Our West Ham Team Preview article takes an in-depth look at their prospects ahead of the new Fantasy EPL season. These hints and tips will provide essential information to enable you to get ahead of your Draft League competition during the pre-season!
We outline the prospects of each team for the upcoming season, highlight all major signings, give a predicted starting eleven for each team, and also a projection of the top-scoring players for each team for the new season. Check back for regular updates to these Team Preview articles!
Next up in our Team Previews is West Ham. The Irons had a solid Premier League season and had injuries to key players not have occurred, we think West Ham would have finished even higher than 10th. We analyze whether West Ham can build on an impressive 2018/19 season.
⚒ West Ham Team Preview ⚒
Last Season
Had West Ham not picked up so many injuries to key players, we think West Ham would have finished much higher than 10th. In fact, it is a testament to the West Ham squad, and indeed manager Manuel Pellegrini that despite missing Andriy Yarmolenko and Manuel Lanzini for 29 and 28 games respectively; the Irons still made a top 10 position.
The 2018/19 pre-season favorite Felipe Anderson was the standout performer for West Ham. Anderson racked up an impressive 456 Fantrax points at an average of 12.7 points per game. This points haul gave Anderson a top 10 place in the overall Fantrax points scorers; finishing fourth-highest midfield Fantrax points scorer. There was quite a gap between Anderson and West Ham’s next highest points scorer; Michail Antonio who scored 290 Fantrax points. Antonio scored six goals and contributed four assists in his 33 games. The most pleasing statistic for EPL Draft managers was that Antonio got through 33 games; the most of his career.
Top Scoring 18/19 Players
- Felipe Anderson: 456 points
- Michail Antonio: 290 points
- Lukasz Fabianski: 280.75 points
New Signings
Lets first tackle the two free transfers, both of which are goalkeepers; David Martin and Roberto. It is without question that both will play second fiddle to Fabianski so we intend not to dwell on these two chaps. Neither should be in your plans for your 2019/20 draft.
West Ham have also brought in two major signings, we’ll start with the most recent of the two; Sèbastien Haller. Haller, a center forward reportedly joined the Hammers for a fee in the region of £36m and will be the direct replacement for the departed Marko Arnautovic. Last season Haller picked up 15 goals and nine assists from 29 appearances in the Bundesliga. This came off the back of nine goals and four assists the previous season; plus a decent haul of five goals and three assists from nine Europa League appearances in 2018/19. We are backing Haller to succeed in the Premier League, ranking him as a definite second-round draft pick.
The other notable transfer that West Ham has made this summer is that of attacking midfielder Pablo Fornals from Villarreal. Last season, Fornals picked up two goals and three assists from 35 La Liga appearances; a dip in the performances that saw Fornals pick up three goals and 12 assists in 2017/18. Both West Ham and Fantrax managers will be hoping that Fornals takes to the Premier League with the same levels of 2017/18. However we Chaps think that Fornals offers the Irons strength in depth for Anderson, Yarmolenko, and Lanzini; rather than being a definite starter.
Premier League Prospects
West Ham have strengthened their squad this summer and now on paper, it looks as though West Ham could definitely push on from their 10th place finish last season. The one area of weakness will be in defense, last season West Ham conceded the most goals of all sides that finished in the top 10.
In attack, the likes of Anderson, Lanzini, Fornals, and Antonio will provide attacking flair and create chances. Whilst in Yarmolenko, Haller, and Chicharito West Ham have goalscorer that can prove to be the difference between many sides. But it is incredibly hard to call between the likes of Watford, Everton, West Ham, Leicester, Wolves and Bournemouth. What the other sides have that West Ham doesn’t have is settled, fitness reliable squads. For this reason, we think West Ham will finish 12th. But like we said, 7th to 12th you could pick out of a hat!
Predicted League Position: 12th.
Predicted West Ham Starting Eleven
- There will be a bit of debate about who starts in the right and left-back slots
- With plenty of options in midfield, Jack Wilshire, Pablo Fornals and Antonio will push hard to be included
Projected Top Scoring Players
⭐️ Felipe Anderson ⭐️
In his debut Premier League season, Anderson proved himself to be in the elite level of Fantrax players. Having amassed a total points haul of 456 points, Anderson was the fourth-highest scoring midfielder and 10th highest scoring Fantrax player overall. Anderson is West Ham’s star man and will pick up both goals and assists. We fully expect Anderson to build on last season, he picked up nine goals and four assists; if he can add a couple more to this tally then top six Premier League sides will most certainly come after him. Regardless of on your leagues draft rules and format, Anderson is an elite level pick and should be in the list of your top midfield selections.
⚽️ Sèbastien Haller ⚽️
Haller has proved himself in both the Europa League and the Bundesliga that he is a fine asset for any Fantrax squad. Haller has consistently picked up both goals and assists over the past couple of seasons and, providing he can transfer his form to the Premier League; could well end up in the top 20 forwards on Fantrax. We are particularly intrigued by Haller’s prospects, as we expect him to go straight into the side. But moreover, with the talent that will sit behind Haller; he will get excellent service. Expect plenty of goals chaps!
🎯 Andriy Yarmolenko 🎯
Another attacking player with excellent potential for attacking returns, if Yarmolenko can stay fit; he has the potential to push for a top 20 overall Fantrax points scorers position. Yarmolenko is both capable of picking up goals as well as assists and will be a real asset for any Fantrax squad this season as he will play a key role for West Ham. Yarmolenko must be factored into your Draft Strategy and as such we have ranked Yarmolenko as a third to fourth choice forward option.
🎲 Honorable Mention: Manuel Lanzini 🎲
We really must give a shout out to the Irons creative midfielder Lanzini. Last season was an injury affected on for the Argentinian maestro, but having scored one and picked up an assist in the 10 appearances post-injury it was clear Lanzini was starting to feel his way back into the game. If Lanzini can stay fit, then we’d fully expect him to play a key role for the Irons this season. Keep an eye on him in your draft, if available in the later stages, Lanzini would be well worth a punt.
More Team Previews: | Arsenal | Aston Villa | Bournemouth | Brighton | Burnley | Chelsea | Crystal Palace | Everton | Leicester | Liverpool | Manchester City | Manchester United | Newcastle | Norwich City | Sheffield United | Southampton | Spurs | Watford | Wolves
Check out our Fantasy EPL Draft Rankings: Goalkeepers | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards | Top 100 |
Follow The Fantasy Football Chaps on Twitter @TheFFChaps for all the latest!
The Fantasy Football Chaps specialize in EPL Fantasy Soccer. They have been playing the draft format of the game for many years, and are our resident soccer experts! The English duo is obsessed with everything English Premier League, after falling in love with soccer as children growing up in the 90s. Icons such as Shearer, Beckham, Zola, and Bergkamp introduced them to the game… current stars such as Kane, Aguero, Salah, and Vaz Te are keeping the obsession going! The Chaps joined Fantrax HQ in June 2019, taking over as EPL Content Leads. The Norwich City fans will bring weekly articles analyzing several aspects of Fantasy EPL! Find The Chaps on Twitter @TheFFChaps for all the latest.
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