Manchester United vs West Ham predictions: Bowen to shine at Old Trafford
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- Manchester United have won just six of their 17 home league games this term
- Jarrod Bowen is West Ham's leading goalscorer with 10 league goals
- Recommended bet: Jarrod Bowen first goalscorer
A dreadful campaign could still turn out to be a relatively successful one for Manchester United after they confirmed their place in the Europa League final on Thursday night.
Red Devils supporters will have been frantically searching flight comparison websites in the wake of their 7-1 aggregate rout of Athletic Bilbao, but any excitement will have to wait a little longer yet with two Premier League fixtures to play before United face Spurs in Bilbao on Wednesday week.
The first of those is against a West Ham side going through the motions after their own season of woe.
Team news
Manchester United striker Joshua Zirkzee will miss the remainder of the season due to a hamstring injury and is joined on the sidelines by defenders Lisandro Martinez, Matthijs de Ligt and Diogo Dalot.
Ruben Amorim has also revealed that centre-back Harry Maguire is a doubt.
Striker Michail Antonio has not featured for West Ham since December and Crysencio Summerville is also a long-term absentee.
Hammers midfielder Edson Alvarez should return to the visitors' squad after an issue with his back.
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The stats
Manchester United have lost eight times at Old Trafford in the Premier League this season and 16 in all, their most since the 1989-90 campaign.
The Red Devils have won just two of their last 10 home league matches, against relegated Southampton and Ipswich, and they have failed to score in half of those games.
Amorim's men have not won a league game since March's 3-0 win at Leicester, another relegated club, and they have claimed just four league victories in 2025.
West Ham have not fared much better, winning only three times since the start of January, and they are without a win in eight league outings.
However, the Hammers have won three of their last four matches against United, including a 2-1 win at the London Stadium at the end of October.
Prediction
Manager Amorim may try to suggest otherwise, but the Europa League has been the be-all and end-all for Manchester United for quite some time.
The Red Devils will be laser-focused on winning that competition now that they are in the finals, and Amorim will not be taking any risks with his trusted players between now and the final.
United are already worryingly light in defence and doubts over Maguire's availability for Sunday's visit of West Ham are hardly ideal with such a massive occasion on the horizon.
Backing the Hammers and the draw at a shade of odds-against in the double-chance market is considered, but given United's issues at the back, take a punt on the Irons' biggest attacking weapon, Jarrod Bowen, striking first at Old Trafford.
Bowen has again been a rare bright spot in an otherwise gloomy campaign at the London Stadium and he has been on target in each of West Ham's last two victories over United in the Premier League.
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