West Ham United are set to be without another squad member for their looming Premier League clash away to Arsenal, alongside star midfielder Lucas Paqueta, who’s already been ruled out due to a fresh ankle injury.
West Ham travel to Arsenal as Graham Potter searches for second win
Since taking the reins from his predecessor Julen Lopetegui, Hammers boss Graham Potter has guided the east Londoners to just a single win in all competitions, and the Englishman faces his toughest task yet in search of his second victory in charge.
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An update has surfaced on the Irishman.
West Ham travel across London to the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, where they will face off against Premier League title-chasing Arsenal, with Potter looking to both upset the Gunners’ title hopes and secure a much-needed three points for the travellers.
|
West Ham’s next five Premier League fixtures |
Date |
|---|---|
|
Arsenal (away) |
February 22nd |
|
Leicester City (home) |
February 27th |
|
Newcastle United (home) |
March 10th |
|
Everton (away) |
March 15th |
|
Wolves (away) |
April 1st |
Unfortunately for Potter, news emerged earlier this week that Paqueta suffered a new ankle problem in Rush Green training, and it is now confirmed that the £150,000-per-week Brazilian is set to miss their game against Arsenal as a result.
“It was a training incident. Just an innocuous one, he went over on his ankle in a collision with Aaron Wan-Bissaka. He has rolled his ankle,” said Potter in a pre-match press conference today.
“He will be missing for the [Arsenal] game and probably Leicester as well. We will see how he it is, but it is swollen a bit. We will take it day-by-day but I would imagine a week or two he will be away.”
The South American’s ingenuity in the middle of the park will be dearly missed at Arsenal, but he isn’t the only squad member who won’t be playing a part against Arteta’s side.
Coufal set to miss West Ham game against Arsenal through injury
Potter also confirmed that right-back Vladimir Coufal is missing from their matchday squad through injury as well, but the Czech Republic international could still play a part in their follow-up clash with Leicester City.
West Ham will be without Coufal for their trip to Arsenal, and while the 32-year-old is currently behind Aaron Wan-Bissaka in the pecking order, his professionalism and experience won’t be seen off the bench.
“This weekend will come too soon for Vlad,” said Potter. “He has got an outside chance for Leicester.”
The defender is likely to leave West Ham at the end of this season when his contract expires, but supporters will always remember how vital he was during their imperious 2020/2021 season.
“They are two fantastic honest pros and the most humble guys I have met in football,” said left-back Aaron Cresswell about Coufal and Tomas Soucek back then.
“Their work ethic, we’ll play a game on a Saturday, we recover on a Sunday and the lads will be getting massages and you look out the window and the two Czech boys are running around the pitch.
“They are brilliant, they will sit there and play head tennis for an hour on recovery day. They are fantastic guys and two fantastic signings.”