WEST HAM UNITED have left themselves with some work to do when they face Freiburg in the second leg of their Europa League last-16 tie at the London Stadium on Thursday evening.
David Moyes’ men fell to a 1-0 first leg defeat in Germany last week, on a night where both of my bets banked in the Black Forest.
As such, the Hammers will have to overturn a one-goal deficit if they are to continue their quest for further European glory.
West Ham’s preparations for this clash were far from ideal, as they had to fight back from two goals down to rescue a late point against Premier League basement boys Burnley on Sunday.
Freiburg, meanwhile, moved up to eighth place in the Bundesliga table at the weekend thanks to a 2-1 win away at Bochum.
Christian Streich’s side have already lost at the London Stadium in the Europa League this season, but if they can avoid defeat this time around then they will take their place in the quarter-final draw.
Outright Betting
West Ham United, who have won all three of their Europa League home games this season, are 7/10 favourites on Bet 365.
Freiburg are as big as 15/4 (Bet 365) to repeat last week’s victory while a second leg stalemate has been priced up at 3/1 (Betfred).
Betting Angles
West Ham’s leaky defence makes them difficult to trust at short odds-on prices so I’ll instead opt for Bet Builder and couple up a West Ham goal and five West Ham corners at 4/5 (Bet 365).
David Moyes’ side hold a pretty strong home record since returning to the Europa League in 2021, having avoided defeat in seven of their nine London Stadium outings, triumphing on six those occasions.
What’s more, the Hammers have only failed to hit the back of the net once across that sequence, notching twice in a 2-0 success against Freiburg when the pair met at the London Stadium earlier this season during the group stage.
With that in mind, coupled with the dynamics of the tie, I’ll side with West Ham to score on Thursday night, but to boost the odds, I’ll also back the hosts to deliver at least five corners.
Admittedly, David Moyes’ men have not been strong corner performers this season, but I’m prepared to look beyond that here given their need for goals on Thursday night.
West Ham did manage to clock up four flag kicks in Germany last week so going one better when starting with a one-goal deficit and being roared on by their own supporters doesn’t feel like too much of a stretch.
Elsewhere, I’m also prepared to back West Ham to score two or more goals on Thursday night at 10/11 on William Hill.
The capital club struck twice in both of their group stage fixtures with Freiburg earlier this season and they carry enough attacking threat to repeat the trick at the London Stadium on Thursday evening.
This UEFA Europa League match between West Ham United and Freiburg will be played on Mar 14, 2024 and kick off at 17:45. Check below for our tipsters best West Ham United vs Freiburg prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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