Arsenal will look to bounce back from their draw against Liverpool as they travel across London to take on an inconsistent West Ham United.
West Ham United manager David Moyes would have liked to come into the fixture between in a better position, not with contrasting ambitions against their London rivals, Arsenal. The Hammers are showing steady signs of beating the drop. But they would need consistency at the highest level to be absolutely certain of it.
Two narrow victories against Southampton and Fulham on either side of the Newcastle United humbling will have restored some confidence in Moyes and his players. While they take on Arsenal on Sunday, the Hammers have many more tough fixtures before the season ends, including games against Liverpool and the Manchester clubs.
Earlier this week, they produced a modest display in a 1-1 draw with Gent in their UEFA Europa Conference League clash. Moyes will have to ready his squad to navigate through plenty of games in the coming period. But for now, they will look to get a positive result against the Gunners and move up the ladder.
Meanwhile, Mikel Arteta will hope his side responds positively to the 2-2 draw with Liverpool last weekend. The Gunners took a 2-0 lead within 30 minutes, but the Merseysiders fought back with two goals before full-time.
Arsenal are six points ahead of Man City having played a game more, plus they still have to face Man City at the Etihad Stadium.
All current PL table predictions: https://t.co/QYvEIoNJZs pic.twitter.com/hs03XwDQ9w
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) April 14, 2023
The result somewhat dented their title hopes, as the gap to Manchester City was reduced to six points, having played a game more. The narrative around the media is that Arsenal will have to win all their games to stand a chance of clinching the title. Meanwhile, there is immense confidence in Manchester City going on a winning run for the remainder of the campaign.
Arteta remained unfazed by the mammoth prospect ahead of his Arsenal side to win the title. Compared to Manchester City, the Gunners have some tough rounds of fixtures, including away trips to the Etihad and St. James’ Park and home games with Brighton & Hove Albion and Chelsea.
Team News & Tactics
West Ham United
Gianluca Scamacca’s knee surgery potentially rules him out for the season. As West Ham United embark on a tough run-in, David Moyes will be happy with his players’ fitness levels, with the Italian, the only absentee from the squad. The Hammers’ boss will also make several changes from their midweek trip to Belgium, with Lukasz Fabianski set to resume his place between the sticks.
🏠 Home form crucial
🏟️ Importance of the fans' support
🔁 Balancing league and EuropeThe gaffer assesses Sunday's match against Arsenal ⚒️
— West Ham United (@WestHam) April 14, 2023
Meanwhile, Moyes could also call upon some key stars who missed last weekend’s Fulham game. Tomas Soucek, Kurt Zouma, Michail Antonio and Lucas Paqueta could all take their spots in the lineup on Sunday. But all the focus will be on Arsenal-linked Declan Rice in central midfield.
Moyes will restore the Rice-Soucek axis in central midfield. And at the back, he will hope for Nayef Aguerd and Zouma to have a good game. Emerson Palmieri and Thilo Kehrer will take up the full-back spots.
Antonio will lead the line for West Ham ahead of Danny Ings and have the usual support behind him. Paqueta will take up the attacking midfield role, which suits his profile. West Ham’s main goal threat comes from Jarrod Bowen, who will continue from the right wing, while Said Benrahma will start from the left.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Fabianski; Kehrer, Zouma, Aguerd, Emerson; Soucek, Rice; Bowen, Paqueta, Benrahma; Antonio
Arsenal
Mikel Arteta has confirmed the continued absence of key defender William Saliba, who has missed three games on the trot since suffering a back problem against Sporting CP. Rob Holding has deputised well in his absence and will continue in that role against West Ham United.
William Saliba ❌@EddieNketiah9 ✅
The boss has provided a team news update ahead of West Ham United 👇
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) April 14, 2023
Eddie Nketiah has recovered from his ankle problem and will be available for this clash. He will remain on the bench as things stand, considering Arteta will likely name an unchanged lineup from their draw at Anfield.
Arsenal’s defence will again depend on Gabriel Magalhaes, and he has looked good alongside Holding at the back. Ben White and Oleksandr Zinchenko will continue in their role out wide, with Aaron Ramsdale behind them will hope for a 13th clean sheet of this campaign.
Thomas Partey, Martin Odegaard and Granit Xhaka will keep their midfield places intact. Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli will continue to provide width in the attacking third, with Gabriel Jesus leading the line ahead of Leandro Trossard.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Ramsdale; Ben White, Holding, Gabriel Magalhaes, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Partey, Xhaka; Saka, Jesus, Martinelli
Key Stats
- West Ham United have only won four of their last ten games in the Premier League
- West Ham have seen over 2.5 goals in 11 of their last 13 home matches against Arsenal in all competitions.
- Arsenal have won six of their last seven games against West Ham in the Premier League.
- Arsenal have scored at least two goals in 12 of their last 14 away matches against West Ham in all competitions.
- There have been over 2.5 goals scored in Arsenal’s last six games in the Premier League.
Player to Watch
Granit Xhaka
Granit Xhaka loved Gabriel Jesus' goal 😆 pic.twitter.com/g9atvVgCOd
— GOAL (@goal) April 9, 2023
In the days after the Liverpool draw, Granit Xhaka’s name was mentioned more times than necessary in the media. According to many experts or pundits around, the minor incident with Trent Alexander-Arnold apparently got the Anfield crowd going, which reportedly cost Arsenal a win.
Xhaka has had his moments of madness in an Arsenal shirt, but he is no more that player. The Swiss midfielder will remain eager to prove his doubters wrong. And what better way to do it than on the pitch? More than any other player, he deserves a great game, and he could have one on Sunday at the London Stadium.
Prediction
West Ham United 1-3 Arsenal
West Ham saw first hand how Arsenal could come back into a game when everyone doubted them to fall off after the World Cup. Back then, goals from Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Eddie Nketiah secured three points after Said Benrahma scored the opener. And this game could have a similar outcome.
Arsenal might be under pressure to win the Premier League. But they are taking things the right way and have shown no signs of crumbling. On the other hand, the Hammers have been utterly inconsistent and will want to record consecutive victories, which unfortunately may not happen on Sunday.
