Shaky start to the season: Is this an upswing or a crisis?
In the shark tank of the English top flight, the Irons have reinvented themselves this summer. At least that’s how the almost 150 million in spending can be interpreted. So far, however, little has been edifying. This makes West Ham and Bournemouth rather difficult to bet on. The bookmakers aren’t sure either
The duel is surrounded by the sounds of flamenco. At least on the bench, the Spanish temperament reigns supreme and with it, above all, offensive and passing-oriented soccer. The match should therefore be visually pleasing to watch. It remains to be seen who will enjoy it in the end. Basically, however, the West Ham vs. Bournemouth prediction is more in the direction of Füllkrug and Co.
The preparations of the two clubs also clearly show why the odds on West Ham vs Bournemouth for a home win are only partially supported. They are in front, but just extremely close for a home game
West Ham – Statistics & current form
Great investment demands great return. Will the first step towards a title follow? The last few years have been characterized by unprecedented success at West Ham. The Moyes era was often not visually pretty, but it brought the first title in over 40 years and the most wins in European competitions in the club’s history. But now a new era of beautiful attacking soccer is set to begin.
To this end, Julien Lopetegui arrived in the summer and, on his instructions, brought in new recruits worth over 140 million euros. So far, there have been signs of success, but it remains to be seen whether West Ham and Bournemouth will immediately court the odds for goals.
The new system obviously needs some time to be internalized. So it’s hardly surprising that even against smaller clubs like Dagenham Redbridge, the result was only 1-0. But the pieces are in place. Fast and tricky wingers as well as massive breakers in the middle can be found in the squad. Sounds a bit like Moyes, with more expensive weapons. Or is there more to the new West Ham?
The balancing act in defense also takes time
Whoever watched the Hammers’ games in recent years knew what they were getting. Solid defense, wing play and a lot of physicality. With the gradual emergence and disappearance of players of a higher individual caliber such as Lucas Paqueta, the structure began to develop holes time and again.
Defensive cover often fell flat because the primary players did not show sufficient respect for the coach’s style. The new coach now faces a similar problem. A large part of the squad was committed to a wait-and-see system, especially in a defensive sense. The question now will be how they deal with more license to be spectacular.
The league opener was a deserved 2-1 draw against Aston Villa, in which the defensive shortcomings were made clear. Then there was an impressive 2-0 win against Palace after conceding 3-1 in the Test. So it seems that this new squad can certainly defend, but whether that already works reliably and whether the prediction of a clean sheet for West Ham against Bournemouth makes sense is another matter.
Predicted West Ham line-up:
Areola – Coufal, Mavropanos, Kilman, Emerson – Rodriguez – Bowen, Souucek, Paqueta, Kudus – Antonio
Bournemouth – Statistics & current form
The Cherries have stuttered into the season. How do they deal with an opponent that wants to play on Wednesday? The system on the south coast is a simple one. The basic foundation is solid defending, which should then be broken down playfully. This means pressing compactly against the ball in defense and then switching over.
Last season, this not only brought the Red & Blacks a lot of praise, but also secured them a place in the English top flight. At the start of the season, however, we saw once again why West Ham and Bournemouth might have better odds than they seem to have on a win for the southern English side.
Against Forest, the match started with a staid 1-1 draw with an evenly balanced share of play. Against Newcastle, where there was virtually nothing to lose, the final score was also 1:1. It also became clear that, regardless of the result, strong opponents in particular are an advantage for the visitors. The more they can react, the better their chances of making their own mark
How does the defense deal with the soloists?
The big question now will be how the Cherries can deal with the Irons’ hot irons. Even back in the days when Andoni Iraola was still earning his keep at Rayo Vallecano, he was praised for his bold approach. However, it also often became clear that, apart from a few positive outliers, there was a certain potential that would eventually be exhausted. The new West Ham could be just such a case.
Even if they are still a work in progress, they have the class, both collectively and individually, to be dangerous to any opponent. It’s unlikely that either side will finish with a landslide victory and yet there could be flashes of brilliance on both sides, for which the betting slip should be prepared.
Predicted Bournemouth line-up:
Neto – Kerkez, Senesi, Zabarnyi, Araujo – Christie, Cook – Tavernier, Kluivert, Semenyo – Evanilson
West Ham – Bournemouth head-to-head / H2H record
The recent history of the duel comes in Spanish 4 (draw) – 3 (West Ham) – 3 (Bournemouth). It is therefore impossible to say who is the favorite here. The only thing that seems logical is that a prediction on one or two goals could go through. Goals have always been scored in the last ten encounters and now the east Londoners also have a coach for whom this seems important
West Ham – Bournemouth betting tip
The game will be an entertaining one. Especially since West Ham have been forced to turn away from defensive soccer under David Moyes, the last brake has now been released. Whether they can make this transition defensively is still questionable, however.
Due to home advantage, there is a lot to be said for betting tip 1 in the West Ham v Bournemouth clash, which would mean promotion and the hosts’ first major success.
