Sep 01

West Ham waiting Premier League approval over deal for Lars Jacobsen

• London club made late move for Blackburn right-back
• Premier League checking if deal beat 6pm deadline

West HamUnited are waiting for Premier League approval to complete the free transfer of the Denmark right-back Lars Jacobsen from Blackburn Rovers.

The move was agreed late on transfer deadline day and checks are being made to ensure the relevant paperwork was submitted before the 6pm deadline.

Jacobsen, 30, has earned 35 caps for his country and played 16 times for Blackburn after joining them on a free transfer from Everton last summer.

The West Ham manager, Avram Grant, whose side have conceded nine goals in their opening three Premier League games, had made recruiting a new right-back a priority. Jacobsen began his career at Danish side Odense and played for Hamburg, FC Copenhagen and Nuremberg before joining Everton two years ago.

His appearances there were limited by a shoulder injury and he was allowed to leave after one season. Jacobsen played in all three of Denmark’s matches at this summer’s World Cup, where they failed to progress from their group.

West Ham UnitedBlackburn RoversTransfer windowguardian.co.uk

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Aug 30

Avram Grant tells West Ham United fans not to panic

• ‘We must wait for 10-15 games to see our direction’
• Grant says West Ham are trying to sign new players

Avram Grant, the West Ham United manager, said there is no need for fans to panic about their start to the season unless they fail to improve after “10-15 games”. West Ham are bottom of the Premier League going into the international break following defeats in their opening three matches.

West Ham have never lost their first four league games but the leaders Chelsea, who have made a perfect start to the new campaign, are their next opponents in just under a fortnight. However, Grant said defeat to the champions would not spell disaster for his side.

“It’s only the beginning of the season so we cannot make any conclusions after three weeks,” he told the club’s official website. “We must wait for 10-15 games to see our direction. Chelsea is a tough fixture and I can’t ever remember a team at our level having such tough fixtures at the beginning of the season. But these are fixtures we have been given and, in football, anything can happen. We have two weeks to think about things. We can become stronger.”

Grant said it has been a real challenge to instil confidence in his side since taking charge this summer after they narrowly avoided relegation last term. But he said it is an easier job than the one he left at Portsmouth, who were mired in financial turmoil.

He said: “It’s not easy to keep the morale up – especially after last season – but I don’t like talking about last year because we do not need to be reminded about it. It’s not easy but I’ve told the players from the beginning that I want to see their character, both when they win and when they lose. It’s only the beginning of the season, and if we win two games, we will be as good as any other team.

“Last season, things were decided for me off the pitch but, this year, they will be decided on the pitch. It’s a big, big difference.”

Grant is still trying to sign players before tomorrow’s closure of the transfer window. But having already admitted he may need to sell before he can buy, speculation is rife over the Upton Park futures of Scott Parker, Carlton Cole and Valon Behrami. “We are trying to bring in new faces,” Grant said, adding: “we didn’t have players in the positions we needed them” following Saturday’s 3-0 defeat at Manchester United.

Avram GrantWest Ham Unitedguardian.co.uk

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Aug 30

Premier League chalkboards analysis

This week we use chalkboards to look at Wolves’ shackling of Joey Barton, Nemanja Vidic’s tackling, Mikel John Obi’s passing, and Leighton Baines’ positioning

Mick McCarthy’s Wolverhampton side had a clear plan to target Joey Barton on Saturday – he was subjected to a succession of extremely hard tackles. The main offender was Karl Henry, but he was not the only one, as four separate Wolves players were booked for fouls on the Newcastle platyer. The chalkboard above shows the seven fouls on him over the course of the game. Barton’s challenge in the 95th minute was just his second foul of the match, but still earned him a booking.

West Ham struggled to construct many meaningful attacks at Old Trafford on Saturday. A large part of this was Carlton Cole’s inability to hold the ball up as Nemanja Vidic kept winning it from him. The Manchester United defender had an excellent game, winning eight of the nine challenges he contested throughout the match.

The signing of Ramires from Benfica has raised doubts about whether Mikel John Obi will be a regular starter for Chelsea this season but the Nigerian has made an excellent start to 2010/11. He continued his good form against Stoke, completing 103 of the 106 passes he attempted. Critics will say the passes are all short and sideways – but Mikel’s primary job when he gets the ball is to keep possession and he did that excellently.

Leighton Baines was a constant outlet on the left hand side for Everton in their 0-1 defeat at Villa Park, constantly stretching the play and putting some dangerous crosses into the box. This heatmap of his passing shows how far up the pitch modern full-backs play when their side dominates possession.

Michael Cox is editor of zonalmarking.net. You can also follow zonalmarking on Twitter

ChalkboardsJoey BartonNewcastle UnitedWolverhampton WanderersEvertonManchester UnitedWest Ham UnitedChelseaPremier LeagueMichael Coxguardian.co.uk

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