Mark Noble cannot hide his excitement about the future at West Ham United although he also knows that in "football anything can happen".
The in-form club have travelled to take on Wigan Athletic later today before a home game against Birmingham City in a week's time and then a trip to Fulham a fortnight later. All three clubs are currently in the bottom four of the Barclays Premier League and Noble is well aware of the increased expectancy levels. "We have got to take three points from all of them," he admitted.
The England Under-21 midfielder's confidence in achieving that aim is fuelled not only by the team's form but also by the players coming back in the next few weeks - such as the attack-minded Craig Bellamy, Julien Faubert and Nolberto Solano. "Bellars is training, he is obviously fantastic," said Noble. "Julien is coming back to fitness now and Nobby is back, so we have got some good players coming."
That said, the 20-year-old midfielder does not expect the players in possession to give up their places easily. "It is going to be hard for the gaffer for selection because the boys in the team are doing so well. It is good for him and good for us - you work harder because you don't want to let your place slip. As long as we keep putting points on the table I don't think you can change it that much."
Noble is not surprised that the club are secure in mid-table, more than fulfilling the pre-season target of a settled and solid campaign. From that platform, he sees no reason not to aim higher. "You have got to get the right mix of players and the right blend - it seems like we are just getting that at the minute. We are grinding out results. We are not letting a lot of goals in and it seems that we can push our way up there."
That said, all concerned will treat Wigan and those to follow with the same respect shown to Liverpool or Manchester United. "It is still early and we have got three hard games coming up," he said, adding also that "this league is tough, you know".