West Ham v Wolves
01 October 1730hrs
Football – England – Premier League
Pick Draw
Bookmaker bet365
Odds: 3.50 odds taken 1610 GMT, Friday 30th September
The Premier League action returns this weekend after the international break and Saturday evening brings us what some people are calling an early relegation battle between third from bottom West Ham and fourth from bottom Wolves, when the two teams meet at the London Stadium with a precious three points up for grabs for both teams who’ll be keen to pull away from the bottom three with a win here.
Table of Contents
West Ham Preview – Can Hammers avoid third loss on trot?
West Ham headed into the recent international break on the back of two defeats on the trot after being handed a narrow 1-0 loss away from home at Everton which followed a previous 2-1 loss away at Chelsea so no doubt The Hammers will be eager to return to the home surroundings of their London Stadium as they prepare for the visit of fellow strugglers, Wolves, on Saturday evening.
West Ham have struggled to get going so far this season under manager, David Moyes, as the hosts seem to be a shadow of their former selves, winning just once in their opening seven games of this new season as opposed to last term which saw the London club notch three wins from their opening seven games which is quite a contrast in fortunes.
The hosts will be hoping that they can transfer some of the early success they’ve gained on the European stage onto the domestic scene as West Ham have won both of their opening two games in the Europa Conference League, sealing wins against Steaua Bucharest and Silkeborg to place them in a strong position in their group.
However, results at home in the Premier League have also taken a bit of a nose-dive as the hosts have failed to win any of their last six games on home soil, drawing three and losing three, and this doesn’t exactly paint a very convincing picture for West Ham prior to this weekend’s action.
West Ham manager, David Moyes, will be without centre-back Nayef Aguerd who is sidelined with an ankle injury but otherwise the Scot is fortunate that he has no other injury concerns as a result of the international break.
Wolves Preview – Can Wolves avoid Hammer blow?
Wolves may have been relieved that the international break came about when it did as the west midlands club were handed a convincing 3-0 defeat at home to Manchester City with the hosts failing to lay a glove on Pep Guardiola’s side, and they face a tricky outing to the nation’s capital this Saturday evening as well.
Wolves had previously registered a welcome 1-0 home win against Southampton which put an end to their five-match winless start to this new Premier League campaign but it remains Wolves’s only success to date this term, while the bigger picture shows Bruno Lage’s side have managed to capture just this one success out of their last 14 matches overall in the English top flight, and his position is becoming increasingly fragile.
Within this miserable sequence of results, Wolves have suffered a total of eight defeats and have drawn the other five games, so the prospects of an away win here this Saturday seem very slim indeed, especially as the west midlands visitors have also failed to win any of their last seven outings on the road as well.
Although Wolves have picked up points in draws at Chelsea and Bournemouth within this seven-game period on the road, the visitors have also slipped to losses at Newcastle United, Burnley, Liverpool, Leeds United and Tottenham.
Lage may have to hold off from handing new signing, Diego Costa, a start in Saturday’s squad while Nathan Collins is suspended and Chiquinho and Sasa Kalajdzic both continue to be sidelined long-term.
In addition, Raul Jimenez is now suffering from a groin injury and is rated as doubtful for this encounter at the London Stadium.
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Key Facts – West Ham v Wolves Tip
- West Ham have failed to win any of their last 6 games on home soil (D3, L3)
- Wolves have won just 1 of their last 14 matches overall in EPL (including 5 draws)
- Wolves have also failed to win any of their last 7 away outings on the road as well
Both West Ham and Wolves have struggled to live up to the form they’ve shown in previous campaigns so far this season and a dour, uneventful encounter looks to be on the cards here at the London Stadium with both teams settling for a point rather than risk another defeat in what is being described as an early dress rehearsal for a relegation battle down the track.
The best betting odds for West Ham v Wolves
West Ham to win: 1.95 at bet365
Draw: 3.50 at bet365
Wolves to win: 4.20 at bet365
