West Ham lost to Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League quarter-final

Adam Hlozek injury update emerges as two Bayer Leverkusen players could start v West Ham United

James is a sports journalist with a degree in Sports Journalism and Communications (MA) from the Real Madrid Graduate School. He is a lifelong West Ham fan and is a current season ticket holder in the Billy Bonds Stand, while his favourite players include Paulo Di Canio, Dean Ashton and Scott Parker. James has been writing about the Hammers since his teenage years and has also worked for the Sunday Mirror.

Published on:

11 Apr 2024, 2:40 am

Xabi Alonso has confirmed that Bayer Leverkusen forward Adam Hlozek is injured and will miss the game against West Ham on Thursday (11 April).

Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday (10 April), the Leverkusen boss revealed that backup keeper Matej Kovar will start in goal against the Hammers.

He added that Victor Boniface is fully fit to play and could also be named in the starting lineup for the Bundesliga side ahead of the Europa League clash.

Mixed injury news for Bayer Leverkusen ahead of West Ham clash

It will certainly be a blow for Leverkusen to be without Hlozek after he's been in reasonable form for them this season and started in the 1-0 victory over Union Berlin on 6 April.

But Alonso has plenty of quality in his side, particularly in the attacking areas, and he won't be short on options on how to replace the Czech Republic international.

It seems likely that Boniface, who has scored 16 goals this season, will start the game after making his return from a lengthy injury absence in his side's latest outing.

💬 #Alonso on the squad: "Just Adam #Hlozek is injured from the weekend. Matej will play in goal. @boniface_jrn is fully fit to play, so he could be used from the start tomorrow."#B04WHU | #Bayer04 #UEL #aCROSSeurope pic.twitter.com/NOzENpW4Rh
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) April 10, 2024

While Kovar playing in goal could present the Hammers with an opportunity, the keeper has featured heavily in the Europa League during this campaign and Alonso clearly trusts him.

It will be interesting to see how we approach the game as David Moyes will be keen to ensure we remain in the tie ahead of the second leg at the London Stadium.

In other West Ham news, the Hammers have received a boost in their pursuit of a Euro forward.

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