Manchester City is rolling right along at this point, eight points clear of Manchester United at the top of the BPL table with no sense that its advantage will ever be ceded. Pep Guardiola's side should have another squash match this weekend against West Ham, a beleaguered club just trying its best to save its BPL status for another season beyond this year.
This Barclays Premier League duel will go down Sunday, December 3, 2017, at 11 a.m. ET at Etihad Stadium. The match will be televised live on NBC Sports Network.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Manchester City -900
West Ham +1800
Draw +900
Over/Under 3.5
Odds Analysis
The Citizens have been beating the snot out of just about everyone this year. They're favored by a whopping 2.5 goals on the Asian Handicap, and you can only get around 11 cents on your dollar betting on them to win this match at home.
That might all be hard to fathom, but we're talking about a team that already has 44 goals on the board this season and has won its 13 matches by an average of 2.69 goals per game this season.
The total has to be ridiculously high in this duel due to the fact that the Hammers have the worst defensive marks in the EPL to date with 30 goals allowed in 13 matches. Still, this 3.5 is bordering on 3.75 with vig on the over at -155.
Key Injuries
Part of the reason why Manchester City keeps winning this year is the fact that it's been a healthy team. Sadio Mane missed out on the match against Southampton midweek with an illness, but he should be fine for the weekend tussle with the Hammers. Benjamin Mendy and John Stones are both long-term absentees and should be out through at least the end of the calendar year.
Likewise, the biggest reason West Ham can't get away from the drop zone is because it isn't a healthy team and hasn't been for most of the year. Andy Carroll and Sam Byram are recently injured, and Javier Hernandez is out with a hamstring injury he picked up while playing for Mexico during the international hiatus a couple weeks ago.
Now, the Hammers also have the problem of Winston Reid's injury he picked up against Everton on Wednesday as well.
Starting keeper Joe Hart is ineligible to play in this match since he is on loan from Manchester City.
Recent Form
Manchester City has been playing some tough foes of late who have been trying to dirty up matches to get it off of its game. It nearly worked against Southampton on Wednesday, though Raheem Sterling came to City's rescue with a late show to pick up the win. That's seven regulation time wins in a row for Guardiola's team dating back to the EFL Cup draw against Wolverhampton that was ultimately won in penalties. The last time the Citizens had any knocks against them came back on August 21 against Everton, a 1-1 draw at the Etihad.
David Moyes hasn't had any better luck than Slaven Bilic had at West Ham. The Hammers were crushed 4-0 by Everton in Moyes' return to his old club on Wednesday, giving it five straight matches without a win in the Premier League. The team has fared poorly on the road, only managing a point against Crystal Palace, one against Burnley and one against West Brom this season.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
It's really hard to take West Ham and the 2.5 goals, but we think it's the right side. Sure, United is in terrible form, and for as bad as its offense is without Reid and Carroll, its defense is worse. That said, the Citizens have played sloppy soccer of late, and if they aren't careful, they might accidentally only win this fixture by a couple goals.
Barclays Premier League Odds: Manchester City 3, West Ham 1
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