Arsenal v West Ham preview: Team news, head-to-head, prediction
West Ham make the short journey to The Emirates this weekend to face an Arsenal side with aspirations of winning the Premier League title.
Form has been hard to come by as of late, with West Ham falling to a 1-0 defeat to Brentford in their last encounter and things aren’t going to get much easier for the Irons.
Arsenal have enjoyed a fruitful campaign to date, and with Liverpool dropping two points at Aston Villa, the pressure is on the Gunners to secure all three points on Saturday afternoon (22 February).
Preview
Both sides enter this game having endured polar opposite campaigns. Arsenal are well within the title race, just eight points behind Liverpool, while West Ham are still somewhat looking over their shoulder.
Graham Potter has struggled to have a major impact since taking over the reins from Julen Lopetegui, picking up just one win since his January appointment.
The Irons sit just 10 points above the drop zone heading into the final 13 games of the season and will have to be at their absolute best to come away with anything other than a defeat against Arsenal.
25 points separate the two sides ahead of the encounter at The Emirates.
| West Ham v Arsenal 24/25 comparison | W | D | L | P | GF | GA |
| West Ham | 7 | 6 | 12 | 27 | 29 | 47 |
| Arsenal | 18 | 8 | 2 | 53 | 51 | 22 |
Form Guide (PL)
Arsenal: WDWWW
West Ham: WLDLL
Head-To-Head
West Ham 2-5 Arsenal (November 2024)
West Ham 0-6 Arsenal (February 2024)
Arsenal 0-2 West Ham (December 2023)
West Ham 3-1 Arsenal (November 2023)
West Ham 2-2 Arsenal (April 2023)
Team News
Arsenal have a number of key players missing through injury with Bukayo Saka perhaps the most notable to be on the sideline.
Kai Havertz was recently ruled out for the season while Gabriel Jesus, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Gabriel Martinelli are all set to be absent.
As for the victors, Lucas Paqueta is the latest to be ruled out for West Ham after an incident in training saw the Brazillian pick up a knock.
Crysencio Summerville and Vladimir Coufal are both expected to be sidelined for the clash. The latter could return to the squad for their encounter with Leicester City.
Predicted lineups
Arsenal: Raya, Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly, Odegaard, Partey, Rice, Nwaneri, Trossard, Sterling
West Ham: Areola, Wan-Bissaka, Mavropanos, Kilman, Emerson, Alvarez, Soucek, Kudus, Bowen, Soler, Ferguson
Where to watch Arsenal v West Ham?
Due to the 3 pm blackout, Arsenal v West Ham will be unavailable to viewers in the UK.
Prediction: Arsenal 1-1 West Ham
Fortunes need to change for West Ham and while it appears unlikely for that to happen against Arsenal, that could be the exact reason it does.
The Irons are the underdogs heading into this game and it may allow for some of the pressure to be taken away from them.
A draw would be an excellent result for Potter’s side, but they will need to be at their best to achieve it.