The omens were not good for Slaven Bilic from the moment when one supporter dressed in claret-and-blue appeared on the giant screen and delivered his pre-match prediction.
'Twenty-nil to West Ham,' he roared. 'Come on you Irons.' Nothing wrong with a little optimism, of course. Or a little drink before the game, in moderation.
It is FA Cup third round weekend, after all. Football fans love it and especially in this part of the capital. The Hammers are a cup team. Well they were.
The trouble was, 45 minutes later, as the teams trudged off for half-time, it looked very much as if Manchester City might be on the way to double-figures.