James Collins Bio Send To Friend  

The defender left West Ham United after four years at Upton Park. He joined the Hammers for an undisclosed fee from Cardiff City in July 2005.

The central defender headed to London club at the same time as Daniel Gabbidon, with the combined fee believed to be in the region of £3million.

But Collins has found it tough to break into the West Ham side on a regular basis after making his debut in a 4-2 League Cup win ay Sheffield Wednesday in September 2005. He did not make his Premier League bow until the end of October.

After suffering a cruciate knee injury in a reserve game against Portsmouth in January 2008 he was confined to the treatment table for a year.

Despite having time on his hands it is hard to imagine Collins making an impression at Upton Park, and he may have to look for a move away.

He broke into the Cardiff team in November 2000, making his bow as a 17-year-old as a late replacement for Robert Earnshaw in a 5-1 demolition of Bristol Rovers in the FA Cup First Round.

Collins featured sporadically for Cardiff before becoming a first team regular in 2004/05, attracting scouts from other clubs.

Collins played 86 games for Cardiff, scoring six goals.