West Ham v Aston Villa

West Ham vs Aston Villa Preview

Although former West Ham manager David Moyes received criticism from various sections of The Hammers faithful throughout last season's Premier League campaign, the London club still achieved a top half finish of ninth place, while Aston Villa did what Newcastle United did the season before, and that was to record a top four finish and grab a place in this season's Champions League as well.

It's all change once again in the West Ham dugout as Spanish manager Lopetegui has taken over from former Scottish coach David Moyes and undoubtedly the fans will be demanding a higher place than last season's ninth place finish this season.

Reality suggests this will still be a tough target to achieve particularly as West Ham had managed to pick up just two wins from their final 11 league matches of last term, collecting victories in the shape of wins against Wolves and Luton Town, but also being handed five defeats along the way as well.

Losses at the hands of Newcastle United, Fulham, Crystal Palace, Chelsea and Manchester City suggest that this season will be no walk in the park again for The Hammers although a sustained and stubborn run of just two defeats in their last 14 home games at their London Stadium could pave the way for a positive start in this opening home game of the season.

Aston Villa achieved fourth place at the end of last season's Premier League campaign which was their best top flight finish since the 1995/96 season under manager Brian Little and the west midlands club will now have to balance Premier League fixtures with those of the elite European club competition, Champions League, this term.

Villa still managed to stave off the challenge from Tottenham and Chelsea despite failing to win any of their last four matches in the top tier as Unai Emery's side were involved in draws with Chelsea and Liverpool along with being dealt disappointing defeats by the likes of Brighton and Crystal Palace, both of which were away from home.

The west midlands club produced an impressive season on home soil at Villa Park as The Villains suffered just three defeats throughout the whole season, but results away from home were far less convincing where the visitors were concerned.

Having won eight but losing seven in the process, Villa became somewhat inconsistent on the road and this was underlined by losing three of their last four outings on the road towards the end of the campaign, something which could crop up again here on Saturday evening.

West Ham v Aston Villa Verdict

West Ham have held the upper hand over Aston Villa in previous meetings as The Hammers have lost just once in their last 13 exchanges against their west midlands visitors.

Therefore, our main bet will be West Ham win @ 2.50

Other side bets worth considering:

West Ham win & Under 2.5 goals @ 7.00

Correct Score: West Ham 1-0 @ 13.00