Nuno Espirito Santo forced into change as key man ruled out – West Ham predicted XI vs Bournemouth
Nuno Espirito Santo is likely to reward Tomas Soucek with a start against Bournemouth on Saturday after his fine performances on international duty.
West Ham’s 3-2 win over Burnley leaves the Hammers in the relegation zone on goal difference alone, instantly clawing back a six-point gap just three weeks ago.
While Bournemouth are expected to beat West Ham at the Vitality Stadium, Nuno’s side are coming into the fixture full of confidence.
Lucas Paqueta is suspended for the Bournemouth clash after receiving his fifth yellow card of the season against Burnley.
After excelling against Gibraltar on Monday, Soucek is expected to come in for the Brazilian midfielder.
Tomas Soucek to come in for Lucas Paqueta
Soucek signed for West Ham in 2020, and the midfielder recently hit 250 appearances for the Hammers.
Against Gibraltar, Soucek completed 100 per cent of his aerial duels and scored in the 44th minute during the 6-0 win.
| Stat | Tomas Soucek |
| Minutes played | 68 |
| Touches | 65 |
| Pass accuracy | 78% |
| Aerial duels won | 100% |
| Goals | 1 |
The veteran midfielder has four goals in his last four matches, and whilst Paqueta will be a huge miss, the 30-year-old adds some much-needed physical presence for the Bournemouth match.
Nuno won’t look to make any other changes as he starts to find out his best starting lineup, and he has been hugely boosted by the expected availability of Freddie Potts.
Potts has been a revelation for West Ham, but the 21-year-old midfielder was subbed off with an injury against Burnley.
In the win over the Clarets on 8 November, Potts won six ground duels, three tackles, and created three chances.
Nuno confirmed he should be fit for Saturday, and it is likely that he will also keep the exact same backline against a Bournemouth side that is unbeaten at home.
Niclas Fullkrug (thigh), Paqueta (suspension), Konstantinos Mavropanos (thigh), and Oliver Scarles (shoulder) are all the absentees for the trip down to the south coast.
The front three will also remain the same, and they are slowly beginning to develop into a brilliant attacking force.
West Ham’s best front three is now clear under Nuno Espirito Santo
Jarrod Bowen is the most valuable asset to the team, and he completed 75 per cent of his dribbles in England’s 2-0 win over Albania on Sunday.
Having registered 47 touches in the opposition box in the league this season, Bowen is West Ham’s biggest goal threat for the trip to the Vitality.
Callum Wilson was finally trusted by Nuno against Newcastle, and he put in an excellent performance against Burnley at the London Stadium.
As for Crysencio Summerville, he has slowly found his feet in E20 and makes up a three-pronged attack that could cause the Cherries some serious problems.
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