West Ham United vs. Manchester City: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info and More

West Ham United hosts the reigning Barclays Premier League champions Manchester City at Boleyn Ground in London. West Ham, who have accrued four wins and two draws in their first nine Premier League outings, look to show what they're worth with a win over one of the best teams the league has to offer.

Man City seem driven to overtake Chelsea in the rankings, though. At third place and only one point behind them, a win over West Ham and three points would be enough to dethrone the current Premier League leaders.

Midfielder Kevin Nolan has been a scoring force for West Ham. In nine games, Nolan has scored four goals and assisted on two. Forward Ricardo Vaz Te, who has a goal and two assists, could also prove to be an important offensive contributor.

When facing a team like City, goals are hard to come by. Goalkeeper Joe Hart is a big reason for that. Hart has started all nine games this season and already has two clean sheets. West Ham may find it hard to get the ball past him.

Add in the fact that City have some of the most potent forwards in the Premier League—Carlos Tevez and Edin Dzeko in specific—and West Ham could be in trouble. Tevez has four goals and three assists and Dzeko has five goals and an assist.

Where: Boleyn Ground, London, England.

When: November 3, 2012. 1:30 p.m. ET.

TV/Live Stream: Fox Soccer

West Ham United: Biggest Premier League challenge yet

Saturday marks West Ham's toughest match this season. Sam Allardyce's side are modestly sitting at ninth place in the league. They own victories over the likes of Aston Villa, Fulham and Southampton. 

At 4-3-2 in the first nine games of the season, West Ham haven't quite exploded out of the gates. A win over City may be all they need to get the ball rolling, though.

Expect Jussi Jaaskelainen to be the starting goalkeeper for West Ham. With three clean sheets in nine appearances, Jaaskelainen will be a clutch player in a game that could very well be decided by a goal or two.

The goalkeeper and defenders in front of him are integral to stopping City's offense. It isn't enough to defeat them, though.

West Ham's forwards and midfielders have to step up to meet City on the offensive side of the game.

Midfielders Nolan and Mark Noble are going to need to find their scoring groove, but it's West Ham's forwards that really need to rise to the occasion more than they have. Vaz Te can't be the only one scoring or setting up teammates to score.

City's Roberto Mancini likes to zone defense. If West Ham can expose it like Ajax Amsterdam did last week, they'll be in a much better position to defeat City.

In general, West Ham need to meet the challenge that comes with playing the league champions. It's going to be a tough match, but a win could provide momentum to build on throughout the season.

Manchester City: Are they unstoppable in the Premier League?

City have won four consecutive games. In that four-game winning streak, they have outscored their opponents 8-2. It seems nothing can stop them from claiming the top spot in the league.

Momentum and drive could be the deciding factors for City. They haven't given much up on either the offensive or defensive side of the game. 

Hart has been a superstar player all season and the defenders around him have begun to come together. City's forwards and midfielders have also been a force since day one, as evidenced by Tevez and Dzeko's performance.

In addition, City have to be looking to bounce back after a disappointing Champions League loss to Ajax last week. After falling 3-1, there's no way City is going to let their dominance in the Premier League be the next thing to slide.

Finally, if City want to capture a decisive victory over West Ham, and the three points that come with it, they have to move away from the zone defense that was their downfall against Ajax. 

Prediction:

West Ham certainly have the capability to compete with City. However, in nine games this season, they haven't shown much reason to believe they can meet the challenge presented by the reigning champions.

City are bulldozing through the Premier League in an effort to usurp Chelsea from the top ranking and West Ham isn't going to stand in their way.

City wins 3-0.

Michael Prunka is a Bleacher Report Featured Columnist and Sports Writing Intern. Stay up to date with him by liking his Facebook page and following him on Twitter.

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