John Lyall had made no signings during the close season, and it stayed that way until Stewart Robson was added in January. He was joined two months later by other new signings Gary Strodder, Tommy McQueen and Ireland international Liam Brady.
In this season which saw many player ravaged by injury, several academy players got their chance to play, including Kevin Keen, Paul Ince and future captain Steve Potts.
The West Ham fans were so disappointed with the team's underachievement during the season that Billy Bonds was voted Hammer of the Year, even though he only made 17 league and 7 cup appearances for the team.
Tony Cottee was the club's top scorer with 22 league goals and 28 in all competitions, but his strike partner Frank McAvennie disappointed with just seven league goals (11 in all competitions) after being the top flight's second-highest scorer the previous campaign, this being a large factor in the fact that the Hammers finished a lowly 15th in the league just a year after finishing third and being just four points short of their first top division title.