West Ham United play host to Crystal Palace in the Premier League this afternoon, and Paul Merson has made his prediction for the match.
Graham Potter took charge of West Ham nine days ago, and the 49-year-old has already improved us massively as a team.
The players have clearly bought into Potter’s methods, and there is real positivity emanating from the London Stadium now.
Quite the contrast from just a couple of weeks ago, that’s for sure!
That feel-good factor will increase even further still if the Hammers manage to beat Crystal Palace this afternoon.
Palace are in the middle of a decent run, so they certainly won’t be pushovers.
And the Hammers are missing some key players remember. So how does Merson think the game with end?
Paul Merson makes 4-goal West Ham vs Crystal Palace prediction
The Hammers fans going to the game today will be travelling to the ground with real excitement.
That’s why sacking Lopetegui and replacing him with Potter was so important – it brought a genuine buzz back to the fanbase.
A win against Palace would put us in a very strong position moving forward, but can the boys get the job done?
Merson wrote his regular prediction column for Sportskeeda, and explained his thoughts on the game.
Merson said, “If I’m being honest, I thought West Ham were quite fortunate to beat Fulham in the last game. Fulham had chance after chance at the start and then shot themselves in the foot later. That 3-2 win is definitely a case of the result covering over the cracks at West Ham in my opinion!
“Graham Potter will need time to make West Ham play the way he wants. It’s completely different, and certainly positive football, compared to what we saw them play under David Moyes and Julen Lopetegui. Potter has good talent in that squad so that ticks one box. Now he needs time and I hope the board will give him that. For now, I see West Ham as a team that will score goals while letting in quite a few at the other end as well.
“Even Crystal Palace were quite lucky to win 2-0 and keep a clean sheet against Leicester in the last game. But they have too much quality and won’t get relegated. Palace desperately needed that win over Leicester though, beating teams in and around them in the table is what will help them at this stage.“
Prediction West Ham 2-2 Crystal Palace
Merson clearly feels like it will be an end to end game and I actually agree with him.
However, I will be disappointed if we don’t win this one.
The Hammers have failed to record back-to-back Premier League wins all season long, and it’s time for that to change.
If West Ham pick up three points against Crystal Palace today, the European spots will be well within our reach.
I’m hoping for a hard-fought victory, and I genuinely think we can beat Palace.
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