Mark Lawrenson thinks West Ham United will beat Middlesbrough 2-0 this afternoon.
Mark Lawrenson
Pundit Mark Lawrenson has told BBC Sport that he thinks West Ham United will beat Middlesbrough 2-0 at the London Stadium this afternoon.
The Hammers have endured a miserable start to the season, as they have lost all but one of their first six fixtures, and the last three games have been particularly concerning.
Slaven Bilic’s men have conceded 11 goals in their last three games, and were simply shambolic at the back in last week’s 3-0 home defeat to Southampton.
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic
Factor in that West Ham’s attack isn’t really firing right now either, and it has all played into Bilic’s men lying in the relegation zone after six games.
Today, West Ham will be looking for just their second win of the season – but so will opponents Middlesbrough having picked up just one point in their last four Premier League games.
Having been defeated 2-1 by Tottenham last weekend, Middlesbrough have now lost each of their last three games, and are looking for something to spark their campaign.
Middlesbrough manager Aitor Karanka
Manager Aitor Karanka will be hoping that facing a porous West Ham defence is the perfect opportunity to get his side firing after just six goals in six games this term.
Ahead of the game, pundit Mark Lawrenson has told BBC Sport that he thinks West Ham may well have overachieved in finishing seventh last term after such a dismal start to this season.
Lawrenson did though add that he thinks West Ham will win the game 2-0, as Middlesbrough’s attacking play has been disappointing so far this season.
General view outside the London Stadium
“Middlesbrough have just lost three league games in a row but West Ham have outdone them with four on the trot,” said Lawrenson. “The Hammers looked all over the show at the back against Southampton last week and, at the moment, it looks like they were playing well above themselves last season when they finished seventh.”
“But Boro are probably the perfect team for them to play at the moment, because they don’t pose much of an attacking threat – with 5.8, they have had the fewest shots per game on average of any Premier League team so far this season,” he added.
What’s your prediction for West Ham United v Middlesbrough?
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