West Ham United should play Aji Alese and Jamal Baptiste v Arsenal – Anton Ferdinand
West Ham United will welcome Arsenal to the London Stadium today knowing that only a victory will keep their Champions League hopes alive.
The Gunners are the team everyone is chasing for the final top-four spot but David Moyes might not field his strongest possible 11 with priorities focused on the Europa League.
Former Hammer Anton Ferdinand wants to see the Irons give a rare chance to a couple of the club’s most promising young players with central defenders in particular in short supply.
“Fourth spot is out of reach for us. If I was Moyes, I’d play youngsters like (Aji) Alese,” Ferdinand said to the Sun. “People who are knocking on the door, we could potentially need them.
“It’s not just him, there are others that could play. Jamal Baptiste is another fantastic centre-back. I’d give them a go, that’s what West Ham is about.
“The last four games, as a West Ham fan and someone who came through the ranks, I’d like to see a few more young players get the opportunity.
Overdue
This should have happened last week when Craig Dawson was the only fit centre-half in Moyes’ senior setup.
But rather than keep the system the same and trust in one of the country’s best academies, Moyes instead decided to switch to back three and shift Aaron Cresswell and Ben Johnson into the centre.
It did actually keep Chelsea at bay pretty much all game and the Blues only found a way through once Dawson had been sent off five minutes from time.
Now he only has Kurt Zouma available after the Frenchman made a miraculous recovery for Thursday’s Europa League clash against Eintracht Frankfurt but he won’t want to risk him against Arsenal.
That surely only leaves Alese and Baptiste as the next best options and with little pressure on the Hammers for this game, why not see what they can do under the bright lights of the Premier League stage?
In other West Ham news, Tony Cottee has named two players he thinks the Irons should sign this summer with five or six needed.
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