CONFIRMED Dean Hammond

All advertisments are hidden for logged in members, why not log in/register?

silverfox

silverfox

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 5, 2005
Messages
15,635
Reaction score
2,571
Location
Next door
Dean Hammond could become the latest Albion player to leave for Sheffield United.

The Championship under-achievers have been monitoring Hammond during the first half of the season and they are likely to move for him now that the Seagulls are making their skipper available for transfer.

Former Albion assistant and Sheffield United legend Bob Booker scouts for the Blades.

He has been at Withdean several times, with specific instructions to assess a player he already knew well from his time at the club.

Blades boss Bryan Robson is keen to overhaul the Sheffield squad relegated from the Premiership last season under his predecessor Neil Warnock and now labouring in the bottom half of the Championship following last Saturday's defeat in the steel city derby against Sheffield Wednesday.

Midfielder Hammond, 24, fits the bill according to a Bramall Lane insider and may be about to follow the same path to Yorkshire as another former Albion captain, Danny Cullip, and ex-Seagulls striker Colin Kazim-Richards.

Hammond wants to stay with Albion but has refused to sign a new contract until they convince him they are serious about trying to get promotion back into the Championship from League One.

He is entitled to a Bosman free transfer at the end of the season when his current deal expires, so Albion want to cash in on him while they can during the rest of the January transfer window.

They have already rejected a bid for Hammond earlier this month from the Championship's bottom club, Colchester.

Meanwhile, Albion are still expected to make a move for Rochdale forward Glenn Murray before the window closes.
 

Steve Claridge
Tuesday September 25, 2007
The Guardian

The thing about Dean Hammond that surprised me most was just how much he had changed physically since I last saw him during my time at Brighton on loan two years ago. I am not sure if he has filled out too much but he has filled out more than I would have liked, which means his mobility wasn't quite as sharp as I remembered, but there were extenuating circumstances for that and he is the type of player a team should be built around - that is how highly I rate him.

He is Albion's club captain and has scored in every home game this season, but when I went to see him one or two things happened that probably were responsible for the fact that he didn't get into areas best suited to his play. A defence that sat back too far meant he was too deep at times to support his forward or get into goalscoring positions and his fellow central midfielder was much too similar, which left them playing far too close together.
Of the two, Hammond should have the licence to get forward at every opportunity to use his strength and ability in the air because he was definitely the more dangerous half of the partnership.

His team-mates trust him with the ball even in tight areas and so they should because he has got a fantastic first touch and his retention of the ball is excellent. Defensively, too, he is spot-on, which is a real plus, and in fact when defending at corners he marked one of Yeovil Town's biggest players, Scott Guyett, matched him then mastered his aerial ability. He was just as impressive defending at free-kicks - when the ball was cleared he did not rush out before the danger had passed, like I used to do, but stayed with his man. During this game his patience and concentration were rewarded when the ball was lobbed back in and his challenge on the player he had been marking saved a certain goal.

His 20 goals in 118 league starts is a fair return but with the attributes he has he could improve on that. There are no worries about him flinching out of tackles either because he threw himself into challenges with relish. He marks in front for throws, which is another example of how his enthusiasm sometimes leads him to get caught up not only doing his own job but that of other players as well.

I would like to see him play at different paces, preferably in fits and bursts, particularly when making runs into the opposition's box, because he tended to do everything at the same tempo.He does not always communicate as strongly as he might and twice he and another player went for the same ball, which on one occasion meant they denied each other a great opportunity to score.

He is a player who has matured tremendously over the past two years as the team has evolved and he has taken the responsibility of captaincy in his stride. But he has to be aware that it is hard enough to play for yourself and he should focus on looking after his own game before selflessly looking after his team-mates. If he does that and realises his potential, Brighton have a player with a fantastic future.

Age 24

Born Hastings

Position Midfield

Height 6ft

Weight 11st 9lb

From Trainee

Heading 9/10

Passing 9/10

Tackling 8/10

Pace 8/10

Team responsibility 9/10

Valuation £750,000
 
he sounds promising from that write up!

Can he make the step up though? Always the problem
 
another quote:

"Hammond takes centre stage

EVERY team has them. For Chelsea it is Claude Makelele, Arsenal have Gilberto, Manchester United John O'Shea.

They are not headline grabbers but they go quietly about their business, doing a valuable job for the side. They are players' players.

You will not see Dean Hammond hitting raking crossfield passes a la Dean Cox, or going past opponents like Jake Robinson. In Albion's case it is Hammond who is the unsung hero.


Every now and then they come from behind the curtains to take centre stage. Hammond did just that on Saturday night.

He was the X Factor, almost single-handedly hauling a below-par Albion to victory with both goals, including the winner from the penalty spot in the closing stages.

Boss Dean Wilkins recognises the value of a player who is leading by example more and more as he settles into the captaincy.

"I think Dean is one of those players managers and his team-mates appreciate more than supporters," Wilkins said.

"I wish supporters would appreciate him a wee bit more because he is a true Brighton player and he showed a lot of bottle to take that penalty."

Hammond is quite content for others to receive the plaudits. "My game is about keeping the ball, passing the ball," he said.

"Other players do things further up the field, I try to start the game off. I enjoy the way I am expected to play.""
 
chrisyb99 said:
ha ha apologies ment ian! maybe one day i will get something correct on this forum! I rather embarrasingly believed robson and kidd would do a good job for us
Click to expand...

Even now I think we may have better than Ian Hamilton.

;)
 
AnonymousBlade1995 said:
Can't believe we have been linked with him this long just get it over the line ;)
Click to expand...

Backwards club mate.
Prince shouldve put his hand in his pocket when were first linked. Beaten to a signing by Colchester, what the fucks that all about?

I'm going to tweet Jim a loud and vulgur message, plenty of punctuation and CAPS.
 
maxstertheblade said:
In talks potential loan move. Didn't play today at all as in talks with us.
Click to expand...
I said pre-season he would be on Adkins shopping list hope he gets him as he is just what we need experienced player and a leader. Come on
Nice get this one over the line ,he would be able to cut it in the championship as well
 

Blade58 said:
Left out of squad yesterday I believe

Just started following us on twitter according to BM board


Could it be?
Click to expand...

He has started following us
Hmm... Would be a top signing. And would free Basham up to play CH as and when.
 
Would be a brilliant signing and just what we need in my opinion. I think we are much thinner on the ground in CM than any other area. We can't rely on Basham staying fit all season.

Let's hope this is true. The twitter follow seems like a massive clue.
 
I thought the twitter thing would be a wind up, but just checked his account and he is now following the official SUFC account.
 
sheffielder said:
I thought the twitter thing would be a wind up, but just checked his account and he is now following the official SUFC account.
Click to expand...

I thought it was significant when Big Jim started following Greg Halford, but nothing came of that.

Maybe they are both Mormons...
 
Being linked again by some 'ITK' account on Twitter. Apparently deal will be done within 22 hours (very specific, I know).

He has just started following SUFC tweets though...
 

I thought it always closed at midnight, or thereabouts?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Foxy
Sheffield United Pre-season Friendly Fixtures 2025/2026
5 6 7
Replies
192
Views
31K
Aston max
Aston max
R
That Jay McEveley moment
2
Replies
42
Views
4K
Kenworthy’s Tash
Kenworthy’s Tash
C
Slightly Concerned
4 5 6
Replies
162
Views
11K
I should coco
I should coco
William Carey
We will be fine
Replies
8
Views
1K
Pintor75
Pintor75
derfblade.3
Gus?
Replies
8
Views
1K
DifferentClass
DifferentClass

All advertisments are hidden for logged in members, why not log in/register?

All advertisments are hidden for logged in members, why not log in/register?

Back
Top Bottom