Mark Noble puts his good performances down to being settled off the field.
Mark Noble has admitted his impressive form on the pitch is down to being more settled off it.
The midfielder has been in fine form in the Premier League so far this season and he believes having everything comfortably in place off the pitch has contributed to his game.
He told the Official Site: “I think I would put my form down to hard work and believing in myself. I have also signed a new contract which has allowed me to get my head down and focus on playing football.”
The Hammer of the Year has already set his sights on a win against Southampton at Upton Park in two weeks time and believes the Hammers will be a hard team to beat at the Boleyn this season.
“We are looking for a win against Southampton in two weeks and there is no reason why we can’t get that because our home form has been very good this season,” he said.
“If Southampton come to Upton Park and we play anywhere near the same way we did against Arsenal then we will be a hard team to beat.”
The 25-year-old admits the performance against Arsenal, despite losing 3-1, is proof the team have made a good start to their first season back in the top-flight.
He said: “At the end of the day we still played well and we are still on a good run. We have a good points total for where we are in the season and we are looking forward to the next game.”
Diarra wants to get fit as soon as possible so he can make an impact on the Premier League.
Alou Diarra has spoken out for the first time since a thigh injury ruled him out for at least two months.
The 31-year-old French midfielder made his Hammers debut in the 3-0 away loss to Swansea but picked up a serious thigh problem just a couple of weeks later.
Diarra told France Football: “In my mind I am fine, but physically I am not so well.
“I picked up a serious right thigh strain about a fortnight ago. The examinations revealed quite a big hematoma.
“The club doctor stated I will need two months to recover, but I hope it will be a little less.
“You just have to put up with it, get good treatment, and let it heal to avoid relapse. But after starting for a new club it is quite annoying.”
Diarra joined the club for a free transfer from Marseille in the summer and is hoping to make a bigger impact in England than the last time he was here with Liverpool in 2002.
“(During my time at Liverpool) I passed like a mirage. I immediately asked to be loaned to France. I didn’t have time to become immersed with the English culture,” he said.
“I’ve wanted to come back to England for a while. It is not by chance if I made the decision to join West Ham. It is perfect club at which to adapt to England.”
Captain Fantastic: Kevin Nolan is playing a huge part in West Ham’s success so early in the season.
As I finish up this post, I am currently out of beer. You might think this would put me in a bad mood… and normally you’d be right. But we are mere hours away from our match up against QPR and have five Premier League matches under our belt, and so far this season, West Ham have made pundits look quite stupid and pre-season betting odds like like a joke.
We are currently sitting on eight (8) points, with two wins, two draws, and a solitary loss (in a match that we simply did not turn up for). In those five games, we have three clean sheets and a goal difference of +1. All told, this is not what most “experts” expected of West Ham under Sam Allardyce at the start of this campaign.
Matt Jarvis needs to be thrown in at the deep end.
If you purchased a brand new Mercedes would you park it on the drive and run around in your Fiat Punto? (no offence to Punto drivers)
The answer is no. So, why is Matt Jarvis not in the starting eleven? I appreciate he has joined a new club and is familiarising himself with surroundings and new team mates but he is not a 17-year-old lad who has just been promoted from the youth team. When you break the club’s transfer record for a player – a good English player – he nor the club have time to slowly break him into the team. He has to hit the ground running.
Andy made an immediate impact on his West Ham debut and we’re going to miss him already as he recovers from injury.
When I heard Andy Carroll was joining from Liverpool I thought please don’t let it be for a permanent fee. What would be the point of risking the financial future of the club for just one player who, to be honest, I never really rated. I’m like any other football fan and, when he didn’t hit the ground running at Liverpool, I feared the worst. Personally, a loan deal was always preferable.
I felt optimistic before the Fulham game as they are a mediocre Premier League side who we should be level with. I only got to see the first half on an Italian channel so can only judge by what I saw. Carroll looked like a free man. He had escaped his overlooked prison cell within Anfield’s home of Legends. Here was a man with the weight of the world lifted off his shoulders by Big Sam. Oh, and 80-90K per week!
From the kick off something felt very strange. West Ham were dynamic and the intensity was incredible. Nolan set us on our way but it came from Andy Carroll’s flick on. What an incredible leap that guy has. He was like a man possessed as he flicked onto Vaz Te, who in turn set up Kevin Nolan.
Ok, so now I’m thinking we’ve got 89 minutes to hang onto this. We know we are going to create chances all day long but, one thing we are very much aware of is if we don’t score that second goal the opposition will. I felt so relieved as Winston Read rose to smash his header in for the second and Fulham were completely on the ropes. The ref should’ve stopped the game there and then because only one team were going to win. Fulham offered very little in terms of attacking. Duff looked decent but the rest were poor.
Not only did Carroll look great, everyone looked up for it. Vaz Te looked good on the wing. He did nothing extravagant but kept playing the correct simple pass. Taylor, who I feel hasn’t impressed too much since his arrival, put in a good shift. James Collins won every header.
A mate of mine tweeted me saying ‘this is like watching Bolton.’ Was this because we had five ex-players, or because we were playing long ball? If non-West Ham fans actually watched the game they would’ve seen some great football on the floor at times. Yes, Big Andy was the target man and we used his aerial ability to our advantage. However, the balls from Noble were never aimless hoofs. They were precise and with conviction. Diagonal passes and nodding down from our new striker. If Diame would’ve guided that ball under the bar it would’ve been some goal.
The third goal from Taylor was as a result of the big man’s presence again. Matt Taylor finished superbly and hopefully this could be the catalyst for him to return to his best form again.
I did not get to see the second half but I was so impressed with the first half display. Can we recreate that week in week out, though? It will be difficult but it gives everyone hope. Shame about Carroll’s injury but if we’d have signed him permanently he probably would’ve got a more serious injury – it seems to be a common trend for West Ham! Keeping our best players fit is a challenge in itself!
Against Villa I thought we looked slightly rusty. Against Swansea we looked awful. Against Fulham we were awesome.
