New (free) stadium could be the making of them, worryingly. Hopefully it will be a soulless, barren waste, but it might just work.
How will it help do you think? All I can see is a worse atmosphere and maybe stealing a few young fans from Leyton Orient.
It's a free stadium with big capacity, excellent infrastructure and transport links. West Ham's supporter base has, over the years, moved out into darkest Essex, and this suits them perfectly. A couple of strong seasons - funded in part by the sale of Upton Park, which (again) is essentially free money - could really solidify them as the "Essex" team over other competitors. It's a pretty big catchment area, and if nothing else, the stadium will be perfect for kids/families and should allow West Ham to offer cheap family packages to fill the place.
Of course, I'm hoping that the distance from the pitch will ruin the atmosphere, and that it will all come crashing down. The potential is clearly there though, which is why Klopp is not entirely fanciful.
Yes it is.