West Ham will be going for the FA Cup, says Sam Allardyce

West Ham United’s resurgent form this term has emboldened Sam Allardyce enough to target a prolonged challenge for the FA Cup with the team’s Premier League status having effectively been assured by the astute squad recruitment of last summer.

The team’s predicament a year ago, when they languished second bottom of the Premier League with a hefty injury list and a two-leg League Cup semi-final against Manchester City still to come, had prompted Allardyce to make nine changes, switch formation and hand three youngsters their senior debuts for West Ham’s FA Cup third-round tie at Nottingham Forest of the Championship last season.

The Hammers were duly humiliated 5-0 at the City Ground, with 3,000 travelling fans calling for the manager to be sacked, with the priority clear to retain top-flight status. Yet a stronger squad – bolstered by the arrival of Enner Valencia, Alex Song, Morgan Amalfitano, Aaron Cresswell, Carl Jenkinson, Cheikhou Kouyaté and Diafra Sakho, who have all contributed heavily – has flourished this term and Sunday’s 3-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion left them seventh and only four points from the Champions League places with an away FA Cup tie against League One opponents, Bristol City, to come on Sunday.

“It was important to get back to winning ways because we hadn’t won in four matches in the Premier League,” said Allardyce. “It gives us a great opportunity to focus on Bristol City [in the fourth round of the FA Cup], make sure we get through to fifth round. That is very important to us because our position in the league is very secure. We don’t have to consider resting players with one eye on Premier League results.

“We’ve come through the hardest period of all, Christmas and the new year, with games every three or four days, and are steering clear of injuries well. That gives us a chance to go forward in both the Premier League and the FA Cup.”

Bristol City have enjoyed a fine first half to their own season, and are currently second in League One behind Swindon only on difference, but will face a West Ham side who are also unbeaten to date this year. Allardyce puts the improvement this time round – his team have twice as many points as they did at the same stage last year – down to the key additions made to the squad in the summer window.

“There’s one thing you will realise: recruitment is everything in the world of football,” he added. “You recruit well, you become a great manager. Better players do better things, take things on board quicker, get better results. Our recruitment this year has been fantastic. To have so many players make such a difference in one season’s recruitment is the best I’ve ever had in my entire career.”


By Dominic Fifield, Guardian