West Ham vs. Leicester Prediction: Two High-Powered Offenses Clash in EPL Showdown
West Ham vs. Leicester Prediction: Two High-Powered Offenses Clash in EPL Showdown
When: Monday, August 23 - 3:00 PM ET
Where: London Stadium
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West Ham: Takes After First Round
David Moyes returned to the London Stadium in December 2019 securing safety to a lost West Ham squad who won just 2 in 13 games sliding towards the bottom three. His recruitment, project, training session are top notch. Last season, West Ham secured a club-record 65 EPL points, finishing 6th in the table and qualifying in the Europa League group stages.
They kicked-off their 2021-22 domestic season with a superb 4-2 away win against Newcastle. They trailed the Magpies 2 times, enjoying an amazing second half, scoring 3 goals in 10 minutes. Despite not being able to score, Jarrod Bowen was one of the most impressive players. He looked in fine shape putting in a tireless display on the right flank, creating moments of magic with his high-pace style. He will surely improve with every match and become a key player for the team so the fans should thank Moyes from bringing him to the club.
Newcastle vs. West Ham and Man United vs. Liverpool were the best games of the round. If we could choose just one, the 1st clash was better. Even Gary Lineker reacted on twitter saying it was a fabulous fixture and that the Premier League has got off to a flying start. West Ham’s team spirit and confidence level is phenomenal. They always fight back and keep going no matter what. They score more goals on the Premier League opening day than in their previous seven combined EPL openers.
This season they will play many matches being involved in Premier League, Europa League and domestic cups so the question is if they can cope playing midweek in Europa League and weekend in EPL. We’ve seen many teams in the last years who were brilliant in their domestic league and qualified in the European competitions but after that, they suffered because of their squad depth, not being used to play every three days.
Leicester: Takes After First Round
The Foxes kicked off their season with a trophy after a well deserved 1-0 win against Manchester City in the Community Shield. It’s true, the Citizens were without many of their key players but still, a win is a win and when you start your campaign with silverware, your confidence level is very high.
Last weekend they beat Wolves, returning to the Premier League football with an important win. Jamie Vardy was again the man with the goal for Leicester. Is he 25 years old? No, he’s 34, but he’s like a fine wine, his fitness and hunger for goals is unreal. Vardy scored 17 goals last season and he was the player on the pitch for Leicester. He’s one of the players who can maintain a high tempo and consistence throughout an entire season.
Brendan Rodgers enjoyed a decent summer transfer window spending $35m for Patson Daka, a 22-year-old centre-forward from RB Salzburg, $23m for Boubakary Soumare, 22-year-old defensive midfielder from Lille and $20m for Jannik Vestergaard, a centre-back with great Premier League experience from Southampton. Unfortunately, Leicester remain without Wesley Fofana, Jonny Evans and Ryan Bertrand for this clash.
In the 2nd half of the match, Leicester committed a high number of individual errors and were very lucky not to concede. They had no shots on target but somehow managed to keep a clean sheet and win their 1st three points of the season. Normally they are very organized defensively, but they are missing some important players.
West Ham vs. Leicester Prediction
Michail Antonio will lead the attacking line for West Ham, looking for his 48th Premier League goal, which will make him West Ham's record goalscorer in the EPL. He priced at +180 with BetMGM to be anytime goalscorer. Given his desire to score in this match but also his goal-scoring form, this bet has great value. On the other side, Jamie Vardy is the bookies’ favorite to score anytime in the match (+162 with Bet365).
After watching the 2 teams in the 1st round, we expect a high-scoring affair so the over 2.5 goals in the match is our pick for this clash. It’s the start of the season, the players are still trying to arrive at their best level, there are many defensive mistakes, so let’s take advantage of that.
West Ham vs. Leicester Picks
Pick: Over 2.5 Goal @ -127
Article Author
Alex Campean has been a soccer fan since 1990 when he watched the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy. He knows everything about the top 5 European leagues, Champions League and Europa League and he is well known for his “trade-mark” “Alex Classic” bet (both teams to score and over 2.5 goals in the match). He’s very disciplined, follows a strict set of rules, and has great bankroll management. He’s our European soccer specialist and he's having an average of 55 units of profit in the last 7 years with his soccer picks. He’s all about positive energy, respect, and long-term profit and if you ever hear “Alex’s last-minute goal” that means he did it again winning a bet in the last minute of the game, so never lose hope.