West Ham United will hit the road this weekend as they take on Newcastle United at St James’ Park.
And before the game, Hammers manager Manuel Pellegrini has some serious headaches regarding his first-team selection.
The Magpies are currently tied on points with West Ham United but the fact that Rafa Benitez’s men have won their past three games will certainly give them the upper hand.
The Hammers, on the other hand, have picked up only a single win in their past six games and their last one was a drubbing at the hands of league leaders Manchester City.
The Newcastle vs West Ham game should have been an evenly matched contest but the fact that Pellegrini has as many as six injury concerns puts the initiative aptly in Rafa Benitez’s lap.
The first major concern for West Ham will be the injury status of their forward Marko Arnautovic.
The 29-year-old picked up a hip injury last week against Manchester City and multiple reports have suggested that he might not be fully fit for the Newcastle vs West Ham clash.
Carlos Sanchez and Ryan Fredericks are both recovering from knee injuries and while Sanchez will return only during the end of the season but Fredericks’ return has not yet been revealed.
Jack Wilshere is almost 100 per cent fit but it remains to be seen if Manuel Pellegrini names him in the first eleven.
Andy Carroll took has done full training during the course of the week and like Wilshere, he too is expected to start the Newcastle vs West Ham game on the bench.
Andriy Yarmolenko started the season in fine fashion but then he went on to pick up an achilles injury and reports have suggested that the summer signing could miss the whole length of the season.
