Breen at West Ham

On a broadly related topic (which I forgot to mention yesterday ), West Ham signed Clive Delaney from UCD yesterday until the end of the season. It'll be interesting to see if he gets playing at all......he can't really do much worse than Repka!

 

Well...........he could be Paul Butler..........

 

Apparently Breen told Roeder that the organisational side of West Ham's tactics were abysmal compared to Ireland's.

Obviously hasn't watched a video of himself against Russia or Switzerland then.

 

I'm not sure exactly how he meant that!

 

It's hard to play football after a burger & chips, even if it is only a couple of times a month, as anyone who read Tony Cascerino's book will know!


Glenn Roeder today angrily denounced the "gutless" mole who has instigated a smear campaign at West Ham.
Roeder is attempting to uncover the identity of the "insider" who blew the whistle on an alleged bust-up between the troubled West Ham manager and defender Gary Breen.
Playing it down: Gary Breen (left) says there are no hard feelings
Other allegations, made in a national newspaper and refuted angrily by Roeder, include criticisms of training by new signings Les Ferdinand and Rufus Brevett and even suggestions that the players' lunchtime menu includes "chips with everything".
"Someone here has an axe to grind with me," said Roeder today," but is not brave enough to make these allegations to my face. It is a gutless and despicable thing to do."
Breen, meanwhile, today gave his explanation about an alleged shouting match, riddled with expletives, between himself and Roeder, which took place at the club's Chadwell Heath training ground on Monday.
Roeder was apparently unhappy at quotes attributed to Breen, that his impressive performance for the Republic of Ireland against Scotland last week was due to "organisation".
According to the allegations, a major row ensued in Roeder's office which could be overheard by other players, standing outside.
"We had a conversation, but there were no hard feelings at the end of it," said Breen. "We're both passionate about West Ham staying up this season."
"It was a clear-the-air talk," said Roeder. "The type of conversation that goes on at clubs up and down the country. There is no problem between us at all."
Speaking about allegations attributed to Ferdinand and Brevett that the training was too lax, Roeder said: "I have spoken to Les and Rufus and they have no criticisms of the training methods here. They don't understand where this came from.
"As for the chips thing, it is beyond contempt. They might be on offer twice a month, with fish on a Friday, but they certainly do not figure regularly on the menu here."
West Ham face West Brom on Sunday and the timing of these allegations is certainly not helpful to Roeder's cause as he prepares his team for what is a relegation sixpointer.
But Brevett today backed his manager and claimed he has no regrets about signing from Fulham.
"The transfer came out of the blue but I had no qualms about the move," said Brevett. "West Ham are a bigger club than Fulham, the stadium is superb and I liked what the manager here had to say.
"I don't really know what is going to happen at Fulham. Players are often the last to know about such things but I am sure it will all come out at the end of the season."
Fulham's uncertain future is, however, not a high-priority concern to the 33-year-old full-back from Derby.
The focus now is trying to keep West Ham in the Premiership.
"I knew there were some good players at this club before I came and that opinion has been reinforced since I've been here," added Brevett.
"Paolo di Canio, for example, is different gear. His passion for the game is there for all to see and when he talks, you can see how badly he wants the club to survive."
Like Brevett, there are few people who doubt the collective ability of the West Ham players but rather their stomach for what is, with 11 Premiership matches to go, an increasingly desperate fight to avoid the big drop.
"I don't see any lack of spirit here," said Brevett. "I believe the players here are up for the battle because we all want to play in the Premiership next season.
"From what I've seen in my short time at the club, we have the will to get out of this. We lost 1-0 at Leeds in our last game but we deserved something. We hit the post and made other chances. I've been relegated before, when I was with QPR, and it's not nice. I don't particularly want to go through that experience ever again."
Brevett and his West Ham teammates have to face reality, however unpalatable that is.
He said: "If the worst happened, I still wouldn't regret the move. It is not something I have thought about but I reckon we would come straight back up. Not that it's going to happen. We've got enough games to pull things around."
Brevett is fully aware, however, that Sunday's match against West Brom is unlikely to be one for purists.
"Fulham were the first team West Brom beat in the Premiership this season so I can vouch for the fact that we face a tough test on Sunday," he said. "They are a strong, physical side and we have to match them in that department first.
"We've been working on a few things in training and, if we can win the battle, I would expect our quality in midfield and up front to take us through.
"A clean sheet would certainly be good. We haven't managed many this season and it would certainly help confidence no end."

 

You took the words right out of my mouth. Breen's has been a liability for us.