Paul Merson predicts ‘class’ West Ham United vs Everton result
Paul Merson predicts that West Ham will rebound from their heavy defeat at Aston Villa by beating Everton at home this weekend.
The Sky Sports pundit tipped the Hammers to come out on top in his Sportskeeda predictions (26 October) having “shown their class” this season, despite faltering form in recent weeks.
He believes a tight 2-1 victory for David Moyes’ side is the likely outcome on Sunday (29 October) despite acknowledging the difficulty in predicting what Everton will do from week to week this term, with the Toffees coming in off the back of a controversial defeat at Liverpool last time out.
Merson said: “Everton were on the ropes after Ashley Young’s red card against Liverpool and eventually lost 2-0. You never quite know what you’re going to get with the Toffees – they are like a bag of revels.
“One day, they’ll lose at home to a team they’re expected to beat but weeks later, they’ll show up away from home against a side gunning for a place in the top four, making their games incredibly difficult to predict.
“West Ham are a decent team and have shown their class this season, so I think they’ll win this one at home.”
Bounce back
With just one Premier League win since defeating Luton Town on 1 September (the 2-0 win over Sheffield United on 30 September) this is a game that Moyes is sure to see as a way to improve that record.
Aston Villa may be one of the most in-form sides in England since Unai Emery took over, but the comprehensive nature of their victory last week has helped some doubts creep in over this West Ham team.
In previous years a Moyes line up has at least been able to keep things tight at the back for the most part, but in four games against Manchester City, Liverpool, Newcastle and Villa over the past two months the Irons have conceded 12 times while picking up a solitary point.
Admittedly those are some of the strongest sides in the country currently but the manager is bound to be unhappy with that record.
Everton are having proven dangerous on the road on occasion this season despite their home struggles, so West Ham will have to be on their guard.
And after an inconsistent run it goes without saying that a few solid results in succession at this point would provide some much-needed stability heading into a very busy run across November and December.
In other West Ham news, a “very, very likely” update from Fabrizio Romano has given the Irons a golden opportunity to sign an international ace they’ve wanted for months.