Preview: It's Hammer Time

It's cliched, but Paul Jewell has promised his team will bounce back from their horror showing, in which his Latics side displayed some of the most shocking defending seen at the JJB Stadium for quite some time.

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Jewell told the Official Website: "We know we lost heavily against Liverpool," he said, "but that's over now and we have to focus on what lies ahead. The difference on the day was finishing and when you look at the statistics, we created some fantastic chances, which I would expect us to take advantage of.

"That's what we need to take into these games, look how we can improve rather than feel sorry for ourselves. Our players worked really hard to put a run together in October and November and now they must regroup and try and put a similar run together in what is going to be a really tough month for us."

Wednesday's opposition is an inconsistent West Ham side who are on the edge of the relegation spots. Sitting currently fourth from bottom on 14 points, even a victory over the Latics won't be enough to move above them.

The Hammers endured a horrific start to their campaign, losing five of their first six games and drawing the other. Things have improved slightely for the London outfit, and they celebrated their takeover with a victory over fellow strugglers Sheffield United, before losing their last game 2-0 at Everton.

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The arrival of Argentinian pair Carlos Tevez and Mascherano will have rocked the boat, with Mascherano no longer in the first eleven and Tevez yet to score for his new club. Who' s betting he will be the next player to break his goal duct against us?

West Ham's home form has certainly been better than their winless away form. At Upton Park, they have won four, drawn one and lost two. This includes a victory over Arsenal, although lots of teams seem to be doing that at the moment.

Paul Jewell has hinted that he will put his faith behind the same team that played against Liverpool, which means Arjan De Zeeuw is still struggling with a toe injury. Matt Jackson therefore gets a chance to prove his credentials after he got substituted at half time.

Wingers Valencia and Teale are both expected to miss out, which means Kiblane and McCulloch will continue on the wings. This time hopefully it will be the left footer Kilbane on the left, and not the right footed Lee McCulloch.

West Ham will be without defender Danny Gabbidon and striker Dean Ashton, whilst former Wiganer Roy Carroll (it's a girls name you know) is unavailable due to personal problems.

Ones to Watch

Watch out for Carlos Tevez scoring his first Hammers goal against us! There is no-one in particular to look out for, although West Ham do have a varied striker force that can cause problems.

My Prediction

I give up trying to guess these scores, not got one right yet!

Hammers 0 Latics 2