Prediction: West Ham vs Wolves

Verdict: Both teams to score

Best odds: 67/100

Bookmaker: ZetBet

West Ham will be looking to build on the recent Europa League success with a Premier League home win against Wolverhampton Wanderers. A full London Stadium is expected to back their favourites for another fine performance on Sunday.

West Ham

West Ham are going through a very good period, having qualified for the knockout stage of the Europa League and occupying a very good position in the Premier League. The Hammers managed to finish the group stage of the UEFA competition in style, beating Freiburg at home 2-0. It was a victory that washed away the shameful defeat suffered last week on Fulham’s ground. David Moyes’ players suffered a cold shower at Craven Cottage losing with an implausible 5-0 scoreline. It was a failure that ended an admirable streak of six matches without defeat in all competitions (five wins and a draw).

West Ham can move closer to the top 6 if they manage to defeat Wolves. At home, David Moyes’ team is a real force. Only Manchester City and Everton have managed to walk away with three points from the London Stadium so far this season. Beating English football heavyweights such as Chelsea and Arsenal at home has positioned the hosts as favourites against the Wolves. West Ham have dismantled the visitors in their last three direct clashes at home, without conceding a goal in any of them.

Team News

Michail Antonio, the Jamaican striker, is the only unavailable player from West Ham’s squad.

Moyes will stick to his already well-known 4-3-3 attacking system. A solid back-four line consisting of Mavropanos, Aguerd, Emerson and Coufal will be looking to stop the visitor’s attacks. James Ward-Prowse has been outstanding this season and another assist or a goal scored is what the talented midfielder will be looking to produce. Kudus, Soucek and Lucas Paqueta will back the in-form striker Bowen to get on the scoring sheet.

Wolves

The visitors find themselves in the lower half of the table, at a comfortable distance (10 points) from the relegation positions. Garry O’Neil’s side are having a good season considering the exodus of players in recent transfer periods. Wolves are very difficult to beat, achieving some extraordinary results. Defending champions Manchester City are just one of the top victims of today’s visitors.

O’Neil demonstrated his managerial skills by beating Guardiola at the Molineux Stadium 2-1. However, the story is quite different in the away games, withWolves losing six of their 9 outings. The last three consecutive defeats in games played on the road highlight a possible psychological problem that O’Neil has to fix in his squad.

If the defeat suffered at the Emirates to Arsenal was somewhat expected, we cannot say the same about the games played against Fulham and Sheffield United. Although they lost both games, a positive thing remains that today’s visitors managed to score in both matches (3-2 at Fulham and 2-1 at Sheffield). Failing to score at the London Stadium in their last three games makes West Ham a bogey team for Wolves.

Team News

Pedro Neto missed the last 6 Premier League matches but is getting near a full recovery after his hamstring injury. However, O’Neil considers him a very important player and will not rush his return to the pitch. Jonny Otto is still suspended for disciplinary reasons.

Key factors to consider

• West Ham is a goal-scoring machine netting at least a goal in seven of their last eight games.
• Moyes has built a fortress at the London Stadium which only Everton and Machester City have managed to conquer.
• The Hammers have had their morale boosted after the 2-0 home win against Frankfurt in the Europa League.
• Wolves are struggling on the road pulling narrow wins only at Bournemouth (2-1) and Everton (1-0).
• O’Neil will be looking take his team to their first victory at the London Stadium since 2020.
• Except for Neto, Wolverhampton has all the players available for the trip to London.

Conclusion

West Ham are the favourites to win considering the latest results. Although Wolves had disappointing results when playing away from home, O’Neil’s side scored at least a goal in all of their away matches with the exception of the 1-0 loss at Old Trafford against Manchester United.

Verdict: Both teams to score

Best odds: 67/100

Bookmaker: ZetBet