West Ham United will resume their UEFA Europa Conference League campaign with a Round of 16 first-leg tie against AEK Larnaca on Thursday.
It is not often that European competition is a pleasant distraction for a team from their domestic performances, especially when it is the newly-established third-tier tournament that very few care about. But that is the case for David Moyes’s struggling West Ham United, who are desperate for a much-needed boost to lift the spirits as they make the trip to face AEK Larnaca in the Europa Conference League Round of 16 first leg.
The Hammers are facing the very genuine prospect of relegation from the Premier League, currently languishing in 16th place in the standings and only one point above the relegation zone. They come into this game on the back of getting pumped 4-0 at Brighton and have only kept five clean sheets in their 25 league games. In Europe, it has been a completely different story, though.
Six victories from six group-stage games saw Moyes’s side cruise to the Round of 16 before the New Year. But two of the opponents in their group are well below the level of a second-tier English side, let alone one of the strongest leagues in the Premier League. West Ham now return to European action with the pressure very much on Moyes.
West Ham could have had a much tougher draw than AEK Larnaca, given that some big European giants like Lazio, Villarreal, Anderlecht, and Fiorentina are still in the competition. That is good news for Moyes and co., as their current form – particularly away from home – is not anything to write home about.
Even though AEK Larnaca are a huge underdog, the Irons would take them lightly at their own peril. This season has been momentous for AEK Larnaca. They had the opportunity to play in the Champions League qualifying rounds for the first time in the club’s history after finishing second in the domestic league last season.
They were ousted by Midtjylland and continued their qualification campaign for the Europa League, where they defied the odds to beat Partizan Belgrade and SC Dnipro-1 to secure the group stage in the Europa League for the second time in the club’s history.
The hosts finished third in their Europa League group and edged past Dnipro-1 to set up this high-profile Europa Conference League match-up against West Ham. They sit second in the Cypriot First Division this season and have been outstanding on home soil, winning 14 of 20 home games across all competitions. Ahead of their historic meeting with the English side, The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter.
Team News & Tactics
AEK Larnaca
🍷 35-year old Ivan Tričkovski with a hat-trick for AEK Larnaca ⚽️⚽️⚽️
📸: @AEKLARNACA || #UECL pic.twitter.com/pwWKVjgx6a
— UEFA Europa Conference League (@europacnfleague) March 6, 2023
AEK Larnaca will certainly not be intimidated by the size of West Ham United and are still dreaming of reaching the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa Conference League. Angel Garcia and Pere Pons are both suspended for Larnaca this week and cannot feature against West Ham, while Bruno Gama is out due to an Achilles tendon injury. Artem Gromov and Milos Gordic are also unavailable for this clash.
On the flip side, the club’s top scorer, Omri Altman, has recently returned from an injury and was on the pitch in the last match for a couple of minutes. He could feature here but is unlikely to be risked from the start. Head Coach Jose Luis Oltra will line his team up in a 4-4-1-1/4-4-2 formation and will be forced to make several tweaks to the starting XI due to suspensions for this encounter.
Kenan Piric should remain between the sticks for Kitrinoprasinoi. There are unlikely to be any changes in front of him in the central defensive rearguard either, with Hrvoje Milicevic and Mikel Gonzalez lining up at the heart of the backline, flanked by Roberto Rosales and Nikos Englezou.
Rafail Mamas is the favourite to replace Pons in the Cypriots’ midfield to form the double pivot alongside Gus Ledes. They will be tasked with the job of contracting the space in the middle of the park with their defensive tenacity and intent to press. Imad Faraj and Marin Jakolis will act as the two wide midfielders, looking to engineer good chances as well as get on the scoresheet themselves, if possible.
Veteran striker Ivan Trickovski comes into this game off the back of a superb hat-trick against Enosis Neon Paralimni at the weekend. And he will be one to watch in terms of possible goal scorers for the hosts. With Altman still lacking fitness, Rafael Lopes looks ready to lead the line.
Probable Lineup (4-4-1-1): Piric; Rosales, Milicevic, Gonzalez, Englezou; Faraj, Ledes, Mamas, Jakolis; Trickovski; Lopes
West Ham United
West Ham United have a fair few injury concerns this week. Vladimir Coufal (heel) and Lukasz Fabianski (fractured cheekbone, eye socket) are out of contention through injuries.
That said, manager David Moyes is expected to make changes on Thursday night to keep his troops fresh for more pressing matters in the Premier League’s battle for survival, with a home game against Aston Villa lying in wait in the Premier League on Sunday.
Moyes will set up his side in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Alphonso Areola will function between the sticks for West Ham in Fabianski’s injury absence.
With Coufal sidelined, Ben Johnson should continue at right-back. And the experienced Aaron Cresswell is likely to come in at left-back for Emerson Palmieri. Angelo Ogbonna was forced off against Brighton and replaced by a returning Kurt Zouma. So he should start now alongside Morocco international Nayef Aguerd.
Preparations underway for the #UECL ⚒️ pic.twitter.com/XNFbylQl7t
— West Ham United (@WestHam) March 7, 2023
In midfield, Tomas Soucek has been struggling for form again. So the Czech midfielder is likely to be dropped, with Flynn Downes returning to the starting XI to offer a stronger option in possession and energy alongside skipper Declan Rice.
In the attacking third, Spaniard playmaker Pablo Fornals has been impressive since coming back into the fold in the number ten role. So he could get another start here, with Lucas Paqueta likely to be handed a breather. Said Benrahma will provide creativity, trickery, and energy on the left, with Jarrod Bowen offering directness on the opposite flank.
Maxwel Cornet has not played for the Irons since October when he sustained a calf injury. But he has resumed training and could finally be ready to get some minutes under his belt as a substitute on the right wing, cutting in on his lethal left foot.
Up top, there seems to be an opportunity to reintroduce Gianluca Scamacca to the starting lineup, as he requires some minutes to regain match sharpness. Danny Ings has started the last two Premier League games and could be handed a rest here.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Areola; Johnson, Zouma, Aguerd, Cresswell; Downes, Rice; Bowen, Fornals, Benrahma; Scamacca
Key Stats
- This is the very first meeting between AEK Larnaca and West Ham United in a European competition. Moreover, both teams have never faced opponents from England and Cyprus, respectively.
- West Ham United have come out on top in all six games in the UEFA Conference League group stages this season, becoming the first side in the competition’s brief history to do so.
- AEK Larnaca are undefeated in their last four European games (W1 D3, excluding qualification), their longest-ever such streak.
- West Ham have netted ten goals in their four away games in this competition.
- David Moyes’s side have won just once in their last six games, losing three times since the start of February.
Player to Watch
Gianluca Scamacca
Gianluca Scamacca’s opportunities to impress in the Premier League have been few and far between in recent months. But the Italian international has been the Irons’ go-to striker in the Europa Conference League this season.
The 24-year-old striker has already scored four goals for West Ham this season. And the 24-year-old will be chomping at the bit to add to that tally on Thursday as he looks to use his performances on the European circuit to force his way into David Moyes’s starting XI.
Prediction
AEK Larnaca 0-2 West Ham United
A first-leg trip to AEK Larnaca could be a tricky contest for the Hammers, especially given the hosts have never gotten this far in Europe before and will certainly be fired up for this encounter. But they have more than enough quality to progress through this tie, even if a crucial game against an in-form Aston Villa is sandwiched between these two legs, putting further pressure on David Moyes.
West Ham are looking incredibly shaky and inconsistent right now. But they are probably a further step up in class than the Cypriot side and should be too hot to handle. So The Hard Tackle predicts them to secure a comfortable 2-0 victory in the first leg, laying the groundwork for a straightforward second leg back at the London Stadium.
