West Ham United’s recent turnaround in Premier League form has not been enough to convince pundit Chris Sutton ahead of Saturday’s clash with Liverpool.
Optimism is high here in east London after West Ham United embarked on a run in which they’ve lost just one of their last six Premier League games.
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As such, they are only two points from safety heading into the trip to Merseyside on Saturday.
Still, Sutton does not seem all that convinced after watching the Irons draw with Bournemouth.
Chris Sutton not impressed by West Ham’s draw with Bournemouth
Indeed, the BBC Sport pundit was writing in his column on Thursday.
“I keep hearing how West Ham have turned a corner, and they have improved recently, but I still thought last week’s draw at home to Bournemouth was a poor result,” he wrote.
“The Hammers were helped by Nottingham Forest and Tottenham both being beaten, but a win would have been massive for them.”
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He claimed that despite hearing so much about West Ham’s supposed improvement in recent weeks, he’s of the belief that their draw with the Cherries last time out was a poor result.
Sutton also backed Liverpool to win 2-1.
Can you work out the THREE missing players from our last win at Anfield? 🔴 🕊️
A clue: our striker scored in stoppage time!
Liverpool 0-3 West Ham missing players
“Liverpool were very unconvincing at [Nottingham] Forest, but they did nick the win,” he added.
“Some of their fans are still whinging about Arne Slot and he is always being compared to Jurgen Klopp, but they are actually on a decent run of results and showing a bit of spirit too.
“They are right in the mix for the top four but now they need to keep winning – I expect them to do that on Saturday.
“Sutton’s prediction: 2-1.”
Hammers News have argued that there are reasons that West Ham can beat Liverpool, given that this is far from a vintage year for the reigning Premier League champions.
West Ham United v Manchester United - Premier League
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Why West Ham’s draw with Bournemouth was so frustrating
West Ham played well against Bournemouth without scoring and given their perilous position in the Premier League table, draws don’t really do much for them.
Sutton’s reading is harsh. It was a poor result in the context of the relegation battle, but West Ham still created some good chances against one of the Premier League’s other form sides.
Repeating that up at Anfield will of course be difficult. West Ham have a terrible record against Liverpool at Anfield, and Arne Slot’s side are starting to find some form again.
It does seem harsh from Sutton not to credit West Ham for their recent uplift in form, but clearly nothing has been achieved yet on the survival front.
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