David Moyes is attempting something unprecedented in West Ham’s history, to deliver a third consecutive top-seven league finish. Neither Ron Greenwood’s trio of 1966 World Cup winners nor John Lyall’s 1980s entertainers managed that.
The signs so far, after three matches, are unpromising, particularly after a defeat that continued a goalless start to the season and left West Ham bottom of the table. Brighton extended their unbeaten Premier League hex on them to 11 matches as deserved winners, with Leandro Trossard, as scorer of the second goal and instrumental in the first, the outstanding player. Graham Potter’s team attacked and defended as a unit where West Ham were disjointed and lacking in zest.