West Ham have hit the newspapers yet again recently, but instead of it being the same stories speculating about Sam Allardyce’s position at the club, it is a positive story – well,  at least for their fans.

In the middle of all the protests up and down the country about modern football being about money and not the sport, this story is a light and refreshing change.

As the Irons get ready for their big stadium move to Stratford, they have announced they will be selling cheaper tickets due to the change of the venue. West Ham are the first club to announce they are lowering ticket prices since the £5billion TV deal was announced in February.

Their idea is the German way of keeping football a “working man’s game.” In 2006, the Allianz Arena was developed in Munich for the World Cup in Germany.

The country wanted to hold the World Cup, so the country’s facilities received an upgrade. Fortuna Dusseldorf, Hertha Berlin and RB Leipzig all received new or upgraded stadiums due to the worldwide events happening in the country.

The Hammers are able to give back to the fans because the taxpayer part subsidised their new stadium when it was built for the Olympics. Other Premier League clubs, especially those who bid for the rights to the stadium, are not happy with the announcement.

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While fans may be getting their tickets at a cheaper price, which is great for them, it is not something other clubs who are paying vast amounts in rent for their stadiums can do.

When Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore was asked about the situation, he said: “There’s no point looking Sunderland in the eye and talking about ticket pricing.

“They’ve got a huge range of affordable ticket prices. There’s no point looking Aston Villa in the eye, they’re trying their damnedest to get people through the turnstiles. The places not priced as affordably as some people say they should be is where they sell out every week.

“There’s 20 different circumstances. Therefore I commend West Ham for the fact they’ve stretched pricing policy but I have no view on absolute pricing.”

In moving from the Boleyn Ground to the Olympic Stadium, their capacity is going up from 35,106 to 54,000. So in reality, if they fill the extra seats, they will actually be making more money.

Some season tickets will now cost as little as £289, which is a bit of a difference to those other clubs near them. Season tickets are becoming even harder to afford for most fans now and many fans are being priced out of going to the football – this needs to change.

While many may not think it’s fair that West Ham can now afford to drop their prices because they were the ones picked to take over the Olympic Stadium and other clubs did not have the option to bid for the stadium, the Hammers are at least taking the moral high ground when in actual fact they could have done nothing and given nothing back to their loyal fanbase.

“Put Football First” has been a slogan incorporated in many a football protest in recent years, as fans try to make football affordable again. West Ham have taken a step in the right direction and are using their privileged position well.

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Other clubs are angry because they don’t feel they have the option, but there are plenty of other ways to give something back to your loyal supporters. They’re only angry because the directors at West Ham are making them look bad!

It is time football clubs remembered how important the fans are. Too many are thinking about the money before the football. Let’s hope this is not the demise of the great game.

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Charlie Adam has now become an important part of the Stoke City side, but he looks back on his time at Blackpool with great fondness.

Adam scored in Stoke’s 6-1 thrashing of Liverpool on the last day of the season but he has never scored as many goals in the Premier League as he did for the Seasiders.

Speaking in Blackpool recently, the midfielder credited his Tangerine teammates for where he is today: “I was lucky enough to score a goal at Wembley [which helped secure Blackpool a place in the Premier League] but I had people like Gillo [Matt Gilks], Keith [Southern], [David] Vaughan and Crains [Stephen Crainey] who were so vital.

“This group of players made my career and how I play now is because of them. They let me play. I am what I am because of them. It was an amazing squad.”

Adam quickly became an important team captain for Blackpool but he was also one of the most improved players at the club. After being sent off in a 3-2 loss to Doncaster on his debut in 2009, he soon won nearly every award possible at the club scoring wonder goals like they were going out of fashion.

He signed a permanent deal that summer and didn’t look back. Even though the 29-year-old has bedded himself firmly as a player in the Premier League, he still goes back to his time at Blackpool when he needs picking up.

“You don’t realise until now what we did achieve and even now when things are going tough, I look back and watch the DVD and that is the happiest memories I have,” Adam recalls.

“That will always be the best day I had in my career.”

“Wembley is a special stadium and it was a surreal atmosphere and we shouldn’t have been anywhere near it but we did because we had a fantastic group of players.”

Things at Blackpool we not always perfect for Adam but the former captain believes even though they were relegated the team gave it their all: “Even though we competed, we never let anybody down,” Adam said.

With things at Bloomfield Road taking a dramatic turn for the worse since Adam and his “hero” teammates left the club, the Stoke midfielder believes that there is only one way forward.

“This is a great club and it has great supporters and its a shame,” he admitted. “For me there is only one manager who could come and take it back. It was an incredible achievement and I am just so glad I was a part of it.”

Even though the Premier League season is now over, Adam has a few weeks off before he joins the Scottish International Team for their two June friendlies against Qatar and the Republic of Ireland.

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Former Chelsea midfielder Ray Wilkins has claimed that Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane should be classed in the same bracket as Barcelona’s Lionel Messi.

Kane’s hat-trick against Southampton on Boxing Day took the England international onto 56 goals in 52 games for club and country in 2017.

The striker managed more goals in 2017 than Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, whilst he broke Alan Shearer’s record for most Premier League goals in a calendar year, having netted 39 to Shearer’s 36, which was a record that had been in place since 1995.

Kane has been widely praised following his exploits, and pundit Wilkins has insisted that the 24-year-old should now be considered in the same bracket as a certain Messi.

Wilkins told Sky Sports News:

“I think we get a little bit worried when it’s one of our own, to put them up at that level. But I certainly would.

“For Messi to score 54 goals playing for Barcelona in Spain, an inferior league, and then all of a sudden Harry is getting 56 – it’s a phenomenal achievement.

“Harry finishes off both feet, he scores with his head, and he doesn’t miss many games. I think we can start putting him in that bracket.”

Barcelona and Real Madrid have both been credited with an interest in Kane, who has scored 96 Premier League goals in 132 appearances for Spurs.

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Kane’s record stands at 24 in 24 club games in all competitions this season, meanwhile, and he is well on course to break his best-ever campaign in terms of goals.

Manchester City supporters have taken to Twitter to express their concerns following Vincent Kompany’s latest injury.

Manchester City have been utterly ruthless in the league this season, and their term has primarily progressed devoid of concerns, yet Kompany’s physical condition is one problem that refuses to go away.

According to Transfermarkt, the City captain was an absentee for 20 games last season, and the Belgian defender has missed as many games for the Citizens this season.

Manchester City supporters concerned with Kompany’s ability to play regularly have had their doubts worsened, as the 31-year-old was substituted through injury in their league game away at Newcastle United. The Belgian was replaced after just ten minutes by Gabriel Jesus.

If Kompany’s injury concerns continue to highlight themselves, then the skipper’s long-term future as a Manchester City player will be questioned.

City fans have turned to social media to express their disappointment at their club captain’s latest injury…

Southampton will be hoping their Premier League clash with Tottenham this weekend proves to be a turning point in their campaign.

While recent history and form this season suggests that won’t be the case, there remains an underlying feeling that this Southampton side boasts far greater quality and experience than their position of 17th in the Premier League table before this weekend implies.

At some point, Southampton will surely find the results to steer themselves clear of the drop zone, but will it be this weekend? Our expert, Southampton-mad Jack Rosser from London Evening Standard, shares his thoughts and predictions ahead of Sunday’s 4pm kickoff.

Recent history makes tough reading for Saints supporters. Since returning to the Premier League in 2012, Southampton have claimed just one victory over Spurs from eleven games, losing nine and drawing one, and even that solitary win came during the second-last matchday of the 2015/16 season after Tottenham had lost the title race to Leicester City.

What lessons need to be learned from those games?

Jack:“I think especially in recent years, aside from the win at White Hart Lane (the last time Tottenham lost there), heads have dropped once Spurs take the lead. That was certainly the case at Wembley on Boxing Day. Tottenham took the lead and it seemed there was only some form of reaction when Dusan Tadic and Manolo Gabbiadini came on in the second half and it was already too late. It’s worth pointing out, though, that facing Harry Kane when he has a point to prove or a record to break, as he does again this weekend, is almost impossible.”

Speaking of lessons, this season has been something of a learning curve for both manager Mauricio Pellegrino, enduring a tough first season in the Premier League, and Southampton as a collective. The Argentinian was expected to breed attacking football into St. Mary’s after Claude Puel’s defensive tactics drew criticism last season, but Pellegrino has struggled to provide both entertaining football and the right results – Southampton now just a point above the relegation zone.

What are the main factors behind Saints’ slump this season, and is Pellegrino completely to blame?

Jack: “It’s hard to pinpoint one reason for the failure this season. There was an assumption that simply because the manager was changed over the summer, attacking football would be back for the new season. However, with no investment in the attacking side of the squad, Pellegrino has been left with the same players Puel had and therefore largely the same problems. The last two managers have been setting up defensively because, in the main, they don’t have the players to go out and play on the front foot.

“That said, the manager must of course shoulder his fair weight of the blame. He’s taken a lot of flak recently for substitutions which aren’t deemed to be game changing while also being accused of tactical ineptness. Those accusations have, for me, been rather exaggerated. Performances against Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United have shown that the Spaniard does have the ability to set a team out effectively.

“However, when opponents begin to tweak things it goes wrong. Far too often this season, a couple of substitutions from the opposition have been the undoing of Saints – there’s simply been no reaction and little ability to cope with a new challenge.”

If there’s a clear positive for Southampton to take into this weekend’s game though, it’s that Tottenham aren’t quite as formidable a prospect when compared to recent seasons. They’re hoping for a top four finish at best this term, have struggled against big six rivals and have already lost the same number of away games as last season – four.

What Tottenham weaknesses should Southampton look to take advantage of?

Jack: “I think it has taken some time but Spurs are now back to where fans expect them to be in terms of performance levels. The defeat at Manchester City in December hurt Mauricio Pochettino and his side and their reaction since has been remarkable. Wembley has been their only real sticking point this season, and they appear well over that ‘hoodoo’ everyone was talking about a few months ago.

“City have been the only side to make Spurs look bad so far this season. They really struggled to cope with their intense pressing at the Etihad Stadium, but to ask Saints to do that this weekend may be a little too much. That said, if Pellegrino’s side can put together a rigid defensive display and look to frustrate Spurs, they might be able to steal a good result.”

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Aside from Harry Kane, the Premier League’s top scorer, who do you see as Tottenham’s biggest danger man?

Jack: “Heung-min Son, without a doubt. The South Korean has been hailed as the most underrated player in the Premier League for weeks now, which probably means he’s been rated quite enough. However, his importance to Pochettino’s side now cannot be measured. With Alli struggling earlier on in the season and Erik Lamela still not back to full fitness, Son has dramatically stepped up. He’s one of the few in the Spurs side who is happy to run at a defence whenever he’s presented the chance, and he’s rarely stopped. Certainly the one to keep an eye on.”

And finally Jack, let’s hear your score prediction…

Jack: “I’d love to be positive, but I just can’t see Saints getting anything. 3-1 Tottenham.”

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Former Manchester United forward Michael Owen has blasted Jose Mourinho, claiming that the Red Devils boss does not know how to coach attacking players.

United are on the verge of announcing the signing of Alexis Sanchez, with the Chilean joining the 20-time English champions from Arsenal.

Sanchez had been strongly linked with a move to Manchester City, but United have won the race to sign the former Barcelona forward.

Owen, who represented United between 2009 and 2012, does not believe that Sanchez will play his best football at Old Trafford due to Mourinho’s management.

Indeed, the 38-year-old has claimed that Mourinho does not have a good track record when it comes to helping attacking players flourish.

Owen told the Daily Mail:

“I’m not convinced about Jose and the way attacking players under his tutelage struggle.

“I think if you look across the road at Pep Guardiola, some of the player’s he improved and made better – the Sterlings of this world – you actually feel they flourish under him.

“You go through all the attacking talent Jose Mourinho has had over the years, I don’t think too many of them have blossomed into real world class players. If anything, they go the other way.”

Owen scored 17 times in 52 appearances during his time at United, but struggled to be fully accepted by the club’s fans due to his affiliation with Liverpool.

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United have won their last three games in the Premier League, and look set to give Sanchez a debut in the FA Cup against Yeovil Town on Friday night.

West Ham United’s January transfer window looked to be ending on a real positive note when they signed Inter Milan midfielder Joao Mario on loan until the end of the season on Friday, with a number of other names expected to arrive by the 11pm deadline on Wednesday – but it didn’t prove to be the case.

Irons manager David Moyes is currently without the likes of Andy Carroll, Marko Arnautovic, Manuel Lanzini and Pedro Obiang because of injury, while Arthur Masuaku picked up a six-match suspension after being sent off for spitting in the 2-0 defeat against Wigan Athletic in the fourth round of the FA Cup last weekend.

Diafra Sakho and Andre Ayew also left the club and Moyes would have been determined to bring in a striker, an attacking midfielder and a central/defensive midfielder before the window slammed shut.

He only got one of those though in the form of Preston North End’s Jordan Hugill, and you can’t help but feel the 25-year-old centre-forward wasn’t the east London outfit’s first-choice option in that position.

The struggle to get deals done means that Moyes has to go with what he’s got now for the rest of the season – with even fewer options available to him for the next couple of matches because of injuries and suspensions – and there will be certain players that he will be demanding more from in the coming weeks and months.

Here are three West Ham players that must step up after the club’s transfer window failings…

Cheikhou Kouyate

West Ham’s failure to bring in a new defensive or central midfielder despite being linked with the likes of Jonjo Shelvey, Leander Dendoncker and Ibrahim Amadou throughout the month – coupled with an injury to Pedro Obiang – has left the club a little short of options in the middle of the park.

Kouyate certainly hasn’t been at his best this term – and not as good or as influential as he has been in recent campaigns – but he is likely to be a regular in central midfield for the rest of the season.

The Senegal international really needs to step up from both a defensive point of view – making sure he is shielding the defence – while also offering something going forward too with a lack of creativity in central areas when Manuel Lanzini isn’t on the pitch.

Michail Antonio

West Ham weren’t necessarily looking for a new winger during the January window – probably because Moyes knew that the 28-year-old was returning from injury – but the attacker could have a big role to play in the coming weeks – as long as he sorts his attitude out.

Antonio is capable of playing out wide or as a makeshift centre-forward and his versatility and quality could be crucial in the upcoming fixtures, but he needs to sort himself out off the pitch after missing the draw against Bournemouth in midweek having turned up late for a team meeting – not for the first time according to his manager.

With Andy Carroll and Marko Arnautovic injured, Diafra Sakho and Andre Ayew leaving and new boy Jordan Hugill unlikely to be a starter right away, the former Reading man needs to start playing his part and try to rediscover the brilliant form he showed last season.

Mark Noble

With no new signings in midfield combined with the injury to Pedro Obiang, the West Ham skipper is now a key player for the team both now and likely for the rest of the season.

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The 30-year-old was in and out of the side in October and November after a drop of form – the same one many of his teammates also suffered – but he is back to being a key player under Moyes and has played a vital role at both ends of the pitch in recent weeks.

Noble scored in the 4-1 win at Huddersfield and from the penalty spot in the 1-1 draw against Crystal Palace on Tuesday night, and as well as helping his defence out he needs carry on having that impact in the final third too – especially with Manuel Lanzini and Marko Arnautovic currently absent.

Do you agree, Irons fans? Let us know below.

Everton moved a step closer to securing their top flight status for at least another year following their 3-1 win against Crystal Palace at Goodison Park on Saturday.

The Toffees looked to be in real danger of slipping out of the Premier League for the first time since its inauguration in 1992 following a disastrous start to the season under Ronald Koeman and then poor spell under caretaker manager David Unsworth, but their fortunes have improved since they appointed Sam Allardyce in November.

Their latest success against the Eagles saw them move up to ninth position in the standings and on to 34 points, with the Merseyside outfit now lying eight points above 18th-placed Southampton ahead of their trip to Watford on February 24.

While the Toffees may have little to play for, aside from finishing as high up as they possibly can, once they do beat the 40-point mark that should guarantee their survival, there are a number of their players that will be fighting hard to prove they have a future at Goodison with that in severe jeopardy right now.

Here are three Everton players that have 11 matches left to save their Toffees careers…

Maarten Stekelenburg

The experienced Dutch goalkeeper is currently out with a groin injury but he has made 24 appearances in all competitions for the Toffees since joining them from Southampton in 2016.

The 35-year-old found himself as the second-choice stopper behind Jordan Pickford earlier in the campaign, but since his groin injury in October Joel Robles has filled in as the number two.

With the Argentine out of contract in the summer and seemingly on his way out of Goodison at the end of the season, Sam Allardyce will have a decision to make between the sticks.

If he doesn’t see enough from Stekelenburg, whose deal runs out in 2019, on his return from injury next month to tell him that he is able back-up and can be trusted, he could look to bring a new goalkeeper to the club in the summer.

Phil Jagielka

Like Stekelenburg, Jagielka is 35 years of age and has less than 18 months remaining on his contract at Goodison Park, and the Toffees captain looks to be fighting for his future at Goodison Park.

While the centre-back was something of a regular under Ronald Koeman and David Unsworth earlier in the campaign, he has often been in and out of the side since Sam Allardyce took charge.

There is plenty of competition for places at the heart of the defence with Ashley Williams, Mason Holgate, Michael Keane, Eliaquim Mangala and the soon-to-be returning Ramiro Funes Mori all fighting to play, and the fact that Jagielka has failed to make the squad for his side’s two last Premier League fixtures having played the full 90 against Leicester City previously perhaps sums up his situation.

Everton could look to move their skipper on in the summer to bring a more youthful look to their backline, and Jagielka will need to fight in the next 11 matches in order to take his career on Merseyside to a 12th season.

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Leighton Baines

Like Stekelenburg and Jagielka, Baines is another experienced pro who has less than 18 months remaining on his current contract, and he knows that he has plenty to prove when he returns from the calf injury that has kept him on the sidelines since November.

Everton have actually been so short in the left-back position since the injury that Cuco Martina has filled in there despite predominantly being right-footed, and the Goodison Park faithful couldn’t believe it when the club failed to strengthen in that position during the January transfer window.

That is something they are surely going to do in the summer, and with youngsters like Luke Garbutt and Brendan Galloway potentially acting as cover too, the Toffees could look to move Baines on at the end of the season unless he proves he should see out his contract on Merseyside in the coming weeks.

Do you agree, Toffees fans? Let us know below.

Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce has claimed that Jack Grealish and Albert Adomah are expected to miss this weekend’s fixture against Sheffield Wednesday.

The Midlands outfit have struggled without the pair in recent fixtures, and the results have reflected that.

Bruce’s men were on a winning streak, claiming seven victories on the trot, but in their last three outings in the Championship, they have dropped five points.

After earning a 2-0 triumph over arch rivals Birmingham City, the team suffered a 2-0 loss to fellow promotion chasers Fulham and followed that up with a 1-1 draw against Preston on home soil.

Both Grealish and Adomah missed those fixtures, and many fans have suggested that the recent results are down to the team failing to cope without them.

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Unfortunately for the Midlands outfit, it looks as though the pair will be out of contention for Saturday’s away fixture against Sheffield Wednesday.

The Birmingham Mail quotes Bruce as saying:

“If I was a betting man then I’d say they were both unlikely to make the weekend. We’ll see how they are I still think Saturday might be too soon. The fear for us all is you play them, they come back too early and they’re out then for six or eight weeks and they miss the tickly bit.”

West Ham United manager David Moyes has claimed that the club have not opened talks with Manuel Lanzini over a new contract, reports the Hammers’ official website.

What’s the word?

Since Dimitri Payet’s departure last year, Lanzini has emerged as the club’s most creative player.

The Argentine has become an important member of the squad, and even more so recently given that he has struck up a good understanding with Marko Arnautovic.

The London Evening Standard recently reported that the club plan to offer Lanzini an improved contract once Premier League safety has been confirmed.

Moyes gave his reaction to the rumours during a press conference, telling the media that nothing has yet been put in place regarding fresh terms for the playmaker.

“You always want to keep your best players but there’s no truth in that yet. We won’t look at that until we know what league we are in.”

Is Lanzini committed?

It is impossible to know what is going through the Argentine’s mind, but he has not made any public indication that he wants to leave the East London outfit.

There is no rush from a contract standpoint as Lanzini still has two years left on his current deal, plus the option of a further 12 months.

The midfielder’s performances in the second half of last season and in the 2017-18 campaign could have attracted attention from other clubs.

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With that in mind, ur would make sense for West Ham to try to tie their player down, but if discussions have not begun, then maybe there is cause for concern.

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