Graham Potter faces a huge injury crisis at the start of his West Ham reign.
Niclas Fullkrug was very effective in the opening stages of the Hammers’ FA Cup 3rd round defeat to Aston Villa on Friday night, playing a crucial role in the build-up to Lucas Paqueta’s early opener.
But he pulled up just minutes later with what looked to be a serious hamstring injury, which forced him off in the 15th minute.
Michail Antonio and Jarrod Bowen’s injuries mean it’s likely Potter will only have Danny Ings available as his only fit striker for the foreseeable, at least until he can sign another frontman in the transfer window.
It’s a disastrous situation for the new boss to find himself in so soon after replacing Julen Lopetegui. The build-up to Paqueta’s goal at Villa Park gave West Ham fans a glimpse of how effective a front four of Mohammed Kudus, Crysencio Summerville, Paqueta and Fullkrug could be under Potter’s stewardship as all four combined to give the Hammers the lead.
It appears Potter already has a plan, though, and he has name-dropped the one player in the West Ham squad he sees as an option to deputies up top until reinforcements can be brought in.
That player is Kudus, who looked lively in the first half against Villa after being deployed in his more favoured No.10 role by Potter.
And Potter has already admitted that he knows how effective Kudus can be when played to his strengths.
Speaking to The Mirror, he said: “Mo was really dangerous [against Aston Villa].
“He’s got some good attributes. He worked really well first-half, pressing, won some balls. Carried a threat.
“He was affected by the team in the second-half because it was more difficult for him to get into the game.
“I was encouraged. He played more centrally than he has done for a bit. He quite likes that central role to the right.
“He comes in on that left foot and he’s a threat. He offers us a good option, absolutely.”
It’s refreshing to know that Potter has already identified Kudus’ strengths so soon after arriving in east London, following the Ghana international’s frustrating performances under Julen Lopetegui.
Taking Potter’s thoughts on Kudus into consideration, we might expect Kudus to start as a striker on Tuesday night against Fulham despite Ings being the only recognised striker in the squad.
Ings was mostly ineffective against Villa after he replaced Fullkrug and missed two huge chances in the second half.
That may have convinced Potter that he will need to try something different on Tuesday, with Kudus appearing to have impressed Potter enough to be given the responsibility of leading the line at London Stadium.