West Ham United playmaker Pablo Fornals will likely get two weeks off before linking up with his new teammates, according to Claret & Hugh.
The reliable Hammers news source claims that the new signing will be given extra time off as he is part of the Spain team that have reached the final of the Under-21s European Championships.
The 23-year-old is expected to miss the Switzerland training camp, but will likely join up with Manuel Pellegrini’s squad ahead of their trip to China.
Paraguay star Fabian Balbuena is likely to be on the same timescale as the former Villarreal man, having just been knocked out of the Copa America on Friday night.
OPINION
The West Ham supporters will no doubt be keen to see Fornals linking up with his new teammates and wearing the famous claret and blue shirt as soon as possible. However, he is competing in a competition at the moment where he has played a key part in his team reaching the final, so he’s going to need time to rest and recuperate after his travails with his national team. If the Hammers are going to get the best out of Fornals in his debut season then they’ll need him to be fully fit and rested if that is to happen. Two weeks makes sense, because he’s not going to miss out on anything major during that time period. It’s the same thing with Balbuena, who has been with Paraguay at the Copa America. He hasn’t made quite as positive an impression during that tournament as Fornals has during his, but he remains a vitally important player for Pellegrini’s side. The two weeks should do him good as he continues to come off an injury-plagued campaign last time out.
