Freiburg - West Ham United predictions and free betting tips [07/03/2024]

On Thursday, 7th March, as part of the first match of the 1/8 Europa League finals, "Freiburg" will host "West Ham" on their field. David Moyes' charges effortlessly won Tier A, thus earning a direct ticket to the 1/8 finals, while the Germans had a struggle with "Lens" in the previous round.

Projected Line-ups

"Freiburg": Atubolu; Sildillia, Ginter, Gulde, Gunter; Doan, Eggestein, Hofler, Grifo; Sallai, Holer.
"West Ham": Fabianski; Coufal, Aguerd, Zouma, Emerson; Soucek, Alvarez; Kudus, Ward-Prowse, Paqueta; Bowen.  

Stadium

The match will be held in Freiburg at the Europa Park Stadium.

"Freiburg"

In the previous round, "Freiburg" performed a little feat. After a goalless draw at the Bollaerte, the black and white fell behind "Lens" by two goals before half-time in the return match, but managed a comeback and scored the decisive goal in stoppage time, and then scored again in extra time (3:2) thanks to the efforts of Michael Gregoritsch, advancing to the 1/8 finals of the Europa League for the second year in a row. Earlier on, Christian Streich's team finished second in their quartet's standings, conceding the championship palm to "West Ham" but beating "Olympiacos" and "Backa Topola".

It's tougher going in the Bundesliga for the Black Forest players: as it stands, the hosts are sitting in the ninth spot overall, and a week ago lost to "Augsburg" (2:1). But last weekend, the Swabians managed to hold "Bayern", currently undergoing a crisis, to a draw (2:2). It's worth noting that the win over "Lens" is "Freiburg's" only victory in their last eight competitions, although the hosts have lost just once in their previous 11 encounters at home. 

"West Ham"

"West Ham", meanwhile, managed to avoid the battles in the 1/16 finals by finishing first in the group stage, besting "Freiburg", "Olympiacos", and "Backa Topola". The English team was serious in the autumn and won 5 out of 6 matches in the current tournament. After a great start in the Premier League, the "Hammers" in February shed their restraints, suffering three successive defeats – to "Manchester United" (3:0), "Arsenal" (0:6) and "Nottingham Forest" (2:0).

Last week, Londoners scored victories over "Brentford" (4:2, hat trick by Jarrod Bowen) and "Everton" (1:3), thereby moving up to the 7th spot in the standings. At the same time, "West Ham" is struggling away from home: in the past five away games, they've only managed to win once. Here's a fun fact: David Moyes' lads, for the first time in their 128-year club history, could beat the same opponent three times in one European campaign! 

Head-to-head Meetings

These teams met in the group stage, and "West Ham" won both matches with scores of 1:2 and 2:0.

Match Prediction for "Freiburg" – "West Ham"

"West Ham" has already proven their superiority over "Freiburg" in the group stage, and it's unlikely that the Swabians will be able to take revenge on their London antagonists in the playoffs. Granted, the guests aren't in the best of form, but then the Germans have managed only one victory in their last eight all-competition encounters. Moreover, David Moyes is practically free of faith problems - I’ll hazard on the "Hammers" to win or draw. 

Prediction for the Total

"West Ham" boasts a quality attack line led by Bowen and scored two goals in both matches they played against "Freiburg" in the group stage. We confidently back the guests' individual total to go over 1 goal.

Corner Prediction

"Freiburg" will certainly strive to take the initiative into their own hands and they're expected to be far more aggressive in the attack amidst the support of the home crowd. I believe the black-and-whites will take at least five corners in the match.

Yellow Card Prediction

Neither team is known for foul play (in two group stage matches, they earned a total of just two yellow cards). I place my bet on the total warnings to be under 3.5. 

Score Prediction

I predict a final score of 1:2 in favor of "West Ham".