Chris Sutton reacts to ‘big loss’ in Crystal Palace v West Ham United Premier League prediction
Chris Sutton has predicted that Joachim Andersen will be a “big loss” for Crystal Palace when they face West Ham United in the Premier League on Saturday [24 August].
West Ham will travel to Selhurst Park looking for their first win of the Julen Lopetegui era after a 2-1 loss to Aston Villa on the opening day of the 2024/25 season.
Crystal Palace also suffered a defeat of the same scoreline to Brentford in matchday one and both sides will face off evenly matched, looking to kickstart their campaign, and former Premier League striker thinks the spoils will be shared this weekend.
“Crystal Palace played very well against Brentford and ended up losing. It is a totally different Palace under Oliver Glasner, but Joachim Andersen has left for Fulham and will be a big loss for them,” Sutton predicted for BBC Sport [22 August].
“It is a new dawn for Julen Lopetegui at West Ham and he will want to get his first win under the belt.”
“Prediction: 2-2.”
Julen Lopetegui looking for first win as West Ham United boss
The new look Hammers side will need time to click into place but that hasn’t stopped supporters dreaming of greater heights this season.
Time Steidten has supplied Lopetegui with nine new additions in East London this summer, transforming the side into one of the dark horses in the Premier League.
West Ham struggled under David Moyes in the return fixture at Selhurst Park last term as the side suffered a 5-2 thrashing at the hands of the newly-appointed Oliver Glasner.
Glasner has since lost Michael Olise to Bayern Munich and will be without Andersen as he completes a move to Fulham, while Marc Guehi remains heavily linked to Newcastle United.
Lopetegui will fancy his chances against a weakened Palace side as his new signings continue to adapt to life in East London.
Only a win will suffice for a side with European aspirations this season and that will be the utmost requirement for the supporters who now hold high hopes for their club to compete at the top end of the league and to see their new signings embedded into the side.
In other West Ham news, Carlos Soler will miss the PSG match on Friday, he’s on the verge of a transfer to the Hammers.
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