Welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of this afternoon's all-London Premier League encounter between West Ham United and Fulham at Upton Park.
Both of these clubs were active during yesterday's transfer deadline day, with a number debuts on the cards throughout the match.
The two sides head into this fixture with three points apiece from their opening two matches.
Who will be celebrating come the final whistle?
Please note that the match is due to kick off at 12.45pm.
2.37pmThanks for joining Sports Mole this afternoon. More Premier League commentary will be available on the site throughout the afternoon. Stay tuned!
2.36pmWell, the less said about that from a Fulham point of view the better! West Ham will be buzzing though. They've completely outplayed their London rivals. The only cause for concern will be the injury to Andy Carroll.
2.35pmFULL TIME: West Ham 3-0 Fulham
90 minThree minutes of stoppage time to be played...
89 minOFF THE POST! Berbatov flicks the ball over the top for Rodallega, whose instant shot squirms underneath Jaaskelainen and onto the upright. That piece of play deserved a goal.
88 minCHANCE! Meanwhile, up the other end it has just not been Fulham's day. Duff's powerful drive is parried to safety.
88 minCHANCE! Vaz Te's cross is misdirected but almost flies into top corner of the net.
85 minFive minutes to go at Upton Park. I reckon there could be one more goal for the Hammers in this.
83 minTo be honest, this game is predictably petering out. West Ham are looking extremely comfortable.
80 minBit more on Carroll's injury from Sky Sports News. The striker felt a slight tightness in his hamstring and was taken off as a precaution.
78 minSUBSTITUTION: Injury forces West Ham defender Guy Demel off. Young Robert Hall takes his place.
73 minBerbatov has added some real qualify to Fulham's play in this half. He finds Kacaniklic with a back-heel inside the area, but the youngster is crowded out. Positive for Fulham though.
70 minCHANCE! A Fulham corner finds Steven Sidwell, whose drilled effort is cleared from inside the six box.
68 minAnd he's coming off. Not the way he would have wanted his debut to end. He gets a great reception from the home faithful. Carlton Cole takes his place.
67 minMeanwhile, Carroll is down and clutching his hamstring following a collision. Allardyce looks worried.
67 minSUBSTITUTION: West Ham's Collins comes off for James Tomkins
66 minMore good control from Berbatov sees him tee up Rodallega on the edge of the area. However, the Colombian's powerful shot is blocked.
64 minFulham are having a lot more of the ball in this half, but you cannot help but feel West Ham are allowing them to. The Hammers, quite rightly, are playing things safe at the moment.
59 minSUBSTITUTION: Kacaniklic takes the place of Richardson, who has had a disappointing debut in my opinion.
58 minSome really good play from Berbatov sees him flick the ball left to Riise, who in turn sends over a really good cross. However, the movement from Fulham is poor and the danger is cleared.
55 minSome more from McCarthy on BBC Sport: "Fulham are playing nice football but it's all in their third of the pitch. They need to stop the opposition playing." Couldn't have put it better myself Mick.
51 minCHANCE! Taylor almost grabs his second of the match from distance, but Schwarzer manages to get enough behind the ball to punch clear.
50 minFirst glimpse of Berba, who is threaded through by Rodallega. However, as he moves in on goal, the Bulgarian is flagged offside.
49 minThe introduction of Berbatov is yet to have an impact on Fulham as West Ham continue dominate proceedings.
1.47pmBerbatov and Fulham get the second half underway...
1.46pmAnd here Fulham's new number nine comes. Berba enters the fray. Surely he'll improve their performance. He has replaced Petric.
1.41pmI think it would be wise for Jol to bring on Berbatov. It probably won't get them back into the game, but the Bulgarian striker has not played much football recently. A 45-minute stint would do him some good.
1.32pmWell that 45 minutes could not have gone any better for West Ham. Carroll has caused problems all afternoon, while Nolan and Vaz Te have looked sharp. Fulham have so much work to do.
1.31pmHALF-TIME: West Ham 3-0 Fulham
45 minCHANCE! Hangeland should have atoned for his error there. He meets a corner from Duff, but is unable to head in from close range.
43 minI'll level with you - Martin Jol scares me! I would not want to be in that Fulham dressing room at half-time. To use the old phrase: 'A few teacups will be smashed' I would imagine.
42 minCarroll again causing problems. He forces Brede Hangeland into sending his header straight to Matt Taylor, who fires into the bottom corner from the edge of the box. Game, set and match.
40 minGOAL! West Ham 3-0 Fulham (Taylor)
37 minFulham haven't been great today, but one player that has stood out is Mohammed Diarra. The former Real Madrid man brings a real calming influence in the middle of the pitch.
33 minCHANCE! Nolan should have done better there. He finds himself 12 yards from goal, but he scuffs his shot and the opportunity passes.
30 minBut then what do I know hey?! New Zealand international Reid rises highest inside the area to double West Ham's lead. It may still be early, but this match looks over.
28 minGOAL! West Ham 2-0 Fulham (Reid
27 minStill all West Ham, although they are not looking as threatening at this moment in time.
23 minFulham are really struggling to string anything together at the moment, particularly in the final third. Debutant Richardson has looked well off the pace so far.
20 minJust seen a replay of that incident and you've certainly seen them given. Riether plants both hands in the back of Carroll, who falls to the ground. There could have been no argument had the referee blown for that.
18 minPENALTY APPEAL! Carroll really is involved in everything at the moment. He goes down under a shove from Riether inside the area, but the referee is not interested.
15 minCHANCE! This Carroll-Vaz Te-Nolan combination is working a treat at the moment. The three link up to release Nolan, whose astute chipped effort lands on the roof of the net.
11 minCHANCE! Schwarzer is keeping Fulham in this at the moment. A flowing move from West Ham ends with the visiting goalkeeping tipping Vaz Te's effort wide of the target. One-way traffic at the moment.
9 minOFF THE BAR! Carroll is looking really good at the moment. His knockdown falls to Diame, whose effort is tipped onto the bar by Mark Schwarzer.
7 minCHANCE! Richardson has Fulham's first effort from distance, but it's parried clear by Jussi Jaaskelainen in the home goal.
4 minWow, that was an amazing start! Fulham, unsurprisingly, looked a little rocked by that.
2 minWhat a start for West Ham and Carroll! The big man flicks the ball on for Ricardo Vaz Te, who squares the Kevin Nolan. With time and space inside the box, the skipper instantly fires into the bottom corner of the net. What an awful beginning for Fulham. 53 seconds!
1 minGOAL! West Ham 1-0 Fulham (Nolan)
12.45pmWest Ham get us underway...
12.44pmRight, that's enough pre-match waffling from me! It's almost game time.
12.44pmIt's also worth noting, that Kieran Richardson is making his debut for Fulham. The midfielder joined the Whites from Sunderland recently.
12.41pm...And the customary bubbles!
12.41pmHere come the players...
12.40pmAnother addition for the Hammers yesterday saw the return of Yossi Benayoun on loan from Chelsea. He was not signed in time to play today, but he's just received a great reception as he strode onto the Upton Park turf.
12.38pmFor all those Fulham fans excited by the arrival of Berbatov - here is his first interview since signing on at Craven Cottage.
12.35pmSo, just 10 minutes until the start now. Who we all backing? I'm going 2-1 to the Hammers with Carroll to be among the goals.
12.28pmSome more bad news for the Cottagers - they have not won at Upton Park in 11 years. I think if he's honest, manager Martin Jol would take a draw from this one.
12.26pmLet's not forget Fulham are involved in this match though! However, Clint Dempsey and Moussa Dembele won't be there. Both decided to move to Tottenham Hotspur before the transfer window slammed shut last night. The pair were arguably Fulham's best players last season and will surely be missed.
12.24pmHere's a few words from former Wolverhampton Wanderers boss Mick McCarthy, who has been discussing Andy Carroll on BBC Sport: "Andy Carroll played against us when I was at Wolves, and I don't know how he didn't score. It was mostly bad luck. I tried to sign him at Wolves a long time ago, and I think he is a very good player. It depends what club and what manager you have and Brendan Rodgers seemed to decide very early on that Carroll was surplus to requirements.
"But Sam Allardyce plays with wingers who will pop the ball in and Carroll is the best at that. West Ham have done brilliantly to sign the England number nine on loan for the season."
12.21pmOne thing that won't help Carroll this afternoon though is the absence of Matt Jarvis. The winger, who has been tipped to link up well with the England striker, has been ruled out of this encounter through injury.
12.18pmPersonally I feel Carroll will be a success at West Ham. The Hammers should play to his strengths and he is playing under a manager in Sam Allardyce that believes in him. Wouldn't rule out a debut goal this afternoon.
12.16pmSo, the build up to this one has been dominated by two strikers - Carroll and Berbatov. One starts, while the other is likely to come off the bench at some stage.
12.15pmAnd is how the visiting Whites line-up: Schwarzer; Riether, Hangeland, Hughes, Riise; Diarra, Sidwell, Richardson, Duff; Rodallega, Petric
12.13pmBREAKING TEAM NEWS: Deadline day signing from Manchester United Dimitar Berbatov starts on the bench for Fulham.
12.12pmHere's how West Ham will start the match: Jaaskelainen; Demel, Reid, Collins, O'Brien; Noble, Diame, Nolan, Vaz Te, Taylor; Carroll
12.11pmBREAKING TEAM NEWS: Andy Carroll makes his debut for West Ham, while Kevin Nolan will feature for the 50th time for the Hammers.
12.09pmAfternoon all. Who we backing this afternoon then? It should be a good match, with local pride at stake.
Written by
Liam Apicella
Liam Apicella
