Peterborough United v West Ham
Football: English Championship
Saturday 11 February 2012 - Kick Off 3pm

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Peterborough United

Darren Ferguson would be the first to admit that his Peterborough United side have been having a tough time in recent weeks, although he would have been pleased to see them pick up a point in their last game at Turf Moor. This will be a big test for them as they face one of the form teams in a very competitive Championship.

The Posh fell down to 18th in the League table last week, but they have gained 34 points so far this season, and that means they have a 10 point buffer to the sides in the relegation zone, although Doncaster Rovers and Nottingham Forest have one game extra to play. Peterborough are 6-2-6 at home this season, scoring 28 goals and conceding 25, making them the joint second highest home scorers in the League so far.

The team have failed to win any of their last 7 games in all competitions, and they had lost 4 in a row before drawing at Burnley last week. Goals have been a problem in recent weeks, with the side scoring just 2 goals in their last 5 games. Peterborough have lost their last 3 games at London Road and have won just 1 of their last 7 games here.

Paul Taylor could miss out with a flu this week, but Matthew Briggs is in the squad and could make his debut.

West Ham

West Ham showed some real character last week when they beat Millwall at Upton Park despite playing with 10 men for the majority of that game when Kevin Nolan was sent off. They are the favourites to earn promotion back to the Premier League this season, but you can be sure that Sam Allardyce is keeping their feet firmly planted to the ground so they do not lose focus.

The Hammers currently lead the Championship by 4 points over Southampton, and they are 6 clear of Birmingham City and Cardiff City who are chasing an automatic promotion berth. West Ham are 8-3-4 away from home this season, scoring 22 goals and conceding 16, meaning no team has won more games on their travels.

They will be hoping they can erase the memories of their last game away from the sanctuary of Upton Park when they were beaten 5-1 at Ipswich Town. West Ham have actually won 4 of their last 5 games in the Championship, but they have struggled away from home in recent games. In fact, the Hammers have won just 1 of their last 5 away games in the League, losing 3 of those games.

Kevin Nolan is suspended following his sending off, while George McCartney is a doubt. Ricardo Vaz Te and Nicky Maynard will hope to play some part in this game following their recent signings, although Ravel Morrison could miss out as West Ham investigate some of his comments made on Twitter in recent weeks.

Head to Head

West Ham beat Peterborough 1-0 at Upton Park earlier this season courtesy of a first half goal scored by Mark Noble.

This will be the first meeting here between the teams since the 1992/93 season when West Ham left with the three points following a 1-3 win.

Prediction

I have to say the price on the West Ham is very appealing here and I believe we are only getting odds against on them because of their recent form away from home. However, a quick look at those games shows they have had a tough set of fixtures with the likes of Birmingham City, Reading, Derby County and Portsmouth (all of whom have lost 4 or less at home so far this season).

This game is a lot more winnable as Peterborough United have not been playing that well in recent weeks, with goals drying up. The Posh are always going to give teams chances to score goals and I think West Ham have the firepower to get on the scoresheet here.

This is the kind of game that automatic promotion chasers will be expecting to win and I think Sam Allardyce will have got his side focused on that rather than looking ahead to the top of the table clash with Southampton on Tuesday night.

At odds against, I think it is worth paying to find out how focused the Hammers are.

The Pick :

Peterborough United 1-2 West Ham

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

I'll back West Ham - 0.5 Asian Handicap @ 2.10 (Bet Victor)