West Ham United

The Hammers had an exceptional season last year and will look to build on that this season.

Some believe the Euroleague played a major factor in West Ham’s inability to finish the season in top positions. Despite this, the David Moyes cubs managed to occupy the seventh place and qualify for the European Conference League Championship.

The survival of star midfielder Declan Rice at the club was good news for the club’s fans, as the player’s name was associated with several major clubs in England, before deciding to stay for another season.

Veteran Scottish coach David Moyes has made West Ham a very competitive team, thanks to their tactical strength and vast experience that some initially questioned.

Players such as Jarrod Bowen, Pablo Fornals, Micael Antonio and Manuel Lanzini made superstars, and they delivered fantastic levels last season, and they will strive to continue their impressive performances this season.

West Ham have signed some good names in the current transfer market, most notably Gianluca Scamaca, who recently joined from Sassuolo for £35.5m. The player is expected to lead West Ham’s attack against Manchester City. Another name that West Ham acquired, it is related to Moroccan player Naif Aguird from French Rennes for 30 million pounds, and they also converted the loan deal for French goalkeeper Alphonse Areola to a permanent deal.

The Hammers will open their Premier League campaign with a fiery confrontation when the title holder hosts Manchester City at the Olympic Stadium in London. A very difficult task.

Manchester City

There is no doubt that the defending champions are the most feared team in English football at the moment. Although they had to work even harder to retain the league last season, their resilience and brilliance was quite evident.

Despite this, the start of the season was not good for them, as they suffered a crushing defeat against their rivals Liverpool in the Community Shield Cup, a match that saw the participation of the somewhat modest Haaland.

Besides Erling Haaland’s deal from Borussia Dortmund, Pep Guardiola has also acquired Leeds star Calvin Phillips for a £42m deal. The midfielder is expected to bring competition and support to Rodri in the defensive midfield.

Their loss to Liverpool showed that Guardiola has a lot of work to do to set his side up for the new season. The newcomers will need some time to adjust, but in a league as brutal as the Premier League, how long will they need to be?

Playing under Guardiola’s leadership is not easy, his methodologies need a lot of time to adapt, and facing West Ham at the Olympic Stadium may reveal a lot of weaknesses for the City team.

The opening game of the season was very difficult against the Reds, despite having an arsenal of attackers that can easily open any closed defense, but with the sale of some important players it will not be so easy.

Regardless of what has been mentioned, we expect City to open their title defense campaign with a comfortable victory.

Expectations:

West Ham 0-2 Manchester City

Manchester City more than 1.5 goals

Manchester City (Asian betting site) 1.50-