Winston Reid is vital as West Ham look to keep Benteke at bay
West Ham – Aston Villa
Date: Saturday 2nd November
Venue: Upton Park
KO: 15.00
West Ham will welcome Aston Villa to Upton Park on Saturday as the two sides look to crack into the top half of the Premier League table following less than ideal starts to the young season. Paul Lambert’s men will have a point to prove come kick-off have not a Premier League goal since since September 28, whilst the Hammers will be keen to pick up their first win in the domestic championship in front of the home support since the opening day.
Team News:
West Ham
Manager Sam Allardyce heavily rotated his squad for Tuesday’s Capital One Cup skirmish with Burnley, making nine changes to the team that played to a 0-0 draw with Swansea last Sunday.
Matt Taylor and James Tomkins each picked up knocks and are a risk for the weekend, joining Alou Diarra, James Collins, and long-term casualty Andy Carroll on the treatment table.
The injury to Tomkins potentially leaves West Ham light in central defence with Collins already sidelined with a hamstring problem, but the remainder of Allardyce’s selections for Saturday should directly mirror the starting eleven that faced Swansea, all having been rested or brought off the bench against Burnley, save Mohamed Diame.
Aston Villa
Gabriel Agbonlahor is Villa’s main injury concern ahead of Saturday’s clash, having suffered a relapse of an ankle injury last time out against Everton, and will face a late fitness test.
Antonio Luna limped off just before half in the loss to the Toffees but should be fit to start nonetheless, whilst Ciaran Clark should replace Nathan Baker in central defence after a full week of training back from illness.
Karim El Ahmadi looks good value to slot in alongside Fabian Delph in the holding midfield pair after missing out in favour of Ashley Westwood, whilst the attacking trident supporting Christian Benteke could be shaken up after the Villa Park outfit failed to hit the back of the net yet again on match day nine.
Recent Form:
West Ham will head into the day buoyed by their 2-0 victory over the Championship’s top club Burnley, and picked up a good point at the Liberty Stadium last Saturday to recover well from the previous week’s loss to Manchester City.
However, the Hammers’ Premier League home form has been beyond suspect throughout the present term as they’ve taken just three of 12 points on offer thus far.
Meanwhile Lambert’s team have been the subject of three straight clean sheets by their opponents since a thrilling 3-2 defeat of Manchester City in late September, but have done well on the road during the campaign in picking up seven of a possible 12 points.
Players to Watch:
West Ham – Winston Reid
The New Zealand international has been the most consistent performer in Allardyce’s squad through the opening quarter of the season by some distance, posting a Performance Score of 272 en route to claiming eight Squawka ‘Best’ Awards.
With Benteke coming to Upton Park and Tomkins potentially out for the contest, the focus on Reid is only enhanced and he will certainly be they key man for West Ham if they are to emerge with a positive result.
His 80% success rate in the tackle, average of 12 defensive actions per game, and record of 29 of 46 headed duels won all bode well for the 25-year-old in taking on the task ahead.
Aston Villa - Christian Benteke
It may seem a tired exercise to declare the hulking Belgian to be Villa’s essential component for success, but with the 14th place side in the midst of a lengthy scoring drought, his importance cannot possibly be overstated.
Benteke hasn’t been on the scoresheet since September 14, prior to spending a month out of action, and was denied from the penalty spot by Tim Howard against Everton last weekend, so is sure to have extra incentive.
And as top chance creator (13) Agbonlahor is at risk of missing the trip to east London, the striker may have to put the vision that has seen him play 12 key passes in 2013-14 to good use alongside his finishing skills to fire Villa back into scoring form.
Prediction:
Lambert’s men come into the encounter a point ahead of their opponents, but arguably in a weaker state having severely misfired of late, even with Benteke back in the line-up.
West Ham have been quite poor at home and could be fielding a makeshift duo in central defence, details that will give Villa confidence and could aid in finally allowing them to break out of their scoreless slump.
Each club will be keen to get a result to put early daylight between themselves and the relegation zone, which is currently within touching distance for both, but the pair could potentially be willing to settle for a draw in the interest of not allowing earnable points to slip away.
However, it seems Villa may have finally come across ideal conditions to get back on track, as it would take a monstrous effort from Reid to shut down a fully motivated Benteke without a familiar comrade at his side.
West Ham 1-2 Aston Villa