Excitement surrounding the new season is slowly growing among the West Ham United fanbase, but there are lingering issues that remain hard to ignore.The east London side will start their first Championship campaign in 15 years against Burnley, who also suffered relegation from the Premier League in May. Head coach Nuno Espirito Santo is confident about their chances of sealing promotion back to the top flight at the first opportunity but, ahead of Sunday’s away fixture, there are several talking points.For example, who is set to leave in the final two weeks of this transfer window? How likely is it that West Ham will address their lack of squad depth before the September 1 deadline? What’s the latest regarding the battle over the ownership of the club?The Athletic has answered some of these questions.How are West Ham shaping up ahead of their first game of the league season?West Ham’s two victories this pre-season, against League Two side Colchester United and League One’s Stevenage, came behind closed doors at their Rush Green training ground. They also drew in friendlies against fifth-tier Southend United, Rangers of the Scottish Premiership and German second-division club FC Magdeburg.Despite relegation, they have kept hold of club captain Jarrod Bowen, who committed his immediate future in July by signing a revised contract, while fellow key players Konstantinos Mavropanos in defence and Taty Castellanos up front are also expected to remain.What does their opening run of fixtures look like? What are the big games to look forward to?Although Sunday’s trip to Burnley could be a tough encounter, a positive omen for West Ham is they have not lost a league game against them in eight meetings since July 2020, winning five. Their first London derby of the season will be at home against Charlton Athletic on Saturday, August 22, before they make the short trip to Watford the following weekend.Wolverhampton Wanderers, the third club to drop through the Premier League trapdoor last season, will visit Nuno’s side in a midweek encounter on September 1, and there will be fixtures against Derby County, Bolton Wanderers and Wrexham before West Ham reignite their bitter rivalry with south Londoners Millwall with an away game on Saturday, September 19.The last encounter between the clubs was in February 2012, a Championship fixture which West Ham won 2-1 at Upton Park. Given the level of animosity between the fanbases, it is a fixture that has often been marred by crowd violence.After the season’s first international break, West Ham will face another London side, Queens Park Rangers, on home soil on October 9. There will then be trips to Lincoln City and Swansea City before hosting familiar opposition in fellow former Premier League side Southampton.The bad blood between West Ham and Sheffield United over the Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano saga has eased over the years, but the rivalry will reconvene in Yorkshire on December 4.Which players’ futures are uncertain?Centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo, striker Niclas Fullkrug and full-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka are all expected to leave before the transfer window shuts in just over two weeks. Sources with knowledge of the situation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect relationships, say Todibo has only attracted loan interest, while it is West Ham’s preference to sell the 26-year-old.Clubs on the continent have also enquired about signing Fullkrug, 33, on loan but West Ham intend to sell the Germany international, who joined for £27million from Borussia Dortmund in August 2024. Aston Villa have held exploratory talks over a deal to sign Wan-Bissaka. The Athletic reported in the Transfer DealSheet on July 7 that West Ham would be open to selling the 28-year-old former Manchester United right-back and have set an asking price of £25m.Aston Villa are keen on Aaron Wan-Bissaka (Richard Pelham/Getty Images)George Earthy was an unused substitute in the first-round Carabao Cup home win against Portsmouth last weekend. The 21-year-old midfielder has loan interest from EFL clubs, but his departure is contingent on potential incomings.Maxwel Cornet was not in the matchday squad for that match, despite being fully fit. The Ivory Coast international forward has made just 37 appearances across all competitions since joining from Burnley for £17.5million in August 2022. Now 29, he has had loan spells at Southampton and Genoa (twice) in that time, but his next departure would be a permanent exit, if West Ham have their way.Mohamadou Kante, 20, is set to stay, despite strong interest from clubs in France’s Ligue 1. The midfielder, whose valuation is in the region of £15million to £20m, started all the pre-season games and registered an assist against Portsmouth.The long-term futures of his fellow midfielders Edson Alvarez, 28, and Soungoutou Magassa, 22, are unclear. Magassa, whose contract doesn’t expire until 2031 after arriving last summer for around £17.5million from Monaco of Ligue 1, has been absent from recent matchday squads due to a knock.What do West Ham still need to do before the window shuts?West Ham’s lack of depth was reflected in the Portsmouth game, with five young academy graduates — Earthy, Ezra Mayers, Kaelan Casey, Airidas Golambeckis and Joshua Ajala — on the nine-man bench.They need to strengthen in central defence, in wide areas and up front. Mavropanos and Maximilian Kilman are the recognised first-choice centre-backs, with summer addition Joel Veltman also able to play that position as well as right-back. Bowen and Manor Solomon, a new signing from Tottenham Hotspur, are the only proven wingers currently available to Nuno, while Castellanos and Pablo are the main forward options.West Ham are confident of completing a move for Scottish champions Celtic’s 22-year-old Belgium international midfielder or right-back Arne Engels in a deal worth around £22million, which would be their biggest outlay of the summer so far.West Ham are looking to sign Celtic midfielder Arne Engels, who had five goals and three assists in 30 league games last season (Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)“We have to be patient,” Nuno said on Friday in his pre-Burnley press conference. “We want players with the right mindset. We don’t have much time, but we have to get it right.“We are aware we need more bodies but, meanwhile, we have to be ready for everything. All the players who are here, they know what we think and expect. The window is open, so anything can happen.”Following relegation, West Ham have cashed in on Mateus Fernandes, selling him to Tottenham for £85million, Crysencio Summerville went to Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal for just north of £60m and Freddie Potts has been sold to Club Brugge for a reported fee of around £10m.What’s the latest on the ownership situation?Earlier this month, Vanessa Gold said she had agreed to sell her 25.1 per cent stake to a consortium led by former Newcastle United co-owner Amanda Staveley.Daniel Kretinsky, who bought 27 per cent of West Ham in 2021, had initially arranged to purchase shares from the Gold family in the wake of David Sullivan’s resignation as joint-chair in June following accusations of sexually exploitative and predatory behaviour against women over several decades, and has since attempted to prevent Staveley’s deal from being completed.The Czech billionaire still intends to become West Ham’s majority shareholder and discussions are ongoing.