Nonsense Niclas Fullkrug noise as Julen Lopetegui is left nowhere to hide at West Ham

Unfortunately, on the evidence so far, the Hammers have got it badly wrong.

Most West Ham observers and fans felt signing a young, quick, powerful forward was a must in the summer.

But despite spending over £155m, technical director Tim Steidten scrimped on the striker signing by bringing in ageing and injury-prone Niclas Fullkrug.

West Ham paid Dortmund £23.5m for Fullkrug instead of going all in on Jhon Duran at £45m.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Fullkrug made three brief cameo substitute appearances in the Premier League ahead of the September international break.

They were inauspicious at best.

The big German has not been seen since and there is no timeframe for his return.

Reports have claimed he will be out of first team match action until 2025. Especially given his loss of conditioning and fitness during his lay-off with with a clearly serious Achilles and calf issue.

Nonsense Fullkrug noise as Lopetegui left nowhere to hide

All the warning signs were there from the 31-year-old’s lengthy list of injuries which have dogged his career.

It makes the decision to sign Fullkrug all the more frustrating.

And that has piled pressure on Steidten, who has become almost as much the focus of fan ire as Julen Lopetegui after just three league wins from 11 games.

The manager confirmed Fullkrug will be out for the foreseeable future and explained any recovery has to be cautious given the risk of exacerbating the problem.

Fullkrug has been back and forth to Germany for treatment and recovery.

So much so he missed the club’s team photograph and was photoshopped into it by West Ham this week.

There has been a lot of nonsense Fullkrug noise but now Lopetegui is left nowhere to hide at West Ham.

Merson suggests Fullkrug might transform West Ham

After the dismal draw with Everton last weekend, Paul Merson was looking for positives for the Hammers.

He had the misfortune to be assigned the game on Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday.

The only hope he could offer West Ham was that Fullkrug might improve them when he returns.

“When the lad from Dortmund Fullkrug, when he is fit, I do like him, when he gets fit, you might be (a better side, better in attack),” Merson said.

That is a remark repeated by a number of West Ham fans when defending Lopetegui and the side’s performances.

Many have bemoaned the ‘West Ham striker curse’ and feel Lopetegui has been unlucky to be hampered by the injury.

Blaming West Ham’s poor start to life under the Spaniard on injuries is a myth that has been swiftly debunked, though.

West Ham the club least impacted by injuries, by some distance

Because it has been revealed that West Ham have suffered the fewest injuries causing players to miss games in the entire Premier League this season.

In addition to being the least-affected side in terms of total injuries, West Ham are also bottom for days lost to injuries.

In fact the Hammers are miles off anyone else according to data from Premier Injuries.

In terms of days lost from injuries West Ham have just 84 – almost entirely down to Fullkrug.

The next team is Bournemouth with 115 days.

Most teams have over 200 days lost to injuries so far.

And high-flying Brighton really leave Lopetegui no excuses.

They have the most days lost to injuries in the Premier League with a whopping 397.

That’s over four times West Ham’s 84, yet they are sat sixth in the table under their innovative and brave young manager.

Lopetegui has arguably the thickest West Ham squad for years.

Blaming his struggles on the loss of Fullkrug with the talent he has at his disposal is frankly laughable.

Days lost to injury in the Premier League 2024/25:

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