West Ham United were terrible against Crystal Palace on Saturday, and now Graham Potter has a really big selection dilemma ahead of the Aston Villa game next week.
Graham Potter has a serious task on his hands, if he is to turn things around at West Ham this season.
The Hammers’ poor performance was exemplified by the awful display of Guido Rodriguez.
There are far too many West Ham players right now who are miles off the levels required to be playing Premier League football.
The performance against Palace was far too passive.
Yes, Potter is missing some of his best players – namely Jarrod Bowen – but the second string should be offering so much more.
The former Chelsea and Brighton boss cannot afford to head into the Villa game with the same lineup that got played off the park by the Eagles at the London Stadium.
It’s time for Potter to take unprecedented action.
Graham Potter needs to take action for Aston Villa vs West Ham
I think Potter needs to send a real message to his players in our next game away at Aston Villa.
Many of them didn’t perform against Crystal Palace – in fact, there wasn’t one player who could leave the field of play with his head held high.
Potter made the worrying claim after the match that his players didn’t compete well enough for second balls or in duels.
And now it’s time to inject some real hunger into the starting XI.
I believe Potter should start a trio of our under-21s stars against Villa – Ollie Scarles, Lewis Orford and Kaelan Casey.
Casey, 20, definitely needs to start, with Konstantinos Mavropanos suspended and Jean-Clair Todibo expected to still be missing with a troublesome calf.
Meanwhile, the energy that Orford and Scarles will bring to the team could be invaluable against Villa.
Out with the old and in with the new at West Ham
I don’t want to see Guido Rodriguez or Aaron Cresswell start for us in the Premier League ever again.
Surely Potter realises that now as well.
Crucially though, the 49-year-old will gain some real goodwill from the Hammers fans if he starts some of our youth players.
West Ham could be on a hiding to nothing at Villa Park, so Graham Potter may as well see what some of our best youth players have in their locker.
It’s time for the academy to lift the mood around the club after that dismal display against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
We all know they have incredible ability, and the Hammers head coach needs to put their qualities to the test now.
Potter taking unprecedented action by starting Casey, Orford and Scarles in the same team could be a real turning point for the club going forward.
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