BT Sport presenter Jake Humphrey has revealed that Marko Arnautovic is not involved in the West Ham squad to face AFC Wimbledon in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Saturday night.
The Austria international has been the subject of heavy speculation surrounding his future, with a big-money bid coming in from China, but the 29-year-old has now committed himself to the club with a statement on Friday.
BT anchor Humphrey has however confirmed that according to their information, the striker will not be a part of the Hammers match day squad at Kingsmeadow.
Reporting from Kingsmeadow during BT Sport Score on BT Sport 2 on Saturday afternoon [17:07], Humphrey said: “We believe Arnautovic is not involved in the squad this evening.”
OPINION
This is not really a surprise considering the fact that Arnautovic only cleared up his decision yesterday, with the Austria international unlikely to have trained well at all this week with all the speculation raging around him. Manager Manuel Pellegrini had previously revealed that the 29-year-old was not committing well enough in training amid the rumours, and confirmed that being the reasoning behind his absence from their last two match day squads. Now that his future is cleared up, it will be expected that Arnautovic begins to give 100% in training once again as he attempts to win back the trust of his teammates and the fans. In truth the Hammers should have more then enough in the tank to overcome Wimbledon on Saturday, with the home side currently sitting rock bottom in League One. Players like Andy Carroll and Javier Hernandez will be keen to prove their worth to Pellegrini in Arnautovic’s absence, and that should see them home against the third-tier minnows.
