Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the FA Cup match
The crushing defeat to Manchester City was the last straw for West Ham's bosses — Julen Lopetegui has been sacked. On Wednesday, Graham Potter was appointed as the new head coach of the Hammers. His first test will not be an easy one, and getting eliminated in the Third Round of the FA Cup is not the best way to start.
Aston Villa
Aston Villa are a stronger side right now. Although they are not currently in European competition spots, they are consistently collecting points. Notably, they defeated Manchester City in December (2:1). Their first and so far only match of the new year saw Unai Emery's team beating Leicester, also 2:1. Furthermore, both this match and the upcoming one will take place at Villa Park. The Birmingham side has not lost there in their last seven matches, scoring in six of them.
West Ham
The Spanish coach was not sacked just because West Ham lost to the champions and Liverpool; it’s because nothing is changing. As it has been before, the visitors continue to lose to the leaders. In September, they suffered a 1:5 defeat at Anfield, and now it’s even worse — a 0:5 loss against Liverpool at home. At the end of summer, they lost 1:3 to City at home, and now it’s 1:4 away. Their only win in the last five matches was a shaky 1:0 against Southampton, with 1.81 xG and only two shots on target out of 16 attempts. Their opponent was even more threatening, generating four clear chances compared to two for West Ham.
Aston Villa vs West Ham Prediction
Often, a change of coach can give a team a boost, but I don’t believe that will be the case here. West Ham's defense is too unbalanced to fix this issue immediately, while the Birmingham side has scored at least two goals in four out of their last five Premier League matches. Therefore, I predict a victory for the hosts.
