The importance of Saturday’s game cannot be stressed enough, the fixture has loomed over supporters since the Burnley defeat 3 weeks ago like an over-due dentist’s appointment. So much has been written about the events that took place on March 10th that the turmoil off the pitch has almost overshadowed the dire situation the club find themselves in on it.
Simply put we must beat Southampton and Stoke, we are so short of confidence and belief at the moment it’s going to take a huge turnaround to beat a Southampton side who have progressed to the Semi-Finals of the FA Cup and are in the middle of a new manager bounce.
What’s apparent is that we need to stick together and create a positive atmosphere in the ground, it will take the players to stand up here, the turmoil has shielded them, they have turned in some lacklustre performances in the past month or so and now more than ever they need to perform. We have seen the various calls for unity across social media and by various fan groups, it remains to be seen what impact this will have. Southampton are a decent side, they have some very good players and despite appearances have only lost three times this year. West Ham do not have a good record against them in recent times with injury prone Striker Charlie Austin being the main architect of our downfall in recent times.
The return of Masuaku is a big plus point and Declan Rice has to be involved somewhere, whether that is in midfield or at the back dependent on the fitness of Collins. I would play Cullen rather than Kouyate as his commitment has been lacking but I think Moyes will back Kouyate’s superior experience.
West Ham need big games from Antonio, Arnautovic and Hernandez, we also need Lanzini fit and firing, this is a huge game for the club and nothing less than a win will do.
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