The Hammers are just three points above the drop zone heading into their final eight matches following Saturday's 2-0 defeat against 10-man Arsenal at Emirates Stadium, where Alessandro Diamanti missed a penalty and the chance to equalise after defender Thomas Vermaelen had been sent off. Fellow strugglers Wolves, who picked up an unexpected draw at top-six contenders Aston Villa, are the next visitors to Upton Park on Tuesday night, before another home game against Stoke. The pressure continues to mount on Zola in the wake of what was a fourth successive league defeat, although three of those have come against the title challengers. However, the Italian - who has also seen co-owners David Gold and David Sullivan vent their frustrations in public - believes cool heads can guide the east London club to safety. "I am not pleased at all to see the team in this situation, and it is not the first time I have said that," Zola stressed. "But in these moments you have to keep your composure, you have to do the right things and not get emotional because you do not improve the situation." Zola added: "If we manage to maintain the same performance over 90 minutes which we managed in the first half against Arsenal, I am very confident. "We looked very good in the first half, so hopefully we are going to be doing that for 90 minutes on Tuesday." West Ham had indeed responded well after going behind to an early goal from Denilson, but it was the failure to make their extra man count in the second half which left Zola less than impressed. Substitute Carlton Cole, who is expected to start against Wolves, shaved the outside of the post with 13 minutes left in what turned out to be the Irons' only real decent opportunity. Zola reflected: "You are playing against 10 men, you are playing very well and you are playing at Arsenal, so you get excited and want to sort out situations on your own. That was the difference. "When you are 11 versus 10, you have to use the whole team. You have to use the superiority in areas they cannot get to quickly. "We did well when we moved the ball from left to right quickly, and then we found one versus ones on the other side, but we stopped doing that. "You have to keep working. You do that for a longer period and eventually Arsenal will get tired and you can take advantage of that. "But we became impatient, lost the shape and energy. In the end we conceded another goal." Despite now having lost four on the spin, West Ham probably would not have expected to get much joy against Manchester United, Chelsea or the Gunners, although defeat at Bolton was a blow. Having seen what the top three has to offer, Zola is convinced Arsene Wenger's young side can go the distance. He said: "We when played Chelsea they probably didn't play with the same quality or intensity as Arsenal - if you leave them a little bit of space, they punish you. "They are both good teams and they will be in contention until the end." Zola added: "Arsenal, along with Barcelona, are the team who are probably playing the best football in Europe. They are very good to watch. "But whether they are going to be able to do that until the end, I don't know. That is the question that everybody is asking."
