Team news: Felipe Anderson and Ngakia start for West Ham United at Liverpool

 

West Ham United manager David Moyes has made two changes to his starting eleven for tonight’s Premier League fixture at Liverpool.

Felipe Anderson returns to the team after a six-game absence due to a back injury suffered in the fixture at Sheffield United on 10 January. The Brazil international takes the place of Arthur Masuaku, who is absent through illness.

Nineteen-year-old Jeremy Ngakia is also included, replacing the injured Ryan Fredericks at right-back. Ngakia, of course, made his first-team debut in the reverse fixture at London Stadium last month and gave a good account of himself up against the likes of Divock Origi and Andrew Robertson.

It remains to be seen how the Hammers will line up at Anfield, but Ngakia could be part of a defence alongside Issa Diop, Angelo Ogbonna and Aaron Cresswell.

Declan Rice, captain Mark Noble, Tomas Soucek and Robert Snodgrass are all included in midfield, with Felipe Anderson potentially supporting Michail Antonio in attack.

Ogbonna, Cresswell and Noble were all starters when West Ham last won at Anfield, 3-0 on 29 August 2015, with the latter scoring the second goal in the Hammers’ first victory here in 52 years.

Antonio has fond memories of facing the Reds, too, having bagged five goals in seven career appearances against tonight’s hosts, including two here at Anfield in December 2016 and February 2018.

On the substitutes’ bench, goalkeeper Darren Randolph, who was also part of the team which won here four-and-a-half years ago, is joined by defenders Pablo Zabaleta and Fabian Balbuena, midfielders Pablo Fornals and Manuel Lanzini – who also scored in the aforementioned 3-0 win – and forwards Jarrod Bowen and Sebastien Haller.

For Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp has named his first-choice front three of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and leading scorer Sadio Mane in attack.

Behind them, Alisson keeps goal, protected by a back four of Trent Alexander-Arnold, captain Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Andrew Robertson. The midfield will be anchored by Fabinho, with Georginio Wijnaldum and Naby Keita in more advanced roles.

The Reds' substitutes are former Hammer Adrian, centre-backs Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren, midfielders Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Adam Lallana and forwards Takumi Minamino and Divock Origi.

Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk (c), Gomez, Robertson, Fabinho, Wijnaldum, Keita, Firmino, Salah, Mane
Subs: Adrian (GK), Matip, Lovren, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lallana, Minamino, Origi

West Ham United: Fabianski, Ngakia, Diop, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Rice, Noble ©, Soucek, Felipe Anderson, Snodgrass, Antonio
Subs: Randolph (GK), Zabaleta, Balbuena, Fornals, Lanzini, Bowen, Haller