The most important predicted West Ham team of the season

With more than just three points on the line, West Ham and the starting XI selected to start the match have one of the most important matches awaiting them.

Dubbed the £200m match, West Ham vs. Watford has massive relegation implications for both teams and the two below them still looking for survival. West Ham are at home and should be set up to dictate play, but does David Moyes keep his team unchanged or make a more for a more attacking team?

The man in question, to be dropped or not, is Mark Noble. With critics overanalyzing his every move, Noble got a shock start against Norwich and had a fantastic performance, assisting one goal and setting up another.

The rest of the team seemingly picks itself, but will Noble be dropped? For what would be his 500th match for West Ham, Noble surely starts as the team needs leadership, stability, and some stellar midfield flair from kick-off.

Here it is, the predicted XI to face Watford:

Fabianski
Fredericks – Diop – Ogbonna – Cresswell
Rice – Soucek
Bowen – Noble – Fornals
Antonio

Bench: Randolph, Balbuena, Masuaku, Wilshere, Lanzini, Anderson, Yarmolenko, Ajeti, Haller

An unchanged team from the squad that battered now relegated Norwich last weekend. Maybe it’s boring, maybe it’s predictable, but it got a much-needed result against a team with no option but to win, and did so comfortably.

Antonio starting as the lone striker is also something that many people might find shocking, considering the £45m Sebastien Haller is now fit, but Antonio is coming off a career match where he scored 4 goals. There are few players who could bench him after that performance.

I expect this team to commit Noble forward and rely on Bowen, Fornals, and Antonio to sprint at the Watford defence. Noble will have to get into the attacking third much more, but he will likely be more box-to-box in his position.

Lastly, Masuaku is getting a ton of attention and could be in contention to start over Cresswell, who has struggled lately. With Felipe Anderson likely to make the bench, I would expect Masuaku to be a sub for left-back only, but a surprise start could be in order.