Fresh off the back of lifting the Carabao Cup trophy, Manchester United will be looking to take a step towards FA Cup victory and George Gamble sees value in the goals market.
The Red Devils ended their trophy drought at the weekend as they beat Newcastle United 2-0 in the League Cup final under the arch at Wembley. However, boss Erik ten Hag will not allow his players to slack off as just three days on from their victory, they’re in FA Cup action at home to West Ham United.
Old Trafford is likely going to be bouncing as fans get to see their team for the first time since lifting the Carabao Cup, and they’ll be expecting the good times to keep coming, starting with a victory over a Hammers side they have beaten in seven of the last nine meetings at this venue.
Looking over the previous clashes between these two highlights that they’re often much closer than originally thought.
Five of the last six meetings have been decided by 1-0 scorelines and with such a quick turnaround between games, another closely contested encounter could be possible, particularly when you see that seven of West Ham’s last eight matches have seen the unders land.
Kick-off time: 19:45 GMT, Wednesday
TV channel: ITV1
In fact, in the Premier League, just three of the visitors' 12 away league outings have produced three or more goals and David Moyes’ side rank second overall for interceptions per game.
They’ll try to frustrate the hosts, keep the game tight and hope that their physical superiority can reward them from set-pieces.
Winning the Carabao Cup goes a lot further than lifting a trophy, it’s what Erik ten Hag will be hoping is a sign of things to come and the momentum that has come from it can see them progress further in the FA Cup as a result of securing victory here.
They may be both physically and mentally fatigued to a degree but providing they maintain their defensive structure, they can keep West Ham United at bay.
Danny Ings was the hero at the weekend as he netted twice in the 4-0 win against Nottingham Forest, but he is ineligible here and will be a huge miss.
West Ham could also be without a couple of other key players and David Moyes will no doubt look for his side to remain defensively solid.
The London outfit actually sit in the bottom half for both shots faced and shots registered per game away from home, and with all this in mind, UNDER 2.5 GOALS looks tempting.
The market favours goals in this meeting and it’s easy to understand why when you consider how efficient the hosts have been in front of goal.
But after huge matches where a positive result has been achieved, there can often be a downturn in performance, and the value actually looks to be on opposing the market.
Unders is at a best price of 21/20, which looks extremely generous.
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see that come in slightly prior to kick-off but if at over evens, this selection makes plenty of appeal.
Manchester United v West Ham best bets and score prediction
- 2pts Under 2.5 Goals at 21/20 (General)
Score prediction: Manchester United 2-0 West Ham (Sky Bet odds: 7/1)
Odds correct at 1700 GMT (28/02/23)
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