David Moyes gave an encouraging squad update in his press conference ahead of Sunday's Premier League trip to Manchester City.
The West Ham United manager revealed that the likes of Felipe Anderson and Andriy Yarmolenko are nearing a return to action after stepping up their training in the past few days, boosting his options for the coming weeks.
The boss will also be able to call upon Deadline Day signing Jarrod Bowen for the first time at Etihad Stadium, following fellow January arrival Tomas Soucek's impressive debut at home to Brighton & Hove Albion last time out.
"We’ve actually got a lot of players beginning to get back to fitness, which is good news," the manager said. "Felipe Anderson has had a couple of days training. Andriy Yarmolenko is on the grass too, working towards getting back and I think after that most of the players are just about ready.
"There are one or two knocks or niggles which I hope we can get over by tomorrow and get everyone fit [for Sunday]."
We’ve got a lot of players beginning to get back to fitness, which is good news
David Moyes
The arrival of Bowen and Soucek, added to Darren Randolph's arrival from Middlesbrough, improved Moyes' squad depth in January, and the manager is happy to have those extra tools at his disposal.
"We brought in three news players in January, who can add to the squad," he continued. "We need everyone in the squad to step up to the plate. We understand fully where we are, but in the same breath we also know that them performing well as individuals and as a team will certainly help us.
"I’m really pleased to have Jarrod. He’s a player who’s done really well in the Championship and it’s not been only one season. If you look at him it’s been two seasons, three seasons. He’s had to earn his stripes in the Championship and he’s had to show he can do it there. That gives me great hope that he can step up, and I’ve dealt with a lot of boys [who I've brought up from] the Championship.
"I’ve taken Leighton Baines, Paul Jagielka, John Stones, Tim Cahill... you could go on. Some have come in and done a job really quickly and others have taken time to settle. I won’t find that out about Jarrod yet, but I will find out in time. The truth is we need him, the Club needs him, the team needs him. But we can’t be putting added pressure on new players. You have to give people a chance to settle.
"I think Tomas Soucek did very well in his first game. We still have to give him time to get used to it, but let’s not expect too much from Jarrod straight away."
