Lyon president Jean-Michael Aulas has said that striker Bafetimbi Gomis will stay in France after turning down the opportunity to leave this month, Sky Sports reports.
Gomis has been linked with a move away from France, with Premier League outfits Liverpool, Chelsea, and Newcastle all believed to be keen on signing him, however the club’s president has confirmed that the striker will remain with Lyon.
“We had offers for Gomis, but he refused,” he told BeIn Sport.
Gomis himself has also reiterated that he is happy at Lyon.
“I want to finish the season here but the club also has their say, let’s wait and see. Until the window closes there will be speculation,” the frontman told Sky Sports.
The 27-year-old French international has scored 13 goals in all competitions this season, helping Lyon to the top of the Ligue 1 table, two points ahead of big spenders PSG.
Liverpool and Chelsea have both already moved for strikers this month, securing the services of Daniel Sturridge and Demba Ba respectively, while Newcastle saw Frenchman Loic Remy snatched from under their noses by QPR.
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However, despite Gomis wanting to remain at the Stade de Gerland till the end of the season, a summer move for him could still be on the cards with only 18 months left on his contract .
It’s hardly as if Rafael’s season at Manchester United needed much in the way of a cherry on the cake, but following his outrageous strike against Queens Park Rangers during the weekend, the young Brazilian may already have his own personal memento of a title-winning season.
Of course, even considering the Red Devil’s 12-point lead at the top of the Premier League table, it’s still verging on the naïve to crown Sir Alex Ferguson’s team as league champions with 11 games still to play. But one thing that we can already safely lay claim to, is the outstanding season that Rafael’s contributed to their title efforts.
Because if there was any question marks lingering over the long-term stability of Manchester United’s right-back berth, then the 22-year-old seems to have answered them with aplomb. Spectacular 25-year volleys aside, the former Fluminense youth product has been in superb form for his side season, offering both a consistently steady influence defensively as well as an energetic and penetrative presence up the other end of the pitch.
His best season yet at Old Trafford? Undoubtedly so, or at least the man himself seems to think so anyway.
“I think so,” Rafael replied, when asked by MUTV if this is his finest season.
“I have played many games very consistently so it is probably my best season here.
“Of course, I think there are some games where I feel I could have done more – I should have done this or should have done that better. I definitely still want to improve.”
At still only 22, United fans will be delighted to hear their young right-back ooze such maturity and it’s certainly in keeping with the calmer presence that we’ve seen on the field of play this season.
It’s hardly as if Brazilians lack much in the way of charisma and a penchant for the flamboyant, but ever since Rafael made his first fleeting appearances as an 18-year-old in 2008, it was clear that this South American had something a little bit extra. The youngster looked to be a ball of energy and most importantly, not one to shy away from a tackle. He’s made of tough stuff, but often that exuberance and natural aggression has been perhaps a little too prevalent in his all round game.
Indeed, for all the strides that he’s made this season, that willingness to make his presence felt in games still has a tendency to spill into over eagerness and you need look no further than the recent 1-1 draw with Real Madrid, to see that Rafael’s still some way off the finished article.
While there’s absolutely no shame in having an off day against one of the best teams in the world, Rafael still seemed like such a raw product and perhaps given his age, supporters would do well to appreciate there’s still a lot of potential yet to be realised.
But again, encouragingly for fans, Rafael is well aware that he needs to slowly manage that natural enthusiasm. Speaking about the game at the Santiago Bernabeu, he told MUTV:
“I think because it was a big game [against Real], I expected a lot more of myself and I thought I had to win every ball. I think I came out for the first half thinking like that. I thought, ‘I need to win this ball’ and, if I did something wrong, then I really had to win the next ball.”
Explaining that the calming words of Sir Alex Ferguson helped him regain his composure for the second half, it’s perhaps clear that the maturing process for the Brazilian’s mentality is just as important as what he’s doing with his feet. But with 32 appearances to his name in all competitions for Manchester United so far this season, make no mistake about it, Rafael is now a vital first-team component within this side.
And for all the occasional hotheaded moments and slightly rash tackles that he has a tendency to indulge in, despite his age, there aren’t many better within his position in this league. The likes of Manchester City’s Pablo Zabaleta and Liverpool’s Glen Johnson are amongst the Premier League’s outstanding candidates at right-back this season, but Rafael isn’t far behind at all. And at only 22, it might not be long before he’s the pick of the bunch, either.
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Expectation must be managed around Rafael’s future progress but for as magnificent as he’s been at Manchester United this season, the nature of the club will always demand improvement and next season, supporters are going to be looking for him to step up a gear. There’s no reason to think that he’s not capable of doing so, but for all the potential he still retains, it counts for nothing if left unfulfilled.
Yet for all the potential Rafael bestows, most importantly, it’s the performances he’s been churning out in the present, rather than what he might do in the future, that really deserve the plaudits.
If – or perhaps, when – Manchester United lift the Premier League title, although the likes of Robin van Persie and Michael Carrick are sure to be the frontrunners for their player of the year, Rafael shouldn’t be too far behind. This season has been his best yet in a United shirt. Whether it serves to be his defining one, only time will tell.
The future of Manchester United midfielder Anderson continues to do the rounds at the moment, with reports that manager Sir Alex Ferguson is willing to listen to offers for him at the end of the season, but should they persevere with the talented but injury-prone Brazilian or are they best getting rid altogether?
The 24-year-old arrived at Old Trafford as a raw attacking midfielder in 2007 and after a decent first campaign in England, he has struggled for the most part with both form and fitness; there’s no denying that there’s quality there, as his eight international caps highlight (the last of which was won in 2008), but the application and desire have at times been missing, with worries, much like there is with Wayne Rooney, over his fondness for the buffet table.
While talking to The Independent last month, Anderson summed up his Manchester United career well by saying: “When I take two steps forward I seem to take three back. It is sad but I have to do my job. I need to play games and not to have any injuries. I have had some problems. But when I don’t have these problems I know my quality. I know I can play.” Currently and somewhat unbelievably, he is now in his sixth league campaign at the club and has been reduced to just 93 league appearances, which comes in at just 15.5 games per season, all of which are most definitely not from the start.
He’s started just 11 games this season and featured seven times off the bench across all competitions, while he’s made just 33 appearances in the last two years. When it comes to the pecking order, with Michael Carrick and Tom Cleverley firmly established as the first-choice central midfield pairing, Anderson is way down, below Ryan Giggs Phil Jones and Shinji Kagawa, while Paul Scholes and Darren Fletcher continue to lurk in the shadows.
However, when you consider the long-term nature of the club’s midfield, you’d assume Anderson would be best served biding his time and sticking round, because while Cleverley is still learning his trade, Carrick is 32 years of age in the summer, Scholes could be set to retire again at the end of the current term, Fletcher’s fitness issues point to a long and difficult road to recovery and Jones may be earmarked as much for a defensive role as anywhere else. There’s clearly a fluid period just on the horizon and should Ferguson resist calls for yet another summer to bring in a defensive shield, his prospects could brighten.
Talk of a return to Brazil to boost his international chances at playing for his country in their home World Cup in 2014 refuse to go away, with some sort of third-party arrangement becoming the norm of late with returning big names, while Porto could also be interested, even if United’s valuation around the £15m mark looks both unrealistic and hugely inflated considering his recent injury troubles.
The pursuit and eventual signing of Robin van Persie and the January acquisition of Wilfried Zaha will have put a serious strain on the wage structure at the club and there may be some movement out of the exit door, with the likes of Anders Lindegaard, Nani and Alexander Buttner all remaining on the fringes of late, but crucially, would it be considered a mistake to get rid of Anderson?
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When he signed for the club and was immediately converted to a deeper-lying box-to-box midfielder in the true English style, there was consternation in Brazil at what they perceived as ruining a creative talent by not playing him in what was considered his natural position. The role involves a lot more running than he was used to and the tough nature of the defensive side of the game has clearly taken its toll on his body, but he’s a much more rounded player as a result, even if he has lost that sparkle.
He’s capable of dictating the play, but his awareness of what’s around him, and most importantly, behind him, has never been the sharpest and when used as part of a two-man partnership with Cleverley at the start of last season, while the plaudits may have rushed in for what they did going forward in an attacking sense, they were both too similar to work together long-term and they left absolutely gaping holes behind them for the opposition to exploit.
Ferguson has tinkered with different formations this term, after bringing in van Persie and Kagawa into what was already a top-heavy squad, ranging from 4-3-3, 4-4-2 and 4-4-1-1, but if the Scot would decide more on the first midfield, with Kagawa pushing forward behind the lone striker, Anderson could play that box-to-box role to good effect. Of course, the same problem of the lack of a defensive shield would be a problem and his lack of action so far has been a direct consequence of Carrick’s form and the way he’s grown into that role the past two years.
Anderson remains and always will do a deeply divisive figure, just in the same way that Nani is – his apologists argue he hasn’t been given a long enough run in the first-team to get up to speed and rely on the rare moments of quality as evidence of his talent, while his detractors simply state he doesn’t want it enough, citing his ballooning weight and partying ways as a sign he can’t be relied upon – the truth is somewhere in-between.
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Moreover, every midfielder that’s shown a consistent run of form plying their trade in Europe ever since Owen Hargreaves became damaged beyond repair has quickly been labelled as the ‘perfect solution’ to the team’s midfield problems, and while their decline in Europe is evident, the 15-point lead in the top flight indicates a side on the rise again after a rebuilding phase.
It’s difficult to quantify quite where Anderson falls given his marginalisation, having confidently been proclaimed the long-term saviour of United’s systemic midfield issues. Giving him one more season is a cyclical argument that gets you nowhere, but handing him the boot after so little playing time seems unfair. With the title already in the bag, Ferguson should give the Brazilian a run of games between now and the end of the season to prove himself, and either way, a career-defining decision awaits at the end of term.
The Premier League will introduce goal-line technology next season to become the first major European league to take the step.
The decision was made following a vote involving England’s top-flight clubs, answering the calls of many fans, players, managers and pundits.
August’s Community Shield will be the first game in which the new technology will feature ahead of the start of the 2013-14 season proper.
Thursday’s vote by Premier League teams led to British-based Hawk-Eye being given the contract to provide the goal-line system in the wake of their success in supplying the technology in tennis and cricket.
The system will see seven cameras pointed at each goal which instantly detect whether or not the whole ball has crossed the line. If it is a goal, the referee is immediately alerted, putting an end to wrong decisions being made in the game’s most fundamental area – scoring a goal.
Support of the technology has increased in recent years due to several controversial incidents. One of these was Frank Lampard’s disallowed equaliser for England in the 2010 World Cup finals against Germany, despite the ball being comfortably a yard over the line.
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The installation at the grounds of the 17 remaining Premier League teams and three promoted Championship clubs will take up to six weeks to complete and will occur during the summer.
The poor performance and show of petulance in the 4-3 win at Reading should have been the marker for what would end up being a forgettable season for Rafael da Silva. League titles aside, it could have been difficult for the youngster to recover from his first-half substitution and resulting childish behaviour. To his credit, however, the Brazilian has bounced back and gone on to become one of Manchester United’s most consistent players in the second half of this season.
To shower praise solely on Robin van Persie for the league title would be wrong; so too would it be if we stopped at the next tier down and found total satisfaction in Michael Carrick’s contributions. It now appears that United have addressed the issue at right-back and found the long-term successor to Gary Neville.
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The physicality and necessary learning curve of the Premier League has resulted in this season for Rafael. Not only does he look like an attacker keeping true to his Brazilian roots, but he now adds the defensive dimension to his game that’s needed to excel at this level. At 22, how much more is there to come from the full-back?
You have to find the smaller success stories that build the bigger picture. Once this season got fully underway and the league table started to take realistic shape, it only seemed likely that the title would head back to Old Trafford. The sour taste left on this Manchester United team on the final day of last season has had an effect, not just for the older and more experienced players, but for the younger group that will form the foundation of this team for the foreseeable future.
Players like Rafael have taken on that winning mentality and used to it improve their game. It’s about taking responsibility for the club and yourself, where at other clubs it’s easy for youngsters to hide behind their age or other more established stars. At 22, and provided he’s fit, Rafael is a staple of this United XI, and while an alternate option may be required, it would be incredibly unjust to drop the Brazilian from a position he’s made his own.
But to paint the picture that the story is over would be dangerous. Rafael remains prone to moments that are true to his age, while the club will be keen to ensure that he remains on an upward trajectory – of which I’m sure they’ll be successful. Even with two league titles under his belt prior to this season, it never seemed enough for the player. Being offered the duty of taking over from a player in Gary Neville who has been such a big part of United’s recent history has only allowed for Rafael to improve; as if the confidence from others has washed away any possible doubt in his own mind.
This has been the breakout year for a player who was always equipped with the tools to be one of the best in the Premier League. From his debut goal against Arsenal in a 2-1 loss at the Emirates, to further adding to his array of stunning efforts this season, Rafael has become a genuine weapon in the Manchester United attack as well as a defender continually improving on the most important aspect of his trade.
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It will always be about winning, especially for a club like Manchester United. But such is the regularity of their domestic successes that they are equally able to take in other aspects of a winning campaign, and this season could very well be the emergence of Rafael as one of the best right-backs in England.
Jose Mourinho has been appointed Chelsea manager and the decision on who will be the new Manchester City boss is expected to equally surprise few people, with the appointment of Manuel Pellegrini expected within a matter of days. Both clubs have sky high expectations of their men, but is the desperation for control from the owners at the Etihad and Stamford Bridge going to handicap their men at the helm?
Mourinho walks into a situation where Abramovich has almost certainly looked to conduct his own business before the Portuguese maestro re-emerged in West London. The negotiations to bring in Andre Schurrle from Bayer Leverkusen are an ominous for the former Real Madrid boss, as the Russian owner looks set to once again meddle in affairs.
There is a sigh of disapproval from supporters when the owners try and play football manager in real life, but the Blues fans have come to accept the need their owner has to be the centre of attention. Jose Mourinho may have been successful in his last stint at Stamford Bridge but such is the fickle nature of football that he comes back to the Premier League on the back foot. One mediocre season and several Spanish press fall outs last campaign means that Abramovich is holding the cards, in what is set to become yet another awkward marriage of personalities. They say never go back into bed with your ex and Mourinho could find out why his last stint ended in such a messy divorce.
In Manchester there is a similar desire for Khaldoon Al Mubarak and Sheikh Mansour to send out a message that they are in charge at Man City. When they appointed Roberto Mancini, there was an awareness that Man City were on the cusp of greatness but they still hadn’t reached the pinnacle of the Premier League. They needed the magic touches and World Class players added to the nucleus of a strong squad to really force themselves into contention.
There was an initial patience with Mancini, but as soon as the Premier League was achieved, greed took over. There was an acute awareness from the owners that they had built a squad full of superb footballers and at the end of last campaign they decided they no longer had to appease the temperament of their passionate Italian boss. They require a head coach who has far less control than Mancini did. The insistence of the former Inter Milan boss upon his own medical treatments and his clear disregard for future planning, as well as his soft spot for the erratic Mario Balotelli, was never in line with the common sense approach that they want to form at the Etihad.
This is not a slight on the managerial abilities of Mourinho or Pellegrini. The Premier League is becoming far more results and business inclined. The opportunity these two managers will have to stamp their personality on their sides will be based upon whether they achieve their objectives. There is no room for mitigating factors and whilst both managers have demonstrated their poise and skill to earn themselves the hot seats at their respective new clubs, this has become irrelevant. The players are far more savvy of their position than they once were, and you have to wonder if either La Liga boss can achieve cohesion at their clubs. Mourinho has freely admitted that the ethics of the modern footballer has changed as they have no respect for authority.
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Jose Mourinho especially, is a manager who feels it is pivotal to win over his dressing room and have emotional connections with his players Can he achieve this once more at Chelsea? Will the players have such beaming confidence in their manager if they suffer yet another tricky November?. As the current Premier League manager list illustrates, not one manager is 100% safe in their job. Arsene Wenger is in an extremely tenuous position despite being the longest serving manager the league has to offer, this is a dangerous sign for any manager that enters the pressure cooker of the Premier League.
The heat has been raised a few notches with the TV money increasing once again and there has to be a concern that the pendulum has swung in favour of a new business model, which has no place for a long term managerial strategy. The stakes are so high that it would be no shock if Man City and Chelsea have rotated their managers before the season is out. There will be very little sympathy for either boss, because of the huge opportunity they will have to win the Premier League and the astronomical contracts they will be given from their employers in the hope they succeed. Do they really have a chance?
Ravel Morrison is part of the ever-growing stream of young talents to slip through the clutches of the academy at Manchester United. A wild child with undoubted ability, he ended his tumultuous apprenticeship with the Premier League club by joining West Ham for an initial fee of less than £1million back in 2012.
Few have ever doubted the abilities of the young Englishman, but many have been quick to point out his many unsavoury traits that have seen his career so far be littered with disappointments. Domestic abuse, homophobic tweets and witness intimidation; it has been a bumpy ride in the career of the 20-year-old midfielder so far.
When asked about why he left United, former assistant Mike Phelan had the following to say:
“It was something going on between his ears.”
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This underlines the issue for Morrison, a man with incredible ability who just needs to get his head down and apply himself. With his United career firmly behind him now, it is definitely time for Sam Allardyce to get the very best out of this precocious young talent.
Maybe we are already starting to see signs of this resurgence already. 3 goals in just 5 starts, he has added a creative element to a West Ham midfield that has been somewhat bereft of it in recent times. His footballing style mirrors his enigmatic personality, rarely adopting a fixed position he has been able to float in and out during matches.
Morrison is flourishing in the role that Allardyce has afforded him, and his keenness to be involved as much as possible during games is refreshing. Rightly criticised for perhaps over-playing instead of looking for a teammate, Allardyce does still have a lot of work on his hands to continue Morrison’s development. Some may argue that if Fergie couldn’t tame the boy then who can? Few are better at instilling the traditional English footballing ethics into youngsters than ‘Big Sam’ and he couldn’t really be at a better place than West Ham right now.
A club celebrated as the ‘Academy of Football’ and rightly so in my opinion, West Ham will offer Morrison first team opportunities going forward at the standard required for his development. His off field debacles have become less and less prominent as his football has begun now to finally do the talking. This may finally be the young Englishman’s coming of age.
West Ham aren’t the only ones who believe that the Englishman has turned a corner, selection by new boss Gareth Southgate for the England u-21s is a clear sign that many in the game now think Morrison has changed. Upcoming friendlies against San Marino and Lithuania will be a good barometer of where the youngster is at with his game.
Joining up with Southgate will do the midfielder no harm either. Widely regarded as one of the best coaches in England, his insight will be invaluable for Morrison as he looks to accelerate his progress.
It is important to remember the boy is still 20; it is unlikely that his rise to prominence will be immediate. In fact it is probably best for his own sake that he is treated in a more cautious way than he was during his ‘wonderkid’ days at Manchester United. Caught up in his own ego, Allardyce will be keen to ensure that no repeat is made.
If West Ham play their cards right they may well have the next Paul Scholes on their hands. A difficult balancing act that both fans of West Ham and England will be keen to see working out. We so painfully lack creative English midfielders and someone like Morrison needs to be cherished rather than barracked.
It is difficult to tell if Morrison has really changed, but evidently progress is being made. This is potentially the biggest year of his footballing life coming up as he is gifted a second opportunity to prove his worth.
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I have faith in both Allardyce and the club as a whole that this can work. For the sake of our national game it is probably something we should all be hoping for.
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers believes that Luis Suarez will shun rumoured interest from some of European football’s biggest sides to pen a new contract at Anfield.
The Uruguayan hit-man was expected to leave Merseyside over the summer after openly chasing a switch to Real Madrid.
Despite citing a lack of Champions League football and media treatment as reasons that he could not stay with the Reds, the club held firm to keep the controversial forward.
He has since made an excellent start to the season, netting 17 goals in 11 games, and appears to be enjoying life with Liverpool once again.
Rodgers’ side are expected to offer him a bumper contract to extend his stay at the club in the coming weeks and end mounting speculation of a January move, and the Northern Irishman believes the 26-year-old will sign:
“I’ve got every confidence that that will be the case.” He told the Liverpool Echo when asked if his thinks Suarez will extend his deal.
“He and I talk about the present. We speak about the improvements in his game and how he can become better in the future.
“I don’t think there’s any doubt. I think he himself feels he’s progressed here as a player.
“No matter how good you are and whether you’re 26 or 32, like Steven Gerrard was when I came in here, if you want to become a better player and feel you are improving and see the club progressing, then you are happy.
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“And at this moment in time I don’t think he can be any happier. I think he is at the happiest point he has been.
“He is a player we want to keep here and build the team around over the coming years. I just think he is in a good place and long may it continue.”
Southampton midfielder Adam Lallana is hopeful that he can maintain his spot in Roy Hodgson’s England squad following his debut last week.
The playmaker secured two caps in during the Three Lions’ defeats to Chile and Germany, and was one of the only rays of light in an otherwise disappointing few days for the national team.
Lallana was a surprise call-up by Hodgson, who has been impressed by his start to the season with the high-flying Saints.
Despite being a new name in the squad, rumours that he could make the final 23 for the World Cup next summer have already kicked into gear.
Lallana is desperate to make the trip to South America, and says that he will be doing his utmost to maintain a spot in the England set-up.
“Playing in the two games has given me even more drive to go back and perform week in week out with Southampton because I’m desperate to be in the next squad and get to Brazil,” he told The Mirror.
“Playing at Wembley for England is something I have always dreamed of.
“The hairs on the back of my neck stood up when I walked out in front of a packed crowd. To get two caps at Wembley against tough opposition is a proud moment for me and my family but I don’t want that to be it. I want more.
“It’s a step up in quality, but it’s where I want to be.
“International football is the pinnacle, it’s where the best football is played and this experience makes me hungry for more.”
Lallana’s versatility may work to his advantage when Hodgson comes to select his final squad, with the 25-year-old able to operate on either flank or just behind the main striker in a 4-2-3-1 system.
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Does Adam Lallana have a chance of making the World Cup squad?
Ravel Morrison’s career could have gone south. By this point, despite only being 20, he could have taken a path that saw him well way from the game.
It says a lot about him that even with all the talent to become one of England’s best in this new wave, Alex Ferguson and Manchester United chose to move him on when they did. Despite the similarities with Paul Pogba’s issue over a new contract at Old Trafford and the events that led to his move to Juventus, both cases are not identical.
The player should, in a way then, feel grateful to West Ham for taking him on. Even though at the time of his arrival at Upton Park the club were in the Championship, it represented a second chance for a youngster who had a string of disciplinary problems.
West Ham are well within their right to report Fulham for what they believe to be “tapping up” in their pursuit of Morrison. West Ham have reportedly rejected a £6 million bid, but they won’t be comforted by word from Fulham boss Rene Meulensteen that he’s known the midfielder for a long time and that he wanted to join up with him at Craven Cottage.
For West Ham, somewhere in the mind there will be an acceptance that one day Morrison will move on. Now that he’s seemingly been put back on course and reapplied himself to the game, his talent is evident, as well as his ability at the highest level. It would only be natural if an offer from a bigger club eventually came in. From the player’s standpoint, he should be mindful that West Ham is the club who gave him the opportunity for his talents to be showcased in the top flight.
But that’s not the case with Fulham. The club will need an extremely strong effort and a bit of luck to avoid relegation this season, and yet according to Meulensteen, Morrison is more than keen to join. It’s a sideways move for the youngster if anything, possibly motivated by the promise of increased wages. Fulham will be doing all they can to prise Morrison away from West Ham, but it would be more than understandable if Sam Allardyce were to be disappointed in the player’s apparent role in this.
What is unfortunate is that West Ham’s complaint will likely fall on deaf ears. They’re not the first club to complain about tapping up, and yet despite it being an act outside the laws of the game, it’s common.
With Allardyce in a battle to keep West Ham in the Premier League, the last thing he needed was the club’s current top scorer to seek a move away. As is being reported, if a bid comes in for £10 million, the Hammers will have to triple Morrison’s wages if they’re to keep him. Therefore, selling for £10 million is said to be what West Ham have settled on – an issue they knew they’d have to face sooner or later.
The disappointment is the manner in which the potential move is taking place. Faith was placed into Morrison in 2012 by West Ham, and during these final few months of the season, they’d have been looking to him to inspire the club permanently out of the relegation zone.