Nuno Espirito Santo drops Konstantinos Mavropanos update as three confirmed out for West Ham vs Tottenham
West Ham are set to play host to Newcastle United on Sunday.
Newcastle are preparing for a trip to face West Ham at the London Stadium just days after their Carabao Cup win over Tottenham.
The Hammers have had a mid-week off and have been given the chance to regroup after West Ham fell to a 1-0 defeat against Leeds last time around.
Lucas Paqueta saw his strike ruled out at Leeds before Nuno Espirito Santo fell to yet another defeat since taking over in East London.
The head coach has now spoken out as he goes in search of a first Irons win at the fourth attempt against the Magpies.
Nuno Espirito Santo shares West Ham team news vs Newcastle United
Newcastle will present a tough test for West Ham, particularly given the contrasting form of the two sides.
Eddie Howe and Co. secured a hugely positive victory over Spurs in the cup to carry themselves into the quarter-final of the League Cup.
By comparison, positivity is extremely difficult to come by in claret and blue as fans continue to share their annoyance towards the board.
Results have mirrored the supporters’ emotions, and it is unclear whether that will change any time soon, especially with a difficult clash coming up.
Newcastle will represent a tough test, and Nuno will need all the firepower he can get, but he is hampered by injury in East London.
Speaking in his press conference on 31 October ahead of the London Stadium clash, the head coach revealed that Konstantinos Mavropanos, Oliver Scarles and Niclas Fullkrug will miss out.
He said: “[Mavropanos] started a fitness program on the grass, so I expect it will be a couple more weeks for him to be available.
“Oliver Scarles went to surgery yesterday, it went well. He’s going to be out for a while. Niclas Fullkrug is still out. Still not totally sure [when he’ll be back], he started on the grass, but not totally with the group.“
West Ham will seriously struggle vs Newcastle
The Hammers have been criticised for their lack of athleticism this season, largely due to a shortage of legs in the midfield.
Graham Potter continuously used the likes of James Ward-Prowse, Guido Rodriguez and Tomas Soucek together.
Nuno has changed that somewhat, but if any of these three features go against Newcastle, it could prove to be curtains for the home side.
The Magpies have Bruno Guimaraes, Joelinton and Sandro Tonali, arguably the best midfield trio in the Premier League in terms of industry.
It feels like the game will be won and lost in midfield, and it looks as if Nuno is fighting a losing battle in this area of the pitch on top of his injury concerns.
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