Crystal Palace makes the short trip to the London Stadium to face West Ham United, who will be eager to overtake their neighbours in the table.
West Ham United continue to look for ways to stabilise their season’s disastrous start. Seven defeats from their opening 12 games is a cause for concern despite the overly qualified individuals David Moyes possesses in the squad.
After two seasons of overachieving with sixth and seventh-place finishes, the Hammers have been dealt a reality check this term. They remain 13th on the table but only three points from a potential relegation spot. The slight difference signifies the competitive nature of the Premier League this season, with no team guaranteed anything at the moment.
While it’s only the first part of the season, Moyes must believe his side can turn things around. They will take positives from the 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford last weekend, particularly after coming close to getting an equaliser late in the game. The Hammers will be keen to pip Crystal Palace in the rankings, and a win would be enough to achieve it.
Crystal Palace are in a decent vein of form coming to the London Stadium. Patrick Vieira’s men have won three of their last five League encounters and sit 10th in the table with 16 points. They are only 2-points ahead of their London rivals West Ham, and Vieira will be eager to extend that gap.
😆✌️#CPFC pic.twitter.com/YoqSaNstuJ
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) November 3, 2022
Last weekend, Odsonne Edouard’s solitary first-half strike proved enough to secure the points. Whatever success Palace have achieved this year has come on home soil, as they continue to struggle on their travels. Vieira’s side are yet to win an away game this term.
After a rocky start to the season, Vieira has somewhat stabilised things at the club. With players fit, he hopes to get positive results from the next two league games before the World Cup break. Such a scenario would allow Palace to remain in a healthy position and make their charge towards a hopeful place into or near the top seven.
Team News & Tactics
West Ham United
Moyes is expected to make wholesale changes from West Ham’s midweek win over FSCB in the Conference League. One could be a return for Lucas Paqueta, who has missed five games in all competitions. The Brazilian has been training for quite some time and could see his name on the team sheet.
Back from Bucharest and preparing for #WHUCRY 👊 pic.twitter.com/pLLm8CIxyM
— West Ham United (@WestHam) November 4, 2022
Flynn Downes has performed well in his absence, although he might make way for the Brazilian. Kurt Zouma and Craig Dawson should return at the back as Moyes reverts to a back four. Thilo Kehrer and Aaron Cresswell will play full-backs.
Lukasz Fabianski is a considerable doubt which could let Alphonse Areola keep his place and get the chance to impress Moyes. Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek could resume their midfield roles, as midweek goalscorer Pablo Fornals will likely go back to the bench.
As Maxwel Cornet is also doubtful, Moyes is without many options on the left wing, which lets Said Benrahma remain in the position. Jarrod Bowen is the preferred choice on the right, and Moyes could stick with Gianluca Scamacca to lead the line despite Michail Antonio’s positive cameo against Manchester United.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1) – Areola; Kehrer, Dawson, Zouma, Cresswell; Soucek, Rice; Bowen, Downes, Benrahma; Scamacca
Crystal Palace
Vieira has four injury concerns ahead of the trip to West Ham. James McArthur and Chris Richards remain out of contention. Cheick Doucoure and Odsonne Edouard are doubts, but the manager confirmed they have resumed training.
The manager has provided a squad fitness update ahead of this weekend ℹ️#CPFC | #WHUCRY
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) November 4, 2022
They might go through an assessment period ahead of the game, as Vieira would like to start with the duo if they are match-fit. In their absence, Luka Milivojevic and Jean-Philippe Mateta are likely contenders to take the midfield and striker roles.
If Edouard misses out, Vieira might opt to play Wilfried Zaha through the middle. Jordan Ayew and Michael Olise can then take up wide roles. Other than those, the manager knows his starters, with Joel Ward continuing in the absence of Nathaniel Clyne at right-back.
The midfield will look familiar with Doucoure, but Milivojevic has done an excellent job in recent games. Eberechi Eze and Jeffrey Schlupp are the other starters in the central areas.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3) – Guaita; Ward, Andersen, Guehi, Mitchell; Schlupp, Milivojevic, Eze; Ayew, Zaha, Olise
Key Stats
- Crystal Palace are yet to win an away game this season in the Premier League.
- Crystal Palace have failed to score in their last 3 away matches in the Premier League.
- Crystal Palace have scored at least 2 goals in 5 of their last 6 games against West Ham in all competitions.
- West Ham have won their last 3 home games in the Premier League.
- West Ham have scored the third-fewest goals among all teams in the Premier League this season.
Player to Watch
Jarrod Bowen
Bowen finished last season in flying form and even somewhat became a semi-regular in the England setup. Yet, his form is causing concerns among Hammers fans and their manager. The winger has been decent but has yet to be close to his best form.
It’s not surprising that goals have dried up for the Hammers, who have scored the third-fewest in the league this season. Among all West Ham attackers, Bowen needs to lead by example and probably put in displays that could cement a place on the plane to Qatar.
Prediction
West Ham United 2-2 Crystal Palace
The Hammers are in a good run of form at home, and Palace have been terrible on their travels. Those stats point to a win for West Ham, but the circumstances could be different, with Vieira looking for a positive result in the game.
As Moyes continues to find a streak of consistent performances, there were positives from their league defeat to Manchester United. As for Palace, they come to the London Stadium in good form, which points towards a confident performance from the Eagles. Hence, the indications are for a good, entertaining draw.
