Pundits agree about Aston Villa vs West Ham prediction as 'disaster' claim made
Former Aston Villa striker Chris Sutton and midfielder Paul Merson have backed Unai Emery's side to overcome West Ham at Villa Park on Sunday.
Villa beat the Hammers 2-1 in the FA Cup a fortnight ago and host them once again for Graham Potter's fourth match in charge of following the sacking of Julen Lopetegui. Potter's West Ham beat Fulham 3-2 last week, but fell to a 2-0 home defeat against Crystal Palace last Saturday.
Meanwhile, Villa are looking to return to winning ways after losing 1-0 against Monaco on Tuesday night, which followed a 2-2 draw against Arsenal last weekend. Villa came back from two goals behind to beat the Gunners after a 1-0 victory over Everton at Goodison Park the previous Tuesday.
READ MORE: Managing Aston Villa - Huge Jhon Duran decision, a timely new contract, arrivals and more departures
READ MORE: Unai Emery makes Jhon Duran request amid £80m Aston Villa transfer claim
READ | Unai Emery makes Jhon Duran request amid £80m Aston Villa transfer claim
READ | Aston Villa 'join chase' for Matheus Cunha transfer as Wolves stance explained
"Aston Villa are eighth in the Premier League and ninth in the Champions League, so their season is hardly a disaster - they just look a little bit flat at times," Sutton said in his BBC predictions "Their striker situation is something that Villa boss Unai Emery has got to sort out because he put Jhon Duran on to play with Ollie Watkins in the second half against Monaco, and they are not playing well together
"I don't know if that is an ego thing, where both strikers want to be the main man, but they both need to have a think about what benefits the team. As a former striker myself, I know how other strikers want to be fed, and how to have an understanding to create situations, but that does not seem to be happening - Watkins and Duran are not connecting or clicking, which is a worry.
"For a partnership to work, you have got to understand your role in the team and how sometimes one of you has got to sacrifice yourself. Believe it or not, I was pretty good at realising that, where I was in the pecking order, and how to adapt my game. There are people out there who would say I was unselfish and a team player, and I wouldn't argue with that.
"I know there is a different view because I listen to my old strike-partner Alan Shearer speaking to Erling Haaland about how you have to be single-minded in front of goal. You do, you have to be selfish when it comes to taking chances. But football is a team game and sometimes you have to be prepared to adapt and roll your sleeves up - Shearer always did it - and try to play roles that you don't necessarily want to play, for the good of the team.
"When Aston Villa's squad is stretched and a little bit fatigued, Watkins and Duran should be capable enough, and have enough understanding of how to feed each other, because strikers know how to do it. Not doing it is a bit of a blot on the copybooks of both players. They are both very talented players, but they need to work this out for the good of the team. Maybe Emery needs to whack some Brazilian music on in training to sort them out?
"Seriously, though, this is a crucial time in Villa's season and I think they will get past West Ham. Graham Potter's side were jammy when they beat Fulham last week, but I don't see them being lucky enough to beat Villa."
Sutton's prediction: 2-1
Merson told Sportskeeda: "West Ham were coming off the back of a good result but Crystal Palace beat them quite comfortably. It was a good result for Aston Villa last time out, but honestly, they were never in that game against Arsenal. If that game had gone on for another five or 10 minutes, Arsenal would have won 3-2 or even 4-2!
"This is an interesting fixture because West Ham were knocked out by Villa in the third round of the FA Cup earlier this month. I don’t expect the result to be any different this weekend."
Merson's prediction: 2-1
