It's up to the players says West Ham's Behrami

Behrami admitted the situation was causing concern.

He said: "We have to be worried. If you play eight games and have just five points, you have to be worried. But if the performance is good you can see something positive. You have to be positive.

"It's difficult when the team starts the season like this, we know that, but we are working very hard to improve the situation."

The Swiss midfielder made a rallying call to his team-mates to give the fans something to shout about on Sunday.

He said: "Obviously we know the next game against Arsenal is going to be a tough game, but we mustn't think about that. We need to add some points. Everything can happen in a big game like this. We know Arsenal are a great team, one of the best in Europe, but we believe in what we're doing and want to win the game.

"The team has to lift the crowd. If they see that every player challenges and runs, it's easier for the people to get behind you. But if the team is not giving 100 per cent, the crowd won't be happy and feel encouraged to give their support, so it's down to the players.

"The belief has to be there because if we don't believe in what we're doing it's going to be a long season for us."

The 24-year-old continued his recovery from injury against Stoke at the Britannia Stadium last Saturday and he thought the Irons were unlucky not to bring something back from the 2-1 defeat, when two defensive errors handed the home team all three points. Behrami believes there was enough there to encourage fans.

He said: "The performance was good. We challenged for every ball, but made some little mistakes and that's why they scored two goals. But if the spirit of the team is like this and stays positive and we work hard, we should be okay, because we have 30 games still to play and have 90 points available."

For a full match report and reaction to West Ham's clash with Arsenal visit wharf.co.uk on Monday morning.