NEW DEAL ... Sam Allardyce
Sam’s still main man or Hammers
SAM ALLARDYCE is set to announce he has agreed a new contract at West Ham within the next few days.
After weeks of haggling, co-owners David Gold and David Sullivan are understood to have hammered out a two-year deal with the 58-year-old manager.
A source said: “Everything is agreed. There have been no problems.
“Everybody is pleased at the outcome.”
Allardyce could make an announcement as soon as this weekend — after West Ham have played relegation-threatened Newcastle, who fired him five years ago.
Hammers centre-back Winston Reid, 24, has signed a new contract that will keep him at Upton Park until 2015.
The New Zealand international said: “I’ve really enjoyed being here.”
DEAL ME IN ... Winston Reid
Reid wants more Hammer time
WINSTON REID has signed a new deal with West Ham that will keep him at the club until 2015.
The New Zealand defender has impressed at Upton Park this season, playing in 33 of the Hammers’ 35 Premier League games to date.
Reid, 24, said: “I’ve really enjoyed being here.
“I think I have played some good football over the last two years but that goes for the whole team as well. Hopefully we can continue that.
“Of course we now plan to build on the last two seasons.”
Reid joined West Ham from Danish side FC Midtjylland in 2010.
New deal: Winston Reid of West Ham United
Reiding and writing: Winston Reid signs new two-year deal at West Ham
Winston Reid has signed a new two-year contract at West Ham - and manager Sam Allardyce could be next.
New Zealand international Reid, a front runner to be named Hammers player of the year tomorrow night, has committed his future to Upton Park until 2015, a clear signal that Allardyce will also be staying at the club beyond his current deal, which expires this month.
Reid, 24, said: "It's an exciting time for the club - now we have to build on the progress we've made over the last two seasons."
Allardyce could cement West Ham's bid for a top 10 finish by pushing his old club Newcastle further into relegation trouble on Saturday.
Toon owner Mike Ashley fired Allardyce to make way for Kevin Keegan's short-lived second coming as manager on Tyneside five years ago.
Brooking says clubs must start taking young players seriously
Money is ruining our young stars, says Trevor Brooking
SIR TREVOR BROOKING shakes his head and lets out a sigh of indignation.
Brooking-says-clubs-must-start-taking-young-players-seriously Brooking says clubs must start taking young players seriously
“There was one boy in a younger age group with England this year who was behaving a bit outrageously, swaggering around, thinking he was a jack-the-lad,” said Brooking, the Football Association’s director of football development.
“I spoke to the club concerned and they said, ‘He’s a funny lad, but there are one or two other clubs sniffing around so we have to be careful what we say to him’.
“That’s nonsense. That lad is just getting away with murder because everyone is tip-toeing around him in case he goes off somewhere else.
“Yes, you have to encourage youngsters, but sometimes you have to be brutal as well. They do think they are going to be much better than they are and 80 per cent of those who get signed on at 16 are out of the game by 21.”
It is a story that is meant to shock, highlighting how player power is prevalent not simply at the tip of football’s pyramid but at its base, and Brooking believes redressing the balance is one of the biggest problems facing the national game.
The Under-20s squad who will carry England’s hopes at this summer’s World Cup in Turkey is a progression of the group who won the Under-17s European Championship against Spain in 2010.
Connor Wickham has struggled since moving to Sunderland in an £8million deal from Ipswich, while Chelsea’s Josh McEachran has spent the season on loan at Middlesbrough.
That so few of the players who tasted heady success in Liechtenstein three years ago have gone on to establish themselves in the Premier League is, Brooking feels, in part due to a culture that results in hunger being diluted by the trappings of lucrative contracts.
It is a problem that Brooking is passionate about. There is an understandable push to improve the technique of players in England – the Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) has been designed to do just that – but little emphasis continues to be placed on helping them to avoid the pitfalls of fame and fortune
The youngsters in this country don’t look as mature as those from other countries in equivalent age groups
“In that U17s age group, there were certainly quite a few capable of going on to first-team football in the Premier League, but they didn’t break into those sides wherever they are,” said Brooking.
“If you speak to people, they felt that the money didn’t help at that early age. That is not meant as a criticism of the lads, but part of youth development has to focus on psychological and social elements as well.
“Attitude, hunger, dedication, how they interact are massive and we have been really poor at it. The youngsters in this country don’t look as mature as those from other countries in equivalent age groups and we have to prepare them better in dealing with the extra profile and the money.”
Brooking cites the rise of German football as a reference to how England must see the future.
“Joachim Low [Germany coach] was saying how they invested £50m about 10 years ago when they were in despair about a void of attacking and creative talent,” said Brooking.
“Now they have 18, 19, 20-year-olds playing fi rst-team football each week in the Bundesliga. That is where we have got to get. I don’t think the 16-year-olds in this country are good enough.
“Under the rules and regulations of EPPP, each club will have two fulltime coaches in the five to 11 age bracket and 12-16. But the salaries paid to them are really paltry and do not recognise the quality of person you should be employing.
“That is something we have to change. It’s sacrilege when you consider the money that is in the game.”
Romania captain Razvan Rat has joined the Hammers on a three-year deal
SAM ALLARDYCE IS A RAT CATCHER
SAM ALLARDYCE pestering West Ham to match his ambitions – so they bought him a Rat.
Romania defender Razvan Rat will join the club on a free transfer from Shakhtar Donetsk in June after agreeing a three-year deal worth £35,000 a week.
A hugely successful left-back, Rat has spent the past decade with the Ukrainian side, winning six league titles and the 2009 UEFA Cup.
It is just the first move by the club to reassure Allardyce that they are prepared to answer his calls to invest in the squad for next season.
Another one came last night when player of the year Winston Reid signed a lucrative new contract that will keep him at Upton Park until 2015.
Allardyce will be offered a new deal himself once the club are mathematically safe but he wants assurances about his budget before he signs.
The biggest question is whether or not the Hammers can afford the £17m it will take to sign striker Andy Carroll from Liverpool on a permanent deal.
But Allardyce will be pleased they have beaten Marseille to sign a player with a wealth of Champions League experience.
Rat, 31, is captain of Romania and was part of the Shakhtar team which beat Chelsea 2-1 in Donetsk in Europe’s top club competition in October.
The news that Reid has penned a new deal is also a big boost toWest Ham because there were fears the New Zealander could quit the club. Reid, 24, has played in all but two of their league games this season.
He said: “I’ve really enjoyed being here. I have played some good football over the last two years but that goes for the whole team as well.”
Reid is tied down until the season before West Ham expect to move to the Olympic Stadium but he has already set his sights on playing there.
He said: “Even though it is three years down the road, they are already looking forward to see what can be done when we move.”
Liverpool want 22-year-old Barcelona full-back Martin Montoya, but they will face competition from Inter Milan for the Spain Under-21 international, who will command a considerable transfer fee.
talkSPORT
Tottenham are favourites to sign 23-year-old Brazil and Internacional striker Leandro Damiao, according to the South American club's president Giovanni Luigi.
Inside Futbol
Manchester United are interested in signing 27-year-old Italy international midfielder Claudio Marchisio from Juventus.
talkSPORT
Liverpool are set to sign Republic of Ireland international centre-back Alex Pearce, 24, on a free transfer from relegated Reading at the end of the season.
Metro
Real Madrid director of football Zinedine Zidane believes Tottenham could command a fee of £60m for forward Gareth Bale, 23, this summer.
Daily Mail
QPR striker Djibril Cisse, goalkeeper Julio Cesar and striker Loic Remy are all plotting their moves away from the club following their relegation to the Championship.
Daily Mirror
Wayne Rooney, 27, wants assurances from Manchester United over his role with fellow strikers Robert Lewandowski, of Borussia Dortmund, and Atletico Madrid's Radamel Falcao linked to the club.
Full story: Daily Mail
Malaga could approach Wigan manager Roberto Martinez if Manuel Pellegrini moves to Manchester City or Chelsea this summer.
Daily Mirror
GLOBAL GOSSIP (sourced by BBC Monitoring)
Tottenham have opened negotiations with Newcastle's Hatem Ben Arfa, 26, to bring him to west London next season.
should that not be nort london?????
: Sport24
Paris St-Germain are prepared to pay up to £6m for Sampdoria striker Simone Zaza, 21, outbidding Juventus, Milan and Napoli.
Sportmediaset (in Italian)
Inter Milan captain Javier Zanetti's surgery to treat a ruptured tendon has been "perfectly successful" according to the doctor operating on him. The Argentine is expected to be ready to return to action in six months.
Tuttosport (in Italian)
Barcelona coach Tito Villanova has confirmed that Javier Mascherano, 28, will not play in the Champions League semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich.
Marca (in Spanish)
Rapid Vienna fans built a brick wall in front of their club's head office in protest at their team's terrible form. They sit third in the league, 23 points off city rivals Austria Vienna.
Metro
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cheers cockers 
