Paul Merson predicts West Ham United defeat v Aston Villa
Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson has predicted that West Ham United will suffer another defeat in the Premier League when they will face Aston Villa this weekend.
The Hammers have endured a horrid beginning to their campaign where they have suffered three consecutive defeats in the first three matches.
Merson, in a column for Sportkeeda, stated that despite being a close match, the Irons might well be at a disadvantage because of playing away from home.
“This is going to be a good game,” he wrote. “West Ham have had an absolute nightmare of a start to their Premier League season.
“They punched above their weight last year but are struggling at the moment. I thought West Ham were unlucky against Forest – if you play counter-attacking football, you have to score the first goal.
“Aston Villa held on and got over the line against Everton, but they did lose against Crystal Palace. This is a big match for them. Steven Gerrard played a strong team against Bolton – that tells you everything you need to know. He needs to win matches.
“This is a massive Premier League match for both teams. Both sets of fans will be mad with a defeat here.
“I think whoever scores first wins this game. Aston Villa are playing at home in the Premier League this week, and I think they have a slight upper hand.”
Big game
West Ham entered the contest hoping to do better than they did in the last season where they finished seventh in the Premier League and also cemented a place in the Europa League semi-final where they were defeated by eventual winners Eintracht Frankfurt.
However, this season started in a way not many would’ve expected at the London Stadium as after three matchdays, the Hammers are currently placed on the bottom of the league table and are the only team to have not been able to register a single point thus far in the competition.
Therefore, it is absolutely necessary for David Moyes to ensure that his players will be up for a challenger and secure a positive result against a team who themselves are finding it hard to gather any sort of momentum this season.
Looking at the historical record, it is clear that both teams have remained extremely competitive over the years as in 56 matches in the Premier League era, both West Ham and Aston Villa have won 13 each whereas 20 matches ended as a stalemate [Transfermarkt].
Looking at the last season’s matches between the sides, the Irons’ supporter will definitely feel good about themselves as their team won both matches by 4-1 and 2-1 score line, respectively.