History of West Ham United F.C.

:"See also West Ham United F.C. by season":"See also West Ham United F.C. timeline"

West Ham United Football Club are based in Upton Park, Newham, East London and have played their home matches at the 35,647 capacity Boleyn Ground stadium since 1904.

The clubs formative roots stretch back to their formation as a professional side in 1900, but existed for at least five years prior to this under the name Thames Ironworks F.C. who themselves were built upon the remains of Old Castle Swifts F.C. (a club formed in 1892).

They initially competed in the London League (Winners 1897-98) later joining the Southern League (Division 2 Champions 1898-99) and Western League (Western League Champions in 1907-08) before joining the full Football League in 1919. They enjoyed their first top flight season in 1923 and have never fallen outside the top two divisions. They have won the FA Cup three times: in 1964, 1975 and 1980 (runners up 1923, 2006), and also captured the now defunct Cup Winners Cup in 1965 (runners up 10 years later) and the Intertoto Cup in 1999. They also won the first War Cup in 1940. Their best finish in the top flight was a third place finish in 1986. They have been runners up twice in the Football League Cup (1966 and 1981) and shared the 1964 Charity Shield

They were awarded the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Team Award in honour of their UEFA Cup Winners Cup win.

The early years

1892-1895 - Pre-history and Old Castle Swifts F.C.

In June 1900, Thames Ironworks was wound up but was immediately relaunched on July 5 1900 as West Ham United Football Club with former player Syd King installed officially as club director, but acting as 'manager', and Charlie Paynter as assistant trainer. Club secretary was L. M . Bowen. Despite the shift in team name the club (and its fans) are to this day referred to as "The Irons" and "The Hammers" due to the original connection] The tradition lasted long into the 60's even after Fenton had moved on and saw the likes of John Lyall and Harry Redknapp pass through.

Dick was on his National Service when spotted by Fenton and brought into the team. Meanwhile Allison played for local rivals Charlton Athletic but had made only 2 league appearances and was nearing 24 years old. Fenton acquired Allison by selling off one of the young players coming through the system. The pair went on to feature for the club for the remainder of Fentons tenure with the team, though Allison had to retire through illness and instead became mentor to Bobby Moore alongside Irish international full back Noel Cantwell and all the other young players on the squad.cite web |url=http://www.whufc.com/page/ClubHistory/0,,12562,00.html |title=Club History|author=John Hellier|publisher=WHUFC.com] Moore had been scouted inititally in 1955 after Fenton had reportedly been tipped to his presence in the East Ham side, but it took two bites of the cherry for Jack Turner (then West Ham scout) to encourage his signing. In the end Fenton put the lad on the books at £7 a month.cite web |url=http://www.bobbymooreonline.co.uk/Earlyyears.html |title=The Young Bobby Moore|author=Noj Vinton|publisher=BobbyMooreonline.co.uk]

O'Farrell and Moroney were both acquired from Ireland in 1949 prior to Fenton becoming manager, but the pair were Irish internationals that had even featured in the 2-0 defeat of the England team at Goodison Park in 1949. John Bond had been brought in as Fentons first signing in 1950 and was to be with the team for the next 15 years as a popular goalscoring right back playing opposite Captain Cantwell. Jimmy Andrews was brought in from Dundee in 1951 to play left wing, but eventually lost his position to Malcolm Musgrove.

Fenton introduced continental ideas to the team, revamping training methods and taking inspiration from higher ranked teams, and even inspiring some. Fenton had been impressed greatly by the all conquering Hungarians of the 50's led by Ferenc Puskas and the Casseteri program and development of the academy were at the core. Ernie Gregory said (of the 50's diet) "We'd usually eaten fish or chicken and toast before then, but Dr. Thomas advised us all to eat steak and rice two hours before kick-off. All the other clubs copied us after that".cite web |url=http://www.ex-hammers.com/page.php?24|title=Ernie Gregory Talks exclusively to "Ex", Issue 5|author=Tony McDonald|publisher=Ex-Hammers.com] However not all the changes were strictly down to Fenton, Musgrove attributed much of the training regime to Allison, going so far as to state that once the players were at the club (signed by Fenton) they were pretty much Allisons property.cite web |url=http://www.ex-hammers.com/page.php?27|title=Malcolm Musgrove Talks exclusively to "Ex", Issue 8|author=Tony McDonald|publisher=Ex-Hammers.com] As well as being a student of the game himself, Fenton encouraged all players to take coaching badges and it's notable that many of his former players went on to coaching and managing roles after they retired.cite web |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/obituaries/story/0,,1757158,00.html|title=John Lyall - Obituary|author=Julie Welch|publisher=Guardian Newspaper] . The Academy also involved, beyond the routine training and development of the youth and squad, actual tactical discussions between the players.

West Ham slowly improved through the 1950s culminating in achieving promotion to the top division again in 1958 thanks primarily to the goals of John Dick. West Ham have since stated that much is owed to the structure put in place by Allison.

:"See also West Ham United F.C. season 1958-59 and 1959-1960

West Ham United under Ron Greenwood

1962-1974

West Ham United first established themselves in 1964, when manager Ron Greenwood guided the club to their first major trophy in the shape of an FA Cup final victory over Preston North End. Ronnie Boyce scoring a last minute goal to secure a 3-2 victory, with striker Sissons becoming the youngest ever scorer in a cup final. The success of 1964 was repeated a year later, this time with a 2-0 European Cup Winners Cup triumph over 1860 Munich at Wembley.

Greenwood had been appointed to the position after 4 years as Arsenal assistant manager and took charge for 1962. West Ham had been promoted to the top division in 1958 and subsequently managed to first 6th, then 14th and 16th before Greenwood led the team back into the top ten with 8th place finish in 1962. The team didn't trouble the top 10 for 6 years, but became perennial challengers in the cup where they showed they were equal to any team over single games.

They followed up defeating Division 2 Preston by winning the European Cup Winners Cup the subsequent season. The team defeated Real Zaragoza and Sparta Prague on their way to the final where they took on Munich 1860. Moore stated that the secret to their success was the presence of the newly established Martin Peters "In Europe you need more skill, and Martin added an extra quality to our game" [" [Sunday Times Illustrated History of Football, pg130] "] . Moore was gracious in victory as the team defeated Munich 2-0, with young untested Alan Sealey forced to play up front after injuries to first choice strikers Byrne and Brabook. He responded with a brace, whilst at the back Greenwood reflected "This was Bobby Moore's greatest game. Technical perfection". Moore deflected the attention away stating "There was a lot of good football and we played really well against a good side".

The following season the team made it to the final of the League Cup, but lost 6-3 on aggregate to West Bromwich Albion.

The most successful team of this period was ultimately founded upon the England international trio of Club and International Captain Bobby Moore in defence, Martin Peters in midfield and Geoff Hurst up front (all promoted through the youth system during Fenton's tenure). Moore had made his debut for West Ham in 1958 replacing an unwell Malcolm Allison who had been a stalwart for the team at the back for a decade, taking the number 6 shirt at age 17 and was not to relinquish the position for another 16 years. He was Captain at 20. He made his England debut in 1962, and subsequently became Captain a year later going on to lead the team out 90 times in total until 1973.

Peters has been described as the first "modern midfielder". Alf Ramsey remarked that he was at least "ten years ahead of his time". In his 11 years with the club, though his debut only came in 1962, he managed to score nearly a goal every three games from midfield, and had played in every position for the club including as goalkeeper.

Hurst meanwhile was routinely dormant in the league, but was the leading cup goalscorer in England (both FA Cup and League Cup) until his records were broken some thirty years later by Robbie Fowler. Originally a midfielder, Greenwood converted him to be a front running striker and it paid dividends as he led the team to consecutive cup appearances before capping it all with become a regular England International and World Cup winner in 1966. The following season he scored 41 goals in the league, nearly a quarter of his eventual tally.

The club also sported the likes of long time club servants John Bond and England international Ken Brown (father of Kenny Brown, who went on to play for the club in the 1990s), talented wing half Eddie Bovington, midfielder and forward Ronnie Boyce, leftback Jack Burkett (the first man to ever be substituted for the club) and rightback Joe Kirkup. Up front were the prolific striker Johnny Byrne and the slightly less prolific Brian Dear. Future manager Harry Redknapp played on the wing, the goalkeeper was Jim Standen; about this time, the club hired its first black player John Charles.

Over the next few seasons Greenwood added some of the clubs best known, and long serving, youth products. 20 year servant, and future manager, Billy Bonds, fellow (almost) 20 year servants Trevor Brooking (who also had spells managing the club) and Frank Lampard Sr. (assistant manager during Redknapp's tenure), Clyde Best, John McDowell, Alan Sealey. In addition the team acquired Bobby Ferguson as goalkeeper.

The moves ultimately helped to guide West Ham to another FA Cup success in 1975, this time against Fulham. Ron Greenwood subsequently was appointed England Manager as replacement for Don Revie after his unsuccessful premiership.

:"See also West Ham United F.C. season 1963-64, 1964-1964 and 1965-1966"

West Ham United under John Lyall

1974-1989

He was succeeded as team manager by John Lyall (a former youth product who retired through injury), who guided West Ham to another UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final in his second season in charge (1975-76). But this time West Ham were on the losing side, going 4-2 down against Anderlecht. Two years later in 1978 and the club were relegated to the Second Division but the manager was not replaced; in addition, many players were retained long enough enjoy a second FA Cup victory under Lyall's leadership whilst still in Division 2 in 1980, a feat no side outside the top division has since achieved. This time the win was over another London club, the much-fancied Arsenal. In his time Lyall had added Phil Parkes as goalkeeper, and had the fortune of having Alvin Martin, Geoff Pike and Paul Allen emerge through the ranks to add to the defence and midfield. In addition he had captured skilful winger Alan Devonshire from non-league football, penalty taking fullback Ray Stewart from Scotland and Stuart Pearson from Cup winners Manchester United.

The game ended 1-0, with Brooking stooping to head home a goal he would have probably more easily scored with his feet as the second division side more than held its own. [ [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20060424/ai_n16219367 West Ham defy form book (Paragraph 11)] ] Young Paul Allen became the youngest player to appear in a Wembley cup final [Allen was aged just 17 years and 256 days of age, though James F. M. Prinsep and Curtis Weston were younger when they played in the 1879 and 2004 finals, at Kennington and Cardiff, respectively.] , and at one point looked set to score what would have been a goal by the youngest player also - until a professional foul from Willie Young brought him down whilst clean through in behind the defence. This 1980 FA Cup is still West Ham's most recent major trophy.

In 1981, the Hammers finished runners-up in the League Cup. Between 1982 and 1985 West Ham achieved three consecutive top ten finishes. Lyall helped them achieve their highest league finish of third in 1986, but was sacked three years later as they suffered relegation to the Second Division. By the time of his departure, Lyall was the longest-serving manager at any club in the Football League, having been at West Ham for 15 years.

:"See also West Ham United F.C. season 1972-73, 1974-1975, 1975-1976, 1979-1980, 1980-81, 1985-86, 1986-1987, 1987-88 and 1988-1989"

The Macari and Bonds eras

1989-1994

Lyall was replaced by Lou Macari for the 1989-90 season, but Macari resigned after less than one season as manager to concentrate on clearing his name in connection with financial irregularities at his previous club Swindon Town. The next manager to occupy the hot seat at West Ham was Billy Bonds, who guided them to seventh place in 1989-90 (just missing out on the playoffs) but in 1990-91 they attained runners-up spot in the Second Division and returned to the First Division. But West Ham struggled throughout the 1991-92 season and were relegated in bottom place, missing the first season of the new Premier League.

West Ham regained their top flight status at the first attempt, finishing Division One runners-up in 1992-93 and securing promotion to the Premiership. They survived relegation by a comfortable margin in 1993-94 and finished 13th, but Bonds was informed that Harry Redknapp would take charge of the side for the next season, and to either accept the position of director of football or be sacked. Bonds responded by handing in his resignation.

West Ham United under Harry Redknapp

1994-2000

One of Harry Redknapp's first actions as West Ham manager was to re-sign striker Tony Cottee from Everton. He also signed Liverpool's Don Hutchison and Mike Marsh and brought back Julian Dicks, as well as re-signing striker Iain Dowie from Southampton. Redknapp also attempted to bring young talent to the side, signing Joey Beauchamp from Oxford United and bringing through the young talent of Matthew Rush, Steve Jones and Matty Holmes. Cottee started the second spell of his West Ham career well, and formed a solid partnership with Trevor Morley aided by the Ian Bishop, Dale Gordon and the aggressive Martin Allen in midfield. The team defied the popular belief that they would return to the First Division by finishing thirteenth. In addition John Moncur was added from relegated Swindon Town.

West Ham avoided relegation again in 1994-95 and played their part in the final-day drama of the season, holding Manchester United to a 1-1 draw at Upton Park and denying them a third successive Premiership title. On paper the team was routinely outclassed by opposition, but on grass put in a series of superb performances [" [http://www.soccer-stats.com/teams/results_so_far.asp?divno=2&code=wh&asid=94 West Ham results 1994] "] . Old hand Alvin Martin partnered Steve Potts, Tim Breacker and Dicks with longterm custodian Luděk Mikloško in goal to form a stout defence that made up for the deficiencies elsewhere in midfield and up front which had seen a number of players move on - including fan favourite Matthew Holmes, to newly christened league champions Blackburn Rovers, for £1.5m.

Redknapp spent the summer adding to the teams defence. He had previously captured Danish International centrehalf Marc Rieper in one coup and quickly followed this up by signing another international, this time the Croatian Slaven Bilić in January 1996 for a then club record £1.65m. West Ham progressed to 10th place in 1995-96.

Crucially at this point the Jean-Marc Bosman case finally came to an end resulting in the Bosman ruling. This meant no longer would Redknapp have to balance his team based upon nationality - a problem the previous year when Mikloško, Rieper and were all classed as 'Foreign', thus leaving only one slot open for Irish/Welsh and English players. The change in ruling opened the door for a number of foreign internationals, and at the same time had seen a great number of established players within the team being shown the door (Hutchison, Burrows, Morley, Marsh, Holmes, Boere and Gordon were all released or sold on).

The following summer, going into the historic 1996-97 season, Redknapp continued looking abroad and made two of the most ambitious but perhaps least productive signings in the club's history - the Romanian national team's striker Florin Răducioiu and Portuguese winger Paulo Futre (formerly a £10m man) from AC Milan. The deals failed to work out; Răducioiu left after six months at the club and returned to Romania after falling out with the manager (famously being christened a "tart, a fairy, a little girl" ["Redknapp, Harry With Derek McGovern (1998). Harry Redknapp - My Autobiography. HarperCollins. ISBN 0-00-218872-4."] [" [http://www.whoateallthepies.tv/2006/09/how_did_harry_r.html Harry calling out Mr. Răducioiu] "] by Redknapp in his autobiography for complaining about the physical nature of the English game), while Futre played just one first-team game before being beaten by a long-term knee injury and announcing his retirement (and equally famously storming out after being denied the number 10 shirt for a friendly). Coupled with the equally disastrous Marco Boogers affair, the drawn out Work Permit wrangle involving Răducioiu's compatriot Dumitrescu who had been signed 6 months earlier from Tottenham Hotspur (but had failed to play the required number of games whilst at Spurs) and the lack of a quality second striker West Ham struggled.

The 1996-97 Hammer campaign nosedived towards disaster after starting in an average fashion. Injuries to key and back-up players were critical (losing Lazaridis to a broken leg for instance, and what turned out to be the career ending injury to the promising Richard Hall signed only months before for £1.5m from Southampton), but so were the failed signings and some poor performances. The form of Michael Hughes (signed permanently after 2 years on loan from RC Strasbourg) and performances of loan signing Hugo Porfirio were a rare bright spot, as was the emergence of future England teammates Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard. Răducioiu's chief contribution - a curling left footed shot around a full stretch Schmeichel in a 2-2 draw - was considered by someWho|date=July 2007 to be almost worth the transfer in itself. At Christmas the team sat low in midtable with only 5 wins and 7 draws from 19 games at which point they added only 1 point from the next 6 games sending the team to the bottom of the table.

Faced with relegation the board financed two key acquisitions. Firstly young Arsenal striker John Hartson in a £3.3m move (again breaking the clubs transfer record) and in addition the signing of Newcastle United forward Paul Kitson in a £1.2m move and battling Manchester City midfielder Steve Lomas for £1.6m. The strike pair were an instant hit, scoring 13 goals between them in 12 games as a pairing including those in a vital 4-3 win against close rivals Tottenham, a 3-2 against Chelsea and a hat-trick for Kitson and brace for Hartson in a 5-1 rout of Sheffield Wednesday in the next to last game confirming the club's survival and saving Redknapp's job.

Despite the close shave the hopes for the following 1997-98 season were high. Hartson and Kitson gave the team an exciting frontline, whilst in the midfield Redknapp added Eyal Berkovic from Southampton and Trevor Sinclair and Andy Impey from QPR. The team unfortunately had to contend with the season-long loss of captain Julian Dicks (who had played on the previous year despite needing urgent knee surgery) and the sale of Marc Rieper to Celtic, and Slaven Bilić to Everton. The profit from the sale went to acquire former England under-21s David Unsworth and Ian Pearce from Everton and Blackburn respectively.

This season marked a change in Redknapp's tactical approach, the team changing to a 5-3-2 formation for the most part of the season. This allowed Redknapp to blood the young talent of Rio Ferdinand in his preferred role as a sweeper whilst pairing him with two extremely competent defenders. The pacey Lazaridis and Impey took over wingback roles, whilst the centre of midfield was contested by Lampard, Lomas and Berkovic with Moncur preferred over Ian Bishop in reserve and Michael Hughes out in the cold. In goal Mikloško started out but injury curtailed his season (and by the next summer had moved on to QPR) resulting in Craig Forrest stepping in. However, Redknapp also managed to pluck the flamboyant Bernard Lama on loan from Paris St. Germain which helped maintain West Ham's late season push.

The season did not go entirely to plan. Kitson struggled (as he was for the remainder of his West Ham career) with niggling injuries limiting him to only 13 appearances (and 4 goals). Redknapp acquired Samassi Abou for a bargain £250,000 to add depth, and he performed admirably if sometimes lacking in quality. [" [http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1998/03/13/phead.htm "Abou rues miss that could have sunk Reds" after missing from convert|2|yd out.] "] Nonetheless he became a crowd favourite for his languid style, skill and lampooned name (having to have it explained to him that the crowd were not 'booing' him, but in fact 'abouing' him). Hartson however scored consistently, notching 24 in his first season across all competitions, whilst Lampard flowered in midfield. The acquisition of Sinclair at Christmas injected some vital cutting edge and propelled the team for the first time into the upper half of the table resulting in the side finishing an impressive 8th.

For 1998/99 Redknapp again went foreign and signed former French International Marc Keller, exciting Cameroonian midfielder Marc-Vivien Foé and World Cup star Javier Margas. However he did not neglect home-grown talent, adding the experienced Ian Wright and Neil Ruddock, whilst also bringing Scott Minto back from abroad and Shaka Hislop in as goalkeeper on a free from Newcastle. (Hislop went on to win the Hammer of the Year award in his first season.)

West Ham started slowly and by Christmas were facing a crisis. First the club sold Andy Impey under the nose of the manager (literally removing him from a game in which he was tabled to start) [" [http://beta.4thegame.com/club/whfc/news/49003/LIKE+IT+OR+LUMP+IT,+HAMMERS+SUPREMO+TELLS+REDKNAPP.html Redknapps flare up to Impey's withdrawal (line 23).] "] and then made it clear to the manager that he would find no further funds forthcoming due to the absenteeism of Javier Margas (which was taken to highlight Redknapp's continued failure with foreign talent).) [" [http://beta.4thegame.com/club/whfc/news/49003/LIKE+IT+OR+LUMP+IT,+HAMMERS+SUPREMO+TELLS+REDKNAPP.html Redknapps flare up to Impey's withdrawal (line 31).] "] John Hartson was found to be involved in a training ground incident involving Eyal Berkovic and the owners were forced to act. Hartson was sold to Wimbledon for £7.5m as a result after having an already disappointing start to the year where he did not score until 10 games in and was notably overweight and out of shape. [" [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/wales/904589.stm Hartson overweight and unfit] "]

Redknapp was given a some of the funds to buy in replacements. His first choice was Paolo Di Canio - who famously the previous year had pushed referee Paul Alcock to the ground - and he signed for an initial fee of £1.25m. In addition he also signed former Manchester United target Marc-Vivien Foé for £3.5m to solidify the midfield.

By the end of 1998/99 West Ham had achieved an impressive 5th place finish. But, for the only time in league history, were denied a UEFA Cup place due to new UEFA Coefficients. (The seasons to either side had seen every team down to 7th feature in the UEFA Cup.) The team instead was entered as one of England's Inter-Toto cup competitors (and a place in the UEFA Cup proper up for grabs). A victory over Metz in the two-legged final eventually earned the Hammers a place in the UEFA Cup - ending an absence of almost 20 years from European competition. Redknapp brought in Paulo Wanchope from Derby County to compliment Paolo Di Canio and Igor Štimac to replace the outgoing Unsworth.

In 1999-2000 consolidation was supposed to be the key, but once again plans were interrupted by injury. The Inter Toto and UEFA Cup expedition took a lot out of the players - but the team started the season sharper than the others, resulting in a comfortable upper-midtable position by the halfway point of the season. Tiredness, loss of form, and a build-up of injuries resulted in a slide downwards towards the end of the season, eventually resulting in a 9th place finish and a 3rd consecutive year in the top half (a first for West Ham).

The year was noticeable for the introduction of Joe Cole and Michael Carrick to the first team proper, the ignominious exit in the League Cup to Aston Villa due to an enforced replay after it transpired that last minute substitute Emmanuel Omoyimni had featured in the competition whilst on loan earlier in the season (this event saw the resignation of Martin Aldridge), and the barracking Paulo Wanchope received for the early part of the year. The striker failed to settle despite scoring 12 league goals in 33 games (an above average output). Unfortunately his erratic form and gaffes meant he would move on at the end of the year.

Marc-Vivien Foé was sold at the end of the year (his final act was a plunging tackle from behind that saw him sent off against Arsenal) and Redknapp acquired Frédéric Kanouté with the money.

2000-01 - End of Redknapp

The 2000-01 season was Redknapp's final year. They got off to a dismal start, hampered by further injuries (Sinclair notably, but also Ian Pearce continued absence), a number of failed loan transfers (Christian Bassila and Kaba Diawara) and unimpressive signings (Davor Šuker, reportedly on £50,000 a week [" [http://football.guardian.co.uk/fanzines/story/0,,423138,00.html Davor Suker wage amount] "] who only managed 8 starts, Ragnvald Soma, and the continued absence of Margas who had turned up for half of the previous season). With the team in the doldrums the board eventually accepted a bid for the teams prized asset - Rio Ferdinand - in an £18 million move to Leeds United for both the British transfer record and a world record for a defender. The deal has since been criticised, as the fee was neither upfront, nor was a sell-on bonus included; meaning the club missed out on his later £30m move to United and also a sizeable chunk of the initial transfer.

Redknapp proceeded to spend a chunk of the transfer money on a string of coolly received signings (in addition he was given a £300,000 pound bonus for agreeing not to spend the entire transfer sum and arranging the transfer to Leeds) [" [http://www.soccerphile.com/soccerphile/news/sean/harry-redknapp.html Redknapps alleged £300,000 payment] "] forcing what was to be the end of his time at the club. Redknapp signed the Liverpool pairing of Rigobert Song (a solid, if erratic and unsuited to the physical Premiership, player with over 60 Caps to his name for £2.6m) and Titi Camara (an exciting attacking player who arrived massively overweight, unfit and devoid of form after being forced out of the Liverpool first team for £2.2m), along with Scottish International Christian Dailly (who had never lived up to his great early promise for £1.75m), for a total of some £8m (including fees and final cost adjustments). These transfers were later used as ammunition against the departing Redknapp, with aspersions cast regarding agent fees and the expensive nature of Camara's alleged Pay-As-You-Play contract that would have seen further monies paid after a relatively small number of games. [" [http://www.kumb.com/report_old.php?id=105 Aspersions cast on Titi Camara] "] His only solid moves from a fan's point of view was the loan signing Loan signings of Hannu Tihinen from Viking FK and Svetoslav Todorov did little to improve the paucity in quality of the first team. The team's fortunes improved imperceptibly but survival was ensured thanks to the poor performances of lower sides and the team finished in 15th place, comfortably out of the relegation zone.

At this point Redknapp's relationship with the board, already strained since the Andy Impey incident, fell apart. Redknapp requested a warchest of £12m to get the club back into the top six, with a sizeable portion of this to go towards bringing in Paris St. Germain left-winger Laurent Robert, a client of football agent and close associate of Harry Redknapp Willie McKay.

Slanderous comments soon followed in the direction of the West Ham board as Redknapp gave an interview in the unofficial West Ham fanzine Over Land and Sea, focusing his tirade on the lack of funding. The outburst caused so much friction that his position as manager became untenable, and Redknapp was sacked before the end of the season.

In the aftermath Frank Lampard Sr. left the club, and due to the obvious fall-out his son Frank Lampard was sold off to Chelsea for £11m. The money was subsequently granted to incoming manager Glenn Roeder.

West Ham united under Glenn Roeder

2001-2003

Several big names were linked with the vacant manager's job. Former West Ham player Alan Curbishley, who had rebuilt Charlton Athletic F.C. on and off the field since becoming their manager in 1991, instantly became favourite for the job but insisted he wasn't interested. Steve McClaren, who had been assistant manager of Manchester United in three successive title-winning seasons (including the 1999 treble campaign), was also linked with the job, but he was then appointed manager of Middlesbrough. So West Ham turned to youth team manager Glenn Roeder to fill the role. People [" [http://www.thebenchspeaks.com/search?updated-max=2007-01-19T16%3A27%3A00Z Public opinion on Roeder] "] doubted Roeder's suitability for the job, as his only managerial exploits had been short-lived and perceived to be unsuccessful [" [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20030825/ai_n12713503 Roeder unsuccessful Paragraph 9] "] with Gillingham over 1992-93 and Watford from 1993-96.

West Ham had a slow start to the 2001-02 season, hampered by injuries to key players. New signing David James was injured before he even made an appearance whilst on International duty; Frédéric Kanouté, Michael Carrick and Paolo Di Canio nursed groin and knee problems). The board made money available for strengthening the squad and Glenn acquired respected Czech International defender Tomáš Řepka from ACF Fiorentina, and Don Hutchison for his second term with the Hammers. However, Glenn Roeder was soon under immense pressure from fans who were calling for him to be sacked, especially after witnessing back to back maulings at the hands of Everton (5-0) and Blackburn (7-1). He responded by guiding the club to a seventh-place finish in the final table, just one place short of European qualification - although there was a 12-point gap between West Ham and sixth-placed Chelsea. ] The summer of 2002 did not bode well for the season ahead. Despite a glaring need for squad reinforcements, [" [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/west_ham_utd/3664103.stm Showing lack of investment] "] [" [http://www.soccerbase.com/transfers_by_team.sd?teamid=2802 Showing exodus and the fact 4 of our only signed players arriving in January the] "] only positive transfer activity involved Irish international Gary Breen signing on a free transfer (he was later to be reviled as one of the poorest players ever to wear the West Ham shirt [" [http://www.kumb.com/story.php?id=11874 Fan lays into Gary Breen, right side scroll bar] "] [" [http://blogfc.com/premiership-duffers-xi/ Blog places Breen in all time worst XI] "] ). Out the door went a number of experienced pros such as Paul Kitson, and a hatful of youth and fringe players. Another (by now traditional) poor start plagued West Ham United through to 2003, and this time Roeder was unable to turn things round quickly enough. The loss of Kanouté for nearly 1/3rd of the season, and Di Canio at the exact same period resulted in the teenage Jermain Defoe leading the line on his own. The loss of form of key players such as Trevor Sinclair, 2001-02 Hammer of the Year Sebastian Schemmel and Michael Carrick, who was still nursing a groin problem, combined with the absence of a dependable left back or left midfielder merely exacerbated an already difficult situation. The Hammers failed to win a single home game until January and suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of Manchester United in the FA Cup. The much attacked Gary Breen was pointedly at fault for a number of errors, [" [http://football.guardian.co.uk/Match_Report/0,,-41366,00.html Breen's errors vs Utd in match report] "] but his play was not helped by the lack of any cohesive team.

During the transfer window the club acquired Les Ferdinand and Rufus Brevett, and more importantly got Di Canio and Kanouté both back on the pitch and off the treatment table. The club's form improved and they began to claw their way up the table towards safety. In April Glenn collapsed in his office and was diagnosed with a brain tumour. He was immediately given a leave of absence and 1980 FA Cup final hero Trevor Brooking took over for the final 3 games of the Premiership season. But, despite an upturn in the team's form (winning 2 and drawing 1) they were unable to overhaul Bolton Wanderers F.C. and finished 18th in the final table, 2pts short of the safety zone. West Ham drew early in the season and then lost against Bolton during the run in; a draw against Bolton in their second match would have been sufficient to see West Ham survive. Their 10-year spell in the Premiership was over. Not since 1994-95 had a club been relegated from the division with more than 40 points (West Ham had 42), but this was no consolation for a disappointed West Ham side filled with some of the most promising young English players, all tipped for international honours. [" [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/west_ham_utd/2282354.stm Players tipped for England] "] The relegation forced the sale of key players Joe Cole and Glen Johnson (both to Chelsea), Kanouté and later Jermain Defoe to Tottenham Hotspur, Trevor Sinclair to Manchester City later followed by David James in the same direction, in a bid to prevent a financial crisis at Upton Park. Glenn Roeder was sacked soon after the start of the 2003-04 season.

West Ham United under Alan Pardew

2003-2006

Alan Pardew was the eventual replacement for Roeder, following Brooking's second brief stint as caretaker manager. Pardew was head hunted from fellow Division One rivals (and promotion hopefuls) Reading by West Ham with the objective of promotion back to the FA Premier League. With a team whose talent had become marginalised over the previous 6 months since relegation the task did not appear to be a simple one.

The team saw over 15 new players brought in on both short and long term deals including Rob Lee, David Connolly, Marlon Harewood, Matthew Etherington, Kevin Horlock, Hayden Mullins, Nigel Reo-Coker, Andy Melville, Bobby Zamora and Brian Deane. The turn-over of players continued however with these and other acquisitions funded by the loss of David James, Jermain Defoe and Ian Pearce. The squad was bolstered with a contingent of loan signings such as Wayne Quinn, Neil Mellor, Matthew Kilgallon, Niclas Alexandersson, Robbie Stockdale and Jon Harley. As a result the team routinely lacked cohesion, and without Defoe for a large part lacked a quality striker in front of goal - though Connolly's immediate impact (5 in the 9 opening league games) and positive attitude coupled with Harewoods form went some way to make up for the loss of the future England International.

The teams form had picked up noticeably under Trevor Brooking, rising from 10th in the table to second by mid September. With Pardew installed as manager on the 18th of September the fans didn't have to wait long for their first win with the team taking a 3-0 over Crystal Palace on the 1st of October. A subsequent victory against Derby however was the last for almost a month until title run-away leaders Wigan suffered a 4-0 hammering at Upton Park. By this point the team had slipped to 8th, and were more than 6pts off the pace of the top 6 sides. Form waxed and waned through January, February and March with early fan opinion divided over their new manager but eventually the team settled into the top 6, and barring a late season dip that for a timebeing had Pardew seemingly close to the chop,Fact|date=February 2007 the team came through strong to run out 4th place overall. In the Play-Off finals the team were defeated by Crystal Palace (who finished 6th that year).

The following year promotion was achieved through the play-offs. The team had only just sealed the last play-off place with a 2-1 win over Watford on the last day of the season. This time having played twice against Ipswich Town, West Ham drew 2-2 at Upton Park and won 2-0 at Portman Road over the two legs to qualify for the final at the Millennium Stadium, they achieved their aim with a 1-0 win against Preston North End, with Bobby Zamora scoring the only goal of the game in the second half.

Following promotion, the club exceeded expectations and achieved the ultimate target of survival for 2005-06 with a top-half place in the 2004-05 Premiership. Pardew claimed that he will not sell the club's best players, and appeared to have the backing of the board on this issue; he in fact spent a club record seven million to bring Dean Ashton to Upton Park. Ashton has been touted as "the next Alan Shearer" [" [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4153/is_20060811/ai_n16653834 Dean Ashton the "next Alan Shearer"] "] . In January and February 2006, following a 3-1 home defeat by Chelsea, West Ham embarked on their best sequence of results for twenty years, winning seven games in a row in all competitions (five in the league and two in the FA Cup). The 3-2 win away to Arsenal on February 1, on West Ham's last visit to Highbury Stadium, was the most noteworthy victory during this run, with the Hammers recording their first win over Arsenal at their stadium since 1995.

This seven-game winning streak ended when they drew 0-0 with Bolton Wanderers in the FA Cup Fifth Round, however their unbeaten run continued when they drew 2-2 against Everton in the Premiership, before coming to an abrupt halt with a heavy defeat against Bolton Wanderers, losing 4-1. However Alan Pardew fielded a weakened team in that game in preparation for the FA Cup replay against Bolton again, where they won 2-1 aet with a Marlon Harewood. They then played, on 18 March, their former manager and player Harry Redknapp's club Portsmouth, on his first return to Upton Park. Portsmouth won 4-2 as Pardew rested some key players. However, two days later the Hammers beat Manchester City 2-1 to reach the FA Cup semi-finals. On Sunday 23 April, less than a week following a loss to Middlesbrough in a league fixture, West Ham defeated them 1-0 at Villa Park in the FA Cup semi, with Marlon Harewood again scoring the goal that sent the Hammers through to their first FA Cup final since they beat Arsenal in 1980. This also secured the Hammers a place in the 2006-07 UEFA Cup, as Liverpool, their final opponent, are now assured of no worse than a spot in the final qualifying round of the that season's Champions League. The Hammers, with a place in next year's 2006-07 UEFA Cup and a FA Cup Final, now had to secure a top 10 finish, a position they had held since the start of the campaign. With this in mind and the FA Cup final on May 13, Pardew had a dilemma, whether to stick out his first team and run the risk of injuries and suspensions or hold back. A mock run up of the FA Cup final saw Liverpool beat the Irons 2-1, with a late confrontation involving Mullins and Luis Garcia seeing them both sent off, missing the Final. Mullins, a key to their Premiership success would be dearly missed as he had been a defensive stronghold against many a worthy attacking force.Fact|date=February 2007 On the back of that troubled match, the Hammers beat an already relegated West Bromwich Albion team 1-0, in which Dean Ashton limped off with a hamstring injury, a huge doubt for the final. This win was the sixth time the Hammers had played on a Monday night and their sixth win was a huge step towards achieving a top ten finish.

West Ham won their final game of the season 2-1 over arch rivals Tottenham Hotspur, cementing 9th place in the Premier League. Tottenham's loss to West Ham on the final day would result in Tottenham being overtaken in the league by Arsenal and therefore missing out on a Champions League place. The match was marred by controversy as many of the Tottenham players were ill on the evening before the match; this was initially believed to be "food poisoning", but was later found to be a virus that had gone round. The FA offered Tottenham a delayed kickoff which they refused. Tottenham ended up losing the match by a final score of 2-1. West Ham scored first when midfielder Carl Fletcher struck past Spurs keeper Paul Robinson. Tottenham then equalised through former Hammer striker Jermain Defoe. The Hammers had a chance to win the game when former Spurs player, Teddy Sheringham took a penalty kick. Sheringham's kick was saved. Israel international Yossi Benayoun was the hero and scored the game winning goal with a stunning strike.

Also this season, two of West Ham's longest serving managers died, Ron Greenwood and John Lyall. Greenwood and Lyall both led West Ham to FA Cup victories in 1964, 1975 and 1980.

If Pardew had guided West Ham to FA Cup glory, he would have been the first English manager to win the trophy since Joe Royle won it with Everton back in 1995. It would also have ended West Ham's 26-year wait for a major trophy which began after their FA Cup triumph in 1980. However, the game ended 3-3, despite West Ham taking a two goal lead early in the match. Eventually West Ham lost 3-1 on penalties, in what was considered by many as the best Cup final in recent years.Fact|date=February 2007 It is generally acceptedWho|date=July 2007 that Pardew has got closer than any manager in a quarter of a century to restoring the glory years back at Upton Park.

During the summer break before the start of the 2006/2007 season, Pardew suffered a huge blow to his team with the loss of Dean Ashton. During training whilst on international duty, Ashton broke his ankle. He was training for England's football match the following day against Greece, which was about to be England's first match under the new manager Steve McClaren.

On the transfer deadline day for the new season, 31 August, West Ham seemed to have surprised world footballFact|date=February 2007 when speculation mounted that two of the most promising young footballers in the world would be joining on permanent move. Carlos Tévez announced on his website that he and Javier Mascherano would be joining West Ham from Brazilian club Corinthians. West Ham confirmed shortly afterwards that not only had they signed the two Argentinians, but that they had signed on permanent deals. West Ham reportedly had to beat off competition from some major European clubs to sign the two young Argentinians.Fact|date=February 2007

West Ham's return to European competition, in the UEFA Cup in 2006, was ultimately short-lived as they lost 4-0 over two legs in the 1st round proper to Italian club, Palermo. This marked a major down turn in form leading to eight losses in succession in all competitions as of October 24, including a shock 2-1 loss away to League 1 side Chesterfield in the third round of the Carling Cup. The Hammers finally stopped the record-breaking run on October 29 at home to Blackburn with a 2-1 win in the Premiership, with goals from Teddy Sheringham, who in the making became the oldest ever goalscorer in the Premier League, and Hayden Mullins getting the winner in the 79th minute. They made it two wins in a row when they beat Arsenal at Upton Park with Marlon Harewood getting an 89th minute winner. The game was overshadowed by the arguments between Arsène Wenger and Alan Pardew in the manager dugouts, both have been charged by the FA. On November 21, the proposed takeover of West Ham United by a consortium headed by Icelandic businessman Eggert Magnusson went through, fuelling speculation over Pardew's future. After just 4 games with Magnusson as the new chairman of West Ham United, Pardew was sacked from the manager's role on December 11, after a 4-0 drubbing at Bolton on the Saturday before. Pardew eventually found work again on 24 December 2006, at Charlton Athletic, ironically where Pardew's replacement Curbishley had spent 15 years of his managerial career, building his reputation.

Magnússon takeover

On 21 November, West Ham announced that they had reached an agreement with a consortium headed by Icelandic businessman Eggert Magnússon for the sale of the club, worth £85m.

On 26 November, The Guardian reported that West Ham may move to the Olympic Stadium in 2012, with the running track left intact [ [http://observer.guardian.co.uk/sport/story/0,,1957437,00.html West Ham in box seat for Olympic stadium | Sport | The Observer ] ] .

On 1 September, the Board of West Ham confirmed, following press speculation, that they were in takeover talks with an unnamed party. They announced that there was no link between this prospective takeover bid and the signings of Tévez and Mascherano the day before. Media Sports Investment (MSI), the company which owns the contracts of those two players, and chose to bring them to West Ham, confirmed that it had no interest in investing in European football clubs, thereby ruling itself out of being behind these talks. However, a consortium headed by former MSI frontman Kia Joorabchian entered into talks with the club on 5 September. These talks broke down in early November after further debts that had not been declared by West Ham were revealed in the due diligence process. This was compounded by the announcement that West Ham would be unable to move into the 2012 London Olympic Stadium after the event, which was to be reserved for athletics use.

On 11 December, it was confirmed that Alan Pardew has been sacked from his job as manager of West Ham after a dismal run of results, including a 4-0 loss to Bolton. In the first few days that followed the departure of Pardew it was confirmed that West Ham were in talks with Alan Curbishley, who played for the Hammers between 1975-1979. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/west_ham_utd/6169349.stm BBC SPORT | Football | My Club | West Ham Utd | Pardew sacked as West Ham manager ] ] [ [http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=395390&cc=5739 ESPNsoccernet - England - West Ham sack under-fire boss Pardew ] ]

West Ham United under Alan Curbishley

2006-Present

Former West Ham United player and Charlton Athletic manager Alan Curbishley officially took over the vacant West Ham United job on December 13 2006, just 48 hours after Alan Pardew had been sacked by new chairman Eggert Magnusson. Curbishley had been the odds-on favourite for the West Ham job straight after Pardew's departure, so it came as no surprise that Curbishley was unveiled at a press conference on December 13. Curbishley's managerial CV reads well, as he was manager at local rivals Charlton Athletic for 15 years leading up to May 2006. During that time, he took Charlton from a struggling side languishing in old Second Division to a recognized Premiership side.

Curbishley had been linked with the West Ham job five years earlier, in the summer of 2001 after Harry Redknapp left the club, but decided the time was not right for him and the job went to Glenn Roeder instead. Curbishley made an impressive start with a victory over the current Premiership leaders Manchester United, his first ever victory over them in his managerial career, in which he won the game 1-0 with a late 75th minute winner from captain Nigel Reo-Coker.

In January 2007, with West Ham struggling in the bottom three, Curbishly made his first moves in the transfer market as West Ham United manager. His first signing was pacy Portuguese winger Luis Boa Morte from Fulham, soon followed by West Brom's Nigel Quashie. These signings were backed by defensive reinforcements in the form of young Callum Devenport, from Tottenham (who had previously been loaned to West Ham during their Championship years) and Australian captain Lucas Neill from Blackburn Rovers. Neill shunned the chance to sign for Liverpool after reportedly being offered double their proposed wage (£60k/week, compared to £30k - West Ham's highest ever earner). With Carlos Tevez out through injury, along with first choice Dean Ashton still yet to appear this season, Spanish under-21 striker Kepa Blanco was signed on loan from league-leaders Sevilla.

However, the final weeks of the season saw much improvement in performances and a marked strengthening of confidence and self belief in the team. Couple this with crumbling morale at Sheffield United and Fulham and it appeared as if the Great Escape was now in the bag.

West Ham won 7 of their final 9 games, defeating Blackburn, Arsenal, Everton, Middlesbrough, Bolton, Wigan and Manchester United. On May 5, 2007, West Ham United moved out of the relegation zone with a 3-1 win over Bolton and Wigan losing 1-0 to Middlesbrough. West Ham now sat in 17th place in the Premiership, 3 points ahead of Wigan.

On May 13th, in their last match of the season, West Ham played Manchester United at Old Trafford needing at least a draw to survive in the Premiership. Carlos Tevez sent West Ham 1-0 ahead at the end of the first half injury time (45 + 1"). West Ham were victorious, securing a position in 15th, sending Sheffield United tumbling to the second division. After months of suffering, West Ham had survived in the Premiership.

Curbishley continued to overhaul his squad in the summer of 2007. Yossi Benayoun (Liverpool), Paul Konchesky (Fulham), Nigel Reo-Coker, Marlon Harewood (both to Aston Villa) and, most notably, Carlos Tevez (Man. Utd) all headed for the Upton Park exit door. Midfielders Scott Parker (£7m), Keiron Dyer (£6m) and Nolberto Solano (free) all arrived from Newcastle United, wingers Julien Faubert (£6m) and Freddie Ljungberg (£2m) were signed from French club Bordeaux and London rivals Arsenal respectively, Craig Bellamy (£7.5m) and Richard Wright (free) both made the switch from Merseyside to East London , signing from Liverpool and Everton, striker Henri Camara completed Curbishley's squad signing on a season long loan from Wigan Athletic [ [http://www.soccerbase.com/transfers_by_team.sd?teamid=2802 www.soccerbase.com - The Internet Soccer Database ] ] .

The 2007-2008 season proved to be one of consolidation for the Hammers. They moved into 10th position in the table during the Christmas period and remained there until the end of the season. A season of disappointing performances (including a run of three consecutive 4-0 losses) and long injury lists has been punctuated by a solid showing in the League Cup (losing in the quarter final to Everton) and some excellent results - a five goal win away at Derby and home wins against title-chasing Manchester United and Liverpool.

The season was somewhat overshadowed by the successful efforts of Sheffield United to win financial compensation for the crimes of West Ham during the Carlos Tevez affair. As of September 2008 the Sheffield United Fight For Justice has been through 3 different courts and has received a positive verdict from an arbitration panel - announced at the end of September (postponed from June). It was once thought highly unlikely they would be awarded anything as the hope was that their relegation could be attributed to their abysmal performances (excepting their 3-0 April 14th drubbing of West Ham) rather than West Ham's wrongdoing.

References

Books

*cite book | author=Belton, Brian| title=West Ham United Miscellany| publisher=Pennant Books | year=2006| id=ISBN 0-9550394-4-4
*cite book | author=Belton, Brian| title=Founded on Iron: From Thames Ironworks to West Ham Utd | publisher=NPI Media Group |year=2003 | id=ISBN 978-0752429281
*cite book | author=Blows, Kirk & Hogg, Tony| title=The Essential History of West Ham United | publisher=Headline | year=2000| id=ISBN 0-7472-7036-8
*cite book | author=Collins, Tony & Vamplew, Wray | title=Mud, Sweat and Beers: A Cultural History of Sport and Alcohol | Publisher=Berg Publishers | year=2002 | id=ISBN 9781859735589
*cite book | author=Hellier, John & Leatherdale, Clive | title=West Ham United: The Elite Era - A Complete Record | publisher=Desert Island| year=2000| id=ISBN 1-874287-31-7
*cite book | author=Kerrigan, Colm | title=Gatling Gun George Hilsdon |publisher=Football Lives |year=1997 | id=ISBN 0-9530718-0-4
*cite book | author=Nawrat, Chris & Hutchings, Steve | title = The Sunday Times Illustrated History of Football | publisher =Hamlyn| year=1996 |id=ISBN 1-85613-341-9
*cite book | author=Pickering, David | title = The Cassell Soccer Companion | Publisher= Cassell | year=1994 |id=ISBN 0-304-34231-9
*cite book | author=Powles, John | title=Iron in the Blood: Thames Ironworks FC, the Club That Became West Ham United | publisher=Soccerdata | year=2005 | id=ISBN 978-1899468225
*cite book | author=Redknapp, Harry With Derek McGovern| title=Harry Redknapp - My Autobiography | publisher=HarperCollins | year=1998| id=ISBN 0-00-218872-4
*cite book | author=Ward, Adam & Smith, Dave| title=The Official West Ham United Dream Team | publisher=Hamlyn| year=2003| id=ISBN 0-600-60835-2

External Sources

* [http://www.whufc.com West Ham United FC.com] Official Site for current and latest news.
* [http://www.ivu.org/history/europe19b/hills.html Arnold Hills profile] from International Vegetarian Union.
* [http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.59/chapterId/1042/Thames-Ironworks.html Thames Ironworks community and sports driven activities] courtesy of Portcities.org.uk as part of National Maritime Museum.
* [http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WestHam.htm West Ham Utd biographies] at Spartacus Educational.
* [http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WestHamHistory.htm West Ham Utd history 1985-1905] at Spartacus Educational.
* [http://www.lalamy.demon.co.uk/whuindex.htm West Ham United F.C. Brief History and Player & People List] as supplied by Lawrence Cook.
* [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=42748 Local History of the West Ham area] as supplied by British History Online.

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