West Ham Sign O'Brien and Samuel

West Ham have confirmed the signing of Republic of Ireland international Joey O'Brien.

The 25-year-old joins on a free transfer following his release by Bolton Wanderers earlier this summer.

According to The People and The Mirror West Ham have also signed left-back JLloyd Samuel. Samuel spent last week on a trial at West Ham and the newspapers say he has earned himself a contract. Samuel was also released by Bolton this earlier this summer.

During yesterday's friendly win over Real Zaragoza it was reported that Sam Allardyce had left early on a scouting mission. The People are saying that he flew to Nice to look at the Gabon international Eric Mouloungui. The 27-year-old was due to be in action for Nice against Udinese in a friendly.

West Ham After Carew

'Sky Sports understands' that West Ham are trying to sign John Carew on a free transfer.

Carew, who spent time on loan at Stoke last season, is a free agent after leaving Aston Villa this summer. Sky Sports say West Ham are interested in Carew as a replacement for Carlton Cole who they are still keen to sell.

Joey O'Brien to Sign for West Ham

Joey O’Brien looks set to be West Ham's latest signing of the summer. O'Brien has been on a two week trial at West Ham and has now been released by Bolton.

O'Brien is expected to be picked up by West Ham on a free transfer.

Long Bid Rejected

The Daily Express, The Daily Mail and Daily Mirror all report today that Reading have rejected West Ham's offer for striker Shane Long. All three papers say West Ham are considering an improved offer.

In a Sky Sports interview Sam Allardyce says that West Ham have not received any offers for Scott Parker and that a bid for Robert Green by West Brom was rejected.

West Ham Trying to Spend Big

The Guardian are reporting that West Ham have made an £8 million bid for Reading's Shane Long. Long scored 28 goals in 60 appearances for Reading last season.

West Ham are also understood to have made an offer of £750,000 for Southampton winger Puncheon.

If that much money is really being offered by West Ham then I can't help feeling that the club must be close to selling Scott Parker.

Matt Taylor Signs for West Ham

West Ham have officially confirmed the signing of Matt Taylor from Bolton for an undisclosed fee.

The left-sided midfielder is Sam Allardyce's third signing after Abdoulaye Faye and Kevin Nolan.

Matt Taylor said, on signing for West Ham,

"I have had good conversations with the gaffer, he is such a positive person. I think you can see already the aura around the place and the quality of players he has brought in to add to the players already here.

"From a totally impartial point of view, I couldn't see anything other than that I was coming to a great football club and wanted to be part of it.

"As I said, ultimately it is a huge football club and I want to play my part if I can. There were never any second thoughts about coming here. It is a big challenge for me which I am looking forward to, to be part of helping the team get back up to the Premier League and do that as soon as possible.

"I see this as a very positive move for me. I don't expect to be playing Championship football for more than one season if I am being totally honest. I just want to get stuck in and start playing. I think it is going to be a great season."

Taylor Close to West Ham Deal

The Evening Standard say that Bolton have accepted a £2.2 million bid for Matt Taylor from West Ham. The paper claim that the 29-year-old now only needs to complete a medical and agree personal terms before signing for West Ham.


Speaking after West Ham's friendly win in Copenhagen yesterday Sam Allardyce said that West Ham will also look to boost their squad with loan signings from Premier League clubs.

"We need to bring in some players from other clubs, from the Premier League - if we can get them on loan, particularly - and up the strength and depth of the squad."

West Ham Want Six More Players

The Daily Mirror claim West Ham have offered Bolton £2.2million for left-midfielder Matty Taylor. The paper says that Taylor is to fly back from Bolton’s tour of the US to discuss terms and have a medical.

TalkSport claim that Stoke are also showing interest in signing Taylor. TalkSport also quote West Ham manager Sam Allardyce saying that West Ham need to sign more players,

"It could be five or six more players [coming in] before the end of the transfer window."


The Sun say that Aston Villa have had a £7 million bid for Scott Parker rejected but Chelsea are thinking of making a £7.5 million bid.

The Sun also say that QPR are hoping to sign Danny Gabbidon on a free contract. Gabbidon left West Ham this summer and joined QPR on their pre-season tour.

Is Cole Staying?

The big news today is that West Ham have not signed Eidur Gudjohnsen. Gudjohnsen passed a medical on Friday and looked all set to sign for West Ham.

Sam Allardyce says the decision was West Ham's because Eidur was taking too long making up his mind,

"The bottom line was that for me, Eidur had enough time to make a decision. The time I gave him elapsed so instead of us sitting and waiting for him, I decided from my point of view that it was better to call the deal off."

However the KUMB forums on Saturday were full of rumours that Gudjohnsen had rejected West Ham to sign for AEK Athens.

There is a also a third possibility. After Carlton Cole couldn't agree personal terms with Stoke, West Ham might just have decided they can't afford to sign another forward. This could mean that West Ham have decided not to try and offload Cole.

I certainly hope so. Personally I'd much prefer to see Cole at West Ham than Gudjohnsen.

Cole has Made No Transfer Request

Following Carlton's Cole obvious displeasure at Stoke's chairman saying he has an injury problem West Ham have issued an official statement on the striker.

The statement says that Cole has never asked to be put on the transfer list. It also says that his negotiations with Stoke did not break down because of his wage demands.

The statement finishes by saying that Cole has no injury problems and that he played 43 games last season and has averaged 36 matches a year in the last four campaigns.


In other news KUMB are reporting that Eidur Gudjohnsen has passed his medical tests and should be confirmed as a West Ham player within the next 48 hours.

Gudjohnsen Medical

Various newspapers are reporting that Eidur Gudjohnsen is undergoing a medical at West Ham this afternoon.

Sky say West Ham have offered him a one-year deal.

Parker in Demand

The Daily Express say that Aston Villa have offered £7 million for West Ham's Scott Parker and that Chelsea have made an offer to loan the midfielder for a year. The Express say that the loan would include a fee of £3.5m-£4m being paid to West Ham.

The Sun report David Sullivan saying,

"It has been mooted we'll loan Scott out for the season for a substantial fee and, when we get promotion, he comes back to us. That sort of deal would appeal to us, because we love Scott."

The Sun say Chelsea are prepared to pay a £1.5m loan fee.


The Mirror say that West Brom have made an enquiry about buying Robert Green.

The Mail claim that West Ham have made a £1million bid for Leeds’s Max Gradel.

Campbell & Gudjohnsen in West Ham Talks

With Carlton Cole apparently talking personal terms with Stoke, Sky say West Ham have opened talks with Blackpool striker DJ Campbell. Campbell’s contract has a clause allowing him to leave for £1.25m.

The Mail report that West Ham are also after Eidur Gudjohnsen. They say Gudjohnsen will have a medical at West Ham on Thursday and could sign a one-year deal.

Cole to Stoke - Again

Stoke chairman Peter Coates has told Sky Sports that the club have agreed a deal with West Ham to buy Carlton Cole,

"We have agreed terms with West Ham, that's done. Now it's a case of can we agree terms with Carlton?"

The fee is rumoured to be an initial £4 million with a possible £2 million in add-ons.

Parker Being Linked to Chelsea

A rumour doing the rounds ever since Michael Essien first got injured has suddenly gone stratospheric with the news that the Chelsea midfielder is out for six months.

West Ham's Scott Parker is being linked with a move to Chelsea. On paper the move does seem to make sense for the west London club.

Parker is well known to Andre Villas-Boa as he played for Chelsea when Villas-Boa was there with Jose Mourinho. Parker would also help bolster Chelsea's English contingent.

Presumably the move could also appeal to Parker as it would allow him to finish his career with a Champion's League club. However Parker could have some doubts that he might just end up spending a second spell at Chelsea as an expensive bench warmer.

West Ham Players in Demand

The Mail say that Scott Parker will leave West Ham this week for either Aston Villa or Sp*rs.

Elsewhere the newspapers claim much interest in other West Ham players. Apparently West Brom are after Jack Collison.

Collison says however that, "it's flattering but I'm in negotiations over a contract at the moment. Let's see how that goes."

Free agent Matthew Upson is apparently a target for Wolves. Wolves are also said to be chasing Tomkins.

Wigan and Real Zaragoza are rumoured to be chasing Pablo Barrera.

Cole Sold to Stoke - Updated

Stoke have reportedly agreed a deal with West Ham to buy Carlton Cole for £4.5m up front, plus add-ons that will see the price rise to £6 million.

Cole is expected to join up with Stoke this weekend on their pre-season training camp in Austria.

Update: This story appeared on The Guardian website last night. I also saw it on the website of another newspaper but (as suggested in the comments) I had had a few beers last night and I can't remember which one now.

The update in the comment is correct Carlton Cole is in Switzerland with the West Ham squad. The official West Ham website says today,

"The whole squad, including England trio Robert Green, Scott Parker and Carlton Cole, got themselves up to with an activation session in the gymnasium before heading outside on to the pristine pitches."

So maybe The Guardian should stick to exposing NoW hacking and I should lay off the beers :)

However today's Daily Mail says,

"Despite joining Sam Allardyce's men at their base near Bern, reports emerged suggesting Stoke manager Tony Pulis is set to make Cole his first summer signing in a £4.5million deal, which could eventually rise to £6m depending on whether several clauses are triggered."

On the face of it this does seem to be just a rehashing of The Guardian rumour - so there may not be any truth to the rumour. If Cole was close to a move then it does seem unlikely he would have travelled with West Ham to Switzerland.

Da Rosa to Join West Ham on Tour

The Daily Mirror say that Aston Villa want to sign Scott Parker. The Mirror also claim that Barrera may join Spanish side Real Zaragoza on a year-long loan

The Sun say West Ham are taking Polish defender Hernani da Rosa on tour to Switzerland after he impressed on a four day trial. West Ham will decide after the tour whether to buy da Rosa from Polish club Korona Kielce for £500,000.

West Ham Appoint New Goalkeeping Coach

The Sun report that Tony Fernandes has ruled out buying West Ham after a row between him and the current owners. The Sun report this as if Fernandes had actually made a serious offer.

West Ham have appointed Martyn Margetson as their new goalkeeping coach. Margetson joins West Ham from Cardiff.

In other news Boris Johnson and Newham mayor Sir Robin Wales say that the latest muck racking from Sp#rs should not delay plans for West Ham's takeover of the Olympics Stadium. Both politicians say that, Dionne Knight, had no say in the process that awarded West Ham the stadium, so there is no reason for a delay.

West Ham Go To Court Again

West Ham say that they "are taking legal action in relation to allegations made in today's Sunday Times." The legal action is being taken against The Sunday Times and Tottenham Hotspur.

The action seems to be based on The Sunday Times statement that Tottenham Hotspur employed investigators who obtained private information illegally. The Sunday Times, in an article titled Olympic Boss Paid Secret Cash, claimed that West Ham paid a member of the OPLC £1,868 to try and influence the decision over who to award the Olympics Stadium to.

The money was paid to Dionne Knight, the OPLC's director of corporate services. West Ham claim that the money was paid to Dionne Knight for her work for the Legacy Stadium Partnership (LSP) owned 50% by London Borough of Newham and 50% by West Ham. This work was in relation to the procurement of a construction partner after the Olympic Games.

West Ham say that "the OPLC has confirmed that Ms Knight had absolutely no involvement in the bidding process." They further claim that the money paid to her was not 'secret' and that 'her work was very transparent and the bidding process was never compromised'.

Parker Turns Down £10 Million Move

The Daily Mirror say that West Ham accepted a £10 million offer for Scott Parker from Turkish club Fenerbahce. However Parker refused to move to Turkey and is looking to stay in the UK.

No English club have tabled an offer for Parker yet, although there are rumours that Villa may be prepared to bid £5 million.


The Mail say that Ilunga will be sold to French outfit Rennes.

Campbell, Gradel & Cole

West Ham and QPR are rumoured to be talking to DJ Campbell after both clubs agreed to to pay his £1.25m escape clause with Blackpool.

West Ham are also said to be in talks with Peterborough striker Craig Mackail-Smith, 27, over a £3m switch. Although The Mirror claim he is likely to sign for Leicester today.

The Sun say West Ham and Fulham are both chasing Leeds winger Max Gradel.


Going the other way Faubert is being linked with a move to Lazio. Whilst Stoke have been told to up their offer of £3 million for Carlton Cole.