Bournemouth v West Ham | Match Preview, Odds To Bet On and Prediction
West Ham United kick off the new Premier League season with a trip to Dean Court to face Bournemouth on Saturday and are slim favourites to pick up all three points. West Ham are 17/10 with Bet UK To Win against Bournemouth, but it won’t be easy away from home.
United won the Europa Conference League last season but didn’t have the best domestic campaign, finishing on only 40 points, so they’ll be desperate to get off to a bright start. They have been slow getting deals over the line this summer too, making only one signing in the transfer window, so David Moyes doesn’t have the squad precisely the way he wants it.
The Hammers finished 14th in the table but spent most of the campaign in a relegation battle, losing 20 of their 38 league games. United were poor on the road too, with only Wolverhampton Wanderers, Leeds United and Nottingham Forest picking up fewer points away from home. Bournemouth are 9/5 with Matchbook To Win over West Ham.
Bournemouth finished one place and one point behind West Ham in the table last season, conceding considerably more goals (71) while scoring fewer (37). They lost 21 games over the campaign too, so it’s easy to see why they’re underdogs. The Cherries have been busier in the transfer market, however, spending £85m on new arrivals, so all the fresh blood should be a benefit.
Bournemouth weren’t the most convincing on home soil last season, winning less than a third of their games at Dean Court while averaging slightly more than one goal per game, so Andoni Iraola’s men are 4/7 with Coral To Score Under 1.5 Goals. West Ham averaged just a goal a game on their travels, so Moyes’ men are 8/13 with Boyle Sports to Score Under 1.5 Goals too.
Head-to-heads between the two clubs have been one-sided recently, with Bournemouth failing to beat West Ham in their last four meetings. They were thrashed 4-0 at home to United last season and are coming off the back of three defeats against West Ham with 10 goals conceded and zero goals scored. West Ham are 4/1 with SkyBet To Win To Nil.
And given United have averaged more than three goals against Bournemouth in their last three meetings, Moyes’ men are 5/1 with Betfair To Score Over 2.5 Goals. But who will be potentially scoring the goals for the visitors?
No West Ham player had a hand in more league goals than Jarrod Bowen (six goals, six assists) last season, so the 26-year-old is 10/1 with Sky Bet to be First Goalscorer. Saïd Benrahma contributed nine league goals in 2022/23 and is 10/3 with Bet 365 to Score Anytime.
Dominic Solanke was Bournemouth’s top contributor last season, having a hand in 13 league goals. He’s 15/2 with SkyBet to be First Goalscorer and 29/10 with William Hill to Score Anytime. Bournemouth have been the busier of the two sides in terms of signings so they should give West Ham a good game at home.
It may not be enough to pick up all three points, however.
Prediction: Bournemouth 1-1 West Ham
