Arsenal vs West Ham United
David Moyes’ West Ham United head to the Emirates Stadium to take on Arsenal this Saturday, and the signs are they could be in for a torrid afternoon.
Arsenal vs West Ham is a Premier League clash you’d expect to provide some decent entertainment, and on the evidence of the opening week’s performances, we should see goals.
Mikel Arteta’s FA Cup and Community Shield winners thumped Fulham 0-3 while West Ham’s defence looked decidedly leaky in a 0-2 reversal to Newcastle.
It’s a busy weekend for SBOTOP football with all four of Europe’s big leagues now back in action and there are plenty of mouth-watering matches to look forward to, and this one has plenty of intrigues.
With two pieces of silverware already in the trophy cabinet since Arteta’s arrival, the good times are already starting to return to the Emirates.
West Ham is a different story though. Having spent heavily in the summer of 2019, the Hammers had a poor season and were in a six-way relegation battle in the closing weeks.
Moyes guided them to survival. However, a losing start in this campaign, especially at home to the Magpies was hugely unwelcome, particularly as this clash starts a nightmare run of fixtures – with Wolves, Tottenham, Manchester City, and Liverpool to come.
Before we leap into our Arsenal vs West Ham predictions, let’s take a closer look at the two teams one week into the season.
Talking Points
Arsenal came in guns ablaze
The Gunners got up and running straight away with a comfortable 0-3 victory away to Premier League new boys Fulham.
It was a good afternoon for Arteta as both of Arsenal’s main strikers were on target, as Alexandre Lacazette opened the scoring and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang added a third.
But it was a debut goal from Gabriel which will have pleased the boss the most. Fulham may be one of the softer targets in the Premier League this season, but even so, it was an impressive performance to kick of the new campaign and for the new centre-back to show he can be a threat up front was an added bonus.
Arteta has just convinced Aubameyang to extend his stay at the Emirates, and that means it could be another successful campaign.
West Ham aim to bounce back
Poor as their performance was against Newcastle, the Hammers were denied by the woodwork twice and had more than enough chances to get something from the game.
But it was the fixture Moyes will have targeted from the opening six games. It was effectively a must-win and now the Hammers need to beat one of the league’s better sides.
There was some encouragement in midweek when Moyes’ team progressed to the third round of the Carabao Cup with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Charlton.
West Ham’s record signing Sebastien Haller scored a brace and Felipe Anderson added a late third. Haller started well last season and then faded, so Moyes will expect more from him this term.
That also applies to another of 2019 expensive recruits in Pablo Fornals, who crashed the woodwork against the Magpies. If he hits form, he could be a key creative outlet.
Midfielder Tomas Soucek has returned to the London Stadium in a £19.5-M move from Slavia Prague, having joined the Hammers on loan in January.
He was one of the stand-out players in the run-in by scoring three crucial goals, and the 25-year-old has been rewarded with a four-year contract.
History
The Gunners have enjoyed the better of these London exchanges, having won 33 of the 50 meetings in the Premier League era while West Ham have won eight and drawn nine.
And Arsenal did the double over their opponents last season, winning 1-0 at the Emirates and 1-3 at the London Stadium.
The hosts are in decent form, on a winning streak of four and they are unbeaten in five at home while also going five games against West Ham without defeat.
Betting Tip
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Arsenal vs West Ham United | Arsenal Asian Handicap -1.25 @ 2.17 |
| September 20, 03:00 (GMT+8) |
First up, I’m going to predict that the Arsenal vs West Ham highlights will be worth looking out for because Aubameyang and co. are in a rich vein of form while the Hammers are desperate for a result so early in the campaign.
The head-to-heads don’t look good for West Ham and the pre-match odds are pretty ominous too.
The Gunners are at 1.51 to win and I think they will do it at a canter, while the draw is at 4.17 and West Ham are a long shot at 5.40.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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 = €20 (Highly confident) |
= €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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