Ray Parlour shares what interests him about West Ham dilemma that Nuno faces in Brentford clash
Nuno Espirito Santo has an important task in deciding who to select in his West Ham starting lineup to face Brentford this Monday.
The Hammers host Brentford at the London Stadium in hopes of progressing to the Quarter-final of the FA Cup.
Nuno has steadied the ship since arriving in E20, but still faces the prospect of a potential Premier League relegation.
Though things have been looking up for the Irons in recent games, the FA Cup may be the least of Nuno’s priorities.
At least, that may be what Ray Parlour thinks.
Ray Parlour wonders if West Ham will go full strength vs Brentford
Given the low likelihood that West Ham will actually win the FA Cup this season, it may be within Nuno’s best interests to rest his squad.
In the last round of the competition, the Hammers had to play 120 minutes against League One side Burton Albion before Crysencio Summerville found a way through for Nuno’s side.
The extra 30 minutes of play won’t have pleased the West Ham boss, and it may have been a reminder of the issue that the cup brings his side, who are fighting for their lives in the league.
- West Ham went winless in two after their last FA Cup match
- The Hammers are sitting in the relegation zone with nine games to play
While speaking on talkSPORT ahead of the match, Parlour insinuated that the Hammers may not lineup as full strength as Brentford might, given their need to save players for the league.
Parlour said: “It will be interesting to see what West Ham do, because they know they’ve got to stay in the Premier League.
“Brentford will go full strength, surely. I’ll be amazed if Keith Andrews leaves any key players out, because they’ll be looking at the semi-final and final of the FA Cup.”
It could be that Nuno decides to leave out some of his key players.
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How Nuno can benefit from Brentford game regardless of scoreline
Nuno has a fairly big squad and has rotated his side on several occasions this season. It’s up for debate if all of them are Premier League quality, though, as the West Ham boss can get more answers against Brentford.
While getting knocked out of the cup would be less damaging than a single league loss at this stage of the season, there’s no reason for Nuno to fully throw the tie away.
Instead, he has a chance to use a blend of his regular starters, mixed with some others who deserve a chance. At the very least, he can help keep rotational players fit, in case they are required for the run-in.
The likes of Freddie Potts, Soungoutou Magassa, Callum Wilson, and Adama Traore could all start, who may not get a chance every Premier League game until the end of the season.
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