It is a challenge attempting to read much into Nuno Espirito Santo’s pre-season team sheets at West Ham United.
After all, El Hadji Malick Diouf, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Edson Alvarez are yet to return from their post-World Cup holidays. Tomas Soucek will miss the first few weeks of the Championship season, too.
While the Hammers’ only new players are teenage striker Jett Murphy and former loanee Keiber Lamadrid.
Rangers 0-0 West Ham: Tell us who caught the eye, for better or for worse…
In short, when the new campaign kicks off at Turf Moor on August 16th, three weeks from now, West Ham United’s team sheet could look pretty different from the one which began their pre-season preparations at Southend.
But for the time being, we can still draw a few interesting conclusions.
Mads Hermansen and Ollie Scarles appear to have Nuno’s trust at West Ham United
For instance, Mads Hermansen is set to remain Nuno Espirito Santo’s number one, ahead of Alphonse Areola.
After a somewhat nervy start to pre-season, Hermansen excelled during Sunday’s 0-0 draw with Rangers. He commanded his area excellently, while the great Neville Southall would have been impressed with the Dane’s superglue-like handling.
Areola pulled off a truly world-class reaction save when West Ham thrashed Stevenage 5-0 a few days earlier. But the Frenchman is likely to start next season how he ended the last; among the substitutes.
That is, of course, unless an offer comes his way in the next few weeks.
Hammers News can confirm that Areola is one of the players West Ham would consider selling. A £120,000-a-week, second-choice goalkeeper is not exactly an ideal situation to find yourselves in. Young Finlay Herrick would be trusted to step up if Areola does go but, at the moment, there is little sign of that.
In the meantime, Ollie Scarles appears to be ahead of Ezra Mayers in the left-back pecking order. Scarles has started all three of West Ham’s pre-season games.
Mayers came off the bench to feature as a left-back against Southend, Stevenage and Rangers – suggesting that may be his role next term, rather than as a left-sided centre-back – but it would be Scarles’ spot to lose if El Hadji Malick Diouf moves on.
Scarles is looking ahead optimistically to the Championship season, feeling that a 46-game campaign means lots of opportunities for he and the rest of the young talent at Nuno’s disposal.
“That’s what I’ve wanted. I just want the opportunity to be able to express myself and show what I can do, and prove to the manager and show as much as I can as to why I want to be playing,” the 20-year-old said last week.
“And that’s it really. I need to earn my spot and I’ll give everything I can to do that.
“We’re going to need a big squad, with three games a week [in the Championship]. It’s going to be a lot of games, a lot of quick turnovers.”
Who do you think has ENHANCED their reputation in pre-season?
Ajala, Lamadrid and Jett Murphy may fancy their chances next season…
Has Keiber Lamadrid leapfrogged Freddie Potts?
It is interesting to note that Freddie Potts has been restricted to two cameo appearances thus far. While a sickness bug kept him out against Stevenage, Nuno has chosen Mohamadou Kante, James Ward-Prowse and Lamadrid ahead of Potts thus far.
Lamadrid has adapted well to a central midfield role, while Ward-Prowse looks a man revived and desperate to make the most of potential clean slate. Midfield reinforcements are also expected before the close of the window.
Where this leaves Potts is anyone’s guess. On the bench, probably.
Airidas Golambeckis replaced Dinos Mavropanos when the Greek giant was missing at Broadhall Way. A classy, commanding presence who showed real leadership when captaining the Under-21s aged just 17, Golambeckis appears to have leapfrogged the older, more experienced Kaelan Casey.
Three years Golambeckis’ senior, Casey has made two Premier League appearances for the Hammers. But after difficult loan spells at Swansea City and Leyton Orient, if there is to be a role in Nuno’s squad next term for a young, right-footed centre-back from the academy, it is likely to be Golambeckis.
Lewis Orford may have moved ahead of George Earthy meanwhile; the former scoring a stunner at Stevenage while the latter has remained on the fringes of the action.
Callum Marshall has shown promise, albeit his status as the club’s third-choice centre-forward may soon come under threat from new signings or the emergence of Jett Murphy.
Josh Ajala may present himself as a post-Summerville solution on the left. Decisions will also need to be made regarding Preston Fearon, Ryan Battrum and the out-of-contract Junior Robinson.
For now though, as West Ham await the returns of Diouf and Soucek, as Potts struggles to force his way back in, it would not come as a surprise if Scarles, Kante, Lamadrid or even Ward-Prowse were on the team sheet in two weeks’ time when an EFL Cup clash with Portsmouth ignites the season.
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