Presenter ExWHUemployee has revealed that new West Ham United signing Nayef Aguerd could be out for up to 12 weeks after picking up an ankle injury.
Worryingly, the Moroccan centre-back – who just arrived from Rennes for £30m – came off during the first half of the Hammers’ friendly match against Rangers, leading to fears over his fitness.
It seems as though those concerns have now been validated, as Aguerd has had to have an operation on his ankle that will now keep him on the sidelines over the coming weeks, and maybe even months.
Indeed, while writing an update on The West Ham Way Patreon page, Ex explained: “As we have covered on the podcast before there was no clear verdict on the injury of the new signing Nayef Aguerd until the swelling had gone down.
“As it now has, it has been confirmed that he needed an operation on the ankle. As we predicted, he is almost certain to miss both the Man City game, the Forest game and possibly a couple of others depending on his recovery rate. The injury can range from 4-12 weeks out depending on the individual recoveries.
“This is a big blow for the club with [Issa] Diop supposedly keen to move to Fulham, [Craig] Dawson currently injured and [Angelo] Ogbonna only just returning to fitness. With recent centre-back injuries, the recoveries have always been quicker than expected, so we hope this is the case with the Moroccan international.”
Do West Ham need to sign another centre-back?
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TIF Thoughts on Nayef Aguerd and West Ham…
As Ex says, this news will come as a ‘big blow’ for the Hammers, especially with Aguerd being tipped to be an exciting signing for the club who could make a big difference at the back.
As it is though, his injury will mean he won’t be able to feature in the early stages of the Premier League season at the very least. Due to this and other issues relating to the likes of Issa Diop, Craig Dawson and Angelo Ogbonna, it has been suggested that West Ham may well now have to go back into the transfer market to make another defensive signing soon.
Following this latest update on Aguerd, it certainly wouldn’t be a shock if David Moyes and co set their sights on a new man coming in to bolster the squad for the upcoming campaign.