West Ham and Arsenal bring another London Derby. The game between two fierce rivals is scheduled for this Sunday at the London Stadium, and we expect fireworks here. The hosts are in a tough position, with the form on the decline and pressure from the rivals in the domestic championship. Meanwhile, Arsenal is playing well, winning the past two games, both of them derbies, and they are finally at the fourth spot in the standings and hold the destiny in their hands. All they need to do is stay there until the end of the season, and the Champions League awaits them next year.
We also have the previews of pretty much all the important EPL games this week delivered by our fantastic Kurt Boyer. Also, we have several more other events covered and you can find them at the end of this article.
Preview
West Ham (+333) didn’t win in the past three games and has only one victory in the recent six clashes. What is even more painful is the fact that they suffered a defeat on Thursday at home against Eintracht Frankfurt, thus reducing their chances of reaching the Europa League finals and the title.
This was the eighth game in the past 10 in which the Hammers allowed a goal, meaning that their defense has a lot of trouble restraining the rivals’ attacks. What is the reason for that, we can’t quite tell.
An even more concerning thing for West Ham and its fans are three winless events at home. After back-to-back draws, against Lyon and Burnley, both 1-1, came the failure against the Germans. David Moyes would need to make something happen, and he has to do it fast.
Arsenal (-110) lost three in a row, and for the moment, it seemed that the Gunners were going to say goodbye to the UCL dreams. But in no time, after beating Chelsea on the road, 2-4, and Manchester United at home, 3-1, they were back in the saddle sitting in the fourth place.
Over the recent six games, Arsenal couldn’t post one clean sheet, and all but one game had over 2.5 goals. Four were with scores on both ends of the field.
In order to stay in the current place, Arsenal needs to win here because they are yet to have a direct clash with Tottenham, their main rival for the UCL. At the moment, they have a slight edge over the North London rivals but need to keep on winning at any cost.
Latest News
Dawson is suspended due to a red card, while Diop and Ogboball both picked up injuries.
On the other side, Partey and Tierney won’t play because of injuries, while Saka stands as a game-time decision.
Head to Head Games
Arsenal was better in the first meeting this year, beating the Hammers 2-0 at the Emirates. Martinelli and Smith-Rowe netted a goal each, and in the meantime, Lacazette missed a penalty.
The Gunners didn’t lose the past five head-to-head contests against West Ham.
Prediction
Both teams have problems with the defensive side, but the positive thing for the guests is that their forwards are apparently in much better form than the Hammers. We would suggest betting on them scoring at least two goals, with the odds on that currently sitting at -125. It is quite solid, we need to admit, and in our opinion, safer than other suggestions.
Pick: Arsenal Over 1.5 -120
More previews for this weekend’s games.
Nikola Velickovic is a sports journalist who loves to write and read on all sports. Nikola contributes both news updates and functions as a sports breaking news writer at WagerBop.
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Email: nikola@wagerbop.com
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