Curbs: You dropped us in it, Rafa

West Ham travel to Old Trafford on Sunday fighting for their Premiership lives and Sir Alex Ferguson has promised to put out a full-strength side so that the supporters can salute the champions.

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Although Lawrie Sanchez's side had to wait until Monday evening, when Charlton were beaten at home to Tottenham, to preserve their Premiership status, Curbishley believes Fulham should still be in the dogfight.

Fulham beat Liverpool 1-0 and it means West Ham, Wigan Athletic or Sheffield United will join Charlton and Watford in the Championship next season.

Curbishley said: "Sir Alex Ferguson has already come out and said he won't disrespect the league and he will be putting out a full-strength team.

"We have been keeping our counsel, but when you look at the Liverpool team that day I think Paul Jewell at Wigan was the only one to come out and be vocal about it.

"There won't be many unfamiliar names in Manchester United's team. I spoke to Sir Alex on Monday to congratulate him on winning the Premiership title, but we didn't speak for long."

Ferguson and Curbishley are close friends, but events could conspire against the Hammers if they are beaten at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Victory for United would leave West Ham vulnerable and if Wigan can pull off a surprise by beating Sheffield United at Bramall Lane, Curbishley's side will be relegated.

The Hammers dragged themselves out of the bottom three for the first time since December 3 when they beat Bolton Wanderers 3-1 at Upton Park last weekend, but there are still no guarantees that they will avoid the drop to the Championship.

Curbishley added: "We have given ourselves a chance and that's all I have asked of the players. They have been magnificent.

"We have had a lot of criticism, especially when we were beaten 6-0 at Reading in January and 4-0 at Charlton the following month, and there has been a lot of publicity around us.

"Sheffield United and Wigan both have to go for a result and I'm sure there will still be a few twists left before the final whistle.

"Wigan know what they have to do and Paul Jewell knows nothing less than a victory will do. It is that clear.

"We have said consistently that we just want to focus on ourselves and our game and that is what we will do."

The Hammers looked doomed when they were beaten 4-3 by Tottenham on March 3, but they have staged a remarkable recovery.

Inspired by Carlos Tevez, they have since won six of their last eight games and are on the verge of securing Premiership status for a third consecutive season.

The future of their Argentina striker remains unclear — their Icelandic chairman Eggert Magnusson will sit down with the player's representative Kia Joorabchian to discuss the future next week — but the stage is set for him to make a dramatic impact at Old Trafford.

Curbishley added: "I wasn't being flippant when I said he doesn't understand what is going on around him, but he is a footballer's footballer.

"His performances in the last eight games have been magnificent, but then just look at his first few months at the club because he didn't score a goal.

"It's not just him, though, because the whole team have responded."

THE £60M DROP

1.The new three-year TV deal guarantees that even the bottom club receives "prize" money of £30m next season.

2.Clubs relegated in 2007-08 will still pick up two annual parachute payments of £11m.

3.Gate receipts and other income is around £10m more than in the Championship.