West Ham

West Ham vs Watford is a good old fashioned relegation humdinger. At the time of writing, both sides are locked on 34 points, three points ahead of Bournemouth and four ahead of Aston Villa, who have are travelling to Everton on Thursday.

For the two clubs in question, as well as the other relegation battlers, there are permutations all over the place. If we’re being realistic, the winner on Friday will be safe barring an extraordinary set of results from those below them – the loser will feel very nervous indeed.

It’s hard to know whether or not a draw would please either side. West Ham have a trip to Old Trafford before a shootout against Aston Villa remaining, while Watford have Man City and Arsenal…*gulp*.

A point could be crucial for either side, but with the incentive to win so big, it would feel like a missed opportunity for all involved.

The Hornets come into this on the back of consecutive home wins against Norwich and Newcastle, while West Ham have taken seven points from their last four matches, including a massive win over Chelsea.

However, at 29/20 I’m leaning towards the home side to win.

Watford’s away form all season has been abysmal, and they’ve now lost their last four in-a-row without scoring once. Furthermore, they’ve only mustered 11 goals away from home in their 17 matches, which has gone a long way to ensuring they are right in the thick of a relegation battle.  

Admittedly, the Hammers have hardly been formidable at home, but just three defeats in their last eight is ok, but they’ve also beaten Bournemouth, Southampton and Chelsea during this period, so they’re certainly capable of securing the win they need.

It’s also worth noting that West Ham have won three of their last four games against Watford, and the Hornets’ lack of goalscoring potency could really hurt them on Friday, which is why I’m backing West Ham to edge past them and claim three massive points.

Follow @RyanEJourno

West Ham - 1pt @ 17/12