Crewe match preview

Introduction

• West Ham United kick-off their Capital One Cup match campaign with a home tie with League One Crewe Alexandra.

• Rob Hall has put in a number of impressive performances for the Development Squad and could potentially feature. The 18-year-old spent time on loan at Oxford United last season, who are not only his hometown club but also the team the Hammers last beat to reach the third round back in 2010.

• Carlton Cole finished as the competition's top goalscorer during the 2010/11 campaign. The England international scored four goals tied by Swansea's Scott Sinclair, whose side were knocked out in the fourth round by Wigan Athletic.

• Summer signing Alou Diarra made his first appearance for the club on Saturday and Sam Allardyce could hand the France international his first Hammers start against the Railwaymen. Modibo Maiga and Stephen Henderson could also make their first starts for the club.

• Tuesday's game against Crewe is the Hammers' 200th League Cup match, they have won 103, drawn 39 and lost 57.

• West Ham United have finished as runners-up in the competition on two occasions, first in 1966 to West Bromwich Albion and again in 1981 to Liverpool. The Hammers made the semi-final stage during the 2010/11 season, but last season ended in disappointment as they exited in the first round to League Two side Aldershot.

• Supporters who have taken advantage of the discounted ticket prices can also expect to see goals, as Sam Allardyce's men have failed to score in just one of their last 16 League Cup fixtures and Crewe's record win in the competition came in this year's first round as they beat Hartlepool 5-0.

Last time out

Barclays Premier League
Saturday 25 August 2012
Swansea City 3-0 West Ham United
West Ham United: Jaaskelainen, Reid, McCartney, Tomkins (Vaz Te 46), Collins, Demel, Nolan, Jarvis, Noble, Diame (Diarra 69), Cole (Maiga 62).
Subs not used: Henderson, O'Brien, Taylor, Maynard.

Npower League One
Saturday 25 August 2012
Brentford 5-1 Crewe Alexandra
Crewe Alexandra: Martin, Davis, Ellis, Dugdale, Robertson (Clayton 74), Westwood, Murphy, Osman, Pogba, Leirch-Smith (Bunn 74), Moore.
Subs not used: Garratt, Turton, Guthrie, Ray, Mellor.
Goals: Pogba 48

Previous Meeting

• The last meeting between the two sides came in West Ham United's 2004/05 promotion winning campaign. Honours were even as the game ended 1-1, Teddy Sheringham gave the Hammers the lead with 15 minutes to go but a last minute header from substitute Steve Jones snatched a point for the visitors. The Hammers dominated proceedings and should have put the game to bed, Marlon Harewood had the pick of the chances rounding keeper Ben Williams before hitting the post with the goal at his mercy.

• West Ham United: Bywater, Newton, Ferdinand, Ward, Powell, Williams (Zamora 70), Fletcher, Noble, Etherington (Chadwick 44), Sheringham (Mullins 79), Harewood.
Subs not used: Walker, Reo-Coker.

• Crewe Alexandra: Williams, Walker, Lunt, McCready, Tonkin, Sorvel, Bell (Cochrane), Varney, Roberts (White 79), Rivers (Jones 78), Murdock.
Subs not used: Higdon, Wills.

Background

• The two sides have faced each other on seven other occasions with West Ham United winning four and drawing twice.

• The first meeting between the two sides came in the fifth round of the 1990/1991 FA Cup, the Hammers won 1-0 and would go on to make the semi-final stage, missing out on a final place after losing 4-0 to Nottingham Forest.

• The Hammers' only defeat to the Railwaymen came two years later in the League Cup. The initial tie ended 0-0 at the Boleyn Ground, but West Ham United were undone by their northern counterparts at Gresty Road, losing 2-0.

Last six meetings
(Premier League unless stated)

16 Feb 1991 West Ham United v Crewe W 1-0 (FA Cup fifth round)
23 Sept 1992 West Ham United v Crewe D 0-0 (League Cup second round)
7 Oct 1992 Crewe v West Ham United L 2-0 (League Cup second round)
16 Sept 2003 Crewe v West Ham United W 0-3 (Football League Division One)
17 Mar 2004 West Ham United v Crewe W 4-2 (Football League Division One)
21 Aug 2004 Crewe v West Ham United W 2-3 (Championship)
15 Mar 2005 West Ham United v Crewe D 1-1 (Championship)

Overall record v Crewe Alexandra (All competitions) W 4 D 2 L 1

Ten-year record

West Ham United
2011/12 Championship 3rd (86 points - promoted via Play-Offs)
2010/11 Premier League 20th (33 points)
2009/10 Premier League 17th (35 points)
2008/09 Premier League 9th (51 points)
2007/08 Premier League 10th (49 points)
2006/07 Premier League 15th (41 points)
2005/06 Premier League 9th (55 points)
2004/05 Championship 6th (73 points - promoted via Play-Offs)
2003/04 Championship 4th (74 points)
2002/03 Premier League 18th (42 points - relegated to Championship)
2001/02 Premier League 7th (53 points)

Crewe Alexandra
2011/12 League Two 7th (72 points - promoted via Play-Offs)
2010/11 League Two 10th (65 points)
2009/10 League Two 18th (55 points)
2008/09 League One 22nd (46 points - relegated to League Two)
2007/08 League One 19th (50 points)
2006/07 League One 13th (60 points)
2005/06 Championship 22nd (42 points - relegated to League One)
2004/05 Championship 21st (50 points)
2003/04 Championship 18th (53 points)
2002/03 League One 2nd (86 points - promoted to the Championship)
2001/02 Championship 22nd (49 points - relegated to League One

Referee
The referee for this match will be Fred Graham.

Team news
• Sam Allardyce is likely to ring the changes for the match, with a number of squad players given a chance to stake their claim.

• Alou Diarra, Modibo Maiga and Stephen Henderson could be handed their home debuts, while the likes of Nicky Maynard, Joey O'Brien, Matt Taylor and Danny Potts could all get some valuable gametime.

Old Boys
• Nicky Maynard is the only player currently in the two sides who has played for both clubs, and the former Bristol City forward is expected to start against his former club.

• Maynard joined Crewe aged seven and has represented them at every age group. He signed his first professional career in the summer of 2005. He made his debut against Millwall at the end of the 2005/06 season and scored with his first touch in professional football in the 4-2 win. He would go onto make 59 appearances for the club scoring 32 goals before joining Bristol City in 2008.

General information
• Tickets for tonight's game will be available on the gate. An adult ticket will cost £15 with under-16s paying just £8, tickets are available now from the Alpari Stand ticket office. Please note, due to the discounted prices, demand is set to be high so any fans needing to collect pre-paid tickets should not arrive any later than 6pm.

• The weather forecast for tonight's game is scattered clouds with light showers and a maximum temperature of 20C.