September 23, 2022
The brief from today:
West Ham and Mark Noble reunite
Long-time club servant, Mark Noble, retired from his playing career at the end of the 2021/22 Premier League season. Noble came through the West Ham youth team, and went on to represent the senior side beginning in 2004. He had two short loans at Ipswich Town and Hull City two years later, but aside from that his whole career was spent with West Ham. An influential midfielder, and eventually captain, Noble was always viewed by the fans as one of their own, and after 550 appearances for the club he was known as “Mr. West Ham”. The team honored him, shortly after his retirement in May, by opening the Mark Noble Arena at the West Ham Academy, but now the connection is going to be even more official. It was announced that Noble would return to the club in an official capacity as the sporting director beginning in January 2023. Prior to this appointment, West Ham didn’t have a sporting director role, despite the presence of it at many other clubs, but they have decided to launch it now with one of their former greats occupying the position for the first time. What this means is that Noble will now work with his former coach, David Moyes, to align the club’s administrative strategy with those of the technical side. It is always a welcome sight to see former players take up these sorts of roles at their old clubs, rather than the coaching position which tends to come with a different type of pressure and expectation. As a result of a deep understanding of the club culture, it seems like the influence these ex-players can have as sporting directors is more impactful. Examples such as: Monchi at Sevilla, and Maldini at Milan, prove that with the right figure representing the club in that role, solid foundations and teams can be built. It will be a new, and different, experience for Noble, but the leadership qualities he already displayed as a player should aid with his transition.
Mark Noble waved goodbye as a West Ham player in May, but will soon return as sporting director
Tension rising at Inter
Serie A side, Inter Milan, have had a mediocre start to the season which sees them sitting in eight place. The tension from recent losses to Udinese, as well as Milan in the big city derby, has been exacerbated by the comfortable defeat Bayern handed them in the Champions League group stage. In addition to that, the club’s owners, Suning Group, are also in the spotlight after recent rumors made the rounds that they instructed Goldman Sachs to test the waters regarding potential buyers. The reason those rumors seem more likely to be true than not is due the financial state of Suning’s business operations in China. It has been widely reported that the retail giant has taken a major hit, specifically since the COVID pandemic, and this has resulted in increased debt being borrowed for club operations. The combination of the team’s form, coupled with the administrative issues, has now prompted Inter’s most ardent fans, the Curva Nord, to release a statement. Using their social media, the group of supporters were brief, but direct, simply saying, “Zhang go away.” The Zhang family, who own Suning Group, have one of the family members, Steven Zhang, holding the the club chairman role, and the 30-year-old is who the fans see around the club on a frequent basis. The ire isn’t solely directed at him, but it will make for a more fraught atmosphere at the stadium where he’s typically present, and will have already witnessed the numerous protest banners unfurled by the Curva Nord during home matches.
The Curva Nord section of fans are known for their support, and elaborate tifo displays like the one above