As the English Premier League season draws to a close, some teams have little left to play for other than league position. West Ham United and Southampton are two such teams and they meet on Saturday at the London Stadium.
West Ham can still finish in the top half of the table but will need to win their remaining two games to do so. Southampton are safe from relegation and could still finish as high as 12th place, although 15th is probably the best they can realistically hope to achieve.
This will be the final home match of the 2018/19 season for the Hammers and they will want to go out with a bang. West Ham picked up an excellent 1-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur last weekend and that along with the 2-2 draw with Leicester has seen a return to points winning performances following three straight defeats.
Trends show West Ham have been difficult to beat at home and they have lost only one of their last nine matches at the London Stadium. There have been wins over Arsenal, Fulham, Newcastle United and Huddersfield Town plus a draw with Liverpool.
They have scored at least 2 goals in four of their last five home games but have kept only one clean sheet in the last six. In fact, West Ham have conceded 2 or more goals in each of their last three home Premier League matches.
Southampton were involved in a thrilling 3-3 draw with local rivals Bournemouth last weekend but will feel they should have sealed maximum points. They twice took the lead in the game only to concede a late equaliser.
That result means Southampton have won one of their last five matches, which came at home against Wolves in mid-April. Since then they have lost at Newcastle United and been held to a draw at Watford prior to the point with Bournemouth.
Trends show Southampton have struggled on the road and they have just three wins from their last nineteen away games in all competitions. They have won just one of their last six away Premier League matches but have scored at least one goal in each of their last four.
The Saints have also netted in each of their last nine Premier League games, so will be aiming to continue that run this weekend.
Team news and West Ham’s injury list is not getting any shorter. Javier Hernandez, Manuel Lanzini and Samir Nasri are doubtful while Andy Carroll, Andriy Yarmolenko and Winston Reid are all out.
Southampton have doubts over full-back Ryan Bertrand but central defender Jannik Vestergaard is hoping to get back fitness before the end of the season. However, Michael Obafemi will not play again in this campaign.
West Ham have been good at home since the turn of the year and with Southampton struggling to pick up wins on the road, you have to fancy the Hammers to get the job done. Both teams could score in a home win.