West Ham 0 West Bromwich Albion 0

West Brom battled hard and deserved their point, and the Hammers' evening got worse when Upson was carried off with a calf injury in the 29th minute.

The extent of the injury was unclear but the England man looks likely to miss next Saturday's visit to Blackburn as well as the international fixtures the following week.

Upson was the third Irons player to be stretchered off in the last three games, after Valon Behrami and Jack Collison, both of whom will be missing for the rest of the season.

Manager Gianfranco Zola is running out of players.

He opted for a three man strike force, with youngsters Freddie Sears and Savio Nsereko lining up alongside David Di Michele but the blend failed to work against the Baggies.

On a frustrating evening for players and fans the home side failed to seriously test Scott Carson in the West Brom goal, with Di Michele in particular guilty of some profligate finishing.

West Brom had a good shout for a penalty turned down in the 24th minute when Lucas Neill appeared to tug on Paul Robinson's shorts at a corner but referee Mark Halsey waved away the appeals.

The visitors then created their best chance of the first half three minutes later when James Morrison robbed Scott Parker - who looked out of sorts all evening - near the halfway line.

The young striker advanced unchecked into the penalty area but could only fire his shot against Robert Green's legs.

The Irons then lost Upson and Zola had to rejig his back four with Lucas Neill moving into the centre and Jonathan Spector filling in at right-back.

West Ham were creating little, despite some honest endeavour from Sears. Too often the through ball was misplaced or was played too late, levaing the little striker offside.

Savio, another who looked less than effective after previous good displays, had the Irons only shot on target in the first period when he weakly diverted a cross straight into Carson's arms.

Sears could have earned his side a penalty in first-half injury time when he seemed to be bundled over in the box but again the half-hearted appeals were ignored.

The second half saw West Ham come out with slightly more purpose and Di Michele found himself free in the visitors' box just two minutes after the restart.

But the Italian, a frustrating figure for Irons fans, failed to keep his composure and blazed the ball high over the bar.

The most controversial incident of the game arrived in the 52nd minute when Green was flattened by a rogue elbow from Jonas Olsson at a West Brom corner.

All eyes were on Shelton Martis as he thundered a header against the bar while Green lay poleaxed in his six-yard box.

The England keeper recovered after treatment but was rarely tested thereafter.

Savio should have done better on the hour mark when he got behind Gianni Zuiverloon on the left and got into the area but, like Di Michele, he lost his composure and smashed his shot well over.

The 19-year-old German was perhaps frustrated and picked up his first booking in English football a minute later for a robust challenge on his marker.

It proved to be Savio's last contribution of the evening and he was replaced by another youngster, Junior Stanislas, who came on for his Hammers' debut.

The winger looked lively and delivered a lovely cross for Di Michele but he could only divert his header wide of the upright.

But West Brom should already have been ahead by then. Jonathan Greening broke clear on 71 minutes but could only lift his shot over Green and over the bar.

A goalless draw then looked the most likely result as neither side could produce enough conviction to deliver a decisive blow.

Even the introduction of Luis Boa Morte failed to provide any attacking stimulus, with the Portuguese showing both sides of his character with a couple of sublime touches and a couple of terrible mistakes.

The final whistle was greeted with boos by the home crowd and relief by the away contingent.

If this season is not to fizzle out in disappointment the Hammers will have to up their game considerably over the next few weeks.

Zola was putting a brave face on things after the game.

He said: "West Bromwich played a very good match. They play good football and are a dangerous team.

"I think it was a good point for us because of all our problems.

"Carlton Cole is missing and he is important to our team and today it was proved.

"We have to deal with that and find solutions."

West Ham: Green, Neill, Ilunga, Upson (Spector, 29), Tomkins, Kovac, Parker, Noble (Boa Morte, 82), Di Michele, Savio (Stanislas, 68), Sears. Unused subs: Lastuvka, Lopez, Tristan, Payne.

Booked: Savio

West Bromwich Albion: Carson, Robinson, Zuiverloon, Olsson, Martis, Dorrans, Koren, Greening, Brunt (Simpson, 80), Morrison (Teixeira, 88), Fortune (Moore, 80). Unused subs: Kiely, Hoefkens, Cech, Bednar.

Booked: Olsson

Referee: Mark Halsey

Attendance: 30,842