Manchester Metropolis have the prospect to go prime on Saturday, for just a few hours not less than, whereas guests West Ham will try to maneuver out of the relegation zone. BBC Sport examines some key themes forward of the match.
Foden thriving in deeper position
Manchester Metropolis’s present run of six wins in a row is their finest since beating West Ham on the ultimate day of the 2023-24 Premier League season to register a seventh straight victory.
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Phil Foden scored twice in that recreation to finish with a career-high 27 targets for the season and he has been integral to Metropolis’s good type of late. Foden has scored six targets in his previous 5 aggressive begins and on Saturday will probably be trying to rating in 5 consecutive Premier League matches for the primary time.
Foden has 13 targets and 5 assists in 2025-26, already surpassing final season’s tally of 15 purpose involvements. Nonetheless solely 25, he’s solely two shy of a century of Premier League targets or assists.
His return to type after a troublesome 2024-25 marketing campaign has come whereas enjoying in a deeper midfield position, which supplies him larger affect in constructing Metropolis’s assaults. This season, 77% of Foden’s enjoying time has been spent in central midfield – in distinction to 24% final season.
Greater than a 3rd of his touches up to now have are available in Metropolis’s defensive half, the best proportion of his profession – with a comparability of his contact maps for this season and final illustrating his change of place.
[BBC]
‘Anxious’ West Ham going through Christmas in backside three
Improved performances will not be translating into factors for West Ham, who’re third backside within the desk after going 5 matches and not using a win.
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They’ve drawn all three away video games throughout that run however suffered a second successive dwelling defeat final Sunday, in opposition to It was the primary time in 9 years that West Ham had twice taken the lead in a league fixture and nonetheless misplaced.
They’ve additionally dropped factors just lately away to having been 2-0 up, and after they conceded a controversial stoppage-time equaliser.
“Video games have been slipping by our palms,” bemoaned head coach Nuno Espirito Santo, who has gone 22 Premier League matches and not using a clear sheet – 11 apiece with and “We can’t get anxious, so there’s a psychological facet to our gamers we try to enhance.”
To keep away from being within the backside three at Christmas, the Hammers should beat Manchester Metropolis for the primary time in 20 league matches spanning a decade – after which hope lose to
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If West Ham are within the Premier League relegation zone at Christmas for the fifth time, they will take some solace from the actual fact they prevented relegation on the 2 earlier events they weren’t backside.
[BBC]