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Curbishley and Tevez Masterminded Hammers' Survival |
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Written by Richard Dukes
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Monday, 14 May 2007 |
West Ham's season has been a chequered one at best. After Alan Pardew was fired, things were looking glum at Upton Park.
The new owners including Chairman Eggert Magnusson seemed to be in a quandary with the shock purchases of Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano as much as with the situation itself. Enter Alan Curbishley.
The gentle giant had ended his long association with Charlton and was thought to be in contention for the England manager's post after Sven Goran Eriksson’s inglorious exit. However Steve McClaren beat him to that job and Curbishley was at a loose end. It was here that he got a golden chance to manage West Ham with the express task of ensuring their survival.
Most managers when they take over at a new club will have a host of expectations bounced on their shoulders by the board. However Curbishley was expected to do just one thing - avoid the drop.
When he took over things were in a mess, but his reign began with a memorable 1-0 win over Manchester United and even the most hard-hearted Upton Park regular began to believe that they would avoid relegation. But Curbishley not withstanding, West Ham would be playing the Coco-Cola Championship next season were it not for a diminutive, but immensely gifted Argentine called Carlos Tevez.
Last year Tevez and Mascherano were being head hunted by a host of top clubs including Man United, Chelsea and Liverpool. But the duo shocked everyone by opting for the serene scenes at Upton Park. Needless to say Alan Pardew was not impressed and rumors of an internal divide began circulating.
Pardew went out and Curbishley tried to fight on four fronts. He had to avoid relegation, smooth over chinks in the team, deal with injuries to his primary signings and on top of that live in the fear of points deduction. When Mascherano went to Anfield in January, Curbishley gently jibed that Tevez was not performing to his ability.
That appeared to spur on Tevez, who has been brilliant over the last four months. Tevez scored just 6 goals, five less than Bobby Zamora's 11, but his very presence terrorized defenses and in the last few games; he single-handedly carried West Ham toward safety.
Of course all that might still not be enough if Wigan, Charlton, Fulham and the unfortunately relegated Sheffield United succeed in winning a court battle against the decision not to dock points over the dubious deal involving Tevez and Mascherano.
But whatever the outcome of the legal battle may be, Curbishley and Tevez have more than performed their job on field and on that count there can be no complaints.
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