England Round 14

[spkutano]

 

[spkutano]

Leicester City vs West Ham Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Leicester City:
Hermansen; Justin, Faes, Vestergaard, Kristiansen; Ndidi, Soumare; Decordova-Reid, Buonanotte, Ayew; Vardy

West Ham:
Areola; Wan-Bissaka, Todibo, Kilman, Emerson; Alvarez; Bowen, Soler, Paqueta, Kudus; Antonio

Leicester City will welcome West Ham to King Power Stadium as both teams are looking for a positive result after catastrophic weekend. The Foxes suffered a 4:1 defeat to Brentford, while West Ham lost 5:2 to Arsenal. Leicester City have a poor season so far and they are outside the drop zone only due to the superior goal-difference. That is why the Leicester chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha decided to change the manager. Steve Cooper was sacked and Ruud van Nistelrooy came on his place. The Dutchman will start his reign on this match against West Ham, while Ben Dawson was in charge against Brentford for the weekend. Interesting to be mentioned, Van Nistelrooy beat Leicester twice during his temporary spell as Manchester United manager, once in the Premier League and once in the League Cup. For his debut as Leicester manager, he has several injury issues. Defender Caleb Okoli is rated as doubtful after a nasty collision with his own goalkeeper Mads Hermansen. Four players are sidelined - Abdul Fatawu, Harry Winks, Ricardo Pereira and Jakub Stolarczyk.

West Ham sit on the 14th place with 15 points, which means they are dangerously close to the drop zone. The Hammers are in mixed form - one win, one draw and one defeat on the last three matches in the Premier League. They heavily lost to Arsenal, but managed to beat Newcastle at St James Park and shared the points with Everton. The players confidence is lower after the big 5:2 loss to Arsenal, but I have different opinion. It is not a shame to lose from Arsenal as they are class above West Ham at the moment. Inspiration can be taken from the Irons last successful away day at Newcastle United. Lopetegui is feeling some pressure, but he has one good news ahead of this match, as key player Mohammed Kudus will be back from a five-game suspension. Niclas Fullkrug is struggling with a calf injury and he is rated as doubtful. Two more players, Jean-Clair Todibo and Dinos Mavropanos are also injury doubts due to knock and illness respectively.

Leicester City vs West Ham Prediction:

Dawson decided to start with a back three against Brentford, but a heavy 4:1 defeat showed this wasn't a good decision. It is clear Van Nistelrooy will revert to a four-man defense, his preferred setup as PSV Eindhoven coach, but also on four matches as Man United manager. The Foxes have conceded nine goals on the last three matches and something should be changed. However, I am not sure the simple change of formation will bring something positive when the players remain the same. West Ham, meanwhile, are in mixed form - one win, one draw and one defeat on the last three. The Hammers heavily lost to Arsenal, but managed to beat Newcastle at St James Park and shared the points with Everton. With Kudus available for selection, I think West Ham could win here.

Leicester City vs West Ham Pick: West Ham to win @ 2.45 with Everygame

 

[spkutano]

Newcastle United vs Liverpool Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Newcastle United:
Pope; Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall; Longstaff, Tonali, Guimaraes; Gordon, Wilson, Barnes

Liverpool:
Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Jones, Gakpo; Nunez

Newcastle United will welcome the leaders Liverpool to St James Park in one of the most interesting clashes of the midweek round in the Premier League. Of course, the match between Arsenal and Manchester United will be the nominal derby, but I still believe this will be the most interesting fixture of the matchday 14. Newcastle are sharing the 9th place with Manchester United, Fulham and Aston Villa as all four teams have collected 19 points. Manager Edie Howe is feeling a big pressure because nobody is satisfied with the current situation. The fans want to see their team fighting for the top, as well as the new Saudi owners. Howe has some injury issues, but that's should not be the reason for the last results. The Magpies have earned just one from possible six points in the last two matches in the Premier League. They lost 2:0 to West Ham and played an 1:1 draw with Crystal Palace. Sven Botman, Jamaal Lascelles and Emil Krafth remain long-term absentees, while star striker Alexander Isak, who was taken off with an apparent hip injury in the match against Palace at the weekend, should be fit in time for this match.

Liverpool are now genuine title favorites after opening up a 9-point lead over Arsenal and Chelsea at the top of the table. Manchester City, who have won four Premier Leagues in a row under Pep Guardiola, are a further two points behind. Arne Slot, who replaced Jurgen Klopp during the summer, has enjoyed a sensational start at Anfield. The Dutchman won 18 of his first 20 games in charge, but maintained that it was still too early in the season to be talking about the title. The last week was very successful, Liverpool beat Real Madrid in the Champions League and also beat Manchester City in the Premier League. Not only they beat them, but they were outplayed. However, there is no time for celebration, Liverpool now face away trips to St James Park and Goodison Park. Slot said Real Madrid and Man City were very difficult teams to face, but he think "it’s even harder to go away to Newcastle." The injury situation is still very complicated, particularly in defense. Goalkeeper Alisson Becker, Ibrahima Konate, Conor Bradley and Kostas Tsimikas are out injured. In addition, Diogo Jota and Federico Chiesa are also injured.

Newcastle United vs Liverpool Prediction:

Liverpool are enjoying a fantastic season and they are huge favorites in this match. However St James Park is not an easy place to go. On contrary, the fans are creating a special atmosphere. They are the 12th player, while the guests are feeling a huge pressure. Nevertheless, Slot has big problem, he can't rotate the players. Trent has just recovered from injury, I doubt he could play another 60-70 minutes. But Bradley is sidelined and Slot has no other options. Robertson is also tired, but Tsimikas is out, so he must run another 90 minutes. The midfield duo of Gravenberch and Mac Allister is desperate for rest, only Szoboszlai could be replaced by Curtis Jones. Even the attackers need some rest. I am pretty sure Slot will continue to push his key players, but he is risking injuries. To be worse, they will not be able to give their usual maximum. Newcastle could take advantage from Liverpool injury issues.

Newcastle United vs Liverpool Pick: Newcastle United +0.5 AH @ 2.18 with Pinnacle