Frank didn't enamour himself with West Ham fans when he said, at a recent 'Chairman's Supper' held by Chelsea, that he wouldn't mind scoring the goal that sends West Ham down - something which is still a possibility.
And when he left the club, he made the infamous 'bacon sandwich' reference when, in an apparent bout of amnesia regarding the family ties of the management regime he left behind at Upton Park, he said that, whereas people would eat bacon sandwiches at the Chadwell Heath training ground, the diet was better at Chelsea.
[That said, however, a Chelsea player recently caused a little local difficulty by complaining there were only two kinds of fruit at Chelsea.]
But Joe wants the fans to concentrate on supporting the Hammers, and he says:
"Frank is a good player and he has got great ability; he gets in the box, scores goals, and does a good job defensively as well.
"Players get stick when they come back to clubs sometimes but Frank is a good lad and a great pro so it won't affect him and there is no point shouting abuse at Frank - let's just get behind the boys.
"He has really come on since he left and he is a great player so you don't want to give him any more reason to score a goal or do something because he is a top notch player.
"He is in the England squad, and he is playing every week in a team that is going for the Champions' League, and we have to watch for him.
"As well as Frank we have to watch out for Zola, Hasselbaink, Gudjohnsen, Gronkjaer, Petit - they are all great players."
As for the battle to stay up, Joe adds:
"We still believe we are in with a shout and we are going to keep fighting and pressuring the teams above us right until the last day of the season.
"We have just got to keep winning our games and see where that takes us; I don't want to talk about points or tallies, it is just that if we keep winning our games we will ask questions of the others.
"Games are there to be played and games are there to be won - anything can happen."
No one is more desperate than Joe to keep the Hammers in the Premiership, and he adds:
"It does mean a lot to me and we have all got to be able to look at ourselves in the face at the end of the season and say 'have we given everything?' and that is what is spurring us on at the moment.
"We are playing for the club, the fans, and our families, and we are going to try - even though it is a tall order, we are still in there."
Thoughts of desertion are not on the agenda, for Joe, who says:
"It has not even crossed my mind; I am playing for West Ham, the only thing I am concentrating on is the remaining games, and that is all that matters to me at the moment."
The last home game, the win against Middlesbrough, was not a classic, and Joe admits:
"It was a bit nervy and the final ball wasn't quite right, so nerves do play a part.
"But it is professional football and you have to live with nerves and pressure - but we have got to keep going and keep asking questions of those around us."
Joe admits it has been a real rollercoaster ride of late and adds:
"It has, and we aren't finished yet - we aren't going to get off the ride early.
"We have got plenty of work to do with six more points to play for - everyone at the club is still optimistic, and we need everyone to pull together, and we have all got to rally round."