Vladimír Coufal and Lucas Paquetá return to the West Ham United starting XI for Monday’s Premier League fixture at AFC Bournemouth.
Czech Republic international right-back Coufal is included in place of the suspended Emerson, who misses the trip to the Vitality Stadium after being booked for the fifth time this season in last Monday’s 2-1 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Paquetá replaces Crysencio Summerville further up the pitch in Head Coach Julen Lopetegui’s second of two changes.
Coufal appears in the Premier League for the 134th time in West Ham colours, and makes his 166th appearance for the Club in all competitions. This is just his fourth Premier League start of 2024/25, however.
With the No5 starting at right-back, Aaron Wan-Bissaka is expected to move to left-back, with Dinos Mavropanos and Maximilian Kilman partnered at the heart of the defence for the third top-flight match in succession, and tenth time this season.
Kilman remains one of two ever-present starters this season alongside captain Jarrod Bowen, who will lead the team from centre-forward. The England international scored in this fixture on the opening day of last season and got the winner when West Ham defeated the Cherries in the EFL Cup second round at London Stadium in August.
Bowen makes his 175th Premier League appearance for the Hammers in Dorset, and 220th appearance for the Club in all competitions.
The midfield will be anchored by Edson Álvarez, who starts his third Premier League game since returning from suspension at the end of November.
He will be joined by Coufal’s compatriot Tomáš Souček, who scored the opening goal in last week’s win over Wolves to take his Premier League tally to 31 in 173 top-flight appearances.
The midfield will be completed by Spain international Carlos Soler, who is still seeking his first goal for the Club following his loan move from Paris Saint-Germain at the end of August.
With Bowen starting up front in the absence of Michail Antonio, who continues to recover in hospital following a car accident on Saturday 7 December, the wings will be patrolled by Mohammed Kudus and Paquetá.
Ghana star Kudus makes his 50th start for the Irons in all competitions, while Brazilian Paquetá returns to the starting XI after being named as a substitute for the previous two top-flight matches.
Łukasz Fabiański starts in goal for the eighth Premier League match in a row. The 39-year-old will be gunning for his 93rd top-flight clean sheet on what will be his 371st Premier League appearance for Arsenal, Swansea City and West Ham.
On the bench will be goalkeeper Alphonse Areola, young defenders Ollie Scarles and Kaelan Casey, midfielders Andy Irving, Lewis Orford and Luis Guilherme, winger Summerville and strikers Danny Ings and Niclas Füllkrug.
Bournemouth are without defender Marcos Senesi (thigh), Marcus Tavernier (hamstring), Alex Scott (knee), Luis Sinisterra (hamstring) and Julian Araujo (hamstring).
AFC Bournemouth: Kepa, Smith ©, Zabarnyi, Huijsen, Kerkez, Christie, Cook, Ouattara, Kluivert, Semenyo, Evanilson
Subs: Travers (GK), Aarons, Hill, Kinsey, Winterburn, Brooks, Ouattara, Billing, Ünal
West Ham United: Fabiański, Coufal, Mavropanos, Kilman, Wan-Bissaka, Álvarez, Souček, Soler, Kudus, Paquetá, Bowen ©
Subs: Areola (GK), Scarles, Casey, Orford, Irving, Luis Guilherme, Summerville, Ings, Füllkrug
Referee: Chris Kavanagh
