West Ham United remain in the top half of the Premier League despite conceding an injury-time equaliser against Stoke City on Saturday but manager Sam Allardyce is unhappy with their points total.

The Hammers had been in front since the 11th minute at Upton Park thanks to Aaron Cresswell's stunning free-kick. However, Potters forward Marko Arnautovic stole a share of the spoils by levelling in the fifth minute of injury time to ensure a 1-1 draw.

Late goals have become something of a curse for Allardyce's side, who were denied a draw at struggling Leicester City a week ago when Foxes midfielder Andy King grabbed a late winner for the basement dwellers.

And Tottenham Hotspur hitman Harry Kane was also on-target at the death when the Hammers drew 2-2 at White Hart Lane at the end of February.

Those late strikes, allied with West Ham's poor form in the Premier League in 2015 - which has seen them win just twice in 13 games - has rendered Allardyce a frustrated man.

Speaking to the club website, he said: "We are on 43 points but we are not happy with that because we know it should be 50. We are in the top half of the table but we could be higher up.

"We should have 50 points by now, we have thrown away seven points in the last few minutes. Had we not conceded those late goals against Manchester United, Tottenham and Leicester we would have our record number of points since being back in the Premier League," he fumed.

The former Newcastle United boss continued: "Again, we were in the final throes and final few seconds where just needed a bit of experience, guile and composure to see the game out and we didn’t get that.

"Because we didn’t get that, instead of having possession of the ball in the opposition half, we gave the ball away, they punted it up the middle and won the knock-down and, from there, it was a very good piece of skill from Arnautovic.

"No doubt, we should have blocked it out by keeping possession in the opposition half and seeing the game out and that, for us, is another massive blow on the basis of what has happened previously to us.

"Last week at Leicester it was 1-1. We should have taken the point and they scored in the 88th minute. Nine games ago, Man United equalised and Tottenham got a penalty in the final seconds of the game. That’s seven points in the last nine games we have thrown away in less than two or three minutes.

"Instead of sitting on a very confident and buoyant 50 points, we are thinking that is where we should be and that’s very disappointing. We have to handle this situation that we’ve allowed ourselves into far too often," he concluded.

There was further frustration for the Hammers boss earlier in the game as strike duo Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho both left the field early with foot and thigh problems respectively.

Addressing the condition of his forward pair, Allardyce said: "Enner was never going to be able to play the full 90 minutes but he got a kick as well and we are hoping it won’t be enough to keep him out for next week, because Diafra will definitely be missing.

"If it’s a thigh strain, depending on what grade it is, it could two weeks or it could be him missing the rest of this season, but we will wait and see.

"That leaves us very short on the front line with Andy (Carroll) being out and means goals will be fewer and farther between than they used to be, so if we don’t get that defensive side right then the last six games are going to be tough for us."