West Ham vs Arsenal – Match Preview and Predicted XI

West Ham vs Arsenal – Match Preview and Predicted XI

West Ham United take on Arsenal this Saturday at the Emirates, with both sides desperately in search of their first victories of the season.

The Hammers lost on their opening day of the Premier League campaign 4-0 to title challengers Liverpool, before being defeated by Bournemouth last weekend despite being a goal to the good in the game.

Arsenal on the other hand faced champions Manchester City and Chelsea in their opening fixtures, losing both games 2-0 and 3-2 respectively.

It serves as a reminder about how big of a task Manuel Pellegrini and Unai Emery both have on their hands at their new clubs. It was never going to be an easy ask for Pellegrini to turn around the Hammers’ poor fortunes from last season, and Emery will need a significant amount of time to build his legacy at the Emirates.



One thing’s for sure, the game on Saturday between these two sides promises plenty of drama.

It is believed that West Ham will shuffle the pack this weekend in an attempt to turn things around at the club, with captain Mark Noble set to lose his place in the starting XI, according to the Daily Mail.

The midfielder has been under fire by fans this season after his poor start personally. He was also criticised for his failure to stop Wilson scoring for Bournemouth last weekend.

Pellegrini will be without the injured trio of Andy Carroll, Winston Reid and Manuel Lanzini. Arsenal on the other hand find themselves with four absences: Koscielny, Jenkinson, Kolasinac and Maitland-Niles.

The referee for the match is still yet to be confirmed for the fiery encounter, but for such an important game to both Arsenal and West Ham, the middle man who gets the nod will be tested fully on his judgement and fitness levels – as the refereeing association mandates described in this insightful blog post on the demands of refereeing in the modern age.

Here’s how we think the Hammers could line up against Arsenal:

Fabianski

Zabaleta – Balbuena – Ogbonna – Masuaku

Yarmalenko – Sanchez – Wilshere – Anderson

Arnautovic – Chicharito