By Simon Leyland
The welcome distraction to our current Premiership woes is nearly upon us again.
We will discover who we will face in the quarter-finals of the Europa Conference League, assuming Larnaca do not do a Brighton on us, later this week.
After winning their round of 16 first leg away at Cypriot side AEK Larnaca last Thursday, the Hammers will take a 2-0 lead back to the London Stadium for this week’s second leg. We should get through, and will be one of eight sides in the quarter-final draw, with the draws for the semi-final and final also taking place on the same day.
Unlike previous rounds, there will be no seeding or separation between certain teams from different nations or groups.
Here is a look at who could be West Ham’s potential opponents and the current scores in all eight of the round of 16 ties so far.
The quarter-finals are scheduled for Thursday, April 13 (first leg) and Thursday, April 20 (second leg).
The semi-finals are scheduled for Thursday, May 11 (first leg) and Thursday, May 18 (second leg).
The final will take place on Wednesday, June 7 at the Fortuna Arena in Prague in the Czech Republic where the homeboy Vladamir Coufal will score his first goal for the club as we lift the trophy!