West Ham United will be without two players for Saturday’s opening Premier League fixture of the 2025-26 season against newly-promoted Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.
Crysencio Summerville is “getting really close” to returning from a long-term hamstring injury, but he will not be involved this weekend, and the same can be said for George Earthy who picked up an ankle injury in training last month.
Head coach Graham Potter could be tempted to name all four of his summer signings in his starting lineup, including goalkeeper Mads Hermansen who is set to battle with Alphonse Areola for the number one jersey this season.
El Hadji Malick Diouf impressed in pre-season and is expected to start at left wing-back, while Kyle Walker-Peters will be hoping to force his way into the first XI on the opposite flank, but Aaron Wan-Bissaka is likely to get the nod on Saturday.
Jean Clair-Todibo, Max Kilman and either Kostantinos Mavropanos or Nayef Aguerd, who spent last season on loan at Real Sociedad, could begin in the back three, while Potter’s midfield may consist of Tomas Soucek and either Edson Alvarez or set-piece specialist James Ward-Prowse.
Captain Jarrod Bowen is almost guaranteed to start in attack alongside Lucas Paqueta, while Callum Wilson will compete with Nicolas Fullkrug for the centre-forward spot. Wilson did not feature in pre-season, though, so Fullkrug is more likely to start against the Black Cats.
West Ham United possible starting lineup: Areola; Todibo, Kilman, Aguerd; Wan-Bissaka, Soucek, Ward-Prowse, Diouf; Bowen, Paqueta; Fullkrug
> Click here to see how Sunderland could line up for this contest
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