West Ham’s Striker Plan Without Arnautovic

After an abrupt end to his match against Arsenal Arnautovic is a doubt for West Ham’s next Premier League match. Without their main man up top, how will West Ham set up and fill the void with the absence of their marquee striker?

As confirmed by ExWHUEmployee, Arnautovic will miss AFC Wimbledon away in West Ham’s opening Carabao Cup match and is labeled doubtful for the game against Wolves in match week four. West Ham crumbled against Arsenal after Arnautovic was forced from the game which leaves questions about who should start in his absence.

Chicharito

Javier Hernandez is the first name to come to mind for striker in Arnautovic’s absence. In the Premier League, splitting time between West Ham and Manchester United, Chicharito has bagged 45 goals in 134 games. He is a prolific goal scorer and knows how to do it in this league. The only issue that comes with Chicharito is whether or not he can play up top as a solo striker.

It was evident that he couldn’t contend with Arsenal’s physical defenders and as result couldn’t hold up play on his own. Should Chicharito be played solo he will need sufficient support from Anderson behind him and large forwards like Yarmolenko and Antonio to drift into the box and create second-chance opportunities for him.

Chicharito may factor into Pellegrini’s Carabao Cup plans.

Lucas Perez

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A deadline day steal for Pellegrini and West Ham, Lucas Perez was bought from Arsenal for a fee around £5 million on the last day of the transfer window. Perez generally failed in his time at Arsenal but enjoyed some success on a loan deal last season with relegated LaLiga team Deportivo, scoring 8 goals and adding 6 assists in 35 games.

Perez has the versatility to play as striker, leftwing, rightwing, or secondary striker which makes him a valuable bench option for Pellegrini. In his two appearances as a sub, Perez has put in 40 minutes of game time and with that opportunity has looked strong. He has managed 19 passes and 2 crosses, including a massive opportunity that was too heavy for Yarmolenko on the back post.

We should see Perez as a likely starter in West Ham’s Carabao Cup opener against AFC Wimbledon.

Andriy Yarmolenko

The big Ukranian forward is more traditionally a right winger but West Ham could use him as a striker up top should they need to. What would dictate this abstract usage of Yarmolenko is a desire to keep the same style of play that they use when Arnautovic is fit. The formation is a 4-2-3-1 set up that sees the lone striker isolated up top and supported by a line of three attacking midfielders.

Yarmolenko as a striker could be viable in a role that plays him in a striker partnership with Chicharito. This would allow Snodgrass to draw into a line up with Yarmolenko, and hopefully, use his height to connect to the Scottish right wingers crosses. Yarmolenko as a striker is more of a contingency plan but it could become a reality if Pellegrini wants to continue that Arnautovic style of play.

A few other, less likely options would be Michail Antonio and Felipe Anderson. Antonio picked up a knock against Arsenal like Arnautovic but it appeared to be less serious. Meanwhile, Anderson, as a striker would not be ideal as he is better suited for a creative role than finishing.

West Ham is clearly dependent on Arnautovic’s physicality at striker and will need to adapt their playstyle to feature their smaller strikers should Arnautovic be out longterm. AFC Wimbledon will be a good showing for the alternative plans West Ham has for their striker woes.