Everton gained plenty of goodwill from a strong start to the season, even after a less-than-impressive performance at Leeds United on matchday 1.
And yet recent losses to Liverpool and an early Carabao Cup exit at the hands of Wolves at Molineux in recent days have rubbed some of the shine off of Everton's start, something they'll be looking to rectify with West Ham coming to town this evening.
The Hammers are also struggling to find a foothold in the Premier League this season, although the London club's situation is a bit more dire, as they currently sit in 19th place in the table, having won just once in the league while scoring only five goals while shipping 13.
While Everton haven't been much more prolific in front of goal (scoring six goals in five matches), its been a steady defense that's kept the club running, as they've allowed an average of just one goal a match in the league.
Another victory would just the Toffees up from 12th to 8th in the table, sandwiched between Manchester City and Chelsea.
West Ham, of course, just sacked Graham Potter and brought in former Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo to take over the helm. Santo wasn't without a job for long after a bizarre end to his Forest tenure.
Time will tell what the Portuguese manager's impact will be, but his first directive will be to seal up the leaky defense using the same personnel.
A new manager may mean that Everton boss David Moyes may need to tinker with things once the match gets started, as watching film from previous West Ham matches this campaign won't offer him much insight.
Match Notes
Since 2010, Everton have won 14 matches against the Hammers, with 9 draws and 9 losses. The two sides met as part of the Premier League Summer Series in the United States this summer, with West Ham winning 2-1 in Chicago.
The two most recent league matches have both ended in draws.
Everton will continue to be without center back Jarrad Branthwaite and midfielder Merlin Röhl. West Ham will be without midfielder Tomáš Souček due to a red card suspension, while defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka is also expected to miss the match due to an illness.
David Moyes, of course, served as West Ham's manager for two different stints. He led the Hammers for six months from November 2017 to May 2018, and then returned in December 2019 to replace the man who had stepped in for him, staying until May 2024.
How to Watch
In the UK, the match will be broadcast on Sky Sports Premier League or Sky Sports Main Event, with kickoff set for 8 PM local time.
In the US, the match will be broadcast on the USA Network or Universario, with kickoff coming at 3 PM ET/2 PM CT/1 PM PT.