No doubt what the main storyline is heading into Monday night’s clash between West Ham United and Everton FC- the Hammers managerial regime change. Typically, a gaffer gets sacked right after a loss, perhaps for more empathic effect. Graham Potter, who had long been on the hot seat given how terribly the Irons started the season, was not given that grace.
League Fixture FYIs
West Ham at Everton FC
Kickoff: Mon. Sept 29, 8pm, Hill Dickinson Stadium, Liverpool, UK
Result Probability: West Ham United Win 57% Draw 24% Everton FC Win 19%
Premier League Standing: Everton FC 10th, 7 pts, West Ham United 19th, 3 pts
Preview Material for Both Sides: Team News Lineup Predictions
Potter said he was disappointed in his getting the sack, and honestly, who could blame him? However, it’s an extremely high pressure, results-driven business, where everyone is always living on borrowed time.
Now Nuno Espirito Santo is in, so let’s see what kind of lineup he might pick, for his first game in charge. We’ll look at what first XI David Moyes could choose too.
After all, he knows a thing or two about getting the sack; and from West Ham no less. They fired him, for the second time, in 2024.
Starting XI Predictions
West Ham United
Alphonse Areola; Kyle Walker-Peters, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Max Kilman, El Hadji Malick Diouf; James Ward-Prowse, Mateus Fernandes; Crysencio Summerville, Lucas Paqueta, Jarrod Bowen; Nicklas Fullkrug
Everton
Jordan Pickford; Jake O’Brien, Michael Keane, James Tarkowski, Vitalii Mykolenko; Idrissa Gueye, James Garner, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall; Iliman Ndiaye, Beto, Jack Grealish
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 USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter