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Mark Noble has admitted in his Evening Standard column that the endless speculation over not only Marko Arnautovic’s future, but also that of every one of West Ham United’s strikers, has affected the team.

What’s the word?

Arnautovic spent most of the January window with his head seemingly elsewhere when it emerged that clubs in the Chinese Super League were chasing his signature. Javier Hernandez and Lucas Perez also had their names regularly spread across the back pages.

Even the injury-prone Andy Carroll was tipped to be heading for the exit door as a shock replacement for Harry Kane at Tottenham. But come the end of deadline day, not one of the quartet actually left the London Stadium.

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Now, with the window behind them, Hammers captain Noble has acknowledged in his Evening Standard column that the speculation over their respective futures affected the rest of the squad.

The £6.3million rated midfielder noted: “That [speculation] has to have an effect on everyone, not just the players concerned but all the squad.

“It hasn’t been ideal at all. Everyone knows how it works. Agents are very active during the window, and there is no way players concerned can prepare properly for a game when that is happening.

“I’m not making any excuses for our past two performances, but it must have had an adverse effect.”

Pellegrini's man-management crucial

When the leader of the pack is stating that the interest in his colleagues has affected results, the captain of the ship must step up and hit refresh on the mindset of his players.

In the case of West Ham, this responsibility falls to Manuel Pellegrini and the end product of his man management will come clear on Monday night when the Irons host the current league leaders Liverpool.

The Reds will be keen to push further clear of the current title-holders with a win, and if Jurgen Klopp can orchestrate such a result, it will be the Hammers’ fourth loss in a row after defeats at Bournemouth, AFC Wimbledon and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

There is only so much Pellegrini can do when it comes to outside influences, such as transfer talk and whispering agents - but after Noble suggested this is a common issue at the club in January, it's something he'll need to try and prepare for next time around.

For now though, Pellegrini needs to get his squad simply thinking about their football again, rather than potential futures elsewhere.