By Kris Gonzo | Senior West Ham Columnist (Follow on X)
West Ham United v Wolverhampton Wanderers
EFL Championship
London Stadium
Tuesday 1 September 2026, 7.45pm BST
Nuno Espírito Santo is under a massive amount of pressure heading into Tuesday night’s game against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
West Ham are 19th in the Championship with two points from three games. Wolves, meanwhile, are second, unbeaten and have already scored nine league goals.
If West Ham lose this, I genuinely believe Nuno’s job will be on the line.
Nuno’s Job Could Be On The Line
The Hammers were relegated alongside Wolves last season, but the two clubs have made very different starts to life in the Championship.
While César Peixoto’s team have collected seven points and scored freely, West Ham are still looking for their first league victory.
Another defeat would leave Nuno with two points from four matches. That would be an appalling return for a squad expected to challenge for automatic promotion.
The pressure was already building before the trip to Watford. It will become considerably more intense if West Ham fail again against one of the strongest teams in the division.
Under pressure: Nuno Espirito Santo
Watford Exposed West Ham’s Achilles Heel
Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Watford showed that West Ham are capable of dominating possession, but it also highlighted two significant problems.
The first is our Achilles heel. If teams hit West Ham on the counterattack, we are vulnerable because the defence lacks pace.
The second is that we are struggling to unlock the door at the other end. West Ham can have plenty of the ball, but we lack the final pass required to pick the lock.
That could be particularly dangerous against a Wolves team arriving with confidence following their 4-1 victory over Stoke City.
Nuno must find a way to make West Ham more creative without leaving an already slow defence exposed.
Golambeckis Deserves To Keep His Place
Airidas Golambeckis was outstanding against Watford.
For me, he was West Ham’s best player and possibly the only outstanding performer on the pitch. The teenager looked composed, defended well and fully justified his selection.
As I wrote in my Watford player ratings, his anticipation was particularly impressive and he repeatedly stepped in front of attackers without even needing to make a tackle.
He deserves to keep his place against Wolves, even if Konstantinos Mavropanos returns from injury.
Unfortunately, I’m not convinced Nuno will agree.
Despite Golambeckis doing nothing wrong, I suspect the manager will immediately restore Mavropanos alongside Max Kilman.
That would send a strange message to a youngster who took his opportunity so impressively.
Airidas Golambeckis impressed for West Ham in place of Mavropanos
Orford Has Earned His Place
Lewis Orford should also start.
I don’t think any West Ham midfielder has played better than him this season. His age should be completely irrelevant because his performances have justified his place in the team.
His display in the 4-1 Carabao Cup victory at Southampton demonstrated exactly what he can bring, and West Ham’s midfield has generally looked better with him involved.
I would retain the 4-3-3 formation and start Orford as part of a three-man midfield.
West Ham need greater control and creativity in that area, particularly against one of the strongest teams in the division.
However, Nuno may be tempted to bring Pablo Felipe back into the starting XI following his return to the bench at Watford.
My preference would be to start Joël Piroe through the middle. He is a proven Championship goalscorer and needs to be used close to goal rather than in the deeper role he was given against Charlton.
As the numbers from his Championship debut demonstrated, Piroe is a penalty-box operator rather than the No.10 Nuno initially asked him to be.
New signing Edvin Austbø should not be thrown straight into the team, assuming his international clearance and visa arrive in time.
However, I would definitely include him on the bench.
Gonzo’s Predicted West Ham Team
This is extremely difficult to predict because Nuno’s selections and formations have been inconsistent.
To be absolutely clear, this is not the team I would select. It is the team I think Nuno might choose.
I suspect he will revert to 4-4-2, drop Golambeckis and Orford, restore Mavropanos and partner Pablo with Taty Castellanos.
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| GK | Mads Hermansen |
| RB | Kyle Walker-Peters |
| CB | Konstantinos Mavropanos |
| CB | Max Kilman |
| LB | Ollie Scarles |
| RM | Jarrod Bowen |
| CM | Mohamadou Kanté |
| CM | Arne Engels |
| LM | Manor Solomon |
| ST | Pablo Felipe |
| ST | Taty Castellanos |
Gonzo’s Prediction
Wolves are unbeaten, confident and scoring goals. West Ham remain vulnerable on the counterattack and are struggling to create clear opportunities despite enjoying plenty of possession.
I would stick with 4-3-3, retain Golambeckis and start Orford and Piroe.
Unfortunately, I suspect Nuno will return to the 4-4-2 which has already failed him this season.
I hope I’m wrong, but I can’t see West Ham getting the first league win we desperately need.
Prediction: West Ham United 0-2 Wolverhampton Wanderers
I’d honestly play Mavropanos if he’s fit and Golambeckis next to him. However Mavropanos was terrible in previous game. Was that due to his injury?
His job can’t be on the line if he loses to Wolves imho. Wolves are one of the best teams in the championship if not the best. Lose against Lincoln or some team like that would be a different story. We should beat most teams in this division and I think we will once we start ticking.
If you are correct about team selection – & particularly the result – Nuno has to go !
If you are correct about team selection – & particularly the result – Nuno has to go !
If West Ham lose, who is going to call Nuno into who’s office and fire his sorry a**e? Nobody. There will be an excuse. Give him until the end of September, or next three games. Then he gets a result against Derby and Bolton and the sorry saga drags on. Seen it all before. What a mess.
blimey Kris , “ Prediction: West Ham United 0-2 Wolverhampton Wanderers” , good job we’re all behind the team , just some food for thought , we’ve played 5 competive games and won 2 drawn 2 lost 1 , we’ve lost to the team who are 3 wins from 3 and have drawn with a team who are unbeaten in our division , wolves have beaten preston and stoke who are 3 defeats from 3 in our division , they have beaten port vale and sheffield wednesday in the carabao cup whilst we have beaten portsmouth and southampton who are both in our division (not that games in that cup are a great indicator) , having watched all of our games either live or extended highlights i don’t think many if any of the goals we’ve conceded have come from being hit on the “counterattack” (though i don’t disagree that we do at times look slow to react at the back i.e. charlton goals) and most certainly not the watford goal (decent finish) so i can’t agree that they “Exposed West Ham’s Achilles Heel” , totally agree that Golambeckis and Orford should start and Golambeckis always looks composed in the games i’ve seen him play in the younger sides and makes the basic things look easy and knows when to play or when to clear the ball , and hey your Bet Fred forecast may well come to fruition but let’s not be so down at heel with the team as there’s massive changes gone on within the line-up so it’s not going to be all cork popping from the get go mefinks x
Two of your “lock pickers” Engles and Mukasa have only just joined the squad, give them some time Gonzo.
Completely right with both lots of predictions unfortunately.
4-3-3 will be the call from most but Nuno will have his stubborn head on.