Eddie Howe labels West Ham United ace James Ward-Prowse as the Irons’ ‘obvious threat’
Eddie Howe has singled out James Ward-Prowse as West Ham United’s most obvious threat when the Irons face Newcastle United on Sunday, 8 October.
David Moyes’ side come into the clash with the Magpies on the back of three consecutive wins in all competitions, having beaten Freiburg 2-1 in the Europa League on Thursday 5 October, while Newcastle travel to the London Stadium in good spirits having beaten PSG in the Champions League.
But despite keeping Kylian Mbappe quiet for 90 minutes at St James’ Park, Newcastle boss Howe has already turned his attention to the “obvious” threat that Ward-Prowse will offer on Sunday, having registered five goal involvements in six Premier League games.
Speaking ahead of the match, as quoted by Newcastle’s website (6 October) he said: “They’re an obvious threat from set-plays with James Ward-Prowse’s delivery and everything that he brings so that’s why, for us, it’s a case of refocussing and not being too distracted or affected anyway by the performance on Wednesday.”
Set-pieces
West Ham have always had a reasonably big side at their disposal which has always meant they possess a threat from set-pieces, but with Ward-Prowse now the man standing over the dead ball for Moyes’ side, they genuinely look likely to create a goalscoring chance with every corner or free-kick.
However, teams will be setting up against the Hammers with the intention of limiting just how often the former Southampton man will get the opportunity to flex his corner-taking muscles and Howe’s Newcastle side have shown they are more than capable of limiting some of the world’s best players.
Luckily for the Irons, they have plenty of other excellent players around the 28-year-old to ensure their opposition cannot just focus on stopping the midfielder, with the likes of Lucas Paqueta and Jarrod Bowen in excellent form elsewhere in Moyes’ side.
While set-pieces have become a major part of West Ham’s game under Moyes this season, the Hammers are far from a one-dimensional long ball side and credit has to be given to the Irons boss for imposing a system that has made them such a consistent threat, without really having a consistent striker to rely upon.
In other West Ham news, Mark Goldbridge has slammed Bowen’s inclusion in the England squad but called Ward-Prowse’s omission a joke