MOYES DROPS PAQUETA & UNLEASHES "ENIGMA" IN PREDICTED WEST HAM LINEUP VS FULHAM
West Ham United extended their unbeaten run in the Premier League to four games after an impressive victory over Ange Postecoglou's Tottenham Hotspur last time out, a late James Ward-Prowse rebound effort winning the game for the Hammers 2-1.
The Hammers getting the better of a charitable Spurs side slipping up once more in the league means David Moyes' men are now only four points shy of a top-four place, with Fulham now up next at Craven Cottage on Sunday.
Despite confidence coursing through the east London side's veins at this moment in time, Moyes could be tempted to tweak his line-up slightly for West Ham's short trip over to West London tomorrow.
Here is the West Ham predicted XI, with Lucas Paqueta potentially dropping out...
GK - ukasz Fabiaski
FabiaÅski filled in last time out in the absence of usual first-team goalkeeper Alphonse Areola, the Frenchman sidelined with an injury.
It looks as if the former Paris St.Germain man won't be back for the clash at Craven Cottage either, meaning the 38-year-old reserve goalkeeper will more than likely start again at Fulham.
FabiaÅski was crucial at points away at Spurs to ensure his team didn't concede more than one goal, making five saves in total, as per Sofascore.
RB - Vladimir Coufal
West Ham's Czech right-back continues to be a pivotal player for his team, notching up five assists this season already from defence.
Coufal did have an off-day by his standards against Spurs - only winning two of his seven duels in the away win - but it shouldn't be enough for Moyes to axe the 31-year-old from his starting eleven.
CB - Kurt Zouma
Hammers captain Kurt Zouma performed competently against Tottenham to ensure his team got over the line, clearing the ball away twice from danger in the game when the home side looked like breaching the West Ham defence.
The towering defender did win zero of his duels in the game in what will be a disappointing statistic for the ex-Chelsea man to look at, but Moyes should keep the French defender in his line-up for Fulham tomorrow.
CB - Nayef Aguerd
Zouma's centre-back partner Nayef Aguerd was the brighter of the two central defenders in the game at Spurs, the Moroccan battler winning all of his ground duels on the night.
Moreover, West Ham's £30m man did the dirty work required of him with seven clearances and four tackles registered in a game that saw the Hammers number 27 successfully nullify the likes of Heung-Min Son foraying forward.
LB - Emerson Palmieri
The main stand-out defender from a resilient Hammers back four was however Emerson Palmieri, the Italian left-back missing only one match under Moyes this season in the league and for good reason.
West Ham's number 33 won eight of his 12 attempted ground duels at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last time out, a key figure when Tottenham ramped up the pressure in attack.
This is just a snippet of how important Palmieri has become for the Hammers this season, completing 4.6 ball recoveries per game on average as a vital tireless body down the flanks.
CM - Tomas Soucek
Tomas Soucek has been a fan favourite for some time now in east London, joining from Slavia Prague in 2020 and never looking back.
This season, Soucek continues to be a reliable figure in the middle of the park for Moyes' men as was displayed by his performance versus Postecoglou's side - intercepting the ball four times in total while playing the role of a brute enforcer.
The Czech midfielder will hope he can add another goal to his ever-increasing Premier League tally of four this season away at Craven Cottage, Soucek one strike away from 30 all-time Hammers goals.
CM - James Ward-Prowse
Another player in midfield who has gone on leaps and bounds since leaving their old club behind is Ward-Prowse, the ex-Southampton hero now a decisive match-winner for the Irons in the top-flight as was seen in the narrow Spurs away victory.
This isn't the only goal Ward-Prowse has scored this season, the creative 29-year-old has three goals this season for Moyes' men on top of his astounding ten assists helping the Hammers pull off some impressive victories.
Whilst Soucek operates as an anchor-style figure in the midfield three, the ex-Saints man is allowed to roam more freely and helps the Hammers unlock stern opposition defences with his flair and trickery.
CM - Edson Álvarez
Signed this summer from Ajax for a substantial £35.4m fee, Edson Álvarez hasn't let the hefty price tag get the better of him since relocating to the London Stadium.
Álvarez had a quiet game against Tottenham last match, but his understated approach in the game was still useful. Only amassing 30 touches in the contest, his composure on the ball was almost faultless when he did find himself in possession - rarely hitting a pass wayward, misplacing two passes all night.
Moyes will retain the former Eredivisie player in his lineup for the short trip to the Craven Cottage, the Mexican midfielder going under the radar at his new club.
RW - Jarrod Bowen
Jarrod Bowen has been a prolific hero in front of goal for his employers this campaign, already finding the back of the net nine times from 14 appearances in the top flight.
Bowen originally joined the Hammers as an unknown entity from Hull City after an impactful spell with the Tigers, but now he is a crucial figure in his manager's plans week in, week out.
His instinctive finish against Spurs helped his team level the scores at 1-1, a crucial strike that paved the way for Ward-Prowse to score a golden chance late on to win the game.
ST - Mohammed Kudus
With Michail Antonio still ruled out of contention for the away game at Fulham, Moyes will more than likely persist with Mohammed Kudus as a lone unorthodox striker.
Kudus didn't really ever spark into life mid-week, only registering two shots on goal as a makeshift forward presence.
Yet, with a lack of options for Moyes to call upon from the bench to play as an out-and-out centre forward minus an ageing Danny Ings, the Scottish manager will hope the former Ajax man can be more of a lively nuisance against Marco Silva's men up top.
For his former employers in Amsterdam, Kudus did infrequently play as a centre-forward and scored nine times playing there. Could he break his striker duck for the Hammers tomorrow?
LW - Saïd Benrahma
Paqueta could be dropped by his manager for this game, the Brazilian midfielder not at his best whatsoever for the Hammers last match.
The one-time AC Milan star was only successful with one of his five dribble attempts in the fiercely contested encounter versus Spurs, also losing possession 21 times in the game which could have been detrimental on another night.
Benrahma could be gifted a rare start in his place therefore, the £55k-per-week winger - as per Capology - is looking likely to be heading out of the Hammers door this January, with L'Equipe reporting that Olympique Lyonnais are rumoured to be in for the out-of-sorts attacker.
On his day, as labelled by football journalist Paul Brown, Benrahma can be an "enigma" going forward - twisting and turning defenders for fun, the football pitch his own very own playground at points.
Moyes will hope gifting Benrahma an opportunity to impress after cutting his game-time means he can step up and provide a moment of magic against Fulham, showing to his manager what he's been missing by not starting him.
West Ham's Predicted XI vs Fulham in full: GK - Fabianski; RB - Coufal, CB - Zouma, CB - Aguerd, LB - Palmieri; CM - Soucek, CM - Ward-Prowse, CM - Alvarez; RW - Bowen, ST - Kudus, LW - Benrahma
2023-12-10T11:12:09Z dg43tfdfdgfd