West Ham United vs Everton Preview: Probable Lineups, Prediction, Tactics, Team News & Key Stats

West Ham United will look to return to winning ways when they host Everton after failing to secure a win in their last three outings.

16th-placed Everton will look to improve their position in the league table when they hit the road to square up against West Ham United. Nothing much has changed for the Merseyside club since last season as they once again find themselves in the relegation battle. Meanwhile, the Hammers have improved significantly, but they will surely want to return to winning ways after failing to do so in their last three outings.

West Ham are currently ninth in the points table with 14 points in their nine outings. They have won four of their fixtures, lost three and drawn two. While it might not be the best of starts, it is still much better than the kind of struggle they had last time out.

They have lost their last two outings, while they have been winless in their last three. David Moyes’s team will head into this fixture thinking about all three points, and they will give it their all to return to winning ways. They are heading into this fixture on the back of a 2-1 loss at the hands of Olympiacos in the Europa League and will surely look for a better outing against Everton.

The visitors are three points above the relegation zone. They are 16th on the points table with just seven points in their nine outings. Everton have lost six of their league games and have only won twice so far this season. It has not been the kind of start they wanted, but there is still a lot of time for them to bounce back.

Everton have lost two of their last three league games. They are heading into this fixture on the back of a 2-0 defeat at the hands of rivals Liverpool. They were dominated throughout the 90 minutes and did not really deserve to get anything out of it. Everton will hope for a much better outing against the Hammers. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could put to use in this fixture.

Team News & Tactics

West Ham United

The Hammers will be without the services of Emerson Palmieri, Vladimir Coufal and Lukasz Fabianski. Apart from the trio, everyone else is expected to be fit for this fixture.

Meanwhile, David Moyes made quite a few changes to the XI that took the field against Olympiacos in the UEFA Europa League. He will stick with the 4-2-3-1 formation, where Alphonse Areola will be in goal.

The back four will be made up of Thilo Kehrer, Kurt Zouma, Nayef Aguerd, and Aaron Cresswell. Zouma and Aguerd will take charge in the heart of the defence, while Kehrer and Cresswell will be the full-backs. In the centre of the park, Edson Alvarez and Tomas Soucek will form the double pivot. The duo will shield the back four and also look to dictate the pace of the game.

James Ward-Prowse will feature in an attacking midfielder’s position, and he will be the creative force for the Hammers. Meanwhile, Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta will feature on both flanks. They will look to provide the much-needed width to their attacks. Michail Antonio be the number nine for this fixture.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Areola; Kehrer, Zouma, Aguerd, Cresswell; Alvarez, Soucek; Bowen, Ward-Prowse, Paqueta; Antonio

Everton

The visitors will be without the services of Ashley Young, Andre Gomes and Dele Alli. Seamus Coleman is back in the mix, but he is not yet fit enough to be back on the pitch.

Sean Dyche will stick with the 4-4-1-1 formation, where Jordan Pickford will be in goal. Nathan Patterson and Vitaliy Mykolenko will feature on the flanks at the full-backs. In the heart of the defence, Jarrad Branthwaite will pair up with James Tarkowski.

Idrissa Gueye and Amadou Onana will feature in the centre of the park. The duo are expected to have a lot of defensive duties in this fixture. But, they will look to control the possession of the ball and dictate the pace of the game if and when possible.

Jack Harrison and Dwight McNeil will feature out wide on the flanks in the midfield. They will help out the full-backs and also look to provide width to their attacks. Abdoulaye Doucoure will be the attacking midfielder behind their star striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Probable Lineup (4-4-1-1): Pickford; Patterson, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Harrison, Onana, Gueye, McNeil; Doucoure; Calvert-Lewin

Key Stats

• Out of the 149 games played between Everton and West Ham United, Sean Dyche’s team have won 74 times, while David Moyes’s team only have 44 wins to their name.
• The Hammers have won four out of their last six matches against Everton in the league.
• The visitors have lost 87 away games against clubs from London in the Premier League.
• West Ham have only lost three out of their last 14 home games in the English top flight.

Player to Watch

James Ward-Prowse

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Ward-Prowse has had a dream start to life in London. He has been doing wonders for his new club West Ham United. He has featured in a total of 11 matches and contributed towards eight goals. He has found the back of the net twice and has assisted his teammates on six occasions.

He will look to carry on the good work when he takes the field against Everton. The 28-year-old will feature as the attacking midfielder, and he could end up being the difference between the two teams.

Prediction

West Ham United 2-1 Everton

West Ham United might not have won in any of their last three matches. But they are still in a much better position than Everton. The Hammers have quality players in their ranks and they are expected to come out on top in this outing.

Everton are heading into this fixture on the back of a hammering at the hands of Liverpool, and they might not have enough in their tank to get one better over the Hammers. The Hard Tackle predicts a hard-fought 2-1 win for the home team.