West Ham United vs Newcastle United

London Stadium is the venue as West Ham United and Newcastle United face each other in contrasting Premier League circumstances.

West Ham United’s hard-earned 1-0 home triumph over fellow Premier League relegation rivals Southampton last weekend alleviated some pressure on under-fire manager David Moyes while helping the team arrest a two-game winless league run (D1, L1). Despite steering outside the bottom three, the ‘Hammers’ are not out of the woods yet, as they start this round only one point clear of 18th-placed Leeds United. Interestingly, despite their woeful domestic season, Moyes’ men have excelled at home in 2023, alternating between wins (3) and draws (2) in five Premier League outings at the London Stadium since the turn of the year. Adding to West Ham’s confidence, they’ve gone unbeaten in their last three top-flight encounters against Newcastle (W1, D2), including a 1-1 draw in the reverse fixture at St James’ Park.

Meanwhile, Newcastle United solidified their stellar top-four pursuit with a well-deserved 2-0 home win over Manchester United at the weekend, moving to third in the table. But there’s no room for complacency, as they commence this matchday level on points with fifth-placed Man Utd after winning their last three league matches on the trot. Moreover, except for a 2-0 defeat at defending champions Manchester City in early March, Eddie Howe’s men have gone undefeated in nine of their last ten Premier League away fixtures (W5, D4). Overall, the ‘Magpies’ have lost the fewest away games in England’s elite division this season (2), which should strengthen their bid to maintain a three-game unbeaten league run at West Ham (W2, D1).