With the crucial Christmas Livescores to come in and then the January transfer window approaching club chairman are getting restless. If their club’s are struggling they are faced with a tough choice – stick with the present coach and let him try and dig his way out of trouble, or get someone new in with the hope a honeymoon period will inspire them over the festive period and then allow him to go shopping during the January transfer window.

For West Ham they are in such a perilous position. With the club lying bottom of the league with just two wins all season the pressure is on Avram Grant, who only joined the club in the summer.

With finances tight at Upton Park the board would be reluctant to sack Grant, incurring a hefty pay-off in the process, and then fork out compensation for a replacement.

But the sacking of Sam Allardyce by Blackburn this week has changed things somewhat.

Big Sam moved to Ewood Park in December 2008 with Rovers in a similar position to what West Ham are in now. He successfully avoided relegation and led them to 10th the following year.

The fact he is now out of work means he would be a cheap ready-made replacement for Grant. His direct, set piece reliant style would perhaps grate with the Hammers fans, who are used to seeing their side play attractive passing football.

But those studying the football live scores know that desperate times mean desperate measure and Allardyce’s agricultural style of play maybe what is required if West Ham are to battle their way out of trouble.

However, perhaps their biggest problem at the moment is an element of delusion in some quarters. Avram Grant appears to be the main culprit in this respect and his comments made after yesterday’s defeat at the hands of a dominant Sunderland team embodied an apparent unwillingness to accept the reality of the Hammers’ situation. With a number of pundits making West Ham betting tips for relegation, something needs to change and soon.

Sunderland completely outplayed West Ham yesterday at the Stadium of Light and, despite a better showing in the second half, the visitors looked completely lacking in ideas and were entirely woeful in attack. Craig Gordon in the Sunderland goal could hardly have asked for a quieter, easier afternoon, with Carlton Cole struggling again. The football transfer rumours have linked him with a move away from the club, and it may be time to cash in.

However, rather than using this defeat to point out the weaknesses threatening to send the Hammers down to the Championship at the end of the season, Grant decided instead look for optimism where there was really none to be found.

With West Ham currently bearing the astounding statistic of failing to win away from home since the opening day of last season, Grant decided to state that he’s confident the squad has enough quality to stay up, while pointing out “the gap is not too big” between them and the other teams currently in danger in and around the relegation zone.

Although the strength in depth of the squad that West Ham have and the squads at clubs such as Wigan and Wolves probably aren’t too dissimilar, the fact remains that the Hammers lack the confidence that results from putting on a decent display on the road.

Until they can bring an end to their dismal away record in the league and prove to their fans they have the fighting spirit needed to stave off relegation, the gap between them and their nearest rivals will continue to grow.

Since arriving at Upton Park from Mexican side Pumas in the summer, Barrera has made 14 appearances for his new side in the league so far this season. The 23-year-old has only showed glimpses of his talent, as West Ham have struggled badly in the opening 15 games of this season. With a third of the season already gone, the Hammer’s still find themselves propping up the table and will be looking for a run of victories to climb up the table, something the football odds indicate they are capable of.
It’s a big change for Barrera coming from his homeland to London and it hasn’t been easy going but things could be looking up for both Barrera and the Hammers. “As every week goes by, I am settling in more to the team and life in London.” He said.

Barrera has been just one of a number of talented players in the West Ham squad who has struggled to reach their top form this season. The 3-1 defeat of Wigan was an example of what this Hammers side can do when they gel. The players in the squad are certainly good enough to survive this season but they will need to keep producing on the pitch and the football betting suggests this can happen.

With West Ham picking up only their second win of the season, last weekend against Wigan and will be looking to build on that this weekend when they make the long journey to Sunderland. Avram Grant’s side will then host Manchester City and what is sure to be a tough match before another trip up north to face Blackburn.

Grant will be hoping to come out of the hectic Christmas period with his team out of the bottom three for the first time of the season. The New Year gives West Ham the chance to salvage something from their season and they can reach the safety of mid-table with a good run of results.

The side are rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table and have not win in the league since September 25th. Four of their six games since that date have been draws and after every one Grant has seemingly come out and predicted the next game will be the one where their season starts to turn around.

But they still sit four points from safety and it is beginning to look like the game at home to Blackpool at the weekend could be a must-win one for West Ham. Blackpool are still many people’s Premier League tips for relegation and the Irons need to turn them over or the situation could look dire.

Grant has praised the style of football that his side are playing and claims it is frustrating they are not winning more games.

What has to frustrate fans is it is obvious to onlookers the defence is leaking far too many goals and the strike force of Frederic Piquionne, Carlton Cole and Victor Obinna only seem to be able to score about one in every five chances that arrives to them – and that is a generous estimate.

“We are very close to it – when the first win comes, we will win more and we are playing football to win games,” Grant said.

“Everybody can see we play good games of football. From my experience, if we continue like this then the points will come.”

Despite the fact the Hammers have only one win all season, and a poor goalscoring record, captain Scott Parker recently claimed that attacking was the best policy for West Ham to adopt if they wanted to escape the Premier League relegation places, something the Premier League betting still suggests they can do.

He said the side look dangerous every time they attack and the strikers can inspire an escape from the struggles, but there is likely to be many Hammers fans around doubtful there is the striking capability at Upton Park to solely rely on them.

Unfortunately for the Hammers, that’s exactly what they received this week when it emerged that Mark Noble is set to be out of action for up to a month after having his appendix removed.

Noble, who, despite seeming like an experienced campaigner for the Hammers at times, is still just 23, started complaining of stomach problems earlier this week and after an assessment from West Ham’s doctor was forced to undergo surgery.

The news will come as a particular blow to the Hammers as Noble, along with Scott Parker, has been in particularly good form so far this season, providing a ray of hope in the club’s otherwise dismal start to the campaign.

He clearly has the faith of Avram Grant, with the West Ham boss including the midfielder in his starting 11 in every league match so far this season. Injury problems to other key players in the middle of the park, including Thomas Hitzlsperger and Jack Collison, also make Noble’s absence particularly troublesome. The Betfair Football rumour mill suggests Grant could look to strengthen the midfield in January if he is given the chance to do so.

West Ham are currently preparing for a trio of games that could see them improve their position in the league drastically, with Birmingham, West Brom, and Blackpool all on the horizon, games the football predictions suggest the Irons are more than capable of winning.

If they can string together some decent performances before then, the impact of Noble’s absence may not be as major as initially feared.

The Hammers are rooted to the bottom of the table, behind Wolves on goal difference. Unfortunately, it looks like any resurgence will have to wait as the weekend Premier League betting suggests the Irons will struggle to get anything out of their game with Arsenal.

Meanwhile, former England man Dyer has had a string of high-profile injury problems since signing for West Ham in 2007. He broke his right leg only ten days into his Hammers career and then a series of hamstring problems have kept him out long-term.

He has never actually managed to play a full 90 minutes in his time at Upton Park but has rediscovered some form this season and has actually looked the best player in a struggling West Ham side.

Dyer missed their last game after not being able to train and Grant is hoping the situation does not turn into one similar to Ledley King at Spurs where the defender has a chronic knee problem and can only play and train intermittently.

“Kieron played well last week. But he has had three years out, he didn’t train all the week, and he couldn’t play,” Grant said.

“I’m sure that we can use him in the future, but we need to manage him very carefully. At least when he plays he is playing very well.”

The Premier League best odds suggest the club are in a real scrap, but captain Mathew Upson recently said two wins could catapult the club out of the relegation places and into mid-table.

He added that was a position the club could “realistically maintain” and is hoping Grant can help revitalise the players in the near future.

The England defender played for 53 minutes as the Hammers blew their chance to climb out of the Premier League bottom three by going down 2-1 to Newcastle at Upton Park.

Carlton Cole opened the scoring for West Ham, but two goals from the visitors left the East London club bottom of the Premier League table.

West Ham are three points adrift but fans could take some comfort from the fact the Newcastle game was their first defeat in five games.

Unfortunately three of those four games in the leagues ended in draws and Upson admits the Hammers players need to “analyse that” statistic and look to change it.

The defender admits there is not time to be “hitting the panic button” yet as the West Ham squad has enough potential to climb out of the Premier League relegation places and the Premier League betting offers reflect this.

“People can get carried away with our performances and our position but before this game we went on a five-match unbeaten run,” the 31-year-old said.

“We weren’t on a drastically bad run. We just need to turn a few draws into wins.”

However, the weekend Premier League betting shows West Ham face a tricky task next time out.

They travel to the Emirates to face Premier League title-chasing Arsenal on October 30th.

Parker has certainly done his best to convince the England manager that he is worthy of a recall, with a string of impressive performances for a struggling West Ham side. Parker continued his good form with another quality display in last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Wolves. After the game Grant made his admiration for his captain clear saying, “I think if you look at all the English midfielders, with respect to others, there is no doubt that Scott, from the beginning of the season, has been the best midfielder. I need to talk to Capello! I am not the England manager, but I am sure that Scott deserves to be there.”

After seeing how the England midfield toiling so fruitlessly against Montenegro, Premiership betting pundits believe that Grant certainly has a point. While Steven Gerrard worked his socks off, Gareth Barry was ineffective throughout and Parker’s box to box style could have been match changing. Capello may use next month’s friendly against France to give Parker a run-out and not many could argue against his inclusion if that was the case.

After a dire start to the season, those assessing the Premier League Odds believe that West Ham’s chances of climbing the table lie mainly with Parker. While the 30 year old is still working away in the West Ham engine room, the club should stay safe this season.

With youngster Freddie Sears heading away from the club in order to gain some experience, and manager Avram Grant now fully aware of the talents that his squad possess, as well as the areas that need to be improved over the next few months, West Ham can hopefully now start to think about the long term, rather than looking over their shoulder at the dreaded drop down into the Championship and all the repercussions that could bring. Fortunately, the West Ham betting suggests they will be able to drag themselves clear of the drop zone.

However, with the club not receiving the luck that they needed to defeat Wolves (following a refereeing decision that can be deemed questionable at best), they will need the likes of Carlton Cole back fit and firing if they are to be a side capable of truly forgetting the worries of relegation. With Wigan, Wolves and Blackpool still many people’s football tips for relegation, West Ham have an excellent chance of avoiding the drop.

In fact, if the likes of Robert Green and Scott Parker continue to excel at the club week in, week out, the team could eventually be capable of challenging for a European place once they have signed a few quality players.

Tomkins revealed that the players believe the club is in a “false position” that bears little relation to the manner in which the team has been performing since the campaign started and hinted that there are just a couple of small factors preventing the side from turning draws and defeats into wins.

The comments from Tomkins are entirely accurate and will come as no surprise to every West Ham fan across the country. The Hammers’ performances this season quite frankly deserve a higher league position than the one they occupy at the moment and the West Ham betting tips suggest it’s only a matter of time until they start moving up the league table.

Meanwhile, Tomkins, who has primarily seen his footballing action this season come in the Carling Cup, also revealed a sense of frustration at his lack of first-team football. Although he admitted competition for places in West Ham’s defence is intense.

However, this is just another sign of the quality and strength in depth that West Ham, unlike many other clubs struggling at the foot of the league (except perhaps for Liverpool), are able to look to in order to improve the team’s performances. The Premier League betting indicates the side should be looking for a mid-table finish at least.

The fact that the undoubtedly talented youngster is looking to force his way into Grant’s plans rather than seek a loan move away from the club to gain some experience also shows the attraction that West Ham, despite their current league position, holds for high-quality players.