If anyone knows the ups and downs of life at West Ham United, it is Mark Noble.
Born in Canning Town, a fan all his life, a player from the age of 11 to his retirement last year at 35, after a few months of downtime and holidays with his family, Noble returned to the Hammers in January as their sporting director.
This season has been spent struggling at the wrong end of the Premier League despite an impressive £160m summer spend, aimed at building on consecutive top-seven finishes.
But, the club won the prestigious FA Youth Cup for the first time in 24 years by beating Arsenal last month; overcame Manchester United at the weekend to virtually assure their top-flight status and are now looking forward to a Europa Conference League semi-final first-leg with AZ Alkmaar, a potential final in Prague on 7 June, and a first trophy since 1980.