The weekend begins at the London Stadium, where Chelsea’s arrival is generally regarded as one of the highlights of the footballing calendar. The locals will certainly be up for it; let’s hope we can match them. We’ve not won at this ground in three years.
Enzo Maresca picks almost the exact same lineup as the people’s choice (except at striker).
Here we go!
West Ham starting XI (4-3-3)Areola | Emerson, Kilman, Mavropanos, Wan-Bissaka | Paquetá, Rodríguez, Álvarez | Kudus, Bowen (c), Summerville
Substitutes from: Fabianski, Cresswell, Soler, Coufal, Antonio, Ings, Todibo, Souček, Irving
Chelsea starting lineup (4-2-3-1):Sánchez | Cucurella, Colwill, Tosin, Fofana | Enzo (c), Caicedo | Sancho, Palmer, Madueke | Jackson
Substitutes from: Jörgensen, Badiashile, Disasi, Veiga, Dewsbury-Hall, Neto, Mudryk, Félix, Nkunku
Date / Time: Saturday, August 21, 2024, 12:30 BST; 7:30am EDT; 5pm ISTVenue: London Stadium, StratfordReferee: Sam Barrott (on pitch); Stuart Attwell (VAR)
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Be excellent to each other, and party on, dudes!
The Hammers are set to host the Blues looking for their first points at home this season, having fallen to defeats against Aston Villa and Manchester City, while picking up a win and a draw on the road at Crystal Palace and Fulham respectively.
Defender Emerson was withdrawn with a knock shortly before the hour mark at Craven Cottage last weekend, casting doubt over his availability for a clash against his former team Chelsea, who he represented 71 times before heading across the capital in August 2022.
But boss Lopetegui refused to rule him out of what would be his sixth appearance of 2024/25, with Emerson having started each of West Ham’s four top-flight outings on the left side of the backline so far.
“Fortunately, it wasn’t a big knock for Emerson,” Lopetegui said, speaking in his pre-match press conference at the Rush Green training ground.
“It’s still Thursday and so 48 hours or so before the match, so there is still time where we need to review things. We will evaluate him again tomorrow [Friday] and see where we are.”
While the Spanish Head Coach explained that every member of his squad will be analysed and worked with ahead of matchday, he mentioned that German forward Niclas Füllkrug is another player fighting for full fitness.
The 31-year-old picked up an injury related to his Achilles tendon and calf muscle while on international duty earlier this month, and was subsequently absent against Fulham last time out.
Lopetegui added: “We are trying to recover all the players, and we have to wait until the day before the game to know more about all of them.
“That includes Niclas. He has had a different kind of problem to Emerson, and really we just have to wait until Friday to know what is going to happen.”
Jadon Sancho is set to make his first start for Chelsea after Enzo Maresca made three changes to his Chelsea line-up for the trip to West Ham United.
The 24-year-old's game-changing substitute appearance against Bournemouth and another good week of training at Cobham has seen the England international replace Pedro Neto on the left wing.
The other changes sees Enzo Fernandez, who missed the trip to Bournemouth through illness, come into the midfield in place of Renato Veiga, and Tosin Adarabioyo start at centre-back, with Axel Disasi dropping to the bench.
That means Robert Sanchez is likely to be protected by Wesley Fofana at right back, Tosin and Levi Colwill in the middle and Marc Cucurella on the left.
Moises Caicedo lines up alongside Fernandez, who will captain the team, with Cole Palmer in a more advanced position and flanked by Sancho on the left and Noni Madueke on the right.
Nicolas Jackson continues to lead the line, with Christopher Nkunku ready to make an impact from the bench once again following his match-winner against the Cherries.
There is plenty of attacking firepower among the substitutes once again, with Nkunku joined by Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Joao Felix, Mykhailo Mudryk and Pedro Neto.
Chelsea starting XI: Sanchez; Fofana, Tosin, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Enzo (c); Madueke, Palmer, Sancho; Jackson
Substitutes: Jorgensen, Disasi, Badiashile, Veiga, Dewsbury-Hall, Joao Felix, Mudryk, Nkunku, Neto
West Ham starting XI: Areola; Wan-Bissaka, Mavropanos, Kilman, Emerson; Alvarez, Rodriguez, Paqueta; Summerville, Bowen, Kudus
Substitutes: Fabianski, Cresswell, Soler, Coufal, Antonio, Ings, Tobido, Soucek, Irving
So far this season, it’s been far more fun to be an away supporter of West Ham and Chelsea. The Hammers’ travelling faithful have seen their side pick up four points from short trips to Crystal Palace and Fulham while Chelsea’s have made the journey home on the back of a 6-2 thumping of Wolves and a 1-0 success at Bournemouth. At home though, it’s been a very different story. West Ham have suffered back-to-back defeats (against Aston Villa and Manchester City admittedly) while Chelsea have just a single point at Stamford Bridge courtesy of a disappointing 1-1 draw with Palace.
Those Covid/empty stadium-season discrepancies surely can’t continue, or at least Julen Lopetegui hopes they won’t. David Moyes was accused of making the Hammers’ attack less than the sum of its parts and Lopetegui was supposed to reverse the equation when being appointed in the summer. It hasn’t happened so far and new manager goodwill is quick to burn out.
The good news for the Spaniard is that West Ham have strong recent history in this fixture, winning three of the last five on home soil and scoring three goals in each of those victories. Can that continue? Will the Hammers finally click? Will Chelsea have one of their good days? On the evidence of this season so far, nobody knows. Best find out then. It should be fun!
A Thrilling Start
The match kicked off with a flurry of action, both sides looking eager to make their mark. West Ham started brightly with a chance for Kudus in the opening minutes but his shot was straight at the keeper.
However, it was Chelsea who took the lead in the 4th minute. A quick free-kick caught West Ham sleeping and Jackson was played through on goal by Sancho, before slotting the ball through Areola’s legs and into the back of the net. A terrible start for West Ham, and they were on the back foot for much of the opening ten minutes.
Chelsea looked dangerous going forward, and almost doubled their lead in the 10th minute when Palmer got space in the box, but his shot went wide. The Blues continued to dominate possession and create chances, and their lead was doubled in the 18th minute. Chelsea moved the ball well in the center of the field and Caicedo played Jackson through on goal, who expertly dispatched the ball past Areola. The defending from West Ham has been horrific and the hosts looked completely overwhelmed by Chelsea's pace and movement.
Can West Ham Find a Way Back?
West Ham were struggling to get into the game, but they did begin to create some opportunities late in the first half. They had a strong penalty appeal turned down in the 28th minute after Summerville was dragged back in the box by Fofana. A VAR check followed and the on field decision stands after a lengthy delay. Lopetegui was not a happy man on the sideline and he’ll be hoping his side can find a way back into the game in the second half.
The second half started with West Ham showing more urgency, and Kudus continued to look dangerous. West Ham have regained some control and if anyone is going pose threat, it's going to be Kudus. He's been their brightest spark so far. However, they struggled to create clear cut chances, and Chelsea remained in control of the match.
The game remains at 2-0. With Chelsea playing so well, it is hard to see West Ham making a comeback. However, as they showed in their 3-1 victory at this ground last season, anything is possible. This is still an exciting game with plenty to play for. West Ham need to find a way to get back into the game, while Chelsea will be looking to extend their lead and claim a crucial three points. The second half should be just as exciting as the first.
