West Ham United boss Slaven Bilic faces a major selection dilemma over his captain Mark Noble for the visit of Tottenham Hotspur.
Bilic has long wished for a positive selection headache such has been the injury problems West Ham have suffered during his tenure.
And now he has just that with everyone bar Manuel Lanzini and James Collins fit and available for selection.
Perhaps the biggest poser for the Croatian, though, is whether to play homegrown Hammer and skipper Mark Noble when Spurs roll into town.
Noble divides opinion among Hammers fans with many feeling he is no longer good enough to be a first team starter in the Premier League.
Mark Noble celebrates West Ham’s 1-0 win over Spurs last season
Others point to his consistency over the course of a season and the fact he knows the club inside out as crucial to the side.
While elements of both are probably something like the truth, it still leaves Bilic with a huge decision to make for a fixture in which Noble has often raised his game over the years such is the rivalry between the clubs.
Back in May and unbeknowst to Bilic, Noble played through the pain with a hernia against Spurs to help the Hammers win 1-0, a match which ended Tottenham’s title hopes while simultaneously securing the club’s Premier League safety.
The midfielder returned to the West Ham side for the 3-0 win over Bolton in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night and was instrumental.
He was withdrawn with around half an hour to play, a clear indication Bilic wanted him to steer clear of injury for the visit of Mauricio Pochettino’s side.
But where does Noble fit into a side that has turned the season around of late?
Bilic may feel more comfortable having one of West Ham’s own on the pitch to set the tempo and lead by example to demonstrate just what the fixture means to his teammates.
Spurs of course have exactly that in one of their own, Harry Kane.
Now it is over to Bilic to decide and somehow fit the skipper into his side.
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