After tough start at their new home, West Ham have finally got themselves back to where they belong – the top half of the Premier League table.
The Hammers suffered a slow start to the 16/17 Premier League campaign despite expectations of emulating the record breaking form that saw them finish 7th in a historic final season at the Boleyn Ground.
A combination for getting used to new surroundings, several summer signings failing to adapt to life in England quick enough and off field trouble led to West Ham going from initial favourites for a top six finish to, at one point, having to seriously consider the consequences of relegation to the Championship.
However, since the turn of the year and the sale of key player turned bad egg Dimitri Payet, Slaven Bilic’s men have rediscovered their best form, winning 10 points from a possible 15 so far in 2017.
That has seen them climb from the bottom five of the Premier League to the top ten. Early season defeats against the likes of Watford, Southampton and West Brom are now just a distant memory, and recent victories over Middlesbrough, Crystal Palace and Southampton have give Hammers fans an insight in to what their beloved club really is capable of.
New signings Robert Snodgrass and Jose Fonte have settled in to the squad seamlessly, while crucial players like Pedro Obiang, Manuel Lanzini and Sofiane Feghouli are all currently playing the best football of the West Ham careers to date.
It wasn’t so long ago that manager Slaven Bilic was one of the bookies’ favourites to go down but now, sites M88 will understandably not have the Croat anywhere near that market. If anything, he’ll be one of the favourites to sign a new and improved contract between now and the end of the season.
If West Ham can continue their uplift in form, there is no reason why they can’t finish in the top eight of the Premier League this season, or perhaps even equal their 7th placed finish from last term.
