West Ham United have the chance to turn Tuesday night’s breakthrough into genuine Championship momentum when Derby County visit London Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Nuno Espírito Santo’s side finally collected their first league victory of the season with a 4-2 win over Wolves, moving onto five points from four matches after a frustrating opening to life back in the second tier.
Derby arrive in east London with renewed confidence of their own. John Eustace’s side recorded their first Championship win of 2026/27 on Tuesday, beating Portsmouth 2-0 at Fratton Park through goals from Sam Szmodics and Lars-Jørgen Salvesen.
Saturday therefore brings together two teams hoping one midweek victory can become the start of something more substantial.
West Ham cannot waste Wolves breakthrough
Tuesday was easily West Ham’s most encouraging league result so far.
Divine Mukasa scored twice, Jarrod Bowen converted from the penalty spot and Konstantinos Mavropanos added the fourth as Wolves were beaten 4-2.
It was not a flawless performance.
Wolves hit the woodwork twice before Mukasa opened the scoring and still found two goals despite West Ham eventually taking control.
Nuno acknowledged afterwards that there remained plenty to correct, something we examined after the West Ham boss admitted problems remained despite beating Wolves.
But the attacking improvement was significant.
West Ham had scored only four league goals across their opening three matches against Burnley, Charlton and Watford.
They matched that total in one night against Wolves.
The challenge now is proving it was not an isolated performance.
Promotion contenders cannot afford to continually follow strong results with dropped points, particularly at London Stadium.
Derby therefore represents the first opportunity for West Ham to win consecutive Championship matches this season.
Derby arrive with momentum and new options
West Ham have already been warned about Derby’s response at Portsmouth.
The Rams did not dominate possession on the south coast but were clinical when their opportunities arrived.
Szmodics opened the scoring after 16 minutes before substitute Salvesen made it 2-0 shortly after the hour.
Goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterström then helped preserve Derby’s clean sheet as Portsmouth attempted to respond.
Eustace has also been given three new options since that victory.
Eiran Cashin, Mohammed Fuseini and David Ozoh all joined Derby on Deadline Day, and the Rams boss has confirmed his satisfaction with the late business before travelling to London.
Speaking to Derby’s official media, Eustace described West Ham as a “fantastic squad” and insisted his team will attempt to be as competitive as possible on Saturday.
Those additions make Derby less predictable than they were only a week ago.
Derby injuries give West Ham an opportunity
The visitors will, however, be missing two experienced players.
Craig Forsyth suffered a knee injury during the win over Portsmouth and Eustace expects the defender to be sidelined for a few months.
Captain Lewis Travis is also unavailable and is expected to miss another three or four weeks.
That leaves Derby without two players who started important games during the opening weeks of the campaign.
Cashin’s arrival gives Eustace an immediate defensive option following Forsyth’s injury, but integrating Deadline Day signings within days of their arrival is still another challenge.
West Ham should be looking to exploit that disruption.
The key will be starting considerably better than they did against Wolves.
Nuno’s team were fortunate not to fall behind before Mukasa transformed Tuesday’s match. Allow Szmodics and Derby similar openings and West Ham cannot assume the finishing will be as forgiving.
Divine Mukasa gives Nuno a major selection decision
Perhaps the biggest question surrounding West Ham is what Nuno does with Mukasa.
The Manchester City loanee was outstanding against Wolves.
His brace strengthened the argument that the 19-year-old should now be viewed as a genuine starting option rather than simply an exciting prospect.
Mukasa was joined in midfield by Arne Engels, while Bowen, Manor Solomon, Pablo and Joël Piroe gave West Ham a much more adventurous attacking shape.
Changing that combination immediately after scoring four goals would be difficult to justify without a fitness or tactical reason.
That does not mean we should publish a predicted XI before Nuno provides his latest team news.
But Mukasa has certainly made himself one of the hardest players to leave out.
West Ham have beaten Derby in their last two meetings
Saturday will be the first meeting between the clubs since the FA Cup in January 2023.
West Ham won 2-0 at Pride Park that evening, with Jarrod Bowen and Michail Antonio scoring to send David Moyes’ side into the fifth round.
The previous league meeting came much earlier, with Derby beating West Ham 2-1 in the Championship in December 2011. Historical records show a competitive rivalry which has often been closely matched.
The circumstances are very different now.
West Ham were preparing for European football after that 2023 cup meeting.
They enter Saturday trying to prove their stay in the Championship will be brief.
West Ham vs Derby match details
Competition: Sky Bet Championship
Date: Saturday 5 September 2026
Kick-off: 3pm BST
Venue: London Stadium
West Ham’s official match information confirms Saturday’s 3pm start, with tickets still being advertised through the club’s ticketing operation.
West Ham need to turn one win into a run
The Wolves victory changed the mood around West Ham.
It did not change the season.
Five points from four games remains a modest return for a squad expected to challenge towards the top of the Championship.
That makes Derby important.
Nuno does not necessarily need another four-goal performance. What he needs is evidence that West Ham can control games, punish vulnerable opponents and begin accumulating victories.
Derby will arrive encouraged by their own breakthrough win and strengthened by three late additions.
They will also arrive without Forsyth and Travis.
West Ham have the deeper squad, home advantage and fresh confidence.
Now they have to make those advantages count.
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