West Ham suffered their eighteenth defeat of the Premier League season so far at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur. Captain Mark Noble was one of the worst performers on the pitch.
David Moyes is under growing pressure to drag West Ham out of the relegation fight that they find themselves in. One way the Scottish manager could do this is by dropping Mr West Ham himself Mark Noble.
The 33-year-old was well off the pace against Tottenham on Tuesday night, constantly chasing the game when off the ball and losing the ball when on it. According to Whoscored.com Noble played a 6/10, which seems generous after his performance.
Moyes does have options to replace the veteran. Jack Wilshere is currently warming the bench for West Ham. In the Hammers current predicament turning to the former England star might not be the worst idea in the world.
Wilshere is finally fit after a long injury and West Ham need to use him before another inevitable injury strikes. Wilshere could be the perfect player to sit just in front of defensive midfielders Declan Rice and Tomas Souček.
The former Arsenal man is capable of contributing towards the defensive side of the game but is also able to chip in with the Hammers attack. West Ham has been missing creativity from the centre of the pitch.
If Moyes is worried about Wilshere’s injury record and relying on him to step up he does have another option. Pablo Fornals simply does not have the pace to play on the wing, however, could be perfect for the central midfielder role. The Spaniard is a brilliant creator and has been one of the club’s better players this season.
Fornals has huge potential and cost the club in excess of £20 million last summer and has shown why on occasion this season. The 24-year-old has the ability to cut defences open with his passing ability as shown for his assist for Jarrod Bowen against Southampton.
So there are options for Moyes to mix-up what is becoming a predictable line-up game after game, whether the Scot will take the chance of not remains to be seen.