Next Tuesday, January 21, 2014 (11:45 AM Pacific, 19:45 GMT), Manchester City will travel to The Boleyn Ground (Upton Park) to take on West Ham for the second leg of the Capital One Cup semi-final. After the goal galore at the Etihad Stadium, where the Citizens trashed the Hammers 6-0, this second leg match appears to be nothing short of a formality, since it is not likely that a frail West Ham is able to come back from such an outrageous defeat.
Manchester City is enjoying a fantastic moment in all the competitions they are involved so far and they are currently on a 17-match unbeaten run, winning 15 of them. The arrival of the Chilean head coach Manuel Pellegrini was a breath of fresh air to the team’s game. The Citizens now look stronger and more consistent and they have already managed to score more than 100 goals in all competitions so far this term. In next Tuesday’s match, it is likely that Manuel Pellegrini will implement some changes in his team, despite the fact of having all the players at his disposal, with the exception of the French International Samir Nasri, who has sustained a knee injury at Newcastle’s match last week.
As for West Ham, reality is far more complicated. The team is third from bottom on the league table and they only enjoy an advantage over Sunderland and Cardiff due to goal difference. Sam Allardyce’s boys have only managed to win once in the last nine matches at the expenses of Cardiff, however, that result was not enough to lift up the players’ morale.
West Ham’s boss will definitely have plenty of difficulties in motivating his players to a complicated match such as this, nevertheless, he will be able to count on Kevin Nolan, James Tomkins and quite probably on the return of a fully recovered Andy Carroll to the starting lineup after his long term injury. The home supporters and Sam Allardyce already seem quite desperate with the course of things this season and the team’s boss has recently expressed his concern and frustration due to the lack of signings.
West Ham vs Manchester City Prediction
Manchester City won this competition twice back in the 1970s and they have everything in their favour to claim the trophy once again this year, in what would be the fourth final in their history. On the other hand, for West Ham, leaving the competition at this stage is probably the most impressive deed they achieved so far this term and it would probably give the team more time to be fully focused on avoiding what would be a painful relegation from the English Premier League. That being said, the most likely outcome is 2-1 for Manchester City.
West Ham vs Manchester City TV Info
The match will be televised on beIN Sports USA, ans Sky Sports 1 (UK).
