Manchester United have a lot of work to do if they are going to be a real force to question Chelsea this season, and Ferguson will have to prove that outing Keane wasnt a move he’ll live to regret. With this in mind the pressure is all on Man United going into this game, and if this was an Old Trafford fixture I’d expect them to come out with an easy victory, as desperate as they are to flex their imperial muscle. But this is Upton Park, and with a gritty performance like last weekend, West Ham could cause Ferguson’s men some problems.
What West Ham wont want is a repeat of the Liverpool game, because that game was lost when the first goal went in. West Ham were without any response whatsoever that day, had a complete inability to play and the overall feeling that maybe they’d given too much respect to the Liverpool side with the result that they looked like they were drowning in the deepend. Even if this match ends with a similarly one-sided scoreline, we need to make opportunities and not sit there and take it if the team is going to keep riding high on confidence.
Going in to a match of this size without Nigel Reo-Coker is daunting for me, but assuming AP sticks with him, Mark Noble is living the West Ham fan’s dream out there and I expect him to have another great performance. He wasnt phased by Edgar Davids and despite an over-excited start really came into his own. Mullins also played his heart out and I think he’s getting better all the time. And who knows with Yossi Benayoun, a player with so much talent he could score against any team.
Super Teddy Sheringham never seems to play as well away, but tomorrow he is back at home, which means we can hope for a good game from him. Roy Carroll coming back from injury is a massive bonus for the team because whilst Shaka had deputised reasonably well I could picture him letting in some shaky goals against players with the quality of Ronaldo and Rooney. I can see Konchesky really causing some problems along their right hand side as well, not forgetting that Konch is the man who has set up so many of our goals this season with his wicked crossing.
I can easily expect a good result from this high-tempo match. No one wants to come to Upton Park, and hopefully we can give an inhospitable impression to some of the players who havent visited us in the Premiership before. At Sunderland and at Spurs we've proven we can nick points, and I hope we'll be wiping a few grins off some Red faces in a similar style. Here’s hoping Pardew’s Army come through with another spirited performance.
Expected lineup (4-4-2):
Carroll
Repka Gabbidon Ferdinand Konchesky
Benayoun Noble Mullins Etherington
Sheringham
Harewood
Subs: Hislop, Dailly, Newton, Zamora, Aliadiere
Anyone remember the FA Cup? :-)