Following West Ham's relegation from the Premiership, several key players left the club that summer, including
Les Ferdinand,
Trevor Sinclair,
Frédéric Kanouté,
Joe Cole,
Paolo Di Canio and
Glen Johnson. Young striker
Jermain Defoe had also submitted a transfer request just one day after their relegation, but this was rejected and he would remain with the club for the start of the new season. Manager Glenn Roeder, who had since recovered from the brain tumour that caused him to miss the end of the previous season, immediately set about rebuilding his squad, signing
Kevin Horlock,
Matthew Etherington,
Rob Lee and
David Connolly prior to the beginning of the campaign. After a win over
Preston North End on the opening day, a draw and a loss would follow and Roeder was sacked three games into the season. Sir Trevor Brooking once again took over as caretaker manager, and form improved as they won their next four games. A permanent replacement was soon found for Roeder, when
Alan Pardew was bought in from
Reading as new manager in October. Despite continuing to be a prolific goalscorer for the club, disciplinary issues became a problem for striker Jermain Defoe, who was sent off three times and played just 22 out of a possible 34 games due to suspension in the first half of the season. This, combined with his repeated refusal to sign a new contract, meant West Ham allowed him to leave the club in January to sign with
Tottenham Hotspur in a swap deal that saw West Ham take out of favour striker
Bobby Zamora. Along with Defoe, goalkeeper
David James and club mainstay
Ian Pearce would also leave for
Manchester City and
Fulham F.C. respectively. Under the guidance of Pardew, West Ham performed well enough to finish fourth and earn themselves a
playoff finish. They would lose 1–0 to 5th place
Ipswich Town in the first leg of their playoff semi-final, but bounced back to win 2–0 in the second, advancing to the final where they would face
Crystal Palace at the
Millennium Stadium. A goal from
Neil Shipperley after 61 minutes would be enough to give Palace the win, consigning the Hammers to another season in English football's second tier. ==Final League table==