Arsenal vs West Ham
English Premier League
Date: Saturday, 19 September 2020
Kick-off at 20:00 UK/ 21:00 CET
Venue: Emirates Stadium.
Match preview
If nothing else, first-team manager Mikel Arteta has certainly made Arsenal supporters believe in their club again after just nine months in the job.
The Gunners have carried their momentum from the end of last season into 2020-21, which has begun with victory over Liverpool in the Community Shield and last week's win at Fulham.
It is now six wins in their last seven competitive outings for Arteta's men, including the Community Shield triumph, and they will be looking to keep the feel-good factor alive.
This is a fixture Arsenal tend to do well in, too, having defeated West Ham in 10 of their last 11 home encounters in all competitions.
Indeed, taking home and away fixtures into account, the Hammers have lost more Premier League matches against Arsenal (31) than versus any other opponent.
David Moyes could certainly do with a surprise victory this weekend following last week's abject display, with Callum Wilson and Jeff Hendrick earning Newcastle a 2-0 victory.
West Ham did hit back with a 3-0 win over Charlton Athletic in round two of the EFL Cup in midweek, but that has done little to win over worried supporters.
United only ever seem to be a couple of bad results away from all-out anarchy, so Moyes will know the importance of quickly steadying the ship.
However, the East London outfit have a tough run ahead, taking on six sides from last season's top eight in their next six matches.
The Irons' away form picked up towards the end of last season, though, going three games unbeaten on their travels to conclude the season, including a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.
A similar performance and result on Saturday would go a long way to appeasing disgruntled supporters, but in Arsenal they face one of the most in-form teams around.
Team News
Mikel Arteta is sweating on the fitness of Granit Xhaka after he came off with an ankle knock in Arsenal's 3-0 win at Fulham and he could be replaced by Dani Ceballos in midfield.
That may be the only change Arteta makes from the side that started at Craven Cottage.
The likes of David Luiz, Shkodran Mustafi and Pablo Mari all remain sidelined.
Manuel Lanzini has recovered from a knock and is an option for David Moyes, but Jack Wilshere is a doubt with an ankle issue.
Felipe Anderson and Sebastien Haller were impressive in West Ham's midweek cup win over Charlton and the pair could come into the side at the expense of Pablo Fornals and Michail Antonio.
Arsenal vs West Ham: Prediction
The Gunners recorded a 0-3 win on the road the last match-day, against Fulham. In the meantime, David Moyes’s men lost 0-2 at home against Newcastle.
As things stand, Arteta’s men are the favorites this weekend. They have been one of the best teams in the league for the last several decades, whereas their counterparts are considered to be amongst the bottom-tier clubs.
Going on, the Gunners had won eight of their preceding nine overall match-ups, and they have lost just once at home in the whole of 2020 – which had come in the Europa League.
On the other hand, their counterparts had won just twice all through this year on the road – and both the victories had come against teams currently in lower divisions.
Going on, Arteta’s men also have dominated this rival in h2h fixtures for a very long time.
By all means, expect a winning performance from Arsenal this Saturday.
Arsenal vs West Ham: Betting Tips
Arsenal to Win @ 1.60 (3/5)
Over 1.5 Team Goals by Arsenal @ 1.50 (1/2).