe journey too and from the stadium.

As always, thanks for reading. If you would like to suggest a topic that I can write something about, send me a tweet or an email and I will consider it. Twitter: @samwhufcfrancis - Email: sam11sf@live.co.uk