Astonishingly, Declan Rice is long forgotten – the one time heartbeat of the West Ham team now with the Gooners – sits two places below the Hammers who currently top the league.
The arrival of Edson Alvarez and James Ward-Prowse into the Hammers midfield has thus far seen the former skipper and icon missed not at all which truly is a stunning position for the club to find itself in.
Ok, we have only played the three games but when you include victory over Chelsea and bogey team Brighton for the first time in Premier League history, jaws can justifiably drop.
Rarely – and fair play to the manager and technical director Tim Steidten – the £105 million we received from Arsenal could hardly have been better spent and we are no longer dependent on one player maintaining his form as was the case with Dec.
We look a more rounded team with Alvarez and the former Southampton skipper truly looking business. Things are looking good right now – are you watching Declan?
I’m sure he is looking on and delighted that we’ve started strongly. He wouldn’t want to see us in trouble.
The fact that we’re temporarily above Arsenal is amusing. The fact we’ve used the money so well (so far) is just brilliant. Alvarez looks to have very similar qualities to Dec, and JWP has been a revelation so far. With Kudus coming in, and having Mavrapanos as a strong addition to our central defence, the future is looking bright.
I think Soucek’s days as a starter are numbered. I can see us starting with Alvarez, Paqueta, JWP, Kudus and Bowen in the midfield – how can Soucek be justified other than to come in for the last 15 when we need to shore up the defence?
Just hope Bennie, Antonio and Fornals stay to add competition, but Johnson and Soucek can leave with thanks.