JamBlog

It has been an international break to forget for West Ham following injuries to Michail Antonio and Jarrod Bowen.

Antonio will be sidelined for two to three weeks with a knee problem.

Despite fears of a ruptured medial ligament, scans have revealed the 33-year-old had only suffered a strain when he went off in Jamaica’s 2-1 loss to visitors Canada in the first leg of a CONCACAF Nations League quarter-final on Saturday. It was a tackle in the sixth minute by defender Sam Adekugbe which caused the injury; Antonio played on until the 21st minute before being substituted.

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This will be a blow for West Ham manager David Moyes because Antonio is his first choice to spearhead their attack.

The striker, who had interest from Saudi Arabian clubs Al Ettifaq, Damac and Al Riyadh in the summer, started the season well, scoring in back-to-back league games against Chelsea and Brighton in August. Despite his form tailing off, with a return of those two goals across 14 appearances in all competitions, he remained an ever-present in the Premier League.

So who should start away against Burnley on Saturday when the club season resumes?

Bowen would have been the alternative option as a lone striker, but he suffered a minor knee injury in training on international duty with England. It is not thought to be serious, but Bowen, who has nine goals and three assists in 16 appearances this season, is a doubt to play at Turf Moor.

To compound matters, Kudus — Moyes’ other attacking option — is also a fitness concern.

The versatile summer signing picked up a back injury while away with Ghana and although he came on for the second half of Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier away against Comoros, he might be a risky option to start for the Hammers. Kudus is a key player for West Ham already, having registered four goals in 15 appearances for his new club. Similar to Bowen, he can operate as a lone striker having played that role for Danish side Nordsjaelland before a 2020 move to Ajax.

Should injury rule out Bowen as well as Antonio, with Kudus perhaps on the bench, then Divin Mubama and Danny Ings will be left as the recognised forwards.

Mubama is yet to play in the Premier League this season despite having a promising pre-season in Australia this summer. The now 19-year-old scored against Perth Glory and Tottenham Hotspur and was praised by first-team coach Billy McKinlay.

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The Athletic reported Mubama has rejected a contract extension as he enters the final year of the deal he signed in October 2021, which does not include a one-year option. With discussions ongoing, this injury to Antonio could present an opportunity for him. But Moyes has been cautious this season about integrating Mubama into the starting XI. The England Under-20 international has only played 26 minutes of first-team football so far in three substitute appearances in Europe and the Carabao Cup under the Scot, who still hopes he will commit his long-term future to the club.

Mubama made six senior appearances last season, became West Ham’s youngest first-team scorer (18 years, four months and 19 days) since Freddie Sears in 2008 against AEK Larnaca in the Europa Conference League’s round of 16, and was voted the club’s young player of the year. He had loan interest from Championship clubs in the summer, but with West Ham failing to sign a new striker, they decided to keep him. But Mubama has been an unused substitute in seven Premier League games this term and was not in the matchday squad for the 3-2 win against Nottingham Forest in the final fixture before this international break.

The club’s second-choice forward after Antonio is Ings, who has struggled since joining in January for £15million from Aston Villa.

The 31-year-old former England international has not been able to settle into Moyes’ preferred 4-2-3-1 system and his most recent Premier League goal for West Ham was in February. Lacking the pace of the club’s other lone striker options, he did not impress this season in Europa League starts against TSC Backa Topola and Olympiacos and was taunted by fans of third-tier opponents Lincoln City after missing a straightforward chance in September’s Carabao Cup tie.

That moment summed up Ings’ underwhelming first eight months at West Ham. Although the former Burnley, Liverpool and Southampton forward has been Moyes’ preferred attacking option off the bench, he has made little impact when he has got on the pitch.

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West Ham have eight matches in December across three competitions, so Ings will see action if fit, but time is running out for him to create a lasting impression.

One player who has shown improvement is Tomas Soucek, who signed a new four-year contract in August and got the winner last time out against Forest. If the injuries to Kudus and Bowen are worse than initially feared, Moyes could deploy the 6ft 3in (192cm) midfielder up front. It is a role he has already played briefly and was his position in his academy days at Slavia Prague.

The 28-year-old has five club goals across 17 appearances this season, already beating his three-goal total from 2022-23. And he scored more during this international break, in European Championship qualifiers against Poland and Moldova, to help the Czech Republic book their place in next summer’s tournament.

There are also similarities between the heading abilities of Antonio and Soucek and when Soucek first joined the club from Slavia in January 2020, his quality with the ball in the air led to comparisons with Marouane Fellaini, the goalscoring Belgium midfielder Moyes managed at both Everton and Manchester United.

Another option is Maxwel Cornet, but he has only played one minute of league football this season and that was in the opening match against Bournemouth back in August.

Cornet has been an unused substitute eight times since and was not in the matchday squad for the games against Manchester City, Villa and Forest. The versatile 27-year-old can play at left-back, across both flanks and as a forward, but he has struggled with game time since a transfer from Burnley after their relegation from the Premier League in the summer of 2022. He has only started one of West Ham’s past 15 league matches, against Brentford in May.

Antonio has been Moyes’ go-to option when searching for his successor in the transfer market has proved fruitless.

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Moyes is aware he will eventually have to plan for life without the forward, who will be 34 by season’s end — and the next three weeks will be a dress rehearsal for a post-Antonio future at the London Stadium.

(Top photo: Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)

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