West Ham: Tomas Soucek injury update and predicted replacement
By Adam Smith
The heart of West Ham’s midfield was dominated by Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek at Anfield, but despite not nabbing any points the biggest loss was the Czech bull in the center of the pitch.
The 46th-minute substitution of Tomas Soucek spelled immediate trouble for West Ham against Liverpool. Soucek has been an engine in the midfield since joining from Slavia Prague in January, and his physical presence has been on display, despite a tough run of fixtures.
With Soucek making way for Pablo Fornals but walking off under his own strength, there was optimism that his injury and substitution were more precautionary rather than serious. With context needed, West Ham have seemingly dodged a major bullet.
The club confirmed that Soucek has sustained a “low grade” hip flexor injury and is expected to miss approximately three weeks of action. They hope to have the Czech international back before the March international break when his home nation plays Mexico and Honduras.
More importantly for the Hammers, Soucek will likely miss the Southampton match, Arsenal match, and Wolves match before hopefully returning to face Spurs on March 20th.
As for his replacement, it’s between two players and the choice is simple. Mark Noble and Carlos Sanchez are currently the only other defensive midfield options to like-for-like replace Soucek. The nod goes to Noble, of course, but the lack of depth really makes you miss the likes of Conor Coventry or even Pedro Obiang!
The formation will likely stay in a 4-3-3 as we saw against Liverpool. The midfield trio should then be Declan Rice, Mark Noble, and a more advanced Pablo Fornals to play the #10 role. This is balanced and also packs players centrally, which helps defensive coverage as well.
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It won’t be easy for the Hammers to stay compact and physical without Soucek in the team, but it wasn’t going to be easy with him in it either. The players picked will have to do their utmost and show the fight they did at Anfield to push this team up and away from relegation. For themselves and for Soucek.