West Ham United

Holly Turbutt
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

The international break gives West Ham an opportunity to regroup, rest and fix some of the challenges we have faced so far.

Eight games into the season, we have a clear view of our strengths and weaknesses, so fans are hoping we'll use this break to recover from tiredness and improve technically.

Having scored 22 Championship goals, it is clear to see that we are attacking well, putting us in a great position to play exciting football.

Instead, our issues lie in defence and midfield, with us conceding easily and struggling to stay organised under pressure.

One of the players that could fix the number of goals we're conceding is Tomas Soucek.

After a long absence, we hope he will be fit to play again when the season continues, bringing an experienced and passionate player into our midfield.

One of the greatest benefits of Soucek's potential return is that he's naturally defensive, which is something we've been lacking.

While he might not be the fastest, he should be able to protect our defence and stop us conceding from set pieces, which has been a major issue for us in the Championship.

In addition to this, the break will give a lot of the new players a chance to take stock of their time at the club so far.

The majority of summer signings have impressed, despite being brought in with little time to settle before their first games.

The hope is that the slower pace for the next couple of weeks can take the pressure off and help them to gel even more.

After a worrying start to the season, we had our four wins in a row, before dropping out of the Carabao Cup and then scraping a draw with Millwall.

The drop-off in performance means we should not lose momentum with this time out, and instead, the international break can give legs a rest and provide time to improve on our defensive weaknesses before we go again.

When the season continues on 9 October, games will return thick and fast, meaning now is our time to prepare mentally and physically.

We've had a glimpse into what it feels like to win back-to-back games, and now we need to exceed expectations and find a way to do this regularly.

This break gives us the perfect breather to do this without pressure, so the goal must be to build momentum early and improve defensively from the moment the season gets back underway.

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West Ham United season ticket holder Gus Beagles would grade the Hammers' inconsistent start to the season as in the "B+, A- bracket" but feels some "leeway" is required.

They are second in the Championship, two points below leaders Swansea, but remain the bookies favourites to lift the title.

The expectation is high and it is what comes with it that has Beagles forgiving the early hiccups.

"West Ham have always seen periods where they look nervous and I think it's a really difficult club at times to play for," Beagles said.

"Us as a fan base, we are a brilliant fan base and extremely passionate as you see with our following across the country, but there's a lot of pressure to play for West Ham and especially at this level in the Championship.

"The pressure from the players that will be putting it on themselves to get up in the league, from the opposition, of going to difficult places or teams coming to us and having a crack, and also the pressure from the fans.

"London Stadium can become difficult when it gets nervy. It can be a really difficult place to play."

Listen to the full fan analysis below or on BBC Sounds here.

How are Grimsby Town and Swansea City linked through their recruitment and analysis?

In the newest episode of the 72+ podcast, Aaron Paul, Jobi McAnuff and Cambridge United boss Neil Harris find out in conversation with Grimsby CEO Polly Bancroft, who talks Jamestown Analytics, club growth, ambitions and what it's like to be one of the few female chief executives in the EFL.

That's after the panel are joined by Adam Blackmore, BBC Radio Solent's sports editor, to chat Spygate, the looming verdict over Tonda Eckert and how the club is feeling in this decisive week.

There's also discussion and debate on Championship table-toppers Swansea City and League One strugglers Peterborough United.

Listen to the full episode above or on BBC Sounds here - and don't forget to subscribe to get each episode into your My Sounds feed.

West Ham United manager Nuno Espirito Santo spoke to BBC Radio London after his team came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 against rivals Millwall at The Den.

For the match report, click here, and to hear more from the West Ham camp, subscribe to the Hammers' page on BBC Sounds.

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's derby saw West Ham United claw back a 2-2 draw at Millwall from being 2-0 down in the first half.

Here are some of your comments:

Millwall fans

Siddie: In the cold light of day we should be proud of ourselves, given all the injuries. Sturge and Arconte looked dangerous. And everyone else was also really good. Just ran out of steam. I still feel lots of positives here and we just need to keep going.

Andy: Worked their socks off, deserved half-time lead.

Thought we made a bad tactical change - Sturge, who had marked Bowen out of the game, was moved to midfield and Millwall played a back three with Baggot marking Bowen. Both West Ham's goals were not the players' fault just a bad tactical decision, which I am sure we will learn from.

Dave: Alex Neil has cost us nine points this season by playing three at the back in the second half when we are dominating games.

Image source, Shutterstock

West Ham fans

Chris: Poor start even though we knew what was going to hit us. Too many passes going astray and too slow on the ball against a strong Millwall press.

Fair play to Nuno with the subs. Kante, a big physical presence, maybe should have been on from the start. Pablo strong on the ball also helped dig us out. Lucky escape.

Simon: Very poor performance, inaccurate passing in the first half. Fulham proved last match if you press us for the most part we can't deal with it and don't have the skill in the back line to pass out or pick a pass.

For a derby there wasn't the passion and Jarrod Bowen was not leading as captain on the field and wasn't at the required work rate in the first half. One or very possibly two bans could impact progress moving forward!

Malcolm: Totally out muscled; sloppy passing and very pedestrian particularly in the first half. Defence was all over the place and continues to be a major concern. Not one cross from the left wing .

All very predictable. Better second half mainly due to Millwall tiring. Much work to be done!

Image source, Getty Images

London derbies generally run by their own rules. The expectations, the crowd, the sense of proximity – they all add to an air of unpredictability.

However, Millwall against West Ham operates on a different level. This match walks a tightrope whenever and wherever it is played. Unlike so many matches involving sides in the capital, this one happens infrequently – the last meeting was 14 years ago.

The rivalry, however, is long and tortuous. Even when they are not in the same division these two eyeball each other across the River Thames. Many will recall the ugly clashes both inside and outside Upton Park during a League Cup game in 2009. Those incidents have left a scar on football in the city.

The fixture itself is tantalising. West Ham have come into form in the Championship and are scoring goals for fun. They will be favourites.

Millwall have shown glimpses of the form behind last season's promotion push but are beset by an extraordinarily long injury list.

The crowd at The Den will know the odds are stacked against them so they will be even more motivated than ever to generate the sort of atmosphere that could redress the balance.

Whichever team copes best in that environment will succeed. If Millwall can rise to the occasion then don't count them out. If West Ham can blot out the noise, their promotion credentials will be burnished.

There will be plenty watching this game to see if all those questions get overwhelmed by a different sort of story.

That 90-minute tightrope walk will test everyone involved.

West Ham United can move three points clear at the top of the Championship for at least a few hours when they visit Millwall on Saturday (12:30 BST).

The Hammers are on a four-game winning streak while their London rivals had to settle for a 2-2 draw at Middlesbrough on Tuesday having led 2-0.

• This will be the first league meeting between Millwall and West Ham United since February 2012, when the Hammers won 2-1 in the Championship.

• Millwall are unbeaten in five home league games against West Ham (W3 D2) since a 1-0 defeat in December 1988.

• Millwall have won only one of their past five league games (D1 L3), conceding 13 goals in that time, as many as in their previous 18 games in the Championship (excl. play-offs).

• West Ham are looking to win five consecutive league games for the first time since doing so in February 2006 in the Premier League under Alan Pardew.

• Last time out, Jarrod Bowen scored and assisted in the same league game for the 10th time since the start of 2023-24, in England's top four tiers only Mohamed Salah (15), Finn Azaz (13) and Davis Keillor-Dunn (11) have done so more often in that time.

West Ham United meet Millwall on Saturday for the first time in 14 years.

The two rivals last played each other in February 2012, when the Hammers won 2-1 despite an early red card for Kevin Nolan.

Carlton Cole opened the scoring in first-half injury time, with Liam Trotter equalising for the Lions, before Winston Reid got the winner.

Saturday's match will be only the seventh league game between the sides this century.

Nick Godwin, Phil Parry and Andy Rowley from BBC Radio London have been looking ahead to the game from a Hammers perspective.

Listen to the preview by clicking the play button above, or on BBC Sounds here.

Aaron Paul and Jobi McAnuff are joined by former Nottingham Forest and Ipswich Town defender Luke Chambers to chat all things EFL in the latest episode of the 72+.

What next for Preston after they sacked Paul Heckingbottom? How far can Lincoln go after a strong start to the season?

Saturday sees Millwall face West Ham for the first time since 2012 and Lions defender Caleb Taylor joins the pod to talk their London derby.

Shrewsbury look set to be the latest EFL club with American owners as BBC Radio Shropshire's Nick Southall explains how Brad Friedel is involved.

Listen to the full episode above or on BBC Sounds here - and don't forget to subscribe to get each episode into your My Sounds feed.

West Ham United full-back Kyle Walker-Peters says he and his fellow defenders have discussed a target of clean sheets required to get promoted.

The Hammers have achieved two shutouts in their first seven Championship games, so are on course to achieve 13 at that ratio.

Coventry City and Ipswich Town, who were promoted automatically last season, kept 17 clean sheets.

"It's something we've spoken about as a defensive unit," Walker-Peters told BBC Radio London.

"We've spoken about the importance of clean sheets and how many clean sheets tend to get [you] promoted. We have our targets.

"We respect the league – it's a division lower than where we want to be, but there's still some good teams and some good players.

"We're not taking it lightly, but we hope to be going back up by the end of the season."

Former West Ham United goalkeepers Rob Green and Jimmy Walker have been sharing their memories of Ludek Miklosko.

Hammers legend Miklosko, who made almost 400 appearances for the club between 1990 and 1998 and later returned as a goalkeeper coach, died on Monday, aged 64.

Listen to Rob and Jimmy's tributes above or on BBC Sounds here.