McAvennie delighted ‘Different class’ Fornals could be available for West Ham clash v Wolves
We’re delighted to welcome former West Ham United striker Frank McAvennie as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at the London Stadium…
Frank McAvennie is happy to see that Pablo Fornals could be available to play for West Ham against Wolves on Monday night.
Fornals, 25, has missed West Ham’s last two Premier League fixtures due to a knock but according to Claret & Hugh, he’s expected to be included in the squad to play Wolves at Molineux early next week.
The Spain international has been ever-present for David Moyes this season, earning 27 appearances in all competitions and scoring three goals.
McAvennie is especially impressed with how the former Villarreal playmaker has improved since January when Moyes brought Jesse Lingard in on loan from Manchester United.
“It will be good to get the players back,” McAvennie told West Ham Zone.
“Fornals has been different class. I thought he was going to be left out for Lingard but he hasn’t and [Jarrod] Bowen’s been getting left out.
“Fornals is fighting for his place, there’s competition for places. He must have seen Lingard come in and thought, ‘I’ve got to step up’. And step up the boy did.
“Well done to him.”
Fornals has ticked along nicely under Moyes’ leadership this season.
While he’s not really thought of as being one of the first names on the teamsheet, he’s definitely someone who’s shown a steady progression and, as McAvennie points out, the added competition for places has seen his performances reach a new level.
It’s tough to say whether or not the Hammers have missed Fornals while he’s been injured.
The Spanish attacking midfielder sat out of a defeat to Manchester United and the 3-3 draw against Arsenal, which were two games anyway.
He’s definitely needed on Monday against Wolves though.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have not been their usual impressive selves this season and they’re a team the Irons must beat if they want to show they are capable of qualifying for Europe this season.
Fornals hasn’t played since March 8 so it will be almost a month with no action for the 25-year-old.
Let’s see if Moyes thinks he’s ready or not because it could be that a few weeks with no matches has seen the playmaker become a bit rusty.
In other West Ham news, Issa Diop has learned from his mistakes to become a valuable part of Moyes’ defence.