posted Sep 5, 2008

yes, we do a great job of developing youngsters -- pity we can't keep them.
Who was the last homebred "star" that stayed -- Alvin Martin perhaps.

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posted Sep 5, 2008

"Lampard Jr, Rio Ferdinand, Defoe, Carrick, Glenn Johnson and Joe Cole".

Of course, one of the things that influenced these players and no doubt contributed to their development was the help and advice of a certain Italian player we had at the time - which is one of the reasons I would like him at WHU as an assistant. If he could do the same for all those Weldon mentioned and also the younger foreign playes we aquired in the last transfer window, I can see us being a force in English if not European/World football. I am sure PDC would relish the challange of producing such a team, and I think he could do it too given the right backing.

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posted Sep 5, 2008

Hammer 44:

-------------------Green---------------------


Johnson---R Ferdinand--A Ferdinand---Upson

Lampard-----Carrick----Noble--------Cole

-------Ashotn----------Defoe


Not bad... probably make top 4

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posted Sep 5, 2008

ermm didnt a few HOMEGROWN TALENTS play for our first team last season???

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posted Sep 5, 2008

It seems like We are going the same way as everyone else by buying foreign players who most people have never heard of rather than developing home grown talent.

- Actually Everton FC develop a good amount of home grown talent. Everton FC had 7 home grown lads on their team sheet for last Saturdays game! probably the reason why they got hammered!

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posted Sep 5, 2008

Worryingly there are a couple of people here sounding a tad...'anti foreigner'. I'm sure the board will appoint someone with the correct credentials to bring through home grown talent from whatever country they happen to come from. Promoting them makes economic sense if nothing else. Also the days 'when Geoff Hurst from up north was considered almost foreign' sound great?!

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posted Sep 5, 2008

Who cares if a player is English, the league is a joke anyway and all the best players are already foreign.

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posted Sep 6, 2008

I care!!! You can already see the detrimental effect it's having on the national team. Potential future England players are not getting the chance to develop and are being forced down the pyramid and even into non league.

Michael Kightly is a perfect eample of that and is slowly working his way back up.

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posted Sep 6, 2008

no mate, only West Ham buy players nobody has heard of. Everybody has heard of Gomes, Modric, Dos Santos and Pavluenchenko

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posted Sep 7, 2008

Lopez is a free transfer so we really can't complain. Rather have that than spend 4-5 million on an established name that's forever injured and buggers off after one season.
Anyway our academy is still strong. West Ham will probably never compete for the league but I don't care as long as we play our brand of fooball and stuff Man U, Arsenal and Spurs on occasion.

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