By Conor Hogan
**On Friday night at Elland Road, West Ham’s midfield was yet abysmal to watch and Nuno Espirito Santo has to do something about it vs Newcastle on Sunday.**
The midfield duo of Tomáš Souček and Andy Irving simply didn’t have the creativity or legs to deal with an admittedly mediocre Leeds side.
Considering the combined €60 million spent by the Hammers on midfielders Mateus Fernandes and Soungoutou Magassa in the summer window, the decision to start Scotsman Irving was considered baffling by supporters.
When the Irons face Newcastle at London Stadium, the new signings must start, as is the case with Academy product Freddie Potts.
Potts and Fernandes both got 25 minutes on Friday, replacing Irving and Souček respectively. Following the changes, West Ham looked a much stronger side. Potts only misplaced 3 of his 36 passes, while Fernandes provided good movement and scored his first goal in Claret & Blue.
Soungoutou Magassa also impressed in his 11 minute cameo. The Frenchman won 3/3 ground duels when he came on – more than Irving and Souček combined during the whole match.
The Frenchman really grew into the game away at Everton, and after an encouraging performance against Leeds, he should be handed his first home start in an Irons shirt.
By starting Potts, Magassa and Fernandes, boss Nuno Espírito Santo would be fielding a midfield with youth and energy – it would actually make Hammers fans excited to watch the game against the Magpies, and would rightfully reward the trio for their impressive performances.
However, with the defence in an absolute state. There is the possibility Magassa may start in the back line, if he does, Paqueta would remain in the midfield. Despite his poor performances, he should improve with Potts and Fernandes alongside him.
In recent games, Nuno, to his detriment, has experimented with his lineup; he should be focused on winning games first. Starting this trio would ultimately be an experiment – but it’s an experiment that makes sense, one that Newcastle won’t see coming, and one that the fans would support.
Of course, this is West Ham we are talking about, so we will probably be subjected to Andy Irving for the third game in a row, but one can dream.