David Moyes has indicated Gianluca Scamacca and Nayef Aguerd are nearing a return to action for West Ham United.
Both Scamacca and Aguerd were absent from the Hammers’ matchday squad away to Arsenal on Boxing Day, with the Italy striker missing out due to ankle injury and the Morocco defender suffering with a virus.
With the Irons set for a final Premier League match of 2022 at London Stadium against Brentford on Friday, the manager has offered an update on the two respective summer signings, confirming both Scamacca and Aguerd have been back training.
“Gianluca has done a little bit of training, so we’ll see how he is and monitor him,” Moyes told his pre-match press conference. “He is probably lacking a little bit of match fitness, which would be my biggest worry, but he has done a bit of training so hopefully he will be okay.
“Nayef is still coming back from illness, which we are trying to get him over. He’s had a few days training, which is helping him, but he has lost a bit of weight from the World Cup so we’re trying to build him back up.
“If I can get Nayef involved I will, but I’ll make a decision tomorrow. But, if you’re asking me if he’s ready, I don’t believe he’s quite ready yet.”
Injury issues, particularly among the team’s centre-backs, have plagued the Hammers since the very start of the season and Moyes admitted the side is feeling the effects of consistent setbacks for different players.
Moyes continued: “I think Aguerd getting injured in pre-season was a huge miss for us. I think we played the first four games of the season with only one centre-back. We also had a problem with Craig Dawson. He was very important for us last season, but he was out at the start of the season with a thigh strain. So that impacted on us a bit.
“The new players who came in, we’d have liked them a bit earlier, but we’re happy we got them in. Overall, the injuries we had at the start of the season have played their part.”
