Foundations of a Premier League team?

Following my last article, in which I argued West Ham have the foundation of a Premier League team in Noble, Tomkins, Cole and Green I received a comment stating that out of these, only Green and Tomkins would ‘get away with it’ and that Noble and Cole could not. This comment urged me to take a step back and evaluate these players.

First of all, most football fans can agree that what makes football the entertaining game it is, is

opinion; it is the basis of debate. Lately there has been the debate over the two-footed challenge,

where it seems referees are giving red cards too inconsistently. Another hot talking point is Roberto

Mancini’s phantom card gestures towards referees, and then of course, the on-going argument of

goal-line technology. So, it is not the intent here to disprove anyone’s view that these four West

Ham players are not Premier League standard; it is merely to offer an opinion on the matter.

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First of all I do not think it takes much consideration to come to the conclusion that Rob Green is a

Premier League standard goalkeeper. It seems he is still taking the flak for his World Cup howler.

Paul Robinson and Scott Carson both endured a tough spell after their international errors, and it

is now firmly established that Joe Hart is England number one, and not many will argue with that.

But ability wise, Green has proven himself year in year out a world-class shot stopper, and a reliable

goalkeeper. Not once have I ever watched Rob Green in the Premier League and thought he was out

of his depth, and considering Arsenal were sniffing around for the Surrey born goalkeeper, I think

Green has proven that he can more than ‘get away with it’ in the Premier League.

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On a more sceptical note James Tomkins has not proven himself in the Premier League. It is fair to

say he struggled at times last season against tough opposition and did make some costly errors.

However, since West Ham’s relegation to the Championship Tomkins has been one of our star

players. He has been solid, reliable, and consistent. This form has led to interest from Premier

League highfliers Newcastle and it is worth remembering he is still only 22 years of age. Therefore

the future for this defender looks to be brighter rather than gloomy.

Carlton Cole can be a frustrating player to watch. Personally I do not think he always utilises his size, strength and skill as much as he could, which would make him a lethal striker. Cole has racked up 50 goals in 181 games and in the 2008/09 season he enjoyed scoring 10 Premier League goals from 27 appearances. I do not think he will ever be a prolific goal scorer, but it what he brings to the game when he is on form which makes him the player he is; holding the ball up, pace, creativity and strength. One thing is for sure, when he is firing on all cylinders and hitting peak form, I would rather have him in my team than the opposition.

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Mark Noble is West Ham through and through. Like many Hammers fans I would not be surprised

if he stays at Upton Park until he hangs up his boots, and that would be a welcomed by most.

You usually get the most from Noble when he sits in front of the back four breaking up play, and

beginning the attacking passages of play. Noble is also a first rate penalty kick taker, an attribute

which is all too often overlooked. He will not be the next Steven Gerrard of England, and he will

probably never play Champions League football, maybe not even Europa League. But he will not

struggle in the Premier League when West Ham get promoted.

Finally the point I was alluding to the previous article was not that West Ham are yet prepared for Premier League football. I was suggesting that with Green, Tomkins, Cole and Noble West Ham have a strong ‘base’. On our return to the Premier League, which will hopefully be soon, and with a couple of sensible signings we are sure to see the best of these four long serving West Ham players.