Having spent time in the dugout at this great football club, I know firsthand the passion, the demands, and the sheer desperation for success that courses through the veins of the fanbase.
You demand hard work, you demand resilience, and right now, at this crucial juncture of the season, resilience is exactly what is required. We are at the business end of the 2025/26 campaign, and there is no hiding from the reality of the situation. It’s a scrap.
But having looked closely at the Hammers’ recent performances, the wider relegation battle, and the fascinating dynamic playing out at the top of the Premier League, I wanted to share my thoughts on how the rest of this season might unfold.
Let’s start with the most pressing issue: West Ham United’s Premier League status. The trouble, and we all know it, is that there is a bit of a gap at the bottom.
When you are chasing points and looking up at the teams above you, the psychological pressure is immense. Every mistake is magnified, and the ball feels like a hot potato.
But the massive plus side to what I am seeing right now is that this team is suddenly playing with confidence and form. That is a rare commodity for a side fighting the drop.
I don’t know whether that shift in mentality is directly tied in with Lucas Paqueta leaving the club, but sometimes the departure of a talismanic figure forces the rest of the dressing room to step up and take collective responsibility.
They seem to have found a genuine togetherness at the moment in their play. The work rate off the ball has improved, the communication is better, and they are fighting for every blade of grass.
Because of this newfound belief, I think they certainly can get the results they need. It is going to be a really tight struggle, make no mistake.
I look at the table and think West Ham are in Nottingham Forest’s hands a little bit, simply because Forest have that points buffer at the moment. But football changes in the blink of an eye.
All it takes is for West Ham and Forest to win, and for a team like Tottenham to get beaten, and the entire landscape shifts. All of a sudden, the media, the fans, and the players themselves will be wondering which way the trapdoor will swing.
It is absolutely intriguing for all of us watching. Out of the bottom three sides – and I am looking primarily at Spurs, Forest, and West Ham – the Hammers are probably playing with the most confidence at present.
But confidence alone doesn’t keep you up; clean sheets do. If West Ham are to avoid relegation, the primary area that needs to improve is their defensive solidity.
In a relegation dogfight, you have got to make sure that you can grind out a 1-0 result or take a 0-0 draw to the bank anytime you need to. They are starting to look as though they’ve become a little bit more solid, but the margins are fine.
Earlier in the season, they looked incredibly flimsy from corners and set plays. Opposing teams knew they could target them in the box.
But I think having Tomas Soucek in the team more consistently helps solve that problem immensely. He is a magnet for the ball in both boxes, brave in the air, and gives you that physical presence that disrupts the opposition’s set-piece routines.
Beyond Soucek, I have to say I am impressed with the new additions. Do I believe the new signings are enough to keep West Ham up? Yes, I do. They look like a definitive improvement on what the squad had previously, without a doubt.
Taty Castellanos looks as though he has got excellent energy leading the line. He presses from the front, which sets the tempo for the rest of the team.
Axel Disasi is also going to drastically improve the back line. He has the physical profile and the experience to handle the rigours of a Premier League survival fight.
You cannot look at West Ham’s situation without looking at the teams around them. Up at Nottingham Forest, Vitor Pereira has come in.
They had a good result against Fenerbahce in Europe, but I watched his first Premier League game – that unlucky loss to Liverpool – and I felt there was a game to be won there.
Liverpool didn’t play particularly well on the day and were very fortunate to get away with a victory. That’s probably been Forest’s overarching problem this season.
They’ve galvanised some good isolated results, but haven’t been consistent. Their struggle in front of goal might be their ultimate undoing both in Europe and in the league.
People ask if the Forest job is one of the hardest in the league. I personally don’t think so. You know exactly where you stand with the owner, Evangelos Marinakis.
He has pumped finance into the football club. The stakes are sky-high, but there is still a little bit of me that thinks if you simply wanted to keep the team in the Premier League, Sean Dyche would have done just as good a job as Pereira.
Then there is Tottenham Hotspur. They’ve brought in Igor Tudor as an interim head coach.
Spurs suffered a heavy defeat in the North London derby in Tudor’s first game, which is a brutal start.
But looking at their fixtures, they’ve got some decent winnable games at home out of their remaining 11 matches. They probably need three victories to be safe.
I think they’ll be okay, but if Forest and West Ham find a bit of form, and Spurs drop points at home, it is going to get very, very nervous on the white side of North London.
Looking to the top of the table, we have a brilliant two-way title fight between Arsenal and Manchester City.
From around October onwards, I fancied Arsenal to win the league, and my mind hasn’t changed. City have looked a little bit fragile defensively.
However, bringing in Marc Guehi at the back and Antoine Semenyo has levelled the playing field.
Guehi, for me, has slotted in seamlessly. He has an elite ability to deal with one-on-one situations.
He is the first name on the England team sheet for me this summer, and if anything tips the title balance in City’s favour, it will be him.
Despite City’s push, I still feel Arsenal have a phenomenal squad. Aside from a poor 45 minutes against Wolves, they’ve been flawless.
People in the media love to heap pressure on them, but as long as their dressing room remains strong, I think Arsenal will finally get over the line.
While we are on City, a quick word on Nico O’Reilly and Rayan Cherki. O’Reilly playing in both midfield and left-back roles guarantees him a spot in the World Cup squad. As for Cherki, his class will shine through eventually.
Talk of City inevitably leads to Pep Guardiola. He is the bedrock of the most stable club in world football. Replacing him eventually is going to be a monumental task.
I was at City prior to the immense wealth arriving, so I can see the stark contrast and the impact he’s had. If I were City, I’d hang onto him as long as humanly possible.
It’s funny to think back to when Pep actually had a playing trial at Manchester City while I was there.
I just remember a really nice fella, but financially, we just didn’t have the money for wages at the time.
My own time managing City is something I look back on with immense fondness.
Coming through the coaching staff, Kevin Keegan looked after me brilliantly. He played a massive part in the evolution of the club over the last 26 years.
And yes, I cannot talk about my City days without mentioning David James playing up front against Middlesbrough.
It was a “night before” decision. I wanted to catch the opposition completely off guard. Sometimes in football, you have to try these mad things.
Finally, looking down the leagues, it is brilliant to see Coventry City flying high. My professional career launched there in 1983.
Frank Lampard is doing a magnificent job leading them right now. He is the ultimate professional and incredibly level-headed. If Coventry return to the Premier League, it will be a monumental achievement.
Football is a game of fine margins, whether you are fighting for the title or scrapping for your life. For West Ham, the ingredients for survival are there. The effort and togetherness are present. Now, it is simply about executing on the pitch.
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