Premier League GW7 Preview: The Tractor Boys to Plough Their Way to Victory?

Oct 3, 2024

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With a combined 12 goals across 3 matches in his GW6 preview, Jack H is back again to pick out another 3 matches set to be crackers. Ipswich to claim their first Premier League win of the season? Brighton and Spurs to indulge in a basketball game? Aston Villa to top their Champions League success with even more Premier League joy? Read more to find out!

West Ham vs Ipswich Town, 05/10 3pm KO

Set to be played on my dear Mother's birthday (shoutout to Mumsie), West Ham and Ipswich play each other, the first time in 12 years since their days in the Championship.

Similar to my preview of the Brentford vs West Ham game, The Hammers are still in a spot of bother. They managed to grab a draw against an in-form Brentford side away from home last weekend, courtesy of Souček to cancel out Mbeumo's, yet again, fast opener. Whilst West Ham looked better than they did against Chelsea, they were wasteful in front of goal, converting only 1 of their 19 shots.

In terms of team news, Edson Álvarez returns from his one-match suspension as Lopetegui has nearly a fully fit side, Füllkrug still remaining unavailable in what has been a frustrating start to life in London for the German.

Ipswich are on an undefeated run, grabbing 4 draws in the last 4 in spirited performances. Against an in-form Villa side, The Tractor Boys went 1-0 up then 1-2 down. Liam Delap's 72nd minute equaliser saw Ipswich take home an important point, their resilience being noticed. These are the performances which can help keep a team up.

In relation to team news, Jens Cajuste is the only confirmed absentee for the weekend, whilst a few other players have knocks or are coming close to match fitness. Former Man City academy player Liam Delap looks set to lead the line yet again, taking his goals tally to 3 for the season.

Both these sides sit down the bottom of the table for xGC, so I envision fast counter-attacking football to deliver in this game. Whilst West Ham have the home crowd, I find The Hammers sometimes crumble under the home pressure. Ipswich come to The London Stadium with nothing to lose and could grab a vital, and first, win of the season. Both teams can be targeted in defence so expect busy afternoons for Areola and Muric

Jack's Prediction: West Ham 1 - 2 Ipswich Town

Aston Villa vs Manchester United, 06/10 2pm KO

Aston Villa are on cloud nine right now after recording a famous win againt Bayern Munich in front of the home faithful on Wednesday night. Jhon Duran's lob over Neuer gave The Villains an ecstatic win. Back at home on Sunday, Villa will rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of a shaky Manchester United. With only 1 loss this season at the hands at Arsenal, Villa are in a superb place and will be contending for a Champions League position yet again.

Onana and Ramsey received knocks in Wednesday's victory and are doubts whilst Kamara, Mings and McGinn are certainly out of Sunday's game. Could Jhon Duran get his first start of the season? The Colombian has scored 4 times in 6 sub appearances in the Premier League. The question will be how Emery would fit him into the side, particularly as they tend to operate in a 4-2-3-1 formation.

In stark contrast, Man United come into the game with a lack of confidence after their embarrassment at the hands of Spurs on the weekend in a 0-3 loss. The side looked all over the place with lack of coordination, failure to do footballing basics and no sense of ownership for their performance. The Red Devils are under pressure with the players and Ten Hag in the limelight, a big display is needed against Villa who will be pumped following their midweek delight.

Prior to their Europa League match against Porto, Yoro, Malacia and Shaw remain out, whilst Mason Mount is a doubt after picking up a knock against Spurs. Bruno Fernandes successfully won his appeal of the dubious red card he picked up as well, making himself available.

The historic 1-0 win over Bayern Munich will give Aston Villa extreme confidence and a desire to put on a show for the home faithful whilst United will likely be quaking in their boots at the prospect of a boisterous Villa Park. I do think both sides will start slow following European exploits, but Villa will eventually go into cruise control, sealing the 3 points with relative ease, putting more pressure on Ten Hag.

Jack's Prediction: Aston Villa 3 - 1 Manchester United

Brighton vs Tottenham Hotspur, 06/10 4:30pm KO

Brighton suffered a 4-2 defeat last weekend to Chelsea in what was a mental 1st half of football. The Seagulls stuck to their high line, which punished them dearly, Cole Palmer setting a Premier League record for 4 goals in the first half. Honestly, Brighton could've conceded more goals if it wasn't for last ditch defending and wasteful Chelsea finishing with an xGC of 4.16.

Their high line gave me PTSD of how Spurs set up against Chelsea last season when we went down to 9-men. I'm all for teams sticking to a way of playing, an identity, but when you are getting torn apart attack after attack, it amazes me that the manager does not intervene to alter the defensive system. I fear, not just because I'm a Spurs fan, that Brighton could be on the end of a similar result against Spurs this weekend.

The noticeable injury news for Brighton is the absence of van Hecke. The young dutchman has been a standout ball-playing CB for Brighton, breaking through last season. His replacement, Webster, was not confident playing out from the back, giving cheap opportunities to Chelsea on the weekend. Spurs' high press could expose more weaknesses in the Brighton back line.

It is all sunny at Spurs after their strong away win against Manchester United. The Lilywhites were in near complete control of the match, even before the red card. I was impressed with Solanke and Kulusevski's spacial awareness, something that James Lawrence Allcott eluded to in his analysis.

Additionally, Brennan Johnson continues a fine run of a run of 4 games with a goal, responding stupendously to criticism he faced which pushed him to deactivate his social media accounts. The Welshman is beginning to produce clinical and decisive matchplay and I am so happy that his dedication is coming to fruition.

Heung-Min Son missed the weekend's victory with a knock whilst Udogie went off at half-time. Neither are in the squad for the Europa League tie so eyes will be peeled to see if the pair make the squad on the weekend. Djed Spence is an able replacement for Udogie and could be set to play again at LB, especially as his exclusion from the Europa League squad means he'll have a week of rest. Werner was extremely frustrating and wasteful against Man United, so I'm hoping Son is available to play at LW and give us a stronger attacking force down the left-side to target Brighton's RB.

Similar to the Chelsea game, this match looks like it'll be another basketball style game, with both managers famously known for sticking to their tactics regardless of game condition. Brighton's home crowd may give their players stick if Spurs expose the high line like Chelsea did, so expect the pace of Johnson and Werner/Son to cause Brighton problems. Spurs have sured up at the back but the trickiness of Mitoma and Rutter will still cause problems and provide Welbeck with ample opportunities.

Jack's Prediction: Brighton 1 - 3 Spurs