Paul Merson reveals ‘strange feeling’ about West Ham ahead of Fulham clash
Paul Merson believes that West Ham stands a chance of beating Fulham when the sides meet on Wednesday.
Nuno Espirito Santo‘s side are coming off a disappointing 5-2 loss to Liverpool at Anfield, where many observers felt that they deserved more.
West Ham make the trip to Craven Cottage on 4 March, hoping to claw back their two-point deficit to Nottingham Forest and escape the relegation zone.
Merson thinks the London Stadium side will win, however, his justification for the prediction is not exactly the most convincing for West Ham supporters.
Why does Merson think West Ham will beat Fulham?
The performance against last season’s champions may have given some Irons fans hope for the remainder of the season.
However, Merson only half used that result to justify his call for a 2-1 win for the visitors, instead relying on his gut feeling.
Writing in his weekly prediction piece for Sportskeeda, he said: “I have a strange feeling about West Ham in this one.
“This is a must not lose game for West Ham, and I expect them to bring that fight with them, I believe the scoreline against Liverpool did not do justice to their performance.
“I’m backing West Ham to win and produce a huge result that will turn things around at the bottom of the table.
“It can all change again next week in the relegation battle though, that’s just the nature of it.”
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Why West Ham desperately need to beat Fulham
The East London side needs to start picking up three points regularly if they are to avoid relegation to the Championship.
It is no good putting in solid performances and then come away with no points or one point, as that will not get them out of the perilous situation that they find themselves in, before it is too late.
They have 10 matches to get out of the drop zone, and also have a goal difference that is worse than Forest by a total of five, which does not bode well at all.
Dropping down to the second tier would be an absolute disaster for the E20 outfit, as they revealed a £104million pre-tax loss for their 2024-25 season accounts, and that will only get worse if they are relegated.
The Irons sit ninth in the form guide, with two wins, two draws and two losses in their last six matches, compared to Forest who sit 15th and Tottenham, who are dead last.
Hammers supporters will hope and pray that Merson’s feeling is right and they can take away a surprising victory from their London rivals.
Given the Cottagers’ win against Spurs last time out, though, they may not be too hopeful of the right result going their way.
For more on West Ham’s struggle at the bottom, check out Football Insider for the latest.