Michail Antonio could be out for six weeks with his latest knee injury, which in turn may force West Ham to alter their transfer plans this month.
David Moyes is already facing disruption to his frontline after Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paquetá limped off in West Ham’s 1-1 draw with Bristol City in the third round of the FA Cup on Sunday. Bowen and Paquetá are due to have scans on their injuries and Moyes will be hoping they make swift returns. West Ham have already had to adjust given they are without Mohammed Kudus, who is with Ghana at the Africa Cup of Nations.
A lack of depth has been exposed in attack – Pablo Fornals, Saïd Benrahma, Maxwel Cornet, Danny Ings and Divin Mubama have made little impression in recent outings – and West Ham would like to raise the quality of their squad. However, they do not have a huge budget this month and incomings are likely to depend on sales. A move for the Wolves defender, Max Kilman, hinges on Nayef Aguerd leaving, but Moyes could be forced to look at the loan market for short-term solutions.
In attack West Ham have been willing to listen to offers for Ings, who is a loan target for Wolves, but they may be forced to keep the striker after Antonio suffered a setback in his recovery from a knee problem that has kept him out since November. Antonio was in contention to play last weekend but was ruled out after slipping in training.
There is hope that the 33-year-old will only miss the rest of the month, leaving him unavailable for the replay against Bristol City, the trip to Sheffield United and potentially the next round of the FA Cup, but West Ham fear he could be out for six weeks.
The club are also open to offers for Benrahma and Fornals, while Mubama is yet to sign a new deal. They would like to sign a left-winger and are tracking Ajax’s Steven Bergwijn and Sunderland’s Jack Clarke.
Strengthening at the back is also a priority for Moyes. Aguerd is with Morocco at Afcon, Thilo Kehrer has joined Monaco on loan and Konstantinos Mavropanos is undergoing tests on a rib injury sustained against Bristol City. At right-back Vladimír Coufal is unhappy with only being offered a new one-year deal and Ben Johnson’s future is uncertain.
