West Ham United Women face London City Lionesses in the WSL Cup group stage on Wednesday evening at Chigwell Construction Stadium. Kick-off is set for 7pm local time as the Hammers look to advance in the competition.
The match follows a 3-0 home defeat to Chelsea Women earlier this month, a result that left West Ham with a record of two wins, one draw and two losses from their last five Women's Super League games. That sequence, reading WLLDW from most recent to oldest, includes a 3-1 victory over Southampton Women and a 2-1 loss to Manchester United Women. Top scorer Asseyi, who has three goals in five appearances this season, will be a key figure as the team seeks a positive response. The team's recent league form has them sitting in seventh place in the current WSL standings.
Recent form and context
London City Lionesses arrive in strong league form, having won their last two WSL matches 6-1 against Tottenham Hotspur Women and 2-0 against Brighton & Hove Albion Women. West Ham's most recent meeting with Wednesday's opponents was a 2-1 league win back in September, a result they will aim to repeat. The visitors' recent surge has propelled them up the table, setting up a contrast in momentum for this cup tie.
Team news and lineups
In their last outing against Chelsea, West Ham lined up in a 3-5-2 formation with Picaud in goal behind a defensive trio of Laia Codina, Kumagai and Cascarino. The midfield featured Riesen, Sarah Puntigam, Zelem, Siren and Belloumou, supporting forwards Asseyi and Kenti Robles.
London City Lionesses used a 4-2-3-1 setup in their big win over Tottenham, with Elene Lete protected by a back four of Jana Fernández, Kardinaal, Mapi León and Lucía Corrales. Geyoro and Daniela Arques anchored the midfield behind an attacking line of Diani, Alexia Putellas and van de Donk, with Godfrey leading the line.
West Ham will hope the cup provides a platform to build consistency. The team's next assignment is an away league fixture against Crystal Palace on Sunday, 18 October, with that match set to kick off at 14:00 BST. A look at the full fixtures list shows a busy period ahead for the Hammers as they balance cup and league commitments.
