Chelsea vs. West Ham United and Tip to Win
Date: Monday, March 6th , 2017
Where: English Premier League – London, United Kingdom
by Keith, Professional Soccer/Football Handicapper, Predictem
Match Odds: Chelsea 6/10, West Ham 5/1, Draw 33/10
Moneyline: Chelsea -160, West Ham +500, Draw +330
Over/Under: NO PLAY
This week in English football, the schedule features another chapter of a North London Derby. West Ham United will host cross-city foe, Chelsea in what has always been an epic rivalry contest. The Hammers come in to this one with a draw against Greater London adversary, Watford 1-1. For the Blues of Chelsea, they have now dispatched two foes in succession and most recently defeated Swansea City 3-1. The two combatants have split the last two meetings with each side taking a victory. Both of these contests were settled by a score of 2-1. The home town in both scenarios emerged the triumphant club in each situation.
The Blues have outscored opponents 14-4 in their last six fixtures and they continue to show no signs of relent in both FA and EPL pursuits. This is a football club that has not lost a game since January 4th. Needless to say, the stock on this time in through the ceiling as the Blues continue to win in convincing fashion. Their only hiccup if you wish to call it that was a 1-1 draw at Burnley, a few weeks ago. We were in on that play by virtue of the fact, Burnley is always tough to beat at Turf Moor and the same held true against the table-toppers. Nevertheless, given the fact they are so heavily favored in this contest, combined with a propensity for the unexpected in this North London DerbyChelsea could once again be set up perfectly for a let-down.
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Unlike years past, West Ham United is well outside of a chance in securing a Europa play-in berth. With this being said, the Hammers will likely be going all-out to win this contest by virtue of the fact they would like to have a feather in their cap for the season. Taking down the likely English Premier League Champion would be suitable especially on their own grounds. West Ham sits in ninth place with 33 points on the year. After the sale of prolific forward Dimitri Payet, the Hammers seem poised more than ever to be deflated in terms of pricing given the grim outlook for the Hammers after losing their best player. Chelsea has 63 points and sit with a commanding 10 point lead, these numbers alone drive the price and the reaction of this market.
In the early going, we have seen this market get split down the middle in terms of action on either Chelsea or West Ham United. Some are banking on home pitch advantage resting with the Hammers with a potentially juicy takeback if West Ham were to win or many are taking to Chelsea with the juice by virtue of the fact, they seem unstoppable at the moment. As we have stated once and we will state again, we will never advocate for laying juice.
This contest is a prime-time marquee match-up and thus the books are extra sharp not to make any mistakes in this fixture as well. With Chelsea and West Ham stealing center stage, a small contingent of the action has come in on the draw. Given the outcome of recent meetings, a contrarian approach would suggest that this is the value play and given the take back that is offered here, it is certainly a quality play. In regard to Over/Unders, we will stay off making any suggestions this week be that the books are focused on the number of three given the fact the last two meetings totaled three goals. To take the Under 3.5 requires heavy juice at 4/5, as does the Over 2.5 at 8/11. At Under 2.5, the number is just 11/10 and given the fact we can stand to net 3.3 units if we are successful with any form of a draw, we will focus solely on the draw.
Chelsea Recent Form
W Swansea City 3-1
W Wolverhampton 2-0
D Burnley 1-1
W Arsenal 3-1
D Liverpool 1-1
West Ham United Recent Form
D Watford 1-1
D West Bromwich Albion 2-2
W Southampton 3-1
L Manchester City 0-4
W Middlesborough 3-1
Keith’s Prediction for the Game: DRAW 33/10 (+330) and NO PLAY ON OVER/UNDER. To take advantage of another FREE 50% bonus, check out MYBOOKIE.