West Ham United boss Gianfranco Zola says he would take the UEFA Cup seriously if they qualified for next season's competition.
Spurs, Aston Villa and Portsmouth have all rested key players in this season's UEFA Cup while Bolton fielded a virtual reserve team last season.
But Zola insists: "I don't understand how Europe can be an inconvenience.
"Teams put so much effort into qualifying and then, when they get there, they put out weakened teams. It doesn't make sense.
"The UEFA Cup doesn't have the same prestige as when I won it with Parma in 1995 but it's a European competition and I'd love to be involved with West Ham."
