West Ham vs Aston Villa betting tips

West Ham and Aston Villa have both started the season in good form and it's bound to be a close call when they meet at the Boleyn Ground on Sunday afternoon. The Hammers gave it a right good go when taking on Liverpool at Anfield in their latest match and went ahead through a Bobby Zamora strike after just 12 minutes. This was cancelled out by goal from Agger and Crouch, but Alan Pardew's men left Merseyside with their heads held high after a sterling effort despite being beaten. Villa have collectively responded very well to the appointment of new manager Martin O'Neill, holding Arsenal to a draw on the first day of the season and they have outpointed Reading and Newcastle respectively in their subsequent fixtures. O'Neill appears to have injected renewed desire into his charges and they are playing with confidence. These two sides have met 93 times in all with West Ham winning on 36 occasions, the Villains prevailing 31 times, and the remaining 26 encounters producing draws. As the stats show, West Ham hold sway marginally, and I reckon that will be reflected in this match, as the east London club will be a tough nut to crack in their own backyard. West Ham dished out a 4-0 beating to Villa in this fixture last season, but the latter side were a thoroughly disjointed, demoralised outfit at that point, so it's unwise to expect such a resounding scoreline on this occasion. But West Ham have been strengthened markedly through the arrival of Argentine internationals Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano from Corinthians for undisclosed fees. The duo were also the targets of Arsenal, Chelsea and Man Utd, so the West Ham hierarchy have pulled off something of a masterstroke by luring them to the Boleyn Ground. Indeed, both players are just 22 and highly rated, with Tevez being described in his homeland as the new Maradona while Mascherano has long been tipped to develop into one a midfielder of the highest order. The arrival of Stilian Petrov, who O'Neill prized away from Celtic for £6.5million, will be a major boost. The Bulgarian international is a good all-rounder and will give Villa greater penetration when on the offence. The 27-year-old looks sure to make a name for himself in the Premiership. West Ham's key man thus far has been Bobby Zamora, who has scored in each of the Hammers' three games this term, and the London-born striker will no doubt cause havoc amongst Villa's defence. Assuming that he adopts a 4-4-2 formation, it will be interesting to see who Pardew pairs up front out of the trio of Marlon Harewood, Tevez and Zamora. Greater selection headaches lie in wait when Dean Ashton returns from injury. An enviable problem. I envisage this match being high-octane stuff and West Ham are generally quick off the blocks. At 11/4 with Skybet, my advice is to opt for West Ham/West Ham in the double result market. The arrival of Tevez will make the strikers even hungrier as they battle for a place in the starting line-up and Villa could well feel the brunt of that on Sunday. Verdict - 2pts West Ham/West Ham in the double result market @ 11/4 (Skybet)