An interesting story emerging from West Ham is that the club are looking into introducing safe standing at the London Stadium. This would be done in order to improve the atmosphere within the ground. During the first few games, the atmosphere hasn’t been as good as it was at Upton Park. This isn’t a huge surprise as the space between the supporters and the pitch was always likely to have this effect. The club believe safe standing would be a great solution, but it will be difficult to put into place. David Gold told The Sun:
“I have been speaking with the people who put in the rail seating at Celtic Park.
“I have been an advocate of this for many years and it is something I am working on.
“It was absolutely right after the Hillsborough tragedy that the Taylor Report suggested all-seater stadiums but that was 30 years ago and technology has moved on so now.
“As was the case at Celtic – we need to look at these possibilities and hold talks. That’s what I am doing.”
It would be good for English football if safe standing is introduced into grounds again. There are dangers and the FA need to review how to implement it as safely as possible, but it would improve atmosphere in every ground around the country. Also it could lead to cheaper ticket prices which will ensure that fans continue to go to matches.
This transfer window saw Premier League clubs spend more than £1 billion, which shows how inflated the market is now. Since the window has closed, Slaven Bilic has criticised the prices that clubs are demanding for players. The Express reports the following quotes from the West Ham manager:
“I don’t want to sound naive or hypocritical but if we could have Pogba we will sign Pogba, make no mistake.
“But then I will be the first to say ‘ok, if everybody cuts, let’s cut.’
“It is crazy, it’s way too crazy. But it’s big-game fishing, for that you need tools. You can’t expect to get a shark with a small fish.”
Bilic is right in his comments as the transfer window is becoming crazy and it will only get worse in the future. More and more money is coming into the game, especially in the Premier League. Foreign clubs recognise the spending power that exists in England and will ask for ludicrously high prices for their star players, as they know Premier League teams will pay it. It would be great if every club shared the Croatian’s view and agreed to systematically cut prices, as Bilic suggests, but that is never going to happen. We all need to get used to the new reality of the transfer window, because it is here to stay.
Finally, West Ham are interested in signing Mahlon Romeo from rivals Millwall and are considering a £2 million swoop for the defender. He broke into the Millwall first team last season and featured 18 times for them, scoring one goal. It won’t be an easy deal to do, as Millwall will not want to sell one of their most promising talents to West Ham. However, the Hammers can use their Premier League status to their advantage and force this one through.
Romeo is a right back and would be seen as one for the future, as West Ham currently have Sam Byram and Alvaro Arbeloa in the first team squad. There will be a lot of clubs scouting Romeo as he has performed well since breaking into the Millwall team and looks to have the potential to develop into a Premier League quality right back. West Ham have an advantage as the player wouldn’t need to relocate and that could be crucial if they make a move for the right back.
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