AEK Larnaca v West Ham preview: Hammers on poor run of form
They booked their tickets to the UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL) Round of 16 via the most minimalist approach, securing a 1-0 aggregate win over Ukrainian outfit Dnipro-1 in the knockout playoffs to stretch their undefeated run in Europe to four (W1, D3), their longest ever unbeaten run (excluding qualifiers).
The Green-yellows will therefore welcome West Ham United to the AEK Arena in good spirits, in what will be each other's first encounter with teams from the opposing country.
AEK have been rocksolid at home recently, racking up a 12-game unbeaten streak (W10, D2), although winning only twice at home in Europe in their last 11 attempts outside the qualifying phases might cast doubt among the home faithful (D4, L5).
West Ham bypassed the knockout playoffs by making a mockery of UECL Group B, becoming the first team ever to win all six group games in the competition’s history.
Add to that the fact they won both their fixtures in the qualifying round and it’s been a perfect European season thus far for the Hammers, who’ve completely dominated by scoring 19 goals and only conceding five across these eight matches.
Things haven’t been as rosy on the domestic front though, with the rumours that manager David Moyes’ job is under threat gaining momentum after their 4-0 drubbing at the hands of Brighton over the weekend kept them firmly in the relegation battle.
Moyes may see an away European encounter as an opportunity to stymie those rumours, with West Ham losing just two of their last 11 continental ties on the road (W7, D2)
.Players to watch: AEK’s Ivan Trickovski scored a hat trick last time out, meaning he’s now netted his side’s opener in five of his last six goal scoring outings.
For the opposition, Jarrod Bowen has scored his last five goals all before half-time.
Hot stat: AEK have seen goals scored during both halves in ten of their last home 14 matches.
