Chris Sutton has predicted that West Ham United will suffer their first Premier League defeat of the season when they face Liverpool on Sunday, September 24.
The BBC Sport pundit believes the Hammers have lost a second successive game against ‘big six’ opposition following last week’s loss to Manchester City, suggesting Jurgen Klopp’s side will win 2-0.
Before the international break, David Moyes’ side were in inspired form domestically and have yet to lose just once, against Pep Guardiola’s champions, and despite the Irons believing they will lose again, Sutton has heaped praise on Moyes’ side.
Writing my BBC Sport Premier League predictions [21. September] he said: “I like the defensive discipline of David Moyes’ teams and the way he thinks as a coach. He knows what his team’s strengths are and he plays to them. The Hammers will be hard to break down at Anfield and will start to counter-attack when they get the ball back.
– However, this game will be decided by Liverpool’s forwards. They have so many dangerous forwards that they can rotate and cause all sorts of problems. I liked their reaction when they found a way to beat Wolves and I think they will find a way through the West Ham defence.
Defensive discipline
West Ham rightly received plenty of plaudits for their impressive early season results which put them back in and among the European places, but they couldn’t handle much tougher opposition.
Man City were made to work for their three points at the London Stadium on Saturday and while that is likely to happen in Sunday’s clash at Anfield, very few teams can beat Liverpool at home. The attacking prowess of Jurgen Klopp’s side will cause plenty of problems for any defense and will be a real test of how far Moyes has taken his side over the summer. But their defense was fragile and the Hammers will continue to pose a threat.
West Ham will fancy their chances this weekend more than they did last time out against City, and despite Sutton’s pessimism, there is a sense that the Irons can cause an upset. It won’t be easy, but if Moyes and his team want to get back into Europe, there won’t be many easy games this season.
