West Ham first-team duo back in action in U23s victory v Leicester
Arthur Masuaku and Andriy Yarmolenko returned for West Ham last night as the u23 squad defeated Leicester City 3-1 at Rush Green.
Both men got 74 minutes on their return to action. The Hammers won thanks to goals from Conor Coventry, Keenan Appiah-Forson and 17-year-old Freddie Potts.
Masuaku hasn’t been seen for months. The 27-year-old started 10 matches before suffering a knee injury and hasn’t played since December 5. David Moyes is a big fan of the DR Congo international – he switched to a 5-3-2 formation earlier in the campaign to play him as a wingback. It worked brilliantly until his injury.
Ukrainian forward Yarmolenko has been injured since the FA Cup defeat to Manchester United in January. He has struggled for first-team opportunities this year, with Michail Antonio being favoured up top. Yarmolenko is undoubtedly a top-quality forward with a deadly left foot. He will provide some much-needed cover for Antonio upon his return.
Perfect timing
It’s great to see the pair of them back getting some minutes under their belts. The squad is just starting to go a little bit off with some below-par performances against Leeds and Manchester United.
Masuaku, in particular, has been greatly missed. There was a lot of concern when he initially went off with an injury. In fairness, Aaron Cresswell has stepped up in his absence.
Moyes switched to a system with wing-backs to fit Masuaku in the side, he’s always been a big fan of him. During his first reign, the number 26 played some of his best football for the Hammers, but went a bit off the boil under Pellegrini. Since Moyes’ return, he’s looked every bit as good as he did in 2018.
His return comes at a brilliant time, too. Ben Johnson has been played out of position at left wing-back a couple of times as Moyes tries to revert to a defensive structure.
Whilst he’s had some good displays, he has struggled against City and Manchester United last week. Masuaku coming back will allow us to have our back up plan again is Moyes does want to sit deeper.
In other West Ham news, Frank McAvennie has given his prediction ahead of the Arsenal clash.