West Ham vs Lyon Predictions and Betting Tips
The capacity crowd at the London Stadium would be keen on reeling their team on this Thursday as West Ham plays host to Lyon in the first leg of their quarterfinals tie in the UEFA Europa League.
This would be the first-ever competitive meeting between both sides, but still, we expect nothing short of an enthralling match of football.
Les Douges keen on bursting bubbles this Thursday
In what was West Ham's biggest European night in quite some time, the Hammers pulled off a stunning comeback against serial Europa League winners Sevilla in the second leg of their last 16 ties. Trailing by a goal heading into the second leg, the Hammers levelled the tie via a Tomas Soucek header before Yarmolenko netted the all-important winner in extra time to send David Moyes and the West Ham supporters into delirium. The Scottish coach has done a good job of managing his team such that they're pushing for a spot in the Champions League next season as well as fighting for the Europa League. Point in case was their 2-1 victory against Everton last weekend with the Hemmers now three points off the top four. It's only expected to get tougher from here on out but given West Ham's recent performances, they would surely hold their own regardless of who they face.
Whilst their opponents have found a way to balance domestic and European football, Peter Bosz and his charges haven't had the same joy in that respect given that they sit in 9th on the French League table. Tete's later winner last weekend against Angers was their first win in three league games and as such, it is safe to say that their only chance of Champions League football next season would be to go all the way in the Europa League. Their run-in in this season's competition had been quite impressive and they most recently eliminated Porto via a 2-1 aggregate victory. This, coupled with their ruthless streak of winning all of their last six games away from home in this competition does make this game an intriguing contest.
West Ham vs Lyon Team News
West Ham possible starting XI:
Areola; Coufal, Dawson, Zouma, Cresswell; Rice, Soucek; Bowen, Fornals, Benrahma; Antonio
Lyon possible starting lineup:
Lopes; Gusto, Boateng, Lukeba, Emerson; Mendes, Ndombele; Faivre, Paqueta, Aouar; Dembele
West Ham vs Lyon Prediction: 1-1
Lyon has proved to be a different beast when it comes to the UEFA Europa League this season and although we aren't expecting them to best West Ham in London, they're good enough to leave England with the tie still in the balance.
