The Hammers are undoubtedly the surprise strugglers this season and they are currently a point below Wolves, whom they beat 2-0 on the opening day of the season at Molineux. But McCarthy has been around long enough to know that Upton Park is always a tough place to go, no matter what kind of form West Ham are in. McCarthy, who has refused to comment on reports he has made a bid for Hull midfielder Stephen Hunt, said: "I saw their game against Arsenal and they are a force to be reckoned with at Upton Park. "They always have been. They are always a good side at home. Results this time might suggest otherwise but on their day at Upton Park they are terrific. "It is a difficult place to go and play because the crowd are right on you, they are partisan. "They get a fantastic crowd and it can be a tough place to play. But they have had mixed results this season and that is the reason they are where they are. Just like us, mixed results." Wolves follow the trip to West Ham with a crucial home encounter against Wigan and McCarthy is not hiding from the fact that in terms of the whole season they are crucial games in the battle to avoid relegation. "These next two games do look vital and you can't argue with that," added McCarthy. "They are very important for all the three clubs involved, not just us. The three of us are right together and they are hugely important, of course they are. "We don't approach these kind of games any differently than any others but they are harder games emotionally, they are harder games because the pressure is on us to win them. "The games against the top sides, the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United are harder physically because they move you around and make you run. "But emotionally, the hard ones are the teams who are in and around us. "The two games coming up, starting against West Ham, are going to be pulling on the heartstrings and the butterflies are going to be clumping around. "That is where the pressure, the stresses, strains and emotional pressure comes from. "But then that is what we have to cope with. They are great games for us."
