Same as always, the English Premier League brings a lot of exciting duels. If you would like to see some amazing skills and witness awesome goals, you expect that from the Watford vs. Man City clash. But, if you would like to watch a nerve-wrecking duel, the game between West Brom and West Ham is perfect for you.
After beating Liverpool 5:0 in the previous round, Manchester City players are planning to do the same to Watford. Aguero and Jesus are proving to be a dream duo of attackers, capable of scoring against any opponent. At the same time, another interesting clash will take place – West Brom versus West Ham. Although we probably won’t witness too many goals, it’s certain the match won’t lack excitements.
Watford vs. Manchester City
Three-Way: 1: Watford +869; X: +480 Draw; 2: Manchester City -227
Spread +1.5: Watford -106; Manchester City +104
Total +3: Over -118; Under +117
WATFORD
So far, Watford players have been impressive in the Premier League. After 4 rounds, they are without a defeat, with 2 wins and 2 draws. What’s most impressive is that they faced some seriously tough opponents, including Liverpool and Southampton. Still, their toughest challenge comes on weekend when they play against Manchester City.
Obviously, the player quality is on the side of the Sky Blues, but Watford’s main weapon this season is their team spirit. It seems that each player in their squad has been giving their utmost. They’ve been working hard in defense, which is why it’s not a surprise they allowed only 3 goals. Still, the most impressive aspect of Watford’s play this season is their attack.
Watford’s manager, Marco Silva, has a number of quality players to choose from in the attack, including Deeney, Richarlison, and Okaka. Still, their top scorer at the moment is a midfielder. The man in question is Abdoulaye Doucouré, who’s scored two goals so far. Speaking of Watford’s midfield, I need to mention Tom Cleverley and Nathaniel Chalobah, who have been flawless so far.
Unfortunately, not all of Watford’s key men will be able to play in the duel against Manchester City. Miguel Britos is serving a suspension, while several players are absent due to injuries – Kaboul, Cathcart, Pereyra, Zarate, and so on.
MANCHESTER CITY
The biggest favorite for winning the Premier League title this season, Manchester City, has been doing more than fine recently. Last weekend they destroyed Liverpool 5:0, although to be fair, the Reds played most of that match with 10 men on the field. Still, scoring 5 times against arch-rivals is definitely worth praise.
Manchester City continued their raging run with a win over Feyenoord in the Netherlands on Wednesday. This time, the score was 4:0 Manchester City. Apart from points, these two recent games are important for another reason – the partnership between Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus!
Before the season started, not many believed that Man City would be able to play with two strikers. However, the lethal duo has proved them wrong! Both Aguero and Jesus have been playing fantastic this season, netting a total of 5 goals. Jesus has scored one goal more than his attacking partner, but Aguero has made one assist.
Apart from the two strikers, several other Man City players deserve the praise as well. Kevin De Bruyne is definitely one of them. The playmaker has been one of the most crucial players for Manchester City’s dominance this season and will probably play a big part in the clash with Watford.
I wouldn’t be surprised if he made a couple of goal assists on Saturday, the same as he did in the last meeting between these two sides. Speaking of past duels between Watford and Manchester City, saying that the Citizens have been dominant would be an understatement. This team has won each of their last 6 duels with Watford!
Watford vs. Manchester City – Match Prediction
I doubt anyone can stop Manchester City at this moment, nonetheless Watford. Although winning the match might be as easy as it seems, I still believe the away side will take all 3 points. Furthermore, we will probably see more than 1 goal in Watford’s net.
MY PICK: Manchester City -1.5 (+104)
West Brom vs. West Ham
Three-Way: 1: West Brom +147; X: +237 Draw; 2: West Ham +245
Spread -0.5: West Brom +138; West Ham -143
Total +2.5: Over +131; Under -137
WEST BROM
Many pundits believe that West Brom’s manager, Tony Pulis, is one of the best tacticians in England. His team has always been a tough not to crack when playing against stronger sides. This season, they’re yet to face one of the Premier League heavyweights. In fact, the clash with West Ham will be one of their biggest challenges so far.
In the first 4 rounds, West Brom played against Bournemouth, Burnley, Stoke City, and Brighton, which is why it’s not a surprise they’re in the top half of the table at the moment. Actually, what’s surprising is that they don’t have more than 7 points.
In the previous round, West Brom lost to Brighton, in a match in which many considered them a favorite. They did make a number of chances, but only one of them resulted in a goal. What this means is that if they want to grab points against West Ham on Saturday, their attackers will have to do a much better job.
West Brom do have a lot of talent in the attack, but despite that, they’ve managed to score only 4 goals so far. Salomon Rondon, who was one of their best players last season, is still without a goal to his name. On top of that, Robson-Kanu and Jay Rodriguez have scored a goal each so far.
WEST HAM
West Ham’s manager, Slaven Bilic, is one of the biggest candidates to get sacked real soon. It’s not a surprise that his job is at stake, as West Ham has only 3 points after 4 Premier League rounds. Actually, if it wasn’t for the win against Huddersfield last Monday, Bilic would be probably looking for a new job now.
As they showed in that game, West Ham players definitely have the quality to compete for a much higher spot on the table. This team has a number of super-talented players in the squad – Joe Hart, Pablo Zabaleta, Michail Antonio, Marko Arnautovic, Javier Hernández. Unfortunately, not all of them have been playing at top level recently.
Still, the season has only started a few weeks ago, so they have plenty of time to improve their position on the table. Especially if they keep on playing as they did against Huddersfield. The bad news is that this weekend they face a bit tougher opponent. On top of that, this is an away game, a kind of games that the Hammers don’t seem to like very much. Last season, this team managed to win only 5 away matches. When they played Watford at the Hawthorns in the 2016/2017 season, they lost 4:2.
The good news for West Ham fans is that most of their key players are free from injuries. The only player who will certainly miss the game is the long-term absentee, Manuel Lanzini. The talented playmaker has played only 1 game so far, because of a knee injury that has been bothering him for a while.
West Brom vs. West Ham – Match Prediction
West Ham definitely has more talent in their squad than West Brom, but their recent form in the Premier League has been terrible. On top of that, the Hammers are not very good when playing away from their stadium. That said, I believe we’re going to see a draw on Saturday. Furthermore, both teams will probably look to keep their net safe, which is why there shouldn’t be too many goals.
MY PICK: Draw (+237)
