England Premier League - Week Two Tips

The EPL failed too disappoint during match week one, now the second week of action is upon us with a set of high- profile match-ups for our viewing. Premier League champs Manchester City picked up right where they left off last season, leaving no doubt they will certainly be a force to be reckoned with as the campaign progresses, while Liverpool and Chelsea showed they are true competition for the 2018-2019 title, as they look to de-throne the 'Citizens' from their throne.

Fellow "Big Six" clubs Manchester United, Tottenham and Arsenal had mixed results, although the Red Devils and Spurs picked up all three points, they were less than convincing in doing so, while the Gunners looked much like the same old bunch that took too the pitch under Arsene Wenger. Now with a new week ahead these English giants hope to find more domination during their 90 minute shifts, and keep pace with the obvious pace setters in the Premiership. 

The newly promoted sides did not fare as well as they would have like, between Wolverhampton, Cardiff City and Fulham, the trio only combined for one point in the table, in their pursuits of survival in England's top flight league. Each understand the importance of grabbing positive results against teams outside the top six in the league, making this weekend a crucial opportunity to stack precious points against sides more in their level of competition. 

10328 West Ham vs 10329 Bournemouth 

London Stadium, London, England

8-18-2018 - 10:00 am ET 

The line-up on Saturday has plenty of interesting match-ups, with plenty of cagey affairs set to take place, their should be a more wide open event in the capital city, when the Hammers welcome south coast upstarts Bournemouth too London Stadium, as these two sides generally fail to entertain the viewing parties.

West Ham travel home off of a humbling 4-0 thumping to a powerful Liverpool side. The Hammers will certainly want to put that dreadful performance behind them as quickly as possible, knowing they still have plenty of room for growth after a substantial investment from their board, the Londoners are a club to watch as the campaign progresses.

The storied clubs new head-man Manuel Pellegrini was rudely welcomed back too the EPL, after a stint in China, the Chilean was matched up with arguably the best team in England, if not the world. Pellegrini was haunted once again with his lack of attention on the defensive side of the ball, while his patented attacking style of play also failed to cause the Reds any real troubles, leaving him no option but to rally the troops on the practice pitch this week, in preparation of a always dangerous Bournemouth squad.

The Hammers were one of many clubs making last minute signings to help bolster their team, with many of the new faces set to take too the pitch for the first time on Saturday, the home side will be hopeful they get meaningful contributions from Lucas Perez and Carlos Sanchez.

There are serious injury concerns as the start of the match closes in, with front-line members Andy Carroll and Manuel Lanzini still on the shelf, Austrian danger-man Marko Arnautovic also picked up a knock at Anfield last Sunday, leaving his status still up in the air, giving Mexican international Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez a shot at leading the line, in Pellegrini's 4-2-3-1 formation. 

West Ham will have a clear advantage from their attacking midfield positions, the arrivals of Felipe Anderson, Jack Wilshere and Andriy Yarmolenko provide the club with some much needed class moving forward. This trio of ultra-talented players should provide plenty of class in the attacking half of the pitch, the Hammers will surely lean on the contributions of these gifted play-makers, as they look to make a real statement during the new season.

The home side should provide a better showing in their second time out, it was quite unfair to ask so many new players in a new system to play a well oiled machine in Liverpool. Pellegrini will surely draw up a more effective game-plan this go round, as he looks to employ his free-flowing style of play into action, and place goals on the board, while entertaining the loyal Hammer supporter-ship.

Bournemouth arrive in London off an impressive 2-0 victory over EPL new boys Cardiff City, now the Cherries look to make it two in a row against a wounded Hammers side, who are certain to make matters quite difficult for them to leave London Stadium with a positive result. 

Eddie Howe is highly optimistic his south coast squad can keep their prime form moving forward, understanding this West Ham club will allow opportunities for his team to hit the back of the net, the young English manager should be content on challenging the newly formed Hammers back-line, and ruining their home debut.

The Cherries dynamic strike-force of Joshua King and Callum Wilson should be licking their chops as the opening kick-off arrives, set to lead the line in the Cherries 4-4-2 alignment, they are certain to give the West Ham back-line fits, as you would expect you see one of these talented trigger-men on the final score-card.

The visitors may also have the addition of their record signing, with Jefferson Lerma being rumored to get his first run with the team, the Colombian central midfielder should add some much needed stability on both sides of the ball, his rare ability to react to the ball and cut off passes and then set the offense into motion is world-class, while also offering a true presence in the box on set-piece situations, where is aerial prowess will cause defenders nightmares. 

Bournemouth have struggled away from the South Coast during their time in the top flight league, the Cherries only kept three clean sheets last season, while conceding a gaudy 1.6 goals per match. Eddie Howe will certainly want to improve on those numbers, but he understands with the quality of opponents he will face on weekly basis, the chances of keeping zero's on the board will be a difficult proposition, and with a wounded West Ham club who are anxious to please the home faithful, the visitors should be under real pressure from the start.

West Ham vs Bournemouth - Prediction

This particular match-up has generally produced goals during their past encounters, with 21 goals being scored during their past seven outings, for an average of three goals per match over that span of play. Last season this match-up combined for 11 goals alone, with each team possessing talented attacking players, with suspect defenses who generally struggles too keep their opponents off the board, the opportunity for another high scoring match seems imminent. 

I expect to see Both Teams getting on the score-line once again, with a 2-2 - 2-1 type of scenario playing out. The Hammers are still getting used to Pellegrini's style of play, as he prefers his sides to push forward and apply pressure to the defense, while Bournemouth also enjoy a possession based plan of attack, using quick short passes to break down their defenders, while placing their excellent finishers in the position to succeed in front of goal, which should provide one of the more exciting matches of the weekend.

West Ham vs Bournemouth - Match Tips 

Both Teams To Score - 'YES'  -135 / 1.74

Over 2.5  -125 / 1.8 - Total Full Time Goals

Bournemouth - Team Total Over 1  -120 / 1.83 - Goal 

EPL - Bonus Tips

10310 Chelsea vs 10311 Arsenal

8-18-2018 - 12:30 pm ET

Over 1  -140 / 1.71 - Total 1st Half Goal

Chelsea - Team Total Over 1.5  -130 / 1.77 - Goals

Both Teams To Score and Over 2.5 Goals  -125 / 1.8