Are you ready for the Stateside Cup? Or maybe the Sunshine State Tour? The first match, in the Hammers’ three game swing through Florida could be called the Max Kilman Cup, as it features West Ham United’s banner signing of the summer, facing Wolves, the team where he made 127 appearances over six seasons. The storyline just writes itself, right?
He’s almost certain to feature from the opening kick on Saturday night, when the two clubs face each other in a friendly at the home of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars.
West Ham United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers FYIs
Kickoff: Sat. July 27, 2024, 2pm TIAA Bank Field, Jacksonville, FL, USA
Competition: club friendly, branded “The Sunshine State Tour”
West Ham Preview Material: Team News Starting XI Prediction
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
Who else will manager Julen Lopetegui pick? Well, we’re going to go out on a limb here and also predict the three players who returned to training for the Irons today. Maybe they’ll start, but then come off at half time.
West Ham United Starting XI Prediction vs Wolves (Club Friendly)
Wes Foderingham, Aaron Cresswell, Max Kilman, Vladimir Coufal, James Ward-Prowse, Tomas Soucek, Freddie Potts, Maxwel Cornet, Luis Guilherme, Mohammed Kudus, Michail Antonio
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to Ravens Wire, part of the USA Today SMG’s NFL Wire Network and the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and the Washington Times. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.