Preview: West Ham United vs Aston Villa - prediction, team news, lineups

West Ham United will hope to continue producing positive results when they face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday, December 14.

The home side have been better under the leadership of Nuno Espirito Santo, but they are far from being out of the woods, and Villa provide another stern test.

Match preview

The Hammers have endured a difficult league season so far, with former manager Graham Potter getting the sack just over a month into the new campaign.

Expectations were raised when the former Nottingham Forest boss took over in September, and while he has delivered better results, West Ham still find themselves in the danger zone on the Premier League table.

In his 10 matches in charge, the London outfit only won two games, losing and drawing four apiece, not the type of form to escape the dogfight of relegation.

Espirito Santo has improved the club of late, delivering just one defeat across their last six Premier League fixtures - a 2-0 loss at home to Liverpool.

Their London Stadium form does not offer much encouragement, since they lost five of their seven league matches at home, but the positive is that the two victories they enjoyed came under this manager.

Despite entering this game on the back of consecutive draws, it is worth noting that both stalemates came on the road against quality opposition in the form of Manchester United and Brighton.

The manager will use those results as motivation for their upcoming encounter with Villa, as the home side aim for a first win against this opponent in three years.

After a five-game winless start to their Premier League campaign, Villa have forced their way into the conversation for the Premier League title.

The Villains are only three points adrift of leaders Arsenal, and after beating the Gunners with the final kick of the game last week, the visitors will be feeling invincible.

Unai Emery’s charges beat FC Basel 2-1 in the Europa League during the week to extend their current winning run to eight games on the bounce.

The visitors are unbeaten against West Ham across their previous six head-to-heads, including three wins for Villa, of which only one was at the London Stadium.

West Ham United Premier League form:

Aston Villa Premier League form:

Aston Villa form (all competitions):

Team News

The West Ham boss gave an update last week on Oliver Scarles, saying that he could only be cleared for contact training this week, so this fixture will come too early for him.

Long-term absentee Lukasz Fabianski is still battling a back injury, which means Alphonse Areola is likely to remain between the sticks.

Forwards Jarrod Bowen and Callum Wilson will always play a crucial role in the Hammers’ attack, as both have registered four Premier League goals this season, accounting for 48% of the club’s total goals this term.

Unfortunately, there is no light at the end of the tunnel for Niklas Fulkrug, with the striker seemingly out of favour at the London Stadium, which means he could leave the club in January.

Emery will definitely be without Ross Barkley and Tyrone Mings, who are struggling with knee and hamstring issues, respectively.

In a bizarre twist, Liverpool loanee Harvey Elliott’s career appears to have hit a dead end at Villa Park, but it has nothing to do with his ability.

The Villains are apparently not willing to pay the £35 million obligation-to-buy fee if Elliott makes 10 appearances for the Birmingham club, so he remains out of Emery’s thoughts for now, until the clubs can come to an agreement regarding the fee.

The manager has a difficult decision to make in the final third, where Emi Buendia, Donyell Malen and Ollie Watkins are currently performing and pushing for starts.

West Ham United possible starting lineup:

Areola; Mavropanos, Todibo, Killman; Wan-Bissaka, Rodriguez, Paqueta, Diouf; Soucek, Wilson, Bowen

Aston Villa possible starting lineup:

Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Maatsen; Kamara, Onana; Buendia, Tielemans, McGinn; Watkins

We say: West Ham United 1-2 Aston Villa

The Villa train just seems unstoppable at the moment, and West Ham’s poor record at home suggests that they do not have enough to withstand what the visitors have to offer.

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