West Ham will be hoping to continue their impressive Premier League form as they take on Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on Sunday.
The Hammers will almost certainly have their sights set on a place in the top four, really turning things around of late.
The Hammers are just six points behind fourth-placed Arsenal, having won half of their 20 league games so far — closing the gap with a win over the Gunners just after Christmas. That victory was their third in a row, having also beaten Wolves and Manchester United, all without conceding.
The winning run did come to an end at the start of the year, but West Ham remain unbeaten with a goalless draw against Brighton.
A solid defence coupled with creating and taking chances heading into January will have pleased David Moyes but there’s certainly plenty of more work to be done if they are to continue their chase for a place in the European places.
Dealing with an injury crisis
There are several injury concerns though for Moyes and West Ham.
Jarrod Bowen won’t be making the trip to South Yorkshire after suffering an ankle injury and is likely to be out for ‘at least one month’ having been forced off in the 1-1 draw in the FA Cup to Bristol City.
Lucas Paqueta was also forced off after just 14 minutes, suffering a reoccurrence of a calf issue that kept him out of against the Brighton draw two weeks ago. He’s potentially going to be missing for at least one month along with Bowen, giving Moyes a huge headache.
With Michail Antonio out for the rest of January with a knee issue and Mohammed Kudus playing in the African Cup of Nations, the Hammers are limited in their attacking options.
It leaves Said Benrahma, Danny Ings and Divin Mubama as the only notable replacements for Moyes’ lengthy unavailable list.
