West Ham United confirmed XI v Manchester City: Aaron Wan-Bissaka in, Tomas Soucek axed
Julen Lopetegui has named his starting XI for his third game in charge of West Ham ahead of their clash on Saturday 31 August against Manchester City.
The Hammers have made two changes from the side that beat Crystal Palace 2-0, with Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Edson Alvarez replacing Vladimir Coufal and Tomas Soucek in the starting lineup.
The team news has been confirmed by the club’s X account [31 August] with the surprise exclusion of Soucek who scored the opener against Crystal Palace last weekend.
Julen Lopetegui faces first proper West Ham United test
It has been a mixed start to life in East London for Lopetegui but his side will face their first real test of the season when they host last season’s Premier League champions at the London Stadium.
The Spaniard lost his first match at his new home ground 2-1 against Aston Villa on the opening day courtesy of goals from Amadou Onana and Jhon Duran.
A 2-0 victory against Crystal Palace on Saturday [24 August] with Tomas Soucek and Jarrad Bowen scoring on the day helped ease early concerns at the Irons and the side followed it up with a 1-0 win against Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday [28 August].
It will be no easy feat to beat Man City despite having the home advantage but, it would be a remarkable result for Lopetegui and help establish his credentials as Hammers boss should he avoid defeat against Pep Guardiola’s side.
West Ham supporters will be hoping that the side give a good account of themselves as a minimum, however, this match will go a long way in deciding whether the Irons are genuine candidates for a European finish this season.
In other West Ham news, Nayef Aguerd has cut all ties with the Hammers.
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