The Case against the FA Panel

The FA arbitration panel decided that as "none of the witnesses went so far as to suggest that Mr Tevez actually lost points for West Ham prior to March 2007" that they would only take into account his affect on the team in the last nine games of the season.

A post on the KUMB forum is gathering evidence from so called expert witnesses (who the arbitration panel clearly think are football reporters) that the presence of Tevez and Mascherano in a side that had reached the FA Cup final the previous season, might have actually had a detrimental effect.

Here is some of that evidence:

"Their (Tevez and Mascherano's) inclusion in the West Ham team has, however, been followed by an alarming slump in form. Both have struggled to make any impression with Tevez, in particular, appearing out of condition and finding it difficult to adapt to Premiership football."

Jason Burt in The Independent on Friday, 6 October 2006


"Pardew's side have not won since the opening day of the season and have conspicuously struggled since Tevez and Mascherano, whose influence in midfield yesterday was negligible, arrived last month. Yet he refused to use the attention attracted by the South American pair as an excuse."

Jon Culley in The Independent on Sunday

"West Ham's manager, Alan Pardew, handed full debuts to the Argentines ... their impact was not that great on an evening of searing commitment. Mascherano faded after a bright, tidy start while Tevez, for all his skill, physicality and devilment, is patently short of fitness while struggling to connect with his new team-mates."

Jason Burt, The Independent, Friday, 15 September 2006


"Hammers legend Frank Lampard Snr believes the arrival of the Argentine duo at the end of August was central to the club’s demise.

"It was only six months ago that everyone was saying how well Alan was doing," Lampard told BBC Five Live. "It seems since he brought in Tevez and Mascherano it’s all gone wrong.

It’s a shame that he’s gone but football is like that. You get your chance and as soon as you start losing games, the pressure’s on."


"The signing of Tevez and Mascherano ... marked the beginning of the club's season imploding in dramatic fashion ... Their arrival has clearly done little to promote team spirit, quite the opposite."

John Sinnott, BBC, Monday, 11 December 2006


"He (Tevez) and international team-mate Javier Mascherano have struggled since joining on transfer deadline day - and West Ham have since failed to win a game."

BBC, Sunday, 8 October 2006


"Roeder's current crop of players had thoroughly deserved their victory, with the Hammers' much-hyped Argentinian duo Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano making minimal contributions."

"Despite their lofty reputations, neither Argentinian has made a discernible impact at Upton Park so far."

Sporting Life


"... the Argentinians' arrival seemed to affect the camaraderie that made West Ham so united in the previous seasons under Pardew."

Henry (it was Tevez wot won it, man of the match Robert Green) Winter, The Telegraph


"Pardew, however, was not helped this campaign when he had Argentinian duo Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano foisted upon him by a rival takeover consortium, and their subsequent failure to shine has become symbolic of the club's sorry season."

The Telegraph (anon)


"What is now too often forgotten is that the arrival of Tevez and Javier Mascherano triggered a steep decline in West Ham's results that saw them take one point from nine games."

Tim Rich, The Telegraph, 29 Dec 2007


"After the team's recent 1-0 defeat by Reading, match reports pondered, ironically, how Tevez, supposedly one of the greatest young stars of South American football, ended up being substituted for the 40-year-old Teddy Sheringham."

The Guardian, Tom Phillips, Saturday October 28 2006


It seems that there this plenty of evidence that "Mr Tevez actually lost points for West Ham prior to March 2007." Perhaps the FA panel didn't want to find it.