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| West Ham United's Gianluca Scamacca in action during the Premier League match at the London Stadium, London. Picture date: Sunday April 2, 2023. |
West Ham United striker Gianluca Scamacca is set for an operation on his knee injury.
Scamacca, 24, has missed West Ham’s last four matches through injury and will again be absent on Sunday as his side host Arsenal.
West Ham manager David Moyes said on Friday: “The only news is that Gianluca Scamacca will have an operation on his knee tomorrow (Saturday) so we will be missing him (against Arsenal).”
Scamacca previously spent four games out with a knee injury in January and Februray, before returning to play a part in West Ham’s Europa Conference League last-16 tie against AEK Larnaca.
The Italian then returned from international duty with a knee injury and has not featured since.
Scamacca has had a challenging season since joining West Ham from Sassuolo last summer. Injuries and form have restricted him to just 16 Premier League appearances so far this season, with only 11 of those from the start.
He has scored eight goals in 27 matches across all competitions but only three of those have come in the league.
West Ham themselves have mirrored Scamacca’s domestic struggles, with Moyes’ side 14th in the Premier League and only three points ahead of the relegation zone with nine matches left to play.
Moyes also spoke about the challenges of the schedule throughout this season, which was interrupted by the World Cup in Qatar and has seen West Ham reach the Conference League quarter-finals.
“We have to try and choose and pick the right players at different moments,” he added. “I think we are a bit more resilient and used to the games than we have been in the past.
“But there is a psychological challenge of the Thursday-Sunday, which makes things really difficult. It is just about recovery and getting the players back and as best prepared as we can.”
