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Which one would West Ham fans prefer?

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Capital One CupThere has been a worrying trend for the underdogs in the cup in recent seasons, win the cup feel the glory, rapidly followed by the heartbreak of relegation come May.

Having knocked the Hammers out in the semi finals, Birmingham City went to Wembley as huge underdogs to face Arsenal, but a last gasp Obafemi Martins goal meant they went on to lift the League Cup at Wembley.

In the same season under Alex McLeish they reached the quarter finals of the FA Cup, proving they were a cup team, the fans were having a whale of a time, until May rolled along, they finished 18th and delirium turned to agony.

Looking back to last season there was Wigan Athletic fairy-tale story as they shocked the footballing world, with relegation staring them in the eyes, they travelled to Wembley to face the far superior (in player terms) Manchester City.

They repelled and sent the travelling fans into frenzy in the last minute as Ben Watson popped up with a winner (much to my despair as I had a bet on City that day). Just three days later, back in London the Lancashire club were relegated following a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Arsenal. They too finished in 18th place.

A worrying trend or just a coincidence?

West Ham United fantastically beat Tottenham Hotspurs in the quarter finals of the League Cup to set up a semi final double header with Manchester City in January.

It is in fact the cup which has seen the Hammers play their best football, after being slated by fans in recent seasons for not taking the cups seriously, it seems Allardyce has fired up the Hammers this season.

They have though disappointed in the Premier League this season, sitting in 17th place and struggling to score goals, the Irons are looking behind their shoulders rather than looking up.  They need arrivals in January and the return of Winston Reid, Andy Carroll and Stewart Downing and fast.

The Hammers faithful buzzword on forum sites of late has been “gutless” they are getting fed up of watching their beloved side just roll over and die in games against the bigger teams, Big Sam will want his side to prove the doubter wrong on Thursday against Arsenal at Upton Park.

So the key question is, cup success or Premier League survival?

Now, the greedy amongst us will say both, and that is still a realistic option should the Hammers beat the Citizens over two legs (as unlikely as they may seem, anything can happen in cup football). With the right investment in January and the return of Andy Carroll and co could see the Irons rise up the league.

But realistically, with the way this season is going the Irons need a change in fortunes and fast, but unfortunately they tend to be hiding. It is often said that a club of our size should have more silverware in the trophy cabinet than we do. There is no denying my dream to see West Ham lift a major cup at Wembley, but if that comes at the cost of relegation, that dream can wait.

As a club we cannot realistically afford to get relegated, we can kiss goodbye to our heroes. Reid, Morrison, Downing, Carroll and co would all leave the club in a heartbeat. The Olympic stadium debate would raise its ugly head again and that means more legal fees. It would be Armageddon at Upton Park again.

Stay up and those dreams will become reality on regular basis, in the Olympic Stadium with major players coming into the club, and we will rise as a club.

Come on you Irons!

Tweet me @Bowdenwhu

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4 comments

  • JB says:

    Had we 10 more points on the board, OK go for the cup, but seeing as we don’t, then there’s no choice. The Premier League is everything, so I’d have no problem with throwing the semi final tie in exchange for Premier League survival!

  • JB says:

    THE NEXT 9 POINTS FROM 3 GAMES IN 6 DAYS ARE ALL THAT MATTERS!!!

  • JB says:

    The only juggling West Ham will be doing is for Premier League Pts. Our opponents for our 3rd game in 6 days being Fulham have already started their war against us, as guess what? Yes Clint Dempsey will be available to face us on New Years Day. Oh the joy of it, don’t you just enjoy this cut throat league? Well as the saying goes “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going”. I’d only say go for cup glory unless a miracle happens and we win our next 3 games. Slim odds, but other than that happening forget both cups!

  • Macca says:

    My team selections for:
    Nottingham Forest v West Ham FA Cup 3rd Rd 5th Jan & both legs of League Cup semi final v Manchester City

    Save all full strength squad members for Premier League games only. It’s batten down the hatches for Premier League survival time.

    Adrian. Obrien, Chambers, Rat, Collison, Taylor, Diarra, Fanimo,(Moncur) (Lletget) (Tombides)
    Substitutes: Jääskeläinen, Collins, McCartney (Nolan) (Maiga) (C. Cole) J. Cole

    Bring on Nolan at half time & Maiga & C.Cole after 67 minutes

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