Claret and Hugh share reason for Mohammed Kudus absence for West Ham clash at Backa Topola

Mohammed Kudus is rumoured to be one of the West Ham players to miss their midweek trip to Backa Topola in Serbia despite David Moyes refusing to name potential absentees, according to Claret and Hugh.

The 23-year-old has been a hit with supporters since his move to the London Stadium from Ajax in the summer, proving to be one of Moyes' most important players with eight goals in 19 appearances across all competitions.

However, the Hammers will have to play without Kudus as they look to win Group A in the Europa League, with the Ghanaian forward suspected to be one of the squad affected by illness.

Away side still favourites

There is no underselling it; Kudus will be a huge miss on Thursday night. With the recent injuries to Michail Antonio and Jarrod Bowen, it has become apparent that West Ham's only striking options will be Danny Ings and Divin Mubama.

Of course, the Londoners will still be expected to get the job done in Serbia, with West Ham topping the group currently with nine points and Backa Topola struggling with one point.

The Hammers completed the comeback in the return leg as the Serbians opened the scoring. However, Kudus played a vital role in that game with his goal overturning the 1-0 deficit. He was also key to West Ham's comeback victory over Burnley at the weekend, supplying both assists in the game.

While it is bad news for the attacker, it will no longer give Moyes an excuse not to deploy Mubama in the starting XI, which Hammers fans will be buzzing to see. Frustrations will begin to grow if Ings is started ahead of the youngster.

With his current contract situation still up in the air, trusting the 19-year-old with minutes in a European competition may see him give the club the benefit of the doubt, believing his future is in good hands at the London Stadium.

In other West Ham news, the Hammers are on red alert after a new transfer decision was made.