When David Moyes took the West Ham job for the second time the team were deep in a relegation battle sitting outside the bottom three by just a single point.
Fast forward 18 months and the Hammers still have an outside chance of qualifying for the Champions League and a strong shot at Europa League football.
With just three matches remaining this season few Hammers' fans would have believed this would be the case, with even Moyes and defender Aaron Cresswell admitting their surprise with how well the season has gone to date.
When Cresswell was asked on talkSPORT if he had expected the Hammers to be pushing for a top-four spot at the start of the season he replied "No, of course not." He added: "If I am being honest the last couple of years have been tough, certainly last year we were in a relegation battle and it pretty much went right down to the last games.
"But of course the gaffer has come in and done really well and yeah we had a bad start to the season, we lost the first game to Newcastle, the second to Arsenal and then we went to Wolves and Leicester and that turned our season around and ever since then we have not looked back.
"It has been a fantastic ride and with three games to go let's see where we can finish."
Ahead of the trip to Brighton, Moyes was adamant that had he been offered European football at the start of this campaign he would have "snapped your hand off" at the opportunity.
The manager added: "Maybe sometimes you can take a step too far. Even European football for a club like us, folk would be saying you don’t want to be playing European football on a Thursday and then [Premier League] on a Sunday, all that carry on.
"I do. I want it bad. I want the players here to want it bad.
"They’ve been getting it in the ear off me for six to eight months so for that I really want it. When you get a chance you’ve got to take it."
Moyes and Cresswell are clearly determined to get West Ham into Europe next season and it is something the fans desperately want as well.
football.london ran a fan survey and 95% of the Hammers fans who responded would be delighted with at least UEFA Europa League qualification.
Of the fans who took part, 65% would be happy with any European competition including the new UEFA Europa Conference League.
And the West Ham fans are backing Moyes to take the club on a continental journey, with 82% confident the Scot will seal a top-six spot and 91% of Hammers fans sure of at least Europa Conference League football next season.
Moyes has clearly won over any sceptical Hammers fans as not only are the supporters backing the boss to get the team over the line this season but 71% think he can keep them in European contention next time out as well.
Moyes revealed that at the start of the season his aims for where he wanted to take West Ham were different to others at the club.
"Our aim wasn't to be in Europe, mine it was," he said. "But I don't think the general feeling of how West Ham would be would have them there.
"But my [aim] was to get West Ham European football, and I've got three games to go to try and get them there."
Thirty-five games in, Moyes is just three wins away from fulfilling his ambitions for the season and the Scot is adamant that it is still a tough ask but would be a huge sign of progress for both him and West Ham.
"At the moment we need a club which is developing, we need a club which is showing it's making progress," he said.
"It might be huge progress for us being in Europe next season if we can make it. Because let's be clear, there's a lot of clubs around us trying to get in Europe, that's their aim."
