West Ham United will look to register their second win over Leeds United in the span of a week and maintain their grip on the fourth spot when they host Marcelo Bielsa’s side in the Premier League on Sunday.
After winning just one of seven league games in November and December, the Hammers have notched up three successive victories to climb into the Champions League places.
They head into this clash high on confidence, having beaten Bielsa’s Leeds 2-0 win in the FA Cup last weekend and followed it up with a 2-0 victory against Norwich City.
Moreover, they have won their last four matches against Leeds in all competitions.
Leeds, meanwhile, have failed to live up to expectations this season. Their squad has been ravaged by injuries and they have lost four of their last five matches across competitions. Their last away win was against Norwich way back in October.
Bielsa’s side currently find themselves languishing in 16th and desperately need points in the coming weeks to avoid being dragged into a relegation scrap.
West Ham United vs Leeds United – Team News
West Ham United
Aaron Creswell made his first appearance since November in the 2-0 win over Norwich and is in contention to start.
More Premier League action at London Stadium! 😍
COME ON YOU IRONS!!! ⚒#WHULEE pic.twitter.com/VkgPfHAxxq
— West Ham United (@WestHam) January 16, 2022
Said Benrahma is unavailable due to AFCON, while Kurt Zouma is still on the road to recovery. Angelo Ogbonna remains side-lined with a long-term injury and Tomas Soucek is unlikely to feature after only recently contracting COVID-19.
Leeds United
Bielsa will continue to be without a number of key players due to injury and suspension. Liam Cooper, Kalvin Phillips, Joe Gelhardt and Jamie Shackleton are all side-lined, while Diego Llorente and Tyler Roberts are all suspended.
Patrick Bamford, Rodrigo and Pascal Struijk could return to the squad, with Junior Firpo set to be assessed after sustaining a head injury against West Ham in the FA Cup.
👊 𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗖𝗛𝗗𝗔𝗬!
🆚 West Ham
💬 #WHULEE pic.twitter.com/tApS9mcHpV— Leeds United (@LUFC) January 16, 2022
West Ham United vs Leeds United – Predicted Lineups
West Ham United Predicted Lineup (4-2-3-1): Lukasz Fabianski; Vladimir Coufal, Liam Dawson, Issa Diop, Aaron Cresswell; Declan Rice, Manuel Lanzini; Pablo Fornals, Nikola Vlasic, Jarrod Bowen; Michail Antonio
Leeds United Predicted Lineup (4-2-3-1): Illan Meslier; Pascal Struijk, Luke Ayling, Robin Koch, Junior Firpo; Stuart Dallas, Adam Forshaw; Raphinha, Mateusz Klich, Jack Harrison; Patrick Bamford
West Ham United vs Leeds United – Key Players
West Ham United – Michail Antonio
Antonio is West Ham’s top scorer this season with eight goals in the league. The Jamaican’s pace and strength will pose plenty of problems for a brittle Leeds defence.
Leeds United – Raphinha
Like Antonio, Raphinha has also netted eight times in the league. The Brazilian is expected to come up against Cresswell on the right, and given the West Ham full-back’s tendency to bomb forward, Raphinha could have plenty of spaces to exploit.
Prediction: West Ham United 3-1 Leeds United