Graham Potter is already feeling the heat at West Ham and he has been putting his players through their paces ahead of Arsenal.
West Ham have won just 13 games in 14 months from 53 matches.
After an initial lift in performance levels, Graham Potter saw exactly why he is in the job last time out.
West Ham put in a first half display as bad, if not worse, than anything seen in the last year or so as they lost to Brentford.
The Hammers were booed off at half-time and the final whistle at the London Stadium.
Very few players covered themselves in glory in the game.
Emerson Palmieri was a real hero with his man of the match performance as West Ham won their first trophy in 43 years in the summer of 2023.
But he is one of a number of Hammers players who could and should be playing better.
Emerson has been far too inconsistent over the last 14 months.
And Potter has picked up on it straight away.
Star surely now finished at West Ham
The Brazilian-born former Italy international is the only player to have been subbed off by Potter in every game he’s been involved in under him so far.
Emerson was actually linked with a move away after Potter’s arrival in January.
He hit a new low being completely roasted by Bryan Mbeumo in that first half.
He was hooked at half-time and young Hammers Academy graduate Ollie Scarles was far superior both defensively and in attack – nearly scoring twice.
Scarles has impressed when given chances by the new boss.
West Ham fans have been calling for a changing of the guard at left-back as a result.
Now they may get their wish after what happened ahead of the Arsenal clash.
Emerson is surely finished at West Ham as a training showdown leaves Potter no choice.
The Hammers held an open training session at the London Stadium ahead of the trip to the Emirates.
Press and fans were in attendance and what they witnessed was a real sliding doors moment for Potter and two of his players.
The manager split his squad into two teams for a full 11-a-side training match.
Scarles was on one team, up against Mohammed Kudus.
Training showdown leaves Potter no choice
The Ghanaian has been woeful this season but is still one of the best dribblers around.
Video published by West Ham shows Scarles absolutely pocketing Kudus on more than one occasion.
The young Hammer deals with the fading star boy with ease, looking like a young Bobby Moore with the elegance and timing of one particular tackle.
As the ball is recycled, Kudus tries his luck again but Scarles locks him down, forcing him to cross the ball and he gets a block on it to set up a counter attack.
The writing already looked to be on the wall for Emerson.
But this surely seals it.
Sometimes a player emerges from the Academy and shows they are ready.
Scarles comes of age, now is his Hammers time
This is that moment for Scarles – who was man of the match on his first start in Potter’s first game, the harsh FA Cup defeat at Villa.
Those in attendance have reported those clips were just a glimpse of how well Scarles marshalled Kudus.
Emerson seems to have lost that fire which made him so good for nine months or so before and after the Europa Conference League run.
He actually struggled badly initially after joining from Chelsea for £13.5m.
Emerson turns 31 at the start of next season and will always be fondly remembered for his displays in the European run.
But Potter has stated he is looking to bring down the average age of the oldest squad in the Premier League.
After this fork-in-the-road training moment, that should start by shaving 11 years off and transitioning to 19-year-old Scarles being West Ham’s new starting left-back.
This is his time.
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