West Ham United will host newly-promoted Premier outfit Wolves on Saturday at the London Stadium as they aim to bounce back after three consecutive defeats. The Hammers are, in fact, the only club yet to pick up a single point this season and a defeat could spell further trouble for Manuel Pellegrini and his men this weekend.
West Ham did manage a comfortable 3-1 win against AFC Wimbledon in the EFL Cup fixture this past midweek and will take the positives from that game.
Wolves, on the other hand, picked up a brilliant result against defending champions Manchester City last weekend. Although it was only a draw, Nuno Espirito’s side put in a good display to trouble Pep Guardiola’s side.
Pellegrini could be without Mark Noble and Marko Arnautovic. Both the players have been ever-present figures in the starting eleven thus far and their absence could significantly weaken a devastated West Ham squad this weekend. Arnautovic hasn’t been ruled out completely, but he could stay on the bench for this one.
Furthermore, Pellegrini will also be without the services of Winston Reid, Manuel Lanzini, and Andy Carroll.
Defence
Lukasz Fabianski will remain in goal for the Hammers this weekend. The Polish international will once again be given the nod ahead of Adrian who started the midweek cup game.
Pellegrini will have no reason to mess with the defensive backline that helped him earn his first win as a West Ham coach. Thus, we can expect Pablo Zabaleta to retain his place as the right-back with Arthur Masuaku starting on the opposite flank.
New signing Issa Diop, despite having an awful Premier League debut against Arsenal last weekend, is expected to start in central defence after starring in the midweek fixture against Wimbledon. He will be partnered by the experienced Angelo Ogbonna.
Midfield
We can expect a slight change in the formation following the expected absences of Arnautovic and Noble. As a result, Pellegrini might opt for a 4-4-2 with Jack Wilshere and Declan Rice playing in the double pivot.
Wilshere played in a number six role in his previous games and has improved in the role. He had an impressive passing accuracy of 84% against Bournemouth a fortnight ago. It will be interesting to see how Wilshere operates against a more intense pressing unit in Wolves.
Felipe Anderson and Andriy Yarmolenko will be deployed on wings.
Attack
The change in formation will see Javier Hernandez and new signing Lucas Perez leading the line for West Ham, in case Pellegrini feels Arnautovic isn’t ready for the game. Perez has featured in only 40 minutes since joining the Hammers this summer but this could be a glorious opportunity for him to finally prove his worth in the English top flight.
Stat courtesy: Whoscored
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