Avram Grant has conducted his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday's Barclays Premier League trip to Wolves at Molineux. He spoke about the high morale after a four-match unbeaten run and confirmed that Thomas Hitzlsperger will be out for an extended period after a setback on his thigh injury.
Avram on Thomas Hitzlsperger's thigh injury...
Thomas Hitzlsperger cannot play for four months. This is our main injury, the other players [Kieron Dyer, Valon Behrami, Herita Ilunga and Benni McCarthy] are better.
He hasn't even played one game for us but he was very good in the pre-season until he got injured three days before the start of the season. He was a major part of our team, but we have not had him until now. We know he is important and he will do things that are good for us.
For the moment the doctors say four months before he is back, so it will be around February but we need to wait and see.
Avram on improving injury situation...
Our injury situation has recovered well especially in the last three or four weeks. Normally it is halfway through the season when you have injuries, red cards, yellow cards. When we started it was like this so maybe our problem was at the beginning.
Avram on style of football in the Premier League...
Each manager chooses the style and tactics that he thinks that is good for his team, I believe in [good] football like I did at other clubs but especially now at West Ham.
I can choose what is good for my team. I believe in a different football [to the direct style] but each manager can choose whatever he wants.
England is not like the rest of Europe, sometimes there are teams that play very physically, very long balls and don't try to play so much football. You need to think about them and not be weak against them.
Avram on players being too pumped up to play?...
Passion is good. It is good in life, is good in football, I don't think you can succeed without passion but we need to keep the fair play of the game. But if a player comes and, because of his passion, he cuts short the career of an opponent, he needs to think about himself.
No one would want it to happen to them so players need to sometimes be a little bit more careful.
Avram on the importance of a positive attitude in the team...
Psychology was very important after we lost four games to help us go in another direction. We did it well because, apart from the first match Aston Villa, we also played good football.
What is different now is that we took points and we got to a situation where we are at the bottom of the table but we are three points from eleventh and six points - two wins - from fourth place. It is only for a good feeling or bad feeling but the position now is not that important.
Avram on worry as a manager...
First I am paid to worry! I don't know if you know that. I am worried all the time. When I was in first place with Chelsea I worried. I always worry and I have to be like this. We are thinking positive, if we continue to do what we do we will not be in the last place and not in the relegation zone at the end of the season. This is our first target but then we will have other targets.
Avram on away form heading to Wolves...
It was good to win against Sunderland three weeks ago. I know it was a year ago since we last won in the league and that it was at Wolves [in August 2009]. It would be good to do it again.
I can analyse a lot of things that happened here in the last year but I prefer to look forward and do the right things. I am sure that we are doing the right things and I am sure we will win away games, and more than one or two.
I can only speak about this season. We have been away to Man United, Aston Villa and Stoke. These were not easy places but we did well against Stoke. These games belong to the past. There is a long season ahead of us.