Emerson Palmieri‘s sorry display for West Ham United in their 1-0 defeat to Brentford has proven why Graham Potter must look for an upgrade on the Italian left-back.

Kevin Schade netted the only goal of the game in the fourth minute for the Bees, finding the back of the net at the second time of asking after Alphonse Areola had denied his initial attempt. Yoane Wissa thought he’d put his side further in front in the 41st minute, but VAR intervened and ruled the goal out for an offside in the build-up.

The visitors warranted their half-time lead and could have been further out of sight if they had taken their chances against a disappointing Hammers’ side who were tame in front of goal and had questionable defending. Potter reacted to the poor first-half display by bringing off Emerson for Oliver Scarles after watching Bryan Mbeumo toy with the former Chelsea man and the versatile 19-year-old, who was an improvement on the veteran full-back.

Emerson offered nothing going forward for the Hammers in his 45-minute outing at the London Stadium, and he was one of several underperformers on Potter’s team who cannot be relied upon as a starter for much longer.

The 30-year-old made three clearances and won two of three ground duels but was non-existent in the air, beaten to the ball on two occasions — the 29-cap Italy international continues to show alarming signs of regression that undoubtedly makes that left-back position a priority to tackle in the summer transfer window.

Potter’s patience must be wearing thin over the Brazilian-born defender, especially because his poor run of form has often led to summer signing Aaron Wan-Bissaka being used as a makeshift left-back. He will have a year left on his contract at the end of the season, and the time is now to offload him and find a long-term replacement.

Full-backs are vital positions in Potter’s system, as was seen during his impressive spell in charge of Brighton & Hove Albion, overseeing Spain’s Euro 2024 winning left-back Marc Cucurella‘s development. The Hammers boss wants his full-backs or wing-backs to support his attackers with direct off-the-ball runs into attacking spaces, and Emerson doesn’t look up for such a challenge.

All statistics courtesy of SofaScore – correct as of 15/02/2025.

Sign up to The GIVEMESPORT Report to get exclusive daily updates from Fabrizio Romano, Ben Jacobs, Dean Jones and Tom Bogert sent straight to your inbox

Graham Potter has taken over from Julen Lopetegui and has wasted little time in adopting changes to the system at the Hammers.

There were some positives to take from the 2-1 loss to Chelsea last week and Potter will be hoping that his side can win against the Bees on Sunday, 15 February at the London Stadium.

Lucas Paqueta and Edson Alvarez could make their return to the playing eleven

Andy Irving started in the middle of the park for the Hammers against Chelsea while Carlos Soler played in the attacking position behind Jarrod Bowen.

However, Potter is set to receive an injury boost with both Lucas Paqueta and Edson Alvarez expected to be fit for the game over the weekend. (The Sun print edition on 13 February)

This could see Alvarez coming in for Irving, offering much-needed solidity in midfield alongside Tomas Soucek.

The other change would be Paqueta coming in with Soler making way for the ever-talented Brazilian.

West Ham go into the Brentford clash as favourites

To secure a victory against Brentford over the weekend, the Hammers will need to focus on key areas.

They must capitalise on their home advantage at the London Stadium by leveraging the support of their fans to boost morale and performance.

Defensively, they should aim to neutralise Brentford’s threats, particularly from set pieces and counter-attacks, as the Bees have a reputation for being tactically astute under Thomas Frank.

Potter’s side needs to ensure that their backline remains organised and communicative.

In the final third, they should exploit Brentford’s defensive vulnerabilities through quick, incisive passing and by utilising the creativity and goal-scoring prowess of players like Bowen and Mohammed Kudus.

The return of key players like Paqueta and Alvarez could provide the midfield solidity and attacking flair necessary.

Moreover, maintaining possession to control the game’s tempo will be crucial, aiming to wear down Brentford before launching decisive strikes.

It’s also important that the Irons manage the game’s physicality and intensity to avoid unnecessary bookings or fatigue.

It remains to be seen whether he signs a pro-deal at Deepdale with speculation swirling around Premier League clubs. Brighton were credited with interest last month along with the Bees – and latest reports suggest that Brentford are now preparing a move for Mawene, as they continue to track his progress.

If the attacking midfielder does not sign a professional contract at Preston then the two clubs would need to agree a compensation package, or see the fee decided by a tribunal. But, he is not out of contract until 2026. Mawene made his first team debut in April last year at home to Leicester City.

That remains his one senior appearance for North End – off the bench – having been a unused substitute on three occasions under former manager Ryan Lowe. In doing so he became the seventh youngest player in PNE’s history.

And, with older brother Noah brought on at the same time, they were the first siblings to represent Preston since 1985. This season Mawene has plied his trade for the reserve and youth sides, while being in and around first team training. He stood out in the 4-1 FA Youth Cup win over Liverpool in December.

Current boss Paul Heckingbottom has not handed many minutes out to PNE’s youngsters yet. Earlier this season he assured he was happy to do so but only if the players were ready. Kian Best, Noah Mawene, Max Wilson, Kian Taylor, Kitt Nelson, Josh Seary and Kacper Pasiek have all been loaned out this year

“It’s not an intention that I go in and think I want to play these young players,” said Heckingbottom back in August. “It’s probably my background a little bit, probably the fact I like to work on the grass and I try to make things black and white for players as much as possible.

“And then it’s a case of ‘Who is performing the best?’ I’m not scared to make that decision and put them in but what young lads need to understand is there is no excuse I make for them, because of their age. If you’re in then the expectation is on them to perform.

“I think you can be too soft and too lenient on young players. It’s a tough industry and a tough business. Whilst they will get the support, effort and time from us, we expect the same stands from the players who step in. Whilst the opportunity is there there’s got to be a real desire to go and take it.”

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.

Mawene is among the bright prospects in the Preston North End academy setup and he has already caught the eye for their youth sides. His displays in the FA Youth Cup have been strong too, perhaps prompting Premier League interest in his services.

At 17, he’s already made his PNE debut. He came off the bench to play Leicester City towards the end of the 2023/24 campaign, something that could contribute to a slightly higher compensation.

If more senior opportunities arise, that also may entitle the Lilywhites to more at a tribunal.

However, with Brentford putting together an offer and his deal running down, it feels as though Mawene will be heading for the Premier League come the summer.

While the relevant figures will be keeping an eye on Mawene’s situation, Heckingbottom will be eager to keep his Preston North End side focused on on-pitch matters.

That will be far easier to do now that the winter transfer window is out of the way.

PNE are next in action on Tuesday as they make the trip to Carrow Road to face Norwich City. They’ll be keen to get back to winning ways having lost only one of seven before the Blackburn defeat.

Heckingbottom and co will also learn their fifth round FA Cup opponents in the draw on Monday night.

Burnley were ultimately successful in their bid to get out of the Championship in 2015/16, but Sean Dyche didn’t want to leave anything to chance in the January window, doing his best to strengthen the squad enough that they had no issues getting over the line.

He wasn’t particularly successful in strengthening his squad too much in the January 2016 window, with James Tarkowski from Brentford his only notable signing that month, but the leg work had been done in the summer with the influential arrivals of Andre Gray and Joey Barton.

It wasn’t for the want of trying though, as Burnley did chase one man in particular throughout the window, but they were never successful in bringing him to the club, despite tabling offers.

Alan Judge was the subject of intense interest for the Clarets in 2016 amid some fine for Brentford, but the move never materialised as Brentford dug thier heels in for a heavier fee.

Looking back now, Burnley will probably be counting their blessings for Brentford’s refusal, while the Bees will be left with a much different feeling.

It probably didn’t seem like it at the time for Burnley fans, but Judge not signing was the ultimate blessing, as they could’ve seen millions go down the pan.

At the time, Judge was one of the leading creators in the division, playing off the wing and catching the eye most weeks in a Brentford side that at the time, were a middle-of-the-road Championship team.

Judge impressed in the 2014/15 season for the Bees, netting three goals and contributing 15 assists as they reached the play-offs, but it was the season after where he really became a household name and no doubt caught the eye of the Clarets.

In 38 games across the 15/16 season, Judge amassed an incredible 26 goal contributions, which included a goal against Burnley in the January just days after Dyche’s side had sent an initial bid.

It was also that season where everything came crashing down around him though, as a horror injury away to Ipswich Town in April cruelly ended the best season of his life, and he never recovered to hit the same heights.

The severity of Judge’s injury meant he sat out of the entirety of the 2016/17 campaign and also most of the 2017/18 season and when he did return he was never able to get anywhere near the kind of form he showed pre-injury.

That’s completely understandable for someone recovering from a double leg break, and further surgery down the line meant that his career was stop-start for years afterwards, before he eventually left Brentford and coincidentally signed for Ipswich.

Years of League One and lower football closed out his career, so for Burnley, they must look back and think that they dodged a major bullet by not stumping up the £8m the Bees valued him at back in 2016.

It’s worth caveating that if he had have made the switch to Burnley then his injury may not have happened and his career could’ve gone a completely different way, but that’ll never be known.

Judging by the career he did go on to have though, the Clarets certainly came out of the failed deal the better of the two parties, as Brentford ultimately had to watch one of their star players’ careers fade away due to no fault of their own.

As reported on liverpoolfc.com: “It’s the same squad as Tuesday,” head coach Thomas Frank told reporters on Thursday.

“Everyone is available that was available for the Manchester City game. There are no new injuries.”

‘The Bees will be without Kristoffer Ajer, Josh Dasilva, Aaron Hickey, Gustavo Nunes, Ethan Pinnock and Igor Thiago, all of whom are sidelined through injury.’

It’s certainly far from ideal for the 51-year-old who will have to devise a plan to beat the league leaders, whilst managing a depleted side.

Thomas Frank has a tough job ahead of him with Brentford

They’re not alone in having injury concerns, with Arne Slot also facing the media to provide an update on how his squad is looking before the match at the Gtech Community Stadium.

The Dutchman said that Diogo Jota was a doubt after picking up a ‘niggle’ during his half-hour appearance against Nottingham Forest in the week.

As well as this, Luis Diaz missed training with illness and our head coach was unable to confirm whether he would be able to play against the Bees.

We also have the longer term issue with Joe Gomez, as the 46-year-old has to do his own patch-up job with the players at his disposal.

Having said all this though, we travel to face a team with one of the best home records in the Premier League and after a run of just one win in our last five games – it’s going to be a difficult afternoon.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot could make changes for Saturday’s Premier League trip to Brentford.

The Reds are gearing up for another difficult away journey and remain in control of the title race despite Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest.

Slot saw substitutes Diogo Jota and Kostas Tsimikas combine for their equaliser at the City Ground, underlining the strength in depth available to the Dutchman.

While Darwin Nunez will be free from suspension for the clash at the Gtech Community Stadium, Jota – who nodded in a corner from Tsimikas – could start up front, with the Greek international potentially replacing Andy Robertson at left-back.

Joe Gomez is the only injury concern Liverpool are thought to be dealing with at this stage.

Liverpool predicted XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Mac Allister, Gravenberch; Salah, Szoboszlai, Gakpo; Jota