West Ham United will have six of their players participating for their respective nations in the 2022 FIFA World Cup which will be held in Qatar for the first time in the tournament’s history. The Hammers will have a total of five non-English players taking part in the competition.
Let’s take a look at three West Ham United players and try to determine how they will perform in this edition of the FIFA World Cup.
Thilo Kehrer (Germany)
The 26-year-old had a brilliant start at London Stadium recently. He has had ample amount of game time in this campaign after moving to the East London Club. Kehrer has been involved in 13 matches for the Hammers this season lacking at the offensive end but being a solid presence in the defensive half.
The German sensation has been a dominant force on the defensive end of the field as he is averaging 1.7 tackles, 1.5 interceptions and 2.6 clearances per game in the Premier League. He has even distributed the ball relatively well from the back, as evidenced by his pass success rate of 75.5% in the top tier of English football.
Hence, we can expect him to play a crucial role for Germany when the World Cup starts in Qatar this weekend. He will have to play as a full-back and stretch the opposition in the final third while maintaining his shape defensively.
Alphonse Areola (France)
The French shot-stopper is having a solid campaign at the East London club as he has managed to put in several dominant displays while playing second fiddle to Lukasz Fabianski. Areola has shipped in 5 goals and secured 4 clean sheets in 8 matches for the Hammers this season in the Europa Conference League competition. He has appeared twice in the Premier League so far conceding two goals for his side.
Didier Deschamps will now hope that the French goalie can replicate his form for France in this year’s World Cup. However, he is expected to play second fiddle to Hugo Lloris, who is likely to get the nod to be the first-choice keeper.
Nikola Vlasic (Croatia)
The Croatian midfielder is out on loan at Torino in Serie A this season and he has been performing exceptionally for his club as he has scored four goals and created two assists for the Italian outfit so far. The attacking midfielder has been in great form recently and will have to fight for a starting place with Marcelo Brozovic, Mateo Kovacic and Luka Modric at the centre of the park. However, we can expect him to play as an advanced attacking midfielder if Zlatko Dalic opts for an attacking formation (stats via whoscored).
