Sakho in the morning

"It's not easy to prove to the people what I can do on the pitch when I only play for ten minutes," Diafra Sakho told the Daily Mirror after Saturday's win, when he, erm, proved what he could do in ten minutes. Sakho did show some welcome signs of maturity by adding, "I don't need to knock on the manager's door, he knows what i can do. Now I have to force my way back into the team. I just want to enjoy being part of the team and we will see what happens in January."

What Sakho needs to realise is that he would probably have been in the team already had he not decided to have a private medical in Rennes on deadline day and tried to engineer a move for 'personal reasons'. It's very hard for Bilic to select a player who doesn't want to play for West Ham. It would help if Diafra looked like he enjoyed scoring, which is his job. He's scored three goals this season and not exactly celebrated any of them. And what did removing his shirt against Swansea mean? If he ran to the fans and looked excited when he scored he'd win the crowd over.

The lad's got great ability and will get game time every week if he can improve his attitude. He needs to realise that he's up against Hernandez and Carroll so it's not a slight to be on the bench. And if he commits himself to being professional and playing his heart out for West Ham whatever his problems are he'll get games.

Who's getting Sakho in the morning?

Some extraordinary goings on with Diafra Sakho. it was reported he'd gone to Rennes yesterday to have a medical, even though the clubs have not agreed a fee. Is he trying to become the Peter Odemwinjie of this transfer window? David Gold has tweeted "Diafra Sakho is not for sale in this transfer window he is an integral part of our first team squad and will play a part in our recovery." Further reports claim Crystal Palace are now interested in making a £10m bid. 

It's strange if he's trying to force a move as he's finally fit and has figured as a sub in all three league games and scored against Cheltenham in the League Cup (though he didn't celebrate much, which now looks significant). He's now told Sky Sports News: "I want a fresh start and want to go back to playing regular football. I have no issues with West Ham or West Ham fans. This is purely a footballing decision. I want to go back to France."

After taking the club's wages for a season when he was out with a back problem you'd think Diafra owed us a little more loyalty. West Ham certainly need cover for Hernandez and Andy Carroll and it's going to be very difficult to find a replacement if Sakho goes. On the other hand do we want an unhappy player around the club until January? We'd surely be better off giving Martinez a chance.

Should Sakho start at Newcastle?

Slaven Bilic has, for once, the option of playing a extra striker at St James' Park. Diafra Sakho has made a strong case for inclusion through hitting the bar at Southampton before Hernandez scored and then scoring one and making one at Cheltenham. Sakho and Hernandez might be an effective combination to judge by their performance together at Southampton. It would mean playing Antonio in a wider role and possibly dropping Ayew, but it's an option for Bilic. Though it's perhaps more likely he will go with just Chicharito up front and bring on Sakho in the second half. If Sakho really has recovered from his back problems then it will be like having a new striker in the squad. If WHU can choose from Hernandez, Sakho, Antonio, Ayew and Carroll for strikers then it's a great improvement on the bad old days of Jonathan Calleri. 

Sakho hits the wall…

Full-page in tonight's Evening Standard on Diafra Sakho crashing his Lamborghini through a garden wall in Hornchurch after colliding with another car and spinning off the road. Thankfully no-one was hurt though Diafra's motor is a write-off. And it turns out the garden wall he crashed into was at the home of a West Ham fan, who immediately recognised him. Perhaps WHU should just get him a nice Ford Fiesta to potter around Essex in.

We're not getting Sakho in the morning

Diafra Sakho will be out for four to eight weeks, having torn a thigh muscle in the draw with West Brom. This is another big blow after the Payet and Valencia injuries, as his running across the line has been integral to Bilic's five-man midfield. Though he looked tired against WBA and with hindsight you wonder if he should have been rested. 

WHU have Andy Carroll to come in, but he's a less mobile player and we need to play to his strengths by getting the likes of Moses, Cresswell and possibly Antonio into crossing positions and perhaps playing a slightly more direct game. I'd also like to see Nikica Jelavic given a chance. He has a decent scoring record of 30 goals in 45 games for Rangers, 16 in 59 for Everton, and 13 in 46 for Hull City and is still only 30. The other option might be to move Victor Moses into a striking role. 

But it's still looking pretty thin up front and a loan move for a striker will surely happen. Sadly even the indestructible Carlton Cole is too old to do a job for us now, though he did help make a great comedy goal for Celtic against Inverness Caledonian Thistle last weekend, falling over and bamboozling Danny Devine into an own goal. Click on the link to view.

You're getting Sakho in the morning…

Diafra Sakho is not going to face any charges, having been arrested in August and now cautioned by the police for criminal damage. Though Slaven Bilic will presumably have spoken to him about getting into the wrong situations and damaging the reputation of the club. Having said that, he's had a very good season so far without getting the plaudits of Payet and co. He's worked tremendously hard as an unselfish lone striker and has been foraging in the channels right up to the final whistle, as we saw when he won a late corner at Arsenal. It's no coincidence we slumped at Watford without him. Andy Carroll might need a few more games as an impact sub and perhaps at some stage a Sakho/Carroll partnership might be worth a try as it worked well against Swansea last season. Hopefully Diafra will now concentrate on football and avoid any off-field shenanigans, because he can be a key player at WHU this season.

Sakho in the morning

While I was climbing up Ben Nevis (not easy after training on egg, chips and beans in Ken’s Café and Maldon Gold in the Black Lion) West Ham signed striker Diafra Sakho from Metz. The Senegal striker has banged in 43 goals in two seasons for Metz as they achieved successive promotions to Ligue 1. He’s unproven at the top level but clearly has an eye for goal. After last season’s travails we’re clearly stockpiling strikers, with Valencia, Zarate and Sakho filling the Carroll-shaped void and Cole, Maiga and Vaz Te possibly awaiting deadline day loan deals out. 

Also saw an interview with the £7million Cheikhou Kouyate in Saturday’s Guardian where he came across as quite a grounded footballer who has won the Belgian league four times. Defeat on Saturday was disappointing, but it’s still too early to judge until we have all our new signings on the pitch. With Cresswell, Jenkinson, Kouyate, Poyet, Zarate, Valencia and Sakho in the squad it’s going to be like a different team. Got my ticket for Palace and hoping it's better than last year when we lost 1-0 and sat on dodgy wooden seats with a minuscule exit and a halftime crush...