West Ham showed all of us here in the busy Transfer Tavern just what they can do without Dimitri Payet as they smashed Crystal Palace 3-0 at the London Stadium.
The win came in style as the likes of Andy Carroll and Manuel Lanzini both scored sublime goals and there’s little doubt the former’s is a contender for goal of the season!
The Irons now face a Middlesbrough side who have been underwhelming lately, but crucially, still seem to either earn a draw or scrape a win.
With that in mind, the Irons will hope they can take advantage of the North East side and get themselves a vital three points.
Hopefully for them, they can keep the momentum going after their victory over Palace and finally enjoy their now.
West Ham have plenty of winners in their side, even without Dimitri Payet, so with all this in mind, they should field this XI and surely get a vital victory over Boro.
GK: DARREN RANDOLPH
The Ireland international goalkeeper had a quiet game against Palace for the first time this season it seems.
Ever reliable between the posts, he gives the defence a reassurance when he’s behind them and should start over Adrian.
RB: SAM BYRAM
The Hammers finally started to give Palace a game with a 5-3-2, but when they reverted in a 4-2-3-1 it worked so much better for them.
In the second-half, bringing Sam Byram on after his injury and time on the sidelines was a big difference for the Irons.
So for our east London locals, they’ll hopefully opt to start off with the 4-2-3-1 against Boro.
CB: ANGELO OGBONNA
The Italian paved way for the introduction of Sam Byram, but in this game, coming up against the likes of Adama Traore and his pace, it may mean that James Collins misses out.
Still, with Ogbonna and Winston Reid, it’ll be a hard duo to break down.
CB: WINSTON REID
The New Zealand International has been superb in an otherwise questionable West Ham defence during this dreadful campaign.
The 28-year-old is one of few who seemingly understand the passion of the club and he’s been through thick and thin and has a commitment towards the clubs and their fans.
A Hammers hero.
LB: AARON CRESSWELL
The former Ipswich full-back has been superb since arriving at West Ham under big Sam and, under Bilic, has improved even more.
He was vital as the Hammers had such a quality campaign last term and he’ll be equally as important in the revival of this season for his side.
He’ll have his hands full with a strong Boro front line, but his experience will help him and deny the opposition.
CDM: MARK NOBLE
The West Ham captain has a superb game as did most of the players last time out.
The skipper of the side is vital at the time and he can get the team working from the middle of the park, as he proved with a long-overdue decent performance in their engine room.
HIs side looked much more relaxed this weekend, allowing Noble to play his natural game to full effect.
CDM: PEDRO OBIANG
The Spanish midfielder waited in the wings last season and, much to the players’ frustration and many of our punters felt he would leave the Hammers in the summer.
Since, he’s come good this season and looks superb in the heart of the midfield.
LW: SOFAINE FEGHOULI
Subject to interest from a number of clubs, though the Hammers would surely be foolish to allow him to leave.
Somehow left out of the Algerian side for the AFCON, but what is their loss is very much West Ham’s gain right now.
He was superb and got himself on the scoresheet against Palace and while it’s taken time, he seems to be finally adapting to life in England.
CAM: MANUEL LANZINI
With the void left in attacking midfield by Payet, it’s time for Lanzini to step up his game even more.
He made a great start to being a replacement with a superb individual goal, leading to a cheeky dink over Wayne Hennessey in the Palace net to ensure the 3-0 victory.
Such genius on the ball needs to be more frequently produced.
RW: MICHAIL ANTONIO
Easily the ‘Hammer of the Year’ so far for his side, Michail Antonio has been remarkable amid an otherwise awful campaign.
He produced all three assists for his team’s goals last Saturday and has proved his worth in a variety of position this term.
He’s their top scorer too and without him, the Irons would be much worse off than they currently are.
Antonio can cause all kind of problems for the Boro defence need to be wary indeed.
ST: ANDY CARROLL
WHAT A GOAL!
Andy Carroll scored what could easily be the goal of the season against Palace, topping off an amazing performance in light of the Payet saga.
A perfectly hit bicycle-kick with sheer power and precision hit the top corner that not even the best goalkeeper could have saved.
It’s amazing for West Ham that he’s back and back in with the goals, he could be a vital cog for them in the back end of the season as they look to finish better than they started.
