West Ham United will lock horns with Bournemouth at the London Stadium in a Premier League fixture on Thursday evening.
The Hammers were denied their first win of 2024 last time out when they were held to a 2-2 draw by Sheffield United at Bramall Lane. Before that, they fell to a shock 1-0 loss against Bristol City in the FA Cup on January 16 which snapped their four-game unbeaten run.
David Moyes will be desperate to get their first victory of 2024 at the fifth time of asking this week but face a tricky Bournemouth side, who turned in a five-star performance in their FA Cup fourth-round clash against Swansea City last time out.
West Ham Team News
Vladimir Coufal will be absent from Thursday’s game through suspension after picking up two yellow cards against Sheffield United, while Said Benrahma is still serving his own ban from his red card in the FA Cup loss to Bristol City.
Morocco’s Nayef Aguerd exited from the AFCON on Tuesday but he won’t be available to face Bournemouth. Mohammed Kudus’ Ghana suffered a disappointing group-stage exit, meaning the versatile attacker should be back in contention for the visit of Andoni Iraola’s side.
Lucas Paqueta (calf) and Michail Antonio (knee) are on the sidelines, while Edson Alverez is still a doubt with a calf problem. Meanwhile, Kalvin Phillips—on loan from Manchester City—has a chance of making his full debut for West Ham.
Predicted West Ham lineup vs Bournemouth (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper
Alphonse Areola conceded a stoppage-time penalty against Sheffield United as he fouled Oli McBurnie and subsequently suffered an injury, with Lukasz Fabianski replacing the Frenchman in goal to stop the spot kick. However, he should have recovered by now and will keep his place in goal for Bournemouth’s visit.
Defence
Ben Johnson and Emerson Palmieri are likely to be deployed as the full-backs. They will look to contribute defensively and help out in the attack. Konstantinos Mavropanos will start at the heart of the West Ham defence along with skipper Kurt Zouma.
The defensive quartet have to be at their best to keep an in-form Bournemouth side at bay.
Midfield
David Moyes is unlikely to risk Edson Alvarez if he is not 100 per cent fit, so Kalvin Phillips could get an opportunity to make his West Ham debut. The England international will feature in the anchor role, and he will look to help out defensively and control the tempo of the game.
Tomas Soucek will partner Phillips in the double pivot, with James Ward-Prowse looking to bring creativity and drive from the No.10 role.
Attack
Jarrod Bowen will look to continue his impressive run of form and lead the line for the Hammers against Bournemouth. Maxwel Cornet, who scored in the opener in the 2-2 draw with Sheffield United, should keep his place in attack, while Mohammed Kudus hopes to make a difference from the right flank.
