Four months ago, Stoke City and West Ham were held up as shining examples of upward mobility. It wasn't difficult to see why: Under Mark Hughes, Stokes had equaled their best Premier League finish with a deserved ninth place, while Slaven Bilic's West Ham, brimming with optimism and vibrancy ahead of their move to the Olympic Stadium, finished two places higher for their best campaign since 2001-02.
It seemed reasonable to expect both to continue their momentum as the new season gathered pace. Yet five games in, both find themselves in the bottom three, and though this is no time to be talking of crises, there is clearly something amiss.