- 1 Lincoln City vs West Ham United: the Imps meet the division’s deadliest attack
- 2 Lincoln City: 11 points banked, but back-to-back defeats have exposed the ceiling
- 3 West Ham United: best attack in the Championship, but three games without a win
- 4 Free Football Prediction: Lincoln City vs West Ham United
- 5 About our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your responsibility
- 9 Responsible gambling
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About visuals
Lincoln City vs West Ham United: the Imps meet the division’s deadliest attack 
Twenty-three goals in nine Championship games. That’s West Ham’s return so far, and no side in the division comes close to it.
Lincoln City host the Hammers at Sincil Bank on Wednesday, October 14, with kick-off at 21:00 Paris time. It’s the first league meeting between these two clubs since 1957. Read that again. Nearly seven decades.
The context couldn’t be more lopsided. Lincoln are in their first season at this level for more than 60 years and sit 15th on 11 points, four clear of the bottom three. West Ham are third, one defeat from nine, four points off leaders Swansea City. One club is fighting to belong. The other is fighting to go straight back up.
And yet neither side arrives in great shape. Lincoln have lost their last two. West Ham haven’t won in three across all competitions, dropping points to Millwall and QPR either side of a League Cup exit against Fulham. So who blinks first?
Here’s the bottom line: West Ham’s slump is about finishing, not creating. They came from behind twice in that run, and they had a late penalty to beat QPR. Lincoln’s slump is about getting overrun. That’s a different problem, and it’s a harder one to fix in three days.
The bookmakers agree. West Ham are priced at 1.67, the draw sits at 3.80 and a home win pays 5.00. Those numbers tell you everything you need to know about the gap in quality.
Lincoln City: 11 points banked, but back-to-back defeats have exposed the ceiling 
Chris Cohen and Tom Shaw deserve real credit for this start. Away wins at Preston North End and Bristol City, both 1-0, showed a side that knows what it’s about: compact, patient, happy to suffer without the ball.
Then the wheels wobbled. A 2-1 home defeat to Swansea before the international break, followed by a 3-0 hammering at Sheffield United on Saturday. Five conceded in two games. That’s the second time this season Lincoln have lost back-to-back league fixtures, and they can ill afford to make a habit of it.
The home record doesn’t bear close inspection either. Draws with Blackburn (0-0) and Southampton (1-1), then the Swansea loss. No league win at Sincil Bank in that stretch. Not ideal when the best attack in the division is coming to town.
Changes are on the way. Yunus Konak, Chiedozie Ogbene and Mikkel Ladefoged are all pushing for starts, which could see Conor McGrandles, Ben House and Freddie Draper drop out. Reece Hackett may be back in contention after concussion, while Andrei Coubis remains a question mark.
The bigger worry is the step up in class. When Lincoln met a top-flight side in the League Cup this season, they lost 4-0 at Bournemouth. West Ham aren’t Premier League anymore, but their squad was built for it.
Lincoln will need a near-perfect defensive night. On recent evidence, that’s a big ask.
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West Ham United: best attack in the Championship, but three games without a win 
Rewind to September 11. West Ham thrash Wrexham 6-0, extend their winning run to four and look like they’ll stroll through the division. Nuno Espirito Santo’s side had just put four past Wolves, three past Derby and three more at Bolton.
Since then? A 3-2 League Cup defeat to Fulham. A 2-2 at Millwall after trailing 2-0. A 1-1 at home to QPR, with Jarrod Bowen missing a late penalty that would’ve won it. Three London opponents, zero wins. That record takes some explaining.
But look closer and it isn’t a collapse. West Ham fought back in two of those three games. A side that’s lost its nerve doesn’t come from 2-0 down away at Millwall. This is a team that keeps creating, and Bowen’s penalty miss is the kind of thing that evens itself out.
The squad is getting healthier too. Mohamadou Kante is available again after serving a one-match ban, though he may start on the bench. Tomas Soucek is back from a long-term injury and will be assessed, with Joel Piroe the likely starter if the Czech midfielder isn’t ready for 90 minutes. Joel Veltman is also an option after recovering over the international break.
Only one league defeat in nine. Four points behind the leaders. There’s no sugarcoating the last three weeks, but the overall picture is that of a promotion side having a wobble, not a crisis.
Against a Lincoln team that’s shipped five in two games, the chances will come. West Ham just have to take them.
Probable lineup Lincoln City: Wickens; Bradley, Elerewe, Towler; Jefferies, Konak, Bayliss, Reach; Ogbene, Street; Ladefoged
Probable lineup West Ham United: Hermansen; Veltman, Mavropanos, Kilman, Morato; Mukasa, Engels; Bowen, Piroe, Solomon; Castellanos
Free Football Prediction: Lincoln City vs West Ham United
Our prediction: West Ham United to win @ 1.67
The gap is real. West Ham have scored 23 league goals in nine games; Lincoln have conceded five in their last two. The Hammers’ winless run has come against three London sides with something to prove, and they still found a way back in two of them. That’s not a team in freefall.
Lincoln’s best results this season came on the road, sitting deep and nicking a goal. At home, they’ve had to take the game on more, and that’s exactly where West Ham’s front line of Bowen, Solomon and Castellanos can hurt them. Expect the Imps to stay in it for an hour. Then the quality tells.
We’re backing West Ham to end the drought at 1.67. Bowen won’t miss twice in a week.
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