Our betting preview of the latest round of Premier League matches.
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By Nick Hext
Crystal Palace v Arsenal (2000 BST, Sky Sports 1)
Arsenal are odds-on favourite to win at Crystal Palace on Monday night but there’s nothing to suggest that the Gunners can be trusted to collect a three-point haul.
Arsene Wenger’s men have only managed to beat non-league Sutton in their previous five matches on their travels and produced an abysmal display in their 3-1 defeat at West Brom last time away from the Emirates.
Craig Dawson scored two of the goals for the Baggies from corners as the Gunners were outfought and outperformed by a side set up by Tony Pulis to target their weakness.
Sam Allardyce is more than capable of coming up with a similar gameplan and Palace, despite losing 3-1 against Southampton in midweek, must still be on a pretty big high after claiming a surprise 2-1 victory at Premier League leaders Chelsea just over a week ago.
The Eagles also take on the Gunners on the back of consecutive 1-0 wins at Selhurst Park against Middlesbrough and Watford but their poor home record against sides from the top of the table is enough to put me off an interest in a surprise success.
Palace have lost all six of their home games against teams from the top eight in the Premier League this season (they were also defeated by Manchester City at Selhurst Park in the FA Cup) and, despite the many problems for Wenger in recent months, they are still encountering an Arsenal side towards the pinnacle of the division.
I’m instead going to look to the home side’s star striker Christian Benteke at over 2/1 to find the back of the net.
The Belgium international has netted in back-to-back matches to end a five game wait to get on the scoresheet and he scores his goals in batches.
Benteke has bagged 16 goals for club and country this season. Five of those strikes came in a four-game spell at the end of September and start of October and he also enjoyed a spell of five goals in five matches between the conclusion of November and December’s opening contests.
Two in two is a good way to start another scoring run, especially against a club that is fielding their third-choice goalkeeper and has let in 18 goals in their last eight outings.
Ten of those goals did come in the resounding Champions League exit at the hands of Bayern Munich and Arsenal were cheered by the 3-0 win over West Ham in midweek finally adding to clean sheets against non-league opposition Sutton and Lincoln since the middle of February.
The temptation is also to look to go high on goals but the prices aren’t inviting enough.
Over 3.5 goals have been scored in five of Arsenal’s last six outings but only one of Palace’s previously mentioned defeats against the top eight has finished above that mark.
I’m instead going to stick with Benteke in a match that can see Palace cause Arsenal plenty of problems if they get things right.
Prediction: Crystal Palace 2-2 Arsenal
Opta facts:
o Crystal Palace have won only one of their 15 Premier League games against Arsenal (D3 L11) and are winless in 12 against them.
o Arsenal haven’t lost away to the Eagles in the top-flight since November 1979 (W6 D5).
o Since beating Arsenal 2-1 in October 1994, Palace have netted just six times in 12 league games against the Gunners.
o Arsene Wenger has never lost a Premier League game against Crystal Palace (W8 D3 L0). The only teams he’s faced more in the Premier League without losing are Leicester (18) and Portsmouth (14).
o Sam Allardyce has lost 15 times to Arsene Wenger in the Premier League, the most defeats he has against any manager in the competition (W4 D7).
o Allardyce’s last league win over Wenger in the Premier League was in May 2010 with Blackburn Rovers – he’s lost nine of the last 10 meetings since (D1).
o Olivier Giroud has found the net in each of his previous three Premier League games at Selhurst Park.
o Giroud has scored a league-high five goals as a substitute this season in the Premier League, including one against West Ham in midweek.
o Arsenal have now scored 101 goals in all competitions this season – the only Premier League club to reach the century of goals coming in to this matchday.
o Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez has kept a clean sheet in three of the four Premier League games he's started for Arsenal.
Posted at 2220 BST on 08/04/17.
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By Matt Brocklebank
Sunderland v Manchester United (1330 BST, Sky Sports 1)
Manchester United are vaguely threatening to throw the towel in and focus purely on gaining Champions League qualification via the Europa League, for which they are short-priced favourites to lift the trophy.
However, Manchester City and Liverpool keep failing to slam the top-four door shut and they were both at it again in midweek.
City were outclassed by Eden Hazard and lost at Chelsea, while Bournemouth’s Josh King burst the Anfield bubble with a late equaliser to enhance the Reds’ hopeless record against clubs they really ought to be beating at home.
However, there was little change from a United perspective either as they wasted chance after chance in a 1-1 home draw with Everton. That’s now 20 top-flight games without defeat for Mourinho’s men but only half have yielded a maximum return and their whopping draw tally of 12 is the biggest in the division.
Beating a clapped-out Sunderland side shouldn’t prove too difficult, however, and if pushed it’s very hard to argue with odds of 4/11 looking anything other than reasonable.
The hosts have won once since a pre-Christmas rally of four wins in six weeks brought a bit of optimism to the place. That 4-0 victory at Crystal Palace at the start of February remains a bizarre anomaly on the form book, rather than anything more meaningful, and they’ve failed to register a single goal in six straight games since.
With Jermain Defoe’s, and therefore the entire team’s, goals completely drying up it’s hardly surprising to see the away win to nil on offer around even-money, with the return of Victor Anichebe not expected to strike fear into the core of United’s defensive set-up. The Red Devils' backline will have to be changed once more though with Ashley Young now joining Chris Smalling and Phil Jones in the treatment room.
Juan Mata is out long-term and the Wayne Rooney situation remains cloudy despite the official line being he missed Tuesday’s clash with his former club due to pain in both ankles.
With Rooney seemingly over the hill, United have obviously been heavily reliant on a striker four years and 21 days his senior and Zlatan Ibrahimovic saved their blushes again with a last-gasp penalty against Everton. He scored the second in a 3-1 win in the reverse fixture on Boxing Day and is 8/13 anytime, 11/4 first and a measly-looking 7/2 for two or more here.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s ‘scorpion’ rounded things off at Old Trafford and the Armenian has quietly worked his way to seven goals (mainly in Europe) this term. He’s expected to come back into the side along with Paul Pogba, who will surely see this as a great opportunity to boost his poor scoring return and help start piecing back together his reputation.
Pogba looks a value alternative to Zlatan around 11/4 to find the net, with a 9/1 poke on the correct score also representing a quite attractive way to get the red-hot favourites on side.
Prediction: Sunderland 0-3 Manchester United
Opta facts:
o Sunderland have lost 22 times against Manchester United in the Premier League – against no side have they suffered more Premier League defeats (also 22 against Chelsea).
o Manchester United haven’t won any of their last three games at the Stadium of Light in all competitions (D1 L2), this after an unbeaten run of 11 matches there.
o David Moyes will be the fifth different Sunderland manager to host Manchester United across the last five seasons (Martin O’Neill, Kevin Ball as caretaker, Gus Poyet and Sam Allardyce).
o Jermain Defoe has failed to score in his last six Premier League games against Manchester United, since netting against them for Spurs in March 2012.
o Sunderland are winless in their last six Premier League games on home soil, failing to score in the last four. They last went seven in a row without victory at home in January 2015.
o The Black Cats haven’t failed to score in five consecutive home league games since a run of six in May 1985 in the top-flight, where they were eventually relegated.
o Manchester United have won six and lost none of their last eight Premier League matches away from home; their longest unbeaten away run since August 2013 (13 games).
o The Red Devils have scored exactly three goals in each of their last two PL away games; they last scored three or more goals in three consecutive matches in November 2012.
o Zlatan Ibrahimovic has scored eight goals in his last seven Premier League matches away from home for Manchester United.
o Eight of Sunderland’s 14 Premier League goals at the Stadium of Light this season have been scored by Jermain Defoe (57%).
o Manchester United are currently on a 20-game unbeaten run in the Premier League (W10 D10 L0). Of the 16 occasions a team has gone on a 20+ unbeaten run in the competition, this is the run with the lowest points per game average (2.0) and win ratio (50%).
Everton v Leicester (1600, Sky Sports 1)
It would be a cheap shot to suggest five wins in five represents title-winning form for Leicester, but the point is they’ve showed great cohesion, fighting spirit and a pinch of last season's swashbuckling style since Craig Shakespeare was handed the reins.
The million-dollar question remains though: ‘How on earth did it all go so badly wrong for Claudio Ranieri?’
That’s unlikely to be answered in any depth for years to come and Shakespeare insists his focus is solely on ensuring the Foxes can no longer mathematically suffer the ignominy of going down as champions.
The aforementioned run has essentially put paid to those fears and seen them streak eight points clear of the drop-zone into 11th but they go into Sunday’s game as outsiders and it’s hard to escape the notion they’re capable of springing an upset at Goodison.
Everton have improved a great deal under Ronald Koeman, of that there can be little doubt, and a late charge past Manchester United and/or Arsenal would not be the shock of the season.
They’ve only lost once at home in the league all year (against Liverpool) and have Burnley to come next Saturday, back-to-back games which could set them up nicely for the run-in which includes the visit of Chelsea at the end of the month, and a trip to Arsenal to finish with.
However, for all their attacking excellence and Romelu Lukaku’s exceptional influence on a side that has been winning at half-time and full-time in their past five home matches, the Toffees have had some pitiful luck lately. On top of the injuries to Aidan Coleman and Ramiro Funes Mori, Ashley Williams now serves a ban after being sent off for deliberate handball against Manchester United in midweek.
Koeman was already having to experiment with his youth players and looks set to bring Matthew Pennington back into the side to partner Phil Jagielka at centre-back.
That could just provide an already confident Jamie Vardy with extra enthusiasm for the game and if he’s joined by Islam Slimani and Marc Albrighton – both excellent from the bench against Sunderland on Tuesday – in the starting XI, then Leicester seem bound to create enough chances to win the game.
At the other end they’re still prone to the odd defensive wobble but three clean sheets in four represents an upturn in that department too recently and it’s good to see Wes Morgan in contention again following a back problem.
So despite Everton’s near-bombproof home record and Leicester still seeking their second Premier League victory away from the King Power, the visitors’ hot form, together with Everton’s injury issues, make Leicester a decent play and Vardy should be backed to play a key role in proceedings.
He wasn’t involved when Leicester won at Goodison in the FA Cup in January but has looked right back to his best with seven goals in his last nine appearances and rates the bet of the day to enhance that tally against a back four which is far from Koeman’s first choice combination.
Prediction: Everton 2-3 Leicester
Opta facts:
o Everton beat Leicester 2-0 in December, but haven’t done the league double over the Foxes since 1986/87.
o Leicester’s only Premier League win at Goodison Park came last season in December 2015, but they’ve only lost twice there too (D7).
o Thirteen of the previous 21 Premier League contests between these two sides have ended level, the greatest draw ratio for a Premier League fixture played over 20 times (62%).
o Kevin Mirallas has scored in each of his last three Premier League games against Leicester City.
o Leicester haven’t won back-to-back Premier League games away from home in nearly a year – a run of three wins in April 2016.
o Everton have won their last six Premier League matches at Goodison Park, scoring 22 goals and keeping five clean sheets. They haven’t won seven in a row since April 2014.
o Romelu Lukaku has had a hand in 18 goals in 14 Premier League home appearances this season (13 goals, five assists). The Belgian striker has hit 10 goals in his last six league games at Goodison Park.
o Jamie Vardy has scored twice and assisted another two goals in three previous Premier League games against the Toffees.
o Vardy has scored five goals in six competitive matches since Craig Shakespeare first took charge of the Foxes – this compared to seven goals in 32 games under Claudio Ranieri in 2016-17.
o Craig Shakespeare (five wins) could equal the Premier League record for consecutive wins from the start of his managerial career in the competition with a victory in this game. The record is currently held by both Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti (six wins from first six games).
o Leicester's record in the months of April and May (combined) in the last three Premier League seasons is played 18, won 13, drawn 4, lost 1 – winning 43 points from a possible 54 (80%).
Posted at 1350 BST on 06/04/17.
Recommended bets: Saturday Premier League
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Saturday's preview is written by David John.
Tottenham v Watford (1230 BST, Sky Sports 1)
Spurs continue to keep it interesting at the top of the table and a late flurry of activity from them at Swansea secured what seemed an unlikely three points with 88 minutes on the clock.
Spurs earn gold stars on two counts with the spirit and belief displayed to recover from a losing position – they have taken 17 points from such scenarios, more than anyone else – as well as doing it without five sidelined first-team regulars.
It has been an excellent collective effort of late and even the much-maligned Vincent Janssen caught my eye when he came on after an hour as a sub and played an important role in two of the goals.
He could be of interest this weekend as a goalscorer option if Mauricio Pochettino decides to go more positive back at home but in-form Watford are well capable of providing an interesting test on the back of two victories of their own.
That has catapulted the Hornets up to 10th place with 37 points and manager Walter Mazzarri felt the first 30 minutes in midweek at home to West Brom was the best spell of football they had produced all season.
The Italian managed to utter a bit of English too in congratulations during his post-match interview but left the sweary stuff to his interpreter following the dismissal of Miguel Britos and now leaves them very thin in central defence.
Spurs are pretty short in the betting but hard to oppose all the same – it might be more of a grind for a team chalked up at 30/100 but Janssen facing a depleted rear-guard is fancied to last enjoy a moment or two in the sun in front of the target.
Prediction: Tottenham 2-1 Watford
Opta facts:
o Tottenham Hotspur have never lost in the Premier League against Watford, winning five of seven encounters (D2).
o Watford have lost their last six league visits to White Hart Lane since beating them 5-1 in May 1985.
o Dele Alli scored twice against Watford at Vicarage Road in January in a 4-1 win and assisted the winner in this exact fixture last season for Kieran Trippier.
o Watford have never managed to score more than once in any of their previous seven Premier League games against Spurs (four goals in seven meetings).
o Spurs are unbeaten in 15 successive league home games (W13 D2 L0); their best run in league competition since May 2011 (17 games).
o Tottenham Hotspur have four home games remaining in the Premier League this season (including this game). Only 13 teams have previously gone a whole Premier League season unbeaten at home, with Chelsea in 2014-15 being the last.
o Mauricio Pochettino’s side have scored in every one of their last 23 Premier League matches at White Hart Lane – a run that stretches back to January 16th 2016.
o Watford have failed to score in five of their last seven Premier League away games and haven’t kept a clean sheet in any of their last nine on the road in the competition.
o Troy Deeney has scored against 41 different teams during his Watford career, but has never scored in four appearances against Spurs for the Hornets.
Manchester City v Hull (1500)
Walter Mazzarri was hailing some of the best football his Watford side produced in midweek and Hull counterpart Marco Silva was singing the praises of his players after they impressively swept Middlesbrough aside.
They climbed out of the relegation places for the first time since October but the manner with which they did it was outstanding with four goals and some quality football along the way.
There is still a long way to go but the mood seems very positive at the moment under the Portuguese supremo and if they can eke out anything from this fixture as 18/1 chances, it would be a further shot in the arm.
Hull’s away record though has been as abysmal as their home form excellent but they face a City side at the Etihad Stadium coming to terms with a stark reality which sees them 14 points behind Chelsea following a 2-1 midweek loss at Stamford Bridge.
They had more than one chance to get something from the game after falling behind but Pep Guardiola has now lowered his first-season sights to pursuing a Champions League place with the FA Cup still up for grabs as well.
It would seem inconceivable Hull’s pitiful away form could be boosted in this fixture but it is not utterly beyond the realms of possibility – Silva is already proving himself a master when it comes to organisation while his team’s current confidence will count for plenty.
Both teams to score would probably be my tentative selection if having a wager but surely Pep won’t let standards slip to such a degree that they can’t put the Tigers away with some comfort.
Prediction: Manchester City 3-1 Hull
Opta facts:
o Manchester City have been beaten just once in nine previous Premier League games against Hull City, a 1-2 loss in February 2010 (W5 D3).
o Hull City’s last win in any competition away at Manchester City was in the FA Cup in February 1930, drawing three and losing seven since then.
o Since picking up three points in their first away game of the season (2-0 at Swansea City), Hull City have won just two points in 14 Premier League away games since (W0 D2 L12).
o The Tigers have scored just two goals in their last 11 Premier League away games, despite attempting 114 shots (41 on target).
o Manchester City have lost only one of their last 17 Premier League games at the Etihad Stadium (W9 D7 L1), with that defeat coming at the hands of league leaders Chelsea in December.
o Sergio Aguero has scored 25 goals in his last 30 Premier League appearances at the Etihad Stadium. The Argentine averages a goal every 99 minutes on home soil in the Premier League.
o Aguero has scored nine goals in his last nine appearances for Manchester City in all competitions.
o Man City could draw three consecutive Premier League home games for the second time this season under Pep Guardiola. They never drew three in a row under Manuel Pellegrini or Roberto Mancini.
Middlesbrough v Burnley (1500)
The Clarets were second best for long spells against Stoke on Tuesday night but managed to chisel out three points and their attention now turns to the most arduous quest since Jason and his Argonauts set out for the Golden Fleece – an away success.
The winless streak in that department now stands at 17 games in all competitions this season but two draws from their last four attempts hints they may be moving slowly towards at last to solving the puzzle.
Those hard-fought points came against relegation-threatened duo Hull and Sunderland and another clear chance lies in wait here as Boro plummet headlong back towards the Sky Bet Championship.
They got their noses in front early on against Hull in midweek but were sliced open at the back by a slick Tigers outfit as the tremendous Ben Gibson had his most unfortunate game of the campaign.
Temporary boss Steve Agnew admitted they were not good enough and they sit seven points from safety – Agnew’s approach to try and boost his strike power up front remains a work in progress while it has to be hoped this sudden defensive lapse was a one-off.
I would be inclined to believe that was the case after a very organised effort at Swansea last weekend and Agnew’s top priority will to at least ensure they have a stable base to build on ����� the league’s lowest scorers can’t afford to ship goals.
The fact Burnley have managed just nine on their travels (although six have come in their last six games) suggests the hosts can do some sort of containment job and I quite like them to keep a clean sheet at 13/8 (bet365).
Prediction: Middlesbrough 0-0 Burnley
Opta facts:
o After going five unbeaten against Burnley in all competitions, Middlesbrough haven’t won any of their last three against the Clarets (D1 L2).
o Burnley are looking to do the double over Middlesbrough in the league for the first time since the 1953/54 season. o The last six league games between these two sides have contained just six goals (four for Boro, two for Burnley).
o Middlesbrough are winless in their last five Premier League games at the Riverside, drawing three and losing two.
o Middlesbrough have won nine of their last 11 home games against promoted sides in the Premier League (D1 L1).
o Burnley are one of just two sides in the top four tiers of English league football this season yet to win an away league game (also Rotherham United).
o The Clarets have failed to win any of their 15 away games in the Premier League this term (D3 L12); they last went 16 away games in the top-flight without a win between August 2009 and March 2010.
o Middlesbrough have scored the fewest goals (22), attempted the fewest shots on target (73) and had the fewest overall shots (273) in the Premier League this season.
o Burnley have allowed their opponents to take more shots than any other team in the Premier League this season (560).
Stoke v Liverpool (1500)
A couple of pretty turgid outcomes for Stoke as defeats to nil against Leicester and Burnley leaves them on a three-game losing streak and in need of a jolt of some description to get going in a positive direction.
It would take an almighty fall from grace if they somehow managed to get sucked into some sort of relegation predicament but a bit of a malaise has descended over the Potteries with not a great deal left to play for.
They were better against Burnley but a couple of half-hearted finishes when through on goal from the usually excellent Marko Arnautovic summed things up while Charlie Adam’s wonderful new corner-taking technique even brought a rueful smile to the face of Mark Hughes.
Recent history seems to suggest Stoke will be up for facing one of the big guns again though considering their excellent 0-0 draw at Manchester City last month and battling effort in defeat against Chelsea.
A return home could be a catalyst for an upturn in their fortunes with just that Chelsea defeat the only reverse in five recent starts at the Bet365 Stadium but the visitors will be equally keen to press on for a Champions League berth at worst as they sit five points behind second-placed Spurs.
They even edged a little further ahead of Manchester City despite squandering another couple of points at home to Bournemouth in midweek and Sadio Mane’s likely absence for the rest of the season throws up a conundrum – they have yet to win a game without him.
The Reds met Stoke at Anfield at about the same time last season and won 4-1 (for a second successive occasion) which kicked off a dreary crawl to the season’s finishing line and yielded just one more victory for Hughes and his men.
Recreating a similar scenario would not be at the top of the manager’s wish list but the home side really do need to pull their socks up – they could be I won���t be paying to find out.
Prediction: Stoke 1-1 Liverpool
Opta facts:
o Stoke have lost six of their last seven Premier League games against Liverpool, but did win the other clash, 61 at home in May 2015.
o Liverpool have won two of their last three trips to the Bet365 Stadium, this after failing to win any of their first five Premier League games there (D2 L3).
o The Reds have won 4-1 in Jurgen Klopp’s two previous Premier League games against Stoke. The last manager to see his side net 4+ goals in his first three games against an opponent was Manuel Pellegrini (Manchester City v Tottenham).
o Jonathan Walters has scored six times against Liverpool in the Premier League, his favourite opponent to score against.
o Liverpool are winless in five Premier League games on the road (D3 L2); they’ve not gone six without a win since January 2011.
o The Reds have kept just six clean sheets in Jurgen Klopp’s 30 Premier League away games so far; the same total they’d recorded in Brendan Rodgers’ last 12 away matches with the club.
o Stoke have lost just once in their last nine Premier League games on home soil (W4 D4), although it came last time out versus Chelsea on March 18th.
o The Potters have won 23 points from their first 15 home games of a Premier League season for the third consecutive campaign.
West Brom v Southampton (1500)
The Baggies were on the wrong end of a 2-0 scoreline at Watford on Tuesday and perhaps felt a bit of a hangover following a creditable backs-to-the-wall 0-0 draw previously at Old Trafford.
Heading home to The Hawthorns should provide a very good chance to get back on track having won seven of their last 10 in the Premier League with the equivalent of two more wins required to get to an excellent 50 points for the campaign.
The Saints are the next obstacle in the way and look a similar type outfit just a place below them in the table.
Claude Puyel has his detractors on the south coast and probably needs to curb an irritating inclination to tinker with the line-up but a strong finish down the stretch should win over the doubters and they have some incentive to try and close the current seven-point gap on Saturday’s rivals.
They burst the Crystal Palace bubble in some style in midweek with a slick performance and anything near that level of endeavour once more makes them very competitive on this occasion.
The recent trend has been for them to alternate victories and defeats on the road with another one of the former expected if the sequence does continue so that means they are marginal favourites with the bookmakers to claim all three points.
There is a slight suspicion they caught Palace on the rebound after the latter’s exhausting win at Chelsea and I can envisage Tony Pulis’ well-marshalled group of players being able to stifle the visitors.
A narrow home success would be my pick but I am going to back Nacer Chadli in the anytime goalscorer market instead after looking the most threatening player for West Brom at Vicarage Road.
He should have the opportunity to get forward and can boost his tally to six at last after what has been a rather barren second half of the season for the Belgian in front of goal.
Prediction West Brom 2-1 Southampton
Opta facts:
o West Brom have failed to score in five of their last seven Premier League games against Southampton.
o Southampton have only once before lost both Premier League games against the Baggies in the same season (2012/13).
o Saints have only scored once in the Premier League at the Hawthorns – a 90th minute penalty converted by Rickie Lambert in August 2013 to win 1-0.
o West Brom have won 29 points from their 15 home games this season; their joint-best return at this stage of a Premier League season alongside 2012/13.
o Indeed, the Baggies have won eight and lost two of their last 10 Premier League matches at the Hawthorns.
o Saints have won two of their last three away games in the Premier League (L1), the same total they’d won in the previous 12 combined.
o Tony Pulis’ side have scored 27 goals at home so far this campaign; only in 2012/13 (32) and 2010/11 (30) have West Brom netted more at the Hawthorns in a Premier League season.
o West Brom have lost three of their last five Premier League matches (W1 D1 L3), this after previously going on a run of eight league games with just one defeat (W5 D2 L1).
West Ham v Swansea (1500)
Punters, pundits, managers and players will have us all believe the title/relegation situation is just about set in stone but there is in the region of 21-24 points to play for – more than enough to change the lay of the land dramatically.
It is not desperation time just yet but respective managers Slaven Bilic and Paul Clement are feeling a fraction twitchier following midweek defeats so who will blink first at the London Stadium?
It was not total doom and gloom with positives to be taken – West Ham defended stoutly until Mesut Ozil’s opener for Arsenal while Swansea had lengthy spells of domination before their late capitulation at home to Tottenham.
Clement understandably used the phrase “heart-breaking” after shipping three goals from the 88th minute and with his honeymoon period well and truly over in south Wales, he has to start earning his money as he tries to pick his players up after slipping back into the bottom three.
The Hammers have some resilience up to a point but blew a winning position last weekend at Hull, then folded pretty tamely in 25 second-half minutes at the Emirates to leave them teetering on the back of five straight defeats.
Bilic seems convinced one win would get them back on course and confidence flowing again but they look as brittle as any team in the section at the moment while their new stadium has hardly been the happiest hunting ground in front of some fickle home support.
The Swans have endured a run of seven Premier League defeats from nine away trips but represent the pick of the prices here with the prospect of striker Fernando Llorente returning to action following an ankle injury an obvious major boost.
Prediction: West Ham 1-2 Swansea
Opta facts:
o West Ham have been beaten just once in their last eight Premier League games against Swansea, though it was at home to the Swans last season (W4 D3).
o Swansea’s 4-1 win in May 2016 over the Hammers ended a run of 12 away games in all competitions without a victory against them (D2 L10).
o In his last six Premier League games against the Swans, Andy Carroll has scored five times and assisted another three goals.
o West Ham United have lost their last five Premier League games – they haven’t lost six in a row in the competition since March 2010.
o West Ham have won just one of their last six home Premier League games (D1 L4) and have lost three of the last four.
o The Hammers have already lost seven times at the London Stadium in the Premier League; four more defeats than they suffered in their final season at the Boleyn Ground (3). The most home defeats they’ve registered in a PL season is nine (2006/07, 2010/11 and 2013/14).
o Swansea have lost four consecutive away games in the Premier League, conceding two or more goals on each occasion. They’ve never lost five in a row on the road in the PL.
o Swansea City (66 goals conceded) are the 12th different team to concede 64 or more goals after 31 Premier League games in a season. The previous 11 teams have all been relegated.
Bournemouth v Chelsea (1730, BT Sport 1)
The Cherries are one of the octet of teams jostling away in the lower reaches of the division but an unbeaten run of five games has them trending in an upward direction at the right time.
The good work was continued at Liverpool thanks to a last-gasp 2-2 draw via Josh King’s smart finish and turned out to be a third highly-creditable point picked up against some good teams during that spell to go with victories over West Ham and Swansea.
The tasks don’t get any easier with the visit of champions elect Chelsea but Eddie Howe has the confidence and belief flowing back through his squad at the moment and this should be a game to really get their teeth into.
The visitors have not been quite at their best either over the past week but crucially got back in the saddle to beat Manchester City on Wednesday following the 2-1 home loss to Crystal Palace.
Antonio Conte watched Eden Hazard prove the difference in the first half against City but then switched his formation around by swapping Kurt Zouma for Nemanja Matic after the break and the latter ensured Chelsea were pretty comfortable for much of the second half.
John Stones could have made things awkward with some better finishing from close range but Chelsea march on as points count much more at this stage compared to aesthetically pleasing performances.
Bournemouth was one of the places where Chelsea actually ran riot (4-1) towards the end of their ‘lost season’ last year as Hazard pulled the strings and proved he was still a major force.
His team-mates will be looking to the diminutive Belgian once more in a bid to ride out a relatively rocky patch and move one game closer to the title with three more points.
I would expect a stiffer test 12 months on from the hosts but a narrow away victory gets the vote.
Prediction: Bournemouth 1-2 Chelsea
Opta facts:
o Bournemouth have lost six of their eight games against Chelsea in all competitions (W2). Their only win at home came in their first game against them in September 1988.
o After losing 1-0 to the Cherries in December 2015, Chelsea have won their last two against Bournemouth netting seven goals. o Eden Hazard has scored three times in three previous Premier League appearances against Bournemouth.
o Antonio Conte’s side have won 33 points from their 15 away games so far in 2016-17; only twice in Chelsea’s history have they picked up more points at this stage of the season (35 in 2003/04 and 38 in 2004/05).
o The Blues have lost only once in their last 12 Premier League away matches, winning nine (D2).
o Bournemouth have won consecutive Premier League fixtures at the Vitality Stadium, netting five goals in the process. They could win three in a row for just the second time in the competition (also in October 2016).
o Josh King has doubled his Premier League goal tally from last season (6) with 12 goals, scoring nine goals in his last 10 Premier League appearances for the Cherries
o King has been directly involved in five goals in his last five Premier League appearances at the Vitality Stadium (four goals, one assist).
o Diego Costa has netted just one goal in his last five away appearances in the Premier League, this after scoring eight in his previous nine this season.
Posted at 1650 BST on 06/04/17.