West Ham have been handed a major selection boost for their Premier League top four run-in with Manchester United.
After getting back to winning ways against Brentford at the Community Stadium on Wednesday night, United are set to return to Old Trafford on Saturday afternoon (3pm) for a mouth-watering showdown.
As things stand, the Hammers occupy fourth-place in what is shaping up to be an intense battle to qualify for the Champions League for next season - while Arsenal and Tottenham also have to be factored in as Chelsea continue to be pegged back.
Due to the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, West Ham were expecting to be without Algeria winger Said Benrahma for at least another two weeks, but the defending champions have been eliminated early from the competition this year, handing David Moyes a significant boost.
Even without Jesse Lingard - who spent part of last season on loan in London from United - the Hammers are still right in the top-four mix and pose a serious threat in attacking quarters.
Jarrod Bowen, Pablo Fornals and Michail Antonio are some of their leading performers in that area.
Benrahma, too, has enjoyed a profitable return after being handed more game-time by ex-United manager Moyes with the Hammers unable to secure a permanent move for Lingard last summer.
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The 25-year-old has scored five goals and provided four assists in 20 top-flight outings. It remains to be seen if Benrahma will be back early enough to be in contention for the United fixture but having him back earlier than planned is a significant boost to their top four hopes.
Algeria were, meanwhile, sent packing from Group E after winning AFCON in 2019.
They had been heavily tipped to defend that international trophy, but their opening game draw with Sierra Leone was followed up by defeats to Equatorial Guinea and the Ivory Coast - who were able to rest United defender Eric Bailly for that finale after already booking a place in the last-16.
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