West Ham may be in a bit of a slump, but Marko Arnautovic is set to be available on Friday.
When Marko Arnautovic left the pitch against Watford, it didn’t look good. The former Stoke attacker had his hand trodden on, accidentally, and many feared it was broken. However the West Ham medical team have confirmed there is no break and he is fit to play against Leicester.
Given that he is yet to score a league goal or grab a league assist for the Hammers’ fans many will think that there is no gain in him being fit or not, but his performance against Watford was different. He showed good movement and intent, and despite leaving the match early made more sprints than any other Hammers player except one. Moyes can get the best out of him.
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Changing Emphasis
It will also be interesting given the abject form of Andy Carroll. The big man has spent the season looking far more likely to get sent off than a goal. As such, I think that Moyes should abandon a target man and go full mobile strike force. If he goes with a front three or four including the likes of Ayew, Arnautovic, Lanzini, Hernandez and Antonio then it could well be a hugely difficult attack to get to grips with.
As Moyes has fewer preconceptions and ideas about the squad, Friday nights home game will be interesting. As his first home game he will want a win. And he will therefore want to push the emphasis. However there are two massive issues with that.
Firstly, the Hammers have an awful defensive record. A combination of poor team organization and individual mistakes has seen the club concede more goals than any other side in the Premier League so far. So to push invites more goals conceded. And it may well go against Moyes’ natural instincts.
Next: 4 positives from Watford defeat
Also Leicester love playing on the break. To push up and allow Vardy and Mahrez space in behind scares me already. You only have to think back to the Liverpool game to see how bad we are at dealing with any speed on the break. As such it will be a tough game for Moyes to set up correctly for.