By Frankie Levin
West Ham have been drawn against Birmingham City in the third round of the FA Cup, with the tie to be played at London Stadium.
The match will commence on the weekend of 5 January, coming between Premier League clashes against Brighton and Arsenal.
Manuel Pellegrini’s hopes of winning a cup competition rely solely on this competition having already exited the Carabao Cup courtesy of Spurs.
The Blues currently sit ninth in the Championship table, accumulating 30 points from their opening 20 games of the season.
Gary Monk will take the trip to London in hope of an upset, but Pellegrini’s side will be relishing the chance of progressing far in this competition, especially given their mediocre Premier League campaign thus far.
West Ham were knocked out in the fourth round of this competition last year as they suffered defeat away at Wigan Athletic, who went on to beat Manchester City in the next round.
The Hammers’ most recent, noticeable run was back in ‘that 2015-16 season’, but controversially went out to Manchester United in a quarter-final replay at Upton Park.
The last time the Hammers faced Birmingham dates back to the 2011/12 promotion season, where both sides battled out a 1-1 draw at St Andrews.
However, before this clash comes around, West Ham have an important December month in the Premier League as they search to climb up the table and edge closer to the top half.
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