Two games into the campaign and Declan Rice will already have to reset his aims for the season.
“My next target is to start in the Premier League, that's what I am aiming for,” he said less than a month ago after featuring during pre-season for West Ham.
He can now tick that off after being handed a full debut against Southampton.
Rice, 18, got the nod, after an impressive cameo against Manchester United on the opening weekend, ahead of more experienced options Pedro Obiang and the versatile Edimilson Fernandes.
Rice captained West Ham's under-23s to promotion last season and, on a roller-coaster afternoon for the Hammers, his leadership and willingness to take responsibility, qualities they lacked at Old Trafford, stood out.
Almost instantly Rice, who played in a holding midfield role but his best position is centre-back, was bossing around his more experienced teammates, telling them where they should be, who to mark and who they should pass to.
And in the second half, as the Hammers chased an equaliser, it was the youngster showing maturity beyond his years and telling veteran Pablo Zabaleta not to rush a throw in with a 'calm down' gesture.
He was always checking over his shoulders, making sure he was aware of the dangers and passing options around him, and wasn't afraid to drop into high risk positions to demand the ball or be an extra body in defence.
Nothing showed off his nous than one first-half passage when West Ham scrambled back to try and stifle another Saints forward raid.
Rice spotted Nathan Redmond running into space, tried to alert one of his teammates to the forward's lurking threat.
But when nobody responded to his shouts Rice sprinted back into West Ham's back line and did the marking job himself, showing off his defensive instincts.
On the ball, Rice had little opportunity to show off what he could do especially after West Ham went down to 10 men in the first half.
This was a day for keeping it simple, doing the dirty work, trying to plug gaps in midfield and make himself available.
He did that to good effect and effortlessly during his 75 minutes on the pitch which ended with a deserved standing ovation from the travelling fans.
And he won't have to wait long to start a second game in the Premier League.