West Ham become a force in England

By Greg Duke for CNN

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LONDON, England (CNN) -- Whether or not West Ham United are successful in their current $30m pursuit of England international striker Darren Bent, it is fair to say that the profile and status of the East London club has risen inexorably over the last 10 months -- so much so that many experts believe the Hammers are set become a real force in the English game.

In days gone by, the $15m signing of all-action midfielder Scott Parker would have been greeted with astonishment by supporters and media alike, yet when the high-profile Newcastle star swapped the North-East for the capital earlier this month, it caused barely a ripple on football's Richter Scale -- a measure of how times are a-changing at Upton Park.

Since the dramatic transfer-deadline day swoop for Argentine World Cup duo Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano last August, West Ham have rarely been out of the headlines.

The controversy and intrigue that surrounding their arrival -- seen as one of the more bizarre transfer swoops in recent times considering that most of Europe's top clubs were after them -- ultimately cast a giant shadow over their season and only a spectacular late run of form prevented them from dropping out of the Premier League.

However, when it became clear that both players had been registered against Premier League rules -- and that West Ham had withheld vital documentation regarding the ownership of the duo by prospective new buyer Kia Joorabchian -- a points deduction penalty appeared a certainty.

To the dismay of their relegation rivals, the Premier League opted to fine the club £5m instead, a comparative drop in the ocean for new multi-millionaire Icelandic owner Eggert Magnusson -- whose consortium had out-bid Joorabchian for overall control.

In amongst this maelstrom of confusion, Magnusson replaced former manager Alan Pardew with Alan Curbishley, handed him a seemingly limitless transfer chest of cash and watched in amazement as a club in disarray both on and off the pitch won seven of their last nine matches -- including victories at both Arsenal and Manchester United -- to pull off one of the greatest escapes in English league history.

The irony that Tevez proved the inspiration for this turnaround of fortunes was not lost on West Ham's relegation rivals. With Mascherano failing to settle -- and eventually being sold to Liverpool for whom he starred in the Champions League final -- it was the mercurial Tevez who lifted the club up by their bootlaces, culminating in scoring the winning goal at Old Trafford that secured survival.

Although Sheffield United, who eventually fell through the relegation trap door, have launched a legal challenge against the Premier League for reinstatement -- West Ham's position in the top flight now appears secure and with money speaking volumes in the millionaire's playground that is the English Premier League, West Ham have become major players.

With rumors aplenty about the club outbidding rivals by the sheer scale of the wages and transfer fees they are willing to pay, expect other big-name signings to join a West Ham revolution that shows no sign of stopping.

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