West Ham host Brentford on Saturday afternoon looking to secure a first win in four league outings.
Since Graham Potter‘s arrival the Hammers have been much improved in their overall performances but have still only managed to win one of his four league games in charge.
The former Brighton and Chelsea boss has overseen the improvement in performances despite having several first-team players sidelined through injury, which has only served to give fans even more optimism for what he could achieve once he has a full squad to choose from.
We will be closer to that being a reality this weekend, with Edson Alvarez, Jean-Clair Todibo and Lucas Paqueta all being declared fit to play by Potter, while the returning James Ward-Prowse and January signing Evan Ferguson will both be available for selection.
It means Potter is able to add five fresh names to his whiteboard ahead of selecting his best XI to face Brentford this weekend, particularly in areas in which the squad has been painfully short in recent weeks.
Todibo’s return from injury gives us much-needed depth at the centre of defence after Potter was forced to play a back five with four full-backs against Chelsea last time out. And up front, Ferguson’s arrival means we have a recognised striker in the squad who is capable of leading the line in a Potter system.
And with Paqueta, we’ll have the creativity we lacked in much of the defeat to Chelsea last week.
With that in mind, this is how I think West Ham will line up against Brentford…
Potter admitted that it might be too soon for Ferguson to be handed a starting role, so it’s likely we’ll see Jarrod Bowen up front again, with Paqueta playing out on the left and Mohammed Kudus switching to the left.
It’ll mean Carlos Soler, who has impressed in his most recent performances, will be used as a No.10.
Edson Alvarez should partner Tomas Soucek in midfield.
At the back, it could be a return to a more traditional back four, with Todibo and Max Kilman being flanked by Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Emerson.
In goal, it seems Alphonse Areola has won his place back after originally losing it to Lukasz Fabianski towards the end of last year.
Indeed, we’re still working out what Potter’s intentions are with this squad and how he sees it working to its full potential, so the above might be way off the mark.
But will so many players returning this weekend, we should be in store for a treat if it combines with the recent improvement in performances.
