West Ham boss Glenn Roeder has admitted that Saturday's clash with Leeds will be a special game for Lee Bowyer - but he does not expect the player to get a hot reception at his old club. Bowyer signed for the Hammers in a cut-price £100,000 deal during the transfer window having been on the verge of a £9million move to Liverpool last summer.
Roeder said: "Lee grew in stature as a player in the time he was there and he became an England player, so Leeds will always have a special place in Lee's heart - and rightly so. It is an important game for all of us but it is extra special for Lee who had, I believe, six and a half years at Leeds that were successful ones."
"It was the first club that he moved to after coming through the ranks at Charlton and it was a club that had a squad full of talent that became a Champions League team. Lee learned in that environment and because of that he is the player that he is today. But the rest of us must make it special for us as well - because there are a vital three points at stake."
Filed by Ciaran Cronin
