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West Ham’s form has dipped in recent weeks, with back-to-back Premier League defeats against Manchester United and Crystal Palace followed by a disappointing EFL Cup third-round exit on penalties against Blackburn Rovers on Wednesday.
Pablo Fornals and Michail Antonio turned the game on its head after Jack Vale had put Blackburn into an early lead, but star striker Ben Brereton Diaz – who has been linked with a move to the Hammers – equalised two minutes from time to force the tie to penalties.
Angelo Ogbonna missed the decisive penalty after 19 successful spot kicks to send the Championship side through to the fourth round, leaving West Ham boss David Moyes with plenty to ponder.
Indeed, Moyes is beginning to come under some pressure in East London, but the West Ham hierarchy insist that they are fully behind the Scotsman, who now turns his focus back to the Premier League with one final fixture on Saturday before the World Cup break.
After winning only one of their last five Premier League games, West Ham have slipped to 15th in the table, level on points with their upcoming opponents Leicester City in 14th place.
The Hammers have fared better on home soil so far this season and had won six successive matches at the London Stadium before their 2-1 defeat against Crystal Palace last weekend. Moyes and co have also won three of their last four meetings with the Foxes, which bodes well heading into Saturday’s contest.
West Ham United have been uncharacteristically inconsistent in the Premier League this season. After two memorable campaigns that clinched European qualification, David Moyes might have liked his squad to have stepped up the performance levels. But the Hammers have lost eight of their 14 Premier League games thus far. And they went out of the Carabao Cup on penalties to Blackburn Rovers this week.
On the other hand, Leicester City endured a horrendous start to the 2022/23 season, falling to the bottom of the table after the first month. But the Foxes have been rising through the Premier League table in the last few weeks. Brendan Rodgers’s men have lost just one of their last five top-flight games, and the top half is in sight.
The corresponding fixture last season saw West Ham United cruise to a 4-1 win over Leicester City. Pablo Fornals, Said Benrahma, and Michail Antonio scored for the Hammers, with Youri Tielemans netting the consolation strike. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
West Ham Unite
David Moyes has a new injury concern hampering his preparations ahead of the visit of Leicester City. On Saturday, the West Ham United manager might be bereft of the services of as many as two first-team players.
Emerson Palmieri might be the latest absentee after the Italian international broke his nose against Blackburn Rovers. David Moyes revealed in his pre-match press conference that Emerson is “touch and go” for the Leicester City game. But Maxwel Cornet remains unavailable due to a calf injury.
Aaron Cresswell is an automatic pick as the left-back in Emerson’s potential absence. And Thilo Kehrer should start ahead of Vladimir Coufal on the right flank. Craig Dawson and Kurt Zouma should pair up at the heart of the West Ham defence, with Lukasz Fabianski picking himself between the sticks.
Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek have been the go-to midfield pair under Moyes, despite Soucek’s issues here and there. The duo will dictate if West Ham can overcome a tricky Leicester test by winning the midfield battle.
Jarrod Bowen has been sub-par by his enormous standards this season. But the English attacker has a solid recent record against Leicester City and will hope to inspire West Ham to a big result this weekend. Bowen will join Lucas Paqueta, Said Benrahma and Gianluca Scamacca in the final third.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Fabianski; Kehrer, Dawson, Zouma, Cresswell; Soucek, Rice; Bowen, Paqueta, Benrahma; Scamacca
Leicester City
Like his counterpart in the West Ham United dugout, Brendan Rodgers has a new injury concern to deal with ahead of the trip to the London Stadium. The Leicester City manager will be without four first-team players on Saturday.
James Justin is the latest absentee, with Rodgers confirming in his pre-match press conference that the youngster has sustained an Achilles injury. Justin has joined Ricardo Pereira (Achilles), Caglar Soyuncu (hamstring), and Ryan Bertrand (knee) on the sidelines.
West Ham winger Maxwel Cornet remains out with a calf injury, while Emerson Palmieri came off as a precaution with a knock in the midweek defeat to Blackburn and the left-back will be assessed ahead of kickoff on Saturday.
Moyes is expected to recall a number of his star players, with Thilo Kehrer, Craig Dawson, Kurt Zouma and Aaron Cresswell set to make up the back four, with Lukasz Fabianski replacing Alphonse Areola between the sticks.
Declan Rice, Jarrod Bowen, Said Benrahma, Lucas Paqueta, Tomas Soucek and Gianlucca Scamacca were all left out of the starting lineup in midweek, but they are expected to return against Leicester.
As for the Foxes, Justin joins fellow defenders Ricardo Pereira (Achilles), Caglar Soyuncu (hamstring) and Ryan Bertrand (knee) on the sidelines, with the former expected to miss the rest of the season after undergoing a scan on Wednesday.
Timothy Castagne was rested in midweek and is set to replace Justin in the first XI, joining Jonny Evans, Wout Faes and Luke Thomas in the back four, while goalkeeper Danny Ward is expected to return at the expense of Daniel Iversen.
James Maddison – who has been called up to the England squad for the World Cup – and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall were also rested against Newport, while Tielemans came off the bench in the second half, and the midfield trio will likely start together on Saturday, while striker Patson Daka is hoping to force his way back into the first XI ahead of Vardy.
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West Ham United possible starting lineup:
Fabianski; Kehrer, Dawson, Zouma, Cresswell; Rice, Soucek; Bowen, Paqueta, Benrahma; Scamacca
Leicester City possible starting lineup:
Ward; Castagne, Evans, Faes, Thomas; Ndidi; Maddison, Tielemans, Dewsbury-Hall, Barnes; Daka