13 Comments

Antonio starts up front in Manchester

LineupMichail Antonio is back in the team for today’s match for his first start since the Premier League games against Brighton.With Joe Hart unavailable due to the terms of his loan Adrian is in goal, while Declan Rice replaces Winston Reid who is injured in defence.

Edimilson Fernandes is also named in the team with Marko Arnautovic and Andre Ayew dropping to the bench with James Collins, Andy Carroll, Mark Noble, Sam Byram, Jose Fonte and Javier Hernandez all out injured.

There’s also spots on the bench for Toni Martinez and Domingos Quina, with the duo joined for the first time in the Premier League by Nathan Trott and Ben Johnson. With no Mark Noble or Winston Reid the captaincy is passed to former Manchester City defender Pablo Zabaleta for today’s fixture.

Starting Lineup: Adrian, Zabaleta (Captain),Rice, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Fernandes, Kouyate, Obiang, Masuaku, Lanzini, Antonio.
 

Subs: Trott, Johnson, Quina, Arnautovic, Ayew, Sakho, Martinez
 

About Sean Whetstone

I am Season Ticket Holder in West stand lower at the London Stadium and before that, I used to stand in the Sir Trevor Brooking Lower Row R seat 159 in the Boleyn Ground and in the Eighties I stood on the terraces of the old South Bank. I am a presenter on the West Ham Podcast called MooreThanJustaPodcast.co.uk. A Blogger on WestHamTillIdie.com a member of the West Ham Supporters Advisory Board (SAB), Founder of a Youtube channel called Mr West Ham Football at http://www.youtube.com/MrWestHamFootball, I am also the associate editor here at Claret and Hugh. Life Long singer of bubbles! Come on you Irons! Follow me at @Westhamfootball on twitter

13 comments on “Antonio starts up front in Manchester

  1. No recognised striker again.Park the bus lads and get ready for a blitzkreig.

  2. I have to say the team that Moyes and pearse have picked is probably the worse team they could have picked. If they honestly believe that they can hold out City by playing a defensive system then they are clueless. Christmas is coming and I will be surprised if these two clowns are still in charge after Christmas. It was obvious to everyone to have a go at City today. Cresswell is deplorable should be dropped. How he cannot start Arnie and Sakho is just incredible. Young Rice is no where near ready for this level. A terrible day in the office ahead and I have to say that the team selected is down right awful. For a manager to pick a team like this when they have nothing to lose is sending out all the wrong messages. He has no consideration for the travelling fans. All about him. Pearce is a terrible appointment but I was hoping Moyes would prove me wrong. I just cannot see it any longer. They have to go and go soon.

  3. Absolutely mind blowing , sakho on the bench again !
    Fernandez , zabba, cresswell to be totally overrun !! This may be ugly ? Antonio should have been in m/f backing zabba up and pushing forward with his pace and working with sakho ,
    Hoof ball looks to be the ploy over the top for him to chase ? 😕

  4. Incredible how Sakho doesn’t get a start . Just hope there’s some kind of game plan apart from long balls and relying on Antonio to latch onto them . Reckon Arnautovic should start as well . Strange selection in the Bilic mode . If it works , well ok .

    • Agree I hope it works but seems like Bilic players out of Position. Antonio actually likes playing in he’s best position RM RW.
      I was hoping for a back 3. Feel for Adrian tho think he will have good game.
      And feel for Rice he wikk have to cover Ogbonna & Zab who has been getting exposed coming out & Pep will use that w Sane.
      Like him or not Sakho is our most rounded CF & when he has played shows he can score get in behind & hold play up.
      So just not playing him bc don’t want him injured to sell him. He will def go In Jan.

    • And Arnie is best on Left now that Ant was fit thought we would see him there.

  5. I expect the massacre..

  6. I’m glad that I was wrong..good first half…

  7. Laz – Your mate Sakho let us down when we needed him at the end! Had to hit the target at least. And Rice went to sleep for the winner. How often does Silva make that same run?
    Don’t want to hear we were better, gallant or any of that shyte. Lost again, pure and simple. That’s one point from 12 under Moyes, which is worse than Slav was delivering. No improvement in results and nothing really to suggest its about to.

  8. Not having that. Jimbo ? Arnie should have taken the ball in towards goal an then cut it back for him when the defenders ran towards goal ! He panicked and all that was on was a shot with a defender in the way bloking a clean strike ! Run his nuts off sakho did and won many balls in m,/f to boot , and don’t forget he was a lone striker as well ! Antonio disappoints me ? He seems to be all over the place and nackered after 30 mins ? Still not fit as the cramp suggests ! Ball watching cost us the winning goal ! And if we went at them instead of trying to keep them out we could have got something from the game ! They weren’t on blob and we should have taken advantage of it ! Well played ogbonna ! My man of the match ! For us ! Much better performance from us ! I expected to get trounced with the side he put out so well done but were in deep crap still lol!.😉

    • And Adrian #1 mate ? End of !!!😉

    • +1 the whole team was good. First time we played a full 90 all season. We never gave up. Some errors but we took the lead against best attack in PL in years. And yes Ref made bad calls not contact Delph dive should been yellow changes game & Kouyate going off hurt as well.
      I think we deserved a point & if Adrian doestn start from now on I’ll be fuming not juts for GK but leading & organising

  9. Spot on with Adrian Laz, hopefully that’s the last we will see of Hart. We’ve a great keeper of our own who has stayed loyal to the cause and deserves his reward in the first team from now on. Not only is he good at stopping shots to his left, he plays to the camera too! Love Adrian. I’ll steer away from Sakho now. Think you’ve an unhealthy bond there bro!

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