Following the recent international break, West Ham travel away to Vicarage Road on Sunday to face a Watford side without a win in 3. This fixture comes at an appropriate time for West Ham considering the current situation with our new manager. David Moyes is set to take charge of his 500th premier league game this weekend, putting him up there with the likes of Arsene Wenger, Sir Alex Ferguson and Harry Redknapp in terms of games managed.
With West Ham only picking up 1 away win in their last 13, it is vital that we make a good start under Moyes with the game vital not just in terms of league position.
THE OUTLOOK
This matchup brings together two sides currently on a bad run of form, Watford without a league win in 3 sit in a healthy 9th place whilst West Ham, without a league win in 4, sit in a more worrying 18th place.
Watford pose a threat going forward but also contain areas of weakness at the back, having scored 17 and conceded 21 in their first 11 games of the season. With their top goal scorer being summer signing Richarlison it will be vital West Ham put his run of good form to an end.
On the other hand, West Ham have scored 11 and conceded 23, with our top scorer also being new a summer addition in Javier Hernandez.
The stats point towards an edgy encounter, but with Watford conceding the most Headed goals in the league, I really believe we can get at them.
This will play into our hands depending on the XI David Moyes starts with. Andy Carroll seeming the most viable option given the state of Watford’s defence. An interesting factor will be the new managers trust in the younger players, Slaven Bilic almost turned a blind eye to the youth in his tenure at West Ham. This was much to the annoyance of some fans, so it is key David Moyes shows some form of faith in his younger crop of players.
INJURY NEWS
Now onto Injury news, the international break poses a whole new animal in terms of injuries with some more recent ones to key players, not surprising. Our top goal scorer Javier Hernandez is out with a Hamstring injury, other players such as Michail Antonio (Rib), Jose Fonte (Ankle), Sam Byram (Thigh), James Collins (Ankle) and Winston Reid (Fatigue) all remain side-lined.
TEAM NEWS
These injuries as well as whole school changes; the new manager. Means that predicting the starting XI is increasingly impossible, but for me David Moyes’ first game in charge will see us line up similarly to this
PREDICTION
My prediction for the game is a tough one, due to our defensive disarray I can see us conceding, but considering Watford’s incapability in the air I can also see us scoring. I’m going for a 1-1 draw, with Richarlison and Andy Carroll as the goal scorers. Overall, the first test under Moyes should be a good one and I’m looking forward to getting to Vicarage Road come Sunday, let’s hope it’s a positive result come 6pm that evening and we can get our season up and running.
COYI!
Alex PB
@AlexPBSport