Stand up if you love......AVRAM!

As the good old Jimmy Greaves used to say "It's a funny old game", and that is the only way to describe the Carling Cup Semi 1st Leg against Birmingham on Tuesday. With new positions for Upson at left back and Spector once again playing in the centre of midfield it was a bold move by the under pressure Avram. Who couldn’t seem to do up he's own Jacket before the start of the match, it seemed that he couldn’t pick a football team either.

However the move paid off as we dominated proceedings, went 1-0 up with some great free flowing football, and in all fairness should have been 2 or 3 up by the interval. It was football that all West Ham fans crave with Upson and Spector relishing their new positions, Noble and Parker ever dominant in the midfield, and even Faubert seemed at ease.

The second half came like a bolt out of the blue - the blue of Birmingham, as they were obviously given some stick by Alex McLeish at half time and deservedly got back into the game with a great header from a corner  Ridgewell just getting ahead of the inexperienced Reid. Obina then decided to play with another two balls, unfortunately they were attached to Sebastian Larsson, in a complete moment of stupidity a back kick in the unmentionables was duly shown a straight red.

All of a sudden West Ham were a team playing badly, reduced to 10 men and looking like a side that were going to be defeated. With Upson just getting away with a blatant foul in the area, West Ham against the run of play hit Birmingham with a sucker punch,  a great ball by Parker to Spector on the right who crossed for Cole to Scuff a shot under the disappearing Ben Foster's Legs 2-1.

With chants of "STAND UP IF YOU LOVE WEST HAM" I swear Avram thought they were saying "STAND UP IF YOU LOVE AVRAM", with a rye smile it looked as though he had managed to keep his job.....for now. I have to give him credit he was very dignified in the pre and post-match interviews. He is under immense pressure and looks as though he will still be in charge against the Arsenal on Saturday. With one loss in the last seven in all competitions. It’s not a bad return, however with only 16 games to I think we require 4 wins and 4 draws to keep us there or there abouts. If we lose against Arsenal I fear Avrams days are numbered.

Well im not sure how, but good old Karen Brady has managed to persuade Manchester City's Wayne Bridge to sign on loan. Its a well needed player who should make an area that West Ham have been struggling to cover this season - Still not sure why we sold Daprela???.

Bridge should come straight in for his debut at Arsenal, and I hope that at the reported £90,000 a week wages he manages to stay fit. For a player who averages an injury every 3 months it is a risk, however he is a good attacking left back who has quick feet and a great cross. Probably the best left back we have had since Julian. Bridge has had a frustrating season at Man City making just a handful of appearances with big money stars overtaking him for a starting place. I hope he has a big impact at the club.....and please stay injury free. COYI.

Should he stay or should he go?

My first Blog, and funnily enough it starts at a very important time for West Ham. Just under 5 hours away from the Carling Cup semi final first leg and probably 8 hours away from the future of Avram Grant's tenure as West Ham's manager.

I have to admit I was not overwhelmed by his appointment by the two Daves's, and our season so far has been far from great. However there are a few issues that we have to put into perspective, Avram inherited a  mediocre team from Zola who although has a good spine of Green, Upson and Parker, when you surround them with Boa Morte's, Kovac's, and Dyer's your on a hiding to nothing. Add the run of Upson's form the unlucky injury to Hitzlsperger and I start to feel a pang of remorse for this guy.

He has added to the squad wisely with a very limited budget in Hitzlsperger, Piquonne and Obina, and pulled a somewhat suprising masterstoke with return of Sears on the wing and moving Spector into the centre of midfield. He has had to deal with pressures off the field too with hardly any support from above, with the strange sacking of he's first team coach, and the conflicting reports to the Sidwell fiasco.

I do believe as a team we are playing better than we were under Zola, with some good football played in the 2nd half of the Chelsea game, the first half of Stoke away, the Sunderland away game, the 1-0 victury against the Spuds and the great performance against Man U in the Carling Cup. I like how he changes things around in games I counted four differnt formations against Chelsea. However there have also been some shocking games, against Liverpool and Newcastle, he's decision to consistantly play Kavac and Boa Morte when there distribution and all round contrbution is sometimes unexceptable. Hes direct lack of passion on the side lines and although he likes to tinker with the formations do we really have a plan B?

So should he stay or should he go, the issue there is who will we bring in to replace? The only man in my view that would make any kind of difference is Martin O'Neill, he seems to have the knack of making ordinary players better and better players great. The problem with Mr O'Neill is why in gods name would he want to come to West Ham. The other name is the frame is Big Fat Sam Allardyce, this would be football suicide in more ways than one, and I would in my view not bring anything else to the team that Grant has not already.

So bottom of the League, 4th Round of FA Cup, Semi Final of Carling Cup, will Avram still be in charge on Saturday against the Arsenal. Lets just hope whatever happens West Ham reach the final and get off that bloody bottom. COYI!!