Divine Mukasa and 20% flop among three West Ham players who should be axed vs Lincoln City

Jarrod Bowen's late penalty miss against QPR is still likely to leave a sour taste in the mouths of all West Ham United fans.

Nuno Espirito Santo's side were held to a 1-1 draw at the London Stadium on Friday, 9 October, seeing them fall to third in the Championship table.

The Hammers are expected to win automatic promotion straight back to the Premier League, but it has been far from simple in 2026-27 so far.

While Nuno is under pressure, it is not time to hit the panic button just yet, and attention must now turn to Lincoln City on Wednesday, 14 October.

The Imps have had some impressive results, not least beating Bristol City and drawing with Southampton, so it will be far from simple at Sincil Bank.

If Nuno wants to make sure of three points on the road, Football Insider has looked at three key changes he must make to the starting lineup.

Divine Mukasa

Divine Mukasa had made a brilliant start to the season on loan from Manchester City, but his performances have fallen by the wayside.

With Pablo, Edvin Austbo and Joel Piroe all available, giving the 19-year-old time to rest and recover would be sensible against the Imps.

Kyle Walker-Peters

Kyle Walker-Peters being substituted at half-time against QPR says everything about the right-back's chances of starting the next game.

The experienced 29-year-old won just 20 per cent of his ground duels, committed two fouls and was dribbled past once [FotMob]. Just not good enough.

Tomas Soucek

Tomas Soucek was incredibly unlucky to concede a penalty against QPR, with his perfectly timed tackle not seen properly by the referee.

Having just returned from injury, though, the 31-year-old should not see a spot on the bench as punishment, but rather ensuring his own fitness.