West Ham boss David Moyes will be glad that Newcastle United cannot call upon Kieran Trippier this weekend, describing the injured full-back as a ‘really good player’ to Football London in his pre-match press conference.
Those Saudi billions may be enough to bring a La Liga-winning England international back to the Premier League. But all the money in the world cannot do a jot about simple bad fortune.
Shortly after firing a fizzing free-kick into the Aston Villa net – his second set-piece winner in a matter of days – Trippier limped off with a fractured metatarsal.
And, according to Eddie Howe, the January signing from Atletico Madrid is now facing an uphil battle as he looks to ensure his second goal in Newcastle colours is not his final contribution to their survival battle.
“Trippier is a really good player,” Moyes admits.
The Scot’s West Ham side will host a Newcastle side looking to secure four wins in a row at the London Stadium on Saturday lunchtime.
Can Newcastle beat West Ham without Kieran Trippier?
“(Trippier) is a good full-back and his set-pieces and delivery are good,” Moyes adds.
“It will be a miss (for Newcastle). What he has done is given them momentum and they will be hoping to keep that going. Our job is to get our form going again and keep our run going.
“I hope (losing Trippier) does affect their performances. We have injuries to, say (Angelo) Ogbonna, which makes a difference. That is part of football and you find ways to get through it. It is part and parcel.”
With Javier Manquillo also unavailable, the much-maligned Emil Krafth is likely to come in at right-back. One plus, however, is the return of Matt Targett. The Aston Villa loanee missed last week’s clash with his parent club due to the terms of his transfer.
Bruno Guimaraes may also be in line for a first start. Then again, it would feel somewhat unfair to bench Jonjo Shelvey following his best run of form in recent memory.
Speaking on Friday, Howe admitted that his eye has been caught by the ‘hugely’ impressive youngster Lucas de Bolle too (Chronicle).
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