West Ham United defender Issa Diop is fully fit to face Fulham on Saturday, according to Claret and Hugh.
The reliable club source revealed that reports suggesting the French enforcer had suffered a back injury that forced him to miss Saturday’s defeat to Newcastle United were wrong and that the 22-year-old was back in training this week.
Claret and Hugh also report that two new singings, Pablo Fornals, and Sebastien Haller are also set to feature at Craven Cottage, making their debuts for the Hammers in the process.
Fornals was given an extended break after starring at the Under-21’s European Championships, whereas Haller only arrived at the London Stadium this week.
OPINION
This will be great news for all West Ham fans, who will have surely have feared the worst when they saw that Diop was missing from their Premier League Asia Trophy match with what was suggested to be a tweak. Diop is influential in the Hammers back four and was a glaring omission from their defence as Angelo Ogbonna struggled all game to contain Yoshinori Muto, a failed Premier League forward. Diop is the Hammers’ marquee defender, having averaged 2.1 tackles alongside an impressive 4.7 clearances [WhoScored]. As for the West Ham fans, it will be great for them to catch Fornals and Haller in action after their arrivals. It will also be benefitial to the players, who will get the chance to play in three friendlies before the start of the Premier League – something that will only help them get used to Manuel Pellegrini’s style a lot quicker, and see them fully prepared for the season opener against Manchester City.
