By Hughie Southon

Lucas Paqueta has had more than his fair share of injury issues since arriving art West Ham.

And that has only exacerbated a settling in period for the midfielder who believes the Hammers will now start to put the slow start to the season behind them,

He has found his scoring touch scoring twice from the club after being out of action with a collarbone problem sustained initially  against Southampton in October,

He found the net away to Leeds United and Newcastle United and is starting to show why the Irons spent a record fee to secure his services last summer.

And while the No11 missed the 2-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur, he was back in the starting XI as the Hammers beat Nottingham Forest 4-0 on Saturday afternoon, and his class on and off the ball was evident .

“I know how important I am to the team, with the role I play in it,” Paquetá said. “So, I’m happy to have done my best to help out and to get the win .

“The manager is always supporting us in training sessions – we are all in this together. We are fighting at the bottom end of the table, and we know that regardless of the game or circumstances, we have to try to go in, win and get the three points. And [Forest] was no different.”

The team made a lot of signings, and that makes it a bit difficult to get that understanding,” he explained, “but I think we are on the right track this year.

“We are on a better wavelength, getting to know each other better, getting the ball on the floor and playing.”

A trip to Manchester United for a fifth-round FA Cup tie is followed by an away fixture at Brighton & Hove Albion. The Irons are then in Conference League round of 16 action, away to Cypriot league leaders AEK Larnaca on Thursday 9 March.

And Paqueta declared: “The win [against Forest] gives us more confidence ahead of Wednesday in the Cup,” he enthused, “and we’ll play our best to book our ticket into the next round.

“We are in other competitions, and we intend to go as far as possible and, if possible, win titles.”