The final match of what has been an entertaining and at times controversial set of matches in the Premier League comes along in the Monday Night Football when the leaders Liverpool take on relegation threatened West Ham United at Anfield.
Liverpool are seemingly marching to the title and another win here will take them closer to it while results have gone West Ham’s way this weekend so if they can find a victory they will escape the bottom three.
Liverpool
All eyes will be on the home side here to see if they are wounded animals after their surprise Champions League defeat in Madrid last week, or whether they have taken it on the chin and continue as if it is business as usual. If it is the former we would be right to expect a dominant demolition job here but if it is the latter then it would just be about winning the game and moving on to the next one.
The record Liverpool have in the Premier League this season, where they haven’t dropped more than two points all campaign and are yet to lose, is pretty well documented but in recent times I have noticed they have been focusing intently on winning rather than letting it come naturally. If you do the latter you tend to win more comfortably. It is almost like this record is becoming a bit of a millstone around their necks. That said, you’d rather have it than not!
West Ham United
It has been a wretched season for West Ham United and discontent is hitting fever pitch among their fan base. It has gotten so bad that they are now employing damage limitation exercises in these kind of matches in a bid to preserve their hopes of remaining in the Premier League. That was what they did at Manchester City last week and it would be a huge surprise if they go any other way than to repeat that in this match.
The Hammers have shown an inability to keep goals out of their net this season, and that has cost them dearly. The other issue they have had is that although they have some really good attacking options, at no stage have they all shown their best form together, and now that confidence is quite low they are being found wanting. Their upcoming fixture list is not encouraging either so West Ham have a lot of work to do if they are to stay up.
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Team News
Liverpool will be without their captain Jordan Henderson for this match as he picked up a hamstring injury in the defeat to Atletico Madrid in midweek. That was six days ago so Jurgen Klopp is expected to resist the temptation to rotate his squad.
West Ham will be without defender Ryan Fredericks and attacker Andriy Yarmolenko who are both out injured. Pablo Zabaleta is expected to replace the former Fulham man as he did during the Manchester City defeat.
Betting
You would have to be brave, or a little deranged, to bet against Liverpool winning this match. Every angle you look at this match from it comes back to a Liverpool win. The question is how many they will win by and that is the stumbling block for me. They could absolutely demolish West Ham if they are in the mood, but actually they haven’t thrashed anyone for a while so maybe West Ham can keep it close.
In terms of a bet, I’m going to look at this from the opposite angle. I don’t see West Ham doing any attacking here. They barely crossed the halfway line against Manchester City on Wednesday night and I’m not expecting a change in tactics here. Liverpool are so good defensively that even if the Hammers do open up a little there is no guarantee they will get much joy. Liverpool to win to nil has landed in 10 of their last 11 matches and given they could be up against an opponent who aren’t doing much attacking I fancy that will become 11 times in 12. At 10/11 Liverpool to win to nil looks an excellent value bet.
Tips
Back Liverpool to win to nil for a 4/10 stake at 1.91 with BetVictor
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