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West Ham vs Arsenal betting tips:
- Arsenal to win in 90 minutes – 5/4 with BetMGM
- Eddie Nketiah any time goalscorer – 5/2 with bet365
- Reiss Nelson over 0.5 shots on target – 5/6 with Betway
Arsenal put their unbeaten domestic record on the line in the EFL Cup last 16 on Wednesday when they visit an out-of-form West Ham side that’s lost its last three games.
Hammers boss David Moyes could only watch on as his old club Everton took home three points with a 1-0 victory at the London Stadium last weekend as the capital outfit failed to score for the first time all season.
Moyes bemoaned the lack of creativity from his team and life doesn’t get any easier against one of West Ham’s bogey sides, Arsenal.
The Hammers have won just one of the last 16 home meetings with the Gunners, who warmed up for this cup tie by thrashing Sheffield United 5-0 at the Emirates Stadium.
Mikel Arteta rotated his team for the win over the Blades and is likely to make more changes on Wednesday with one eye on Saturday's crunch trip to Newcastle in the Premier League.
Moyes is likely to make alterations too and the home side are priced as underdogs by football betting sites to make the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup for a third season running.
Having already seen off Brentford in the last round of the competition, a trip to West Ham will hold little fear for Arsenal, who are second favourites in the outright betting with bookmakers to lift the EFL Cup for the first time in 30 years this season.
Worrying signs for West Ham
West Ham managed just one shot on target in Sunday’s loss to Everton as the optimism generated by the Hammers’ good start to the season continues to slowly dissipate.
Having been totally outplayed the week before that at Aston Villa and then seen their long unbeaten run in Europe ended by Olympiakos a few days later, Moyes’ men are in a rut, winning one of the last six games.
They have six games to squeeze into November around an international break and while Moyes is blessed to have a fully fit squad to call upon, his big players have gone off the boil.
Moyes' only recognised strikers Michail Antonio and Danny Ings are finding it tough to have an impact up front, while topscorer Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta are unlikely to be risked in this game with bigger fixtures on the horizon.
And whoever starts in the forward areas for West Ham faces what tends to be a well-organised Arsenal defence that’s kept four clean sheets in seven away games this season.
It’s likely to be an altered backline with Aaron Ramsdale starting in goal and Gabriel, Jakub Kiwior and Takehiro Tomiyasu expected to be included.
Whether the defence will shielded by former Hammer Declan Rice on his first potential appearance back at the London Stadium since his big-money move to Arsenal remains to be seen.
Rice has been involved heavily for his new side, playing a staring role in the Gunners’ midfield since moving across the capital. But with Thomas Partey out of action and Martin Odegaard carrying a hip issue, there’s a chance he may not get the night off.
Whichever 11 Arteta goes with, they should prove too strong for West Ham, who don’t tend to enjoy this fixture.
The Gunners have scored at least two goals in 13 of the last 15 visits and have only failed to score once in their last 16 away matches in all competitions.
Arsenal should be the more confident side after recent results and while this competition isn’t a major priority for either team, the visitors can get the job done in 90 minutes at odds of 5/4 with BetMGM.
Hat-trick hero to hit the mark again
With Gabriel Jesus currently out of action for Arsenal, Eddie Nketiah is likely to be one of the survivors from Saturday’s win over Sheffield United, which was a memorable occasion for the young striker.
Nketiah bagged his first-ever Premier League hat-trick in the win over the Blades and now switches his attention to a competition he tends to thrive in.
Last term was the first season the 24-year-old hadn’t scored in the EFL Cup in four years having previously scored nine times in ten appearances in the competition.
In total, Nketiah has scored 11 League Cup goals in his career and is up against a West Ham side with one clean home sheet to their name this season.
Nketiah bagged in Arsenal’s league win over West Ham at the Emirates Stadium last season and with his belief sky high after the weekend, he looks primed to strike again at 5/2 with bet365.
Nelson to find his range
West Ham’s recent struggles, coupled with a tendency to sit back and invite teams on to them, has seen them jump up to second in the average shots per game allowed rankings.
Only Sheffield United (20.3) are allowing more efforts on their goal on average than the Hammers (17.4) and there will be plenty of Arsenal players keen to try their luck.
Should he come into the team as expected, Reiss Nelson is likely to have a go and is 5/6 with Betway to have a shot on target.
Nelson bagged Arsenal’s winner in the last round at Brentford and has averaged one shot per game across seven appearances, despite the majority of those outings coming from the bench.
When he starts, Nelson usually finds time and space for a shot, registering nine shots in his five starts last season, and is a strong option on new UK betting sites to test the West Ham goalkeeper.
Tip: Reiss Nelson over 0.5 shots on target – 5/6 with Betway
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Last Updated: 14th March 2024, 07:22 AM
