West Ham United vs Arsenal: preview, team news, line-up and prediction

• Tweet
• Pin It

West Ham United are set to take on Arsenal at the London Stadium in the Carabao Cup fourth-round fixture on Wednesday evening.

The Hammers will be coming into this game off the back of a disappointing 1-0 defeat against Everton in the Premier League. So, David Moyes’ side will be desperate to win in this encounter and return to winning ways.

West Ham defeated Lincoln by a solitary goal in the previous round of this competition and they will be hoping to reach the next round by beating the Gunners. However, Arsenal have enjoyed a brilliant start to this season so it won’t be easy for the hosts to defeat the city rivals in this encounter.

Mikel Arteta’s side are currently full of confidence after thrashing Sheffield United 5-0 in the Premier League last weekend. Eddie Nketiah scored his first senior hat-trick versus the Blades and the other two goals were scored by Fabio Vieira and Takehiro Tomiyasu.

Arsenal managed to reach this stage of the Carabao Cup after beating Brentford in the previous game and they will be looking to march on by beating the Hammers on Wednesday.

Previous meetings

West Ham haven’t had great success against Arsenal in recent times as the East London club have only managed to win a solitary encounter out of the last 16 games versus the Gunners. West Ham’s only victory came back in 2019.

How to watch

The match will commence at 7:30 pm UK time and the game will be televised live on Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Ultra HDR. The encounter will also be streamed on the Sky Go app but only the subscribers can watch it online.

Tickets for the game have sold out through official club channels but match going fans can still buy tickets at trusted reseller site Seatsnet.com.

Team news

West Ham don’t have many injury issues at the moment. So, Moyes has a strong squad to choose from in this encounter.

Lucas Paqueta and Edson Álvarez have been suspended in the Premier League after picking up their fifth booking of the season in the previous game against Everton. But, they are eligible to play in the Carabao Cup and they will serve the suspension in the next league fixture. So, the pair is available for selection against the Gunners.

As for Arsenal, they will be without their new signing Jurrien Timber as he has been sidelined for an extended period after sustaining a serious knee issue in his Premier League debut against Nottingham Forest.

Thomas Partey and Gabriel Jesus will also remain sidelined owing to injury issues. They are reportedly set to unavailable for selection for the upcoming few weeks so they aren’t in contention to feature in this encounter.

It has recently emerged that Martin Odegaard has been struggling with a slight injury in recent times so he was rested in the previous game against Sheffield United. Therefore, he might also be given a break in midweek ahead of next weekend’s crucial trip to Newcastle United.

Predicted line-up

Moyes is expected to shuffle his squad a bit for this encounter but is likely to go with a pretty strong team. Lukasz Fabianski is set to be given the nod to start in goal for the hosts, providing Alphonse Areola a midweek breather.

The back four is likely to be changed completely from the last weekend’s encounter against Everton and Thilo Kehrer, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Angelo Ogbonna and Emerson should commence. So, Vladimir Coufal, Kurt Zouma, Nayef Aguerd and Aaron Cresswell will have to settle for a place on the bench.

James Ward-Prowse and Edson Álvarez are likely to start in the midfield pivot position, while Tomas Soucek should be in the attacking midfield role.

Jarrod Bowen is expected to be on the left-flank and Paqueta might be on the opposite wing. Michail Antonio should be leading the line for West Ham in this encounter.

Expected West Ham line-up against Arsenal

Fabianski; Kehrer, Mavropanos, Ogbonna, Emerson; Ward-Prowse, Alvarez; Bowen, Soucek, Paqueta; Antonio

As for Arsenal, Arteta is also likely to make some changes to his starting eleven in this encounter and give a breather to some of the first-team players ahead of next weekend’s crucial fixture against Newcastle in the Premier League.

Aaron Ramsdale should be given the chance to start for Arsenal in goal versus the Hammers, leaving David Raya on the bench. The Spanish boss is expected to go with a new look back four tomorrow so Benjamin White, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Gabriel Magalhaes and Jakub Kiwior could commence in defence for Arsenal.

Jorginho should be in the deep-lying midfielder role and on either side of the Italian, Fabio Vieira and Emile Smith Rowe could start in the engine room. So, Declan Rice could be given a much-needed break in midweek.

Leandro Trossard should be on the left-wing position, while Reiss Nelson could be in the opposite flank, starting Kai Havertz in the number-nine position. So, Gabriel Martinelli, Bukayo Saka and Nketiah might be given a breather.

Expected Arsenal line-up vs West Ham

Ramsdale; White, Tomiyasu, Gabriel, Kiwior; Jorginho, Smith Rowe, Vieira; Nelsson, Havertz, Trossard

Key players

Bowen is West Ham’s talismanic figure and he has started the season promisingly, scoring six goals and registering two assists in 12 appearances in all competitions. So, the Gunners will have to keep him quiet if they wish to come away victorious in this encounter.

Antonio is the mainstay of West Ham’s forward line. His ability to hold up the ball, running behind the defence and work rate without the ball is the fundamental part of the Hammers’ recent success. So, he could cause Arsenal all sorts of problems in this fixture, therefore, Gabriel and Tomiyasu will have to be careful about his threat.

Ward-Prowse’s ability in set-piece situations is well known so the North London club will have to avoid giving away silly fouls anywhere around their own box.

As for Arsenal, Trossard will be the key player in the frontline as it is expected that Saka, Martinelli and Nketiah will be given a rest. So, the Belgian will have to take extra responsibilities.

The onus will be on Jorginho to link-up the play from defence to attack, while Vieira and Smith Rowe will be looking to create chances for the attackers.

Gabriel will have to take the responsibility of organising the defence and starting the play from the back. On the other hand, Ramsdale will be hoping to showcase his best in this encounter in order to regain his place in Arteta’s first eleven.

Prediction

It won’t be easy for Arsenal to beat West Ham away from home, especially given they are expected to field a first eleven without several crucial players.

Nevertheless, Arsenal have a deep squad and they won’t want to lose a game and lose their momentum. Therefore, they would be desperate to come away victorious in this encounter. West Ham 1-2 Arsenal

• Tweet
• Pin It