Fresh from the 3-1 defeat at the hands of Stoke City at the Britannia, West Ham United will be looking to bounce back straight away by claiming an upset win against champions Manchester United at the Boleyn Ground, this Saturday. The London club have won their last three games at home and have a towering Andy Carroll, desperate to prove his worth to his country in time for a ticket to Brazil.
Champions Manchester United finally looked to have turned the corner by confirming their presence in the last 8 of the UEFA Champions League, with a morale-boosting 3-0 win against Olympiakos at home, thanks to a Robin Van Persie hat-trick. While they are expected to win this tie against the Hammers, it would certainly not be a straightforward affair by any means, given their inconsistent performances in the league pitted against the Hammers’ encouraging home form.
While Manchester United can still hurt the title hopes of their nearest rivals, they’re not directly involved in the title race this season but could manage a possible Europa League finish. West Ham United still have got work to do as they look to ensure their stay in the top flight by picking up as many points as they can, above the 40-point mark. Let us not forget the fact that West Ham got themselves relegated in a season with as many as 42 on board.
Team News
Not much has changed for Sam Allardyce and West Ham United as far as the squad is concerned as Big Sam says he has a large squad to choose from for Saturday. Joey O’Brien and Marco Borriello are unavailable for selection, as confirmed by the manager. In the pre-match press conference, he said
“We’re in exactly the same place with the squad as we were last week. There’s only Joey O’Brien and Marco Borriello who aren’t available for selection so I’ve got a big strong squad to choose from for Saturday’s game. Our efforts at home are what I’ve been focusing on with the players, the fact that we’ve won the last three home games on the trot and we have to try and maintain that if we can to overcome this little blip.”
For Manchester United, star-striker Robin Van Persie will definitely miss the trip to London as he suffered a knock in his Champions League encounter versus Olympiakos, and he got stretchered off before the end of the game. Antonio Valencia is certain to miss out on the fixture too as he suffered a knock in the eye. Danny Welbeck could get the nod ahead of Javier Hernandez, alongside Rooney to lead the line. Portuguese winger Nani is back in training and could be available for selection while Evans and Smalling could still be out for Saturday. Mata is certain to start after enjoying a mid-week rest while his fellow teammates were on European duty. Captain Nemanja Vidic is unavailable for selection as he is serving his ban as a result of his sending off against Liverpool.
Interesting Facts
- The Hammers have failed to score in six of their last nine Barclays Premier League games against Man Utd.
- Manchester United have lost none of the last 10 top-flight games against West Ham, winning nine.
- 48 points after 29 games is Manchester United’s lowest haul of points in a Premier League season, six points fewer than their previous lowest in 1992-93.
- West Ham have averaged the fewest shots on target per game this season, averaging just 3.2 per game.
- The Hammers also have the lowest shooting accuracy; hitting the target with just 38% of their attempts.
- Manchester United have kept three clean sheets in a row away from home in the Premier League – the last time they managed four in succession was April 2013.
Key Players
West Ham United – Andy Carroll
Andy Carroll has been in decent form of late, scoring a goal while setting up 3 for his teammates this season. Much of their game revolves around his aerial prowess and his link-up play with Nolan, so West Ham United and Big Sam will be relying on him to leap the highest and deliver when it really matters.
A good performance from him would not only boost West Ham’s chances of winning this tie, but also his own chances of catching the eye of Roy Hodgson, thereby giving him a selection headache ahead of the showpiece event in Brazil. He has been involved in 6 games this season, having started in just 3 of them. He has attempted 13 shots so far while 5 of them were on target, at an accuracy of 38% of total shots fired, while he has to improve on his conversion rate though, which is a lowly 25%.
Manchester United – David De Gea
David De Gea has slowly turned the tide after a shaky start to his Manchester United career and the Spaniard has gone on to become the most reliable player in the current squad, turning up with brilliant performances in most of the games this season. While his double save in Manchester United’s last game versus Olympiakos kept them in the competition, some of his saves in the Premier League this season have kept the team alive in this wretched season the team is enduring. 10 clean sheets in 29 games is quite admirable when the team has suffered several line-up changes, especially when the manager had to alter his centre-back pairing frequently. His command in the box is the key to restricting West Ham’s chances to find the net as several questions will be asked by the West Ham front four while their hard-to-defend-against set plays should test him to the limit.
Prediction
West Ham United have their reasons to be confident of getting maximum points at home against a struggling Manchester United while the visitors will be boosted by their 3-0 victory against Olympiakos, and will look to keep the ball rolling. With the quality they have in their ranks and momentum by their side, I’ll go with a 1-2 away win.
