Mark Noble believes West Ham are on the verge of establishing themselves among the Premier League elite.
As he heads into his emotional this afternoon (Mon) the captain said the club’s fortunes have changed dramatically.
He said: “We are moving to the Olympic Stadium and we have been told the 54,000 capacity will be increased to 60,000. That shows you the way the club’s going.
“And the money in the game now means we are able to keep hold of our best players. Most of the ‘lesser’ clubs in football can buy equally good players.
“We’ve just signed Dimitri Payet for another five years. We’ve signed Manu Lanzini. We have Cheikhou Kouyate on a long contract. The board have done a great job in getting everyone. That shows you the ambition at the club.”
He added: “Obviously we’ve had such a great season this year and it ain’t finished yet. We’ve still got a lot of history to write in the next few months.
“Part of my job is to help the new foreign players. But sometimes they don’t speak a word of English straightaway. And because I speak really quickly they usually don’t understand me for two months!
“Normally I say something and it takes them about five seconds to register before they start laughing or come back at me.
“But joking aside, it’s a good time to be at West Ham given the players we have and our the team spirit.”
A sell-out 35,000 crowd will be expected at Upton Park today for Noble’s testimonial match.
Funds raised from the fixture will be donated to DT38 Foundation, Help for Heroes and Richard House Children’s Hospice.