2016/17 started with such promise for West Ham, but we’re now only midway through October and the mood has changed dramatically.
Europa League promise was cut short by a qualification loss at the hands of Astra Giurgiu, while Premier League form has been so poor in the east of London that dreams of a top-four finish have been quickly replaced by fears of being dragged into a relegation fight. Even the exciting move to the London Stadium has been a disaster, with the sparkling ground causing more problems than initially expected.
Alas, West Ham remain a good team. The quality they showed last term cannot have disappeared over the course of one off-season and while 2015/16 may have been a campaign of over-achievement, things will only get better over the coming months, surely?
We at FootballFanCast Towers are convinced that the light at the end of the tunnel is almost shining upon the boys in claret and blue, so here are FIVE reasons why their season is on the verge of turning around…
Stopped the rot
The weekend win at Crystal Palace was West Ham’s first in the league since August 21. In that time the Hammers have tasted victory in League Cup action, albeit they only narrowly edged past Accrington Stanley, but results like the back-to-back 4-2 beatings at the hands of Watford and West Brom were worrying.
However, the Irons have claimed four points from their last two games, hinting that the ship is being steadied somewhat.
Aaron Cresswell is back
A robust ‘tackle’ in pre-season ruled Cresswell out until the weekend just gone and although he’ll sit out the next game following his two yellow cards, having him back in the side will be a massive boost for Slaven Bilic. The English left-back drove in a delightful cross for Manuel Lanzini at Palace and offered the sort of outlet out wide the Londoners have been missing for the bulk of the campaign thus far.
Payet is reaching full fitness
The Frenchman stayed at West Ham despite some pretty serious interest over the summer, but his season started slowly after an arduous EURO 2016 with France. The playmaker cannot do it all alone but he’s showed in recent weeks that he is the driving force in the West Ham XI - his wondergoal against Middlesbrough was proof of that.
Fans fighting for Bilic
Even though things have been fairly bleak on the pitch, the fans have not turned their backs on Bilic. Often in poor runs, the feeling towards the man arranging the tactics and selecting the XI can become poisonous, but the Croatian’s stock remains high from last season, while he holds a certain cult status in the east of London.
Players about to return from injury
West Ham have been one of the sides most effected by fitness issues in the Premier League this season. While it would be wide of the mark to suggest that their woes are down to which players have been unavailable, to lose stars of Aaron Cresswell, Andy Carroll and Andre Ayew’s quality would hinder the bulk of teams in England’s top tier.
Alas, Cresswell is now back and the aforementioned duo are close to returning. Gokhan Tore should also return soon, too, which will boost Bilic's options.