Manchester United vs West Ham Betting tips

Sir Alex Ferguson has intimated that his recently crowned champions will take to the field at Old Trafford on Sunday very much with the intention of beating the visiting West Ham, which won't come as music to the ears of the Hammers boss Alan Curbishley. Indeed, the east London-based side need a point to secure their place in the top-flight next season, and with fellow strugglers Sheffield United and Wigan also squaring up on Sunday, the fate of these three sides will be decided on Sunday. Although United will intend to collect three points in their final fixture of the 2006/07 season, which has seen them crowned Premiership champions for the ninth time during Sir Alex's reign, it's likely that Cristiano Ronaldo and/or Wayne Rooney will start on the bench, rather than be in the starting XI, with next weekend's FA Cup Final clash with Chelsea in mind. If this is the case, Curbishley and his men's task will certainly be made that bit more realistic, and the Hammers and their travelling band of fans can also take heart from the fact that they beat United at the Boleyn Ground back in December when a Nigel Reo-Coker goal settled the issue. Naturally, the mountain to climb will far higher at the Theatre of Dreams than in their own backyard, but West Ham have won six of their last eight and the players look really fired up and very much ready to put their necks on the line in their fight for survival. And I have a feeling that they might succeed. The champions will be presented with the Premiership trophy ahead of this match so, needless to say, the confidence and feel good factor within the team will be extremely high. However, for all that United's players are every inch professionals and not the types to take their boots off the gas, they surely must have one eye on next week's final at the all new Wembley Stadium. If this is the case, the Hammers' momentum may be sufficient to see them emerge from this crunch encounter will the point that so much is riding on. Argentine striker Carlos Tevez has been in inspiring form recently and, although this could be his last match for the club depending on the ongoing inquiry into the transfer deal which took him to east London, he'll be up for this game in a major way. Both United and West Ham are sides rich in attacking flair so, needless to say, there is a distinct possibility of a goal flurry. But I cannot see that happening on this occasion. To my mind, splitting stakes on 0-0 and 1-1 in the correct score market at 11/1 with Skybet and 13/2 with Bluesq respectively. The goalless draw recommendation may seem a tad fanciful, but if it's 0-0 after the first 45 minutes, I imagine that the visitors will build a barrier around Robert Green and endeavour to grind it out by repelling the champs. And, as such, the 11/1 could prove to be good value. Verdict - 0.50pts 0-0 in the correct score market @ 11/1 (Skybet) & 1-1 @ 13/2 (Bluesq)