West Ham are set to make “a number of changes” when they play Brighton on Saturday afternoon, according to reliable source ExWHUemployee.
The Hammers suffered a 5-0 defeat at the hands of defending champions Manchester City last weekend, and are looking to bounce back with a win at the AMEX Stadium – a feat they have never managed before.
And Ex has claimed that Manuel Pellegrini will aim to engineer that by making several alterations.
Writing on his personal Twitter account, he said: “There are a number of changes to the side today…”
OPINION
This news can be read one of two ways really. On the one hand, if these changes are enforced, then that can’t be a good thing. Sebastien Haller and Felipe Anderson have both had question marks over their fitness in recent days, and losing both of those goal threats would be a big blow for the Hammers. On the other hand, there were several issues that needed addressing following that thrashing by Manchester City, and the sooner that is done, the better. In particular, Mark Noble’s absence forced Jack Wilshere into a deeper role that he struggled with immensely. Making just one tackle and failing to contribute anything else defensively, as per Whoscored, the midfielder left Declan Rice with an awful lot to do, and the Hammers suffered because of it. Here’s hoping that Pellegrini has done something to try and plug that gap.