Nuno Espirito Santo issue with West Ham player mooted after announcement pre-Arsenal
Nuno Espirito Santo made a solid start to life at West Ham United following his appointment.
West Ham fought back to snatch a 1-1 draw at Everton on Monday night in Nuno‘s first game in charge, showing major improvements from the turgid performances that were on display under Graham Potter.
West Ham travel to Arsenal on Saturday afternoon, looking to register their third win in a row at the Emirates, although they are not expected to get maximum points against the favourites to win the Premier League this season.
Nuno has named his lineup to face Arsenal, and his decision to leave out one star has raised similarities to a situation that occurred at Nottingham Forest.
James Ward-Prowse dropped again for West Ham vs Arsenal
James Ward-Prowse has been dropped again by Nuno for the trip to the Emirates, marking back-to-back games in which he has failed to make the matchday squad.
Ward-Prowse was left out of the travelling squad for the draw at Everton after starting every game this season prior to that under Graham Potter.
West Ham fans have been extremely critical of the former Southampton man this season, as the Hammers’ midfield has been a weak point.
However, the Daily Mail’s Riath Al-Samarrai has sympathy for Ward-Prowse, tweeting: “Predictable and rather unfortunate that Ward-Prowse simply isn’t getting a sniff of a chance under Nuno.”
Nuno Espirito Santo’s treatment of James Ward-Prowse is similar to that at Nottingham Forest
Nuno’s appointment at the London Stadium was always going to spell trouble for Ward-Prowse, given his history with the Portuguese manager.
Ward-Prowse was sent out on loan to Forest in the summer of 2024, but returned to East London just six months later, having fallen out of favour at the City Ground.
| James Ward-Prowse at Nottingham Forest | Total |
| Appearances | 10 |
| Goals | 0 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Minutes played | 483 |
Had the midfielder been performing to a high-level at West Ham prior to Nuno’s arrival, there would have been a chance that he would remain in the former Wolves boss’ plans ahead of a fierce relegation battle.
However, Ward-Prowse has been one of the biggest culprits for Potter getting the sack last Saturday with his poor displays, and Nuno is right to keep him out of the line-up as he looks to get the Hammers out of relegation danger.
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