WHZ view: Drop 26y/o, bring in player that impressed off the bench – Predicted West Ham XI v Sheffield United
West Ham face Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on Sunday as the Premier League returns after a two-week international break.
The Hammers are 12th in the table after their late win over Fulham at the London Stadium, while their opponents have had a poor start to the year and sit bottom with just one point so far.
Ahead of the match, David Moyes’ side have a few injury concerns with Angelo Ogbonna a doubt after picking up a groin injury against Fulham and Andriy Yarmolenko missing out due to testing positive for COVID-19. Michail Antonio and Mark Noble could return though (via Premier Injuries).
In goal, Lukasz Fabianski will retain his place, with Arthur Masuaku and Vladimir Coufal likely to keep their places as the wing-backs in Moyes’ favoured 3-4-3 formation.
In the centre, Fabian Balbuena and Aaron Cresswell could flank the returning Issa Diop, who is most likely to replace Ogbonna if he is ruled out.
The midfield pairing of Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek will remain unchanged, but Sebastien Haller should drop out, with Jarrod Bowen moving from the wing to play centrally.
This will allow for Said Benrahma to come in on the right, opposite Pablo Fornals. Michail Antonio should start on the bench and come on if needed – it wouldn’t be wise to rush him back and risk him being out for a longer period.
In other West Ham news, WHZ view: 26y/o star is struggling and it needs Moyes rethink