O'Shea has no problem confirming Zola as one of the most exciting talents to perform on the English stage in recent times.

The rivalry between United and Chelsea meant the pair were always on opposing sides but O'Shea was still able to marvel at Zola's craft and ingenuity, especially when he was not attempting to stop him.

And Zola's influence is bound to make West Ham adopt an attractive approach, although O'Shea noted his first move was to appoint someone to make them more solid at the back.

"Just because I was at United and he was at Chelsea, it did not mean I was unable to appreciate how good Zola was," said O'Shea.

"There is no problem there because it was such an easy thing to see.

"Obviously sometimes, you see with teams playing in a certain style, which might be the case with West Ham. But when you look at Zola's number one target, it was Steve Clarke.

"It is nice to have attacking football but Clarke has been brought in to get West Ham right defensively and they will want to keep clean sheets."

It promises to be a bumpy ride for Zola. In addition to major sponsors XL going into administration, the credit crunch has had a spectacularly negative effect on owner Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson, whose fortune is embroiled within the Icelandic banking collapse, leading him to declare there will be no money available for new signings at Upton Park in January.

Zola will therefore have to operate a Harry Redknapp-style wheeler-dealer approach when the transfer window opens as he looks to bring West Ham the success they crave.

"I would like to think Zola could have the same success as a manager as he had as a player because of his ideas about football," said O'Shea.

"He will be wanting to bring some creativity into his team and I am sure the West Ham fans are hoping that too.

"They have spent quite a bit of money but they have struggled a little bit.

"I am sure the Zola factor will attract a lot of players. He will have a good idea of the foreign market and they hope those factors will lead to improvement."

Not that United can spend much time worrying about West Ham's plight.

After their six-match winning run came to a halt at Everton, the Red Devils at least gained some solace from Liverpool's win at Chelsea 24 hours later.

The result was a surprise to Sir Alex Ferguson, who felt Arsenal were more likely to end the impressive unbeaten home record of Zola's former club.

Chelsea remain more likely to hold onto a lead in the latter stages of the season but, having fallen eight points adrift of Liverpool - albeit with a match in hand - United cannot afford to lose further ground.

And, after dropping points to Newcastle on the opening day of the season, O'Shea believes Old Trafford is where they must really make their class tell.

"The form at home provides the platform for any success we have," he said.

"The manager speaks about it in the Champions League but the same is also true in the Premier League.

"You have to make sure your home form is rock solid. If you are dropping points it literally has to be only a couple of times a season.

"Fortunately that is what we have done over the last two seasons and we must do it again."

Michael Carrick could return from an ankle injury against his former club, allowing Ferguson to rotate his squad.

There must also be a good chance of Carlos Tevez being handed a rare start, although O'Shea is not certain what system United will be facing.

"Obviously, certain teams like the five-man midfield but the last few seasons West Ham have come and tried to have a go," he said.

"We will just have to wait and see what ideas they come up with this time."