West Ham United confirmed XI vs Newcastle: Danny Ings dropped in only change
West Ham have confirmed their starting XI for their Premier League match against Newcastle at the London Stadium on Wednesday (5 April).
David Moyes has made just one change to the team that started in the win against Southampton on Sunday (1 April), with Michail Antonio coming in for Danny Ings.
Lukasz Fabianski keeps his number one spot, with Thilo Kehrer and Emerson reprising their roles at right-back and left-back respectively.
Nayef Aguerd, scorer of the winner against the Saints, continues at centre-back alongside Kurt Zouma.
Captain Declan Rice continues in midfield in what looks set to be a key area against Eddie Howe’s side, with under-fire Tomas Soucek and Lucas Paqueta retaining their starting places alongside him.
Jarrod Bowen and Said Benrahma keep their spots in attack, with the pair now playing either side of Antonio rather than Ings.
Tough test
West Ham will have plenty of confidence going into the match following the win against Southampton, although realistically the Saints are rock bottom of the table, meaning the Hammers will not have gotten too carried away with the result.
But the three points were huge, helping the club climb out of the relegation zone and away from immediate danger for the time being.
They do, however, face an in-form Newcastle side, one that has returned to winning ways following a huge dip in form, when they went five matches without winning. Incidentally, that disappointing run began with a 1-1 home draw against the Hammers in early February.
Howe’s side are now on a three match winning run, which includes 2-1 victories against Wolves and Nottingham Forest and a 2-0 victory over Manchester United.
Still, the home support will be in full voice under the lights, with Moyes desperate to pick up at least a point against the high-flying Magpies.