Premier League Preview: West Ham United

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·12 août 2025

Premier League Preview: West Ham United

Last year’s finish: 14th
First match: Saturday, August 16 10:00am ET @ Sunderland
Where they’ll be after five: 2 pts. with 0W, 2D, 3L

The biggest issue with West Ham is a lack of identity. Most of the ingredients are there, but without a clear recipe to follow, the resulting dish is inevitably insipid.

Transfer News

Last season West Ham featured a number of players over 30, but over the summer they’ve taken steps towards a more youthful side. Gone are Danny Ings (33), Lukasz Fabianski (40), Vladimir Coufal (32), Aaron Cresswell (35), and Mikhail Antonio (35). Antonio’s release is bitter, particularly after he suffered that horrific car accident nine months ago. But soccer is a business.

Vidéos OneFootball

The club also transferred Mohammed Kudus to Tottenham for $74M, rolling all the profit into three big signings: defenders Jean-Clair Todibo (his loan from Nice is now permanent) and El Hadji Malick Diouf (wing-back from Slavia Prague), and goalkeeper Mads Hermansen (from relegated Leicester City). One potentially game-changing acquisition is Callum Wilson, picked up on a free from Newcastle United.

Season Outlook

They get a softball start when they travel north to Sunderland, but the next four fixtures are tough ones. I predict a winless first five games. This will put pressure on Graham Potter, who will react by tinkering with the line-ups and formations. Rinse and repeat. There’s a strong possibility Potter doesn’t last until December. But regardless of manager, West Ham is on my relegation shortlist this season.

Key Players

Forward If Callum Wilson stays healthy, he has the potential to be a potent attacking threat. Between him and the equally injury-prine Niclas Füllkrug, they might have one full-time striker on the pitch!
Midfielders Jarrod Bowen’s lethality and Lucas Paquetá’s creativity are the main drivers of West Ham’s offense. James Ward-Prowse’s normally clinical dead-ball deliveries were off last season; he only registered 1g/2a. One fella to watch is Dutchman Crysensio Summerville. He’s returning from a lengthy injury, but if he can regain the spark of his 2024 season he’ll be turning heads. Tomáš Souček might be 30, but he’s far from over the hill. Normally a defensive midfielder, he nevertheless scored nine goals last season, nearly 20% of the team’s total.
Defense To be honest, the entire defensive line for West Ham underperformed last year, conceding 62 goals. Todibo and fellow center-backs Max Kilman and Kontantinos Mavrospanos will need to step up if they want to avoid relegation. On the flanks, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Emerson Palmieri were solid, if not spectacular.
Goalkeeper Alphonse Aréola has a real fight on his hands to retain the starting position. Leicester City’s relegation was not Mads Hermansen’s fault, and if he hasn’t usurped Aréola by opening day, he’ll be there if the Frenchman slips up.

Other Bits

Gaffer Graham Potter will be under a microscope. After taking over from Julen Lopetegui in January, he only won five games. That was four fewer than his predecessor in a roughly similar timeframe. His leash will be a short one indeed, and do not be surprised if he’s the first managerial victim of the 2025-26 season.