OPINION
West Ham fans have had to learn to be forgiving over the years.
There was once upon a time when their club was the benchmark for English football, producing World Cup winners and legends of the game that were the envy of sides across the globe.
Things haven’t always been that illustrious, however, and in more modern times, the side has yo-yoed between flattering to deceive and just being honest about their uselessness.
As such fans will forgive a lot. A lack of quality is frustrating, and off days are infuriating, but both can be forgotten fairly quickly as long as you are willing to put in some hard graft.
Take Aaron Cresswell, as an example.
The full-back has endured some pretty bad injures during his time in East London, and there have been times when, honestly, it has looked as if the rustiness has affected his form.
But through it all, fans have been willing to give him the benefit of the doubt because there can be no doubting his effort.
This ethos that the £50,000-a-week defender [Spotrac] shares with the club is perhaps articulated by the man himself.
Speaking to the Times, he said: “The first thing I found about West Ham was that as long as you work hard for these people who are paying their hard-earned money, working nine to six, six days a week, they will respect and love you.
“That’s similar to my background with my parents, that work ethic.
“If you put the effort in, they will love you, and if you have a bit of magic to go with that you become a legend like Paolo Di Canio and those people.”
Cresswell clearly has his head screwed on right, and it’s that humility and willingness to do shift that means he has the potential to become a firm fan favourite at the London Stadium, provided he can keep himself injury free and available for selection.
