Expectation and hope are there in equal measure for ALL fans ahead of the beginning of each and every season, with some hopes being more realistic than others, but all least fans can dream of what might have be, instead of remembering what might have been.
Hammers manager David Moyes has had to 'juggle' a team on limited resources consistently throughout his career, with the one obvious exception. He now finds himself having to do a balancing act as well, somehow through luck and good judgment he managed to get his team to a lofty sixth place in the Barclays Premier League.
As if being sent off for a 2nd bookable offence in the closing stages of the game against Southampton wasn't bad enough, many fans were extremely concerned to see Michail Antonio in obvious distress following some 'dark arts' defending by the Saints back line prior to his sending off.
Two points lost or one point gained? Irrespective of that question, a major talking point is how will Hammers cope without Mikey Antonio for the game against Manchester United? The Hammers striker picked up a 2nd yellow card in the closing minutes of what was a dreadful game. The 2nd yellow was harsh as there was no actual contact, however there was supposedly intent and therefore the 'conviction' stood! Antonio's 1st yellow was a bit amateurish, he could have been more professional in his tussle with the Saint's defender which earned both players a booking.
Southampton: McCarthy, Livramento, Stephens, Salisu, Perraud, Elyounoussi, Ward-Prowse (c), Romeu, Djenepo, Redmond, A Armstrong Subs: Forster (GK), Walker-Peters, Lyanco, Bednarek, Valery, Tella, Diallo, Broja, Adams
West Ham: Fabiański, Coufal, Dawson, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Rice (c), Souček, Bowen, Fornals, Benrahma, Antonio Subs: Areola (GK), Fredericks, Zouma, Diop, Král, Noble, Lanzini, Yarmolenko, Vlašić
Hammers are already at a turning point after only three games of the new Barclays Premier League season, currently 2nd in the League David Moyes's team should have and would have been 1st had it not been for woeful defending at home to Crystal Palace last time out.
West Ham players, many of which have only just returned from International duty, now face a fixture pile up of six lane motorway proportions! Between this Saturday's game against Southampton and the end of the month the team will play a staggering SIX times!
There will be some who say "back in the day players had to play three matches in five days over the christmas period, but that was a long long time ago in an era when pitches were mudheaps, but they were compliant mudheaps unlike today's slick but firm pitches.
Remember when you were young and had to deal with the fall out from your impromptu 'full on' party, usually at your parents house while they were away or at your Uni accommodation? Having been 'caught on the moment' has it's consequences, in a similar way fans baying for new football players at their clubs can become all mouth and trousers, happy to have a drink and a laugh, but with little or no regard as to who is going to clean up the mess that is left when everyone has buggered off.
Pablo Fornals joined West Ham in 2019 for £24 Million, it is safe to say his arrival wasn't greeted with much enthusiasm despite him having helped Spain win the U-21 World Cup. Manuel Pellegrini didn't seem able to work out how to use the energetic midfielder to the maximum of his abilities.
Many fans called for this 'expensive flop' to be moved on, and they nearly got their way! Fast forward a couple of years or so and now Fornals is one of the 1st names on David Moyes's team sheets, rightly so given his 'duracell bunny' performances that he has put in.
Yesterday West Ham confirmed their squad to compete in the Europa Cup this coming season: Goalkeepers: Alphonse Areola; Lukasz Fabianski; David Martin; Darren Randolph Defenders: Vladimir Coufal; Aaron Cresswell; Craig Dawson; Issa Diop; Ryan Fredericks; Arthur Masuaku; Angelo Ogbonna; Kurt Zouma Midfielders: Alex Kral; Mark Noble; Declan Rice; Tomas Soucek Forwards: Michail Antonio; Said Benrahma; Jarrod Bowen; Pablo Fornals; Manuel Lanzini; Nikola Vlasi