Player Focus: West Ham's Payet Capture Proving Plaudits Right

Having seen their team become only the fourth ever to beat Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City away from home in the same season in the Premier League era, doing so in their opening three outings on the road, West Ham supporters are in dreamland right now.

Despite successive home defeats to Leicester and Bournemouth earlier in the campaign no Hammers fan would have predicted that the club would sit third after such a tough run of fixtures to start the campaign. Slaven Bilic didn't really need to endear himself to the West Ham faithful given his playing days at the club but he has certainly made a strong first impression in management in the Premier League.

When appointing the Croatian – long linked with a return to Upton Park - the board would have considered an impressive record against English opposition during Bilic's short reign at Besiktas, and he seems to be relishing the underdog status that his new job carries at times. After the win over City, in reference to his previous managerial experience he stated "West Ham is maybe the first club on paper that we don't have to win every game, but we are trying to change that."

It's clear that Bilic backs his team and indeed himself in such matches, where few others do. His Besiktas gave Arsenal a real scare in a Champions League qualifier last summer before beating the likes of Tottenham and Liverpool - albeit on penalties - in the Europa League, and he has always relished the big occasion.

His attitude in that sense has been invaluable early on, though one aspect that made the manager's integration into the Premier League that much easier was the board's willingness to back their new man in the transfer market. However, it’s one thing to have money available and another to know what to do with it, and a number of West Ham's new signings have proven to be a real hit already this season.

The likes of Manuel Lanzini (7.10), Angelo Ogbonna (7.14) and Pedro Obiang (7.18) have all made solid starts, while Victor Moses' goal at the weekend was an early indicator of what he can offer the side. However the star arrival thus far, and indeed best performer in general for West Ham, has undoubtedly been Dimitri Payet.

Something of a shock signing, as the Hammers identified the France international as their number one target early in order to steal a march on any potential rivals for the playmaker's signature, Payet is certainly proving those that tipped him as a real coup for the club to be right. When on form as he is now, the 28-year old is a class act and in all due respect a class apart from his teammates.

With 3 goals and 2 assists to his name in the league already, Payet has secured a team-high WhoScored.com rating of 7.78 - enough to rank fourth in the Premier League. He finished among the top 10 players in Ligue 1 last season too (7.56) having registered a massive 16 assists from the highest tally of key passes in Europe's top 5 leagues (131), but the question remained whether he could successfully make the transition to English football.

He has already silenced any doubters despite the marked increase in the pace of the game in the Premier League, with Payet possessing the quality to control the tempo of a match. His ability on the ball and superb touch allows him to slow the game down when needed, but it has been his threat on the break that has served West Ham so well to now.

Payet's pass selection has been near faultless when it has really mattered, knowing just when to carry the ball forwards himself and when to try and release a teammate. Despite having faced such esteemed opposition already the Frenchman ranks eighth in the Premier League for successful dribbles (14) and fourth in terms of chances created (19) - both figures unsurprisingly leading the way for his club.

Meanwhile his quality over a set piece has also been a superb addition for the Hammers. A total of 17 accurate corners is the most in the top-flight, while his free-kick delivery for Cheikhou Kouyate's opener at the Emirates really set West Ham's season on its way.

Of course keeping up such a sensational start to the season will be hard from an individual perspective, as well as the team as a whole, and that's certainly something that Bilic realises. "I don't know how long this is going to last," he said. "The one advantage we have is that we have flair players who fight for the team. Players like Payet and Lanzini are running for the team right at the end and it's not common for these types of players to do that."

The manager is right to praise the duo's work rate having produced 20 tackles between one another thus far, though one suspects if either are to see a drop off in figures this season it will be their defensive statistics that fall, if only due to the calibre of teams they have faced to now. Of course Bilic will try to preserve that fighting spirit throughout the squad, but ultimately as long as the likes of Payet and Lanzini are doing their jobs in the final third he, and indeed the fans will be more than happy.

Having been a player that has tended to yo-yo in and out of his very best form from season-to-season, Payet certainly doesn't look in danger of doing that at present after a fine campaign with Marseille last time out. Instead it appears as though West Ham have recruited a player that has just approached his peak, and here's hoping that Payet continues his form, as he is a joy to watch right now.

Think Payet can keep up his performance or will it drop off? You can trade his value on the BuaBook Exchange, where players are valued purely on their performance stats.