Gianfranco Zola has spoken of the positive experience of taking part in the Barclays Asia Trophy and reiterated his belief the club will be well equipped for a good season.
The manager was speaking before the opening match of the four-team tournament on Wednesday evening when West Ham United take on Tottenham Hotspur in the Beijing Workers Stadium. The contest will be played to a finish on the night, with penalties possible if the match is all-square after 90 minutes. Zola will be allowed to use six substitutes - one of which being a goalkeeper - from his 23-man squad.
A brisk training session at the stadium on Tuesday night saw the whole squad put through their paces with the emphasis very much on close control and neat passing. Carlton Cole was particularly involved and should be ready to spearhead the Hammers attack. He also joined Zola for the pre-match press conference and for more from the England striker, click here.
The manager said his team had adapted well to the heat and humidity of the Chinese capital. "So far the experience has been good," he said. "It is a difficult time of the year because we had a very hard pre-season [training camp in Austria] so these games are going to be very important. They will allow us to be in the condition for the start of the season so we are hoping that everything is going to be perfect from a physical point of view."
As was clear from the attitude of Tottenham, and the teams meeting in Wednesday night's other contest - Hull City and 'hosts' Beijing Guoan - everyone taking part is clearly up for the cup. The winners of the two ties will meet in Friday's final. The manager added: "It is important for us to play very competitive games. I am hoping the formula will make it more interesting, more valuable for the teams.
"I am really hoping that it will be a proper game and we are going to give 100 per cent. That is what we want. We know that we want to get in perfect shape for the beginning of the season so we need to play real games. I hope the formula is right for this and anyway we will take it very seriously.
"We certainly didn't come here for an exhibition. We came here to play a real game, a proper game."
The manager is in good spirits for the 2009/10 Barclays Premier League and is unfazed by the prospect of competing with big-spending rivals back home. "I believe that in football you can achieve also great results working with a different way," he said. "It will certainly take longer but you can still achieve results working with young players, trying to develop them, taking care of them and making them better.
"That is the kind of policy that West Ham want to take and I am very committed to it. I strongly believe that football is not only about money. I believe that there are teams that can achieve good results using other systems. I hope it is going to be like this ... it is good to see football is not just about how much money you can spend but is also about how much effort you can put into working with players and making them better. That is the West Ham policy."
Returning to the task at hand, the manager was well aware of the threat posed by Chinese pace-setters Beijing. "I know they are doing very well this year. At the moment, they are the top of the league. I can't say I know them as well as I know Tottenham but I know it is a good team and also have some foreign players. It is going to be an interesting game to see how they can handle Hull City.
"I know Chinese football is improving and I wish this is a good opportunity for them to compare their level with the European level and it is a good experience for us as well to see what the competition level is over here."