West Ham United manager David Moyes has named his first starting eleven since the resumption of the 2019/20 Premier League season, with his side looking to get off to the best possible restart against Wolverhampton Wanderers at London Stadium.
The manager has made two changes to the side which fell late to Arsenal over three months ago, with Angelo Ogbonna and Sebastien Haller making way for Tomas Soucek and Felipe Anderson in the initial eleven.
Should Moyes opt to retain a similar formation, it would imply that Declan Rice would drop back to centre-back alongside Issa Diop, supporting Jeremy Ngakia and Aaron Cresswell at right- and left-back respectively.
In the centre of midfield, Soucek and captain Mark Noble are expected to anchor proceedings, allowing the fearsome four of Jarrod Bowen, Pablo Fornals, Anderson and Michail Antonio to do some damage up front.
The announcement also sees a number of players return to the Irons’ matchday squad – including substitutes Ryan Fredericks, Andriy Yarmolenko and Jack Wilshere – having fully recovered from injury during the lockdown period.
Academy of Football graduates Xande Silva and Ben Johnson – both impressing with the U23s prior to the campaign’s suspension – are also named in a first-team squad for the first time since 19 January and 27 August 2019 respectively.
With nine substitutes also at Moyes’ disposal following the season’s resumption, the substitutes bench is completed by goalkeeper Darren Randolph, centre-back Fabian Balbuena, attacking midfielder Manuel Lanzini, and striker Albian Ajeti.
Continuing to put fans at the heart of everything the Club does, the team was announced on West Ham platforms by representatives from across a number of sections of the Claret and Blue family, from Club legends to members of supporters’ boards young and old, and a number of our magnificent #HammersHeroes - all of whom will be cheering the side along at home:
West Ham United: Fabianski; Ngakia, Rice, Diop, Cresswell, Soucek, Noble (c), Bowen, Fornals, Felipe Anderson, Antonio
Substitutes: Randolph, Fredericks, Balbuena, Johnson, Yarmolenko, Lanzini, Wilshere, Xande Silva, Ajeti
Wolverhampton Wanderers: Patricio, Boly, Coady (c), Saiss, Doherty, Neves, Dendoncker, Moutinho, Jonny, Diogo Jota, Jimenez
Substitutes: Ruddy, Jordao, Vinagre, Kilman, Buur, Neto, Gibbs-White, Podence, Traore
Referee: Anthony Taylor