Crystal Palace welcome West Ham United to Selhurst Park on Tuesday in the early Premier League action. Roy Hodgson is under intense pressure while not even the biggest West Ham fan could have predicted their recent run of form.
Three league wins in a row for the Irons – most recently seeing off West Brom 2-1 – has them within two points of fourth-place Liverpool. Confidence is obviously high and any talk of a transfer for main man Declan Rice has been relaxed for now. Michail Antonio, rested for the recent cup win against Doncaster, has scored the winning goal in their last two Premier League victories and keeping him fit will be crucial for David Moyes side.
Crystal Palace v West Ham: 6pm – BT Sport 2
Roy Hodgson’s Eagles have struggled all season and not many would have expected a relegation battle with half the season remaining. Their recent form is better than it looks, however, and they have taken points off Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City and Arsenal in recent weeks. Crystal Palace have a decent run of fixtures ahead and I’m sure Hodgson and his coaching staff would have focused on this period to climb the table, which may also explain their lacklustre performance against Manchester City last time out.
Palace are unbeaten in their last four against West Ham, winning two and drawing two. I’m not convinced the visitors can win four Premier League games on the bounce, so the bet is a hard-fought victory for Crystal Palace.
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West Brom are down in 19th in the league and things won’t be getting any easier for Sam Allardyce’s side when they welcome Manchester City to the Hawthorns. In 21 meetings between the two sides, City have won 17 games with two defeats and two draws. The Baggies’ next two fixtures are huge six-pointers against Fulham and Sheffield Utd and it would be no surprise for Big Sam to have one eye on those in terms of team selection.
City have won their last six Premier League games and are just two points off top spot with a game in hand. It’s not all plain sailing though, with Kevin De Bruyne’s hamstring injury due to keep him out for six weeks, while Sergio Aguero is also sidelined for this one.
West Brom v Man City: 8.15pm – BT Sport 2
West Brom have improved under Allardyce and a recent draw against Liverpool and victory against Wolves has given them some hope of staying up, albeit they were disappointing in their latest game against West Ham in a 2-1 defeat.
The visitors’ defence has improved greatly in their recent turnaround with the rejuvenated John Stones making a huge difference and there is now real competition for places. The Baggies will be so busy trying to keep City out that they will struggle to score in this game. Despite Manchester City’s injuries, I see them winning without conceding. The Bet is Manchester City To Win to Nil.
MORE TIPS: Our 4 best bets for West Brom v Man City tonight
PP News Daily Double
Tuesday January 26
Crystal Palace to beat West Ham
Man City to Win to Nil v West Brom
This bet clocks in at 11/2 with Paddy Power.
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