• West Ham angry at below-strength Fulham team against Hull
• League: ‘We will now ask Fulham for their observations’

The Premier League has confirmed it has received an official complaint from West Ham United over Roy Hodgson’s decision to field a weakened team in Fulham’s defeat at Hull City last Saturday.

The Fulham manager left out five key players for the match at the KC Stadium, which Hull won 2-0 to pull level with Gianfranco Zola’s relegation-threatened side on 27 points.

Bobby Zamora, Danny Murphy, Damien Duff, Aaron Hughes and Dickson Etuhu all missed the game but returned for last night’s 2-1 win over Wolfsburg, which prompted the West Ham hierarchy to claim that Hodgson broke Premier League rules.

A Premier League spokesman said: “We can confirm that we have received an official complaint from West Ham over this matter. We will now ask Fulham for their observations and then the Premier League board will then consider what actions, if any, are appropriate.”

Premier League rules state that all teams must field their strongest side available for all games.

Should they find Fulham guilty, the Premier League could decide to impose a penalty similar to the £25,000 suspended fine imposed on Wolves after Mick McCarthy rested nine of his players for his side’s defeat at Manchester United in December.

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On your brand new Football Weekly podcast, James Richardson is joined by Barry Glendenning and James Dart to drool over a weekend of spectacular and plentiful goals for Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United in the Premier League, and look ahead to the Champions League clash between Arsenal and Barcelona.

Jimbo tells us about an exciting weekend – no, really, it was on the lively side- in Serie A, while Sid Lowe interrupts his holiday to bring us up to speed on La Liga.

John Ashdown takes us through the latest Championship news, including the recent off-field trouble at Newcastle United, Roy Keane’s potential exit at Ipswich Town and P Diddy’s interest in Crystal Palace. Plus, we ask, will it be woeful West Ham United or Hull City who join Portsmouth and (almost inevitably now) Burnley in English football’s second tier next season?

Finally, we get all excited about Sven-Goran Eriksson, who once again has managed to find himself gainful employment after being named the new coach of Ivory Coast. How does he do it?

Have a listen and post your comments on the blog below. We’re also on iTunes, Facebook and Twitter, and if you enjoy this type of thing, get your daily dose of fooball with our tea-time email, The Fiver.

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A shot-shy Dimitar Berbatov, why Alessandro Diamanti frustrates at West Ham and Mikel Arteta v Tim Cahill

Berbatov: silky, intelligent and shot-shy

Wayne Rooney’s absence for Manchester United meant Dimitar Berbatov played as a lone striker. While he was heavily involved in United’s build-up, the Bulgarian has none of Rooney’s thrust and only managed to one shot – blocked – in 90 minutes. Although United won, if Rooney’s injury keeps him out against Milan this week, Berbatov will need to perform as well inside the area as he does in the build-up.

Diamanti fails to sparkle for West Ham

Alessandro Diamanti polarises opinions at West Ham like no other player. While he offers the sort of unpredictable creativity and set-piece prowess that few other strugglers possess, he can be maddeningly inconsistent. Nothing sums this up more than his frustrating day against Bolton as he gave the ball away with worrying frequency in a shambolic defeat. Even though he scored West Ham’s consolation goal, his wastefulness was irksome.

Why Cahill’s absence isn’t affecting Everton

When Everton lost Tim Cahill to injury, they gained Mikel Arteta. They struggled without the Spaniard earlier this season, but Cahill’s absence has not hurt them too much. Although Cahill scores goals, he rarely gets involved in play and Arteta ran the show against Hull – and scored twice. With Cahill – and Marouane Fellaini – Everton tend to rely upon long balls too much. Packing the midfield with the likes of Arteta, Steven Pienaar and Leon Osman makes Everton an attractive side to watch.

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