Trying to save his season, West Ham hosts Shrewsbury on Tuesday, January 16, in a replay of the third round of the FA Cup. At the Olympic Stadium in London, the clash has kickoff scheduled for 5:45 pm (GMT).
The oldest club tournament in the world has a unique regulation. At this stage, if the games do not have a winner, there is a need for a second match with inverted field control. It obligatorily indicates who survives in the tournament, even if there is a need to carry out a penalty extension and decision.
Of the 32 games scheduled for the third stage, eight were tied and forced the second game, dubbed “replay”. Thus, only on Wednesday, January 17, will all be known for the next stage of the FA Cup.
West Ham’s recent performance
Eliminated from the League Cup of England and without big pretensions in the English League, the FA Cup became the only possibility that West Ham can give some joy to its fans in the 2017/2018 season.
After a tumultuous start of season, with passage through the zone of relegation and exchange of technician, the London team managed to stabilize. On Saturday, January 13, for the twenty-third round of the Premier League, they thrashed Huddersfield 4-1 away from home to extend their undefeated series to five (two wins and three draws).
With 25 points (six wins, seven draws and ten losses), he ranks eleventh. The chances of reaching a place in the qualifying zone for European tournaments are practically negligible. The difference for fifth-placed Tottenham is 19 points.
The threat of relegation still exists. However, West Ham’s improved performance made it possible to take second place. In this way, coach David Moyes should put the best team that has at hand on Tuesday to try to ensure survival in the FA Cup.
For this, however, it depends on the position of the medical department in relation to athletes who are recovering from injuries. They are the defenders José Fonte (eight games in the English Championship 2017/2018, no goal) and Winston Reid (16 games, no goal); Michail Antonio (15 games, one goal), Samuel Byram (without performances) and Edmilson Fernandes (seven games, no goal); and attackers Andrew Carroll (12 games, two goals) and Diafra Sakho (14 games, two goals).
The current form of Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury has a higher priority than the FA Cup. Disputing League 1, the Third Division of the English Championship, is in the battle to get a place in the Championship.
On Saturday, January 13, he was beaten to Blackburn by a 3-1 defeat. The failure interrupted a string of ten games without defeat (six wins and four draws). However, it was not enough to get the team from the direct classification zone to the Second Division.
League 1 takes the first two places for the Championship. Shrewsbury is in second place. He has 54 points (16 wins, 6 draws and 4 losses). They are three less than Wigan, leader, and two more than Blackburn, third place.
However, there is still a ‘plan B’. Who is between the third and the sixth position has the chance to play a qualifying playoff and compete for a place. In that case, the ‘gap’ compared to Portsmouth, seventh place, is 12 points.
The important home fixture next Saturday, January 20, against Doncaster may even make some more worn-out players miss out on the lineup for the match against West Ham.
History of the clashes between West Ham and Shrewsbury
The goalless draw in the third leg of the FA Cup was the first match between teams in history. You can watch the FA Cup highlights and goals here…
Growing up in results and performance within the four rows, West Ham at home is the best betting option in a match against a Third Division team. It has a prize of 1.50 for each real invested in Rivalo. Draw shows return of 4.00. Success visitor multiplies the investment by 6.00.