Avram Grant confident his absence will not harm West Ham at Stoke

Avram Grant is confident his West Ham United team will be fully prepared for their Premier League fixture at Stoke City today despite being unable to attend the game because he will be observing the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur. Tal Ben-Haim will miss the game for the same reason. West Ham have lost their opening four games and scored only two goals. Grant travelled with the team yesterday, having prepared and selected the side to take on Stoke, who have so far won only three points. "The team will be ready 100% and that's what is important. The meeting with the team, the talking with the team, the tactics, the training and the preparation for the team is the same," Grant said. "I will not be at the stadium. This is a very significant day and, out of respect for my father and mother, especially after all they have gone through, it is one day in the year that I always respect." Grant said his decision is understood by the club. "We have had a lot of emails, a lot of support from the board, the owners and the fans," he said, adding that he is not concerned by the pressure deriving from West Ham's start. "I don't want to live without this pressure," he said. The West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green made a mistake that led to Chelsea's second goal in their 3-1 defeat last weekend but Grant is adamant he will recover. "I have a feeling you will see Rob Green at his best," he said. Stoke's chief executive, Tony Scholes, said the club have complained to the Premier League regarding Arsène Wenger's comments that Tony Pulis's team play "rugby-style" football following their game against Tottenham Hotspur last month. "We have written to him objecting to these comments and have asked for an apology. Much as we respect Arsène Wenger, we cannot allow him to continue criticising us in this way," Scholes said. "In the absence of any apology, we will continue with our complaint, even though it has been reported that the FA will take no action . It is not right that anyone in the game can criticise one of our players without reproach." It is understood Stoke have written twice to Arsenal but received no reply.