LONDON (AP) -Alan Curbishley had a tricky first full season at West Ham and the next one isn't likely to be much better for the former Hammers midfielder.
Player unrest, few new signings and rumors that the club's owners are struggling for money look like testing the 50-year-old Curbishley to the full.
It wasn't meant to be like this when he took charge of his former club in December 2006.
Wet Ham let him spend 17 million pounds on five new players almost immediately and its investment was rewarded when Curbishley led the Hammers to seven wins from their last nine matches to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
Buoyed by the success, West Ham then sanctioned another 30 million pounds of acquisitions in the offseason to fund what was hoped to be an attempt to qualify for European competition through the league or even a first trophy since 1980.
But the judgment, and luck, of Curbishley and the club was called into question when all the costly new signings spent long spells out of the team because of injury.
The Hammers stalled in mid table and, following their defeat in the third round of the FA Cup, spent the last four months of the season turning up for drab fixtures with little to play for.
The funds for transfers have seemingly dried up, so Curbishley will have to work with essentially the same squad he had last season.
With rivals having strengthened their lineups, Curbishley's once feted tactical mind could struggle for results.
British bookmaker William Hill rates Curbishley an 11-2 favorite to be the first Premier League manager to lose his job this season.
It marks a frustrating time for Curbishley, who was long recognized as one of England's brightest young coaches and was even interviewed for the role of England manager in 2006.
Curbishley made his name with 15 years at Charlton, first as joint manager with Steve Gritt and then on his own from June 1995.
By identifying quality players and signing them cheaply, he plotted the club's unlikely rise to the Premier League and saved it from going out of business.
