After winning their first 5 games in the Premier League, Chelsea find themselves sitting top of the table on maximum points. In contrast West Ham had been rooted to the bottom of the table without a win, until an unlikely 3-1 win at Everton lifted them out of the dreaded relegation zone.
Chelsea will be strong favourites to win this game, though West Ham will be slightly more confident due to the win over Everton last week. The game is on Sunday at 13:30pm and Chelsea will be looking to win to stay at the top of the table, rivals Liverpool are at home to Southampton the day before and should record a victory.
Head-to-head:
With a total of 26 games played against each other, Chelsea recorded 17 victories, with the Hammers triumphing over them just 4 times. The two teams have recorded a draw 5 times.
Last five meetings
Chelsea 1-1 West Ham
West Ham 1-0 Chelsea
West Ham 1-2 Chelsea
West Ham 2-1 Chelsea
Chelsea 2-1 West Ham
Team news
West Ham
A big blow to West Ham is that Arnautovic is unlikely to play, if that is the case I think it makes the task much much harder for West Ham in this game. Confirmed players out for the match are Carroll (Ankle), Lanzini (Knee), Reid (Knee) and Wilshere (Ankle). Also a doubt is Chicarito, which means West Ham are very light on strikers and this means Yarmolenko is very likely to start. After much tinkering it looks like Pellegrini has finally sorted out some of the defensive problems West Ham have had, that defence will be severely tested on Sunday.
[Goalkeepers]
Adrian
Lukasz Fabianski
Nathan Trott
[Defenders]
Fabian Balbuena
Aron Cresswell
Issa Diop
Arthur Massuaku
Angelo Ogbonna
Josh Pask
Pablo Zabaleta
[Midfielders]
Felipe Anderson
Michail Antonio
Conor Coventry
Grady Diangana
Ryan Fredericks
Mark Noble
Pedro Obiang
Reece Oxford
Declan Rice
Carlos Sanchez
Robert Snodgrass
[Forwards]
Nathan Holland
Lucas Perez
Xande Silva
Andriy Yarmolenko
Chelsea
Chelsea have practically a full squad to choose from as van Ginkel (Knee) is the only confirmed absence. Unlikely to play are Emerson (Illness) and Kovacic (Thigh). Eden Hazard was rested in Chelsea's last game and he will be the main danger man. Chelsea have a very good record against West Ham, 17 wins in 26 games, so they will be looking for that stat to continue on Sunday.
[Goalkeepers]
Kepa Arrizabalaga
Marcin Bulka
Wilfredo Caballero
Robert Green
Jared Thompson
[Defenders]
Marcos Alonso
Cesar Azpilcueta
Gary Cahill
Andreas Christensen
David Luiz
Victor Moses
Antonio Rudiger
Davide Zappacosta
[Midfielders]
Ethan Ampadu
Ross Barkley
Daniel Drinkwater
Cesc Fabregas
Eden Hazard
Callum Hudson-Odoi
Jorginho
N'Golo Kante
Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Pedro
Lucas Piazon
Willian
[Forwards]
Olivier Giroud
Alvaro Morata
Verdict
The win against Everton was very much needed for West Ham to kick start their season, but this fixture looks very difficult for them given the form Chelsea are currently in, we do raise our game against big teams but the injuries in our squad are going to cost us I feel. The prediction is 3-1 to Chelsea so BTTS looks a good option for this match, but for the winner I cannot see past Chelsea.