West Ham United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers

Widely considered ‘El Sackico,’ the upcoming Premier League encounter between West Ham United and Wolverhampton Wanderers pits two heavily under-pressure managers against each other at the London Stadium.

Julen Lopetegui’s future in charge of West Ham is under scrutiny after a humiliating 5-2 home loss to Arsenal last time out left his side stranded in the lower reaches, only six points clear of the bottom three. West Ham’s embarrassing run of form has seen them suffer three defeats across their last five league outings (W1, D1), ominously conceding 3+ goals in each reverse. Another failed attempt to take three points would likely be the end of Lopetegui’s underwhelming tenure in the capital, with the Irons entering the round desperate to halt a two-game winless home league streak (D1, L1). Stars might have aligned to salvage Lopetegui’s job, throwing Wolverhampton his way, a side his men have beaten ‘to nil’ across their last four top-flight H2Hs on home turf.

On the other hand, Wolverhampton’s rough patch continued with a dismal 4-0 defeat at Everton, marking their second consecutive Premier League match to see them concede four goals. Another woeful defensive display would see the Midlands outfit let in 4+ goals in three successive league matches for the first time since 1995. Firmly embroiled in an early relegation scrap, Wolves languish four points adrift of safety after succumbing to nine defeats in the first 14 matchdays (W2, D3). However, it’s worth noting that a slight majority of the visitors’ points this season came on the road (5/9), with Gary O’Neil’s side going unbeaten on two of their last three Premier League travels (W1, D1, L1).