West Ham carrying confidence into Chelsea clash

West Ham have only one win in their Premier League season so far but that isn’t going to stop the Hammers from believing they can take down Premier League perfect Chelsea in match week 6’s London Derby.

There is a little swagger back in the Cockney boys from East London after an impressive 3-1 away victory at Everton. West Ham dominated the match, held the ball up, took their chances, and put in an all-around solid effort to secure their first win of the Premier League season. It was crucial for West Ham to take the opportunity for points at Everton as Chelsea and Manchester United are next up in league action.

With Chelsea up first, West Ham have an uphill battle in front of them if they want a result from this match. West Ham need to respect two football adages if they are to have any hope of handing Chelsea their first dropped points of the season.

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Never Change a Winning Team

This one seems pretty obvious, but after West Ham’s first win there is no chance Pellegrini changes his team. The formation, 4-3-3, was balanced and played the players in their best positions. This notably included Anderson on the left wing, Yarmolenko on the right wing, and Declan RIie in defensive midfield. All three players were stars in West Ham’s win, and all will be called upon again against Chelsea.

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Declan Rice is intriguing because he went missing against the elite midfield Liverpool started in the season opener. Chelsea have added Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic to N’Golo Kante’s midfield making one of the most formidable midfield groups in European football. Will Rice be able to shut down the smooth passing of these three elite players, or will he fail to be effective against top-class talent just like in the Liverpool match?

Rice deserves the chance to redeem himself against a top-6 team, and judging by his shut down performance against Everton last week, he may actually prove to be dominant again.

A big factor in an unchanged team will be if Marko Arnautovic is available for selection after a knee knock he picked up last match. Chicharito should be back in the team along with Perez and Antonio, but none of those players have the skill, speed, strength, and attitude to do what he does for the team.

It seems like he’ll get a few days off to rest the injury before joining the on-pitch training with the rest of the team later in the week. Arnautovic is too crucial to West Ham’s game plan to allow him to miss a game unless he is completely unfit to play. Realistically any fitness greater than 70% would be good enough for the marquee man to start for West Ham.

He started his goalscoring steak against Chelsea in December of last season, let’s see if he can continue his hot form against them now.

Set Up To Win At Home

Go for draws away and go for wins at home. West Ham need to embrace this against Chelsea at the London Stadium and commit players high on the pitch to support an attacking mentality.

David Moyes secured West Ham’s season by clogging up the midfield and backline with bodies, but West Ham’s team under Pellegrini has not been reinforced with bodies who suit this style. So, why hammer a round peg in a square hole? You’re always going to have more success playing players where they are most comfortable rather than where you believe you need them, and Pellegrini now knows this.

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The backline and midfield three will be fine in their roles, but Anderson, Yarmolenko, and Arnautovic need the ball and need team possession to be effective. A counterattacking style may be implemented out of necessity but these three players have the skill and ability to hold the ball up and get their midfield and fullbacks involved in possession play. Patience will be key, just like at Everton, as West Ham will have to earn the ball off an impressive Chelsea team rather than just take it.

The swagger is well earned and West Ham need to use it to their advantage. It’s a home match, you have momentum, and it’s a London Derby. How could you not get up for this match?!