Potter axes Alvarez in first act – West Ham predicted XI v Aston Villa
Graham Potter could drop Edson Alvarez as one of three changes as he takes charge of West Ham United for the first time against Aston Villa.
Having succeeded Julen Lopetegui as Irons manager on Thursday, Potter has little over 24 hours to prepare for his first match, but Alvarez’s display last time out means he’ll likely to face the axe.
Injuries to Jean-Clair Todibo and Emerson will also force Potter into rotating the Hammers’ defence, with Konstantinos Mavropanos and Aaron Cresswell joining the backline as Carlos Soler comes into midfield.
Lopetegui’s last straw proved to be a 4-1 thumping by Manchester City, but with the Irons having shown positives in attack, Potter is more likely to enact a change of system, rather than just personnel.
Graham Potter forced into changes for West Ham v Aston Villa
Aston Villa were also the team Lopetegui faced in his first match in charge of the Hammers, but Potter will be hoping for a better outcome than the 2-1 loss which kicked off the Spaniard’s forgettable reign.
Defence is clearly the area which needs the most attention from Potter, but being forced into changes thanks to Todibo and Emerson’s injuries will put further pressure on Max Kilman and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
Mavropanos has received plenty of pelters of late and Cresswell is yet to start a league match this term, but other than opting for young left-back Ollie Scarles, Potter has few other options in defence.
Alvarez can have no complaints if he’s dropped after some woeful moments against City, and while this means Soucek won’t be able to attack as often as he’d like, the Czech certainly won’t be backing down.
Soler will bring an energy to the midfield alongside Lucas Paqueta which was sorely lacking at the Etihad, with the impressive Crysencio Summerville and a potentially revitalised Mohammed Kudus out wide.
Lopetegui’s dismissal will be music to the ears of Kudus after some rather public fall-outs with his (now) former boss this term, while Niclas Fullkrug will be hoping it gives him a new lease of life too.
The German netted a consolation goal against the defending champions last time out, but with Potter’s fluid style of football set to play to his advantage, Fullkrug could well be the player most transformed.
It may come too early for any sort of impact to be realised, but Potter’s bow against Villa on Friday represents the start of the real ‘new era’ in East London, after a false start which lasted several months.
In other West Ham news, Simon Jordan reacted to the Irons’ handling of the Lopetegui sacking saga after Wednesday’s events.
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