WHZ Tactics: West Ham v Sheffield Utd – Where can the game be won?
West Ham are in for a battle on Monday evening when they host the Premier League’s bottom team Sheffield United.
Both sides will be looking to take all three points at the London Stadium to continue their different challenges in the league table.
The Hammers are well in the hunt for the European places, whilst Chris Wilder’s men are in a relegation dog fight.
David Moyes will welcome Jesse Lingard back into the side. The loanee didn’t play against parent club Manchester United in the FA Cup midweek. Angelo Ogbonna will be out for a few weeks after limping off with an ankle injury, a huge blow.
Despite this, Moyes still has plenty of reasons to be confident ahead of the clash with the Blades.
West Ham Zone have highlighted three areas in which the game can be won for the home side on Monday.
Free-kicks and corners
Sheffield United have conceded more goals from set plays away from home than any other team in the league, with eight [WhoScored].
Wilder’s men average 12.4 fouls conceded per game, making them joint second in the top-flight.
This plays into the hands of the Hammers. A third of the goals Moyes’ side have scored at the London Stadium have come from their excellent set-pieces.
With the likes of Tomas Soucek, Declan Rice, Craig Dawson and Michail Antonio attacking, this could prove to be an obvious area for West Ham to exploit.
Lukasz Fabianski
The Pole’s clean sheet against Fulham was his 70th in the Premier League since making his debut for Arsenal against Derby in April 2008.
He has kept seven clean sheets in all competitions this season. Despite a recent off patch, he looked fantastic against Manchester United in the FA Cup and was unfortunate to be on the losing side.
Sheffield United have averaged 2.3 shots on target per away game in 2020/21. It indicates Fabianski could be in for a quiet evening, if he does the basics right we should keep a clean sheet.
Lingard’s link-up
Just get him on the ball, it’s as simple as that.
Jesse Lingard started his career at West Ham in blistering form. He was everywhere against Aston Villa, taking six shots on goal and finding the net twice.
He also completed 91% of his passes [WyScout]. The confidence and drive of Lingard also appeared to bring out the best in Said Benrahma. He also had two shots on goal, and crucially assisted out first in the 3-1 win.
The Algerian is desperate to score his first Hammers goal. It’s definitely coming, and with a creative force such as Lingard alongside him, it could come against the Blades.
In other West Ham news, here’s the predicted line-up for when we face Sheffield United.