Hernandez bagged his first brace for the club on the weekend. (Photo Credit: West Ham)
It’s been a hot-second since Premier League action concluded on Sunday night with Divock Origi scoring a 97th-minute winner in the Merseyside Derby, and in over 24 hours it happens all over again.
One of the more under-appreciated moments of this weekend’s results was West Ham’s 3-0 win away to Newcastle United, which not only earned the East London side their second clean sheet in the league this season but also gave the Irons some breathing room in the early race for survival.
And this week, Manuel Pellegrini’s side face off against Neil Warnock’s Cardiff City side in the first mid-week slate of Premier League fixtures this season.
Cardiff City was also celebrating over the weekend as the Welsh side overcame fellow promoted side Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-1 on Friday night. The result elevated the Bluebirds out of the relegation zone for the first time this season and now have the belief that maybe, just maybe, survival is a possibility this season.
West Ham could be without first-choice left back Aaron Cresswell for Tuesday night’s game after the former Ipswich Town defender was forced off 11 minutes into the win at Newcastle with a hamstring injury.
Ryan Fredericks, Winston Reid, Carlos Sanchez, Manuel Lanzini and Andriy Yarmolenko all remain sidelined with long-term injuries for the Hammers.
As for the visitors, it is expected Warnock will field a similar XI to the one that beat Wolves on Friday night. Bluebirds full-back Jazz Richards has been ruled out whilst Greg Cunningham and Joe Bennett are both still out of first-team action.
This fixture has been one that West Ham have favoured in massively over the years in English football. The Hammers have won their last six matches in all competitions against Cardiff City, scoring 14 goals and conceding just two in those wins.
However, this is will be the first league meeting between West Ham and Cardiff since the 2013/14 season, when the Hammers won both matches 2-0 in the Premier League under former England manager Sam Allardyce.
Both sides go into this match on a high following the past weekend’s results. But, the fixture favours West Ham in terms of form and history. Cardiff are yet to win a game on the road this season and have also lost seven of their last eight games in the English capital.
With form, history and stats all in their favour, it is hard to predict anything but a West Ham win.
Prediction: West Ham 3-1 Cardiff City
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