Tomas Soucek and Danny Ings to be axed – West Ham United predicted XI v Newcastle United
David Moyes is likely to make changes to his West Ham starting lineup when they take on Newcastle United at the London Stadium on Wednesday (5 April).
The Hammers claimed a vital win over Southampton on Sunday (2 April) thanks to Nayef Aguerd’s first goal for the club, but it wasn’t an impressive performance despite the result.
Now they must find a way to build on that against an in-form and flying Newcastle side, which means Moyes is likely to shuffle the pack a bit to get fresh legs and an improved performance.
Lukasz Fabianski returned to the team after his recent facial injury to keep a clean sheet against the Saints, so he will keep his place in the side for this one.
Moyes lined up with a back four at the weekend and the team performed relatively well, giving up few chances, but Newcastle are a far better outfit and an extra defender could be used to shore up the team.
Vladimir Coufal played well for the Czech Republic while on international duty and should come back into the side at right wing-back, which would allow Thilo Kehrer to join Kurt Zouma and Aguerd in the middle, with Emerson moving forward to a left wing-back role.
Tomas Soucek played 68 minutes of the win at the weekend, but only completed 11 of his 21 attempted passes during the game and must surely drop out of the side after that showing.
That should see Lucas Paqueta partner Declan Rice in the centre of midfield once again, to bring organisation, quality and a real box-to-box threat from both players to support the attack and defence.
In attack Jarrod Bowen was the biggest threat for West Ham and has been looking back to somewhere near his best, despite the lack of goals and assists recently so should keep his place on the right.
On the left Said Benrahma continues to be the best player for the Hammers going forward and he deserves his spot too, although Maxwel Cornet is surely now pushing for a start after recovering from his calf problem.
Up front Gianluca Scamacca wasn’t risked against Southampton due to a knee injury and is unlikely to have recovered in two extra days, so Moyes must choose between Danny Ings and Michail Antonio.
With the January signing struggling so far since his move, the mobility and physical attributes of the Jamaican may be the best fit for this game and Antonio should get the nod up front.