Inès Belloumou and Ffion Morgan are set for their first Barclays Women’s Super League starts in West Ham United shirts for the visit of Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.
The pair both made their first Hammers starts in our 5-1 success away at Charlton Athletic in our opening Group C match of the Subway® Women's League Cup on Wednesday night, with Morgan netting her maiden goal for the Club in the process.
For our match against Sonia Bompastor’s side at Chigwell Construction Stadium, Belloumou comes into the team for Verena Hanshaw, while Morgan replaces Shekiera Martinez, as manager Rehanne Skinner makes three changes to the side that lost at Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend.
The other change sees Amber Tysiak come in for Anna Csiki, who is named on the substitutes’ bench alongside Hanshaw and Martinez.
So, that means Kinga Szemik starts in goal, with a defence of Anouk Denton, Tysiak, Eva Nyström, Shelina Zadorsky and Belloumou lining up ahead of the Poland international.
Captain Katrina Gorry and Oona Siren will once again marshal the midfield, with Morgan joining Viviane Asseyi and Riko Ueki in attack.
Alongside Hanshaw, Csiki and Martinez on the bench in east London on Sunday afternoon are goalkeeper Megan Walsh, defender Yu Endo, midfielder Sarah Brasero, who scored her first goal for the Club on Wednesday night, and forwards Leila Wandeler, Manuela Paví and Seraina Piubel.
Both Wandeler and Paví netted screamers at The Valley, and will be hoping to replicate their successes off the bench in Dagenham.
Before kick-off, both teams will take part in a minute’s applause in memory of Matt Beard, who sadly passed away last weekend.
Matt joined us in the summer of 2018 ahead of our first-ever WSL season, and took us to the Women’s FA Cup final at Wembley in May 2019.
Before his time at the Hammers, he spent three years at Chelsea, also leading them to a Women’s FA Cup final in 2012.
West Ham United: Szemik, Denton, Tysiak, Nyström, Zadorsky, Belloumou, Siren, Gorry ©, Morgan, Ueki Asseyi
Subs: Walsh (GK), Endo, Paví, Csiki, Martinez, Brasero, Wandeler, Hanshaw, Piubel
Chelsea: Hampton, Bright ©, Buurman, Cuthburt, Thompson, Björn, Kaptein, Kaneryd, Jean-François, Walsh, Beever-Jones
Subs: Peng (GK), Carpenter, Nüsken, Macario, Reiten, Baltimore, Kerr, Hamano, Alber
Referee: Callum Jones
