A big game at both ends of the table….

 

West Ham v Chelsea
Premier League
5.30pm, Sky Sports 1

IT’S BACK!

Premier League? Remember that? Yes, it’s back after the frustrating break owing to England losing two matches in five days….

Enough of that, some great fixtures to look forward to, and the tea-time live SKY game brings together West Ham and Chelsea at Upton Park.

A big game for both sides who are at different ends of the table.

A Chelsea win could see them in the top three and West Ham consigned to the bottom three.

It’s a match that usually produces a few goals as our last 10 stats show:

Mar 2013 Premier Chelsea 2-0 West Ham
Dec 2012 Premier West Ham 3-1 Chelsea
Apr 2011 Premier Chelsea 3-0 West Ham
Sep 2010 Premier West Ham 1-3 Chelsea
Mar 2010 Premier Chelsea 4-1 West Ham
Dec 2009 Premier West Ham 1-1 Chelsea
Apr 2009 Premier West Ham 0-1 Chelsea
Dec 2008 Premier Chelsea 1-1 West Ham
Mar 2008 Premier West Ham 0-4 Chelsea
Dec 2007 Premier Chelsea 1-0 West Ham

Chelsea haven’t traveled well so far this season with just five points from five games but in fairness they’ve had some tough early season fixtures and will be looking towards this as a key match to win to maintain their momentum towards the top of the table. It’s a good time to visit Upton Park with West Ham in a slump – just six points from nine games.

Happy to back Chelsea giving away a goal on the handicap at around 15/8 with Star Sports. A decent bet for me.

STAR FORECAST
(stake between 0.5 and 10 points)
10 points CHELSEA (-1) at around 15/8

THE X FACTOR

Microsoft have sold more than one million Xbox One consoles in less than 24 hours, despite users saying they have been plagued by technical problems.

The next-generation gaming console is now sold out at most retailers after going on sale in 13 countries across the world on Friday, the US firm said.

Yusuf Mehdi, corporate vice president of marketing and strategy for Xbox, said: “We are humbled and grateful for the excitement of Xbox fans around the world.

“Seeing thousands of excited fans lined up to get their Xbox One and their love for gaming was truly a special moment for everyone on the Xbox team.

“We are working hard to create more Xbox One consoles and look forward to fulfilling holiday gift wishes this season.”

But the launch has not been without problems after some gamers complained their £429 machines have been “bricked” – rendered useless by a fault – after downloading a day one update.

In some cases, those reporting the update issue have been faced with an E100 error message, which does not seem to have an easy fix.