How West Ham could line-up against Brentford

It’s been less than a month since Nuno Espirito Santo replaced Graham Potter as West Ham United manager, but he will be eager to finally get going later today.

The Hammers are set for a capital derby against Brentford and are desperate to end an embarrassing four-game winless streak (D1, L3).

Nuno managed to pick up a point from his first two games at West Ham after facing Everton and early season leaders Arsenal.

However, he will be keen to make a statement in his first home game as West Ham manager, and the visit of Brentford could be the perfect opportunity to flip the script.

The Hammers are still looking for their second Premier League victory since their 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest at the City Ground at the end of August.

How West Ham could line up

Despite heading into the international break on the back foot, Nuno is likely to make just one change to the side that lost 2-0 to Arsenal.

This means Monday’s visitors can expect a familiar backline trio with Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Max Kilman and El Hadji Malick Diouf ahead of Alphonse Areola.

Nuno will be able to count on Tomas Soucek again after the Czech international midfielder served a three-match ban for receiving a straight red card against Tottenham Hotspur.

However, he has been out of action for over a month, so he could start on the bench, giving Nuno a chance to stick to his midfield duo of Mateus Fernandes and Soungoutou Magassa.

The Hammers have lacked flair and dynamism in the middle of the park, but Fernandes and Magassa have the ability to run the show.

Lucas Paqueta has been a standout performer for West Ham and is expected to retain his place in the number 10 role, while skipper Jarrod Bowen and Crysencio Summerville line up on the flanks.

The only change to the starting line-up will come upfield with Callum Wilson set to replace the injured Niclas Fullkrug.

Starting XI predicted for West Ham

(4-2-3-1): Areola; Wan-Bissaka, Mavropanos, Kilman, Diouf; Fernandes, Magassa; Bowen, Paqueta, Summerville; Wilson.