West Ham United will continue their push for a top-four spot in the Premier League when they travel to title-chasing Liverpool on Saturday.
The Hammers crashed out of the FA Cup at the hands of Southampton in midweek and will be keen to bounce back and derail the Reds’ title challenge.
David Moyes’ side are currently fifth in the table on 45 points, two behind Manchester United, who occupy the final Champions League qualification spot. Liverpool, on the other hand, have closed the gap to leaders Manchester City to just six points with a game in hand.
The last time these two sides met, West Ham emerged with a shock 3-2 victory, but the Hammers have not tasted success at Anfield in any of their last four visits in all competitions.
West Ham United Team News
West Ham will be short on defensive cover, with Vladimir Coufal, Ryan Fredericks, Arthur Masuaku and Angelo Ogbonna all ruled out of this game.
🇪🇸⚒ @PabloFornals loves a goal against Liverpool! Will he score another this weekend? pic.twitter.com/kls2S2Itnq
— West Ham United (@WestHam) March 4, 2022
Tomas Soucek picked up a nasty cut that required stitches in the loss to Southampton, but he has declared himself fit.
Ukrainian attacker Andriy Yarmolenko was given time off amid the conflict in his home country and his status for this game is unclear at the moment.
West Ham United predicted lineup vs Liverpool (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper
Lukasz Fabianski will start between the sticks for the Hammers. The Polish shot-stopper has kept seven clean sheets in the league thus far.
Defenders
David Moyes experimented with a three-man backline against Southampton to disastrous effect and is likely to revert to his trusted four-man defence for this game.
Aaron Cresswell, who was not in the squad for their FA Cup tie, is expected to replace Issa Diop and start at left-back in the West Ham United lineup. With Coufal unavailable, Benjamin Johnson will continue at right-back.
Kurt Zouma appears to have been unaffected by his recent off-field controversies and has been one of West Ham’s most important players in recent games. He will start in central defence alongside veteran Craig Dawson, who has scored in two of West Ham’s last three league fixtures.
Midfielders
Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek are the lynchpins of this West Ham unit. Rice is undoubtedly the Hammers’ most valuable asset and the heartbeat of the midfield.
Predicted West Ham United Lineup vs Liverpool
Soucek, who was West Ham’s player of the season in 2020-21, has not hit the same heights this season but has still managed to play an important role in their top-four push. He scored the winner against Wolves last weekend.
With Said Benrahma struggling for form, Manuel Lanzini is expected to continue in the No. 10 role in the West Ham United lineup.
Attackers
Jarrod Bowen will start on the right side of the attack for West Ham. The 25-year-old has troubled defenders all season with his pace and dribbling ability and will be keen to make an impact against Liverpool, who have courted him in the past.
Michail Antonio will lead the line for the Hammers. The Jamaican ended his eight-game goal drought by netting in the 3-1 loss to Southampton.
Pablo Fornals will complete the West Ham attack.
