This West Ham lineup against Ipswich Town should definitely tempt Lopetegui
- West Ham face Ipswich Town in a home fixture at the London Stadium.
- The strongest West Ham starting lineup to take a win against Ipswich Town.
By Rahul Das
Midfield
West Ham have looked an unbalanced side in the middle of the park, thus, some changes are needed here to gain more control and momentum in the match. Star midfielder Edson Alvarez is returning after his one-match suspension against Brentford due to his red card in the Carabao Cup defeat to Liverpool. While the 26-year-old hasn't been in a great form at the beginning of the season, he has been played as a centre-back as well as box-to-box pivot in the recent matches instead of his preferred defensive role.
Therefore, Lopetegui should play the Mexico international in the holding midfield role, where he thrived previously at Ajax as well as in the last season at West Ham. Experienced midfielder Tomas Soucek is expected to start in the box-to-box position again, with the 29-year-old star scoring the equaliser in the recent 1-1 draw with Brentford. Despite not being a much comfortable player while dealing with high-pressing tactics, Soucek helps West Ham to drive the ball forward down the pitch and possesses decent finishing from inside the box.
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Now, Carlos Soler should be the second box-to-box midfielder alongside Soucek playing in a more central midfield position. This is due to the 27-year-old's ability to win ball possession and quickly make some brilliant key passes inside the final third. Thus, having Soler in a more central role behind Soucek will help West Ham to be a more calm and composed side while going forward, where West Ham currently struggle due to some underwhelming decision making and misplaced passes while having the possession.