West Ham United were knocked out of the FA Cup by Wigan Athletic after the Latics clinched a 2-0 win at the DW Stadium yesterday. The attention of the Hammers turns back to the Premier League now as they face Crystal Palace on Tuesday at the London Stadium.
David Moyes will face a huge dilemma in selecting his starting line-up, as he will be missing Marko Arnautovic, Manuel Lanzini, Jose Fonte, Andy Carroll, Winston Reid, Michail Antonio, Diafra Sakho and Edimilson Fernandes. Pedro Obiang is also out with an injury and Arthur Masuaku received a red card in the FA Cup fixture and is out due to spitting in the direction of Nick Powell.
Here is how we expect West Ham United to line-up against Roy Hodgson’s side.
Defence
Despite having Joe Hart at his disposal, Moyes is likely to hand Adrian the chance to start between the sticks. The 31-year-old has mustered 3 clean sheets from 10 outings, making 3 saves per game on an average and he will be desperate to put up another solid display and keep his place.
The lack of the requisite number of players due to injuries and suspensions might force the former Manchester United manager to alter his tactics against the Eagles. Ahead of Adrian, we expect to see a five-man defensive wall comprising of James Collins, Angelo Ogbonna and Sam Byram at the heart of their defence.
Aaron Cresswell will probably be one of the first names in Moyes’ starting XI owing to the industry he showcases, both defensively as well as offensively. Pablo Zabaleta is expected to get the nod to start from the right-back position. With his experience and calibre, he should be able to offer tremendous quality on the right.
Midfield
Joao Mario completed his move to the London Stadium from Inter Milan earlier this week and is in the fray to feature. He is anticipated to start as the central defensive midfielder and would be asked to shield the back line and break the attacking endeavours of the opposition.
Mark Noble and Cheikhou Kouyate are likely to be paired up in the centre of the park and they will have to work in tandem and drive the team forward.
Attack
Right up front, we expect to see Javier Hernandez along with Andre Ayew and the two of them will have to be clinical and take whatever chances they get if Moyes is to come out with 3 points from this fixture.
