Mark Lawrenson predicts result of West Ham clash v Chelsea
Mark Lawrenson believes West Ham could take points off Chelsea once again when the two teams meet on Sunday in the Premier League, writing in his BBC Sport column.
The Hammers claimed all three points at the London Stadium back in December with a 3-2 win, and now travel to Stamford Bridge after the blues were hammered by Brentford, Real Madrid and Arsenal in consecutive home games.
Now after having the midweek off for once after their European excursions, Lawrenson is backing David Moyes’ side to add to their points tally in a 1-1 draw.
“Chelsea were extremely vulnerable at the back against Arsenal on Wednesday, which was strange to see,” he said.
“Afterwards, Blues boss Thomas Tuchel blamed the pitch for some awkward bounces, but I don’t buy that. That might have been an excuse in the 1970s or 1980s because surfaces could be terrible then – but not now.
“West Ham have got a big game to look forward to next Thursday, with their Europa League semi-final against Eintracht Frankfurt, but they will benefit from having a rare midweek off before this game.
“David Moyes’ side had started to look a little bit leggy but the rest will do them good. They have already taken points off Chelsea this season when they beat them at London Stadium in December, and I think they will have some joy here too.”
Priorities
The Hammers finally had a week off and Moyes will have had to come up with a plan for central defence with Kurt Zouma, Issa Diop and Angelo Ogbonna all out injured.
But more importantly, he must make a decision on whether or not to prioritise a win over Chelsea or rest some players ahead of the Europa League semi-final first leg against Frankfurt on Thursday.
The Europa League seems like their best and most realistic path to the Champions League for next season, so logic would suggest he targets that path.
However a win over Chelsea would keep their chances alive in the league too, which means more opportunity rather than putting all their eggs in one basket.
The Hammers will be confident they can pull together a performance and get a result regardless of the team Moyes names, such is the belief he has instilled in the squad. Don’t rule it out.
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