Why Pablo exit now looks as certain as ever after West Ham announcement

Pablo was due to start for West Ham United against Derby County.

The 22-year-old has started two Championship games for West Ham so far this season.

His most recent of those came against Wolves last time out, in which he played 70 minutes before being replaced.

Since arriving from Gil Vicente in January, Pablo is still yet to score a competitive goal for West Ham.

As a result, it's fair to say his time at the London Stadium so far hasn't gone to plan for the £20million man.

And now, talk over his future being away from E20 is only sure to increase as Nuno Espirito Santo names his Hammers side to face Derby County this afternoon.

Why is Pablo not in the West Ham team vs Derby?

According to a report from The West Ham Way, there was a last-minute withdrawal from the side to face Derby.

It's understood that this was indeed Pablo, who was clearly set to be involved in the starting XI on Saturday afternoon.

As a result, Taty Castellanos takes his place up top to partner Joel Piroe as the Hammers go in search of their first back-to-back wins of the new season.

Pablo has been linked with a move to Turkish side Trabzonspor, and this could offer some explanation over his reported shock withdrawal.

So, can Pablo still leave West Ham for Turkey, or has that ship sailed for now?

Why Pablo's Derby withdrawal could still be transfer related

Teams in Turkey had until Friday night to conclude their transfer business.

As a result, the Turkish Super Lig transfer window has now closed, meaning Pablo won't be moving to Trabzonspor until January at the earliest.

Despite that, given the window only closed last night, a potential collapsed move to Turkey may still be playing on the striker's mind.

Teams in other countries, such as Greece and Saudi Arabia, can also conduct business for a while longer yet.

Nuno will undoubtedly face questions on this situation post-match, so it will be fascinating to see what the Hammers boss says on the matter.