English Premier
2012-11-28 - Manchester United vs West Ham United
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Wednesday 28 November 2012 - Kick Off 8pm
Manchester United
Once again, Manchester United fell behind in a game, but they managed to recover and pick up the victory, but this trait is beginning to alarm the fans that attend the matches more and more. This time it was Queens Park Rangers that took the lead before a 10 minute blitz enabled United to win the game 3-1 and move to the top of the table.
United lead the Premier League thanks to Chelsea and Manchester City holding each other to a goalless draw, and they have a 1 point lead with the Manchester derby fast approaching. That means they will not want to drop any points at Old Trafford where they are 5-0-1 this season, scoring 18 goals and conceding 9.
After back to back defeats in the last week, United fell 0-1 behind to QPR and looked like they could have their first 3 game losing run since 2001. However, that win snapped that mini-losing streak and also means United have won 4 in a row at Old Trafford in all competitions. United have also scored at least 2 goals in 13 of their last 14 games here at Old Trafford in all competitions going back to last season.
Paul Scholes is suspended and will be replaced by Anderson who was brilliant when he came on in the second half against QPR. Antonio Valencia is still doubtful, while Nani is back in training.
West Ham United
There have been suggestions that the West Ham United fans are beginning to accept the methods used by Sam Allardyce to make sure the team survive in the Premier League, but the biggest talking point this weekend was the behaviour of their fans in a loss at Tottenham Hotspur. They have been rightly condemned for making light of the atrocities committed by the Nazis during World War Two and has once again sent racism to the forefront of football stories.
West Ham are down to 8th in the Premier League, but their 19 points earned means they are well on the way to reaching the 40 point mark that should extend their stay in the top flight. The Hammers have a 2-1-3 record away from home, scoring 5 goals and conceding 9 in those games.
The side had been unbeaten in 3 games before the loss at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, while they have been a mixed bag away from home. West Ham have won 2 and lost 2 of their last 4 away games in the Premier League, while this is certainly the toughest venue they would have played in so far this season.
Mark Noble is suspended, while George McCartney is a major doubt. Ricardo Vaz Te, Jack Collison and Yossi Benayoun are still out.
Head to Head
West Ham United will be well aware of Manchester United's powers of recovery as they let slip a 2-0 lead and ended up with a 2-4 defeat the last time these teams met in a competitive game two seasons ago.
Manchester United have beaten West Ham 4 times in a row at Old Trafford since the 2007 season when the Hammers won 0-1 in Manchester to ensure survival in the top flight.
United have won each of the last 4 home games by at least 2 goals per game.
Prediction
Manchester United have been so erratic that it can be hard to gauge whether they need to find themselves 0-1 down before they can start playing.
That is a situation that has bit them against Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Norwich City in the League this season when they couldn't get back into the game after falling behind.
However, I think Sam Allardyce will set his side out to be very compact and hard to beat so I believe the momentum and initiative will be handed to the home side and they should be too strong for a West Ham team that has conceded 3 goals at Swansea and Spurs already this season.
With the scoring power possessed by United, I think they will be too strong for West Ham and I'll take them to win with at least 3 or 4 goals scored in the match, offered at 2.70 by Paddy Power.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Manchester United 3-0 West Ham United
