Things are certainly looking a lot brighter for West Ham after a fine run of form in the Premier League.

Slaven Bilic’s men looked set to be embroiled in a relegation scrap when they lost 5-1 at home to Arsenal at the start of December, but six wins from their 11 matches since then has fired them up the table, and well away from the bottom three.

The Hammers sit tenth in the division having won nine of their 25 Premier League games this season, 12 points clear of danger, and only five points behind West Brom in eighth.

It’s been quite the turnaround for West Ham, who looked blunt going forward and vulnerable at the back for much of the first half of the campaign, yet now they are beginning to look more like the side that finished seventh in the top-flight last term.

And, given that they are out of both domestic cup competitions, and didn’t even get past the qualifying rounds in the Europa League during the summer, they have just 13 games left of the season to try and finish as high as possible, with replicating last term’s seventh place a genuine possibility.

So, with the Hammers currently embarking on a two-week break in between matches, we thought we’d take a look back at their campaign thus far, so here is What’s Hot and What’s Not from West Ham’s 2016/17 season so far…

HOT – Much-improved recent form

West Ham lost five of their first six Premier League matches of the new season, before finding themselves a point and a place above the bottom three following a 5-1 home defeat to Arsenal on December 3.

Questions were being asked, fingers were being pointed, even Bilic’s future as manager was widely speculated, yet a run of six victories in their 11 Premier League games since then has completely turned things around at the London Stadium.

The 2-2 draw at Liverpool the week after the Arsenal game was vital, as the Hammers produced an excellent performance and got rewarded for it, before they then won three in a row against Burnley, Hull, and Swansea – all teams near the bottom of the league.

A few defeats over the festive period threatened to derail their good work, especially after performing well in defeat to Manchester United, but they bounced back with comfortable wins over Crystal Palace and Middlesbrough.

And, although they were thumped 4-0 by Manchester City, they once again responded by winning at Southampton, before drawing 2-2 with West Brom last time out.

Bilic’s men are a far cry away from the side we saw at the start of the campaign, and are looking more and more like the one that finished seventh last term.

NOT – Record at London Stadium

It was always going to be tough for West Ham to move to the London Stadium after so many good times and fond memories of Upton Park, their home for 112 years prior to this term.

And so it has proved, as the Hammers have won just five of their 13 Premier League games at home this season – only five teams in the league have worse home records.

It is not as if the five teams that have come to East London have edged over the line either, with all of them winning by at least two goals, while Arsenal and Manchester City have hit five and four past them respectively.

Four of their five wins have been by a 1-0 scoreline, with Crystal Palace the only side to get thumped by West Ham at home this season, so it’s clear that, although they have won some games and have played better recently, they are still not overly convincing and haven’t quite settled into their new home just yet.

HOT – January transfer window

Not many sides did much business, let alone good business, in the January transfer window, but West Ham were certainly one of those that got most things absolutely right.

Bringing in the highly-rated duo of Jose Fonte and Robert Snodgrass was excellent business from the club, with defender Fonte one of the most consistent centre-backs in the Premier League over the last few years, while Scottish international Snodgrass is the main reason Hull still have a fighting chance of avoiding relegation this term.

However, it wasn’t just the incomings they got right, they got the outgoings spot on as well.

Unhappy star Dimitri Payet left for Marseille, they terminated Simone Zaza’s loan spell after the striker failed to find the net during his stay in East London, and they also let highly-rated youngsters Toni Martinez and Reece Oxford go out on loan in search of much-needed first team football.

Clearly, Bilic and his team got everything right during January, and it has certainly raised the optimism levels around the London Stadium ahead of the remainder of the season and beyond.

NOT – Payet saga

Although the club, especially manager Bilic, handled the Dimitri Payet saga very well indeed, you wonder whether his unhappiness and lack of commitment had been rumbling on for some time.

Bilic confirmed in a press conference back on January 12 that the French international wanted to leave the club, just 18 months after moving from Marseille, in which time he had signed a new deal at the London club, and also received a loyalty bonus back in September.

And, although it was the right move to get rid of him before the end of the window, you sense whether his frustration at the club, many people even commented on his lack of trying and commitment on the field, had affected the rest of the team.

That’s because since he was isolated from the first team and subsequently left, West Ham have played much better and look like a team fighting for each other, and trying to win games for each other.

Clearly, West Ham got it right by getting rid of him, but it still got a bit ugly and arguably affected their form in the first half of the campaign.