Curbishley had wanted a "solid campaign" to leave behind the upheaval of the Tevez affair and last season's dramatic relegation scrap.

But despite his squad being ravaged by injuries, Curbishley is disappointed West Ham have not pushed harder for European qualification.

The Hammers have been rooted in 10th place since mid-November and realistic hopes of a top six finish were quashed by a run of three straight 4-0 defeats last month.

West Ham have now lost five of their last seven games, including Tuesday's lacklustre 1-0 home defeat to Portsmouth, and Curbishley said: "I was hoping for a bit more than being mid-table, I must admit.

"I wanted a nice solid season that would give us a bit of a foundation for next year. I wanted to be on the back pages for the right reasons, instead of the reasons we were on them last year.

"I find the job frustrating at the moment. All season things have come along and caused us problems, in terms of team selection.

"Criticism is part and parcel of football. I am honest enough to say that in the last couple of weeks we haven't done well enough.

"You can't hide from that. Whatever the problems we have had, we should have done better. We should have coped with the last few weeks. We haven't got the results and it is a results business."

West Ham have been hit by an extraordinary run of injuries, with creative summer signings Craig Bellamy, Kieron Dyer and Julien Faubert missing for most of the season.

On top of that, Curbishley has been without Scott Parker, Dean Ashton, Danny Gabbidon, Matthew Etherington, Lee Bowyer and James Collins for significant parts of the campaign.

With that in mind, Curbishley would be satisfied with a top 10 finish - but, after Tuesday's disappointment, he has urged the Hammers to strive for more.

Each place in the Barclays Premiership is worth £720,000 to the club and the players will only receive a bonus if West Ham finish in the top half of the table.

"The players have done fantastically well to cope with all the problems we have had and the squad is stronger because of it. Perhaps we will all be stronger because of it," said Curbishley.

"The fans look at the team and realise it could be different. But we have knuckled down all season and managed to produce the results to get us where we are.

"I think Harry Redknapp said it the other day that finishing in the top 10 in the Premier League shouldn't be sniffed at and you've got to go for it.

"These last three or four weeks have been a disappointment and as we enter the final straight we desperately need to pick up and end on a high.

"We've been in this mid-table position for so long and we've got five more games to see if we can push higher up the league."

Curbishley denied suggestions West Ham have gone off the boil and lack motivation since securing their mid-table position and avoiding relegation.

On top of the bonuses, West Ham's sizeable English contingent have summer internationals against the United States, Trinidad and Tobago and the Czech Republic to aim for.

Curbishley said: "People say we have switched off but I keep saying 'no, there is lots to play for'.

"The average league position of West Ham in the top flight is roughly 13th and I want to finish as high as I can.

"For us to stay in the top 10, we need to win some games.

"Everybody has something to play for. We have got a big English contingent in the side and a lot of them would like us to be doing a bit better because it enhances their situation."

Curbishley was referring in particular to goalkeeper Rob Green and defender Matthew Upson, who had to withdraw from last month's 1-0 defeat to France with a calf injury but is in contention to play against Bolton on Saturday.