Over the course of the past nine months, KUMB Editor Graeme Howlett has been writing a weekly diary for Echo newspapers.
Condensed into a month-by-month account of the 2013/14 campaign, today we take a look back at November of last year - a month when the first feint cries of 'Allardyce out!' were heard and when fears of an impending relegation battle were first raised...1st November
West Ham were forced to play two away games within 48 hours this week - but Sam Allardyce will have been delighted to secure yet another vital Premier League point and passage to the quarter finals of the Capital One Cup.
Due to Swansea's involvement in the Europa League, West Ham's trip to the Liberty Stadium was postponed by 24 hours to allow the Swans an extra day to recover. Yet no such luxury was afforded to the Hammers who, having secured a vital point in Wales on Sunday afternoon were made to play a fifth round Cup tie at Burnley just two days later.
Amazingly, the goalless draw at Swansea was the fourth time this season in which West Ham have kept a clean sheet away from home. Indeed, the only time Jussi Jaaskelainen has been beaten on the road was from the penalty spot - and the decision to award that (to Hull's Robbie Brady) was a controversial one.
United’s impressive sequence was extended on Tuesday night when two second half penalties were enough to see West Ham past the challenge of Championship leaders Burnley in their fourth round Cup tie. Yet concerns persist over the Hammers’ impotent attack; those two penalties were the only shots on goal Allardyce’s side managed in the entire game.
Still, having made nine changes to the team that started at Swansea the manager will have been delighted to see youngsters Leo Chambers, Danny Potts and Pelly Ruddock step up to the plate and perform admirably. At one stage there were six players from West Ham’s Academy on the pitch (including Junior Stanislas, who now plays for Burnley); further testament to the fantastic work Tony Carr continues to do at Chadwell Heath.
* Can lightning strike twice? Less than a month after their stunning 3-0 win, West Ham are looking forward to another trip to Tottenham after the London rivals were paired together in the quarter finals of the Capital One Cup. Spurs' Andros Townsend is clearly looking forward to the tie, for within minutes of the draw being made he hailed it as "the perfect draw in the next round #revenge".
West Ham’s fans are looking forward to it too; the nature of the competition means away teams are allocated 15 per cent of capacity, giving the Hammers an allocation of around 5,500 which will surely be snapped up within hours.
8th November
Jermain Defoe has been linked with a return to West Ham this week, having fallen out of favour at Tottenham. The England international struck a conciliatory tone during a TV documentary in which he spoke effusively about the Hammers, for whom he played until 2004 when finances dictated his sale.
Defoe's mooted return to the Boleyn Ground has been the cause of much debate amongst supporters on the KUMB.com forum in recent days. Yet there is one rather obvious problem with his proposed switch many appear to be overlooking.
Since joining West Ham in 2011, Sam Allardyce has based his set-up on a sole striker. (More recently, he's played with none!) A specific type of striker, too; a big, strong target man - 6'3" Carlton Cole for example, or the equally sizeable Andy Carroll.
Jermain Defoe stands just 5'7" tall. Either Big Sam is about to change his entire tactical approach in order to incorporate the 31-year-old - or it just isn't going to happen.
Chelsea's Demba Ba, on the other hand, is 6'2" and also likely to be available in January. He rejected a return to east London in the summer in order to fight for a place at Stamford Bridge - but having made just two Premier League appearances since, a short-term loan move to West Ham may now seem a far more attractive proposition.
* Sam Allardyce takes his troops into the badlands of Norfolk this weekend. West Ham don't have the best record at Carrow Road, but with Norwich still reeling from last weekend's 7-0 thrashing at the hands of Manchester City there probably couldn't be a better time to play Chris Hughton's strugglers.
Still, West Ham's lack of goals remains a problem. Another stalemate at home to Aston Villa side last weekend means United have failed to register in six out of ten Premier League matches this season - and with no sign of Andy Carroll returning anytime soon, the light at the end of the tunnel still looks very dim and distant.
Whilst it's perhaps too early to be referred to as a 'six-pointer' - or that other popular cliche, a 'must win game' - three points on Saturday would go a long way to calming a few nerves that are beginning to emerge amongst the fans, with West Ham having accrued just ten points in the league so far.
Going down? Sam hopefully not pointing the way
15th November
Lulling their supporters into a false sense of security is an art form West Ham have perfected over the years. Never was this more apparent than at Carrow Road last Saturday where a first half sprinkled with surprisingly intricate and incisive football quickly degenerated into the kind of away-day nightmare scenario we thought we'd seen the back of with the departure of Avram Grant.
Present incumbent Sam Allardyce may well point to individual mistakes - Jussi Jaaskelainen conceded an unnecessary penalty that gave Norwich a lifeline before being beaten by a Robert Snodgrass free kick, the result of a contentious referee's decision - but that second half, and the manner in which West Ham capitulated having engineered a well-deserved lead has raised serious concerns.
Time and time again managers stress the need to beat your closest rivals when the going gets tough. West Ham aren't. From the four recent games against fellow strugglers Hull, Aston Villa, Stoke and Norwich, the Hammers have taken just one solitary point. Whilst doom-mongers are jumping the gun by prognosticating a fight for survival just three months into the season, that is unquestionably relegation form.
If there's any comfort to be taken from the dismal events at Norwich, it's that it was anything but a typical Allardyce performance. West Ham's soft underbelly has been all but eradicated on Big Sam's watch and prior to Norwich, the Hammers had kept five clean sheets in six away games this season - but those were with defensive lynchpin Winston Reid, who looks set to be sidelined until the New Year with an ankle injury.
Make no mistake, that's a huge blow to Big Sam who has helped mould the Kiwi into one of the Premier League's most consistent defenders. Reid and fellow long-term absentee Andy Carroll are worth around £25million in today's market - which is almost double the cost of last weekend's entire starting XI. That's an indication of their importance to the club.
Following the international break, Chelsea visit the Boleyn Ground where anything gained will be viewed as a bonus. However two very winnable games - dare we call them six-pointers? - follow against bottom three sides Fulham (at home) and Crystal Palace (away). Should West Ham fail to secure any points from those particular London derbies, we might just be ready to start talking about a looming relegation battle.
22nd November
My godfather, Ronnie Mann, is a lifelong Chelsea supporter. Ever the joker, upon my tenth birthday he presented me with two CFC scarves (one home, one away) as a cheeky gift.
I recall briefly comparing Chelsea's 1978/79 squad with West Ham's out of childish curiosity. Brooking, Devonshire and Bonds vs. Lewington, Walker and Droy? Any foolish notions of switching allegiance were swiftly forgotten.
I rarely get to see Ron these days, but the date of our most recent meeting remains etched in my mind. On the afternoon of 19th May 2012, West Ham defeated Blackpool in the Championship play-off Final to return to the Premier League. That evening, Chelsea beat Bayern Munich to become Champions of Europe for the first time.
Less than 35 years separate the two events but during that relatively short period both famous old London clubs - who were considered equals until the late 1990s - have undergone major transformation.
Chelsea, reborn when Roman Abramovich took control of an ailing Blues ten years ago are now globally renowned and field a world-class team. West Ham, who just five years ago were on the brink of extinction following the Icelandic debacle are less than three years away from becoming Olympic Stadium tenants - a move that offers limitless possibilities.
Although I use the term loosely, as Chelsea will almost certainly field at least one player who cost more than West Ham's entire starting XI, the two teams meet competitively for the 98th time at the Boleyn Ground this weekend. That historical parity is illustrated by the Blues' slender advantage, with 42 wins to United's 37.
West Ham successes over Chelsea in recent years have been few and far between, which made the 3-1 win in the corresponding fixture last season so enjoyable. One-nil behind at half time, a remarkable Hammers comeback resulted in three second half goals - the last of which came from Modibo Maiga, who hasn't scored since.
Sam Allardyce, already without Andy Carroll and Winston Reid could also lose experienced defender Razvan Rat who was injured during Romania's 1-1 draw with Greece on Tuesday. This, combined with an alarming shortage of goals and a worryingly-low league position means few Hammers fans will be expecting anything from the game.
But, as football supporters, hope springs eternal. And win, lose or draw I'll be there - with my claret and blue scarf on.
29th November
Given the fickle nature of the modern day football supporter it was perhaps no surprise that the first cries of 'Allardyce Out!' rang out following the hugely disappointing 3-0 defeat against Chelsea last weekend.
West Ham were totally outplayed at the Boleyn as the Blues romped home with consummate ease leaving some supporters calling for the head of Big Sam, who failed to appear for his post-match TV interview on Saturday for reasons unknown.
Without a Premier League win at home since the opening weekend of the season way back in August, the Hammers have taken just one point from the last five home games. Yet whilst the fans' anger is perhaps understandable, a brief glance at the alternative options should be enough to dispel any thoughts of hiring a new man at this juncture.
Allardyce, having successfully steered West Ham back into the Premier League at the first time of asking before delivering a top ten finish that exceeded all expectations could be forgiven for feeling slightly miffed at calls for him to go. But such is the nature of the beast; he himself admits that a manager is only as good as his last result.
The Chelsea reversal adds greater importance to the visit of Fulham this weekend. West Ham, in 17th place are currently above the Cottagers - and the relegation zone - by virtue of superior goal difference. Anything less than three points against Martin Jol's strugglers will really set alarm bells ringing.
Thereafter a trip to Liverpool is sandwiched by fixtures against the other teams currently residing in the drop zone, Sunderland and Crystal Palace. It has been suggested in some quarters (Twitter, so don't put your house on it) that should West Ham fail to win any of those three big games, Big Sam's number could be up.
That would appear unlikely, even though David Sullivan and David Gold's previous claim that they have a history of backing their managers disappeared from the list of officially sanctioned soundbites after they fired Franco Zola and Avram Grant within a year of each other.
Unless results dramatically worsen, the owners will almost certainly back Allardyce with a reasonable warchest come January. Don't expect to hear too much about the much-vaunted Financial Fair Play rules - which were used to excuse the club's failure to land a back-up striker to Andy Carroll in the summer - though.
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