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Former West Ham manager Sam Allardyce has expressed concerns over the Hammers' central midfield duo Jack Wilshere and Mark Noble.

After enjoying a promising transfer window, West Ham have come into the 2018/19 campaign full of renewed optimism. The likes of Lukasz Fabianski, Felipe Anderson and Andriy Yarmolenko have all been signed to propel the east London outfit back to the top half of the Premier League table under the tutelage of new manager Manuel Pellegrini.

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However, it has been a worrying start. A 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Liverpool in their opening game was followed by a hugely disappointing home defeat to Bournemouth. 

Although it is difficult to draw concise conclusions from just two matches, alarm bells may be ringing for West Ham fans who have been delivered false promises all too many times.

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Now Allardyce, speaking to beIN Sports, has had his say on where he thinks things may be going wrong for the Hammers:

“It’s a great concern for David [Gold] and David [Sullivan], and obviously the new manager will be really worried, because now they’ve gone out and spent, but they haven’t introduced all the new players yet,

“Still Mark Noble and Wilshere would be a bit of a concern, but not the talent - just the legs,” he added.

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There is a lot of pressure on the shoulders of Wilshere to perform at the London Stadium after falling out of favour at Arsenal. He hasn't performed brilliantly thus far, and Allardyce's view that he isn't mobile enough is one that is shared by a number of West Ham fans.

He is set for a reunion with his former side this Saturday, which could already prove to be a make or break game for both sides early on in the season.