Lopetegui could drop another first-team star alongside Areola in the next away match
- Alphonse Areola is again expected to be dropped against Nottingham Forest.
- Lucas Paqueta could also be replaced by Tomas Soucek in the starting lineup in the away fixture.
By Rahul Das
Recently, manager Julen Lopetegui dropped first-choice goalkeeper Alphonse Areola against Manchester United in the 2-1 home win at the London Stadium. The reason behind this decision stemmed from the fact that the 31-year-old goalkeeper has conceded a lot of goals at his near-post this season, and isn't much convincing with his passing and distribution.
Lukasz Fabianski, who replaced Alphonse Areola in the starting lineup gave an impressive goalkeeping performance in his first Premier League appearance in the ongoing season. The 39-year-old made a number of huge saves to avoid conceding more goals and played a key role in the 2-1 home win over Manchester United.
Lopetegui could drop another first-team star alongside Areola in the next away match
Now, similar to Areola, first-team starter Lucas Paqueta could also be dropped from the upcoming away fixture against Nottingham Forest as the Brazil international hasn't enjoyed a prolific form this season. A common pattern in Paqueta's playmaking is the fact that the 27-year-old forward gives away the ball-possession multiple times throughout the match.
Moreover, Paqueta isn't good while defending, which was evident as he left Liam Delap unmarked on the 1-1 equalising goal against Ipswich Town in the first half. Further, Paqueta hasn't created a lot of huge chances this season which has led West Ham to struggle in front of the goal in the first few matches.
Hence, Tomas Soucek could return to the starting lineup to replace Paqueta due to the box-to-box midfielder's impressive recent performances in the middle of the park. Moreover, Soucek's finishing is decent as well and the 29-year-old experienced midfielder could score some important goals for Julen Lopetegui's side against high-flying Nottingham Forest.
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A few more lineup changes are expected with Summerville highly likely to start in the front three and it remains to be seen whether West Ham can continue their winning momentum against Nottingham Forest in the upcoming away fixture.
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