How West Ham could line-up against Chelsea this weekend | OneFootball

West Ham United will be hoping to get their Premier League campaign back on track when they welcome Chelsea on Saturday afternoon.

The Hammers have made an awful start to the season, and their performances have drawn criticism from fans following the summer transfer window activity.

Julen Lopetegui is increasingly under pressure after West Ham picked up just four points from their opening four Premier League games.

They came close to a third defeat in four games when they faced Fulham last weekend, but a last-minute strike from Danny Ings spared their blushes and rescued a point.

The result flattered Lopetegui’s side, considering their performance was unconvincing, and they’ll need to step things up when they take on Chelsea.

The Blues are still finding their feet under their new manager but will make the trip to the London Stadium after a confidence-boosting 1-0 win over Bournemouth.

Loeptegui will need to tweak a few things from the side that drew 1-1 against Fulham, and the starting XI could be changed.

Alphonse Areola is the Hammers’ number-one goalkeeper and will retain his place between the sticks.

Emerson is facing a race against time to be fit for Saturday’s early kick-off after picking up an injury in the draw against Fulham.

With the Italian likely to miss out, Lopetegui could be forced to deploy Aaron Wan-Bissaka at left back while Vladimir Coufal slots in at right back.

Konstantinos Mavropanos put in a stellar performance against Fulham, so he should continue his partnership with Max Kilman in the heart of the defence.

Edson Alvarez and Guido Rodriguez are expected to anchor the midfield, while Lucas Paqueta, Mohamed Kudus and Jarrod Bowen will line up behind the striker.

The headline tweak could come up top with Ings in contention to make his first start of the season as Niclas Fullkrug continues to recover from a calf injury.

Predicted West Ham line-up vs Chelsea

(4-2-3-1): Areola; Coufal, Mavropanos, Kilman, Wan-Bisakka; Alvarez, Rodriguez; Kudus, Paqueta, Bowen; Ings.