Everton v West Ham
A fairly large proportion of east Londoners will be hoping that these two teams are heading in opposite directions. Everton appear to be on the slide following their good opening to the season, while West Ham have just experienced their first win, following their fine 3-0 trouncing of Newcastle at Upton Park last weekend.
Everton certainly seem to have reverted to their old selves in the past four matches, with straight defeats in a trio of Premiership games and elimination from the Worthington Cup - as usual to lower league opposition. Their league record is of more importance of course, and in this respect it is goals that they need - a goals-to-shots ratio of just 10% is far from spectacular.
Of course, the Toffeemen have at least been forcing the opposing keepers to earn their wages. Everton have hit an average of 51% of their attempts on goal accurately - a ratio bettered only by Manchester United and Arsenal so far. Nonetheless, hitting efforts at the goalkeeper may boost accuracy ratios, but it will not get a side Premiership points as Walter Smith knows all too well.
They have of course scored three more times than West Ham, whose win over the Tynesiders has given their goals-to-shots ratio a timely boost. However, at 8% it remains one of the poorest averages in the division, and the likes of Frederic Kanoute and Paolo di Canio will need to start hitting the target more regularly if the Hammers are to haul themselves away from the wrong end of the table.
When a side with a marked lack of firepower can fall back on a high level of distribution, there is at least a glimmer of hope. Unfortunately for West Ham, their 74% pass completion rate is two percentage points below the average for the division, and even recent signing Don Hutchison has failed to find a colleague as regularly as he would have liked upon his return to Upton Park.
There can be little doubt who the head honcho has been in the centre of the park for Everton so far this term, and some have been pleasantly surprised by his sudden rise to prominence in the side. Scot Gemmill has been exceptionally accurate for the Toffeemen, finding a blue shirt with an excellent 82% level of success, and furthermore the Scottish international has hit the ball accurately more times than any of his team-mates.
Everton will need to halt their slide as quickly as possible to avoid falling back into the scrap to avoid the drop come the end of the campaign. West Ham also need to win, as they must use the momentum gained from their fine win over Newcastle to propel them to greater things. With the two sides so eager for a result, www.WHUFCBet.co.uk are offering 11/2 on a 1-1 draw at Goodison this weekend.
Chris Green
Match referee: M. Halsey
Mark Halsey has only taken charge of one other game in the Premiership this season, but he booked two players and sent another off. Refs may be getting £50,000-a-year now, but it hasn't calmed them down or improved their performance any more. One suggestion to help with decisions was for refs to consult a TV at the side of the pitch, but quite how the opinion of a drag queen will help matters is yet to be clarified.
Referee's Name FoulsPenaltiesYellow CardsRed CardsAve Disc
pointsM. Halsey 33 0 3 1 48.00
PLAYER HEAD-TO-HEAD
click below for in-depth comparisonFerguson v Di Canio
TEAM NEWS
Everton's summer signing, Tomasz Radzinski, is set to make his first start for the club, but Duncan Ferguson is a concern. The Scot has shrugged off a groin strain, but is now battling to shake off a hamstring problem. Steve Watson and Alessandro Pistone definitely return, but Scot Gemmill and Mark Pembridge could miss out through injury. The Hammers will be without new signing, Tomas Repka, who is suspended after being sent off on his debut, and that could lead to a recall for Rigobert Song. Joe Cole has an outside chance of being included, but has a bruised bone in his foot.
MATCH BETTING
click on links below to place a wagerMatch Result
Everton11/10Draw9/4West Ham2/1Correct Score
Everton 1-06/1Everton 2-08/1Everton 2-17/1Everton 3-016/1Everton
3-116/1Everton 3-225/1Everton 4-040/1Everton 4-133/1Everton
4-250/1Everton 5-0100/1Everton 5-1100/1Draw 0-08/1Draw 1-111/2Draw
2-214/1Draw 3-350/1West Ham 1-015/2West Ham 2-012/1West Ham
2-110/1West Ham 3-033/1West Ham 3-125/1West Ham 3-228/1West Ham
4-0100/1West Ham 4-180/1West Ham 4-2100/1West Ham
5-0100/1Double Result
Everton/Everton5/2Everton/Draw16/1Everton/West
Ham33/1Draw/Everton4/1Draw/Draw7/2Draw/West Ham11/2West
Ham/Everton28/1West Ham/Draw16/1West Ham/West Ham9/2First
GoalscorerK Campbell5/1D Ferguson5/1T Radzinski6/1I Max
Moore7/1N Alexandersson12/1D Unsworth16/1T
Gravesen16/1Chadwick16/1P Gascoigne16/1I Tal20/1Hibbert20/1G
Naysmith25/1S Watson33/1D Weir40/1A Stubbs40/1A Xavier40/1A
Pistone66/1No Goalscorer8/1F Kanoute6/1J Defoe13/2P Di Canio13/2S
Todorov7/1D Hutchison10/1J Cole14/1T
Sinclair14/1Courtois16/1Carrick20/1Mccann25/1S Moncur28/1R
Song40/1C Dailly40/1S Schmemel40/1N Winterburn50/1R Soma50/1S
Potts66/1
For all these bets + much more go now to www.WHUFCBet.co.uk
By Road:
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