West Ham vs Man City Bet Builder Tips: KDB special to serve up 66/1 shot in east London

West Ham United made a disappointing start to life under Julen Loptegeui when they lost 2-1 at home to Aston Villa on the Premier League's opening weekend, but the Irons bounced back a week later to win 2-0 at Crystal Palace before edging past Bournemouth 1-0 in the Carabao Cup second round.

Next up, the east Londoners host Manchester City at the London Stadium on Saturday (17:30, Sky Sports Main Event), with Pep Guardiola's side in rude health after back-to-back victories over Chelsea (0-2) and Ipswich Town (4-1). Read on for my West Ham vs Man City bet builder tips, where I've selected four players - two from either side - to bring the odds up to 66/1. We're going big here.

West Ham vs Man City Odds

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Kevin De Bruyne 1+ Assists

Kicking things off is Man City's midfield maestro Kevin De Bruyne, who has actually missed three of the last six league meetings between the two clubs, including the Citizens' 3-1 win at the London Stadium last September.

When the Belgium captain is fit, however, it usually spells trouble for the Irons. De Bruyne has faced West Ham 14 times in the Premier League, scoring three goals and registering six assists. In fact, his most recent visit to east London, a 2-0 victory for Man City back in August 2022, saw him set up Erling Haaland for the Norwegian to bag a brace on his Premier League debut.

The 33-year-old has already started this season off well, scoring City's second of the game in last weekend's thrashing of Ipswich at the Etihad Stadium, where he also supplied Haaland to get his first assist of the 2024/25 campaign.

De Bruyne is an assist machine, racking up 10 in just 18 league appearances last season, and 16 in the prior campaign. With Haaland set to start up top again on Saturday, I'm backing KDB to at least double his assist tally this term.

Lucas Paqueta Carded

On to the dirty side of the game, the first of two player cards in this bet builder goes to West Ham playmaker Lucas Paqueta, who would probably be turning out for the visitors if allegations of the Brazilian spot-fixing hadn't come to light.

As it is, the 27-year-old is now in his third season at the London Stadium, and he has already shown this term what he is about, picking up a yellow card in the 31st minute of the Irons' opening Premier League game against Aston Villa and scoring a penalty just eight minutes later. Paqueta's successful spot-kick against Villa was his ninth goal in the English top-flight, while he also has the same number of assists to his name in the competition.

However, his goal and assist numbers are bettered by his yellow card tally, which sits at 16 in the Premier League. The Brazil international was cautioned five times in his debut campaign before doubling that number last season, and he got off the mark in his side's season opener against Villa.

Alleged suspicious activity aside, Paqueta is an aggressive player, perhaps not in keeping with the silky skills he displays on the ball. He makes a lot of fouls, averaging 1.8 per game in the 2022/23 Premier League season, and 1.5 last term.

Paqueta has faced Man City three times as a West Ham player, making a single foul in his first and third game against them, and three in his second. He was, in fact, booked in the match he committed three fouls, with the last proving the decisive one. He will need to be at his aggressive best on Saturday to help his side get to grips with the likes of De Bruyne, Haaland and Savinho, so I expect him to be flying into challenges and applying pressure, which could play himself into the referee's notebook.

Football Odds

Guido Rodriguez Carded

I'm also backing Paqueta's teammate, Guido Rodriguez, to join him in the card club at the London Stadium. My second pick after Paqueta would ordinarily be Mexican midfielder Edson Alvarez, who was booked home and away against City last season, but the 26-year-old has only just returned from an injury sustained for his country at the 2024 Copa America and is not a guaranteed starter on Saturday.

Alvarez played his first minutes of the 2024/25 campaign as a late substitute against Crystal Palace last weekend before starting West Ham's Carabao Cup victory over Bournemouth on Wednesday when he lasted an hour before being withdrawn. He could still start against City, but I believe Rodriguez is more certain to begin the game, and looking at his card stats in La Liga, the Argentine could be a decent shout to get booked against the reigning Premier League champions.

The 30-year-old joined the Irons on a free transfer from Real Betis, whom he represented for four-and-a-half seasons in La Liga. He was a consistent 'carder' in the Spanish top division, racking up 10, nine, eight and six in his four full league campaigns.

Rodriguez will have to be at his very best to help his side contain the talents spread across the City side on Saturday, and that probably means putting his foot in when required and breaking up play. Alongside Paqueta, he looks like the best bet to receive a card this weekend.

Manuel Akanji 2+ Fouls

I'm ending on a City man, Manuel Akanji, who I think could be whistled a couple of times by the referee at the London Stadium.

I wouldn't call the Switzerland defender rash by any means, but he did commit a couple of fouls in City's opening match of the season at Stamford Bridge, and he will likely be up close and personal with one of the trickiest players to defend in the Premier League on Saturday - Mohammed Kudus.

The Ghana international is a dribbling machine, completing three against Villa and six at Palace, while he was fouled five times by the Villans and twice by the Eagles. Kudus runs all over the pitch but with Jarrod Bowen preferring to cut in from the right onto his left foot, the 24-year-old tends to occupy more of the left-hand side, as evidenced by his heat maps.

That spells danger for Akanji, whose own heat maps show him positioned on the right-hand side of the pitch against Chelsea and Ipswich. There could be a big battle on between Akanji and Kudus in east London, and the former may be forced to take alternative action on occasion.

Offers

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