Tomorrow’s pre season fixture may be a modest event as far as the pro-season routine is concerned: West Ham United visit Stevenage Town from the third tier in their second official pre-season game.
Already though, the appearance or absence of key squad members will have huge consequences for players and their futures at the club, as the manager starts on his season-defining decisions over who to keep and who to label as ‘surplus to requirements’.
Many might have considered Niclas Fullkrug to be rooted within the ‘latter’ category: The 33 year old had a failed loan at AC Milan last Spring and few will lament his leaving the club at which he’s flopped so spectacularly in one of West Ham’s ‘worst ever’-category transfers.
Fullkrug back in training ahead of Stevenage pre-season game
But his absence from the Saturday fixture against Southend was not on account of being discarded by the Hammers boss.
Fullkrug pulled up injured in the warm-up for Saturday’s game, apparently, and sat out the fixture.
However it is reported that he’ll be available for tomorrow’s game: Dedicated West Ham watchers will be weighing up Nuno’s starting eleven and substitutes.
The paucity of goal scoring talent within the squad might tempt Nuno to reconsider Fullkrug for the Championship. He’s here, he’s paid for and if he can rediscover some ability to score goals he’d possibly be worth re-integrating into West Ham’s line up for next season.
Having established that there are no clubs leaping in to pay millions for him, the Irons could yet decide that they have a surprising Callum Wilson replacement already hiding in plain sight.
Anyone thinking that tomorrow evening’s run out is just another pre-season friendly might need to take a closer look at the starting and substitute line-up for clues as to the Hammers’ strategic plan. An ‘invisible’ Fullkrug surely means a dip into the transfer market for a goal scorer remains an essential move – along with the winger, the defender and the play maker- before August 18th.
Only comparison with Wilson is his injury history.
No such club as Stevenage Town Martin! Stevenage FC, known as “The Borough”, yes. And as for it being a modest friendly, Stevenage made the League One play off’s last season and so were very close to joining us in the Championship this term. Let’s be respectful because it is a huge occasion for them and they deserve to enjoy it.
Fullkrug in that training photo looks to me in better shape than he did when he last played for us
Injured in the warm up, says it all really. Wilson was still hungry, not sure about this guy anymore.
Dare I ask, what about Cornet? Not heard any news of an imminent departure and with Summerville going it leaves just Lamadrid as the main option wide left. I know he has been another disaster since we bought him but if we struggle to make a decent signing or 2, surely he has enough quality to be a sub in the championship?
How has he been a disaster? he barely played so stop getting on someones back before you have seen anything of him..and if you are going to say he cannot be that great as Nuno did not pick him except for the Burton game…the mans arrived from Venezuela to a strange country and into a beleaguered under siege side that were struggling…wonder how you would be doing in that scenario…..so give it a rest and let us see what he can do before labeling him as rubbish….
Cornet not Lamadid. Wish the young guy nothing but success