This Saturday one of London Derbies is on the program. It might not be the fiercest of them all, but the clash between West Ham and Arsenal is guaranteed to bring us lots of excitement. There are many reasons for that, starting with the fact that the match is played at London Stadium, where the Hammers have been playing pretty well in the first half of the season. To learn more about this game, make sure to keep on reading our West Ham vs Arsenal prediction and betting tips!
West Ham
The year 2019 hasn’t started too bad for West Ham. On the first day of the year, they played draw with Brighton, while a week ago, they beat Birmingham in the FA Cup. They’re hoping to keep this kind of form going, but it won’t be easy, considering that their next opponent is Arsenal, a team that beat them in their previous three meetings.
On the bright side, West Ham are playing at home, where they’ve won 3 out of 5 previous matches, counting all competitions. Actually, form is not their biggest problem; their main worry is their injury list. West Ham will be without several key men, including Yarmolenko. The only good news is that Marko Arnautovic is finally injury-free and will probably feature in the game from the very beginning.
The return of Arnautovic is actually a very big boost for the team. It’s not only because he was their top scorer in the first half of the Premier League season, but also because he’s been spectacular since he’s came back. Arnautovic scored both West Ham goals in the draw with Brighton and managed to get on the scoresheet once in the FA Cup victory against Birmingham.
Arsenal
Same as West Ham, Arsenal also have serious problems with injuries. And it’s been like that for a while now. Actually, one of the reasons why they lost 3 matches in the second half of December is that their defensive line was decimated. Unfortunately, several of their key defenders are still out, while some are struggling with fitness.
But, that didn’t bother them much in the games against Fulham and Blackpool, which the Gunners win convincingly. It seems that their manager Unai Emery has decided to solve the problems at the back by focusing on the attack. Therefore, it’s not a surprise that this team has scored a total of 7 goals in the previous 2 games.
What’s slightly worrying for Arsenal fans is that their players aren’t too great when playing away from home. Actually, they’re without an away win in the Premier League since November, when they beat Bournemouth.
Team News
West Ham absentees:
- Andriy Yarmolenko (injury)
- Manuel Lanzini (injury)
- Carlos Sanchez (injury)
- Jack Wilshere (injury)
- Fabian Balbuena (injury)
- Ryan Fredericks (injury)
- Winston Reid (injury)
- Chicharito (doubtful)
Arsenal absentees:
- Henrikh Mkhitaryan (injury)
- Danny Welbeck (injury)
- Konstantinos Mavropanos (injury)
- Rob Holding (injury)
- Mesut Ozil (doubtful)
- Nacho Monreal (doubtful)
- Hector Bellerin (doubtful)
- Laurent Koscielny (doubtful)
- Shkodran Mustafi (doubtful)
Possible Lineups
West Ham
Fabianski – Diop, Ogbonna, Zabaleta, Cresswell – Noble, Obiang, Snodgrass, Felipe Anderson – Antonio, Arnautovic
Arsenal
Leno – Sokratis, Kolasinac, Lichtsteiner, Maitland-Niles – Torreira, Guendouzi, Xhaka – Iwobi, Lacazette, Aubameyang
West Ham vs Arsenal Prediction
It seems impossible for Arsenal to keep a clean sheet in this match. It’s not just because almost all of their defenders are struggling with injuries, but also because the Hammers’ best players are in the final third. This means that Arsenal will have to try to fight back if they want to get anything out of this game. And that promises a lot of goals on both ends!
West Ham vs Arsenal Betting Tips
- BTS @1.50 (1XBet)
- Over 2.5 Goals @1.55 (bwin)