Blackpool - West Ham

WEST HAM TO WIN @ 23/20

Both teams have played 48 matches to get to this stage and now all that stands between them and premiership football next season is one game at Wembley in front of 87,000 fans and a huge television audience worldwide. It's the richest single game in British Football worth around £40M to the winners from their exploits in the PL next season. Of course, they may well have to spend most of that just to stay there but that's another topic.

After those 48 games, we're left with 2 of the 3 sides who were relegated last season. One will go straight back up, the other will find it increasingly harder to break the chains of the Championship - and both sides know it.

West Ham are the big favourites - and for good reason. They brushed aside a dangerous Cardiff 2-0 away and 3-0 at home in the play-off semi-final. That after narrowly missing out on automatic promotion in the final game and finishing 11 points ahead of Blackpool in the regular season league.

Blackpool will be no pushovers - they don't have the same weight of expectation as West Ham and they play with a no-fear attitude. That freedom is often the difference in play-off finals when it's common for one side to freeze under the spotlight of the occasion (being a Leeds' supporter, I should know!). Blackpool had the tougher play-off semi-final and few game them a chance against the Blues but they grinded out a 2-2 result in the second leg to send them to Wembley.

Both side have similar scoring records -Only Southampton scored more goals in the Championship than West Ham and Blackpool. The difference is in defence, where West Ham conceded 11 fewer goals than Blackpool.

It difficult to predict the pattern of the game - it should be open and flowing, but you can never tell with the pressure of losing so great. An early goal is unlikely to be enough but it could lead to 3+ goals, whereas a cagey first 30 minutes could make it a tight game to the wire.

I fancy West Ham to win - they deserve it, Big Sam will have them fine tuned to the minute, and they just have a little too much in key positions for a gallant Blackpool.

I also fancy >2.5 goals, mainly because both sides are naturally attacking, but also because of the bigger Wembley playing surface - which is bigger than both Upton Park and Boothferry Road.

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Posted on: 14.05.2012, 17.12 CET (Viewed: 718 times)
Last edited: 17.05.2012, 18.55 CET by Joe
Match starts on: May 19, 2012

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