Mark Lawrenson predicts West Ham v Arsenal Premier League result
Mark Lawrenson has predicted that West Ham will lose 2-1 when Arsenal visit the London Stadium in the Premier League on Sunday (1 May).
The Hammers had a major exertion in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final against Eintracht Frankfurt last night (28 April), and that will likely mean changes for the weekend.
The Gunners haven’t played since beating Manchester United last weekend, their second consecutive win after a run of three defeats, while the Irons have only won twice in the Premier League in the past two months.
On his BBC Sport predictions, the former Liverpool man says: “Like Leicester, West Ham are fully focused on Europe at the moment – this follows the first leg of their Europa League semi-final with Eintracht Frankfurt, which is absolutely massive for them.
“As I’ve been saying all season, West Ham don’t have the biggest squad and they will almost certainly make some changes here.
“That should help Arsenal, although the Hammers will still be difficult to beat.
“The Gunners have benefited all season from not being in European competition – most of their midweeks have been free – but being fresher is particularly handy at this stage of the campaign.”
Distraction
The Europa League is clearly the priority at the moment, but David Moyes will know he can’t ignore the league fixtures.
Wolves are currently only three points behind and have a game in hand in the battle for the European places.
If the side can overturn the 2-1 deficit against Frankfurt and actually win the final then it would become a moot point with Champions League qualification.
But that is no done deal and a season with no European football after the excitement of this campaign would be a major anti-climax.
Mikel Arteta’s side are inconsistent and certainly can be beaten, but they have played themselves into some form and will be better rested.
Moyes has got more than many would have expected out of a squad his size, and will likely need to inspire another surprise at the weekend.
In other West Ham news, the club are nearly £40million up from what they’ve done this year according to a recent breakdown.
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