Arsenal FC – West Ham United FC betting tip & odds comparison 26.12.2022
Arsenal have a chance to establish an eight-point cushion atop the Premier League standings when they welcome West Ham United to the Emirates for a Boxing Day London derby.
The Gunners went into the break with a five-point advantage over the chasing pack led by Manchester who will take on Leeds on Wednesday night. The Hammers meantime are teetering towards relegation territory and will need to pull all stops to avoid getting sucked into that dreaded abyss.
This is shaping up to be an interesting encounter. Our Premier League predictions for this clash will be picked from 22Bet and Frapapa.
ARSENAL
A dream start to the season (12WD, 1L) has seen Arsenal shoot to the top of the EPL table by Christmas for the first time since the 2007/8 season. There is understandably a buzz around the Emirates that hasn’t been felt in a long time. They will, however, need no reminders that the last 5 times they were top at Christmas, they actually failed to seal the deal including that 2007/8 season where striker Eduardo da Silva scary leg break threw their campaign up in smokes.
History seems to be repeating itself as Arteta is now grappling with getting a suitable replacement for Gabriel Jesus who injured his knee while donning Brazilian colours at the World Cup and is projected to be out for the foreseeable future.
Whatever happens though, the Gunners five-point advantage over second-placed City means they are guaranteed to remain at the summit after this return-to-action round of matches. They will be feeling pretty confident coming into this match nevertheless as they are on an impressive nine-game winning streak at their hallowed grounds.
WEST HAM
West Ham are on the opposite end of the spectrum as far as Premier League performance this season is concerned. They have had a woeful start to the season and they are dangling perilously close to the red-zone at the bottom of the rankings. Moyes side has lost three straight league games and won just one of their last six games in the top-flight division, a run that has seen them drop to 16th place – just one point clear of safety.
Conversely, they are doing rather well on the continental front where they are through to the knockout rounds of the Europa Conference League. Qualifying for Europe for the third straight season remains the goal for Moyes and his charges but they may well stand a better at it by winning the Cup altogether given their present domestic woes.
The Hammers have struggled mightily on their travels. They have only registered one win in their 7 road games this season and a trip to the Emirates which has turned into an absolute fortress for the Gunners does not augur well for them.
POSSIBLE LINEUPS
ARSENAL
- Ramsdale
- Cedric
- White
- Gabriel
- Tierney
- Patey
- Xhaka
- Odegaard
- Saka
- Martinelli
- Nketia
- COACH: Mikel Arteta
- MISSING PLAYERS: Smith-Rowe (Groin), Jesus (Knee), Zinchenko (Muscle), Lokonga (Foot), Nelson (Knock)
WEST HAM
- Fabianski
- Johnson
- Ogbonna
- Kehrer
- Cresswell
- Souček
- Rice
- Pacquetta
- Downes
- Fornals
- Benrahma
- COACH: David Moyes
- MISSING PLAYERS: Aguerd (Ankle), Dawson (Leg), Cornet (Thigh)
ARSENAL VS WEST HAM PREDICTIONS
We expect a closely-fought game here. The Gunners will be keen to resume their title charge while West Ham will be trying to steady a ship that is battling the strong storms in the high sea. Arsenal have been dominant at home but West Ham’s defensive away record is a silver lining in their otherwise disastrous season. We are likely to have a very tight opening half of the game with both teams sizing each other up. Arteta’s charges will do all the early running but West Ham will try and keep them at an arm’s length. As such we will have limited goalscoring opportunities in that 1st half and we are therefore picking 1st Half Under 1.5 Goals @ 1.47 with Frapapa as the first of our betting tips today.
Being a derby, we can expect increased physicality here. Both teams will be heavily invested in this game to suit their respective goals. There is going to be cynical challenges flying here and there and the occasional studs sticking out as is characteristic of such games. Referee Michael Oliver will certainly have his work cut out. The last three straight encounters between these sides witnessed at least 4 bookings. A repeat of the same here pays @ 2.26 on the 22Bet app and we feel there is value in backing that as our final call here.
We have plenty more surprises for you! Check out our banker tip of the day and stand by to cash in on those tips!
Performance
Arsenal FC performance of the last 6 home matches
West Ham United performance of the last 4 away matches
Current Standing
POS | TEAM | PTS | MP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
1
|
Manchester City
|
89 | 38 | 28 | 5 | 5 | 94 | 33 | 61 |
2
2
|
Arsenal FC
|
84 | 38 | 26 | 6 | 6 | 88 | 43 | 45 |
4
3
|
Manchester United
|
75 | 38 | 23 | 6 | 9 | 58 | 43 | 15 |
3
4
|
Newcastle United FC
|
71 | 38 | 19 | 14 | 5 | 68 | 33 | 35 |
5
5
|
Liverpool FC
|
67 | 38 | 19 | 10 | 9 | 75 | 47 | 28 |
6
6
|
Brighton & Hove Albion FC
|
62 | 38 | 18 | 8 | 12 | 72 | 53 | 19 |
7
7
|
Aston Villa FC
|
61 | 38 | 18 | 7 | 13 | 51 | 46 | 5 |
8
8
|
Tottenham Hotspur
|
60 | 38 | 18 | 6 | 14 | 70 | 63 | 7 |
9
9
|
Brentford FC
|
59 | 38 | 15 | 14 | 9 | 58 | 46 | 12 |
10
10
|
Fulham FC
|
52 | 38 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 55 | 53 | 2 |
11
11
|
Crystal Palace FC
|
45 | 38 | 11 | 12 | 15 | 40 | 49 | -9 |
12
12
|
Chelsea FC
|
44 | 38 | 11 | 11 | 16 | 38 | 47 | -9 |
13
13
|
Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
|
41 | 38 | 11 | 8 | 19 | 31 | 58 | -27 |
14
14
|
West Ham United FC
|
40 | 38 | 11 | 7 | 20 | 42 | 55 | -13 |
15
15
|
AFC Bournemouth
|
39 | 38 | 11 | 6 | 21 | 37 | 71 | -34 |
16
16
|
Nottingham Forest FC
|
38 | 38 | 9 | 11 | 18 | 38 | 68 | -30 |
17
17
|
Everton FC
|
36 | 38 | 8 | 12 | 18 | 34 | 57 | -23 |
18
18
|
Leicester City FC
|
34 | 38 | 9 | 7 | 22 | 51 | 68 | -17 |
19
19
|
Leeds United FC
|
31 | 38 | 7 | 10 | 21 | 48 | 78 | -30 |
20
20
|
Southampton FC
|
25 | 38 | 6 | 7 | 25 | 36 | 73 | -37 |
- Champions League
- Europa League
- Relegation
- Relegation