Alan Curbishley has heaped praise on fellow manager Sven Goran Eriksson following his success at Premier League side Manchester City. The West Ham manager is not surprised that Sven has guided the club into the top 4 in the league table during his first domestic job in England.

Eriksson may have the bonus of cash provided by new owner Thaksin Shinawatra but he has made a fresh team gel and perform well on a consistent basis. Curbishley believes the Swede will be enjoying the fact that he has put one over on his critics and said he was the best person to exploit the investment from the new owner.

"A lot of us should applaud what he's done. He got a lot of stick when he left England but he reached the quarter-finals of every tournament. Perhaps we expected a bit more - but we always do. He qualified, and when you look at it now, you would take it".