Last Time Out:
Chelsea drew 0-0 with Brighton; West Ham lost 3-2 to Newcastle.
Previous meeting:
Chelsea handled West Ham 3-0 on Dec. 21 at Stamford Bridge.
About the Matchup:
The pressure is on for both of these sides over the final six games, as they try to earn their spot in the Champions League by finishing fourth or higher. Barring any penalties from the Super League fiasco, the Manchesters have a virtual lock on first and second in the Premier League, leaving five teams to battle it out for the final two spots and the riches and prestige that come with European soccer. For Chelsea, the pressure is immense, especially after the Blues damaged their reputation with their fans by participating in the Super League. Chelsea can still qualify for next year’s Champions League if it wins this year’s Champions League (the winners get an automatic bid to the next tournament), but that path requires going through Real Madrid and either Paris Saint-Germain or Manchester City, making a top-four finish the much easier lift. West Ham is the plucky upstart who would be happy to compete in the Europa League, given that the Hammers have only qualified for European competition twice in the past 15 years. But now that they’re this close to their first appearance in the Champions League, West Ham wants this badly. And if the Hammers can grab a win here, they might be in fine position to get that spot, as four of their final five matches are against teams in the bottom half of the table. Plus, this has been a tricky trip across London for Chelsea: the Blues have lost two of their past three at West Ham and haven’t won here since 2017.
Scouting Chelsea:
There’s no other way to say it: this was a distracted team earlier in the week. Chelsea have nobody to blame but themselves for their situation, as they did it to themselves with their participation in the ill-fated Super League and ticked off their fan base to the point where angry Chelsea supporters protested outside the team bus prior to their match with Brighton. Chelsea clearly wasn’t itself against the Seagulls, as it rarely presented a serious threat to the Brighton goal despite having the lion’s share of the possession. The big question is whether it was distraction or fixture congestion, because the first problem has been solved, but the second one very much remains. Chelsea’s got a Champions League semifinal coming up against Real Madrid on Tuesday, and the chance to claim Europe’s biggest prize will be first in the minds of everyone at Stamford Bridge. That could make this a difficult challenge for Chelsea’s attackers, not what they need with the likes of Kai Havertz and Christian Pulisic finally showing signs of clicking. In Chelsea’s most recent road match, Pulisic found the net twice and Havertz once, and if the two can build off that, the Blues would be a much more dangerous side. But building momentum has been a real problem for Chelsea; no Chelsea player has more than six goals on the year.
Scouting West Ham United:
West Ham could have made things so much easier on itself if it had managed a win against Newcastle, but the Hammers most likely threw that away when Craig Dawson picked up a red card in the 36th minute and they had to play over half the match with 10 players. Somehow, the Irons managed to fight back to nearly steal a draw by overcoming a 2-0 deficit, which speaks to how well they’re attacking the net at the moment. In West Ham’s past four matches, the Hammers have put home 11 goals, leading them to two wins, a draw and the loss at Newcastle. Unfortunately for David Moyes’ side, West Ham have also conceded 10 goals in those matches, which says the defense isn’t anywhere close to getting the job done at the moment. However, they’ve done just enough to allow the offense to carry the day when they’ve played at home, as West Ham comes into this match riding a five-match unbeaten streak at the London Stadium.
Dan’s Score Prediction:
West Ham’s proven difficult to defeat at home, and this really isn’t a match that ends in a draw very often. Five of the past six meetings have had a winner, and I think this one’s going to go the same way. West Ham have won two of their past three matches with Chelsea by one goal, and I think a third one-goal win in four is the way to play this one. Give me the Hammers to claim a 2-1 win at +1350.
