GIANFRANCO Zola has apologised to West Ham United fans after their friendly against Werder Bremen in Austria was cancelled because of a waterlogged pitch.

West Ham were due to take on the German Cup winners on Saturday after their 1-1 draw against Austrian outfit Flavia Solva.

But persistent rain made the pitch unplayable and a decision was taken to cancel the game hours before kick-off.

Hammers boss, Zola, said: “I was very sorry for our supporters. I know that many came to see us and it is a shame that we could not play the match for them, as they had made all that effort to watch us.

“I would like to thank them still for coming over and just say sorry that the match could not happen. We were also disappointed, because we were up against a good side, it would have been a good test for us.

“We wanted to play, they wanted to play but the conditions stopped us.”

The game may have not gone ahead but it did not mean West Ham's players put their feet up because Zola arranged an impromptu training session.