Burnley V West Ham United

Saturday, 6^th February – 15:00 GMT

Burnley

League Position: 18th

Recent Form: DLLLL

As the old cliché goes – “The honeymoon period is well and truly over” and that old adage rings so true with Burnley. After a glistening start to the campaign, which peaked very early on with a 1-0 victory at home to the champions, Manchester United, Burnley’s season has dramatically come off the tracks and they have rapidly become the 2009/2010 edition of Hull City. However, Burnley’s fall from grace has come slightly earlier than Hull’s of last season and that’s not good news as The Clarets look on course to achieve even less points than the Tigers.

The season, even after their fabulous start which did consist of plenty of victories, has been solely about avoiding the drop and that hasn’t changed and is in fact more challenging now then it looked a month of two ago. The 31^st October, 2009 at Turf Moor – A 2-0 victory against fellow struggler’s Hull City was the last time Burnley won a Premiership fixture. A whole three months ago, a run of twelve games without a league win. That’s a catastrophe of a run and one that, even this early on, looks to have al-but stamped Burnley’s relegation tag.  

Their fall from grace has been met with aplomb, with Burnley’s over-the-top European claims now turning into serious relegation concerns, with Burnley now occupying a relegation spot. Their problem right now is points are proving hard to come by, even at Turf Moor which was a fortress for The Clarets in the early stages of the season. This huge run without a win is costing them dear and not only is it slowly rotting away at their survival chances but it’s also doing serious harm to the morale in camp. As well as points drying up, goals have been at a premium while their defence has looked leaky, and this scary formula is the reason why Burnley have now chalked up a four match losing run in the Premiership.

The small glimmer of hope for Brian Law, whom has yet to celebrate a Burnley win as manager since taking over the reigns from a successful Owen Coyle, is that this four match losing run mainly consists of away defeats, while their latest, even though was at Turf Moor, was against the Premiership leaders in Chelsea. The Clarets aren’t going to win many, if any, on the road for the remainder of the season and pretty much everyone in the football world has come to terms with that. However, were Burnley to surpass expectations and avoid the drop then some big performances, combined with some huge individual displays, are required at Turf Moor against the teams in and around them – West Ham being a prime example. This is a fixture Burnley simply cannot afford to drop a single point in as ‘Winnable Fixtures’ will now be at a premium for this small club.

West Ham United

League Position: 15^th

Recent Form: WLDDD

West Ham take their poor away form into this tricky looking but must win game with Burnley at Turf Moor. The Hammers have barely moved from the relegation zone since the start of the season but are now several positions above the drop zone and have an ideal opportunity to put yet further breathing space between them and the bottom three. However, Burnley have been a tricky customer on their own soil and West Ham have it all to do if they are to double their away tally and secure just their second away win of the season.

These new owners have been a Godsend for little old Gianfranco Zola has West Ham’s once lightweight attacking has now been bolstered by some fresh ammunition. In the last day of the January transfer market alone, West Ham secured the services of Blackburn’s Benni McCathy, Middlesborough flop Mido & Ilan, a former Brazilian international on a freebie! Carlton Cole, whom has spent a long spell on the sidelines this season, will no longer feel the pressure from the fans to score the vast majority of West Ham’s goals and he will feel a burden has been lifted from his shoulder as The Hammer’s now boast far more fire-power up front.

However, now the demand with the fans for more goals will be greater and they’ll be expecting to score a few against Burnley, a side which have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last twelve league fixtures. On the same token, however, The Hammers have managed just one league goal in their last four games and have failed to score in nearly half of their away encounters this season, failing to find the net in 5/12 away fixtures thus far. They were, though, on target in their last away adventure when they drew 1-1 at Portsmouth and the players will have grown in confidence after going three games unbeaten… Albeit being three consecutive draws.

The problem of late with West Ham has been a distinct lack of goals and it’s perhaps why Zola has reinforced his attack so much during January because West Ham’s solid defensive displays of late should of enabled them to snatch the odd goal here of there and win games instead of drawing them. However, they are facing an attack minded Burnley side on Saturday and this could turn into a ‘Who can score more’ contest. Especially as the reverse encounter finished with eight goals when West Ham beat Burnley 5-3 at Upton Park earlier in the season.

Match Verdict: Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

We’ve found it hard to separate the two as neither are in stunning form at present, with Burnley without a win since the end of October and West Ham not winning a league fixture since Boxing Day. However, just because we fancy the draw doesn’t mean we think this will be a dull affair as West Ham’s new offensive options make this a tasty encounter on paper as Burnley will try to play on the front foot as well. I can see quite a few goals here, like their previous meeting at Upton Park which produced eight goals, and a 2-2 correct score punt is one we’re seriously considering.

Match Odds:

Burnley – 2.60 Bet365

Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

West Ham United – 3.00 SkyBet

SoccerBetting Value Pick: Over 2.5 Goals – 2.10 VCbet