West Ham Fan View: David Moyes must reverse his fortunes against old club Everton

West Ham face struggling Everton this Wednesday with David Moyes looking to build on last week’s performance with a win.

The Toffees are currently 16th in the Premier League, two points ahead of us. Here are three things to look out for…

An unhappy return for David Moyes?

Since leaving Everton, Moyes has performed poorly when facing his old side. At Manchester United, Moyes failed to beat Everton, losing twice with no goals scored. It was the same with Sunderland where Moyes’ side conceded 5 goals without response in two defeats. So will this Wednesday be any different?

READ MORE: West Ham Fan View: Why Slaven Bilic had to go

Everton have failed to live up to expectations this season though their home form has been relatively good. All 3 of their wins this season have come at home and we have failed to win any of our 7 away games. Let’s not forget that we have a historically bad record against Everton having only beaten them twice since 2008. But with Everton coming off the back of a heavy defeat, we do stand a good chance of winning.

Getting out of the relegation zone

With the Christmas period quickly approaching, we have to progress up the table and this Wednesday is the perfect opportunity. We have not won a single game in the Premier League since beating Swansea at the end of September and a win on Wednesday would see us escape the relegation zone.

READ MORE: West Ham Fan View: Three talking points from the Watford defeat

There is no reason for Moyes to change the XI that faced Leicester. We saw Slaven Bilic change formation and players far too often which harmed the team. The players did show improvements as the game progressed against Leicester. But we have failed to start well early on in games this season and have often fallen behind, forcing us to fight back. Is this something that will change against Everton?

Key battle – Manuel Lanzini v. Idrissa Gueye

Idrissa Gueye has been the key man in Everton’s midfield and it is likely that he will be tasked with stopping Manuel Lanzini’s influence. Lanzini registered his first assist of the season against Leicester though he has not been consistent in his impact in games.

But he has still been one of our best players and when Lanzini struggles, the team struggles. This battle will certainly be one to watch.