David Moyes must have been quietly relishing Project Restart. On June 13, his West Ham side beat Crystal Palace 2-1 in their final warm-up game over three 30-minute periods, with their superior fitness the difference in the final half-hour.
Palace's staff were taken aback. 'They were flying,' said a source. But fast-forward seven days and the optimism appears misplaced. They were humbled by Wolves on Saturday, and the positivity heading into the restart instantly dissipated.
And it doesn't get any easier as they travel to arch-rivals Tottenham, who have Harry Kane and Son Heung-min available after injury.