Bruce confirms 4 players will miss West Ham – but 1 set to return…on one condition

Steve Bruce has confirmed that tomorrow’s trip to West Ham will come too soon Fabian Schar, Matt Ritchie and Florian Lejeune – but Andy Carroll is set to return IF he comes through training today.

Sean Longstaff is also ruled out for the next three after his straight red against Wolves last weekend, meaning the likes of Isaac Hayden, Jonjo Shelvey and Ki Sung-Yeung are in contention for tomorrow’s game.

Here’s what Bruce has had to say on the injury front when speaking to the press in the last few moments:

“Andy Carroll has trained the last couple of days, so he’ll come back into the squad. It’s still too early for Matt Ritchie and Fabian Schär.”

“He (Schar) could be OK for Bournemouth (next Saturday). He’s been sore with his knee for a while, but we don’t think it’s too serious.”

Hopefully Schar is back for Bournemouth, with his ability to create from deep and get us on the front foot especially valuable at home.

As for Ritchie, he’s been ‘close’ for a long time but continues to miss out. Let’s hope he’s back soon and hasn’t suffered any setbacks.

Bruce then spoke out about Lejeune’s fitness, confirming he’ll play again for the U-23’s on Monday in hope of him returning to first-team action after the international break:

“He’ll play again at Aston Villa on Monday night. Hopefully he’ll get 75 or 80 minutes in that one. We’ve another international break coming up, and hopefully after that he’ll be available.”

The NUFC boss then discussed the ‘two solutions’ he’s faced with following our struggles in the final third, suggesting he must decide between a change of formation and change of personnel:

“That is the conundrum we face. There’s two solutions – change the system or change personnel.

“So we will see how we go tomorrow and that’s obviously the conundrum which I face.”

After just 4 shots on target in our last 4, let’s hope we pose much more of a threat at West Ham tomorrow.

About Olly Hawkins

As a Junior Magpie since birth and season ticket holder, I eat, sleep and breathe all things NUFC! Here at the blog, I aim to bring you news, views, match reports and transfer exclusives as and when I get them.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *