George Overhill

Sun 12 November 2023 13:02, UK

David Moyes’ confirmed starting XI as West Ham take on Nottingham Forest at the London Stadium has been released by the club.

The Hammers manager has axed Konstantinos Mavropanos and Said Benrahma in favour of regular captain Kurt Zouma and Tomas Soucek, while switching cup keeper Lukasz Fabianski out for Alphonse Areola.

He has also decided against restoring Michail Antonio to his usual domestic forward role after the Europa League victory over Olympiacos in midweek.

The rest of the back line is made up of Vladimir Coufal on the right, Nayef Aguerd next to Zouma in the middle, and Emerson Palmieri on the left.

Soucek joins Edson Alvarez and James Ward-Prowse in midfield, behind an attacking trio of Mohammed Kudus, Lucas Paqueta and Jarrod Bowen.

Stabilise

No wins in four top flight games, with three-straight Premier League defeats heading into this one, is the sort of form that put West Ham in danger of relegation for long periods last season.

The start to the new season appeared to have consigned those struggles to the past but the recent league performances have definitely been a concern.

The visit of Steve Cooper’s side has the potential to be threatening itself, with Forest having knocked Aston Villa off their sparkling run last weekend.

But it is still a game that Moyes and his players will know is a major opportunity to get back on track, and one they need to take.

Continuing the similarities to last season, the Hammers have been far more consistent in Europe and cup competition so the manager needs to pinpoint why that is and start to introduce the same mindset to league fixtures.

Questions are starting to swirl around Moyes’ status once more, particularly as it now looks necessary to strengthen again in January, so if he wants to quieten them down he needs a win in Stratford for this one.

In other West Ham news, Fabrizio Romano has shared an “honest” update on the situation surrounding the manager’s future and upcoming transfers.