Thilo Kehrer to start, Danny Ings left on bench – West Ham United predicted XI v Freiburg
David Moyes could be set to make some changes to his West Ham United starting lineup for their crunch Europa League clash with Freiburg on Thursday.
The Hammers were thumped 5-0 by Fulham last time out but had most of the squad suffering with an illness, and come into this game knowing they must win to secure top spot in the group.
With player fitness and a hectic schedule fresh on the mind of Moyes though, he is likely to make some changes to the starting lineup to give his side the best chance of three points.
Lukasz Fabianski has started every Europa League game this season and with Alphonse Areola suffering with a wrist injury, he looks set to keep his spot in the team once more here.
Kurt Zouma and Nayef Aguerd are likely to drop out of the team to allow for Angelo Ogbonna and Dinos Mavropanos to rekindle their partnership in the centre of the defence, while Aaron Cresswell is likely to start again ahead of Emerson.
But at right-back there could be a chance for exit-linked Thilo Kehrer to get a rare start this season ahead of Vladimir Coufal and Ben Johnson against German opponents.
Edson Alvarez looks unlikely to be fit for the game after missing the weekend so James Ward-Prowse and Tomas Soucek seem likely to continue in the deeper midfield roles, while Lucas Paqueta should take up the more advanced position ahead of them.
Said Benrahma has been pushing for a start and should get the nod in Europe from his preferred position on the left wing, while Pablo Fornals could be pushed out wide to get a second consecutive start on the right hand side.
Jarrod Bowen is just back from injury and Michail Antonio remains out with a knee problem, but Moyes could look to use Mohammed Kudus in a more central role to give the England international a break.
That means £15m man Danny Ings is likely to find himself on the bench once again, with a January exit looking more and more likely with each passing game.
In other West Ham news, the club want to sign high-flying defensive pair whose futures are intertwined according to one journalist.