Kieron Dyer on alert as Gianfranco Zola runs out of options

West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola could be without almost half his first-choice team for the Premier League clash against relegation-threatened Sunderland.

Valon Behrami, Jack Collison and Carlton Cole are definitely out injured while there are doubts about Scott Parker and Radoslav Kovac.

Parker has been playing with pain from a chronic groin problem for some time while Kovac suffered a thigh injury playing for the Czech Republic in the World Cup qualifier against Slovakia on Wednesday.

Of the two, Parker, who has been outstanding for West Ham in recent weeks, is the most doubtful but Zola will leave it late before making a final decision.

Zola, who trimmed his squad by eight during the transfer window, is likely to need Kieron Dyer to play a bigger part in the run-in than planned.

Dyer, who has already made one unsuccessful comeback following a broken leg, came on late in the 1-1 draw against Blackburn two weeks ago and felt no ill-effects.

Zola admitted today that Carlton Cole, who could be out for the season after injuring a groin on England duty, was carrying the problem.

"I think it was something he was carrying," said Zola. "Nobody thought it would have been that bad."