England Premier League
Sunday 2nd April 2023
Kick off at 2pm BST
Venue: London Stadium
Match Preview:
At this stage every game for West Ham is a big one but that feels doubled up as they take on bottom side Southampton on Sunday. With victory the Saints would go above the Hammers in what looks like being an intense game.
Form for West Ham has been mixed and there has been no consistency as they struggle to get out of trouble. Currently in 18th place David Moyes' team are going down but there is still time to recover and more importantly it will only take one good game to shoot up the table given how close it is between last and 12th place. Moyes job remains under threat and the Hammers have won just one game in their last four after they beat Nottingham Forest at the end of February. That result has been followed up by losing 4-0 to Brighton and then drawing 1-1 at home to Aston Villa. At home 18 of their 26 points have been won and the good news is that they are unbeaten here in their last four games although that includes two draws. Indeed the club have not lost at home this year.
Southampton are bottom but unlike other seasons where the club in 20th place looked doomed to go down just one win could bring them to safety. The worry though is how long the Saints have remained in the bottom three and games are running out for them with just 10 left to play. There are signs of resilience though with just one defeat in their last four and they have been able to pick up 5 points from their last 12. Their last game showed a lot of heart and passion as they came back from 3-1 down to draw 3-3 with Tottenham, which in turn led to Antonio Conte’s outburst and leaving of the club. The Saints away form is actually better than their home form and based on away form only they would rank in 12th place. However away form has been erratic where they have beaten Chelsea and drawn with Manchester United yet lost to Brentford and Leeds.
Team News:
West Ham: Nayef Aguerd has a hip problem and while it doesn’t seem serious he is a doubt and may not be risked. Michail Antonio will be assessed after a muscle problem, Emerson is ill and looks to be a doubt. Lukasz Fabianski could return after an eye injury and will be assessed. Gianluca Scamacca could be set to miss out once again with a slight knee injury and probably will not be risked.
Southampton: Che Adams is being tipped to play but is coming off of a calf injury and will have to be assessed. Armel Bella Kotchup is missing with a shoulder injury, Mohammed Salisu will be assessed after his muscle injury.
West Ham vs Southampton Head to Head:
Last season Southampton won this fixture 3-2.
It’s been 5 games since West Ham beat Southampton which was almost 2 years ago.
Both teams to score has happened in the last 3 meetings.
West Ham vs Southampton Prediction:
West Ham do not have a good recent record over Southampton but they will be favourites to win this game despite that and their home advantage is the reason why. David Moyes will be hoping that his players get right back into it after the international break. The injury list compared to previous seasons has been kept at a minimum for the Hammers but that seems to be creeping up on them and there are a few players who could be doubts for this game.
Southampton are showing the fight lately but at the same time they remain a very unpredictable team. They will be looking at some recent results which should give them encouragement but if the Hammers can score early they can win and score a few goals too, so we will be backing the home side to just have too much on the day for the bottom club.
West Ham vs Southampton Betting Tips:
West Ham to beat Southampton at 1.72
Anytime goalscorer: Danny Ings at 2.50
1st Half Correct Score: 1-0 or 2-0 to West Ham at 3.00 and 9.00
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