West Ham co-owner David Sullivan has issued a "don't panic" message to fans following the club's poor start to the season which has left them bottom of the Premier League.
The East Londoners, who face early pace-setters Chelsea at Upton Park on Saturday, have been at the centre of speculation over the past week that manager Avram Grant has been given a deadline to improve things.
There were some suggestions that Grant, who was appointed during the summer to succeed Gianfranco Zola, had just three matches to turn things around or be sacked.
Sullivan was also quoted as being critical of the attitude of the club's foreign players — eight were signed during the summer. Today, though, he insisted he had been talking about "one or two" and that the remainder were fully committed.
Sullivan refused to name anyone but Switzerland midfielder Valon Behrami, who was suspended for last night's game with England, had admitted he was keen on a move although he has since said he wants to fight for his place.
"I'd like to put the record straight," said Sullivan. "Nobody is pressing any panic buttons and reports to the contrary are rubbish. We are building a new team under a new manager and transition is a tough time but game by game, I anticipate an improvement over the coming months.
"We expect the team to come together over the next few games and see some real progress. When we looked at the early fixtures we knew we faced a tough time but we only managed two points from the same fixtures last season."
On his criticism of the club's foreign players, Sullivan added: "It was one or two I didn't want to name. The vast majority are totally committed and we have worked hard with others that wanted to go to get them back onside."
