OPINION
West Ham looked in fantastic form against Newcastle United on Saturday and will be eager to keep winning when they face Cardiff City on Tuesday.
Despite Manuel Pellegrini overseeing his side win 3-0 at St James Park, the experienced manager should make some changes in order to freshen up the team so they easily beat the Bluebirds in midweek.
Javier Hernandez and Mark Arnautovic should be kept playing alongside each other upfront as the Hammers looked better for having two forwards leading the line.
Felipe Anderson should also be kept in the team on the left flank as the Brazilian was fantastic on Saturday but Pellegrini must freshen up the personnel on his right flank.
While Robert Snodgrass was in great form against the Magpies, he should drop to the bench in order for Grady Diangana to start on Tuesday.
If things aren’t going the Hammers’ way the 31-year-old is a great player to be able to deploy off the bench but the 20-year-old winger should start as his pace could cause Cardiff problems.
The Hammers speedster has shown he can be a creative spark and you feel his unpredictable nature and blistering pace will be too much for the Bluebirds to handle.
Pellegrini must also make another change from the team that face the Magpies, his second one so far, in midfield by playing Jack Wilshere alongside Declan Rice instead of Mark Noble.
Noble may have been in top-form against the Magpies but this is the perfect game for Wilshere to get back up to speed after a recent spell on the sidelines.
The former Arsenal midfielder has only started three games in the league this season, with injury playing havoc, and needs to get understanding his role in the team sooner rather than later.
Also Wilshere is a more creative midfielder than Noble due to his passing range and you feel he could cause Cardiff more problems as a result if he gets a rare start this season.
As for the Hammers defence, Issa Diop, Fabian Balbuena and Pablo Zabaleta should keep their places in order to help cover for the loss of Aaron Cresswell.
The English left-back left the pitch early against the Magpies due to an injury concern after impressing and blocking every ball that came his way.
Even if Cresswell isn’t set for a spell on the sidelines, it seems very unlikely that he will be 100% for Tuesday so Angelo Ogbonna should take his place.
The 30-year-old, who has only started two games this season, has previously played left-back and despite struggling as a centre-back this season in his few appearances, he deserves a rare start in this campaign by being given a chance to flourish on the left-flank of the defence.
The obvious replacement for Cresswell is Arthur Masuaku but he has proven this season he is more of a winger than a full-back, and you can’t trust him to help the side get a clean sheet as it stands.
Also Pellegrini must keep Lukasz Fabianski between the sticks as it’s unthinkable to drop one of the side’s best performers of the season.
By handing Wilshere and Ogbonna rare starts and unleashing Diangana the Hammers will tear Cardiff apart as this team will have too much for their opponents to handle.
