West Ham United’s Premier League campaign starts on Saturday with a visit from Manchester City.
The Hammers need to hit the ground running this season after a poor start cost them last term, and getting a result against Pep Guardiola’s side will do their confidence and morale a whole lot of good.
The London Stadium outfit have been hit with an injury blow, though, as skipper Mark Noble is set to miss the clash.
The midfielder is suffering from a dead leg and did miss West Ham’s last game of the pre-season against Athletic Bilbao last weekend as a result.
After further assessments by the medical team, Noble has been ruled out for the City game, and manager Manuel Pellegrini has confirmed it.
“For the moment we have Mark Noble injured, he will not be fit for the game,” the Chilean told football.london.
“All the other players are fit.”
While the 32-year-old missing the game is a blow, Pellegrini will be glad others are available.
There were earlier fears that goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski will not be in goal for the Premier League defending champions’ visit after he aggravated a groin injury he picked up early in the pre-season during the warm-up for West Ham’s clash against Hertha Berlin last Wednesday.
However, the Poland international has since been cleared, handing Pellegrini a massive boost.
With a full squad available – except Noble – the manager has plenty of options to pick from in the middle of the park, and it will be interesting to see how the Hammers line up against the almighty Man. City.
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