Luton will be hoping that it goes better than last Friday night when the Hatters went to Chelsea and were thumped 3-0.
That's played two, lost two since winning promotion, although they did beat Gillingham 3-2 in the League Cup on Tuesday.
West Ham head to Kenilworth Road for the first time since 1992.
The Hammers are in good form with two wins and a draw from their first three matches and will go top – for a few hours at least – should they win.
- West Ham to win
- Over 3.5 goals
- James Ward-Prowse Over 1.5 shots
West Ham To Keep Hot Streak Going
West Ham ended 2022/23 by landing European glory in the Conference League so perhaps it should come as no surprise that they have kicked off 2023/24 with a spring in their step.
The summer sale of England star Declan Rice long forgotten, the Hammers have seven points on the board courtesy of a satisfactory if unconvincing 1-1 draw at Bournemouth followed by admirable wins over Chelse and Brighton, both by 3-1 scorelines.
That's rock-solid form to be going anywhere, although this will be a test at Kenilworth Road, the smallest and tightest venue to have staged Premier League football.
And Luton's players will be desperate to mark the first top-flight game at the ground since 1992 with a win, though heavy defeats by Brighton (4-1) and Chelsea (3-0) suggest they are going to find points hard to come by this term.
They had spells against both Brighton and Chelsea when they looked like they belonged in the big league but short bursts of competitiveness win you nothing. Over the full 90 minutes of both those matches they absolutely deserved nothing and coach Rob Edwards knows they have to buckle up defensively.
They are allowing 23 shots per game – only Sheffield United leak more – and that's a recipe for relegation.
Leaky Luton A Recipe For Goals Feast
Those Luton numbers – 23 shots conceded per game over the first two matches – spell danger, although for punters they add up to an obvious goals bet.
Over 2.5 goals would be the cautious approach but there's a case for chancing over 3.5 goals, something that West Ham have achieved in each of their last two games, both producing four goals.
Luton kept it to three at Chelsea last Friday but Mauricio Pochettino's men missed countless chances and were missing key forwards. This West Ham attack, permed from any of Michail Antonio, Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta, Pablo Fornals, Said Benrahma and new boy Mohammed Kudus, is not short of a goal threat.
On Tuesday night Luton played in the League Cup second round and Rob Edwards fielded a strong side. They won 3-2 but the concession of two goals against a League Two outfit who really struggle for goals adds to the sense that in any game Luton play they will ship goals.
Ward-Prowse A Golden Shot
James Ward-Prowse, second only behind David Beckham as the scorer of most Premier League direct free kicks, is already proving a key weapon for West Ham.
Signed from Southampton to partially replace Declan Rice, Ward-Prowse has chipped in with a goal and two assists in two matches.
We don't know if he's the assigned penalty-taker – he wasn't on the pitch when Lucas Paqueta scored from the spot against Chelsea – but he is already the Hammers' go-to man at set-plays around the box.
He had one shot against Chelsea, three more against Brighton, and has to be worth backing to have at least two at Luton, where the chances for the visitors look sure to pile up.
JAMES WARD-PROWSE OVER 1.5 SHOTS
