Declan Rice has got used to the winning feeling at the start of 2021 - and doesn't want it to stop.
West Ham United made it four wins from four to kick-off the New Year with a 2-1 victory against West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday night, moving up to seventh in the Premier League table in the process.
With 32 points at the halfway stage of the campaign, Rice and his teammates are only seven behind the mark they reached over the entirety of last season so, understandably, the mood among the camp is decidedly upbeat.
The Hammers also had to show their mettle to claim their rewards on Tuesday, hitting back after Matheus Pereira had cancelled out Jarrod Bowen's opener to win it through Michail Antonio.
"We’re certainly feeling good," Rice explained, "It’s a massive improvement on last year - this time last year we were on 19 points, we’re now on 32 and we’re looking forward.
"We’re looking towards the top half of the table, that’s what West Ham’s about. That’s what the fans want, that’s what us as players want and long may it continue.
"We didn’t play well on Tuesday night, let’s be honest. Against teams that come here and sit off us, we [have seemed to] struggle. Fulham was a similar game and I think we just need to relax, pass the ball around, shuffle the teams across and we’ve got the players to unlock teams.
"I think you saw that in the second half, we created more and were much more fluent. It wasn’t the best performance [overall] but who cares. A win’s a win and we’re up to seventh."
Next up for the Hammers is an FA Cup tie against third tier Doncaster Rovers at London Stadium on Saturday.
While acknowledging that Rovers are sure to give his team a stern examination, Rice is aware of the opportunity that awaits the east Londoners in the competition.
He added: "It's Doncaster at home, they’re fourth in League One and doing well so it’s not going to be an easy game. They will want to come here and cause an upset but we need to get through to the next round of the cup.
"If we can carry our Premier League form into the cup, why can’t we go all the way?
"Let’s try and put a cup run together because that would be special."