LUCAS PAQUETA is facing up to a month on the sidelines with an ankle injury.
The West Ham midfielder, 27, limped out of training at the London Stadium on Tuesday as Graham Potter’s side prepare to face Arsenal this weekend.
Paqueta had only just returned from a groin injury which saw him miss the Hammers’ defeat to Chelsea.
The Brazilian was assessed on Wednesday by club medics and is facing three to four weeks out.
That could see Paqueta miss the next four West Ham games, with Potter’s side facing Arsenal, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton before mid-March.
Paqueta started up front against Brentford, with new man Evan Ferguson on the bench as he continues to recover from his own ankle injury.
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Potter is having to deal with an ever-growing injury list.
The ex-Chelsea boss has only been able to play Paqueta, Jarrod Bowen and Mohammed Kudus together once since replacing Julen Lopetegui last month.
Bowen has returned from a broken foot, but Michail Antonio will not play again this season.
Meanwhile, summer signings Crysensio Summerville and Niclas Fullkrug are both sidelined with hamstring injuries.
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Vladimir Coufal also missed Saturday’s defeat to Brentford through injury.
Antonio has been working on his recovery from his horror car crash in December, with a training camp in Dubai last week.
The plague of fitness issues has sparked talk of the Hammers showing interest in Tammy Abraham.
The ex-Chelsea forward, 27, is on loan at AC Milan from Roma.
But it’s reckoned the 11-cap Englishman would ultimately prefer a return to the Prem.
And a permanent summer switch back to Britain could be on the cards.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
