Dinamo Zagreb v West Ham: Kurt Zouma in line for West Ham debut in Europa League
French defender Kurt Zouma is likely to make his Hammers debut.
West Ham defender Kurt Zouma, signed from European Champions Chelsea will make his debut for the Hammers when they take on Dinamo Zagreb in their Europa League group game this evening.
The French defender joined Chelsea in 2014 from Saint Etienne and helped the Blues win the Premier League title twice, the Champions League and the League Cup before joining West Ham this summer.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Other summer signings Nikola Vlasic, Alphonse Areola and Alex Kral could all feature.
What David Moyes has said
“We brought them into the club because I knew they would come into an unbelievable dressing room and team spirit so they would have no problems settling in,” West Ham manager David Moyes said.
“They will have no difficulty in adjusting, Niko, Kurt, Alex and Alphonso.They can affect the first team and challenge the first team players.
“I feel as if we’ve made additions which can actually affect the first team. I think the boys who played last year did an incredible job to get us here, so they need a little bit of an opportunity to show that, but I’ve not brought in players just to stand back and watch.
Advertisement
Advertisement
“We’ve got six games in this tournament so as it goes on I’ll know better by the end of it, but probably in the early days I’ll be trying to find the right team at the right time to fit in with the Premier League fixtures we’ve got I think they’re just over the moon that they can watch us play again, and it’s an added bonus we’re playing in Europe again.”
Five facts about West Ham v Dinamo Zagreb at a glance
- West Ham qualified directly to the Group stage of the UEFA Europa League after finishing sixth in the Premier League.
- Dinamo Zagreb knocked out Tottenham at the round of 16 before being beaten by eventual winners Villareal last season.
- West Ham have not won a European Group game in the last 10 years.
- West Ham come into this with an unbeaten record even though they will have to improve on their last two performances to maintain their strong start to the season.
- West Ham forward Michail Antonio, sent off over the weekend is available for this one.