After a break in fixtures for the FA Cup last weekend, the Premier League returns on Saturday. In the early kick-off, Arsenal make the short trip across London to face West Ham.

STATS

• West Ham are enjoying a good run of form in the league as they have won five of their last eight in the league before knocking Birmingham out of the FA Cup. Wins against Newcastle, Cardiff, Crystal Palace, Fulham and Southampton all represent games they should be winning if they want to consolidate a top half place.
• Arsenal’s form has been very mixed in recent weeks with three wins out of their last six league matches. They did manage to progress in the FA Cup where they have been handed a fourth-round tie with Manchester United after beating Blackpool. Failing to beat Southampton and Brighton are two results that may haunt them at the end of the season.
• The Hammers have been able to rely on two prolific attackers as Felipe Anderson (8) and Marko Arnautovic (7) have been especially good in front of goal.
• Arsenal have also benefitted from a similar partnership as Alexandre Lacazette (8) and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (14) have been fantastic this term.

HEAD TO HEAD

West Ham have a very poor record in their fixtures against Arsenal in recent seasons as they haven’t won any of the last seven meetings with their last victory coming in 2015. That is their only win in the last 23 match-ups as the Gunners have dominated with 18 wins. Both teams scored in both meetings last season and there were over 2.5 goals on the two occasions.

WEST HAM NEWS

Before any action in the 3 o’clock kick-offs, West Ham can go up to 8^th in the table. Arnautovic may miss the clash as speculation continues to arise surrounding his future.

Latest matches: West Ham United

05.01.2019	FA C	West Ham United	Birmingham City	2:0	W
02.01.2019	Prem	West Ham United	Brighton & Hove Albion FC	2:2	D
30.12.2018	Prem	Burnley FC	West Ham United	2:0	L
27.12.2018	Prem	Southampton FC	West Ham United	1:2	W
22.12.2018	Prem	West Ham United	Watford FC	0:2	L

ARSENAL NEWS

It’s a must-win game for Arsenal as they can go level on points with Chelsea with three points. They have been quite lucky with injuries as only Henrikh Mkhitaryan misses out.

Latest matches: Arsenal FC

05.01.2019	FA C	Blackpool FC	Arsenal FC	0:3	W
01.01.2019	Prem	Arsenal FC	Fulham FC	4:1	W
29.12.2018	Prem	Liverpool FC	Arsenal FC	5:1	L
26.12.2018	Prem	Brighton & Hove Albion FC	Arsenal FC	1:1	D
22.12.2018	Prem	Arsenal FC	Burnley FC	3:1	W

SUMMARY

With Arsenal’s unpredictability, West Ham will be confident of picking up a rare win against the Gunners. However, a victory for the visitors is expected and they should do just that but don’t expect them to keep a clean sheet. That makes Arsenal to win and both teams to score a worthwhile bet.