Zola lambasts poor start

West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola was disappointed with the way his side started their 2-1 defeat to Bolton.

The Hammers were well beaten on their home patch by a Wanderers outfit that came flying out of the blocks at Upton Park.

Bolton were two up inside 16 minutes thanks to goals from Kevin Davies and Jack Wilshere, and could not utilise their numerical advantage when Tamir Cohen was sent off in the second half.

Alessandro Diamanti fired in a superb consolation two minutes before the end of normal time but it was not enough for Zola's men.

And the Italian tactician says his team need to start better in future games.

"That (bad start) was a big, big thing because you know it's difficult then," he told Sky Sports News.

"You concede a two-goal advantage to a team like Bolton and then it is difficult to come back.

"It's always been the case. We tried very hard in the second half, we had a chance to equalise right at the end but it was difficult.

"We have a lot to learn from this game because we cannot afford to do that again."

Poor defending

The Hammers had kept four clean sheets in a row at Upton Park in the league before the visit of Bolton, but were ripped to shreds on numerous occasions by the Trotters.

Kevin Davies terrorised defender James Tomkins, and in reality, the match favoured the away side more than the final score suggests.

The defeat leaves West Ham back in the relegation dogfight, and Zola was surprised by the manner of his team's defensive performance.

"I was surprised because recently our home record was okay," he added.

"We were not conceding goals, we were stronger than that - it came as a surprise.

"To be honest, I have to say after an international week you never know what you are going to get. That has been the case today.

"They were better than us and took advantage of their opportunities. That was the killer really. It's our fault.

"It wasn't James' (Tomkins) best game. But when Johan (Elmander) and Kevin (Davies) are playing like that it's not easy.

"James has potential. He needs to work on his game.

"We had opportunities but by then it was too late. We lost points today and I told the players we have to go and get them back somewhere else."

West Ham now travel to Chelsea next weekend and then face Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

"I don't care if we're playing Chelsea or Arsenal," Zola remarked.

"Last year we got a point in both games, so you never know. I'm not going to go there already beaten, that's for sure."