English Premier
2012-12-01 - West Ham United vs Chelsea FC
A Sports Betting Pick by Cruiser
Match Preview :
Chelsea travels to Upton Park and Rafa Benitez will attempt to get his first win as well as his first goal after taking over from Roverto Di Matteo in this early kickoff on Saturday afternoon.
The positive thing that came out of Benitez shart Chelsea reign so far is that they have kept two clean sheets, but those games have finished in goalless draws as well which have not appeased the fans well.
Benitez would welcome the trip away from Stamford Bridge as his first reception was not greeted well by the fans and the second was more subdued as well. They wil take on West Ham with just one win in their last five games at home.
Chelsea have failed to win in their last six matches but they are still third in the Premiership and are only behind Manchester United by some seven points. They need three points here and they could do that in the opening fixture of the Premiership in this London derby match.
One player who will definitely be in the eyes of the world will be Fernando Torres. He does have a good record against West Ham as he has scored six goals against The Hammers and he could well get on the scoresheet in this match.
But for West Ham they will look to the man who replaced him at Liverpool - Andy Carroll, which means that the performances of both players will be closely watched given the pair have scored just 18 league goals in 114 games combined since they fetched £85million in transfer fees.
West Ham are in tenth place in the Premiership but they have suffered back-to-back defeats for the first time this season after a 33 second goal by Robin van Persie settled the match against Manchester United in midweek.
One thing is for sure there will not be any love lost between Allardyce and Benitez after they endured a not so friendly relationship as managers of Bolton and Liverpool respectively - with Big Sam winning just two of ten contests between the two as managers.
It should be noted that Chelsea have won 10 and lost none of the last 12 Premirship clashes against West Ham.
Team News :
West Ham Team News :
The home side will have midfielder Mark Noble back from suspension in this clash. Noble missed the midweek defeat to Manchester United after he collected five yellow cards this season.
Striker Andy Carroll has a slight knee problem and will be checked upon before the start of the match.
Chelsea Team News :
Brazilian defender David Luiz will miss out after collecting five yellow cards this season. Meanwhile, Captain John Terry will again be missing with a knee injury and Frank Lampard could miss his return to Upton Park because of a calf injury.
Benitez is likely to go with Juan Matta from the start after his last match he was criticised for his defensive approach in selecting Ryan Bertrand.
Predictions :
Go for Chelsea and give the 1/2 ball away here.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
West Ham 0-1 Chelsea
BEST BETTING TIP :
Take Chelsea to win this match.
Gooner’s Statistical Value Bet
Go for Chelsea and give the 1/2 ball.
