Victory at Bolton tomorrow could lift the Hammers into seventh place in the Barclays Premier League - firmly in contention for next season's rebranded Europa League.

For Zola, that would represent a significant triumph.

But while the Champions League remains a coveted prize, Europe's second competition has suffered from a downgraded status in recent seasons, with Wanderers boss Gary Megson placing it firmly below last season's relegation scrap and Harry Redknapp selecting a shadow Tottenham side against Shakhtar Donetsk yesterday.

Redknapp has promised more of the same for the second leg, claiming he will blood as many as four untried teenagers despite losing the first leg 2-0.

But Zola, who won the UEFA Cup during his time with Parma, insists any continental cup deserves the utmost respect - even if the standard is not quite the same as when he lifted the trophy in 1995.

"For me the UEFA Cup is not the same as the one I won with Parma because it is a different story," said Zola.

"Only the teams which finished first in their leagues were in the Champions League and those who finished second and third were in the UEFA Cup, so it was a strong competition.

"Now it is different but it is still a European competition and I would love to be involved in a competition like that.

"I don't understand why people don't like it but I am sure there are still plenty of teams who want to be in it.

"Being in the UEFA Cup would be a nice problem to have.

"If teams don't like the competition, then maybe we should change the format, but for me it a good tournament to be involved in because I can make your team better."

Zola, who also finished as a UEFA Cup runner-up in 1994 before enjoying success in the 1998 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup with Chelsea, believes the experience of playing overseas can only be good for players.

"It's not just the silverware you can get but the chance to give you players some European experience," he said.

"I'm not the kind of manager to stop the players from thinking about it. It's good to have ambitious targets and work hard to achieve them.

"If they want to be ambitious then I am very happy if they work hard to make their ambitions happy."

Zola has some selection issues to resolve ahead of the visit to the Reebok Stadium - a place where the Hammers have conspicuously failed to win in recent seasons.

England striker Carlton Cole is likely to miss out with the ankle injury he sustained in the FA Cup fifth-round draw with Middlesbrough, while Dean Ashton confirmed this week he would not play again this season.

That means one of Freddie Sears or record buy Savio Nsereko could be handed a starting berth, with Diego Tristan an option from the bench.

Lucas Neill is suspended, meanwhile, meaning a possible recall for Jonathan Spector at right-back.