Handicap start, then five wins and a draw in five matches: West Ham, under Nuno Espirito Santo, made a slow start after last year's sensational relegation and a transfer window in which several prized assets stayed in a bid to secure an immediate return to the Premier League. They drew 2-2 away to Burnley, then suffered a shock defeat at the London Stadium in the derby against Charlton, London rivals who last year were playing in League One. Former Lazio man Castellanos missed a penalty in the 93rd minute.
The revival with Bowen - The League Cup tie changed the direction of the Hammers' season, with a 4-0 win over Southampton, and above all it reawakened Jarrod Bowen. The England international is a class above in the Championship and has not stopped since. From that point on, five matches, four wins and a draw, in the other derby away to Watford: the nine points came against Wolverhampton, Derby County, Bolton and in the 6-0 rout of Wrexham.
Defence needs tightening up - Fourteen points from seven matches put West Ham second in the table: only WBA have done better. The Hammers look a class above in attack, with 20 goals already scored, but they still need to tighten up more than a few things in defence after conceding 9.
Premier League squad - The credit goes to the best squad in the league. Captain Mavropanos stayed, while Morato arrived from Nottingham Forest in the transfer window after also being tracked by major clubs such as AC Milan. Up front, Manor Solomon arrived, the Israeli who last year was taken to Fiorentina by Paratici. The surprise is young Divine Mukasa, the 19-year-old product of Manchester City's academy, already the author of two goals so far.