West Ham United will host Gent on Thursday night as both teams look to book their place Europa Conference League Semi-finals. The Hammers will come into the match on the back of a 2-2 draw against Arsenal, so they will be in high spirits for this midweek encounter as the scoreline remains 1-1 on aggregate with the Belgium side.
David Moyes will opt for a 4-4-2 formation and could name a strong first XI for this game. Danny Ings and Michail Antonio could form a two-man strike team to lead the charge for the East London club in the final third.
4-4-2 West Ham United Predicted XI Vs Gent
Defence
Alphonso Areola will get a chance to operate in between the sticks for West Ham, and he will be looking to keep a clean sheet. Thilo Kehrer will form a defensive partnership with Kurt Zouma at the heart of Moyes’ defence as they look to keep the opposition attackers frustrated throughout the game.
Vladimir Coufal will look to impress as the right-back, while Emerson Palmieri fills in on the other side as the left-back. Both would have to keep a solid shape at the back and try to create some decent chances going forward into the attacking third.
Aaron Cresswell and Ben Johnson will be named on the bench as they wait for their chance to make an impact in the second half if needed.
Midfield
Flynn Downes and Declan Rice will operate in the holding midfield positions as they focus on dominating possession at the centre of the park and orchestrate enough chances for West Ham to win this away game.
Pablo Fornals and Jarod Bowen could look to provide support from the wide areas and cut inside the penalty box to create chances in front of the goal.
Manuel Lanzini will be named on the bench as he awaits his chance to shine as a second-half substitute if Moyes opts to call upon his services.
Attack
Danny Ings and Michail Antonio will spearhead Moyes’ attack down the middle and would be keen on getting their name on the scoresheet.
Said Benrahma will take a spot on the bench to provide cover for the attacking positions.
