Gianfranco Zola is well aware that a long season lies ahead but he was understandably buoyed by West Ham United picking up three points at the first time of asking.
His squad report back for training on Monday knowing that two huge London derbies at home are up next - a league date with Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday and Millwall in the League Cup on Tuesday week. As such there will be an extra intensity to training but the weekend win at Wolverhampton Wanderers has given everyone a lift that bodes well for the whole campaign.
"Nobody knows what lies ahead," said the manager. "We have a lot of positives. We think it could be a big season for us. We could do big things. We are working hard to make it happen."
With Herita Ilunga hoping to recover from the facial injury he suffered at Molineux, the manager will have Fabio Daprela, Radoslav Kovac and Savio among others pushing hard to force their way into the matchday 18. He is keen to add more competition with Zola reiterating his intention to provide more firepower.
"I am sure that it would not do us any harm if we had some more striking force," he said. "I am sure that the club is doing everything they can to fulfil that space for a striker. I rely on them and we'll see what happens."
Reflecting on his current personnel, Zola picked out France defender Julien Faubert after his "best game for West Ham". The flying full-back has worked hard since his loan to Real Madrid at the end of last season. The manager added: "He defended very well and attacked very well. I told him that afterwards and congratulated him in the dressing room. He can definitely do this every week."
His captain Matthew Upson - a 2010 World Cup hopeful - also stood out and not just for his header that sealed the win after Mark Noble's first-half stunner. "We are very pleased to have him here," the manager added. "He is enjoying his football and he's looking forward to this season because it's going to be vital for his career.
England goalkeeper Robert Green was singled out by Wolves manager Mick McCarthy and Zola agreed, labelling his No1 as simply "excellent". Noble also showed his "quality" and the manager said there was always a chance he could force his way into the senior international set-up. "He is a competitive guy. He gives everything and is very bright. It all depends on him."
Moving further forward, Zola acknowledged the effort of Kieron Dyer who was tireless in support of Cole and behind many of the best moves. "I was very pleased with him. He had a very positive game and caused them so many problems. We know that when Kieron's fit he can make the difference and that was the case. I am looking forward to seeing him playing regularly."
Zola finished with fulsome praise for the team as a whole. Going into the match, many neutrals had felt West Ham would find it hard to cope with the passion of a newly-promoted team. Especially a club that paraded the Championship trophy before the game but - as was the case with the fantastic travelling fans - the Hammers were up for it.
"I have every respect for Wolves because the teams that have just come up always have a lot of enthusiasm but, to be honest, I knew when I saw us play about Napoli [last week] that I really saw some good things from my team. I was very pleased and impressed and that made me very positive."