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When the team selections were released for the match against Southampton many Hammers fans were deeply concerned to see just how many players were unavailable, Pablo Zabaleta's late withdrawal because of a virus meant that West Ham were not even able to fill the bench and had only six players available! So it was with some anxiety that fans began viewing, either at St Mary's or on Sky TV, there were plenty of elements in the mix, Saints were on a high, their fans intoxicated on the new blend of football Ralph Hasenhuttl had brought to their club in the wake of Mark Hughes' dismissal, also a certain Charlie Austin who always raises his game agaist West Ham due to some ill advised public comments about Austin's injury record made by West Ham's owners back in the day before they learned the wisdom of their ways.

However right from the off it was the visitors who were applying the pressure and although Saints started brightly, playing with the vim and purpose that is Hasenhuttl's trademark, it was West Ham who had the Lion's share of the possession and but for some profligate finishing Hammers could have been two up by half time. First Lucas Perez scuffed wide when he should have scored from an Aaron Cresswell cross, and then Robert Snodgrass curled wide from 18 yards with the goal gaping.

Hammers looked fitter and sharper than the hosts but fell behind to a freak own goal that was not an own goal but a hand ball by Redmond, his hand beat Fabianski who had denied Oriol Romeu twice and Redmond once before the ex Norwich man got the ball across the line. Hammers immediately set about redemption, which came less than three minutes later in the form of an exquisite Felipe Anderson goal, his angled drive from outside the box was a thing of beauty. The home side then gave things a go, but were superbly caught by a lightening counter attack that stemmed from their corner, Diop got the ball to Antonio who put on the after burners as he sped along and then clipped a wonderful pass to Anderson who finished with aplomb, two goals, seven minutes, job done.

Seven goals in his last ten games is making Anderson's transfer fee of £42 Million with add ons look to be a bit of a bargain in today's inflated market, Manuel Pellegrini was delighted with the 25 year old Brazilian's contribution but believes there is a lot more to come from Anderson. Pelle will also have been pleased with another bit of business done on the other end of the financial scale, the £7.5 Million paid for Fabianski is now looking an absolute steal, time and again he was called in to action, his old monicker of 'Flappyhandski' might have to be replaced by 'Safepairofhandski'.

There is very little recovery time before the next match, and it is to be hoped that there are no new additions to the already massive injury list, there is only so much a manager can do, Steve Claridge made the comment that he expected Pellegrini to guide the club up the table because "He is a good manager, I am tired of listening to people making excuses for managers, they are either good or they aren't, too many get away with too much".

Pelle will certainly have his work cut out to keep Hammers brilliant points return the way it has been, but in the manager the fans believe, as do the players, really believe. - Ed

Manuel Pellegrini knew ahead of the Christmas and New Year schedule that he was going to be hard pressed to put out an effective team for all the matches, his problem has been made more acute as both his 'general' in defence, Fabian Balbuena, and his forward Chicharito look increasingly unlikely to feature in the first of four games in ten days tonight at St Mary's against a ressurgent Southampton side. Whether they will be available for the following games against Burnley and Brighton, or the FA Cup match against Birmingham or indeed for the Premier League match against Arsenal is a matter of some conjecture.

Hammers medical team, despite the urgent need to bring players back from injury, will be loathe to rush players back only for them to break down again, an all too similar scenario back in West Ham's past history. Hopefully there patience will pay off and Manuel Pellegrini will begin to have player selection problems for all the right reasons. Right now he has to bide his time and use all of his considerable experience to dove tail players in to filling in and adapting, but his hands are tied!

Most teams in the Premier League would miss players of the quality of Yarmolenko, Lanzini, Reid, Wilshere, Fredericks, Arnoutovic, Hernandez and now Balbuena, Hammers have just got to limp over the line until players begin to return during the 'frenzied four' fixtures. There is no point in rushing players back, however it is really essential to try and keep on the shirt tails of the top eight if the club is going to go in to the second half of the season on a high, occupying the sort of league position that warrants this summers massive expenditure.

People say luck evens itself out during the season, if that's true Hammers will not pick up anymore injuries and Tottenham will have their entire team injured in the next 19 games, however this is West Ham, need we say more? - Ed

Up until a couple of days ago Hammers starlet Reece Oxford looked to all intents and purposes as if he was on his way out from The London Stadium, but manager Manuel Pellegrini, known for his man management skills, has apparently sat down with the lad and had a good heart to heart about how things should progress. The meeting, which was held without Aidy Ward of Colossal Sports management being present, was to clear the air because of all the negative press surrounding Oxford and the club.

It should be noted that Aidy Ward is also Domingos Quina's agent and not above forcing a move for his clients, after all it was he who forced through the transfer of Quina to Watford. An agent's role is to get the very best deal for their client, which of course inherently is a good deal for the agent due to their perentage commision which can range from 10 - 25 %. The Oxford situation is unique in that Ward has already managed to negotiate a very healthy deal for his young charge, so there is litttle else he can do to extend his commision apart from moving his client on to another club.

Hammers ludicrously extensive injury list has also rather dictated the club's stance on Oxford leaving, if the injuries continue to be accrued at the present rate there will be a need for back up players, and why not Oxford? Pellegrini has already shown that he is not afraid to use young players, Oxford's attitude cannot be that bad can it? There are obvious similarities between Reece Oxford and Ravel Morrison, even the mighty Sir Alex Ferguson couldn't tame Morrison and neither could anyone else, including Sam Allardyce when he was Hammers' manager.

Before accepting Oxford's departure as a fait accompli, it is worth remembering the 'redemption of Robert Snodgrass' that was instigated as a result of Pellegrini's management skills, perhaps it can still happen for Oxford. - Ed