West Ham’s in-form star Crysencio Summerville is primed to have a field day against Liverpool as Nuno Espirito Santo looks to exploit Arne Slot’s biggest weakness.
The Hammers head to Anfield to take on inconsistent Liverpool on Saturday desperate for a win in their bid to avoid relegation from the Premier League and Crysencio Summerville holds the key.
Both West Ham and Liverpool have fallen way below expectations this season and there is plenty riding on the game.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side can climb out of the bottom three with a rare Anfield victory while Liverpool need three points to keep their hopes of Champions League football alive.
West Ham star Summerville primed to take advantage of Liverpool’s right-back crisis
And it is in-form Hammers winger Summerville who can be the difference maker.
West Ham will undoubtedly be looking to Summerville in their plan to target Liverpool’s biggest vulnerability.
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West Ham United's Mateus Fernandes celebrates scoring his side's third goal during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Sunderland at London Stadium on January 24, 2026 in London, England.
The Reds have been there to be got at defensively all season after their influx of new arrivals failed to gel as most expected.
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West Ham looked down and out at the start of the year after throwing away a 1-0 lead to lose 2-1 to Nottingham Forest at home.
That result left the Hammers effectively eight points adrift of safety.
Crysencio Summerville celebrates after scoring West Ham United's only goal against Burton in the FA Cup on 14/02/2026.
Photo by Neal Simpson/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
But flying Dutchman Summerville has led an east London revival with a glut of goals to close the gap on Forest to just two points – with help from Liverpool and their winner at the death at the City Ground last week.
Nuno has a good record against Arne Slot’s Liverpool with his Forest team winning at Anfield last season before drawing the reverse fixture.
His counter-attacking style was always expected to get the best out of rapid Summerville and so it has eventually proved.
On paper, Summerville should have a field day against Liverpool.
Hammers plot to exploit Liverpool star Szoboszlai
Footage from West Ham training suggests Nuno is very much planning to utilise captain Jarrod Bowen and Summerville for fast breaks.
But it is Summerville, who has an eye on a place in Holland’s World Cup squad, who Liverpool will be worried about most.
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West Ham United's Jarrod Bowen applauds the fans at the final whistle during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Bournemouth at London Stadium on February 21, 2026 in London, United Kingdom.
Right-back has been Slot’s problem position all season and that remains the case for the visit of West Ham.
Conor Bradley, Jeremie Frimpong, Joe Gomez and Endo Wataru are all injured.
It appears more than likely that midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai will be starting at right-back, as he did against Forest last time out.
Nottingham Forest v Liverpool - Premier League
Photo by Ben Roberts – Danehouse/Getty Images
With Summerville in such good form, it makes it an easy area for the Hammers to exploit.
Nuno and Summerville will be encouraged by the fact Callum Hudson-Odoi – a player who shares several similarities with the Dutchman – gave Szoboszlai a tough time last weekend.
Szoboszlai playing out of position at right-back also weakens the Reds in central midfield.
That could be just as pivotal to this clash with Mateus Fernandes just as important as Summerville to West Ham’s recent turnaround.
Summerville has scored six goals since January 11th, helping West Ham pull themselves to within touching distance of safety and into the fifth round of the FA Cup.
West Ham playing Liverpool at Anfield is usually a thankless task.
The Irons have won there just once in the last 57 visits in all competitions. That victory came 11 years ago in August 2015, when Mark Noble, Manuel Lanzini and Diafra Sakho scored in a 3-0 win under Slaven Bilic during the unforgettable Farewell Boleyn campaign.
With Summerville in form and West Ham losing just once in their last six Premier League matches, Nuno will be hoping to pull a rabbit out of the hat and pile the pressure on Forest and Spurs.
Nottingham Forest are away at Brighton while Spurs are away at Fulham on Sunday.
A win for West Ham at Liverpool will lift Nuno’s side above Forest and within a point of Spurs.
West Ham then go to Fulham in midweek while Forest are at Man City and Tottenham play Palace.
If Summerville keeps up his fine form and West Ham can exploit that Liverpool weakness, the Premier League table could have a very different complexion heading into the final 10 games of the season.
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