Argentina stars arrive at West Ham

West Ham United FC have unveiled Argentina stars Carlos Tévez and Javier Mascherano with the pair realising a "dream" in signing four-year contracts to play in England.

'Very happy'
The duo, who were training with their new team-mates for the first time today, joined manager Alan Pardew for a press conference at the club's Boleyn Ground in east London. Defensive midfielder Mascherano summed up their feelings and was clear that they were, first and foremost, team players. "When the offer came in from West Ham we didn't even doubt it," he said. "For any South American player, and in this case Argentinian, it is a dream to play in European football. This was a very important goal for us."

Simple decision
Mascherano said speculation involving more illustrious clubs was not relevant. "Things are quite simple here," he said. "There may have been other interest but nothing came of it. The best thing that came out of this is how loved we were by West Ham, and how much we were wanted." Tévez, who will compete with five other strikers for a starting role, added: "West Ham showed so much interest in me - that's the reason why I came." Both men offered thanks to fans of their former side SC Corinthians with Tévez claiming he left Brazilian football "with my head held high".

Positive perspective
The English press is rife with takeover rumours at West Ham and talk about how a team that finished ninth last season and who had previously been regarded for selling talent like Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard, Joe Cole, Jermain Defoe and Michael Carrick had landed such world-renowned players. While Pardew acknowledged the goings-on at West Ham were "intriguing", his main motivation for speaking out was to counter the "negative" publicity that had surfaced since the deal broke last Thursday.

Success key
He said: "An opportunity came to sign them and we have two world-class players and I absolutely want them at this club. And I can say categorically that our players will welcome them with open arms. Our players have always done that, all new signings have been made welcome here. They are coming into a community which is quite settled, has a great spirit, and I think they are going to enjoy that."

Time to enjoy
Pardew has been assured the players, both 22, will definitely not be leaving in the winter transfer window, and he stressed neither would be guaranteed first-team football. Although the talk has been that they could be transferred next summer if the offer was right, the manager, who said "we want to challenge the big teams", argued it was no different to any club needing success in order to hang on to prized assets. "Let's enjoy their quality and see where it takes us," he added.