After a rollercoaster of a week consisting of two contrasting results against Manchester United, West Ham’s next opponent is Marcelo Bielsa’s highly energetic Leeds side.
From Mark Noble’s last-second penalty miss last Sunday to a victory at Old Trafford to progress through to the next round of the Carabao Cup, West Ham will ultimately be in high spirits as they travel to Elland Road.
After a perfect start to the season with two wins out of two, West Ham now find themselves winless in three.
David Moyes’ men managed to complete the double over Leeds last season, firstly with a 2-1 away victory followed by a comfortable 2-0 win at London Stadium.
And after three Premier League games without a win, the Hammers will be looking to take maximum points from this clash to propel them back up the table.
So, what do our resident writers at the Green Street Hammers predict will happen on Saturday? Can West Ham get back to winning ways or can Leeds earn their first win of the season?
Mia: Leeds 1-3 West ham
I’ve gone for a West Ham win this week, based on our current match record. Not only have we put in great performances recently, but we’re playing with great confidence too. The bounce-back result against Manchester United shows the Hammer’s resilience and desire to succeed.
However, I wouldn’t sleep on Leeds – they have a quality team and a quality manager. Results haven’t been too kind to them recently, and the loss of Bamford and potentially Raphinha to their team at the weekend only strengthens West Ham’s case.
Alex: Leeds 0-1 West Ham
After the disappointing loss in the league to Man United, getting revenge a couple of days later will certainly have boosted confidence again. West Ham are without a win in their last three league games and with Leeds predicted to be with suffering injuries to a number of important players like Patrick Bamford, this feels a good opportunity to get three points.
Michail Antonio will be back from suspension and hopefully, our attack will be firing again. Also, Marcelo Bielsa’s full-throttle style of play could suit the likes of Jarrod Bowen and Antonio on the counterattack.
Jimmy: Leeds 0-3 West Ham
The Irons are coming into this game off a big win in the cup against Manchester United. Not only that, but David Moyes was able to rest a ton of key players to keep them fresh for Saturday.
Leeds, on the other hand, have so far struggled to get going this season and have a ton of injury problems at the moment. This should be a strong performance to keep the Hammers’ hot start to the season going.
Jonathan: Leeds 1-3 West Ham
Goals, Goals, Goals! The All Whites defense has not been all right, allowing the third-most goals (12) across five Premier League games. Marcelo Bielsa’s omni-attacking style will juxtapose nicely with David Moyes’ organized, counterattack-centric approach.
In 2019 Bielsa turned down a shot to manage West Ham out of concern for GSB’s… well… general existence and nature. What seemed like an easy decision at the time for the Argentine now looks like a mistake with West Ham riding high off of Europa League and Carabao Cup wins.
I’ve got this as an easy three points for the Hammers – hopefully enough to vault ahead of Tottenham into 7th who face Arsenal on Sunday.