The Huddersfield match this weekend is a must win for West Ham but they may have to do it without the injured Edimilson Fernandes and Manuel Lanzini.
West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic shouts instructions to his players from the touchline.
As if Slaven Bilic didn’t have enough to contend with ahead of the Premier League clash against Huddersfield Town this weekend, the West Ham United manager now also has a selection headache.
That is because football.london reports that both Edimilson Fernandes and Manuel Lanzini are major doubts for the game against the Terriers with ankle and knee injuries respectively.
Adrian and Manuel Lanzini of West Ham United take a look around the stadium prior to the Premier League match against Newcastle United.
It is believed that Fernandes’ issue is a sprain, although currently it is not known how severe it is, while Lanzini pulled out of Argentina’s latest squad with a knee problem.
With Winston Reid already out, Andy Carroll and Andre Ayew also doubts and Marko Arnautovic serving the second match of his three-game suspension, Bilic’s options are being stretched to breaking point.
Central midfield is becoming a major issue with Fernandes and Lanzini both now expected to be absent, with captain Mark Noble, youngster Declan Rice, Pedro Obiang and Cheikhou Kouyate having all been used there at some point this season – all to little or no effect with the Hammers having fallen to three defeats.
Sporting CP midfielder William Carvalho.
It makes the East London club’s inability to complete a deal for Sporting Lisbon’s William Carvalho, as outlined by Sky Sports, now seem all the more costly as Bilic struggles to find a solution in the middle.
It feels like anything but a victory against Huddersfield at the London Stadium will cost the Croatian his job, but first he needs to work out who is playing and where.
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