I am confident that should Newcastle not come in quickly for Carroll we should have a chance of completing the deal, butI still can’t see Lukaku joining. The deal for Lukaku would be a loan signing and honestly if he is to go on loan again I would fully expect Lukaku to rejoin West Brom. IF (a very big if) we somehow manage to pull off both deals that is a really deadly strike force that will easilt be good enough to push us even further up the table. (But I still can’t see it happening)

The former Shakhtar defender comes with bags of top level experience playing for the Ukranian Champions league side for many years.

A cultured fullback who is not only solid but also ventures forward with purpose. One great thing… He is left footed! With O’Brien our first choice left back throughout the season playing behind right footed Jarvis we have struggled to have natural width on that side and exploit the left flank. Lets hope that Rat and Jarvis can form the sort of partnership we have previously had on the left flank!

…Oh also he has a quality name!

Carlton Cole has always divided opinions amongst West Ham fans but no one could ever knock his commitment, passion and love for the club. I for one will miss watching Carlton Cole at Upton Park.

Carlton admitted himself he was not only a West Ham player, but a fan. A loyal servant during very difficult times at Upton Park, Cole has always put in 100% and enjoyed some great spells at the club particularly under Zola where he thrived and showed what he really can do.

Cole showed spells of the sort of quality that attracted so much interest as a youngster, and really for me could have gone on to do so much more. He is certainly not a striker that will set the world alight but he is the sort of striker that most sides would love to have in their squad… He will be sorely missed but maybe it is probably the right time for Cole to move on and get football week in week out once again, and I’m sure that I am not the only one who will wish Carlton all the best in the future.

Looking to the future this leaves us with one recognised striker… Maiga surely that means the arrival of at least two more strikers before the end of the summer… Hopefully Carroll then would love to see who else. Personally I expect the money that we would have been paying Cole to be spent on AC’s wages. COYI

The potential arrival of the 35 year old midfielder has caused some debate amongst West Ham fans. Some fans have suggested that Ambrosini is simply ‘too old’. If I am being honest I have only seen Ambrosini play a few times over the past season but a player of his calibre, and more importantly with his experience and leadership qualities, should not be disregarded as ‘too old’ nowadays.

Certain players have never relied on place and it is Ambrosini’s reading of the game that has kept him at the top level for so long and that is something that only gets better with age (well… For at least a few more years!) not his pace.

I wouldn’t expect him to start every game and wouldn’t want him too but he would be vital to have around the club to pass on his masses of experience.

Personally on a free I would love to see this deal done. The only question in my mind is does this spell the end to Alou Diarra’s time at Upton Park? Diarra has expressed and interest in staying after a loan spell back in France but both are quite similar.

The refreshing thing about what is going on at West Ham is we are looking to get deals done quick, with Rat all but done and talks ongoing already with Ambrosini, Allardyce is highlighting targets and sealing the deal as soon as he can.

What do you think of Ambrosini’s potential arrival? Too old? Or a very clever piece of business?

We were sloppy for the first 10 minutes of the second half where we allowed Reading to get back into the game, but in the end we simply had too much for the relegated side. Andy Carroll played a pivotal role in the game playing his part in three of our four goals, and if we are to push on next season, Carroll returning would be a massive boost to our chances.

Now the season is over Allardyce know that he has to sit down and work through strengthening to avoid the ‘second season syndrome that has caught out so many teams in the past.

Priorities

Striker
Andy Carroll’s form since the turn of the year has been outstanding and his performance against Reading epitomised this. He is not just there to score goals he has a lot more to offer, his power, presence and ability to find a teammate under pressure make him vital to our tactics and style of play. I am quietly confident that we will get a deal done for the England international, however, if we don’t we have to have someone of equal quality lined up to take his place.

Full-Back
This seems all but wrapped up. Razvan Rat is set to sign on a free transfer after a long stint as Shakhtar’s left back. The Romanian international is a cultured professional and is ACTUALLY LEFT FOOTED! Which is great news as this will give us a lot more natural width down the left.

I think for now these are the real priorities… possibly another goalkeeper, right winger and central midfielder but these are the deals I would like to see sealed sooner rather than later. What deal do you see as our main priority?

With Chelsea only having two out and out strikers in Ba and Torres I personally cannot see them allowing Lukaku to leave. A touted fee of £15 million has been suggested and if so and the player would like to join I think this is a deal we should definitely make happen. But honestly I don’t expect it to pay off.

Let’s wait and see.

Consistently putting in performances against the very best sides in the league had attracted interest in the young centre half, but after signing a new deal, Reid should be a Hammer for many years to come.

Jussi Jaaskelainen (in my opinion deservedly) finished as runner-up for the accolade. Jussi, particularly as the season progressed, has put in several match saving performances against the likes of Chelsea, Man City and many others pulling off wonder saves almost every game. While he is prone to a mistake which goalkeeper isn’t? It’s been a very impressive season from the Finnish goalkeeper.

In third was Mo Diame, a player who won Signing of the Season, Individual Performance of the Season and Goal of the Season. Another key component to our success this season and seasons to come, Diame has been a revlation and fingers crossed the runmoured contract negotiations go well can we secure Diame for the long term.

It was great to have so many worthy winners at the Player Awards now lets finish the season in style and begin looking forward to another top flight campaign.

Oh just one more thing… Also a nice (but obvious) touch by the Chairmen to select Carroll as their player of the year to try and convince him to stay! Sign him up!!! COYI

If I could think of one position where we look weak, for me it’s out wide. Vaz Te is not good enough to play out wide for a Premier League side… it’s that simple. Redmond is young and does occasionally make rash decisions but with his blistering pace and trickery he will only become better with age and experience, this is a deal that I truly believe would only end well. As the season comes to an end more and more clubs will be looking at Redmond as there are not many youngsters as good as him around, and more importantly available.

Like Jarvis, Redmond is an out and out winger, I cannot stand watching Vaz Te out wide as he never looks to beat his defender and slows the game down in a way you would never see from a true winger. If we seal a deal for Redmond and have him one side and Jarvis the other we could be a real threat on both flanks. COYI

There are many West Ham fans who have called for players on the fringe to get a chance, the likes of Lletget and Turgott who have both impressed for the development squad, and I agree, there is no reason why we shouldn’t, even if it is just 30 minutes. If you can’t afford to blend them into the squad now and give them real premier league experience then they will not make it. While the pressures off we should see if these young players are good enough to play their part next season, as they are at the age that they should begin blending in with the rest of the first team squad.

We should also begin planning additions to our side to ensure we don’t get beaten by our rivals to any targets signature. I hope that Allardyce highlights his targets before the end of the season so we can start making movements ready for the opening of the transfer window.

Next up Man City… a team playing for nothing who in the second half against Tottenham were terrible, let’s hope they continue in that form and keep up our unbeaten run. COYI

We once again proved that we can give anyone a game on our day, and we have the foundations of a team that can really push on and compete in this league. Collins furthered his reputation as a leader from the back with another exceptional display, Diame again dictated the midfield and scored a fantastic goal, and up top Carroll proved once more that he has found his form and can be dominant and battle against the best defenders in the world.

Yesterday was certainly a day to make you proud to be a hammer, not only for the magnificent work ethic but the way we played was so refreshing. Knowing that we were all but safe we went out against Sir Alex’s side knowing we had nothing to lose. We also rubbished the myth of ‘Big Sam Football’ with Diame’s goal which epitomised our quality play.

For me the great thing to see as the season has progressed is how dubious players have started stepping up to the plate. Jaaskelainen is one, the goalkeeper has been magnificent, as quelled any doubts, of which there we a few, that he had lost his touch. Others who have come on leaps and bounds, Joey O’Brien and Demel have done what has been asked and more throughout the season and again did what they had to going back and forward against the soon to be champions. In the last few weeks another player who has really proved his worth is Gary O’Niel, the player who was completely out of the equation at the start of the season has been a more than adequate replacement while Noble was out and has more quality than many had realised.

With a few additions next year we could really push on and a top half finish should be expected next season. Saturday’s fixture against Wigan should see us reach the 40 point mark with games to spare and then planning can certainly start for next season. COYI