Wilshere look certain to play a part tonight
West Ham have been warned they are in for a serious test when they arrive in Newport tonight for the Carabao Cup clash.
And Manuel Pellegrini’s men will be aware that of three Premier League clubs to visit the club – Leicester City, Spurs and Manchester City – only the Premier League champions have managed a win.
And having seen off Gillingham via a penalty shoot out in Round One goalkeeper Nick Townsend has made it clear no team is likely to under estimate The Exiles.
Speaking ahead of the game he said: “Any team that comes here knows they will be in for a game. We’ve just got to play our own game and focus on how we play and try and get another scalp.
“The crowd that do come support us all the way to the death, it’s great. It does give you that boost that you need.
“I think we are a good footballing team, we play a lot of good football and I don’t think we get the recognition for it.
“Everyone says we’re a long-ball team but we’re definitely not. We can do both. We’ve played a lot of good football this season and last season. It’s great to show what we can do as a club and as a group of players.”
ClaretandHugh says: Embarrassment is really not an option tonight – we suffered more than enough of that at Wimbledon AFC last season and it’s a hard one to forget. The fact that Sky have chosen this as their featured Round Two match is a clear indicator that they are perhaps expecting – and indeed hoping for – a big upset such as was the case for us last season. Manuel Pellegrini has a tough job on selection wise given all that but with the suggestion that Seb Haller will be involved along with the likes of Snodgrass and Antonio we expect nothing other than a win. There may have been excuses last season with the Marko Arnauotovic nonsense rumbling in the background but there can be none tonight. The boss has made it clear that Wilshere will feature and the midfielder will know he needs a big performance. We look forward to following up against Watford in style.