West Ham United have been dealt an injury setback over their versatile Ivorian winger Maxwel Cornet, who suffered an injury in the 2-0 victory over Wolves on Saturday and will miss this evening’s Europa Conference League clash against Anderlecht.
What’s the word?
Speaking in the pre-match press conference in Belgium, David Moyes spoke of his disappointment that the 26-year-old wasn’t able to return for the European tie and had not travelled with the squad to Brussels.
As per WHUFC.com, the 59-year-old said: “It was difficult because we want to get Maxi up to speed. He didn’t have many pre-season games and he’s contributed in quite a few of the games recently, but he’s not with us over here.”
A “massive blow”
Cornet’s injury blow will come as a real disappointment for both him and West Ham, with the Ivory Coast international struck down after only 34 minutes of his full Premier League debut for the Irons last Saturday.
Journalist Dean Jones described the 26-year-old’s absence this evening as “a massive blow” for him, stating that Cornet’s explosive playing style means he cannot ease off, with any muscle injury bound to come as a big ordeal to the Ivorian.
Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Jones said: “I think it’s a massive blow for the player. He’s really had to wait for his chance and he’s been desperate for a start. Any muscle injury for him is obviously going to be a limiter because, given his style of play, he can’t ease off and still be effective.”
While his Premier League involvement for West Ham so far has been piecemeal at best, starting just once and featuring for 86 minutes across the first eight matches of the campaign, Cornet has very much made his mark in the Hammers’ European run.
The 26-year-old provided one assist in the 3-1 win over FCSB and doubled that tally against Silkeborg a week later, so his creative influence could certainly be difficult to replace this evening.
With the Irons facing 10 matches over the next 31 days including tonight, Moyes will be eager to have as many players available as possible so that he can implement some essential squad rotation. He must therefore be praying that Cornet will be able to return to action soon, particularly if injuries begin to pile up elsewhere.
