West Ham manager Manuel Pellegrini will be “grateful” to forward Andriy Yarmolenko for stepping up to the plate in the absence of Michail Antonio.
The Ukrainian has found himself a key member of the Chilean’s side, hitting three goals so far this term, with Antonio sidelined by a hamstring injury.
And writing in a piece for Football.London, Inkersole said: “Pellegrini will be grateful that Andriy Yarmolenko has very much stepped up after Michail Antonio’s injury.”
OPINION
Full credit to Yarmolenko, he has had to graft to get to this point in his West Ham career. The Ukrainian endured a miserable year last season, and found himself very much on the outskirts of things as he battled long term injury. Now, however, he must be one of the first names on Manuel Pellegrini’s team sheet. Three goals so far this season has set him up as a real danger man in claret and blue, as has his average of 1.6 shots and 1.7 key passes per game, as per Whoscored. It’s perhaps unfortunate that his opportunity has come at the expense of a player as well-respected as Antonio, but from a personal point of view, he will just be happy to be back on a pitch.
