Evening news round-up for Monday 28/11/16 by 337hammer.

Slaven Bilic wants more confidence from West Ham after draw.

West Ham manager Slaven Bilic was pleased with his side’s performance in a 1-1 draw at Manchester United but chided his players for appearing “afraid” after taking the lead. “I am very pleased with the performance for the point,” Bilic said.

“The only thing I didn’t like, and I said it at half-time, is when you score a goal you should be more confident than before you score. That is kind of natural but the mentality is you are afraid after you score at Old Trafford. “From our goal to their equaliser we lost 11 or 12 balls unnecessarily when we could exploit that. So in the first half they were better than us. “At half-time we told the players and the way we played second half was really good, if not great, so I have to praise the players. espn.co.uk

Slaven Bilic confident the tide is turning.

West Ham added to the mounting problems facing Jose Mourinho and provided more belief Slaven Bilic will steer them away from relegation trouble. West Ham frustrated United and, after their heartbreaking last-gasp defeat at Tottenham, this performance shows they should start to climb the table.

“It is a difficult season,” he said. “I am not trying to avoid saying that but even after Spurs, when we lost the game in the way we did, I was positive because it hurts but you have something to build on. I am not happy with the position but recently there have been good performances from us. It is only a matter of time when we get the points.” Bilic must decide whether to make changes to his team for the EFL Cup fixture on Wednesday night, with Arsenal coming to the London Stadium on Saturday. He knows a win could build more momentum. standard.co.uk

Ogbonna – Concentration was key.

Hammers defender Angelo Ogbonna believes his side’s concentration in defence helped the visitors earn a vital point against Manchester United on Sunday in the Premier League. The visitors battled hard to ensure they returned to east London with a draw in the bag. Ogbonna’s marvellous defensive display, which included a number of important blocks and last-ditch tackles, contributed to the result and the Italian was left thrilled at the final whistle.

He said: “I think it is a really crucial point for us. We had a really good game and a good performance and it was so important for us because we were so disappointed about the last match. “It was great to put a good performance in. We were so concentrated at the back and maybe this is why this game is a great moment. “In the table, we are not great at the moment but we have to take it step-by-step and focus each time for every game.” “At the end of the game, it’s a draw and we keep this point and we have to look forward and get back here on Wednesday. “It’s important for the first match to draw and it’s a really good point for us.” whufc.com

Ex-West Ham player full of praise for former club after draw.

Speaking in BBC’s Match of the Day 2, former Hammers star Trevor Sinclair explained West Ham fans will be pleased with a point against Manchester united.

“Good point, good performance. It was a great reaction from the players after getting beaten by Tottenham last week. And if there are two teams who West Ham fans want to do well against it’s Tottenham and Manchester United, and they’ve managed to get something at Old Trafford so they will be pleased about that.”  hitc.com

West Ham defender praises Fletcher’s impact against former club.

Angelo Ogbonna has praised the impact of former Manchester United striker Ashley Fletcher as West Ham earned a draw at Old Trafford on Sunday. Fletcher, who came through the youth ranks at Manchester United before leaving the club in the summer to join the Hammers on a free, came on for Diafra Sakho with 24 minutes to go. The 21-year-old came close to winning the match late on for West Ham, when he worked his way into the box and forced a good save from David de Gea from close range.

“Fletcher came on and was brilliant as well. We need to get our confidence back sometimes, but this is a good way to get it back. “He got chances and maybe if he puts the ball in for us then I’m talking about three points! But it’s OK – he’s still young and he is a good player. “He can keep the ball and run in behind and he’s very good for us that we have a good lot of young players who can improve and help the team and we have to keep our feet on the ground and work hard and take it step-by-step.” essexlive.news

From the Boardroom – David Sullivan.

This was always going to be a testing time for the Club with the run of hard games we were facing, but there is no doubt that the team is playing a lot better. Nobody is enjoying looking at the table at the moment but I hope we have now turned a corner. We got off to a perfect start against Manchester United on Sunday and it was unfortunate that we could not hold onto the lead. But I thought the players showed great determination and a fighting spirit to help us come away with a point. It was a real team effort starting with Darren Randolph who once again showed his quality and produced an outstanding display.

There were a number of positives to take from the performance and it was very pleasing to see Diafra Sakho back in action. He showed his quality once again when he opened the scoring after just two minutes and it was really unfortunate that he picked up a hamstring injury during the second half. Diafra will now undergo a scan and although the early signs suggest it will not be a lengthy injury, we will know a lot more when we see the results in the next few days. This is another important week for the Club and a victory on Wednesday would set us up nicely for another big game against Arsenal on Saturday. whufc.com

West Ham PL2 aim for six unbeaten.

West Ham United PL2 will aim to go six games unbeaten in all competitions this evening, when they face Fulham at Craven Cottage (7pm kick-off).

The Hammers are on a good run of form despite being frustrated last Monday when they were held to a 1-1 draw with Blackburn Rovers.

It’s the start of a busy week for Terry Wesley’s players. Tonight’s match is swiftly followed on Thursday with the visit of Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League Cup. The Hammers will be boosted by the news that Martin Samuelsen has returned to the club after his loan spell at Blackburn was cancelled. The young Norwegian has found game time hard to come by in Lancashire and that is despite making his senior debut and scoring his first goal for Norway this season. Samuelsen also bagged his first PL2 goal of the season in the draw with Rovers and is looking forward to knuckling down over the next few months and getting some much needed minutes.

“I’m not allowed to play for the first team until January so the main thing for me it just to get back playing and get back to the joy of playing football,” he said. “I’m looking forward to playing every week. It’s been a really tough time and I’ve gone every week knowing I’m not going to play. “Hopefully now I can get the smile back on my face and enjoy playing football again.” whufc.com

West Ham United boost! AC Milan planning to sell Bacca in January.

AC Milan have decided to cash in on Carlos Bacca, according to reports in Italy. The striker almost left the San Siro in the summer after spending only one season in Serie A. However, despite reportedly having a bid accepted, Bacca snubbed the Hammers in favour of staying put. Since then the Colombian has continued to impress and he has bagged six goals this season in 13 games.

West Ham remain interested in signing the 30-year-old, while PSG and Valencia are keen too. And, according to Leggo, their chances of snapping up Bacca have significantly increased as Milan are ready to sell. The Italian club need funds for the January transfer window and believe they can bank at least £25m by flogging their star striker. talksport.com