Captain Kurt Zouma has returned to the West Ham United starting XI for Sunday’s Premier League match against Nottingham Forest.
The Frenchman has missed the last three matches in all competitions, including Thursday’s UEFA Europa League Group A win over Olympiacos, but has recovered in time to feature at London Stadium.
Zouma’s inclusion is one of three changes to the starting XI from the midweek 1-0 win over the Greek Super League side. The No4 replaces Konstantinos Mavropanos in the side, while Alphonse Areola starts in goal and Tomáš Souček features in place of Saïd Benrahma.
Zouma captains the team as he makes his 75th West Ham appearance, on an afternoon that also sees the 29-year-old make his 225th outing in the Premier League.
A fellow defender hits his 50th West Ham showing today in Emerson Palmieri. The full-back and Zouma feature alongside Nayef Aguerd and Vladimír Coufal in the Hammers defensive line, with Areola in-between the sticks for the hosts.
Souček comes back into the team in midfield alongside summer signings Edson Álvarez and James Ward-Prowse. The Irons No7 scored and assisted a goal in his last appearance against Forest, in a 4-3 defeat for Southampton at the City Ground back in May.
The English midfielder also played the assist for Lucas Paquetá’s volleyed finish in Thursday’s win over Olympiacos, and the Brazilian is included in today’s starting XI also. Five of the No10’s nine goals for West Ham have come in the Premier League so far, and the midfielder will be looking to take his goal tally into double figures this afternoon.
Mohammed Kudus starts his third successive Premier League match after scoring a brilliant volley last weekend away to Brentford. The Ghanaian has been in flying early-season form, with four goals in 14 West Ham showings.
Jarrod Bowen completes the Hammers starting XI this afternoon. Bowen has scored seven Premier League goals so far this season, with only three other players netting more in the competition this campaign.
Manager David Moyes has a plethora of experienced options available from the bench this afternoon including Michail Antonio, who scored 19 goals in 54 appearances for Nottingham Forest before joining West Ham, and Danny Ings. The No18 scored twice in a 4-0 win over Forest for the Irons in February.
The two attackers are joined by Mavropanos, Benrahma and Łukasz Fabiański, and they are joined by Aaron Cresswell, Thilo Kehrer, Angelo Ogbonna and Pablo Fornals.
West Ham United: Areola, Coufal, Zouma ©, Aguerd, Emerson, Álvarez, Souček, Ward-Prowse, Paquetá, Kudus, Bowen
Subs: Fabiański (GK), Cresswell, Mavropanos, Kehrer, Ogbonna, Fornals, Benrahma, Ings, Antonio
Nottingham Forest: Vlachodimos, Aina, Niakhaté, Murillo, Toffolo, Sangaré, Mangala, Domínguez, Gibbs-White ©, Awoniyi, Elanga
Subs: Turner (GK), Williams, Ayew, Wood, Yates, Aurier, Origi, Danilo, Boly
Referee: Michael Salisbury
