Said Benrahma's season got off to a fantastic start with a goal and an assist against Newcastle and the Algerian cannot wait to play in front of a home crowd on Monday.
David Moyes trusted the Algerian to play in the number ten role at St James' Park and despite a poor start from the Hammers the 26-year-old flourished.
Last season Benrahma managed just one goal and six assists and after one game of the 2021-22 campaign, he has already matched his goal tally after his important 53rd-minute equaliser.
West Ham went onto win the match 4-2 with Benrahma playing a killer pass to Michail Antonio for the Hammers' fourth.
Benrahma was pleased with the Hammers fight back after falling a goal down after just five minutes: "We started the game badly and they started the match well," he told WHUTV.
"So taking back control of the match and coming back to win away from home was amazing so I’m very happy. We showed a lot of character despite being behind, we were able to get back into the game and didn’t give up. We put in the effort and it worked out."
Benrahma put the second-half comeback down to Moyes' team talk at the break: "At half-time we went in, the coach spoke to us and motivated us.," he said. "We came back on the pitch with a determination to do something, because there was a chance we could get something out of it. So we pushed and we pushed and it paid off."
The Algerian ended last season in good form and continued this through pre-season but was surprised with the manner of his goal at St James' Park.
"It was my second goal with my head," he said. "I don’t score very often with my head. I’m just very, very happy."
Moyes has said he is expecting more from Benrahma this campaign after a season to acclimatise to the Premier League. A big part of this will come from having a better understanding with his teammates, particularly in the attacking third with the likes of Pablo Fornals, Jarrod Bowen and Michail Antonio.
"We’re starting to understand each other well," Benrahma added. "So it’s working well and I hope it continues like this because they’re great players and we work well together, we defend and attack together. It’s so good to be rewarded for our effort."
Sunday saw 50,673 supporters in attendance with the majority cheering on the Magpies. Despite this, Benrahma was thrilled to play in front of fans and cannot wait for the London Stadium to be packed out on Monday night.
"It was amazing that the fans were there," he said. "I waited a long time for that and it was fantastic, it’s a nice stadium. The crowd was there and they were unreal. Honestly, I was really impressed. I’m so happy that the supporters could come, I’ve been waiting for that and it was great. When the fans are there it’s different, it pushes you on. Your adrenaline is boosted when the fans are there. It’s just amazing."
"I’m impatiently waiting for playing at home. It was still cool today despite being away from home. We could hear their voices. So I’m waiting impatiently for the next match."
