West Ham United probably got the best draw of anybody when it comes to their 3rd Round Carabao Cup opponent. When most of the bigger boys in the Premier League are taking on fellow top flight, or recently demoted from, sides, the Irons have an opponent from the third tier of the FA pyramid in Lincoln City.
They are not a great League One side either, as they currently sit mid-table. But without further ado, let’s preview!
EFL Cup 3rd Round FYIs
Kickoff: Wed. Sept. 27 7:45 pm, Sincil Bank, Lincoln, England
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
Team News
Just one issue here for the Hammers- Aaron Cresswell, who is nursing a hamstring injury. Regardless of the severity of the issue, he won’t be risked here. While West Ham have certainly come back to Earth these past couple weeks, after a hot start, they do look pretty strong thus far in 2023-24. They seem to be adjusting better than expected to life after Declan Rice.
Any time you play a third division side you do squad rotation and manager David Moyes will do exactly that. After all, WHUFC has European football to play this season, so they have to manage everyone’s minutes. On to the starting lineup prediction.
Starting XI Prediction
Lukasz Fabianski; Thilo Kehrer, Kurt Zouma, Angelo Ogbonna, Ben Johnson; Tomas Soucek, Edson Alvarez; Jarrod Bowen, Mohammed Kudus, Said Benrahma; Divin Mubama
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager 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.”
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