Taking a break from their relegation battle, West Ham United and Leeds United face off at the London Stadium on Sunday afternoon in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.
West Ham headed into the international break still a point from safety following their 2-0 defeat away at Champions League-chasing Aston Villa.
That was only the Hammers’ third defeat in their last 10 Premier League outings (W4-D3-L3), and they remain unbeaten in their previous four at the London Stadium.
After scraping past lower-league opposition in the form of QPR and Burton Albion, Nuno Espirito Santo’s hosts required penalties to knock out Brentford in the previous round.
Leeds have reached the quarter finals by beating three Championship clubs, with the latest of those being a comfortable 3-0 victory at home to in-form Norwich City.
Daniel Farke’s men are winless in each of their last six Premier League outings (W0-D4-L2), but moved a point clear of the Hammers in the Premier League last time out following a drab goalless draw at home to Brentford.
How the bookies view it: Hammers marginal favourites
Given they are at home, West Ham have been installed as slight favourites to advance to the semi-finals, with bet365 pricing the Hammers at 3/4 To Qualify, whilst the win inside 90 minutes is 7/5.
Leeds are 1/1 to reach the last four, with the win inside regulation time priced at 9/5.
Head to head: Competitive clashes between the pair
Both of these sides have won two of their previous five meetings, with Leeds United coming out on top in their last clash at Elland Road at the end of October in the Premier League.
The Hammers won when they last faced off with each other at the London Stadium three years ago, as well as knocking Leeds out in the third round of the FA Cup in the 2021/22 season, thanks to a 2-0 victory in East London.
Players to watch: Bowen to bag again?
Jarrod Bowen continues to be West Ham’s talisman this season, with the ex-Hull City man scoring 10 goals and providing seven assists so far this season.
The Hammers skipper has provided a goal contribution in seven of his past 10 club appearances – including both goals against Brentford in the previous round – and is an appealing 11/10 at PaddyPower to Score or Assist on Sunday.
Backed a player to find the net? Check our Goalscorer Betting guide to see how the markets work and where to find value.
Predicted line-ups:
West Ham will still be without Crysencio Summerville due to injury, whilst Lukasz Fabianski and Jean-Clair Todibo are doubts.
Leeds look set to be without top-scorer Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who is a doubt through injury.
West Ham United: Areola, Wan-Bissaka, Mavropanos, Disasi, Diouf, Soucek, Potts, Fernandes, Bowen, Pablo, Castellanos
Leeds United: Perri, Rodon, Bijol, Struijk, Bogle, Ampadu, Stach, Justin, Aaronson, Okafor, Nmecha
Anything else catch the eye?
All three of West Ham’s FA Cup ties this season have gone past regulation time, whilst each of their previous three Premier League matches at the London Stadium also finished in stalemates.
The Whites have also drawn eight of their past 10 away matches in all competitions, and another stalemate inside 90 minutes pays an appealing 13/5.
Goals have been scarce in Leeds’s recent Premier League matches, with the last five producing just four goals, with Under 2.5 Goals paying out on each occasion – and given the same has landed in six of the Hammers’ past seven Premier League outings – a low-scoring clash looks likely in East London on Sunday.
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