West Ham: Nuno faces key formation dilemma in Championship, Wolves success is why
West Ham United boss Nuno Espirito Santo will have to make a key choice on what his preferred formation will be in the Championship next season.
The Hammers are gearing up for their first season in the second tier in over 14 years, with Nuno set to stay on as head coach.
Major changes will still take place this summer, with David Sullivan reportedly needing to sell around £150million worth of players to balance the books at the London Stadium.
The likes of Jarrod Bowen, Mateus Fernandes, Taty Castellanos and Crysencio Summerville could all leave, and they will need to be replaced with players who are capable of firing the Irons back to the Premier League.
Nuno has already admitted that the sole mission is promotion at the first time of asking, but what formation he goes with could give West Ham fans all the confidence in the world, or nothing to look forward to.
Nuno needs to play four at the back, but will he do that?
Nuno flirted with different formations with the Hammers, and that's perhaps what didn't help the poor start when he first arrived.
It could also be argued that the late arrival of his assistant, Paco Jemez, was a reason for the sluggish start under his tenure, as things picked up once his number two walked through the doors.
However, Nuno seemed pretty undecided on whether he preferred a five-at-the-back formation or to deploy four in defence.
West Ham did play a back four for the majority of his time at the London Stadium, but that only really came into play once Lucas Paqueta left.
Even so, Hammers fans will be thinking that he will deploy something positive like a 4-2-3-1 formation in the Championship, but his track record with Wolves proves otherwise.
Nuno played a 5-2-3 or 3-4-3 in the season he earned promotion with Wolves during the 2017-18 Championship campaign, but is that really what Irons fans want to see?
Rob Edwards admission will cause Nuno concerns
One of West Ham's main competitors for promotion next season will be Wolves.
Their head coach, Rob Edwards, played a back five whilst he was in charge of Middlesbrough in the second tier before making the switch back to the Molineux.
However, the Wolves boss has now stated his intention to play with a back four to get his side back to the Premier League.
Playing with four at the back over five suggests more attacking intentions and the want to dominate games, and Nuno's choice will come under the microscope.
Whatever he says goes, but considering the direction of sales and other transfer news, there's still a chance Nuno could deploy a negative formation in the Championship next season.