Will Pugh, Sun Sport journalist and co-founder of the We Are West Ham podcast, has highlighted Mohammed Kudus as the Hammers’ dangerman ahead of Brentford’s visit to London Stadium on Monday.

Kudus has seven goal involvements (6G, 1A) in 20 Premier League appearances this season, including a sensational acrobatic effort in the reverse fixture at Gtech Community Stadium in November.

West Ham are ninth in the Premier League table at the time of writing, having slipped back into mid-table since the turn of the year. What have you made of the way the last few months have gone?

The start of 2024 has been pretty abject from a results point of view and, unfortunately, the performances, but it is off the back of West Ham’s best-ever first half of a Premier League season, not just a solid run at the start of a season, which is remarkable.

That is what everyone was calling for from David Moyes after last season’s disappointment, but the mood has since turned somewhat sour among a reasonably large portion of the fanbase. From a results point of view, it feels like ninth is still not a disaster.

There has been a dip, but for a club with West Ham’s budget and with the way the club is set up anyway, that is kind of inevitable during the season. It could still be their most historic season ever; they are still in Europe and still in with a chance of getting into Europe again.

I feel like there is just a bit of a split among fans at the moment. It does not have to be a disaster, but it is painted to be.

Factoring in the FA Cup, the Hammers have played eight games in 2024 and are yet to win one. It’s been under the spotlight quite a lot recently, but how much pressure do you think David Moyes is under?

The results have not been good enough, regardless of the style of play, so there is pressure on him to turn that around. The Brentford game is the second in a run of four that, at the beginning of the season, West Ham fans were expecting to get a very decent return out of.

There is also pressure on Moyes, from some sections, to improve the style of play, but I do not think he is under huge pressure from the board and his contract is up at the end of the season anyway.

It is difficult. I would say he is under pressure from a reasonable section of the fans, though not all of them, for different things. Some just want the results to improve and some want far more than that. As long as the board see an upturn in results, that will at least see him through to the end of the season and I am pretty certain he will get that time whatever happens.

Do you think the Europa League could be their saving grace, as the Conference League was last season?

Absolutely. I do not think David Moyes would have been West Ham manager at the beginning of this season if he had not won the Conference League. Almost all fans are united in that school of thought, which is fair enough because their performance in the Premier League was not good enough.

But it is about more than just the Premier League. West Ham entered into four competitions at the beginning of the season and each one of them has value. The run to the Europa League semi-final the year before was historic and provided some of the best nights of my life – and they only got to the semis then.

Prague was obviously historic again last year, but I just feel the mood among some of the fans is only going to inhibit success on the European stage.

A run in Europe is perfectly feasible and, with a kind draw, there is no reason they could not get to the semis again, and if the draw is particularly kind, if they pull out a couple of good performances, there is no reason why they could not do even better than before to make it one of the best seasons in history.

Which player should Brentford fans keep an eye on at London Stadium?

I would say Mohammed Kudus. He exploded on to the scene before the Africa Cup of Nations, and though he has not been the same since then, the whole team has been underperforming and they have not looked very dangerous going forward.

I would suggest that, if Kudus can find his pre-AFCON form, he will show himself to be a very special player.

I am not sure if Lucas Paquetá will be back for the Brentford game, but he is a Rolls Royce of a footballer and, if he plays, he is the man and he always will be as long as he is playing for West Ham.

How is Moyes likely to set up in east London?

There is huge pressure on him to take the game to Brentford, but he is no doubt aware that will likely play into Brentford’s hands, given how well they did at Manchester City.

Kalvin Phillips is suspended, so it will be Edson Álvarez and Tomáš Souček and then James Ward-Prowse or Paquetá. He may stick with Jarrod Bowen up front, but I imagine he will give Michail Antonio another shot.

Alphonse Areola will be in goal and I imagine he will give Konstantinos Mavropanos another chance, probably instead of Kurt Zouma or Nayef Aguerd. Vladimír Coufal will be at right-back and Emerson left-back, providing he is fit.

Brentford have won all five Premier League meetings to date, but what’s your score prediction for this one?

Brentford are rapidly becoming West Ham’s new Brighton, who they could not beat for 13 years! I am going to go for a 1-1 draw, with Ivan Toney to score for Brentford.