Hammers losing harmony
The Guardian
Alan Pardew has admitted that the arrival of Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano has "put one or two noses out of joint" in the West Ham dressing room. Pardew looks set to start the Argentinian pair ahead of Marlon Harewood and Hayden Mullins for the third game in succession when his side visit Manchester City. And for the first time since their arrival three weeks ago, the West Ham manager conceded that Tevez and Mascherano's run in the team has caused discontent at Upton Park."That happens at every big club and (becoming a big club) is hopefully where we are going. The situation will only get worse in terms of players feeling aggrieved they're not playing. All they can do is work hard on the training ground and convince me with their performances that they should be playing." While Pardew heaped praise on Harewood and Mullins for their subsequent reaction to being dropped, he added that the club have been using the last week to mould the team around the former Corinthians duo. Martin O'Neill has promised to spend carefully any money that Aston Villa's new chairman Randy Lerner makes available in the January transfer window, following speculation that the manager will have a significant windfall at his disposal. O'Neill held talks with the American billionaire this week when he made clear the need to strengthen the squad.
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