West Ham United will travel to Liverpool on Sunday hoping to end a 50 year hoodoo at Anfield which would all but secure their Premier League status for another term at least.
Their task will be made that much tougher without in form on loan striker Andy Carroll who is ineligible against his parent club.
Sam Allardyce believes he has the strikers in his squad that can step up and make the absence of Andy Carroll a distant worry. He told the press in the week that he believed in Arsenal’s on loan striker Marouane Chamakh and Carlton Cole the Hammers have plenty of talent in the squad.
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He said; “”It is and it’s frustrating for him as well but that’s the way the fixtures have fallen and we’ve got Carlton Cole and Marouane Chamakh who can step in to the team and hopefully they can deliver the sort of performance Andy can deliver. That’s what we’ll need at Anfield on Sunday.”
If you look at the form book you would expect a defeat for the Hammers as they are stuck on a run of win, loss, win, loss. It is something that Big Sam will want to put that statistic to an end, but realises that it isn’t going to be an easy ride at Liverpool.
It’s a sorry tale for West Ham who seem to just buckle at Anfield in the past with no win since 1953 and the Hammers will rely on the best crosser in the league Matthew Jarvis to create the chances for the chosen forward on Sunday. If the Hammers can finish their chances like they did against West Brom on Saturday there is no reason why the Hammers can’t nick something to secure their Premier League safety.
Liverpool are a team that are hard to predict, they seem to have hit form and that is in large part thanks to the January arrival of Philippe Coutinho from Inter Milan. The winger has been in imperious form since his arrival and his link up play with Luis Suarez is a large reason as to why Liverpool’s form has improved.
Under Brendan Rodgers the Reds season has been up and down, and now as we approach the home straight, are they timing their race for Champions League football perfectly? In Suarez they have one of the best players in the league and they have one of the best midfielders in England in Steven Gerrard. West Ham will need to keep a keen eye on Coutinho and Suarez if they are going to get anything from this game.
Gerrard has been the demise of West Ham on many occasion and always seems to bring his ‘A-Game’ with him when West Ham come to town. His most famous goal came against the Hammers at Cardiff to break the hearts of many a follower of West Ham. His 30 yard wonder strike just as the clock struck 90 kept Liverpool’s FA cup dreams alive. No one will need reminding of the outcome.
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Brendan Rodgers backed his skipper to continue his fine form in this week’s press conference saying; “But he’s a player that still wants to learn, wants to improve and it’s a real privilege to work with someone of that quality. He’s 32 years of age and has a number of years left in him yet – and as you saw in the game against Aston Villa, he’s performing to a real high level. Let’s hope he can keep that going.”
Team News: Liverpool have no fresh injuries so Brendan Rodgers may stick with the side that beat Aston Villa last weekend. Joe Allen and Fabio Borini (both shoulder) and Martin Kelly (knee) are all out for the rest of the season.
West Ham striker Andy Carroll is ineligible to face his parent club under the terms of his loan, so Carlton Cole or Marouane Chamakh will deputise. Joe Cole (hamstring) also misses out on an Anfield return, with Mark Noble (shoulder) another absentee.
Form Guide: Liverpool currently lie 3rd in the league table with 4 wins in the last 6, winning 5 of their last 6 home games.
Meanwhile the Hammers lie in 11th place in the form guide with just 1 win in their last 6 away games.
Match details- Kick off 1.30 on Sunday the 7th of April. Weather: Liverpool – cloudy afternoon with maximum temperatures of 8C.
Match has sold out!
Bowdenwhu predicts- Liverpool 2 West Ham 0 Unfortunately
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Come on you Irons prove me wrong!
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