MX23RW : Saturday, November 23 05:13:46| >> :120:33880:33880:

Preview: West Ham United vs. Aston Villa

West Ham kick off their season back in the top flight against Aston Villa, who begin a new era under manager Paul Lambert.

West Ham United begin their first season back in the top flight with a clash against Aston Villa at Upton Park tomorrow.

Hammers boss Sam Allardyce has a host of new signings to consider for the match, including goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen, Alou Diarra, Mohamaed Diame and Modibo Maiga, who could all contest for a starting spot.

Jack Collison is expected to miss out on his side's opener due to a knee injury that was aggravated in pre-season, while skipper Kevin Nolan should be fit to lead his side out after overcoming a toe problem.

Meanwhile, all eyes will be on new Villa boss Paul Lambert, who could start new boys Karim El Ahmadi and Ron Vlaar but will have to deal with the club's early injury woes.

The Scottish boss has been forced to deal with the losses of Marc Albrighton, Gabriel Agbonlahor and Richard Dunne, who all face lengthy spells on the sidelines due to their respective injury problems.

Possible lineups:

West Ham: Jaaskelainen; Demel, Reid, Collins, O'Brien; Tomkins, Diame, Noble, Vaz Te; Maiga, Cole

Aston Villa: Given; Lichaj, Clark, Vlaar, Bannan; Ireland, El Ahmadi, Delph, N'Zogbia; Bent, Weimann

Sports Mole says: 1-1

ID:40594: cacheID:40594:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:3210:

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


Restore Data
Share this article now:
Sam Allardyce
Read Next:
Allardyce urges Olympic Stadium move
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City117222213923
3Chelsea115422113819
4Arsenal115421812619
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest115421510519
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton115421915419
7Fulham115331613318
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
9Aston Villa115331717018
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1151523131016
11Brentford115152222016
12Bournemouth114341515015
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Leicester CityLeicester112451421-710
16Everton112451017-710
17Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
18Crystal Palace11146815-77
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves111371627-116
20Southampton11119721-144


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!