Fan blogger Ollie Hirst previews Saturday's game against Liverpool...
It seems strange that after three games into the new season, having played Arsenal, Leicester City and Bournemouth, that our only points, three of them, came at the Emirates on the opening weekend.
I warned of the dangers both Leicester and Bournemouth possessed in my two previous blogs and it’s understandable that it will take time for the new squad to settle into life at Upton Park. At home, it’s harder to sit back and soak up the pressure – like we did at Arsenal - and when you play in front of your own fans there’s an expectation to take the game to the opposition and to do that bit extra and a bit quicker.
Perhaps a few games of being able to relax (to an extent) and learning how to do the simple things well again which served us so well at the start of last season, can help us to slowly rebuild our confidence. It’s a good thing then that we have away game this weekend.
On paper, a trip to Anfield will be much tougher than hosting Leicester and Bournemouth but I’m confident we can get a result this weekend.
Brendan Rodgers' team have enjoyed a solid if not spectacular start to the new season, winning twice, scoring twice, drawing once and not conceding a single goal so far. Their supporters will be demanding a third win out of four come Saturday afternoon and that could well work in our favour, as it did at the Emirates.
As I say, Liverpool have not been at their free-flowing best so far and I can see us really frustrating them, particularly with the midfielders we have.
In Cheikhou Kouyate, Pedro Obiang and (fingers crossed) Reece Oxford, we possess the physicality to squeeze out the Reds' creative talents and provide a platform for our danger men, Dimitri Payet and (toes crossed) Diafra Sakho to cause them problems. If only we could throw Mauro Zarate into the mix, after his excellent display against Arsenal.
Perhaps it's time to give Manuel Lanzini a run in his place - taking advantage of the space, alongside Payet, in behind Sakho. Both Lanzini and Payet would be required to tuck in without the ball, but offer a quick release whenever we win it back.
I would be happy with a 0-0 - another clean sheet on the road and a reminder to our players that they are so much better than the six goals conceded in their last two games at home.
If we can shut them out for long spells, either through the pace of our attacking players, or presence of others at set-pieces, we know that we've every chance of nicking a goal and coming away with another surprise three points.
We need to quickly put the Leicester and Bournemouth games behind us and a second successful trip to a top four contender would hopefully allow us to do that. Six points from four matches, given the fixture list we've had would be a step in the right direction.
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The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of West Ham United