Mark Lawrenson surprised by West Ham stick but still won't tip club for victory

Mark Lawrenson has admitted he is pleased to see West Ham proving him wrong after the BBC pundit predicted the Hammers would suffer defeat at the hands of Bournemouth in midweek.

The former Liverpool defender has found himself the subject of several tweets from West Ham in recent weeks, which have highlighted the sheer number of losses he has predicted for the Hammers this season.

Lawrenson has forecast the east London side to suffer no less than 14 Premier League losses already this term which, if had happened, would have left the Hammers sitting second from bottom in the table and not in fifth place, where they currently are.

But after Slaven Bilic's side proved him wrong by coming from behind to beat Bournemouth 3-1 at the Vitality Stadium on Tuesday, Lawrenson has now predicted West Ham to draw 1-1 with Newcastle on Saturday afternoon.

"After the stick I’ve been getting from West Ham fans over my predictions, I should probably go for them to win 8-0," he wrote in his column for the BBC on Thursday.

"In the past few seasons I have annoyed Southampton and Swansea fans by tipping them to lose, but I have never had supporters chanting my name over a prediction before, like the Hammers fans were doing at the end of their win at Bournemouth on Tuesday.

"It is all good fun and I am really pleased they have continued to prove me wrong.

"I thought their results would fall away after their good start, much like they did under Sam Allardyce last season, but they have picked up after a wobble where they did not win for eight games from the end of October."

He added: "I thought they would slip down the table but instead they have won their past four games in the league and FA Cup, and I have to take my hat off to them.

"Newcastle were a bit unlucky not to get a draw at Watford in the FA Cup and stuck at it to pick up a point against Manchester United on Tuesday, so it seems Magpies boss Steve McClaren has found a way to get a response from his players after their poor form over Christmas.

"Taking all of that into consideration, probably the only way I can upset anybody this time is by saying it is going to be a draw, so that is what I’m going for."