Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
West Ham United boss Nuno Espírito Santo has been handed an injury update, with one member of his squad not set to return until almost Christmas.
West Ham prepare for Man United clash after Liverpool defeat
The Hammers travel to Old Trafford on Thursday seeking to make amends following their first defeat since October, but Lucas Paqueta’s suspension after his sending off against Liverpool leaves Nuno with a real selection headache.
West Ham’s 2-0 loss to the Merseysiders on Sunday ended a three-match unbeaten streak, with Paqueta’s beard dismissal proving very costly.
Another Brazilian, Luis Guilherme, could make a rare start in his compatriot’s absence, while Crysencio Summerville is also a major doubt to face Man United after missing Liverpool with a calf problem.
“I don’t think he’ll (Summerville) make Thursday, unfortunately,” Nuno said in his latest press conference.
“There are still some issues. We are still assessing, but I think Thursday is probably going to be too soon.”
Man United, meanwhile, arrived in a confident mood after Joshua Zirkzee and Mason Mount both scored in a 2-1 comeback at Crystal Palace over the weekend.
Matheus Cunha could return after missing recent matches with a head injury, although a place on the bench appears more likely.
On paper, West Ham will be given encouragement by the fact that they’ve won four out of their last five meetings against the Red Devils and completed the double over them last season.
West Ham’s results in the Premier League so far |
|---|
Sunderland 3-0 West Ham |
West Ham 1-5 Chelsea |
Nottingham Forest 0-3 West Ham |
West Ham 0-3 Tottenham |
West Ham 1-2 Crystal Palace |
Everton 1-1 West Ham |
Arsenal 2-0 West Ham |
West Ham 0-2 Brentford |
Leeds 2-1 West Ham |
West Ham 3-1 Newcastle |
West Ham 3-2 Burnley |
Bournemouth 2-2 West Ham |
West Ham 0-2 Liverpool |
However, West Ham ranks joint-second in the league for goals conceded from open play with 14, and first for goals conceded from set-pieces with 10 – weaknesses Ruben Amorin will undoubtedly look to exploit.
Alongside Summerville and Paqueta, another player who is set to sit out of this one is young defender Ollie Scarles.
The West Ham academy graduate, who has been out of action since breaking his collarbone against Leeds United, has now returned to no-contact training as he slowly builds his capacity.
“Ollie has started training without contact,” Nuno said in a press conference ahead of United.
“He’s not back in full training just yet, but he’s been involved in many parts of the sessions.”
Following Nuno’s update, the Portuguese has now been handed a more specific timeline when it comes to the full-back’s return.
West Ham without Ollie Scarles until nearly Christmas
According to Hammers News, West Ham will be without Scarles until nearly Christmas as he continues his gradual comeback.
The Englishman could be back to face Man City on December 20 at the earliest, coming as a slight boost for Nuno given the difficulty of a trip to Eastlands.
However, the tactician might not want to risk him either, considering just how serious Scarles’ injury was and the delicacy of his recovery.
Once the England Under-20 international is back fit and firing, he’ll be a valuable asset, with Nuno starting him in each of his last two appearances before succumbing to injury.
Called West Ham’smost exciting prospect since (Declan) Rice‘ by members of the media, Scarles excelled at youth level with three goals and 14 assists in 50 appearances for the Under-18s.
The defender also racked up 13 goal contributions (six goals, seven assists) for the Under-21s, and Scarles has since been handed 19 senior cameos in all competitions for the east Londoners.
West Ham appears to have high hopes for the youngster, who most notably put in the best performance of his career to date in a 1-0 win away to Arsenal back in February.
