Allardyce striving to develop more Nobles

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Sam Allardyce has praised Mark Noble as an example West Ham should be striving to replicate after the midfielder signed a new contract with the club.

Noble, who has spent his entire career at Upton Park, penned a new five-year-deal on Thursday.

The agreement will see Noble remain with West Ham until 2020, when he will be 32.

Speaking about West Ham's record Premier League appearance-holder: Allardyce said: "He's come through the academy, like James Tomkins, and we want to produce more players. That's what we're striving for."

"We've slipped out of the elite area of the Premier League and the last three games we were seconds away from sitting in the top six," Allardyce added.

"Last Sunday [when West Ham threw away a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with Tottenham] was a huge disappointment but the players deserve a huge amount of credit. We could've got seven points from our last three games.

"We've had a good week in training and we're ready for the early kick-off on Saturday."