Football betting: No home comforts for Manchester City as West Ham aim for double
Things have changed an awful lot at Upton Park in the last couple of years.
In January 2014 Manchester City beat a hapless West Ham 9-0 on aggregate in the League Cup semi-finals, with the Hammers stuck near the bottom of the Premier League.
As they prepare to welcome City again on Saturday, Slaven Bilic’s men are just four points off a Champions League position.
Since his appointment last summer Bilic has claimed an impressive array of scalps, with victories over Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea to his name.
He also masterminded a 2-1 win at the Etihad Stadium in September.
City’s form has been patchy to say the least since that result – despite only sitting one point off the top.
Full of swagger and confidence at home, Manuel Pellegrini’s side often come unstuck on the road.
Their victory at Watford was their first away league win in seven and City’s final ever visit to Upton Park could be another unhappy one.
West Ham, who move to the Olympic Stadium this summer, won this match 2-1 last season and they have consistently raised their game against the top teams this term.
The return of Dimitri Payet from injury has been a real boost to a side that had gone unbeaten in eight in all competitions before last week’s reversal against Newcastle.
Their attacking football can cause some real damage to City’s defence.
While Joe Hart has kept two clean sheets in a row, City really struggle in captain Vincent Kompany’s absence. Eliaquim Mangala has looked out of his depth ever since arriving in the Premier League, and against Payet he could be exposed once again.
It is 4/1 with Betway for a West Ham win tomorrow, which is fantastic value.
Selling City’s supremacy at 0.75 with Sporting Index covers both a home victory and the draw, and looks the sensible play.
Pointers
West Ham 4/1 (Betway)
Sell Man City supremacy 0.75 (Sporting Index)