adminPaul Merson has reportedly delivered his scoreline prediction for the upcoming Championship showdown between West Ham United and Derby County, with the former Arsenal star backing the Hammers to come out on top.
West Ham welcome Derby County to the London Stadium on Saturday, September 5, with Nuno Espirito Santo’s side looking to build on their impressive midweek victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The Hammers finally secured their first Championship victory of the campaign in emphatic fashion, defeating Wolves 4-2 at home. Derby, meanwhile, also head into the encounter with confidence after recording a 2-0 away victory against Portsmouth.
Merson backs West Ham to win
Despite Derby’s recent victory, Merson is reportedly expecting West Ham’s quality to make the difference when the two sides meet.
The prediction will come as encouraging news for Hammers supporters, particularly after the club’s difficult opening to life in the Championship.
West Ham had gone three league matches without a victory before their 4-2 triumph over Wolves, and Saturday’s encounter provides an opportunity to make it back-to-back wins.
Hammers looking to maintain momentum
The pressure surrounding West Ham has eased considerably following the Wolves victory.
The London Stadium witnessed an attacking display from the hosts, with Divine Mukasa scoring twice while Jarrod Bowen and Konstantinos Mavropanos also found the net.
Now, the challenge for Espirito Santo is to ensure that performance was not simply a one-off.
Derby will provide a different type of test. The Rams showed their ability to grind out a result on the road against Portsmouth, meaning West Ham cannot afford to underestimate their visitors.
West Ham remain favourites
Several current statistical models also have West Ham as favourites for the contest.
Sports Mole’s model gives West Ham a 42.18% probability of victory, with 2-1 listed as the most likely winning scoreline.
Other predictions are even more confident in the Hammers, with one model projecting a 2-0 victory, while Squawka has gone for a more emphatic 3-1 West Ham win.
That makes Merson’s reported backing particularly interesting ahead of what could be another entertaining encounter.
Can Derby spoil the party?
Derby will not travel to London simply to make up the numbers.
Their 2-0 victory over Portsmouth demonstrated that they can be dangerous away from home, and they will be hoping to frustrate West Ham before looking to exploit spaces on the counterattack.
However, West Ham’s attacking quality and home advantage could ultimately prove decisive.
For the Hammers, another victory would provide a significant boost as they attempt to establish themselves among the Championship promotion contenders.
Merson’s reported prediction has therefore given West Ham supporters another reason to be optimistic.
The big question is now whether the Hammers can deliver the victory Merson is expecting and make it back-to-back Championship wins.
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