At 0:30 on September 1st, the third round of the 24/25 Premier League season kicks off with defending champions Manchester City traveling to face West Ham United away from home.
Manchester City was relatively quiet during the recently concluded summer transfer window, aside from securing Savio and welcoming back Gundogan, there were no other major signings. Meanwhile, Man City sold Alvarez to La Liga powerhouse Atletico Madrid for a total value of 95 million euros. Despite the lack of obvious upgrades to the squad, the Sky Blues still managed to start the Premier League season with two consecutive wins, first defeating Chelsea 2-0 away, then overturning Ipswich Town 4-1.
Notably, Haaland, who was heavily criticized last season, has started the new season with a bang, scoring a hat-trick in the previous round and netting four goals in the first two rounds, moving closer to winning his third consecutive Premier League Golden Boot.
In contrast, West Ham United made significant investments in the summer window, bringing in Kilman, Samoivel, Flickrug, Guilherme, and Wan-Bissaka, while also signing Argentine international Guido Rodriguez as a free agent, loaning in Soler from Paris Saint-Germain, and Todibo from Nice. At the same time, West Ham sold Benrahma to Lyon, Kehrer joined Monaco, and Tows transferred to Southampton, bringing in 17.85 million euros.
After the clear upgrade to the squad, West Ham United’s team valuation reached 560 million euros. However, their performance in the first two rounds of the new season was average, losing 1-2 to the equally strong Villa in the opener, followed by a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace. Two days ago, in the second round of the English League Cup, West Ham fielded most of their starters and eventually beat Bournemouth 1-0 to advance.
Without a doubt, Manchester City is an attacking team, having already scored six goals in the first two rounds of the new season, leading the Premier League ahead of Brighton, Arsenal, and Liverpool. Moreover, they have won all eleven games across the seasons, with their last loss of points in the Premier League being a 0-0 draw against Arsenal at home in the 29th round of last season. In these eleven Premier League matches, Manchester City scored a total of 39 goals, averaging 3.55 goals per game, conceding only seven goals, including five clean sheets, making both their offense and defense impeccable.
As for West Ham United, they have only achieved three wins, two draws, and five losses in their last ten Premier League games across the seasons, with a win rate of only 30%. Manchester City is also a true away dragon, winning nine and drawing one in their last ten Premier League away games, scoring 26 goals and conceding only six, keeping clean sheets in the last five away games, showing astonishing consistency.
In the last ten Premier League home games, West Ham United only managed two wins, five draws, and three losses, with a win rate of 20%. In their last ten encounters, Manchester City has won seven, drawn two, and lost one, holding an absolute advantage. If we only consider the Premier League, in the last seventeen meetings with West Ham United, the Sky Blues have remained unbeaten with fourteen wins and three draws. In the last ten Premier League away games against West Ham United, they have recorded six wins, three draws, and one loss. No matter how you look at it, Manchester City’s advantage is significant enough.
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