West Ham take on relegation placed Leicester City under the lights this Thursday at the London Stadium, with the Hammers looking to push on from their stunning victory over Arsenal in the weekend.
The Hammers have a strong squad available to them for the clash, with only Lucas Paqueta and Vladimir Coufal the more noteworthy absences for the game, while Niclas Fullkrug, Michail Antonio and Crysencio Summerville still remain sidelined with long-term injuries.
A home fixture against a team that has conceded 59 goals this season feels like the perfect opportunity to build upon a shock away win against second-placed Arsenal, and it will be a golden chance for the players to showcase what they’re capable of and help build some momentum for Graham Potter and his team.
Leicester have lost 10 of their last 11 games, and Hammers fans will be hopeful that their win against the Gunners will breed confidence in the side to take the game to the visitors and try and make a statement.
West Ham must start the game on the front foot, particularly with the expectation on the team’s shoulders to get all three points.
Performance is just as important as a result
There’s no doubt we’ve seen a change of style since Potter’s arrival, but this feels like a game in which we need to see the more attacking football Potter is associated with in full flow.
As we know, possession is not the be-all and end-all factor in winning football games, which was demonstrated in West Ham’s previous home game against Brentford, where the Hammers had 58% possession but went on to lose 1-0.
However, because of Leicester’s poor form and leaky defence, it feels like there’s a level of expectation for West Ham to both win the game but also to put in a controlled and confident performance which can get the fans on their feet.
West Ham have only won four games at home all season, which is an incredibly disappointing statistic, so bringing some feel-good factor back to the London Stadium in a game which can perhaps spearhead a good run of form for the Hammers feels imperative.
The game is also a perfect opportunity for the likes of Mohammed Kudus and Evan Ferguson to get on the scoresheet and get some confidence back, which would ultimately give the Hammers a better chance of having improved results in coming games.
